Ever wonder what the purpose of throwing a baseball is? From early on most of us rely on the knowledge that to play baseball all we need do it 1) Hit the ball to score a run 2) Catch the ball to make an out and 3) throw the ball to stop the runner. For T-ball players and younger youth this summary is sufficient. When it is time to make the step up, there must be a different emphasis on what the particulars account for.
Anyone can throw a baseball. How well everyone throws is a different matter. All should have the same goal, whom ever you are throwing the ball to should be able to catch it easily. Easy, comfortable catch zone from top to bottom is between the belly button and shoulders, left to right is between the elbows at rest. This is the zone you wish to place the ball.
Throw velocity needs to be distance appropriate. It makes no sense to whip a ball in at 70 or 80mpf from less than 40 feet. If you choose to throw too hard several things can happen. First, if your throw is off there is less reaction time for the receiver to make the adjustment to your bad throw. Second, the run down distance from a ball not being able to be caught is greater an may allow the base runner to take additional bases. Third, depending on the receivers ability, a hard throw may be too much to handle to them to take possession of and make the tag.
Your goal for each and every throw is a frozen rope that begins to taper off 5 to 10 feet past the receiver. The frozen rope is a flat, horizontal throw from your hand to the receiver. Baseballs on a frozen rope will fall only 6 to 8 inches from the time it leaves the hand until it reaches a point past the glove of the receiver regardless of the distance thrown. By throwing ‘thru’ the receiver, you ensure that there is indeed enough umph on the ball to get there quickly but remain catchable.
Throwing a baseball into the each catch zone has multiple advantages as well. Ideally the receiver will already be in the proper location to make the play when the ball arrives. A well thrown ball will not take the receiver away from the optimum play position. They will spend less time finishing the play as the ball is good proximity. Their balance will remain in tact so that they may initiate another play. If you have ever witnessed a truly smooth 5-4-3 double play, the whole event happens so quick a easy it takes on an un-natural appearance. This smoothness or successive throws could not be achieved if the second baseman has to leap off to one side to first make the catch and then tag the bag. Time lost running down the throw all by guarantees the batters success at reaching first base.
Baseballs thrown into the zone are an enormous benefit when they are miss gloved. Predominately the ball will bounce off the receiver in front of them and at a short distance. There is still hope to make the play. Now had the thrower launched the ball to impress someone, aside from the possibility of injuring the receiver the ball can wind up anywhere and too far away for the receiver to recover.
Keep the simple goals in mind on every throw. 1) in the zone 2) catchable 3)proper speed and most importantly 4) You really want the person you are throwing to to catch it so do all you can to ensure their success.
There are many baseball players in the United States who play on teams that represent large cities. These teams are organized into what are called leagues. There are two “big leagues,” or “major leagues,” in the United States. They are the American League and the National League. There are other leagues in the United States that are less important and are called minor leagues. The most important minor leagues are rated AAA (“triple A”); then come AA, A, B, C, and D. Each league is made up of some four to eight teams. In each league the teams play each other over and over again until the season is completed. A season in the major leagues consists of 154 games, and in the minor leagues it varies from slightly less than this number to slightly more. The team that wins the most games in each league during a season wins the pennant for that season. The pennantwinning teams in the American and National Leagues play each other, each fall, in the World Series. Actually they are playing for the championship of organized baseball in the United States. Another important baseball event is the yearly All-Star Game. The best players in each of the two major leagues are elected by the votes of the fans, the people who watch and enjoy baseball. The American League all-stars play the National League all-stars about the middle of July. All men who play in these baseball leagues are called professional baseball players, which means that they are paid salaries to play. Other men who play for money but do not play in regular leagues are called semiprofessional baseball players. Organized baseball consists of all the professional baseball leagues, and it is the highest form of baseball that is played. Organized baseball is governed by a national baseball commission. Each league is run by a president and several assistants. The league presidents appoint the umpires and see to it that the teams play baseball according to the regular schedule and that they all observe all of the rules. Each professional baseball team has its own ballpark or stadium. The major-league stadiums are the largest in the country and hold thousands of people. The Yankee Stadium in New York City, the home of the New York Yankees, has seats for 67,000 people and the Cleveland stadium seats nearly 100,000. The other major-league stadiums can seat at least 30,000 people. Most minor-league stadiums have seats for 5,000 or 10,000 people, up to 30,000. Baseball is also played in colleges, schools, army camps, and by club teams. When a boy has shown baseball skill he usually moves up from either a club or college team to a minor-league team, and if he continues to show skill he eventually reaches the major leagues, which are the goal of every young American baseball player. Boys and young men who play on fields and lots and pastures all over the country are playing what is called sandlot baseball. Most boys about 12 years old who play baseball play in what is called the Little League. In the Little League the baseball fields are smaller than regulation fields -the distance between the bases is 60 feet instead of 90 feet. The game itself is basically the same as regulation baseball. It is played with the same kind of balls and bats and gloves. The American Legion for many years has also encouraged baseball for boys. Legion posts all over the United States encourage boys to play baseball, and give the boys uniforms and equipment
I’m writing this article for the person who knows nothing about baseball, the person who doesn’t know the difference between the Triple Crown and an unassisted Triple Play. I’m not going to write about the history of baseball so if that’s what you want look somewhere else, I’m going to tell you the necessary information so you can sit down on a Saturday afternoon and watch a baseball game. Even if you do know a lot I’m hoping you can learn a little.