How To Throw A Slider Consistently And Correctly
When it comes to pitching, one of the most well liked questions that’s often asked is how to throw a slider correctly.
There are 2 elemental components to every pitch, and as with every pitch, when learning how to throw a slider, you should first understand the right grip, and then understand the correct release.
Most commonly, a slider is gripped with the index finger and middle finger touching and the middle finger pressed against the seams of the baseball at one of the 2, enormous cupped ends. Your ring finger and pinky should be off on the side and not making any contact with the baseball. Although your index finger is making contact with the baseball, there should be visibly more pressure placed on the ball by your middle finger and your thumb.
The slider is thought of as a velocity pitch, and is thrown using your fast ball arm speed. For purposes of demonstrating the right release point, I might point to 2 different positions. The first is a palm down hand position, which is the traditional release point for a fastball. The second is often referred to as a karate chop position, and is the conventional release point for a curveball.
When teaching someone how to throw a slider, I love to describe the proper release point as being the midpoint of the palm down fastball release point and the full karate chop release point of a normal curveball. With the natural outside-in action this arm angle produces, The middle finger applying force on the seam produces a cutting revolution through the center of the ball which is precisely consistent with the angle of the forearm, wrist, and hand. The best mistake to make on this pitch isn’t staying on top of the ball all the way through release, or said an alternate way, coming back to palm down position before release, junking the effect made by the angle of the forearm, wrist, and hand.
A slider, when thrown properly by a right-handed pitcher, will cut away from a right handed batter and cut in on a left-handed batter. The opposite effect is true for a left-handed pitcher throwing a slider. A good rough rule for the average anticipated movement of a good slider is six inches across and 6 inches down. When teaching somebody how to throw a slider, the best pitching coaches will usually endorse the slider be anywhere from 9-12 miles per hour slower than one’s best fastball.
One final caution and it is linked to youth pitchers. A slider is perhaps one of the most wearing pitches on anyones arm and shouldn’t even be introduced until age 13 at the earliest. Coaches will customarily get asked by players younger than this how to throw a slider, and they should all be certain about its long term risks and deter its use.
Keith Whitten is a youth baseball coach who specializes in training young pitchers in the proper techniques for long term pitching success. Whether its questions like how to throw a curveball or how to throw a slider, or something more intricate like baseball pitching speeds and strategies, you will find Keith knowledgeable and engaging
Keith Whitten is a youth baseball coach who specializes in training young pitchers in the proper techniques for long term pitching success, including the proper techniques for how to throw a slider. Whether its questions like how to throw a curveball or how to throw a slider, or something more intricate like baseball pitching speeds and strategies, you will find Keith knowledgeable and engaging
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