Baseball Pitching Drills

I am often asked about what baseball pitching drills should I use to help my kid out. What works the best? Where do I start? How do I throw a curveball? How do you throw a forkball. When should I teach my kid to throw a curve? What can I do to improve his form? Hopefully this page will help you with all the baseball pitching drills and exercises that you need. Let’s start with the basics that you should be doing… Before reviewing take a look at Tim Lincecum showing his great mechanics.

1- Knee drill: If you are a right hander, kneel down on right knee and conversely for a left hander. Play catch with proper upper body and arm motion from 30-50 feet.

Purpose: To isolate upper body and ensure that proper arm actions are being utilized. This will take away the bottom portion so you can concentrate on good arm mechanics. How does this help promote good mechanics? As mentioned above. Look for good circular motion from arm, shoulder turn and lined up with catching partner, and make sure arm is up (elbow shoulder high). Make sure they have good follow through with throwing elbow finishing up on other side of opposite knee.

2-Balance drill: If there was ever a drill that was really important, this is the one. Just like in hitting, fielding, all venues of sports…, you have to have good balance and pitching is no different. This is my most important of the baseball pitching drills. Purpose: To ensure that proper balance is being performed and maintained. Execution: Practice without the ball. Go through your windup and when you reach your balance position, stop and hold it for approximately 5 seconds. After being able to maintain your balance in a good position, you are ready to proceed with the rest of your delivery. Why do we do this? I can’t illustrate enough the importance of this. There is a drill in hitting that is the same principal. Striding, stopping and holding to make sure you have good balance. This is where all your power, speed, and consistant execution comes from. That is why..

These are my 2 favorite baseball pitching drills. You should try and keep things simple and if you master these 2 drills, you are well on your way.

Other things I get asked quite a bit is how to throw off-speed pitches. How should I hold the ball for a curveball, etc. For some of the basic fundamentals on throwing these pitches just click on the links below and I hope these will help you. In the near future I will be supplying more pictures and visual examples for you.