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CaCO3Girl
1989 Posts |
 Posted - 02/18/2015 : 10:13:52
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Recently my son (12u) was asked to pitch more and I noticed he didn't move his body like the other kids. I asked a knowledgeable parent and she explained to me that he has a "leg kick"...and boy does he!
For those of you confused, he is a RHP and when he brings up his left leg (so knee at chest), he kicks out with it and swings it around so his foot does land toe pointed forward. He apparently uses this kick to get his hips open for his stretch, and it doesn't throw him off balance, but no one else on our team uses one so I wondered how common it was...thoughts? |
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bballman
1432 Posts |
Posted - 02/18/2015 : 12:28:22
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Leg lift is normal. Here's a site that you can look at a whole bunch of MLB pitchers.
http://www.pitchingclips.com/
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CaCO3Girl
1989 Posts |
Posted - 02/18/2015 : 15:34:29
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quote:
Originally posted by bballman
Leg lift is normal. Here's a site that you can look at a whole bunch of MLB pitchers.
http://www.pitchingclips.com/
Thank you for the website, I will investigate it.
What he does is not just a leg lift, he kicks. It's not as pronounced as Bronson Arroyo's leg kick where he practically does a vertical split
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ba8sJqnEIcI
..but it's a pretty big kick, I have no idea when/where he started doing this, just wondered how common it was. |
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in_the_know
985 Posts |
Posted - 02/18/2015 : 17:17:41
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Leg kick is normal, but I'm not sure what you're describing is. It may be poor mechanics. It sounds as though you describe a leg lift, then he extends his leg outward, away from his body at about 90* or so, then swings his leg around, so more of a 90* rotation of the body parallel to the ground as he moves toward the plate, vs driving off the back leg toward the plate.
I'd definitely ask someone with pitching mechanic knowledge to watch him. My concern would be arm angle and how much strain may be transferring through his elbow and shoulder if he's not driving off the backside properly. |
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ECBraves2015
31 Posts |
Posted - 02/19/2015 : 06:04:43
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Arroyo's leg mechanics are hard to duplicate ....
Make sure your son's mechanics are solid. If he kicks his leg, then drifts forward, he'll have control issues. Check out Arroyo ... after his kick, his foot comes down and then he drives forward. The leg kick is just for show ! |
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Critical Mass
277 Posts |
Posted - 02/19/2015 : 07:32:31
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I'd be concerned about 3 things:
1. How repeatable is this long term? I think you have said he is a catcher that is being asked to pitch?
2. What is his time to the plate and will base runners feast off of his motion/delivery?
3. How repeatable is this motion over many innings? |
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CaCO3Girl
1989 Posts |
Posted - 02/19/2015 : 09:07:34
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We are taking him today for an evaluation on mechanics from a knowledgeable pitching instructor. The best I can describe his kick is to say he brings up his leg/knee to his chest then kicks from the knee down so that his foot does turn 90 degrees, and lands tow forward. It looks to me like he is using this movement/momentum to open up his hips. From a lament observation it doesn't appear to take any longer for him to get rid of the ball than every other kids normal leg lift (w/o the kick), it's a pretty fluid motion.
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Does your pitcher have a significant leg kick?
