Posted by: george stanley (saint_george13@yahoo.com) on Fri Dec 28 14:15:44 2007

> You state...""give him a little slowdown in the windup or quick pitch or sneak up on him with a fast release... anything off your regular rhytmic windup & delivery will foul up his timing""
>
> George,
>
> Pitchers work very hard on repeating their delivery for a reason. Trying to locate any pitch while trying to change the rythm and normal delivery is very very difficult. They are better off locating the pitch where they would like with a repeatable delivery.
>
> According to you, pitchers are doing just fine against Sheffield, he stinks so why change it right.
>
> Jimmy

hi jimmy,
gary sheffield is like every other hitter a pitcher faces...as a pitcher, you must be able to spot the individual weaknesses of each, whether it be in their stance or their swing... & then attack them in their weakness..kthat is the difference between the winners & losers..
specifically:
sheffield is constantly pumping his bat, flexing his wrists.. ideally, he wants to be pointing the bat head at the pitcher at the moment of the pitch release, then he wants to draw back the bat & cock his wrists so he can get the greatest bat acceleration possible on his way forward... he is very big on using his wrists & arms to the exclusion of his lower body..because of this tactic, he is always dialled up for a fastball... aa a pitcher, the one thing you do not want to do is what he is looking for... make sense? so any little thing you can do throw off his timing for a dead-red-straight-as-a-nail fastball, is going to get him out in front of the pitch.. the only time you want to throw him a fb is on th efirst pitch, but you have to get it up/in.. where he will foul it off... follow up with off speed breaking balls... he has no discipline, & you are hoping he will lose patience & swing at your pitch, down/away out of the zone..
only when you get 2 strikes would you try another fb... changing the tempo of the delivery or release will throw off his timing just enough so he will not hit the ball solidly.. that is how a good (smart) pitcher attack sheffield..
the day he quits waving the bat prior to the release will make him a much better hitter, & a bigger problem for pitchers... then it will be upon the pitchers to make another adjustment... baseball is a game of adjustment.. you should be constantly adjusting... that is how you improve... SMART PITCHERS are doing fine vs sheffield..the others should be looking to adjust...you should ALWAYS BE LOOKING TO CHANGE, ESPECIALLY WHEN THE BEAR IS EATING YOU ON A REGULAR BASIS.