Tips From Coach John Peter Pitching Start aggressive hitters off with something off speed. Why? Because aggressive guys are looking for something to crush as soon as they leave the dugout. Throw high fastballs to upper cutters. Why? Hitters don't catch up with them because they can't get their hands above the plane of the ball. (Here's a tip within a tip. Save this pitch to finish them off when you get to strike two.) You can't live forever nibbling on the corners. Pitching aggressively is the ultimate sign of a pitcher with potential and/or one who is experiencing continued success. Learn to have the courage to throw the change up to good hitters.

Baseball Bytes
From the video Developing Basic Pitches by Jerry Weinstein

The Importance of the Fastball The most important pitch in baseball is the fastball. The reason that it's such an important pitch is because all of your pitches are thrown off the same arm speed and hand speed as your fastball. So it's important to have an efficient fastball from the standpoint of the carryover of the hand and arm speed to your secondary pitches (change-ups and breaking pitches). Another thing that makes the fastball so important is that most hitters are fastballs hitters and they swing at fastballs. From a philosophical perspective as a pitcher, the easiest way to get the hitter out is with his pitch. What you need to do is throw it just out of his effective contact zone, just below his effective hitting velocity. You know he is going to swing at the fastball, so know you have to be able to throw fastballs to start his bat. Your job is to get hitters to swing, to start their bat. When you get hitters to start their bat, you have a chance to get them out, because contact is your friend. You can't be afraid of contact. In the big leagues, 63% of all fairly batted balls are outs. Contact works for you, not against you. Learning the Fastball The fastball is an incredibly important pitch. It should be the first pitch in your pitching repertoire and your ability to vary the seam and grip arrangement as well as the speed is really important. It's very important not to move too fast on the fastball. The first thing that you do is develop your ability to throw the four-seam fastball and hit your target. Once you can do that then you can move on. With young guys, more is less. Sometimes, three types of fastballs are too much. Maybe what you need to do is first learn to establish a fastball away from your arm side and then work your way to the other side of the plate. When you first establish that fastball away you know that you're not going to be rushing, and mechanically you're going to be more in sync when you throw away from your arm side. Once you can do that, then you can add on. You can add fastballs in, two seam fastballs, sinking fastballs. You can work up, you can work down. Youth league pitchers can pitch with fastballs alone. If they've got command and can hit their target, they've got a chance to defend themselves with just the fastball. Remember Your Grip You're going to have days with all of your pitches where they're going to be average, good, or exceptional. When you have a day where you have an exceptional breaking ball, fastball, or change-up what I like my pitchers to do right after the game is to get a ball, get the grip that they had that day so they can get a feel for that grip, take a marking pen, outline their grip on the ball, put the date on it, put the type of pitch, and keep it in their locker. Why? Because with a long season you're going to go through periods where you lose the feel for your fastball, change-up, or breaking ball, and when you can come back and take that ball where you had an exceptional day with that particular ball and that particular grip, a lot of times you'll flash back and get the feel for it again and there will be less variation and deviation between your bad days and your great days. Send this page to a friend   Developing Basic Pitches Fastballs, breaking pitches, change-ups....Learn various pitches and grips, including when to throw each, in Coach Weinstein's step-by-step overview of how to coach a pitcher to throw basic types of pitches.  50 minutes, includes drills to develop breaking pitches and change-ups "I also like this video for the more sophisticated or advanced player. Coach Weinstein, of Sacramento City College and LA Dodgers fame, can teach you the finer points of the game that will help you get to the next level!"   - Coach JP 10 Tips to Help You Run A Faster 60-Yard Dash From the book High School Player's Guide to College Baseball   From Chapter 3, pg. 38 - How To Improve Your Profile Speed never has an off day and it wins ballgames! That's why college coaches like to fill their rosters with players who can run fast. Here are a few simple things you can do at your next showcase or prospect camp to lower your running time substantially. 1.  Warm-up properly so your muscles are loose and less likely to injure. Stretch your hamstrings, quads, and groin, and even take a practice run at 75% effort. 2.  Get a good jump. Anticipate the start and stay low during the first few strides until you can work your way up to your upright running position. 3.  Run in a straight line. The shortest distance between two points is a straight line, so stay close to the chalk mark. 4.  Run on the balls of your feet. The less contact your feet make with the ground the better. Jumping rope is an excellent exercise to develop this habit. Also, practice high leg kicks (knees to chest) to improve your leg explosion. 5.  Keep your arms moving in a fluid and straight motion. Your fingers and palm should grace your cheek on your upstroke and your hip or butt on your downstroke (remember "cheek to cheek"). Do not flail your arms wildly. 6.  Keep your face, neck, and shoulder muscles relaxed and your mouth open while you run. Tensing your muscles will only slow you down. 7.  Speed up at the finish line. Pretend you're being timed for an extra 10 yards and run at full speed past the finish line. Avoid the temptation to slow down as you cross the tape. 8.  Take off your hat. This will prevent the impulse to grab it if your hat starts to fall off while you're running. 9.  Match yourself against the fastest player in the group if two players run at the same time. The competition will encourage you to pick it up a notch. 10.  Run multiple times, if allowed, in an effort to lower your time. High School Player's Guide to College Baseball - Only $29.95 Written by over 70 college coaches, this Guide contains information compiled from over 12 years of research with hundreds of college and high school coaches, pro scouts, guidance counselors, players, and parents. It was written specifically for high school baseball players who want to compete on the collegiate level (NCAA D-I, II, III, NAIA, NJCAA).  140 pages "I strongly recommend this Guide to any high school athlete who aspires to play college ball."   - Chip Baker, Assistant Baseball Coach at Florida State University

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Order online in our secure shopping cart or call me toll free at 1-800-487-7432 (9-6 EST). The Armed and Ready Program by Alan Jaeger Arm Health & Strength Conditioning Program A systematic throwing program designed to help players and coaches understand what steps must be taken to develop and sustain a strong, durable, accurate, and injury-free arm. Adopted by over 100 professional players, including Cy Young winner Barry Zito. 4 Phases of Arm Exercise Covered Arm Circles  |  Surgical Tubing  |  Throwing Mechanics  |  Long Toss Gary Adams, UCLA Head Coach:   I would urge any coach, any parent, any player to take up this program -- start it today because you are going to see amazing results, amazing development and it's also going to prevent injuries. The Picture Perfect Picture  - Only $17.95 Over 125 Photographs and Illustrations For over a century, one of baseball's most debated questions has been, "What is a good pitching delivery?" This book is dedicated to all who want to look at a pitcher properly and presents extraordinary photographic analysis of detailed deliveries of the 25 best pitchers of the recent past, present, and future. Coach JP: Don't be surprised to hear your pitchers say, "Now I see what you mean."

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Little League World Series

Games Begin on August 15 The 57th annual Little League World Series is about to begin in Williamsport, Pennsylvania and for the first time since the tournament expanded from eight teams to 16 in 2001 every team will have at least one game on national television, as ABC, ESPN or ESPN2 will combine to show 27 games. ABC will show the Little League world championship game live on Sunday, August 24 at 6:30 p.m. EST. ABC also will televise the U.S. championship game in primetime on Saturday, August 23, at 7:30 p.m. ESPN will show 12 games and ESPN2 will televise 13. Last year, 20 total games were televised, which was up from the record of 19 the previous year. With 2.8 million participants in each state and 105 countries, Little League Baseball is the largest organized youth sports program in the world. The Little League World Series, comprised of 11 and 12-year-olds, is the organization's signature event. Opening Little League World Series Schedule [all times eastern] Friday - August 15, 2003 Tallmadge (OH) vs. Saugus (MA), 3 p.m., ESPN2 Willemstad, Curacao vs. Tokyo, Japan, 5 p.m., ESPN2 East Boynton Beach (FL) vs. Richland (WA), 7 p.m., ESPN Saturday - August 16, 2003 Altagracia, Venezuela vs. Agana, Guam, 11 a.m. Richmond (TX) vs. Eldridge (IA), 1 p.m., ESPN Wilmington (DE) vs. Chandler (AZ), 3 p.m., ESPN Khovrino (Russia) vs. Olmeca (Mexico) 4 p.m. Dhahran, Saudi Arabia vs. Sydney, Nova Scotia (Canada), 6 p.m., ESPN2 Tallmadge (OH) vs. East Boynton Beach (FL), 8 p.m., ESPN2 Sunday - August 17, 2003 Chandler (AZ) vs. Richmond (TX), 1 p.m., ESPN Saugus (MA) vs. Richland (WA), 3 p.m., ESPN Willemstad, Curacao vs. Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, 4 p.m. Khovrino (Russia) vs. Agana, Guam, 7 p.m. Eldridge (IA) vs. Wilmington (DE), 8 p.m., ESPN2

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Recent Little League Champions

Little League World Series Championship Game Scores
2002 - Louisville, KY 1, Sendai, Japan 0
2001 - Tokyo Kitasuna 2, Apopka, FL 1
2000 - Maracaibo, Venezuela 3, Bellaire, TX 2
1999 - Osaka, Japan 5, Phenix City, AL 0
1998 - Toms River, NJ 12, Kashima, Japan 9
1997 - Guadalupe, Mexico 5, Mission Viejo, CA 4
1996 - Taiwan 13, Cranston, RI 3 (5 innings)
1995 - Taiwan 17, Spring, TX 3
1994 - Venezuela 4, Northridge, CA 3
1993 - Long Beach, CA 3, Panama 2
1992 - Long Beach, CA 6, Philippines 0 - * (forfeit)
1991 - Taiwan 11, Danville, CA 0
1990 - Taiwan 9, Shippensburg, PA 0
1989 - Trumbull, CT 5, Taiwan 2
1988 - Taiwan 10, Pearl City, HI 0

* Philippines won the '92 final, 15-4, but had the title taken away for using overaged and ineligible players.

The first Little League World Series was held in 1947 when Williamsport beat Lock Haven, PA 16-7. The first international team to win the title was Monterrey, Mexico in 1957. From 1971-1981, Taiwan won the championship nine times. Since 1969, Taiwan has won the LLWS a record 17 times.

Baseball Quotes, Wit & Wisdom

Little League Baseball is a very good thing because it keeps the parents off the streets.   Yogi Berra I never thought home runs were all that exciting. I still think the triple is the most exciting thing in baseball. To me, a triple is like a guy taking the ball on his 1-yard line and running 99 yards for a touchdown.   Hank Aaron If at first you don't succeed, call it Version 1.0.

My Sports Dreams

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Baseball Instruction: Coaches & Players

Benefiting players and the coaches who instruct them, our new Instructors Section is a FREE resource for players who are interested in personal instruction in all aspects of the game. Any coach or instructor can simply add their credentials and specialties to our database, which can then be viewed by all visitors of Baseball Tips.com. States/Provinces Currently Available Alabama Arizona California Colorado Florida Georgia Illinois Indiana Iowa Kentucky Louisiana Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Nebraska New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Texas Utah Virginia Washington Wisconsin Washington DC Quebec For those that wish to be added, please fill out the form below. Entries without these details cannot be added to this free database. Instructor Form Name: E-Mail: Type of Instruction Offered: Phone: Cost: City/State: Web site URL (if applicable): Comments:  What do you want parents and players to know about you. Tell them what's in it for them. Be direct and to the point.