3 Pitch Sequence to Boost Pitching Performance

By: Cindy Bristow

Provided by: Softball Excellence

Pitchers need to practice throwing different counts and pitches but

that can be hard to do. Not if you try this 3 pitch sequence workout.

Using a 3 pitch sequence workout during practice can improve your pitchers confidence & accuracy – check out how.

Creating practice workouts for your pitchers that help them improve their accuracy, identify the weak pitches, and increase their confidence are hard to come by. We usually work on counts by having our pitchers throw all of their pitches starting from an 0-0 count. While theoretically, this is what happens in a game, we can actually break it down smaller than that.

Here’s what I mean – I think we’d all agree that it’s important for our pitchers to get ahead on the hitter, either by throwing a first-pitch strike, or at least getting a strike in the first 2 pitches. So here’s a simple, and yet very effective pitching workout that will focus on the following:

• Getting your pitchers ahead in the count
• Isolating the first 3 pitches
• Identifying weak pitches that aren't strike-dependable (yet)
• Controlling both sides of the plate

So the concept is to create 3 pitches that the pitcher will throw with the goal being to have at least 2 strikes after these 2 pitches. They can often be the first 3 pitches to lead off a batter that you might not know well enough so you call this 3 pitch sequence to get ahead in the count. The benefits of scripting 3 pitches in a row instead of calling pitch-by-pitch are that the pitcher can not only practice these 3 exact pitches in this order, and the pitches are chosen because together they create a confident 3 pitch combination.

To begin, your pitcher will throw a 3 pitch combination on both sides of the plate – both the inside and the outside as the picture to the right shows. Here are some keys to creating the 3 pitch combo:

1. All 3 pitches don’t have to be different. You can have a repeat pitch within the 3 pitch combo
2. The order is important – placing your weakest pitch first means your pitcher must throw strikes with both other pitches.
3. Don’t consider the batter in this scenario, only the side of the plate and putting the pitcher in a position of confidence and command.

Once your pitcher has arrived at her 3 pitch combo for both sides of the plate, then have her start by throwing 4 sets of each side in a row, and keeping track of how many sets she won (meaning she got more strikes than balls) and how many she lost. Also, you’ll want to note which pitches are consistently being thrown for balls, so those pitches can be replaced with something more dependable.

This is a great way to help your pitchers really practice the concept of “getting ahead of the hitter” while also working on mixing their pitches, and cutting out their weaker pitches by noticing which ones aren't dependable for strikes.

Once your pitchers have gone through 4 sets of 3 pitches on both sides of the plate have them re-evaluate their pitches. Ask them which ones they felt confident in and which ones they might want to switch out. Also notice that when you first do this workout your pitchers might have a hard time distinguishing between their “best pitch” and their “favorite pitch”. Best means it works the best and the most often, while favorite means I like it the most.