The Changeup: Best Pitch in Baseball?

Well, that depends on a lot of different factors.

First of all, every off speed pitch in a pitcher's arsenal works off of one thing, a well located fastball. If you've been keeping up with this blog you should already know that velocity isn't everything.
A well located fastball does 2 things to a batter. First, with consistency, it can tell a hitter that you are in control, decreasing the probability that you will leave a pitch over the middle thereby forcing the hitter to swing at your pitch, not his. If he knows you're not going to give in to him, then he will go out of his comfort zone to try and reach base.

Second, a well located fastball sets up your off speed. By throwing different pitches that start on the same plane, you can dramatically increase your ability to deceive the hitter. All of this, however, is dependent upon accuracy.

So why the changeup? 

We talk about pitching in planes. While it is another segment all together, what you intend to do with this philosophy is throw an off speed pitch that looks as close to the fastball as possible. The changeup is that pitch. Arm angle is the same, arm speed is the same, and wrist angle is the same. It's just slower and most of the time it moves.

While a well located fastball can setup your off speed pitches, a GOOD changeup can be the glue that holds all of your other pitches together. This includes your fastball.

What is a good changeup?

I like to say that a good change is 7-10 mph slower than your fastball and it changes planes (has some break in it).

I know several drills that can help develop a great changeup. Having an instructor when learning or developing pitches is invaluable.

Remember: nothing can get you to the next level faster than working with a professional. If you, or someone else you know, needs individual instruction please contact me via email at gwhelan@tpgpitching.com for more information.

Improving Velocity - Quick Fix

Velocity is constantly on the minds of pitchers at every level. Although velocity is not the most important factor in being successful, it is still a very valuable asset when playing at higher levels. I am going to tell you how you can instantly add a little velocity to your pitches or at least give you a little more life on your fastball by addressing a common issue amongst younger pitchers; getting behind the baseball.

We hear this phrase all the time, at every level, but what does it mean?

Well, to put it simply, it means using ALL the force generated by the body to throw the ball, while taking as much strain off the arm as possible. Oftentimes pitchers generate a lot of power but miss out on using it because the body jumps ahead of the ball too fast, making the arm do all of the work. So how do we fix this?

One simple fix is to separate your hands a little earlier. This gives the arm a head start getting it into the slot easier and allow the body to stay back. Here is a simple drill you can do to teach your muscles the right timing. Get to the balanced position and pause. A split second before you begin to drop your lift leg, begin to separate your hands. Continue your motion until just before you come out of balance and pull your lift leg and arms back up to the balance position you started in. Repeat this 10 times and rest for 30 sec. You should do 2 or 3 sets of this drill every other day.

Remember: nothing can get you to the next level faster than working with a professional. If you, or someone else you know, needs individual instruction please contact me via email at gwhelan@tpgpitching.com for more information.

The Importance of Private Lessons

I wanted to take some time after a few weeks off to answer a question I get all the time: "Why do I need lessons?"

It is no secret. The higher level you play at, the more personal coaching you get. Why? Well, it is really quite simple. There are more coaches available to specialize in each position (i.e., hitting, pitching, outfield, infield, etc.). At any level, high school or below (even some college teams), rosters are small, creating a demand for multi-tooled players. It's not too often that you see a guy who is only a pitcher at these levels. They do it all.

So, what does that mean? It means that it is up to you to focus on individual aspects of your game. This can be quite difficult when a player has to squeeze in a bullpen between BP and outfield drills. Not to take anything away from the coaches, these guys deserve a lot of credit for squeezing all this into a 1 or 2 hour practice.

Bottom line: you need additional time outside of practice to focus on something as demanding as pitching. You will need to do some things on your own and that is how you get to the next level. It is important to maximize the extra time you have to achieve the results you looking for. This is where the personal instructor comes in.

A private instructor knows exactly how to make the most of the time you have and can teach you how to work on things in your own free time. Also, it is extremely important that the instructor takes into account what is going on in practice so that the player is not over-worked. Having an expert like this goes a long way and shortens the learning curve.

The Perfect Game is here to help you grow!

Remember: nothing can get you to the next level faster than working with a professional. If you, or someone else you know, needs individual instruction please contact me via email at gwhelan@tpgpitching.com for more information.

Thank You

I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has been reading thus far. I hope that everyone has found something valuable in this blog. Please continue to share this site because the best is yet to come!

Here are some things to look forward to:

- tpgpitching.com will be up and running soon!
- NEW instructional videos
- Testimonials
- Diagrams, Charts, Workouts and more!

In the mean time, take a look at this weeks blog about the importance of lessons. Next week we will get ready for fall baseball and off-season training.

Remember: nothing can get you to the next level faster than working with a professional. If you, or someone else you know, needs individual instruction please contact me via email at gwhelan@tpgpitching.com for more information.

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How To Visualize A Great Performance

This week I would like to discuss visualization.

If you have played baseball at any level, you more than likely have heard Yogi Berra's famous words once or twice: "Baseball is 90% mental and the other half is physical."

Although this famous Yogi-ism seems to stump the mathematicians of the world, there is something to be said about its meaning. To be more specific, it really stresses the importance of the mental game while not diminishing physical preparation. This obvious attempt at hyperbole has succeeded in getting the attention of the entire baseball community.

The mental side of baseball is the most important aspect of your game. How do you think today's professional athletes can preform in front of 40,000 people? The answer is simple. They have already played the game in their heads. Also, they have imagined every possible situation and having done so, gained tremendous confidence in themselves.

Before your next game, whether you're a starter, closer or anywhere in between, try this:

1 - Go somewhere quiet and where you won't be disturbed for at least 10-15 min.
2 - Lay down with you arms at your side, close your eyes and begin taking deep breaths. Relax.
3 - Now imagine the field you are playing on. Imagine the mound, the smells and the sounds.

4 - When you have a complete mental image of your surroundings you can start visualizing your performance. Start with your warm-up in the pen. Every detail counts. Imagine throwing your warm-up pitches on the field. Then visualize facing a few batters. Righty-Lefty-Righty or Lefty-Righty-Lefty, you choose. By not giving the batter an identity you can prepare for every situation. If there is one batter that you struggle against you can visualize facing him. Remember that every detail is important.

Here are some tips to help you get started:
-Start small. Maybe three or four pitches to each batter and one inning.
-Use all of your pitches.
-Practice makes perfect. The more you do this, the more comfortable you will become.

If you continue to do this, I guarantee you will see results.

Remember: nothing can get you to the next level faster than working with a professional. If you, or someone else you know, needs individual instruction please contact me via email at graigwhelan@gmail.com for more information.

Long Toss

There is quite a debate in the baseball community about long toss. Some people swear by it and others say it's unnecessary. I am 100% for it. But when it is done incorrectly in can have undesirable results.

We don't want to get into bad habits, so the first issue we need to address is form. A lot of people long toss just to see how far they can throw it. As a pitcher we only need to worry about making it 60'6"; however, we can strengthen and stretch the arm by long tossing a predetermined distance with proper technique.

By long tossing, the muscles used to throw are strengthened as well as the muscles used to slow the arm down. What does this achieve? Well, a simple analogy would involve sprinting. When sprinting in a large open field you can run as fast as your ability allows. If you try to sprint inside of a small room your body needs to slow itself down before hitting the wall. In this case you will never reach top speed. Long toss trains the muscles that slow your arm down so that they can support more arm velocity, thus increasing pitch velocity. In addition, it also stretches out the arm to help you recover faster.

Now let's discuss form. We want to get as close as possible to recreating a pitching motion. The way this can be done is to start in the stretch. Crow hop crossing your back foot behind the front foot and then pushing off your back foot (drive leg) to complete pitching motion. Use a 4-seam grip and make sure to exaggerate the follow through. The baseball should stay on a line and not with a huge arc. This will allow the pitcher to stay on top of the baseball helping keep everything moving downhill. The video below will demonstrate proper technique.

This technique should be used throughout the entire throwing session, form warm-up to long toss. Mixing in a few change-ups will allow you to get used to throwing them at full arm speed.

Next is distance. Obviously a great warm-up is needed in order to proceed but this is another topic. For long toss, there is really no reason to throw any farther than two times the distance between bases. For example: if your bases are 90 feet apart then 180 feet is the maximum throwing distance. I prefer about 150 feet. Little League pitchers probably shouldn't exceed 100 feet. We are trying to get maximum distance without sacrificing form.

One thing to keep in mind here is that your body needs time to recover. You should not do long toss everyday. In fact, twice a week is more than enough to start seeing results. If you can't throw these distances right away it is okay. Form is more important that anything. Keep working and you will get there in no time.

Remember: nothing can get you to the next level faster than working with a professional. If you, or someone else you know, need individual instruction please contact me via email at graigwhelan@gmail.com for more information.

Changing Speeds

I often notice that a lot of pitchers try to blow a fastball by every guy they face. There are times when they can get away with doing this, but the difference between a pitcher and "a thrower" is knowing that there are other ways to get batters out.

When you hear someone talking about changing speeds, what is the first thing that comes to mind?  Naturally we think that means you have to throw a change-up or a curve. That's not always the case. Most times, back-to-back fastballs in the same location at different speeds will yield the same results, even if you're not a flamethrower.

The best pitchers have two different speeds for every pitch. That doesn't mean you need to overthrow one to compensate for another. It means that you need to be in control of your body and stay within your ability. Taking a little bit off of a fastball WILL mess up the timing of the batter. It is the difference between a batter squaring a pitch up and dribbling a ball to first base. It's a matter of a fraction of a second. That's all it takes!

Here is a tip: To change speeds on your fastball try spreading out your fingers slightly. A fraction of an inch makes a huge difference.

Remember, you don't need to strike everyone out. When you stop trying to get guys to swing and miss and start making them put the ball in play, you will have longer, more successful outings..

Remember: nothing can get you to the next level faster than working with a professional. If you, or someone else you know, need individual instruction please contact me via email at graigwhelan@gmail.com for more information.

Conviction...

...is one of the most important aspects of a pitchers game. Every pitch matters and a pitch thrown with conviction is more likely to be successful than that same pitch thrown without.

Everyone has heard that the game of baseball is more cerebral than physical. The mental aspect of the game for a pitcher is probably even more important. I have learned that hitters feed off of the energy we provide, so if we are up there just throwing what's called then we get shelled. If you believe in the pitch you are about to throw, and know it will be successful, then you can get anyone out you want to.

I know what your thinking: "easier said than done." Right? Well, sure I wouldn't be talking about it here if it was easy. But if you go to the mound with a few of these tips, you will more easily master the art of conviction.

1. Own the pitch - whether you or someone else is calling the game, the pitch is still yours. This way there is no one to blame, thus eliminating excuses and instilling belief in every pitch.

2. Do not second guess - If there is any doubt in your head -- at all -- about the pitch called, step off the rubber and collect your thoughts. Then don't get back on the rubber until you own the pitch. You control the pace of the game. A lot of pitchers forget this. You need to believe 100% in the pitch you're about to throw.

3. Control emotion - Whatever happens you need to know that once the ball leaves your hand the outcome is no longer in your control. It's all about preparation. If you have done everything else right you cannot get upset if a guy bloops your best pitch in for a hit. You need to show everyone that every pitch you throw is exactly what you wanted to throw. This confidence will rub off on your teammates and intimidate the opponents.

4. Repeat.


Try this the next time you hit the mound. Don't stop at the games either. Do this in the pen and while playing catch and it will become second nature in no time.

Remember: nothing can get you to the next level faster than working with a professional. If you, or someone else you know, need individual instruction please contact me at (510) 260-6184 or via email at graigwhelan@gmail.com for more information.

Welcome!

If there is one tip that sums up most of pitching, and baseball for that matter, it's that you must always have an open mind and an eagerness to learn more. Store all of the things you are taught because one day that insignificant piece of information that you thought didn't apply to you, might be exactly what you need to get out of that bases loaded jam, or to get that final out.

If you're working with me on the field you will find out quickly that your success is directly related to your work ethic. At every level you benefit only as much as you put into it. I had to work extremely hard my entire career and I expect the same from you. At the same time it is very important to have fun. I love this game and look forward to passing on what I've learned.

Play Ball!