Softball Pitching Tips – Increase Your Pitching Speed

A good pitcher will not be called as such without the lightning fast pitching speeds that leave batters dumbfounded. In fact, a lot of emphasis is put on pitching that most, if not all, of aspiring pitchers try to find ways to increase their pitching speed.

But increasing your pitching speed requires more than just being able to throw the ball hard. There are subtle nuances that will enable you to throw the ball much faster without making a lot of effort to do it.

And that’s what this article is about. I’ll show you some of the things that you can use to tweak your pitching style that will help you take your pitching skills to the next level.

Ready? Let’s begin.

Keep Your Muscles Loose

Any tightness or tension in your muscles will limit the movement of your limbs and, therefore, affect your performance. That’s why if you want to be able to pitch the ball at high speeds, you should warm up and stretch your muscles  first.

Doing these exercises will help loosen up your muscles so you can increase the range of motion of your limbs. And when your muscles are loose, you’re able to make the most of the energy that you spend in pitching.

Aside from that, doing warm ups and stretches also helps prevent injuries. So, begin with warm ups first before you do anything on the field.

Follow Through

Having a good follow through is part of having good pitching mechanics. And you know that having good pitching mechanics help you throw the ball with more ease and power.

That’s why when you’re pitching the ball, allow your body to complete the pitching motion. Don’t hold the motion back because it limits the momentum of the ball when it leaves your hand.

Continue Practicing Drills that Increase Your Pitching Speed

Your good performance on the field is the result of the amount of time you spend practicing and perfecting your skills. That’s why you should go on performing drills that will help increase your pitching speed, if that’s what you’re after.

Some drills that I would recommend include wall pitching and speed pitching. Both drills train you to throw the ball faster, although wall pitching concentrates entirely on developing your pitching speed, while speed pitching puts accuracy into the equation.

Be an All-Around Player

As I mentioned earlier, developing one’s pitching speed is probably the first thing that budding pitchers work on early in their career.

However, if you want to be a really good pitcher, I strongly recommend that you do not rely only on your pitching speed. You see, there’s a limit to how fast you can throw the ball, and there are batters who are quick enough to be able to hit fast balls.

That’s why I really suggest that you develop a wide variety of pitching styles that do not only rely on speed to get the job done. Learn the most basic ones such as screw balls and change-ups and see the difference it makes to your overall game.

I hope you find these softball pitching tips helpful and may they help you increase your pitching speed, and more importantly, become an all-around player.