A feature story on the mechanics of softball pitching.

1. unhittable
Mastering mechanics to put the ball in the strike zone BY JODY ULATE
PHOTOGRAPHY BY KARL NIELSEN
standing on the pitching personally sees to the training of his pitching for example, keep their arms in tight as they
staff, which includes Ames, a red-shirt junior, spin, explains Elyssa Fox, who Turner calls his
rubber, spartans pitcher
senior Elyssa Fox, junior Amanda Pridmore most versatile pitcher. As the throwing arm
jennifer ames leans forward and freshmen Janessa Gutierrez and Alex reaches back toward second base, the pitcher’s
to see her catcher give her Molina. Turner makes sure these Spartans gloved hand should point toward the batter.
a sign. time to throw a have practiced mechanics—from windup to “If it doesn’t, like mine sometimes,” says Fox,
follow-through—and are ready when they’re “coach tells us that we won’t be able to move
changeup. the team cheers her
out on the field, 43 feet from a batter. our body as fast or throw the ball as hard.”
on: “c’mon, strike her out!” With properly positioned arms, the
winding up windup moves quickly into the stride—the
She pushes the dirt on the pitching rubber next phase of the pitch.
Standing on a flat pitching rubber inside
from side to side, watching the dust linger
a chalked circle with a radius of eight feet,
above the toe of her cleat. She feels the seams making strides
Ames begins the first phase of her pitch: the
of the ball with her fingertips. Stepping back
windup. During her windup, she brings her Stepping forward with the lead leg, the
with her forefoot on the rubber, she brings
gloved hand and the hand holding the ball pitcher must explode into the stride. A
her hands together just above and in front of
together and then circles her arm backward, vigorous, long stride will give a pitch its
her forehead. She steps forward and her arm
reaching back toward second base. At this speed—which is around 60 mph when veteran
circles around to release the ball. She hears
point, her body is open with her arms spread pitcher Jennifer Ames is throwing the ball.
the pop of the ball as it hits the catcher’s mitt.
wide and she faces third base. There’s a The more torque you have, the more power
The batter swings but only cuts through air.
misconception that softball pitchers rotate you have. Torque is a twisting force that tends
Strike one.
their throwing arm multiple times, but it to cause rotation. In baseball, with its raised,
Those who choose to take on the
circles only once.
challenge of being a softball pitcher must
To help his players with this form, Turner
learn to throw a softball like no one else on
brings his own experience as a player and
the team. Being a pitcher requires unique
coach of the U.S.A. Men’s Softball National
skills and specialized training—and a blend
Team and as a collegiate baseball player. He
of speed, intensity and, most importantly,
often relates their training to baseball, but
mastery of proper mechanics.
also compares their movements to golf,
San José State Head Coach Peter Turner,
boxing and ice skating. Ice skaters,
now in his fifth season with the Spartans,
On San José State’s field, Spartans pitcher Jennifer Ames
follows through on a 60 mph pitch.

2. pitch because of the high velocity of the
pitch and the relatively shorter distance
between pitcher and batter.
Everything in softball is faster. An
entire seven-inning game can be played in
about 90 minutes, compared to baseball’s
three hours for nine innings. The
competition is intense and swift—and the
pitches keep the pace.
getting a grip
Skilled pitchers can make a 12-inch softball rise up, drop down, curve and
in the zone slow down to keep the batter guessing. And whether the ball spins forward,
One complete softball pitch lasts only backward or barely at all as it sails toward the catcher’s mitt depends, in
a couple of seconds. Proper mechanics
part, on how it is gripped.
must become automatic and then be
combined with each pitcher’s strength.
special delivery following through During the game, Ames says she gets Rise: Pitchers “turn the knob,” flipping their wrist, to get the right spin on
sloping mound, pitchers turn their bodies
in the zone. “You should have already a rise ball. As it comes out of the pitcher’s hand, it looks like it’s going to be
downward into the pitch. But softball Throwing underhand is a natural After the ball is released on its path
learned what you need to know before
pitchers, standing on a flat surface, have to movement, like swinging your arms toward the plate, Ames’ back leg moves a ball, down low, but as it gets closer to the plate, it sneaks up to the knees
the game. Then instinct just takes over.”
rely on ground reaction force to create the while walking. That’s why softball forward and her toe digs into the ground,
There’s a full count, so Ames needs to for a strike.
necessary torque, according to Assistant pitchers can throw double-headers leaving a rut in the dirt. At the end of the
throw a strike. As she winds up for her
Coach Chase Turner, who is the head and come back and do it again the next pitch, her entire body moves forward and
next pitch, she thinks about when she
coach’s son and a San José State kinesiology day, says Chase. In baseball, pitchers follows in the same direction as the ball. Drop: A drop or down ball is thrown with either a two- or four-seam grip.
was younger and played two positions:
master’s student. “The more energy you put are fi ghting against gravity when they Her arm decelerates, along with the rest of
pitcher and catcher. After practice one The spin on the ball slows it down to make it sink as it reaches the batter.
into the ground, the more energy is going throw overhand and release the ball. her body. At this point, after the ball has
day, her father explained her options.
to be put back into you,” he explains as he They need days of rest after pitching a been released, the batter has little time to
As a catcher, he said, if you miss a ball,
squats to push his weight into the ground. nine-inning game. react. She must swing her bat and connect Curve: The pitcher changes the path of her circling arm so that the pitch
you could be the reason the team loses a
“The farther you stride, the less reaction During the delivery phase of the with the ball—if she can. Ames watches is released across her body—and then cuts across home plate. In baseball,
game. Everybody could blame you. As a
time the hitter’s going to have,” says Chase. softball pitch, the ball is accelerated the ball cross the plate at the batter’s knees.
pitcher, all the glory is yours—and you’re the screwball curves the opposite way as the curve ball. Screwballs aren’t
If you stride really, really far with your foot forward using a combination of body Strike two.
the princess. So, he asked, what do you
on the ground, he says, you’ll create better rotation, a circular movement of the The batter has less time to react to a possible in softball because there’s not enough pronation in the wrist in
want to do?
velocity. That’s why tall players tend to arm and bending the elbow at the end softball pitch than baseball players have
Strike three. She decided to be the underhand pitch.
throw hard—they have longer fulcrums of movement. When the pitcher’s arm to react to their pitches, says Peter Turner.
a princess.
and better torque. Then again, says Chase, is behind her, her body faces third base. After subtracting the length of the softball
we have a shorter pitcher who, at 5 feet, can As Ames releases the ball, where the pitcher’s stride, the ball travels about Changeup: To challenge the batter’s timing, a four-seam changeup is
throw hard. “Sometimes it’s just genetics underhand motion is seen, her body 40 feet, compared to 60 feet in baseball.
thrown. It’s slower but looks like a regular pitch—except for the “alligator
and natural ability.” faces home plate. There’s less time to react to a softball
arm,” or bent elbow, at the release. “The only way to succeed as a pitcher in
Division I softball is to have a great changeup,” says Chase Turner.
20 sjsu washington square spring 2011 spring 2011 sjsu washington square 21