Three Weeks In

It has been about three weeks into my throwing program. My throwing partner and I have been working with different grips and different pitches but have only moved back to around 70 ft.

As far as refinement and comfort with pitches, I think it is coming along good. I have been focusing heavily on making sure that change ups feel comfortable in my hand. I have a problem where I flick my wrist too much and don’t stay on top, but hey that’s why I’m practicing to get it right.

During the season I threw what I thought was a curveball. In retrospect it was more of a slider / slurve version of a pitch. Curveballs are usually in the high 70s but mine was in the low 80s. With that being said, I have moved to a different grip and actually call it a slider. When I look at right handed relievers many of them are fast ball / slider guys. That is who I want to be out of the bullpen. A guy who comes in the game to throw hard and have a good slider to miss bats.

I have been home for nine weeks but the time is going fast. It is almost the new year, and a year I am immeasurably happy for it to arrive. 2015 could be a great year for me and a lot of my friends that I met during the season.

Offseason Update #1

December is here. What does this mean? Well this means that in roughly three months Spring Training for the minor leagues will begin. Major Leaguers report at the end of February but myself and the fellow minor leaguers report a little later than that.

Two days ago I started my offseason program a month earlier than the recommended starting date of January 1. Well Mitchell why would you go against the grain and start a program early. I have a few reasons for that:

1. I only threw 22 innings.
2. I need to build arm strength.
3. I need to reps to refine mechanics as well as pitching grips.

I figure that resting the arm in the offseason is a great idea if you have been pitching since March. I have not, and therefore I’m starting to play light catch while working with grips and mechanics. The main goal for me this month is to have a consistent weight transfer.

In my early pitching days I have been told I do not have the best weight transfer. That’s fine with me because I haven’t been doing this long but now I have three months to improve on it. Also, having an extra month to work on pitching grips will help me. I never felt completely comfortable with any pitch that I threw this season. The next step for me is being able to repeat a delivery and feel comfortable throwing every pitch.

I’m excited to start working on pitching rather than just working out. It’s an exciting time of the year for everyone with the holidays and winter meetings. This is the first of a few offseason updates I hope to write about. I guess it just depends on what’s going on.

Offseason Update 1. Over and out.