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What’s a
Tunnel and Throwing a Pitch Have to Do with Each
Other?
When I was a kid,
driving in my parents car through a tunnel was
always a weird experience. Going from light to dark.
The loud noises and people honking their horns for
fun. I remember thinking that if we ever got in a
crash in a tunnel, it would be pretty ugly loud
mess.
A lot of problems
hitting the sides, sparks everywhere, and awful
sound I’m sure.
What’s that have to
do with pitching?
Well, with some of my
students, I use that tunnel analogy to help them
with there control and mechanics.
This past week, the
pitchers in our Elite Pitching Class were focusing
on control. Not only were we scoring their progress,
but they were discovering a few things about flaws
in their deliveries.
A few of the students
have the some issues with their front side flying
open too early.
To help them, I had
them visualize a small tunnel that their body was
going through directly to the intended target.
If any part of their
body would bang up against this imaginary tunnel,
there lies there problem in control.
The body needs to
track to the target. It starts with your momentum,
then the glove side, the shoulder, the torso, etc.
Think of the Olympic sprinter. They take a straight
line directly to the finish line otherwise they are
wasting time and energy if they bounce around in
their lane.
Keeping all your
energy tracking towards the target makes it real
easy to throw strikes. It gives you a better chance
for your body to work in proper sequence.
Next time you are out
there throwing, try this visualization drill to help
you keep things going to the target as long as
possible.
Train like a champion
today!
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