What's Most Important....

Best pitch in baseball!!!....outside of my "moonwalk" ball. This is a pitch that actually "slides" back when hitters take swings. Hard to learn and I don't recommend it to others....so I agree with JM....Change-up!!!!!

 

Braves, you play too many video games.

My advice for teaching a talented young pitcher, teach him the basic mechanics, how to stay in best physical condition and let him prove to himself he can do it (confidence and experience).

But here's the key, you have to have people with his best interests at stake coaching him, because theres been a ton of "million dollar arms" get thrown to death, and they never earned a dime.

 

throw strikes ALWAYS! Teach command control placement location to the crows come callin

 

There are a lot of good suggestions here. To clearify "pitch so the ball can be hit" does not mean thow down the middle all the time. I simply means keeping the ball off the fat part of the bat. I have always thought that using movement and location(fastball), is always the better way of trying to teach a young pitcher. Using the 2 seam and 4 seam in the first innings should tell a pitcher where the "umps strike zone" is. I call it pitching to the four corners(catchers knees and shoulders). Pitching so the ball can be hit can also save a pitchers arm for later innings. I love when my pitcher can get through an inning with only 5-7 pitches. I love the ground ball outs. Also teaching a young pitcher to bend that landing knee to take the pressure off the elbow and shoulder may result in a little loss of speed but saving the elbow and shoulder in the long run. I feel spotting any pitch is the best. Movement and location, change up in the later innings. As far as pitching up? In the early innings to get a hitter to chase is fine once in a while. In later innings I feel he is getting tired. By the way, I never let my pitchers throw more than 90 pitches. My relief threw at least 1 inning in the pen before I brought him in. The kids health was my first concern. I worked more with my catchers than anyone; because they ran the defense. When I ask how the pitcher was, I always got an honest answer. I worked hard with my pitchers because everything started with them. All of the answers here are very good. Fundamental baseball is always the best. "Pitching so the ball can be hit "' I think I got that from an ex Cardinals pitching coach some time ago. WOW I don't want to go back that far.

 

An evolution

Pitching is one of the most fascinating athletic endeavors. On the surface, it seems simple, but as we all know, it is a very complicated and calculating art form. I've read a lot of good stuff on this thread, but in the end the greatest rewards are there for those pitchers who can navigate the turbulent waters with skill, tenacity and guile. At an advanced level, the pitcher must:

1. Be much more than just a hard thrower. Hard throwers eventually get hit hard. Hard throwers often walk a lot of hitters as they overthrow when pressure builds, trying to solve their problem by throwing harder.

2. Pitch ahead without grooving pitches early in the count. The pitcher who consistently is behind in the count is consistently pulled for a reliever and left to wonder how everything can go so wrong so fast.

3. Develop the skillful delivery of multiple pitches to the extent they can throw them anywhere in the count. Command of multiple pitches will elevate a pitchers status very quickly and outs will be recorded instead of gap shots in tough counts with runners on base. Skillful delivery of alternate pitches requires that the pitcher not "telegraph" what's coming and get beyond being a "hoper"....."OK, here comes the dipsy-doodle. I got the grip and I hope it works". As we know the "hoper's" attempt usually bites the dirt out front or sails out of his grip and arcs high to the mitt. Result is the same...more fastballs to follow and that is just what the hitters want.

4. Minimize free passes. Walks and hit batsmen are the building blocks of big innings and high ERA's. Keep them to a minimum and good things will happen. Don't walk 'em, don't hit 'em, don't groove 'em...make them swing at strikes they don't like or can't square up.

5. Manage the baserunners. There is much more to managing the baserunners than just picking them off. Pitchers that understand the nuances of baserunner management will see the value of their skill as they post better than average ERA's.

6. Be mentally tough. In my opinion, this is one of the greatest skills a pitcher can develop. The pitcher who sees a 3-2 count with runners on base as an opportunity for artistry instead of pressure is a pitcher who will likely be around for awhile.

7. Field your position. Be in a good defensive position and get an out or two a game as a fielder. Back up throws from the outfield and cover first and know that these are the little things that will add up over time.

Read about Greg Maddux and learn how an average athlete became a world-class pitcher. Maddux was a perennial Gold Glove pitcher, great bunter, and an artist on the mound.

 

A-M-A-Z-I-N-G

· Publicly, however, Maddux is dismissive of his reputation, saying, "People think I'm smart? You know what makes you smart? Locate your fastball down and away. That's what makes you smart. You talk to Sandy Koufax, Bob Gibson, or Tom Seaver. They'll all tell you the same thing. It's not your arm that makes you a great pitcher. It's that thing between both of your ears we call a brain."
· In 2001, he set a National League record by going 72 1/3 innings without giving up a walk.
· On July 22, 1997, Maddux threw a complete game with just 76 pitches, against the Cubs. Three weeks earlier, he had shut out the defending champion New York Yankees on 84 pitches, and five days before that, he'd beaten the Phillies with a 90-pitch complete game. Maddux allowed just 20 bases on balls for the entire year in 1997, including six intentional walks.


Most amazing of all:

· Maddux only went to a 3-0 count on one batter in all of 1997.

 

this is what I have been trying to say Low & Slow you are abs correct!