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Step 1
Coach with an eye to getting your pitcher to throw strikes consistently before moving on to using different pitches. Establishing control over pitch location is the all-important first step to getting your pitcher on the road to success. To do this, you'll need to establish a so-called "power release point" that remains consistent from pitch to pitch.
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Step 2
Teach the fundamental principles of body positioning. A pitcher should stand with his body centered over the mound and feet turned squarely to the plate. In addition, a pitcher should always be prepared to field a line drive or ground ball after completing the follow-through.
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Step 3
Prevent the pitcher from throwing pitches that are too high by emphasizing the importance of getting his chest down to the level of his front knee during the follow-through.
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Step 4
Correct a pitcher who's throwing balls too far inside or outside of the plate. When a pitcher's feet are not "splitting the line" on the ground when he's following through on a throw, the ball will tend towards one side or the other. "Splitting the line" means that a pitcher is not standing evenly on either side of an imaginary line drawn from the center of home plate up to the pitcher's mound.
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Step 5
Get a pitcher to stop throwing low balls in the dirt by encouraging him to keep his elbow above the level of his shoulder when delivering a pitch.
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Step 6
Emphasize the importance of good lower-body strength. The strength of a pitcher's legs is almost as important, if not equally important, as arm strength. Design a workout regimen aimed at building and maintaining a strong lower body, and watch the pitcher's power and stamina increase.
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Step 7
Show the pitcher the proper grip to perform a wide variety of pitches. The Complete Pitcher is a website that shows how to throw just about any imaginable pitch (see Resources below). While any given pitcher will always favor certain pitches over others, encourage the pitchers you coach to practice all sorts of different pitches until they find their groove.
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Step 8
Zero in on command and control once a pitcher can consistently throw a variety of different pitches for strikes. This will take practice, practice and more practice, but pitching is like anything else: practice makes perfect.
