Switch Pitching 101

The same velocity pitch can appear to be faster or slower based on the location relative to the batter. A pitch thrown up-and-inside appears to be faster than the same velocity pitch located low-and-away. In the pitcher/hitter confrontation, whoever controls time, wins.  It really is that simple. Your browser does not support iframes. What is effective velocity? Effective Velocity (EV) is the study of pitch speed and how location changes the reaction time by forcing the hitter to hit the ball at a contact point that is different than they were ready for. When a pitch at 90 MPH is inside or outside, the speed "Effectively" changes because the hitter has to hit the ball earlier or later as though the pitch gained or lost speed. So, in essence, the pitch location has caused the hitter to gain or lose reaction time. For every 6" inches that the ball changes laterally, there is a little less than 3MPH gained or lost. (source:  hittingisaguess.com ) Watch the

Has there ever been a switch pitcher in the major leagues? Check out this answer: source: Panama City News-Herald, 23 Aug 1973 Greg Harris switch pitches in a major league game in 1995 Harris was the first major league switch pitcher in 100 years! Could there be a major league switch pitcher in 2015? It's possible ... Pat Venditte is a switch pitcher in the minor leagues for the Oakland Athletics. For the past few years he was with the Yankees ... switch pitching in AAA. Venditte could be the first ambidextrous pitcher to throw in an MLB game - since Greg Harris switch pitched for one inning back in 1995. .

Pat Venditte faced a switch-hitter in his first MLB exhibition game of the 2010 pre-season. He has yet to pitch in a regular big league game. Yankees use switch pitcher in game March 31, 2010 12:00 am   •   By The Associated Press KISSIMMEE, Fla. — Pat Venditte can see why he's such a curiosity. It's not everyday that a pitcher throws with both arms. Venditte showed off his ambidextrous talents for the New York Yankees on Tuesday, giving up one run in 1 1-3 innings during a 9-6 split-squad loss to the Atlanta Braves. Yankees manager Joe Girardi had said he wanted to watch Venditte throw this spring and asked that the pitcher be sent over from the minor league complex for an exhibition game. Venditte started out as a righty in the fifth and retired Yunel Escobar on a grounder to end the inning. In the sixth, Venditte pitched right-handed to Matt Diaz and gave up a single. Venditte shifted to a lefty and fielded Nate McLouth's sacrifice bunt. Later in the inn

Switch Pitcher from Binghamton The Gastonia Gazette (Gastonia, NC), 8 Dec 1955 Binghamton, N.Y. - Jack Vaughan says he's a natural southpaw but in football and baseball he can throw with either hand . The six foot one 165-pound North High freshman led his team to four victories in as many games on the gridiron this fall. Read more .

Hitters Never Can Tell which Way It's coming The Racine Journal-Times Sunday Bulletin (Racine, Wisconsin) 1 Jun 1958  By Carm Papara Husky Dave Hoffman, a sixth grade scholar at the Stephen Bull school, is a disciple of the theory that in pitching a baseball, two arms are better than one. This means that when the 11-year-old lad, a member of the Red Sox team in YMCA Little Leagues, has trouble getting batters out with his southpaw delivery, he can quickly switch his mitt and pitch with his right hand. The ambidextrous youngster, son of Mr. and Mrs. Richard Hoffman, is basically a lefty, but with encouragement from his father, the boy learned how to throw right-handed as well two years ago. (when he was 9-years-old) Dave, who chats baseball at home almost constantly, mixes curves and fastballs and is hopeful of a good season, his first in Little Leagues. Prior to this year, he played neighborhood ball, starting when he was about 4 years old. Ability to pitch with eith

Connie Mack Will Have Accomplished Athlete on His Team The Western Sentinel (Winston-Salem, NC), 4 Feb 1910 When Connie Mack and his Athletics play in Greenville on the afternoon of March 28, he will have on his team an  ambidextrous pitcher . This young man answers to the name of Charley Friene and can deliver a ball to the batter as good with his left hand as he can with his right. Here is what they say of him: "Charley Friene has come to terms with Connie Mack and mailed back his contract. The Philadelphia club will have in Friene a young pitcher of unusual ability. He is an ambidextrous thrower. There are very few pitchers who can shoot the ball over the plate with either hand, but Friene has done it. He has pitched part of a game with his right hand and finished up with his left. Friene usually pitches with his right. It is only when he is tiring or has some dangerous southpaw hitter that he pokes them over with his left. John Reilly discovered the youngster, who i

Switch Pitcher Elton Chamberlain The Topeka Daily Capital (Topeka, Kansas) 19 Sep 1891 The famous pitcher, Elton Chaberlain, who is a present causing the sphere to gyrate in a puzzling manner for the Athletics of Philadelphia, on e of the best clubs in the American association, is a native of Warsaw, N.Y. There it was that the now well know knight of the diamond first saw daylight some twenty-four years ago. After the usual amateur apprenticeship, Chamberlain commenced to play ball for the almighty dollar in 1885 with the Hamilton (Ont.) club. The next year he jumped into the Southern league and twirled the leather for Macon, Ga. His work with Louisville in 1887 brought him considerable of a reputation, which was greatly increased, when, in 1888, his pitching very materially assisted St. Louis to win the American association pennant. After another season with St. Louis Barr pitched for Columbus. He is one of the few ambidextrous pitchers in the baseball business. One of h

Ambidextrous Ace Waco News-Tribune, 27 Mar 1947 Roy Gibbens, ambidextrous pitcher for Texas A. and M. College, is undefeated for the season. He can switch to either arm at will. That he puzzles batters is attested by the fact that he has fanned 14 in 15 innings. See the Photo Found on Newspapers.com .

Harold P. "Shifty" Gears - Softball Switch Pitcher Pitched 61 no-hitters and 9 perfect games His career record was remarkable. Gears finished with 866 wins and 115 losses with 13,244 strikeouts. He pitched 61 no-hitters and 9 perfect games, and from 1925 to 1947 was the primary pitcher in 58 championships of various types.  He was the first player inducted into the National Softball Hall of Fame when it opened in 1957, a unanimous selection. Gears, whose nickname came from his moves on the basketball court, was born in Rochester in 1907. He retired from Kodak in 1972 and died in 1974. Read More Shifty Gears, Softball's Greatest  Has Turned In 54 No-Hitters The Brownsville Herald, 4 Jun 1940 By Jerry Brondfield Harold (Shifty) Gears is softball's composite of Bob Feller, Walter Johnson and Cy Young. Perhaps the greatest pitcher ever to step on a softball field, the 32-year-old, bespectacled athlete has compiled a record that d

Ohio High School Boasts Switch-Pitcher Tyrone Daily Herald, 27 May 1989 Tallmadge, Ohio (UPI) - You've seen switch-hitters in baseball. Mickey Mantle and Pete Rose are the most famous of the bree who could hit from either side of the plate. ... Now get ready for a switch-pitcher. Jeff Schley of Tallmadge High School near Akron is this ambidextrous rarity, who can switch arms form game to game, inning to inning and sometimes from batter to batter. Last week, the 6-foot-3, 190-pound junior hurled a no-hitter with his left arm in an Ohio high school state tournament game against Springfield Local. When his left arm felt tender a few days later, he made his next start against Akron Ellet as a right-hander and raised his record to 4-1. "I've never seen a kid like him," says Dave Young, who in 26 years as the Tallmadge coach has consistently turned out some of Ohio's best schoolboy teams. Earlier this season he pitched four innings as a left-hander,&q

The Montana Standard and The Butte Daily Post, 6 Jan 1963 Q. We hear a lot about switch hitters in baseball, especially since Mickey Mantle came into the picture. But are there now, or have there ever been, any switch pitchers or fielders? - Horsehide Harry. A. A few baseball players, like a minority of persons in other occupations, are born ambidextrous, but ball players usually settle down to one arm or the other as far as throwing is concerned. Many who are naturally right-handed train themselves to bat left-handed, as you undoubtedly know, because it puts them a step or so nearer first base to start with, and it gives them a shot at the many short right field fences in modern parks. Calvin Coolidge Julius Caesar Tuskahoma McLish is the classic example of a modern major league pitcher who is truly ambidextrous and could have pitched with either arm. Read More Found on Newspapers.com .

Today's Sport Parade by Oscar Fraley, United Press Sports Writer Logansport Pharos-Tribune (Logansport, Indiana) 10 Jul 1948 Don't look now but Lubbock of the West Texas-New Mexico league has a pitcher named Katcher Ralph, which is his front handle, is not only a pitching Katcher but a switch  pitcher who throws with either arm. His ambition: to have Katcher switch pitch against a switch hitter. Read the article Found on Newspapers.com Backstory: In 1942, Katcher entered the service. During the war he injured his left shoulder in a wrestling match in France and when he got back to the states he found he could no longer throw left handed. So the pitching Katcher decided to try pitching with his right arm and he did so well in amateur games around Stillwell that he was signed by Texarkansas, Texas of the Class B Big State league. (source: The Ogden Standard-Examiner, 8 Jul 1948) .

York Castoff Is Switch Pitcher Harrisburg Telegraph (Harrisburg, Pennsylvania), 8 Jun 1944 Jimmy Wadlow , 22 year-old pitcher who can throw from either port or starboard, is trying to make up his mind whether to be right or lefthanded when he tries out with Sacramento of the Pacific Coast League. Wadlow is registered as a righthander but he always has carried a pretty fair spare tire in the southpaw, even before he broke his right arm serving up a fast pitch in 1941. "I've got a lot more speed and a better curve when I'm a southpaw," said Jimmy while visiting his parents here. "But my control is bad from the port side." Cut loose by York, Pa., of the Interstate League after he had beaten Wilmington, 4-2, in his only start of the season, Jimmy began thinking seriously about switching to southpawing. "My arm felt good but after I beat Wilmington it got tight and sore. Maybe I'll give it another try in the warm California sunshine. The,

President Harry S. Truman Truman Switches From 'Catching' to Pitching by Earnest Barcella, 19 Apr 1948 President Truman, who has been catching it from the left and right, will do some pitching today. With 35,000 upper-case and just-plain fans watching at Griffith Stadium, Mr. Truman will throw out the ceremonial "first" pitch inaugurating the 1948 major league baseball season. Mr. Truman is the only switch-pitcher in the 36 years since William Howard Taft started the custom of presidential "first" pitches. Two years ago, Mr. Truman threw left-handed. Last year, he was ambidextrous, throwing two pitches - one left-handed and one right-handed. Read More Found on Newspapers.com . President Harry Truman wrote with his right hand, but could throw well with both arms. .

Feature Photo of a 16 year-old ambidextrous pitcher from North Carolina. Now a Switch Pitcher Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, 30 May 1948 The switch hitter is accepted as common, but there's a new wrinkle on the baseball scene, a high school youngster who chucks them with either hand. Kenneth Thompson pitching left- and right-handed. (Found on  Newspapers.com ) The hurler, Kenneth Thompson of Windsor, North Carolina, has only yielded five hits in 18 innings and is the outstanding pitcher on his high school team. When the batter goes from left to right, Thompson follows him, throwing left-handed to the left-handed batter and vice versa. The ambidextrous pitcher is only 16 years old. See photo feature .

15-Year-Old Mexican Lad May Become Diamond Ace The Bridgeport Post, 29 May 1960 Could one of the world's finest baseball players be a mere boy of 15? Millions of Mexicans - from the Yucatan to Baja California, Acapulco to the Rio Grande, and especially in booming, industrial Monterrey - fervently believe that the 115-pound impoverished son of a Monterrey factory worker will perhaps even one day be greater than Babe Ruth . As a hitter, he has never batted less than .500 in any league in which he has competed and leads his league consistently in home runs, runs scored, runs batted in and hits, and he is a constant base stealing threat. He is a switch-hitter, batting form either the right or left side, and thus is switch-pitcher, switch-fielder and switch-hitter combined. Read More Found on Newspapers.com ... Angel Macias pitched a perfect game in the 1957 Little League World Series ---

Switch Pitcher Ulysses Greene Lebanon Daily News, 26 May 1959 Switch Pitcher - Not since the days of Satchel Paige has a pitcher so captivated the fancy of baseball fans as ambidextrous Ulysses Grant Greene, youthful Indianapolis Clowns' latest find, who will be seen on the mound for the world colored champions. Greene is a baseball rarity, pitching form the right-side to righty hitters, and from the left-side to left-handed swingers. Scouts are puzzled figuring which arm he throws best with. Read more Found on Newspapers.com .

16 year-old High School Switch Pitcher in 1954 Schoolboy Switch Pitcher Got His Start With Maimed Hand By Charles F. Stafford | 3 Jun 1954 Huntington, West VA - Marlon (Lefty) Majher of the Huntington High baseball team, is a righty too. He pitches with either hand and does well with both. It's a wonder Lefty throws at all. When Majher was born 16 years ago, his right hand was bent parallel to his wrist. To straighten the hand, doctors broke every bone in the hand and reset them. The operation stunted the growth of the youngster's hand. It is considerable smaller than his left. When he first took an interest in baseball, Lefty figured it would strengthen his right hand if he learned to throw from starboard as well as portside. His determination paid off. Read More Found on Newspapers.com

Tim Lincecum Stories: A Star In the Making KOMO 4's Eric Johnson follows a local phenom pitcher from his University of Washington days, a brief stay in the minors all the way to his major league debut with the San Francisco Giants. He and his dad Chris have a very special relationship that has helped Tim become one of the best pitchers in the majors. Tim Lincecum's story serves as an inspiration to many young ball players. Lincecum has won 2 Cy Young awards - plus he helped the SF Giants win the World Series – 3 times.  The dedication of Chris in developing his son Tim  Lincecum into a dominant college pitcher  reminds me of the process of  developing a Switch Pitcher .. Ambidextrous pitchers are developed over many years of training and practice.  Lots of extra practice and dedication is required to become a skilled switch pitcher.  Parents nurture their child's development - often playing catch,  serving as catchers, and  giving positive feedback.  Da

Yes - Just ask Jamie Moyer. The crafty lefty kept major league hitters of balance, for 25 years, by locating his fastball and deceptive changeup. Henry Knight LHP In youth leagues, left-handed pitchers often have the advantage over hitters since they are rare and the pitches come from a different direction and slower speed. About 1 in 10 kids can throw left-handed and only some of them are pitchers. Batters don't get many chances to face lefties in games, so they seem to have trouble hitting off them. Some people think that left-handed pitches have more movement than right-handed throws. Certainly the spin and angle of the lefty pitch could fool many right-handed batters. Here are a few notes on what gives the LHP an advantage: Lefty 2-seam fastball runs away from the batter After watching a lot of college pitchers, I noticed that left handers often throw a 2-seam fastball down and away to right-handed batters. A good 2-seamer moves away from the righty hitters.

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What are the common traits of Ambidextrous Pitchers? - most switch pitchers are NOT naturally ambidextrous - can only write with one hand - start throwing with both arms in Little League - throw harder with their dominant hand - play two or more positions - ability to switch hit - play multiple sports (football, basketball) - good teammate - team captain - hard worker - positive attitude - student of the game - excellent student - get recruited to play college baseball - plan to graduate from college .

How tall is MLB pitcher Marcus Stroman? 5' 8" Although he is listed as five-foot-nine, Stroman wanted to make clear how tall he actually stands.  I'm 5 feet 8 inches. I'm not sure why I'm listed at 5 feet 9 inches but that's incorrect. Lol #HDMH — Marcus Stroman (@MStrooo6) January 10, 2015 Marcus Stroman was drafted  by the Toronto Blue Jays in the  1st round   (22nd pick) of the 2012 amateur draft after pitching for Duke University. What is Stroman's velocity?  In 2014, he relied primarily on his  Fourseam Fastball  (94mph), also mixing in a  Sinker (93mph),  Cutter  (91mph),  Curve  (83mph),  Change  (86mph) and  Slider  (88mph).  source: Brooks Baseball Marcus Stroman , the mythbusting machine – The Hardball Times What's up with all the 5'9" college players? I noticed that a lot of short college players are listed at 5'9" , when they are actually much shorter. It seems that they grow a couple of inches

I was checking out pitching videos on YouTube and found this 11-year-old Little League pitcher throwing both ways. Dean Bernaldez - 11 yr old Switch Pitcher Blue Oak Elementary, Cameron Park, California ..

Way back in 2008 ... Venditte's versatility prompts new rule By  Benjamin Hill  /  Special to MLB.com It is a rare instance, indeed, when a first-year professional ballplayer inspires the creation of a new rule. But ambidextrous pitcher Pat Venditte has done just that. Venditte, the 20th-round pick of the New York Yankees in this June's Draft, received national attention after making his debut with the Staten Island Yankees June 19. With two outs and a runner on first in the bottom of the ninth inning, switch-hitter Ralph Henriquez came to the plate representing the Brooklyn Cyclones' last hope. What resulted was a moment of high comedy: Henriquez entered the batters box batting right-handed, so Venditte switched his glove to his left hand. Henriquez then decided to bat lefty, so Venditte switched his glove back to his right. And on and on it went. After a prolonged delay, Henriquez was ordered to bat right-handed. He then struck out on four pitches to en

AZ Baseball Ranch's Josh McAlister demonstrates the proper way to do the "Around The World" exercise, using a shoulder tube. Pitching Exercises -The Blue-Collar Arm Care Routine - make your own shoulder tube for $3 .

Eric Davis – a successful coach and athletic director from Washington state – talked with Brian Cain about setting goals and developing a championship culture in high school. Be in the present moment .. concentrate on every play .. set small goals .. re-evaluate and  keep improving. Control what you can control.  Listen to the podcast  >> In this podcast, Davis discusses what it takes to successfully lead a high school athletic department and give your coaches and athletes the best chance for success. Falcon Culture F - Family - how to act and react A - Attitude - have a great attitude, be positive L - Leadership - step up and be a leader; hold teammates accountable C - Competitive -  compete in the appropriate way; focus on the process O - One play, one pitch at a time; be in the present moment N - No excuses - be accountable; don't blame the officials Hanford Falcons  @ HanfordFalcons One of the most high energy coaches & leaders at hi

Alexander Trautner   San Ramon Valley High School  (Class of  2014) Danville, California College: Creighton University  Bluejays  (Class of 2018) Collegiate Summer Team:  Neptune Beach Pearl , Alameda, CA Positions:  LHP/RHP, First Base, Catcher Height/Weight:  6'3" 210 lbs Bats:  Right Throws:  Both, switch pitcher Velocity / Pitches : RHP = 87 mph FB, curveball, and change-up. LHP = 83 mph FB, curveball, and change-up. A 6'3" switch pitcher from Northern California, Alexander Trautner throws a fastball, curveball and change-up from either side. Right-handed he reaches 87 mph and left-handed he touches 83 mph.  Switch Pitcher Alex Trautner Chooses Creighton Alex Trautner is one of two ambidextrous pitchers currently in a D1 baseball program. Aubrey McCarty is the other switch pitcher, who plays for Vanderbilt University – the 2014 College World Series champions.  Switch Pitcher U The Creighton Bluejays featured switch pit