How To Get The Best Throwing Arm On Your Baseball Team

            Your throwing arm is one of your most valuable tools in the game of baseball. You use it not only as a pitcher, but every defensive play that you get the ball. I’m going to give you some mechanics and drills you can use to improve your throwing ability.

            First, we’ll talk about mechanics. When you start to throw, you should put all of your weight on your back foot and point your glove at your target. As you come through, try to keep your arm somewhat straight, because when it’s bent you can pull muscles in your elbow. When you release the ball you should focus on three different things. One, when you release the ball, the foot that you didn’t push off with, so your front foot, should be pointing directly where you want to throw it. Two, as you’re releasing the ball, you should flick your wrist so you aren’t just pushing the ball, it helps you gain velocity. Finally, after you release the ball, you should try and bend down and grab some grass on the opposite side of your throwing arm to make sure that you’re following through and not short-arming your throw.

            Once you are utilizing every one of these mechanical tips, you need to be constantly working on your throw. As with my blog about your swing, I’m going to say just stop around the house and air throw. Make sure you point your glove, flick your wrist, point your foot, EVERYTHING. It creates muscle memory so you don’t have a thousand things running through your head when you’re throwing in a game. Also, if available, you can get some resistance bands and tie them around a solid surface at about shoulder length. Once that’s done, you can turn and face away from the band, grab it with your throwing arm, and go through your throwing motion. You don’t need to point and flick and everything, just go through your throwing arm slot, and just create that resistance. This really stretches everything out so it’s good to do before a game or before you go throw, and it again creates some muscle memory on your arm slot and your follow through. Another thing that helped me was playing catch from your knees. It really helps you get that rotation that you need to get some more velocity on your throw. Also, to improve your throwing distance, you can play long toss. Start about five feet away from your partner, and every time you throw keep backing up and backing up until you can’t possibly throw any further. When you get to this point every throw you should start coming towards your partner with every throw until you meet in the middle. If you can do this set a couple times a day, it really helps your arm's durability, and your ability to throw the ball long distances.

            I know these tips aren’t very flashy or innovative, but if you dedicate yourself and constantly work on your fundamentals and strengthening, there will be nothing stopping you on your march to the top. Thank you for reading, it is very much appreciated, be sure to check out my other posts for ways to improve overall baseball game.

-Brandon