Power Pros Forum

Help me please. Im going to high school next year and i want to play for the baseball team. However, I play SS the best and I heard that their best player (2nd best) plays SS and I don't think I have a chance of making the team.......I want to be the pitcher now and I can throw a 2-seam, 4-seam and curve. I need help with slider and change up.

You cant just be a pitcher, you need ti work at it. Unless youve pitched alot before, you probably wont make it as a pitcher, unless you got a great heater. For a change i throw a curcle change, make an O on the left side of the ball with your thumb and pointer, hold it in the palm, and keep all your other fingers off, or on a very little bit for better control. I have a pitch that moves like a slider with snapping the wrist, hold it Along the Horseshoe like seam of the ball with your thumb and pointer, and throw it like a fastball, it looks like a fastball when thrown, but has good break.

Wouldn't it be easiar to move to third base?

I could try 3B, I would say I have a decent heater....Cause I played SS and I can throw double plays

Here's a good tip on pitching - you're much better off with a couple of plus (above average) off-speed pitches than 4-5 mediocre to crap pitches. So don't feel like you need to try to develop pitches in every direction. Pick a breaking ball style and a changeup style and focus on those. For example, very few pitchers are equally adept at the slider and the curve, so when you figure out which one you have more ability for, ditch the other. As you gain mastery over a basic curve or slider, you can easily add variations by changing speeds and/or your release point. That gives good variety to your repertoire without having to learn and practice different grips and releases. In addition to adopting either the curve or the slider family, experiment with some different changeup styles until you find one that works for you - then forget about the rest. For me it was the circle change, but that may or may not work best for you.

Keep in mind that while in video games you can have pitchers with half a dozen different sick breaking pitches, that's completely unrealistic in the real world. At the high school level if you can throw strikes consistently with your fastball, curve/slider, and changeup, you'll have good success.

I don't know what baseball is like at your school, but when I was in high school freshmen rode the pine for the most part. So if you're a SS don't worry too much about someone being ahead of you. You can increase your value though by being proficient at 3B and 2B as well, it gives the manager more options for plugging you in the lineup.

Oh i see, hmm mabye your right....

This happened to me my Freshman year in HS. I worried that the position I was was better than me (please note, at the time I only played CF). Don't fret, just work hard and never give up at the tryouts (Are their for your freshman). I just worked harder at tryouts, I made the team and then worked on getting better, we even helped eachother out at times. Don't make him your enemy but friend. The main thing to not overwork but work hard in practice. Shortstops should usually have some speed so if you are pretty slow I'd work on speed or other weak points. Don't worry about being a starter by the first game, I wasn't. I didn't start until mid-season beacause I worked hard and then when you do get a chance in the game do what your supposed to, maybe not get the hit to drive in a run, but the little stuff. Like getting him to third. Don't ignore or go through signs.


Also, just beacause their already shortstop plays and does well doesn't mean you won't make the team.

Im not worried about speed, I do 100m 200m and 4x100m in track and field but i afraid that the position has like way a better player than me.....

Is he a freshie, Softy, junior, or Senior?

If you work hard you will get that starting job, maybe not this year but maybe next.

I dunno, my friend in high school told me....

Hmmm, try to get this thought in your head: Your friend is lying to scare you.

ha, nice one.
might work, though.

It worked for me in my Junior year, I was terrified of this certain pitcher, his fastball was just great, so I imagined it sucked.

first pitch i ever faced in a league, i got hit in the elbow.

Atleast you got on base...

In my first HS AB I think I GO or Singled.