pitching help

[DrxDrO]

ive been finding pitching an interesting topic for about 2 years and ive been pitching for about 1.5 years ( not in a league with friends tho) i've learned good mechanics from my sisters boyfriend but he has no time to help me anymore (work and school) im 13 and i want to pitch for my high school freshman team next year and here is what i throw

4-seam - ill throw this pitch from about 65-70 mph
2-seam - little to no movement a lil slower then my 4-seam
changeup- will throw 55 average or about 60 tops
circlechange - nice movement on this guy
sinker - this is a very sucessful pitch for me helps me in double play situations
splitter - one of my best pitches, won't throw often because of the stress it causes on your arm
curveball - pretty much your average 1-7 curveball good pitch but nothing not my best
slider - its nasty
slurve - my best pitch (excluding the 4-seam) this is a pitch i've been intrested since before ive been pitching and i use it about 1/5 to 1/4of the time for strikeouts

some questions i have though
1. I need better control with my pitches, i wanna paint corners instead of throwing alot of breaking balls.
2. I'm one of those really good on somedays and really bad on others type player what can i do to get consistancy
3.Whats a good way to keep your breaking balls from hanging
4.Whats a good way to conserve energy to stay later in the game
5.How do you stay calm in pressure situations?
6.How do you keep the batter guessing
7.Whats the best pitch i should throw for strikeouts ( i need an opinion from some experts)

help is greatly appriciated
from the pitcher in training

[Charger567]

1. Stop spending your time learning as many pitches as you can. I doubt any one of your pitches are truly "nasty" because you have to mix in practice with about 10 others.
Why would you have a two-seam that doesn't work?? It's just a slightly slower fastball, one that people would likely turn on.

2. Consistency could come with practice; which you probably can't get much of because you have to practice 10 different pitches. Try to get enough work in for 10 pitches and your arm will fall off.

3. I would say follow through, and don't slow your arm. Throw it like a fastball, except depending on what pitch, you may not have to extend all the way. Make sure you practice it on your own.

4. Not really sure how to answer this except throw strikes and keep your walks to a minimum. I have been able to pitch complete games my last 2 starts as opposed to the 5 innings I've thrown all year because I haven't walked a batter in 18 innings.

5. It may not be this simple for some people, but I just take deep breath's before stepping onto the rubber. Keep breathing when you're on there and don't rush.

[StraightGrain11]

First off, to be a successful pitcher, the most pitches you should need right now (and for awhile) is 3 - NO MORE! The reason you see guys like Maddux and Clemens and Smoltz with 5 or 6 different pitches is because they can't get buy on JUST the 3 they used to have, they just don't have the same "stuff" they used to, so they need more pitches to help with their deception. So lay off all the "junk balls" and learn to become a good PITCHER - not a THROWER of many pitches.

some questions i have though
1. I need better control with my pitches, i wanna paint corners instead of throwing alot of breaking balls.

Control = concentration. Here's something you can do.
Start out by picking a corner you want to throw over. You need to throw 10 STRIKES there - and you ONLY count the pitches that are STRIKES ON THAT CORNER. After you've thrown those 10, now you need to be able to throw 3 STRAIGHT STRIKES IN ROW (over THAT corner) - if you miss, you reset, and start the count over. Repeat this to both sides. The idea is that you first learn where you need to throw it, then you learn how to concentrate, show command and throw pitch for pitch (execute).

2. I'm one of those really good on somedays and really bad on others type player what can i do to get consistancy?

All pitchers are. You're either on, or your off. Keep working hard.

3.Whats a good way to keep your breaking balls from hanging

Learn to throw them with a lot of "bite". Keep them down in the zone. If you "hang" them for strikes, then you either need to use it as a 2-strike "chase" pitch in the dirt, or pick a different pitch.

4.Whats a good way to conserve energy to stay later in the game?

You don't "conserve energy", you give 100% of everything you have 100% of the time. If you are trying to "conserve energy" it means you're "holding back", and this is unfair to your teammates - who are (I hope) giving everything they have. What you need to be doing is BUILDING-UP your ENDURANCE. This can be done by both running and pitching (maybe 2-3 bullpens of 50-60 pitches on the SAME DAY, with a good break in between of course). If you have ever seen clips of spring training, you will almost ALWAYS see the pitchers running laps in the OF, they are running CONSTANTLY to help maintain their endurance.

5.How do you stay calm in pressure situations?

By having the mentality that you want the ball with a tie score and bases loaded with no outs. By realizing THERE ARE NO "pressure situations". You live pitch by pitch. The only "pressure" you should ever feel is to make the next pitch. If you start looking at the "big picture" and "all the things that could go wrong", you've already taken yourself out of the game. Focus on what you need to do, what you want to do, and MAKE IT HAPPEN - YOU are IN CONTROL.

6.How do you keep the batter guessing?

THAT, my friend, IS the "art of pitching". Unfortunately, there is no book on this, it's mostly instincts. The best pitchers are the ones who have the uncanny ability to read the hitters the best, and know/find the best ways to get them out (it also helps to have a great battery-mate behind the plate).

7.Whats the best pitch i should throw for strikeouts?

Wrong attitude. Your goal as a pitcher is NOT to get strikeouts, it is to get OUTS - period. And the "best pitch" to throw when you have the hitter "where you want him" is YOUR best pitch (whatever it is). Don't try to get him out on your 2-seamer, get him out on the pitch you can throw with the most confidence/command, and one you know he won't hit hard.

[Nater44]

Wow, you guys have some smokin' advice, good to see it!

Send me a message, I have some audio interviews I've done on the mental game as well as an ebook i'll send over to you that will help you develop that side of the game.

[TG Coach]

You need to master your fastball and your change. You need to work on arm strength and durability as you grow into a high school pitcher. Once you get to high school you can add a third pitch. You need to be a master of two or three pitches, not a jack of all trades with ten. You really only need a fastball and an offspeed pitch 10 mph slower. You need to throw them in a manner where the hitter can't tell from your delivery which is coming. The longer it takes him to pick it up (rotation) the harder it is to hit.

Whats the best pitch i should throw for strikeouts

If you become a quality high school pitcher, chances are there will only be two or three hitters in the lineup without a lot of hitting weaknesses. Therefore, except those two or three, a well located fastball will dominate. With the two or three better hitters you need to upset their timing by mixing it up. Do not throw offspeed pitches to hitters who are slow with the bat. Smoke them with location.

[PhilliesPhan22]

Fastball-changeup is all you need at your age. They are the least stressful on your still developing arm. Work on throwing strike and getting OUTS, not just strikeouts.

[DrxDrO]

its hard to narrow my pitches down to just 3 and im not very confident with my change up because i leave it up sometimes but i need help what should i drop and what should i keep?

[Go Cardinals]

its hard to narrow my pitches down to just 3 and im not very confident with my change up because i leave it up sometimes but i need help what should i drop and what should i keep?

fastball, change, and curve

[StraightGrain11]

its hard to narrow my pitches down to just 3 and im not very confident with my change up because i leave it up sometimes but i need help what should i drop and what should i keep?

What is the difference between your "change-up" and your "circle change"?
If you can say something "works" - or has "nice movement/action on it" - then you must be confident in the pitch, or are you saying it has that WHEN you throw it correctly (you're just not consistent with it)? The change-up is the nastiest pitch in the game. Sure, a curveball "looks" cool, but the change-up you can't see coming. It looks like a fastball, and, as a hitter, you react to it like a fastball - and then you find out you got "fed" something else that's about to make you look REAL silly. I promise you, your teammates will have more fun watching you "spin" hitters around trying to hit your change-up than they will watching you bounce a curveball in the dirt or hang it (your catcher will appreciate it more, too, I'm sure).

The best way to get better at the change-up is to throw it. Throw it warming up, throw it playing long toss, throw it off a wall. You just need to get comfortable with the grip - and once you are, it will make "placing" it all the easier. Don't give up on something because it's "hard", work harder at it.

If your sinker works, and you're confident with it, put that where your 2-seamer would be. It's a fastball with "running/diving" movement, so you have 2 fastballs (that's fine).
Get rid of the splitter - bad news on your young arm.
Pick one: curve/slider/slurve - that choice is up to you.

So, you should now have 2 fastballs (1 pitch - 2 movements) you're confident with, and 2 offspeed pitches - a change-up and a breaking pitch. THAT should get you by for a LOOOONG time - assuming you learn to use them correctly and are CONFIDENT with ALL of them.

[Go Cardinals]

The best way to get better at the change-up is to throw it. Throw it warming up, throw it playing long toss, throw it off a wall. You just need to get comfortable with the grip - and once you are, it will make "placing" it all the easier. Don't give up on something because it's "hard", work harder at it.

Awwww.......... I was just about to post that. My coach last year told our pitchers to throw it during warmups.

[DrxDrO]

What is the difference between your "change-up" and your "circle change"?
If you can say something "works" - or has "nice movement/action on it" - then you must be confident in the pitch, or are you saying it has that WHEN you throw it correctly (you're just not consistent with it)? The change-up is the nastiest pitch in the game. Sure, a curveball "looks" cool, but the change-up you can't see coming. It looks like fastball, and, as a hitter, you react to it like a fastball - and then you find out you got "fed" something else that's about to make you look REAL silly. I promise you, your teammates will have more fun watching you "spin" hitters around trying to hit your change-up than they will watching you bounce a curveball in the dirt or hang it (your catcher will appreciate it more, too, I'm sure).

The best way to get better at the change-up is to throw it. Throw it warming up, throw it playing long toss, throw it off a wall. You just need to get comfortable with the grip - and once you are, it will make "placing" it all the easier. Don't give up on something because it's "hard", work harder at it.

If your sinker works, and you're confident with it, put that where your 2-seamer would be. It's a fastball with "running/diving" movement, so you have 2 fastballs (that's fine).
Get rid of the splitter - bad news on your young arm.
Pick one: curve/slider/slurve - that choice is up to you.

So, you should now have 2 fastballs (1 pitch - 2 movements) you're confident with, and 2 offspeed pitches - a change-up and a breaking pitch. THAT should get you by for a LOOOONG time - assuming you learn to use them correctly and are CONFIDENT with ALL of them.

my circle-change breaks down and away from lefties the perfect pitch on the lower outside corner but my regular change has a bit better control and wow this made my choice alot easier i'll start working on it this weekend thanks

[Ohplayer]

Fastball and change-up are enough for now.

Speed (changing) and location is all that matters at your age.

I have found success with Dick Mills teachings. http://www.pitching.com