A HS Freshman catcher has offered to catch my son's weekend Bull Pens, so we are helping him work on his catching mechanics once we get done with the Pen.

The boy is pretty raw right now, so I have him working on his footwork and catch and transfer mechanics.

He has this great big windup that needs to get quickened up and I could use some advise on how get him straightened out. I have heard that a good visual for kids to get quicker on their arm mechanics is to visualize a "bow and arrow" type of throw.

Any advice or recommendations in this area is appreciated.

Here is my advice:

Drive into his skull that EVERY time he catches a ball, not just when he has gear on and is catching bullpen, is an opportunity to ingrain the proper transfer and load mechanics.

So in pre-practice warm ups, any time he's playing catch of any sort, he should catch, then see how fast he can transfer and snap his arm into the proper throwing position, ball by the ear and elbow back.

Watch kids play catch, even to warm up before a game. They almost never do it with a purpose. They lazily catch the ball, load up slowly and throw it back.

Catchers can't afford to waste this much opportunity to improve. My son was told this when he was in the 7th grade by a Dodgers scout who was at a winter day camp he attended.

It can also be done withou playing catch - a ball and a glove while watching TV.

You'll have to stay on him, because it is easy for teh kids to forget. When I see my son playing catch wriong, I just say "transition!" and he remembers, goes back to doing it properly.

I think Rob has a good way for you to teach this guy. I'll expand some, though.

You may want to have him start doing it full speed. Don't do it full speed just yet. Show him how to do it first, nice and slow. Transfer the ball from the glove and draw the arm to the ear so he can see what it's supposed to look like. Then do it full speed for him to see. Ask him to do it slowly. If he needs help, physically guide his arm.

Long story short, just do the transfer with a ball but not throwing it. Start slow, then go faster and faster until it gets to full speed. Positive reinforcement is key. Let him know when he does it properly, especially once he's doing it at full speed.

And like Rob said, make sure he's doing it when playing catch.

Make sure that once he catches the ball it never goes below the glove; bow image is fine or straight back whatever works for the kid. Can't windup if he does this. Have him throw some from his knees also..can help force the kid to get and keep his elbow up in throwing.

Ball to the ear I'll debate some because if the elbow is in the correct position and the ball is at the ear, you'll have a bad arm angle and the tendency for alot of kids will not get on top/behind the ball when throwing. They'll rotate their hand to the side of the ball and spin almost like a Little League slurve. The other problem I've seen with younger catchers is the tendency to short-arm the ball or even push the ball if they don't get the ball back past their throwing shoulder.

Raking the glove back to the ear when making the transition is taught by some....too slow in my opinion. Instead, turn the glove with the wrist to get the ball out, keeping the glove out front. Some say this will cause him to open up too early...not if his footwork is correct.

Advice about praticing with a purpose is so important to all players but absloutely a must for catchers; there are simply too many things they must do before a game to waste any time. Warm up with shinguards on so he can the footwork down with the same feel. Practice with a mirror or film him if possible...alot of kids can't feel the position they are actually in (pertains to everybody actually). A film will stop any argument.

Proper footwork ( it all starts there) and ball transfer (can't practice this too much)is more important than initial arm strength. That will come with age. Master the mechanics first and the pop times will come down. Some HS freshman tend to lose their mechanics in trying to keep up with the seniors.

Out of curiousity, is this boy staying low to throw or standing very upright to throw. I've seen this problem alot in HS catchers that stand tall to throw. Stress staying low, flexed kees, squared front side, butt out and ball up. Also watch his stance...if bad it can force him to be too upright when he throws.

By the way, hopefully the middle infielders know how to catch a throw down properly (where to position themselves) and to handle one-hoppers. If they are behind the bag or can only catch balls in the air you'll never throw anyone out consistently even if the throw beats the runner. Nothing worse than a flat footed infielder trying to reach across the bag to make a tag.

I agree with the last post. There are things that can be done with the transfer and arm arc, but it starts with footwork. Proper footwork will really help with getting more zip on the throws as well as accuracy.

quote:

Originally posted by S. Abrams:


Out of curiousity, is this boy staying low to throw or standing very upright to throw. I've seen this problem alot in HS catchers that stand tall to throw. Stress staying low, flexed kees, squared front side, butt out and ball up. Also watch his stance...if bad it can force him to be too upright when he throws.

First thanks for the advice to all who posted.

I will take a close look at him this week-end and watch how he comes up after receiving the ball. I do know that his footwork is weak and so are his transfer mechanics, so if we work on these two things for the next 8 weeks he will be in much better shape once the season starts.