Working pitching backwards....

[Mannyortiz06]

The last few years ive been working my curveballs as my main pitches ( a 12-6 , and a inside out) and then using my fastball off of my curve , im 18 and due to arm problems i can only throw about 80-81 tops when i gear back , is this a good philosophy if it works for me?? , a few games ago i threw 106 pitches and 68 curves , i feel that when i use my fastball sparingly it has " sneaky fast" speed , i have a 2 seam with good movement and a 4 seam i only use up in the zone..... Any input would be helpful

[WonderMonkey]

My advice : If you have arm problems you shouldn't be pitching. That solves everything.

[Mannyortiz06]

that doesnt really solve anything actually , i pitch in baseball , thats how i contribute and i figure unless i can walk on at college next yr this is it , so play through the pain....

[Billybob622]

just curious, if ur having arm problems with ur pitching arm, have u ever thought of switching to ur good arm?

[bbjunkie]

that doesnt really solve anything actually , i pitch in baseball , thats how i contribute and i figure unless i can walk on at college next yr this is it , so play through the pain....
My guess is that you won't be able to play in college at all unless you rest your arm. Talk to a sports medicine specialist to see what your prospects are if you rest it and/or get other medical treatment. That's a lot of breaking balls and a lot of pitches when your arm is already in pain.

High school glory isn't worth it. Listen to Springsteen's "Glory Days" somtime.

[Whitesoxnut]

I have to agree. If your 18yo and having that much pain then you shouldn't be pitching. Go talk to a good sports specialist and get it straightened out. Your young enough to recover from anything and besides there are more important things in life then baseball. Only you can decide how bad the pain is however, you and your doctor. Oh, and I would talk to at least 3 surgeons from major teaching hospitals before I had any kind of repair done.

One way or another, should you get your arm straightened out, its not unheard of with the right program for a guy your age to gain 5 or 6 mph in a year. So now your at 85mph + entering college and yes working on your curves, assorted junk, and most of all control, will be a great help to a team. Best of luck.

And I hope you respect the fact that an 18 yo throwing 106 pitches while having arm pain sounds alarm bells from members here.

[GFK]

...106 pitches and 68 curves...
I suspect most well conditioned MLB arms would be thumping after pitching that many curve balls in an outing.

Go see a doctor (or several). Make damn sure everything is OK with the arm. Then think about working your fastball and adding velocity / control to it. Then just use the curve to keep the batter off balance once in a while.

[Mannyortiz06]

i tore ym major ligament in my elbow when i was 14-15 ( the one associated with tommy john surgery) , at that point i saw Dr. Joyce a former minnesota twins doctor , he had me stay in a movement restriction decive as opposed to surgery , and now 3 yrs later , i have a feeling it never fully healed , but all it really doesis affect how long the turnaround is after a game to be able to pitch again , also the arm doesnt hurt in everyday activities , even wehen i tore it yrs ago the pain was only dull and could be cured with aleve , tylenol etc.... thanks for the advice , any more would also be appreciated

[Mannyortiz06]

again though..disregarding arm problems pitches thrown etc... does anyone have a say on the way i work the game? working a fast ball off of my curves?? would that help make it look faster than it is? , do any major leagers do this?

[Whitesoxnut]

again though..disregarding arm problems pitches thrown etc... does anyone have a say on the way i work the game? working a fast ball off of my curves?? would that help make it look faster than it is? , do any major leagers do this?

Sure they do. Th problem of throwing without heat is that "location" become even more important. There have been MLB pitchers who have lost 3 to 5 mph on their fastball and when they continue to pitch as they did when they had the heat they get shelled. You just cant throw the high fastball and get away with it anymore when you dont have the velocity.

If it were me I'd work on my sinking stuff, most of all 2 seamer, sinker, splitter, and a forkball. When you can combine that kinda junk , and when you can use all you speeds, it just doesn't matter much what kinda heat you can bring. In MLB were seeing a trend of getting away from trying to over-powering hitters. All that heat brings so much wear and tear, there are so many good fastball hitters in the game today, and over-throwing means a lot of walks, that the trend is more towards finesse, variety of pitches/speeds, and location.

You need to get with a real top pitching guy. I'll tellya, even watching 13 yos play, I see that the biggest hindrance to effective pitching is "predictability". Good luck.

[Mannyortiz06]

as of right now ive got good location with both my 2 seamer and 2 curve balls , very rarely do i leave a 2 seamer over the plate or really hang on down the middle , my 2 seamer has alot of sinking action on it and inside movement toright handed batters , it just seems like that when i throw the fastball 76-79 ( 2 seam) or 80-81 ( 4 seam ) it has a better effect than when i used to try to overpower people , also i can sink me 2 seamer for a slower pitch but with alot of movement.... any more thoughts would be great

[Chris O'Leary]

The last few years ive been working my curveballs as my main pitches ( a 12-6 , and a inside out) and then using my fastball off of my curve , im 18 and due to arm problems i can only throw about 80-81 tops when i gear back , is this a good philosophy if it works for me??

Given your arm problems, if I were you I would limit your use of your curveball and stick with fastballs and change-ups.

That's what Greg Maddux does.

[Whitesoxnut]

Given your arm problems, if I were you I would limit your use of your curveball and stick with fastballs and change-ups.

That's what Greg Maddux does.

That and that speed gun has ruined a lot of promising pitchers.

[carlos_delgado021]

i say just pitch the ball