Girl s Windmill Pitching V olum e 342 Septem ber 22, 2011 You Will See the Difference I remember a time when people used to tell me and my students that they could recognize my pitching students because of their mechanics. Although all were not clones of each other, they had basic fundamentally sound mechanics that helped prevent injury and they all resembled each other in their mechanical approach to pitching. These days it seems that the kids don t want to focus on mechanics and are more enthralled with speed and learning different pitches. Some of mine still work hard on mechanics but not all. What difference does it make if you throw hard if you can t throw strikes? What difference does it make if you throw strikes if you don t have speed? Speed, control, movement all come from the correct mechanics from the feet up. If you don t work on the mechanics, you will not advance to achieve your full potential. You will hit a point at which you are at a stand still and may want to find another instructor who can take you to the next level. The problem will go with you. If you maintain bad mechanics you may get a little more speed as your body matures but you will also face the potential injury that can accompany bad mechanics. Don t think I say this to keep you as students. You do me a huge favor if you leave when you don t do as I instruct. I do not teach exactly as I did 15, 10 or even 5 years ago. The game advances. It changes. Pitching has changed. Some things that were taught in the past have been improved upon and done differently. Overuse is a word that has found its way into the vocabulary of the fastpitch pitcher. Dr. Sherry Werner who did the original 1996 Olympic Study has done further research and determined the following: A significant number of time-loss injuries to the upper extremity in elite windmill softball pitchers has been documented. The number of outings and pitches thrown in 1 week for a softball pitcher is typically far in excess of those seen in baseball pitchers. Shoulder stress in professional baseball pitching has been reported to be high and has been linked to pitching injuries. Shoulder distraction has not been studied in an elite softball pitching population. Hypothesis: The stresses on the throwing shoulder of elite windmill pitchers are similar to those found for professional baseball pitchers. Study Design: Descriptive laboratory study. Methods: Three-dimensional, high-speed (120 Hz) video data were collected on rise balls from 24 elite softball pitchers during the 1996 Olympic Games. Kinematic parameters related to pitching mechanics and resultant kinetics on the throwing shoulder were calculated. Multiple linear regression analysis was used to relate shoulder stress and pitching mechanics. Results: Shoulder distraction stress averaged 80% of body weight for the Olympic pitchers. Sixty-nine percent of the variability in shoulder distraction can be explained by a combination of 7 parameters related to pitching mechanics.
Conclusion: Excessive distraction stress at the throwing shoulder is similar to that found in baseball pitchers, which suggests that windmill softball pitchers are at risk for overuse injuries. Normative information regarding upper extremity kinematics and kinetics for elite softball pitchers has been established. This study shows there is correlation between overuse and shoulder distraction injuries. In simple terms this means that the arm actually is stretched away from the shoulder by the forces of the windmill pitch. By allowing the elbow to bend as the lower arm accelerates less distraction will take place, easing the stress on the shoulder area, while aiding medial rotation and forearm pronation. A straighter arm can cause the distraction issue to be worse. Obviously now many of us realize that the number of pitches that a windmill pitcher is required to throw over a season is much higher than baseball pitchers and wear and tear does occur under the best circumstances. Yet, we also see that colleges will go with their number one pitcher every time it is deemed necessary and for the most part so will the youth coaches. That is not going to change in the foreseeable future but we can lessen the stress and incidence of injury by trying to make sure our students use correct mechanics. If we do that and the parents and kids decide to go to another instructor, so be it. Mechanics that promote the safety of the young pitcher first should be our first goal and will always be mine. If someone disagrees with me and says it is nonsense that is their choice, but more intelligent people than me are doing the studies and I will depend on the science. Why do certain pitches not work when you insist you do everything right? Obviously, you don t even though you think you do. If you are told to release the ball with a certain grip to produce results, the mechanics may not be correct if you are not getting results. Again, it is in the mechanics. From beginning to end good pitches require good mechanics. You must get your hand to the correct release point by getting your hand and fingers to approach the release point in a way that helps you impart maximum spin in the correct direction. It s all about the mechanics. I recently had a college coach tell me one of his pitchers either throws over the middle of the plate or way off the plate. He wanted some help in correcting it. I asked if the ball drifted over the middle or if she threw it there. She threw it there. I sent him material about what to look for in the physical mechanics so he could pass it on to his pitching coach. However, what if it isn t physical mechanic problems but mental instead. Mental mechanics require mental discipline, mental focus, mentally being able to recognize what your body is doing, mentally realizing what you are trying to accomplish with each pitch. So as we work on physical mechanics of the pitch or think we are working on them, we must have a mental frame of mind or mental discipline to be able to focus on what we are doing each time we throw a pitch from beginning to the end of the follow-through. Otherwise we are not really practicing the way we should. There is a lot to pitching that you may not realize. It is complicated. It requires complete concentration. It requires a lot of practice and working through frustration. To do it in a way that will take you to the higher levels requires a determination that only a few possess. The other facets of the game also require mental followed by physical mechanics. Infielders and outfielders, catchers and hitters should work on their position as much as a pitcher does, but few do. Mechanics correctly performed apply when a fielder gets herself in the correct position to field a ball. There are certain mechanical consistencies that all of the elite players display. It begins in the brain and ends when the play is completed. We are going to look at some of the team USA players below. Try to determine what they have in common, put it into action in your practice and watch as the quality of your play elevates. Study the photos closely. Don t just look. Study.
Photos
Tips If you really studied the photos above you will notice some similarities. Although Lauren s feet (photo on right) are farther apart, both girls have their legs under them, giving them maximum balance as they catch the ball. Both girls have their heads down and follow the ball into the glove. Both are using both hands which secures the ball in the glove and allows them to make a faster transfer. In the other 3 photos notice the form. Eyes are on the target. Shoulders, hips, arms, and feet are in line with the target. Belly buttons are at right angles to the target. Elbow or glove is directed at the target to avoid the flailing problem that can occur. If their mechanics are so similar, mechanics must be important! If you want to eventually play the game at the highest level, learn the mechanics that can help you achieve that goal. Don t continue to do the little things wrong and expect the results to be right. Make a promise to yourself that you will correct one mechanical flaw each week. Then stick to it. You will see a difference. Girl s Windmill Pitching Website My website, though still undergoing enhancements, is now active. You can find my newsletters, some links, photos, and some of my students video clips. I will soon be adding video tips on pitching and hopefully other information. Be sure and bookmark Girl s Windmill Pitching Maryland Stars Pitching Clinic It looks as if I will be returning to conduct the fall/winter Maryland Stars Pitching clinic for what I believe is the 7 th or 8 th year in a row. This time I think we will be doing Sunday afternoons. Of course we will still be at Linton Springs Elementary School in Eldersburg, MD. Maryland Stars pitchers will be accepted first and then the public. Make sure and contact Glen Warholic at Glen@Thewarholics.Com if you are interested in attending. There are usually two 8-week sessions and you can register or either or both. Girl s Windmill Pitching Private Lessons I am currently giving one on one 30-minute private pitching instructions on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday in the Georgetown, DE area and Fridays at the Lower Shore Family YMCA. If you are interested we occasionally have openings. Contact me at billdryden1@girlswindmillpitching.com Recruiter MOM This link will answer some valuable questions for the parents and student/athletes hoping to become prospects. I highly advise you to visit the site that has been set up and researched by Jan Greenhawk by clicking on the title above or by pasting http://recruitermom.org/index.html in your browser. Check this link. I ve gotten good feedback. Andy Givens Hitting Instruction Andy Givens is the former Delaware Technical and Community College Assistant Baseball Coach, and former Head Softball Coach. He is currently the Head Softball Coach of the Delaware Diamonds 18U team and gives private hitting instruction at his place between Georgetown and Laurel, DE. If you are looking for a superb, patient instructor to help give you an edge, contact Andy at (302) 228-7960 or email him at:ragivens@verizon.net
Maryland Stars Blog I encourage you to click on the Maryland Stars Blog above and read their articles. They are insightful and informative no matter if you are a coach, player, or parent. You can even comment about the articles. Good Stuff!! My daughter, Ashley is a Mary Kaye Director in Qualification. If anyone is interested in becoming a representative to earn extra income or if you wish to purchase products or host a party contact Ashley through her website at: http://www.marykay.com/asomers6/default.aspx, click on the logo above or call her at (302) 228-3829. News and Tournament Results There are no tournament results yet. Several scrimmages have been played. One of the highlights I have heard occurred when the Maryland Magic Orange 14U scrimmaged the Maryland Magic 16U. 14U pitcher/first baseman Shelby Smith, a 13-year-old 8 th grader slammed a 260' homer that landed in the parking lot beyond the center field fence. One of the spectators measured the long ball from the fence to the point it landed. Dale St John of Orlando, Florida Pictured above is my friend, Dale St John, a well known pitching instructor in central Florida. Dale passed away on September 12 th at the age of 78. The softball world will be left with a void in it with Dale s passing. Although we had been good friends for years we had lost contact with each other over the past 6 or 7 years. When my students would be in Florida for a tournament I would arrange for them to have a lesson with him and he never refused. This has happened a couple of times recently. A couple of months ago I read about a cousin passing with whom I was close until our early 20's. We drifted apart and I ended up reading of her death and now Dale s. Maddie Lemon (Mid-Atlantic Lady Shockers 12U) is still recovering from her broken wrist. Sam Frungillo (Fairfield University) has an injured ankle sidelining her for at least part of the fall season. Katie O Neal (Washington High) sustained an ankle and knee injury playing field hockey.