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By Chris Sloan, 0 CommentsAll young pitchers should learn how to throw a change up. One could argue a significant change up is the most difficult pitch to hit. I recall a few major league baseball pitchers I faced who could have told me they were throwing the changeup and I still would not have hit it. A terrific change up the pitch is an optical illusion to the batter, as the ball appears to be in the hitting zone and it just seems to stop in midair. Some of the most awkward swings come on the pitch. Until one tries to hit it, they cannot imagine how difficult it can be. Like all things baseball, to perfect the pitch, it takes many years of trial and error to learn how to throw a change up.
In recent years, a few of the big league pitchers with unbelievable change ups include Tom Glavine, Pedro Martinez, Trevor Hoffman and Tim Lincecum all knew how to throw a change up. Except for the latter player, it does not take a lot of research to realize that each of those guys is in the MLB Hall of Fame in Cooperstown and for a good reason. Lincecum was dominant and the best pitcher in baseball for a couple of years. Learning to command the pitch along with knowing when to use it takes experience. The best part of the pitch is that it sets up all the other pitches because batters must keep the possibility of the slow option in mind. If one researched all the pitchers in Cooperstown, you would probably find all had a pretty good change of pace change.
One of the best things to know about many of the best pitchers with great careers and change ups is that many of them were not hard throwers. Guys like Chicago White Sox ace Mark Buehrle and Trevor Hoffman had average major league fastballs but made their fastball so much better because of the changeup.
As with learning any of the baseball fundamentals, learning how to throw a change-up is a process that begins with understanding precisely what it is and isn't. Most young ballplayers think a changeup merely is a slower pitch to throw off the batter's timing. They are right to a degree, but what makes the change up work is throwing it with the same arm speed as one throws the fastball. The second thing pitchers and coaches should understand is one of the main reasons for the changeup, along with disrupting the hitter's timing, is to make the pitcher's fastball appear faster than it is. After seeing a slower ball, the next fastball, even though the same speed as before the slower pitch, seems much faster to the batter. Once young pitchers realize pitching is upsetting the hitter's timing and not throwing each pitch as hard as they can, they are on their way to success.
At the little league level of baseball and younger, any slower pitch can be useful for two reasons. First, it often takes better hitting mechanics to hit a slow pitch because it drops in the hitting zone like an overhand major league curveball. Second, most youth players have difficulty waiting on the ball because of over-aggressiveness. However, just because the pitcher throws a slow ball, which is a good plan, does not constitute an exact change up. As mentioned, a real change up pitch comes with the same body motion, arm speed, and delivery as the fastball, that's how to throw a change up.
As mentioned, finding the best grip and arm speed is a continual work in progress, but once they've learned how to throw a change up, with a valid change of speeds, they will see the results with strikeouts and outs.
See Also: How to Throw a Sinker
After playing major league baseball, Jack Perconte has taught baseball and softball since 1988 and offered valuable coaching training too. He has helped numerous youth players reach their potential, as well as having helped parents and coaches navigate their way through the challenging world of youth sports. Jack is one of the leading authorities in the areas of youth baseball training and coaching training advice.
All Jack Perconte articles are used with copyright permission.There are 0 comments on "How to Throw a Change Up"
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