Slider

General Pitching Topics
#1

Lately, meaning the last couple of months, I have had just no curve ball what so ever. I used to have that as my bread and butter pitch but now it won’t move or when I get it to move I have no idea where it’s going to end up and it’s making me a one dimensional pitcher. Meaning I have to rely solely on my fastball which at 70 for a 16 yr old isn’t going to overpower anyone. I’m in the process of getting down a change up and I hope to have that come spring but I really am going to need a breaking pitch so…

My question here is: How exactly is the slider throw properly so that I won’t have arm trouble and I’ll be able to get good movement?

I’d appreciate any tips anyone has on this.

#2

A slider is more of a power pitch and it is based off our your fastball. With a 70 mph fastball I wouldn’t recommend a slider, I don’t think it would be ery effective.
t

#3

That’s completely understandable but I have to throw an breaking pitch. Trust me, the last three games especially, if my fastball isn’t being located to well that game I’m screwed. Because I haven’t had my curve ball for the last 3 or 4 months now and the change up is something in the works so i have no other pitch. And like i said my curve was my best pitch.

#4

Yankeefan129 that is a common misconception. Honestly, I threw a slider that had HARD movement when I was 11 and still can (however I stopped because of the obvious problems it could cause). It was the “ultimate” k pitch and was unhittable. So, you can definetely throw a slider if your fastball is 70 mph.

#5

OK maybe that is true, but you were 11. There is a big difference from playing little league and high school baseball. Just a couple a weeks ago I started working on a slider, and I went to work with a professional pitcher at a clinic and he told he even though I throw in the low to mid 80’s that a slider still wouldn’t be effective for me. He recommended that I would on my change-up and curveball. Once you have perfected those then you can start working with other pitches.

#6

Perhaps your mechanics have changed as you’ve grown a bit…?

Maybe post a video. ANy chance you could just look at your own video from before and compare it to now?

Cheers;

O

#7

I know my mechanics have changed from when I first threw my curve when i was like 13 but this yr. in particular I have not had it at all.

I have a video posted in the analysis forum or whatever. It’s called Me Pitching it should be on the first page there.

And if a slider isn’t going to work what can?

#8

A slider can work for sure, no matter what your velocity is. A slider is off the fastball, and what I like to do is offset the ball a little bit in my hand. Therefore I can let the grip do the work, and if I get on top of the ball and pull down with my fingers, I will get slider rotation.

#9

BTW, I also would throw the slider a little on a 60’ 6" mound. Even though it’s slow, it still has effective movement.

#10

I throw my two seam around 81-85 and I have a super effective slider. It has serious movement down and away. Its almost exactly like Fransisco Rodriguez’s.

#11

Pretty decent mechanics. No reason why you can’t throw a curve or anything else for that matter. Just a matter of practice, correct grip / wrist position and repetition.
As others have said, begin movement to the plate as soon as foot comes off the ground. Shoot for 1 second from “foot lift off to foot plant.”

How do you throw your curve?

Cheers;

O

#12

I throw it the conventional way with my middle finger along the seam and my index finger next to my middle finger but for some reason it won’t move anymore. I i think it might have something to do with how I release it but if it does I would have no idea on what the proper way to release it is like what the wrist position and all should be. I know I shouldn’t hook my wrist but that’s about it.

#13

http://www.thecompletepitcher.com/articles/pitching_grips.htm

I throw mine like the cutter they describe. I just turn my wrist over. I dont snap it or anything. And I dont turn it over at the last moment or anything. I start it that way sort of.

#14

Francisco Rodriguez doesn’t throw a slider. It’s a curveball.

#15

Curve ball is all in the wrist position. Really all are, though.
Hold your hand up like ‘taking an oath.’ Palm facing forward. That’s the fastball wrist position.
Now, turn your wrist toward you. Facing you, like you’re going to slap yourself. That’s the curve ball position. Hold a ball in that hand so your two fingers are on top of the ball and their tips are pointing directly at you.
Tight grip. No space between your hand and the ball. Throwing motion has that wrist position from hand break to release. No wrist snapping!!! Set the wrist position in the glove before hand break.
Now, normal throwing motion, except rotated wrist. Throw on fastball plane. Don’t ‘cast’ the ball. Don’t let your thumb ‘flip’ up on release, like you’re trying to spin the ball. Spin takes care of itself. Pull down with arm at release.
The idea is to make it look like a fastball, (on fastball plane) and suddenly drop or move to the side or a bit of both. Don’t fall in love with the specifics of 12 to 6. Let your curve be YOURS. Make it consistent, keep it on the fastball plane. Then work on ‘tunneling’, that is make all your pitches go thru the same small tunnel for the first 4 feet after release. If you get that down and that’s all you get down, it won’t matter which direction your curve breaks, they won’t be able to hit it anyway!!

Cheers;

O

BTW - rotating your wrist outward so the back of your hand is facing your head and palm is away - that’s the circle change and screwball wrist position. If you can hold your palm directly away from you without bending your wrist, you can throw a mean circle change and screw ball! If not, all is not lost. Keep practicing!!

Also - keep your normal arm slot. Very important!

#16

Orygun, nice explanation - especially about tunneling. I’m not sure many people are aware of that concept.

#17

Well I call mine a slider just because its going 77 mph or so, and it sweeps alot.

#18

really like the tunnel concept. i will use that. also if you can throw your curveball a little harder and get it to break late, it is very tough to pick up. late movement will keep you in the game a long time. it gets people to get themselves out. your goal is to get the hitter out of the box in 3 pitches. if they take a lot of pitches, make them take strikes. the best pitch in baseball is a strike.

#19

then that pitch isn’t much like k-rods slider… he throws a hard curveball with almost 12-6 break… it’s nothing like a sweeping slider

#20

Dusty,

Are you familiar with Perry Husband and his effective velocity concepts? Perry also pushes the tunnel concept.