The Quakers baseball and softball teams are looking to win games at the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) Tournaments as post-season play begins. To be successful in the ODAC Tournament, both teams will have to hold opponents to as few runs as possible with productive pitching. This article focuses on the art of pitching, coming from the players who do it best.
Will James has the lowest earned run average (4.42) for pitchers who have thrown more than 30 innings for the Quaker’s baseball team this season. Pitching’s most important aspect isn’t how you hold the ball or finish your dealing. It deals with the mental facet of the game. “The most important thing that a pitcher can do in a game is keep composure while pitching,” James said.
The mental game is just as important in softball as well. “The most important thing is to relax and never show signs of defeat if the opponent is hitting the ball. Pitching is a mental game in which you need to focus on what you need to do and only then you will be successful,” said Guilford rookie Ashley Boteler.
Ace pitcher Jessica Burcham put together a record-setting season for the Quakers. She broke her own record for wins in a season with 13 and posted an outstanding 1.80 ERA, which ranks fourth in the ODAC.
She also commented on what a pitcher needs to accomplish mentally in a game. “Don’t let factors that you cannot control affect your performance. You can only control what you do, your attitude and your mindset. You cannot control what your teammates do, so try and stay focused on pitching and not let other aspects affect how you play.”
With the mental aspect of pitching so crucial, there must be a certain mindset with which pitchers approach the game. Factors that can play into this include; how they feel, what pitches worked in warm-ups and which ones didn’t, and nerves. Above these concerns is the pitcher’s attitude towards the opponent. If the pitcher can psyche out the opponent, they have a much better chance at being successful.
“A pitcher has to go into a game with the mindset that you are much better than every hitter you face. You must have confidence in yourself to throw all of your pitches at any time in any location,” James said.
“When you’re pitching you have to believe you are in control,” Burcham added. “The other team might hit the ball and when they do that is okay, but the next pitch has to be even better and harder. As a pitcher you have to have a short-term memory, batter to batter.”
We’ve delved into a pitcher’s thoughts when entering and competing in a game, but what happens physically? How does throwing the ball to the catcher become so effortless? How do pitchers work their magic? It’s not as simple as you might think.
“For a pitcher to have an effective motion, they need to have a comfortable pivot, good balance point, and follow-through when delivering the ball to home plate,” said James.
A pitcher’s motion is one of the most difficult parts about pitching. In order to deceive hitters, the motion has to look exactly the same as the last pitch or else the batter won’t be fooled. This requires a lot of work and preparation off the field. Being a former pitcher myself, I know the difficulties of repeating a pitching motion. Two of the most difficult aspects of it are finding the correct balance point and the right release point for all your pitches.
The balance point is vital because it centers the pitcher to throw the ball. If the balance point is off, the pitch will lose effectiveness because it will not be thrown in the right location. When this happens, hitters are more likely to hit the ball hard. The release point is also essential because of the different pitches thrown. In order to get a batter off balance, the release point needs to be the same for every pitch thrown. If a hitter recognizes you’re throwing a certain pitch at a different angle, the batter will know what’s coming.
Softball is a bit different. The key fundamental is how pitchers finish their motion to get the most movement on the pitches. “Snaps are very important,” Burcham said. “If your wrist snaps are not quick then your pitches aren’t going to jump like you want them to. The pitch will just drift rather than break hard the last five feet. You can do everything else right, but if you don’t finish the pitch then it doesn’t move the way you want it to, and it’s more likely to get hit.”
When pitchers’ motions become muscle memory, it becomes a matter of instinct. With all the stress put on pitchers to perform well, there are benefits of being the main focus on defense. “I love being in charge of the game. As a pitcher you control what goes on during a course of a game and what can happen,” Boteler said.
“My favorite part about pitching is that you are center of attention, you either fail or succeed. There are no other options. I love the pressure,” said James.
“I know I’m not going to strike every batter out, but when I do, I love it. When I know it was a good batter that I just struck out, I feel accomplished,” added Burcham.
It also helps when you’re favorite moment about pitching is just getting the opportunity to pitch at the Division III level.
“My favorite pitching moment was the first time I was given the opportunity to pitch here at Guilford. That first game I was so nervous, but with the help of my teammates and coaches believing in me I was able to push through and pitch a pretty good game,” Boteler concluded.
James, Boteler, and Burcham will take their talents do the ODAC Tournament where they will try to keep hitter’s off balance with their physical and mental tools.
