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| SOFTBALL LINKS |
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Change Things Up A Little .. Or A Lot
by Dave
Wednesday, July 20, 2005
The single most under-rated pitch on planet Earth is the change-up. As far as I can tell this is because pitchers are afraid of throwing a meatball to a batter who quickly sends it over the fence. Another reason is that the spinning, moving pitches have more pinache and style. But a great change-up can make an ordinary pitcher into a very effective one.
At the most recent World Cup, we saw a Japanese pitcher (who sometimes hit 70 and had a tremendous change-up she was not afraid to use) stymie the best hitters the US had to offer. Yukiko Ueno was amazing not only because at 5-foot-8 she might be the smallest pitcher ever to hit 70, but also because she seems to have absolute command of the speed she is throwing. She throws the typical array of pitches but the speed of each is apparently different on every pitch. Also, and most importantly, she throws a change-up that is typically around 47-49 mph. 12U and 14U batters are supposed to be able to hit pitches at this speed. Yet the US hitters looked as if they were 10U when Ueno threw a change.
If you don't have a change-up at all, there are a couple ways to throw one. My favorite is the one where you basically use the "hand-shake" motion to replace your snap on a straight fastball. This is effective because it seems to the batter that you are throwing another pitch, perhaps a drop. You can use almost any sort of grip on the ball - I suggest experimenting to find the one or couple which suit you. Your motion is the same as for a straight fastball but when your arm is right by your side, your knuckles should be facing away from your body and your thumb should be right next to your leg. From this position, you raise your hand as if you are shaking someone's hand. Your fingers release the ball which should escape your hand through the thumb and index finger.
Practice doing just the release with the hand shake the way you might do other snap drills. Keep your arm glued to your side and move only the hand. Once you are able to release the ball well, try it without the full motion by starting with your throwing arm over your head, your mitt stretched out towards homeplate. Swing your arm down like you are throwing a fast pitch and release with a hand-shake. Your arm should come to a complete stop at release. But you can sort of roll your shoulder towards the batter to give that drop ball look. Now you can do your regular pitching drills while using your change-up release. That's really all there is to it. The trick is practicing it a lot while appearing to throw a fastball. And being able to control exactly where the ball goes is almost as important.
If you already have a decent change-up but are not using it, ask yourself why. Hopefully, after you watched the World Cup, it isn't out of fear that the batters will kill it. If you are a pretty good pitcher - not the fastest or best, consider that using a change-up will actually make your faster pitches seems even faster to the batters. If they are aware that you have a good change-up, they will know that they have to keep their hands back in order to deal with it. Once they commit to keeping their hands back, your pitches will appear much faster to them. An ordinary fastball, drop or riser becomes almost impossible to hit if you wait too long to commit.
Additionally, a change-up can be the most effective pitch you have to deal with slap hitters. This is because they are already in motion before you release your pitch. A slapper begins her steps as your arm is in the downward motion in order to get moving so they can beat out a throw to first. A change-up can make even a seasoned slapper leave the batter's box too early resulting in her being called out. Even if she somehow manages to stay in the box or if she leaves it and the umpire doesn't call her out, you have completely messed up her timing. Without a good off speed pitch, slappers are likely to make you feel as if you've been slapped all day. A good change-up provides you the tool with which to slap back!
Many pitchers have a change-up in their repertoire but because they are afraid to actually use it in a game, they never master the pitch. By mastery I really mean three things. First off, the most important aspect to throwing an effective change-up is to have the identical motion you would have with your faster pitches. Nothing about your body should telegraph the hitter that you are throwing anything unusual. The batter should expect a "normal" pitch. In order to accomplish this you need to have a fair amount of practice time and you need someone to watch you and tell you when you have accomplished this goal. Too many pitchers try to make the pitch go really slow by changing their motion to throw a change. Just like most other pitches, the trick is in how much pressure you throw the ball with. A good change relies on the grip and release to provide the pitcher with no opportunity to put pressure against the ball. That is why you do not want any fingers behind the ball to push it. Your arm motion must seem like you are whipping the ball as fast as you can.
The second element to change-up mastery is speed. This really comes from releasing the ball properly as I've just said. But you want to make sure that your change-up is drastically slower than your other pitches. The example of Japanese pitcher Ueno is a good one but, after all, she is a world class pitcher. I doubt you throw 70 and are able to drop your change-up in at 20 mph slower than that. But you want to have a noticeable difference. Your practice catcher ought to be able to tell you that you have thrown a slow enough change to use it in a game. But just to make sure, try it out on your own batters during practice. Make sure your catcher knows you may use it but don't let any of your team's hitters know until after practice!
The third element of a good change-up is control. I have seen pitchers throw their change right down the middle of the plate and because the batter was so off balance, it was an easy swinging strike three. But this is not the best approach to actually using a change. You want to be able to strike the batter out if you goof up and put i t down the middle but the best place for a change-up is either right outside the strike zone or just barely inside it. And even if you throw a strike, you want the level to be right on the upper or lower lines. High and outside is a good spot but if it falls into the strike zone, I would rather it be something the batter has to reach for. So in order to throw an effective change up, you need to be able to locate the pitch well, just outside of the zone. This, as usual means lots of practice. But even if you cannot locate the pitch precisely where you want, at least try it out in game situations where you are assured of victory or have no chance of winning. Nothing replaces using a pitch in a game situation.
I hope I have convinced you to run outside and start working on that pitch you have been ignoring. If you throw 50 in a league of 55 mph pitchers, you can still compete in their league with a good change. Nobody without a radar gun is going to be able to say for sure that you don't throw 55 if you mix in changes. After you throw your first really good change and struck out an over-anxious home run queen, take a look around the sidelines and notice if any fans have fallen out of their lawn chairs. If anyone appears to be picking themselves off the ground, you should know that you now have a great change-up.
 
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