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O-fer
16 Posts |
 Posted - 06/06/2011 : 20:18:21
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| With all the pitching instructors around town are there any that teach the knuckleball ?? Not just how to hold it, but can actually throw it and really know how to teach a pitcher to throw it effectively ? |
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loveforthegame25
448 Posts |
Posted - 06/06/2011 : 21:30:36
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| Great topic!!!!!!! no clue though |
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bmwac
29 Posts |
Posted - 06/06/2011 : 23:04:55
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| We have a kid on our team that throws a very effective knuckleball, I joke to him all the time during his warm ups that I counted all 108 stitches on the ball before it got to home plate. He taught himself by watching YouTube of all things.......not that this is much help to you at the moment, lol. |
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rustybucket
67 Posts |
Posted - 06/07/2011 : 09:30:31
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Knuckleball, like many other pitches is an art. There are a few good videos on youtube, but there's also TONS of junk. Some of the guys teaching the knuckleball on there I wonder if they've ever actually thrown a knuckler. I threw the knuckleball quite a bit when I was younger and through high school. My dad started teaching me when I was probably around 10ish.
The great thing about a knuckleball is the mystery surrounding it just drives the kids CRAZY!! My dad used to throw it to me in the backyard and I was amazed!!! I remember literally begging him to teach me how to throw it. After he did I would lay in bed at night with the ball and work on my grip.
The problem with kids throwing knuckleball (depending on age) is that it's real easy for them to throw them fat, meaning that the ball knuckles but doesn't have any movement. Similar to a hanging curve, batters will just absolutely crush it. One or two of those and a kid looses confidence in the pitch completely. Be sure they understand from the beginning that this pitch is going to get crushed sometimes, but they're also going to be able to make batters look absolutely ridiculous with it as well.
All that being said, I started teaching my 7yr old how to throw a knuckleball a couple weeks ago. I personally feel that the knuckler is a great pitch to teach kids b/c when thrown correctly it puts very little strain on the arm. The knuckler takes years to master, the earlier you start the better, even if it's just for tossing around the backyard. The knuckler feels very unnatural at first, you have to overcome that and get the kid comfortable with it.
I'm no expert by far but a knuckleball, just like a change-up should not alter your arm motion at all. It's all about the grip and of course the release. For kids with small hands I like to teach the 3 finger on the side of the horseshoe with pinkie stabilizing. Once their fingers gain strength and they get the hang of the three finger you can introduce the 2 finger on top of the horseshoe with the ring finger stabilizing. I personally prefer the 2 finger b/c I can get a little more velocity on it and I feel like I can better control which way I want the ball to roll.
When teaching to a kid you want the default roll of the ball to be top to bottom (like a dropball) b/c then if the ball doesn't knuckle it will at least be an effective change-up/dropball and have some motion (downward). If it doesn't knuckle and the spin is backward (like a fastball) the balls going over the fence and it's going to get there in a hurry!!!
I know I didn't answer your question, not familiar with any instructors who can teach this pitch well. I think you'd be best off finding an ex-pitcher who actually specialized in the knuckler to teach this.
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DecaturDad
619 Posts |
Posted - 06/07/2011 : 10:57:31
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Bill Melvin can teach it: http://www.pitchingforexcellence.com/ He is is inside the parimiter.
He taught my son how to throw it. But my son has big hands. I don't know if he would push it with most kids. |
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baseball1
56 Posts |
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baseball1
56 Posts |
Posted - 06/14/2011 : 11:15:30
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Bill Downs for knuckleball instruction : 912 481 2221 ... An active KB pitcher in the Atlanta area |
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Knuckleball
