The Raleigh Reds Team

Archive for December, 2010

Bobby Woods asked:




To throw a baseball effectively and efficiently, one must understand the components of backside balance, front-side balance, direction, rotation, and arm path. If there is no comprehension of these, then pitching a baseball becomes extremely difficult.

Players must understand that in throwing or pitching there is a chronological pattern of movement with a sequential transfer of energy, power and speed.

When throwing a baseball, have balance on the back leg first. This means for a right hand pitcher will step back with the left foot, with the weight on the right leg. This step should be linear and straight, approximately four to five and half foot lengths of the pitcher’s shoe size. The weight on the back leg enables the pitcher to harness power. As the ball is thrown, the left foot lands directly at the target, with the left shoulder, hip, knee, ankle and head all aligned with the target.

Next, weight transfers onto the left leg, with the leg softening and bending at the knee. At this point, the transfer of balance is shifted to the front-side leg (left leg). During this balance transfer, from back to front, the pitcher is moving linear or forward, directly at the target. This is called direction, or simply put, aligning the head, shoulder, hip, knee, and ankle toward the target.

Over the last 30 years of instructing pitching, I have seen direction that is not emphasized in throwing and without understanding of direction, there is a loss of ball placement or control skills, from little leagues to major leagues. To achieve direction when throwing or pitching, it is necessary to turn the pivot foot completely in order to enable the direction side of the body, (the left side for right handed pitchers) to align with the target. (This also true for throwing a baseball from all positions on the field, whether a catcher, infielder, or outfielder).

The rotation process is simply follow-though or finish. The back-side then replaces the front-side, with the back leg and hip turning or rotating so that the body squares up or faces the target.

In the arm path part of throwing a baseball, it is essential to learn down, back, and up, extend and finish.

This sequential movement of the hand and arm is designed to minimize stress and strain on the arm and shoulder, and to maximize arm and hand speed, which results in increased ball speed. The first step in achieving the correct arm path is for the hand to be placed in the glove properly. The fingers and hand are on the ball, and the ball is placed in the glove, not the hand then the ball. A good rule to follow is that when the ball is in the glove, all four knuckles of the hand should be visible. When the ball and hand separate from the glove, the hand comes out of the glove facing home plate. The hand and arm then move back and up with the fingers on the top of the ball. At the point where the arm comes forward, the elbow should be equal or above the shoulder. At release, the hand and the arm should continue to extend or reach forward. This extension is extremely important for maximizing speed.

In the final phase of throwing, the pitcher must have shock absorption to protect the muscles of the shoulder. This occurs when the arm finishes on the opposite side of the body.

A great way to maximize throwing and pitching skills and develop speed and control (ball placement), while minimizing arm and shoulder injuries, is to play catch. Play a good old fashioned game of catch for 15 to 20 minutes, five days a week to reinforce the proper throwing and pitching techniques explained above.

Have fun and enjoy this great game of baseball.

Trevor Sumner asked:




Teaching youth baseball is a rewarding experience for both parents and coaches alike. While parents have an obvious investment in the teaching of the fundamentals of the sport of baseball to their children, coaches, make a significant investment of their own in time, effort and emotion. From a personal perspective, one of the greatest rewards is in developing relationships with and positively affecting the lives of individual youth baseball players. The lessons of sports such as in baseball are positive and well documented. For coaches, there are also the internal rewards they get from seeing each player develop and from watching a youth baseball team improve as a group and learn to play together under their coaching tutelage.

Astute coaches improve the performance of the team as a whole by employing youth baseball drills to improve the individual performances of team players and there interactions together. There are three main categories in which youth baseball drills will have an immense effect on the performance levels of players.
Youth Batting Drills – one of the most important of the youth baseball drills. The vast majority of youth baseball players have the most fun when they hit. The better they are able to hit, the more fun that they will have, and the greater their interest in the sport of baseball. Coaches and parents who teach baseball drills in batting must stress the importance of a well-balanced stance that is comfortable for the individual player, picking the ball up as it leaves the pitcher’s hand, and keeping the body weight back until the pitch is delivered. Youth Fielding Drills – an integral part of teaching the defensive position. Of course, there are sets of baseball fielding drills that are unique to each of the nine fielding positions in the game of baseball. However, there are baseball drills common to all fielding positions. One of the key youth baseball drills in catching ground balls is to keep the fingers of the fielding glove on the ground for ground balls, and raising the glove to catch the ball on the bounce, instead of lowering the glove. Another one of the instructional keys to fielding is to catch the thrown or batted ball with the wrist in an upward position for balls at or above the waist, and to turn the wrist upside down to catch balls below the waist. There are many ways to take a single drill and apply it so the whole team can practice at once. Youth Throwing Drills – the most basic of all youth baseball drills, and many instructors feel that it is the most important fundamental of all. It is vital for parents to make sure that their children develop proper throwing techniques from the time they can throw a baseball, around the age of eight or so. The importance of throwing a baseball with proper grip can not be overestimated. Youth throwing drills must emphasize four important elements: Throw the ball by gripping it with the index finger and middle finger on the ball; point your shoulder opposite from your throwing hand in the direction of your target; step in the direction of your target when you release the ball; and follow through after you release the ball with your back leg so that both legs are parallel upon the completion of the throw. You can find many youth baseball drills on the Internet covering hitting, fielding and throwing. Some drills are free and some require subscription or for you to order a DVD. Free baseball drills allow you greater flexibility in trying a variety and see what works best for you as the coach and your youth baseball team. Always remember that drills should be age appropriate. The right fielding drill for a 14 year-old boy will not suit and 8-year old and vice versa.

Kannan Moorthy asked:




Australia is well known for its rich sports culture. The most popular sports in Australia are Australian Rules Football, Cricket, golf and rugby. Due to the increase in sports popularity in the country, there are various websites that provide regular sports updates on tours, travel, sporting clubs, jobs in sport, sports news, sports events and many more.

Australia, a land that measures 7,617,930 sq. km. with a population of 20.6 million, outshines in any sport in the international stage. This is well proven in the Olympic Games and Commonwealth Games every time. Australia is ninth on the list of All-time Olympic medals and has the most gold medals in the history of the Commonwealth games with 643.

Aside from excelling in the Olympics and the Commonwealth games, Australia also performs well internationally in Australian Rules football, Cricket, golf and rugby.

Australian Rules football is the most popular sport in Australia and is the country’s national sport. Australian Rules football is what Major League Baseball (MLB) and the National Football League (NFL) is to the United States of America. An estimated 90,000 football fanatics attend games and cheer for their favorite club. Australia’s national sport was invented by a fellow named Tom Wills in 1858. He took the basic rules of Gaelic football, soccer and rugby and meshed them into a single sport we know today as Australian Rules football. Wells meant for the sport to keep cricketers in tip-top shape during the winter.

The First set of laws of Australian Rules football was published by the Melbourne Football Club in 1959.
The Australian Football League (AFL) is the premier Australian league for Australian Rules football. The AFL came into existence in 1990 and was known as the Victorian Football League (VFL) in previous years. The AFL features 16 teams that compete against each other in 22 grueling but exciting rounds. The AFL season usually starts in the last week of March and concludes in September. The two best teams face each other in the AFL Grand Final.

Cricket is another popular sport in Australia. All cricket leagues are governed by a body called Cricket Australia. This governing body existed since 1905, and was known as the Australian Board of Control for International Cricket. In 1973, it changed its name to the Australian Cricket Board and finally, in the year 2003, Cricket Australia.

Cricket Australia is responsible for the scheduling of matches and the development of cricket in the country and in the Pacific region.

The Australian national cricket team is one of the best international teams in the world. Australia has appeared in the Cricket World Cup final an amazing six times. It has won the World Cup championship a total of four times: 1987, 1999, 2003 and 2007.

The Australian national cricket team also won the ICC Champions trophy (the second most important international cricket competition) in 2006 and 2009. Australia is the first country to win the ICC Champions Trophy and the Cricket World Cup in consecutive years.

It is safe to say that the Australian national cricket team is the Los Angeles Lakers of the cricket world.
Due to their massive success and achievements, cricket fans around the world constantly check for Australian Cricket Sports tours, sports events, sports news and Live score updates. The Australian national cricket team has garnered a large following: online forums and clubs have popped-up everywhere that express their support for Australian cricket.

Australia has also made a name itself in the sport of golf. It currently has the most golf courses per capital. Aussie golfers have also left their mark. There are currently 10 Australians ranked in the Top 100 golfers in the world: Geoff Ogilvy, Robert Allenby, Adam Scott, Michael Sim, John Senden, Brendan Jones, Matthew Goggin, Rod Pampling, Scott Strange and Marc Leishman. The great Greg Norman helped paved the way for many Aussie golfers in the PGA.

The Australian Open is organized by Golf Australia. It is one of the most prominent golf tournaments of the PGA Tour. The Australian Open was last played at the New South Wales Golf Club with Adam Scott winning the tournament.

Another popular sport in Australia is Rugby. It is even argued that its popularity is on par with Australian Rules football because it is the most watched sport on TV in the country. In 2009 alone, an estimated 126 million Aussies tuned in to watch rugby on their television sets.

Rugby originated from England but surprisingly Australia performs pretty well in international rugby tournaments. The Australia national rugby union team is currently ranked third in world rankings by the International Rugby Board (IRB). The IRB is responsible for men’s national teams in the rugby union
In contrast, the Rugby League International League (RIFL) is responsible for men’s national teams in the rugby league. The Australia national rugby league team is currently ranked first in world rankings by the RIFL.

Aussies are crazy about sports, be it Rugby, football, cricket or golf. Sporting events are a big-part of everyday life in Australia. It’s hard to argue against sport being the ‘Australian national religion’. You can just feel the excitement and anticipation once a sporting event is about to begin.