IR Pitching Instruction with Steve Isaacs

Any catchers looking for a little work this morning? Looking for a catcher this morning 🥎 at 10:00. Fastball 61 mph. Location: Floyds K***s. If available, please DM me

Shout out to Kamryn Miller (Fusion 10U-Brammer) for throwing a great game yesterday. Kam started up August of last year and has worked hard over the winter on her mechanics. All of her hard work is showing up this Spring. Great job, Kam!

A Shout Out to Sutton Collins Kentucky Freedom 2015 - Hart for a perfect game this morning against Hun City 2015! Way to go Sutton! 🔥 Keep it Up!

Nobody is going to ask what your strike % was, or how many games you won at 10u or 12u.
Enjoying the game, your effort, your development as pitcher, being coachable+great team mate.. these are the only things that matter until you are older.

Spot open for tonight (Floyds K***s)
6:00-7:00 (closed)
Come see me!

Lessons open tomorrow Saturday, Floyds K***s
1:00-2:00 (closed), 2:00-3:00 (closed)
3:00-4:00 (closed)
4:00-5:00 (closed)

Coach Ron has such great insights. “She’s throwing a ball with both sides.”

For everyone who beats there mitt on there leg. Is the mitt going to the catcher, or back to smack her leg? Looks to me like she is throwing a ball on both sides.

Great topic. A fastball is just that, our fastest pitch. We get less picky on spin axis. If your fastest pitch comes off the outside of your index with bullet, imo there’s nothing wrong with it if it’s your fastest pitch. It can even be positive if it compliments your other pitches.

But for a drop, we are willing to sacrifice a little speed (even 2-3mph) for nailing our spin axis to help turn our fastball into our drop.

Sometimes instructors get hung up on a theme or topic and it seems like it makes its way through almost everyone’s lessons before moving on lol. If you’ve had a lesson in the last 3 weeks you’ve probably done your fair share of fastball bounces, putting “fastballs” in the air with 2 colors and “hitting bottom strings”.

Before you freak out, let’s get one thing clear: I do believe in a fastball—but probably not in the way you’ve been taught to think about it. Somewhere along the line, someone decided to overcomplicate things by giving pitches all these names. But the truth is, you can simplify it all by focusing on what really matters: the spin.Here’s the mic drop moment: a fastball is just a top-spin pitch. And guess what? Topspin is drop spin. That means a fastball is literally a flat drop ball. Mind blown yet?Let me explain. When you throw a 4-seam “fastball” and notice that it sometimes dips, it’s not because the ball magically decided to move—it’s because you’re throwing a drop ball. You just didn’t realize it. It all comes down to how fast the ball spins off your fingers. This is why teaching a drop ball is my favorite thing to do—especially when a pitcher already has a strong “fastball” with topspin. They’re over halfway there! The same topspin that creates a killer drop ball is already happening when they think they’re throwing a fastball. The only real difference is the release angle/quickness of fingers.Want your pitch to stay flat? Keep your release level, and let the spin hold it steady. Want that nasty downward break? Adjust your hand position, release it with a slight angle, and let the topspin do its job. Both pitches are fundamentally the same—just variations of the same top-spin motion.So why not simplify it? A fastball and a drop ball aren’t different pitches. One stays flat, and one breaks. The difference is physics, spin rate, and your technique.Here’s the big takeaway: if your pitch has topspin, it’s already a drop ball in disguise. The difference between “flat” and “break” is just in how you control it. When you understand that, you can stop overthinking and start mastering the spin.The next time you’re on the mound throwing what you call a “fastball,” ask yourself this: Is it really a fastball, or is it just a drop ball that hasn’t fully embraced its potential? Either way, you’re closer to greatness than you think.And to clarify… this is NOT a top spin pitch in the video- @meganncclare is throwing a pretty low rise 💪🏽

One of my favorite posts by Coach Jay! It’s not the pitching that has changed over time, it’s the instruction and level of understanding.

Oh man!! Pitching has changed so much over the years… 👀 ⁉️👀……
(Circa 1989 Michele Smith)