If the pitch doesn’t spin the right way when you release it, it will not break!
Pretty obvious right? Well, obviously not.
I’m not sure why this has become such a confusing topic or why there is so much misinformation floating around but we need to clear this one up.
I’ve had a bunch of pitching “experts” at the ball park argue with me that what they’re teaching their kids is making the ball move. I keep hearing qualifiers like they know the ball doesn’t really spin the correct way, but just look at how much the ball is moving. Just look at it!
Well, I am looking at it and all I see is corkscrew spin that makes the ball break about as much a bullet coming out of the barrel of a rifle. You all know why they rifle a gun barrel? They do it to make the bullet fly as straight as possible.
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A rise ball must have backspin.
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A curve ball or screw ball must have spin that is parallel to the ground and going either right to left or left to right.
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A drop ball or fastball must have topspin.
Without these spins these are not the pitches you want to believe they are, period!
We’ve talked many times about how pitchers are sometimes sold a bill of goods that they’re very willing to believe because they want to win the arms race. If your pitching coach is telling you that you’re throwing a pitch even though you know it isn’t spinning correctly, you need to ask yourself a question.
Why?
About the Author: Tory Acheson brings a wealth of knowledge to the Fastpitch Prep staff. He has coached at all levels of the game, including the last 25 years at the college level at the University of Wisconsin – Parkside, Tennessee Tech and Kennesaw State. He began his coaching career at the high school level spending 9 years Whitnall High School in Greenfield, Wis. and is now working as a professional softball instructor.
