Casey Base: Today, on Clubhouse Gas, we are going to be joined by softball instructor and sports psychologist. Crissy Rapp now she’s played all over the world and she is even coached at the college on level on today. She is going to work with me on how to become a fast pitch, pitcher, is the very basics, I have never done a before, so if you’ve got little girl and she wants to become pitcher, these are couple of things mom and dad that you can work with them on to help them to develop the tools that they’ll need to be a successful pitcher in fast pitch soft ball Its going to be pretty interesting and I’m guaranteed to make a full out of myself. So, stay tune to Clubhouse Gas.
We are looking have to be joined again about the softball guru, Crissy Rapp, you are going to teach me today how to pitch?
Crissy Rapp: That’s right.
Casey Base: And obsoletely know not of this time, so good luck to you.
Crissy Rapp: Okay.
Casey Base: So when we start?
Crissy Rapp: We are going to start simple, first thing with begin our pitches is working on the motion and hand placement for the appropriate snap, your fast ball is your you pitch that you really need to start with obviously so until we get the fast ball master and then I snap master only there are coming move to other pitches. And when we talk about hand placement, what we want to see is backward to see in the ball and you want to tell you athlete to put for if their hands are smaller work 3 fingers on those seams and you want a little bit of a gap between the palm and the ball, in order to allow that’s not action. In all we want to do to start is work on cocking the wrist back and snapping it, and letting the ball roll right after the fingers and you want to get us many rotations as we can with all four seems, spinning seam over seeing, so we don’t want to see as spinning side, raise which means that works kind of swinging it or turning it to this side. So we have really want and I call its stand behind the ball, so you keep your hand right behind that ball and that’s not shoot not the side. So its the first skill to really master is that snap, snapping the ball up, getting it to spin as much as possible and stand behind the ball, which cases going to work on.
Casey Base: Now as most of that done with the fingers or with the wrist?
Crissy Rapp: Most of its done with the wrist, most of it done with the wrist and it just really rolls off the finger tips, saying when the patch of your fingers right on those seams, lot of pitches like that balls with bigger seams because they can get better grip, and they can really feel the seams under the fingers then they can get that --that good spin action of rolling at of the fingers, so each time I want to really got that wrist back and then snapped up, cocking back snapped up. And you see we put it on black mark on the ball and we do that, for beginner pitches you can played a marker on you can put like two tape around and you want to see that lines, spinning, over-and-over versus side-to-side, so I know that hence his hand is stand right behind the ball. That’s perfect good spin. So snap it out get it to spin, lets say cocked at every time but and up and here have a couple of to get our pitcher, they can do this back and forth, as many reps has possibly you can do this drill enough, if you beginner pitcher. Because no matter how fast your arm speed is no matter how strong your legs are, if your wrist is in snap in the wall then your fastball is going to be very fast. Exactly, so that’s a one drill that we forward on
Casey Base: Alright, for pitching?
Crissy Rapp: For beginner pitching so, that’s the snap. From there we can take this drill and drill that players can view on their own, is set to do the same concept to go under the knee, so that they working on snapping at up, so again each time don’t rush make sure that they are getting nice grip, they don’t scrub it snap it. We want to see that. See fingers on it, come under cock that wrist. Snap is straight up, ultimately you want to the wrist to get strong enough to where the can snap it, higher and higher, you want a you can have partner standing and in front of him as they, they start with this and then you know just to ease that action of snapping it up. Getting those four seams spinner and strengthening the wrist for the snap. You want to give this up?
Casey Base: I think I have to go under this like those.
Crissy Rapp: Okay.
Casey Base: As one of them -- I think my shoulder is like a too wider reach cross. We’ll try to hit this off in the – of course, you has block that.
Crissy Rapp: As it, cock there is snapped up, hey don’t get spin,
Casey Base: I am the man.
Crissy Rapp: You want to ball rotating as much as possible.
Casey Base: Really --
Crissy Rapp: Before seams also helps that the ball is going to have a natural drop if you’re telling hard enough your four seams cutting to the air, which is always helpful to have a little bite on it of the end of the pitch.
Casey Base: Okay, it’s great.
Crissy Rapp: Always encourage your beginners keep it up, you’re doing good.
Casey Base: Great, passed reinforcement allow you. I’m the man
Crissy Rapp: Perfect, okay. So that’s the snap, proper simple drills for the snap. From there the next thing that’s very important for your beginner pitcher is to realize the arm circle and the pass that the ball has to travel before the snap and I tell the average the young pitcher to imagine a ball will right here by the side and the ball has to travel up the front over all I do all the way to the top down the back and then snap it again your head, so the balls traveling up to your ear and right down the back to your head. You see a lot of beginners that have a bend in the elbow, and they don’t put that full extension and you also see a lot of athletics bending over, when they’re pitching, so I will tall be as tall as you can be, see Genie Fix she is got the natural leverage advantage that she is get not well of real height of which is eight and half velocity,
Casey Base: So like 11?
Crissy Rapp: Right.
Casey Base: Basic function in physics.
Crissy Rapp: So we want to push forward beginning at the level to reach all the way up to the top and there is going to take a stand to our snap, so I am just going to do couple of walk throughs.
Casey Base: What do you like --the entire ball?
Crissy Rapp: Right after your head, yep that’s the release point and again that need the lot of muscle memory for that, which snap action happening at the head.
Casey Base: So up and when do I start my step.
Crissy Rapp: So we are going to start with the ball, right on your leg with your top of your hand facing the catcher, and we are going to push both hands we are going to travel towards the catcher initially, that makes separately open up. And it comes right down the back, that’s it. Then you will snap right here.
Casey Base: You note your hips. Below the hips and go through the hips
Crissy Rapp: well we are going to open here at the top, and then as we come down, we snap the ball, and then our hips snap, so yep our hips close right up to the ball crosses through and when we get to the point of revolving right up the top its going to be pointed towards that shows top, so that’s when you cocking action. Is get a commence of as you push forward you are going to natural top the wrist, right towards the show start, come down, yep, and right back to your snap that we worked on.
Casey Base: Alright.
Crissy Rapp: There we go.
Casey Base: I am so happy, I didn’t hit the camera. I am very good.
Crissy Rapp: Now the one thing that I saw with that Casey’s shoulder stands forward,
Casey Base: Like this?
Crissy Rapp: And if you have slow pitch, pitches that are making the transition this is something that you often see on them. Slow pitch is getting meted out but still we have some player who will come from slow pitch and then they want and leave forward, so i just scrap that back so the vacation starts if your shoulders come forward.
Casey Base: Hey now I got up.
Crissy Rapp: He gets the feeling for staying tall and keep in his shoulders back. So again we want to remind that till is to reach, all reach of the way to the top of the who have been all the way down the back.
Casey Base: Do you have any space may those can drag you around small one
Crissy Rapp: Yes this is true.
Casey Base: Alright. There is 3 quick drills.
Crissy Rapp: Three quick drills.
Casey Base: I am sure I can stick anybody run out of they, I stick after, I’m sure I’m going to drill there one day and you want me to pitch to it. As going to do it for today, we’ll see you right back tomorrow on Clubhouse Gas.
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