Monday, June 23, 2008 | By Alex Eisenberg

Pitching Mechancs - In Search of the Perfect Arm Action

Recently, I was subject to an interesting rant from Chris O’Leary. I think it's important to note that when you rant against another writer, one needs to make sure the position of the writer you are ranting against is actually being interpreted correctly and when making your case, don't take out of context what that writer is saying because by doing so you demean the entire point you are trying to make and look unprofessional in the process.

However, Mr. O'Leary has inspired me to write a 4-part series on pitching mechanics in search for what exactly is "perfect arm action". Hopefully I can shed some light on the following questions/dilemmas:

1. How should we define perfect arm action or is there such a thing?

2. What do we do when we are encountered with what we perceive to be "bad arm action"?

3. The choice between risky mechanics/great stuff vs. lack of upside/good bet to remain healthy

4. The choice between making mechanical adjustments vs. leaving things as they are

To do this I'll be using a lot of different clips from a variety of players ranging from minor league prospects to some of the best pitchers in the game, so you'll get a few mini-scouting reports on a bunch of players along the way.

First, I want to set straight some of the misinterpretations and distortions said by Mr. O'Leary, section-by-section. We'll start with this quote:

“First, the problem with breaking the hands late is that it isn't necessary to throwing either hard or well."

I never said it was. I would prefer a later hand break, but nothing is set in stone. Different things work for different people and there are many ways to produce velocity.

“Second, letting the elbow pick up the ball is one way that pitchers get to the Inverted L and Inverted W positions.”

Letting the elbow pick up the ball is not why pitchers get into an Inverted L and W position. You can get into an Inverted L and W position but it doesn't mean pitchers will get into that position.

“Why anyone would want to emulate the timing and pitching mechanics of frequently-injured pitchers like Mark Prior, BJ Ryan, and Chris Carpenter, and not emulate proven pitchers like Greg Maddux, Roger Clemens, and Nolan Ryan, completely escapes me."

This is the quote O'Leary is referring to and the graphic that comes with it:

“Spoone's arm action is his best mechanical quality. He breaks his hands late, lets the elbow pick up the ball and has a clean elbow rotation into release."

Chorye Spoone's pitching mechanics Chorye Spoone pitching mechanics

I never advocated anybody to emulate the arm actions of the pitchers mentioned by O'Leary and I never would, especially if a pitcher already has good stuff without mechanics that could raise the risk of injury. In fact, the graphic provided of Spoone proves my point; Spoone has a relatively late hand break and lets the elbow pick up the ball and yet he never gets into an Inverted L or W position.

There is a difference, however, in actively advocating pitchers to use the arm actions of guys like Prior, Ryan and Carpenter and not making wholesale changes to the arm actions of pitchers who already have that kind of arm action and this is something we'll get into more detail later.

Mr. O'Leary grossly misinterprets how I define the elbow picking up the ball and perhaps that is partially my fault. Here is how I defined it in an earlier article I did along with the graphic used:

“Oswalt's elbow is picking up the ball. By this, I mean you should be able to draw a straight line connecting the elbow to the wrist/ball. The ball should not be higher than the elbow until the elbow is ready to rotate into release"

Roy Oswalt's pitching mechanics Roy Oswalt pitching mechanics

Here is how O'Leary interpreted it:

“The problem with the statement above is that it makes no sense. The reason you can draw a straight line from the elbow to the wrist is that there are two bones there (the Radius and the Ulna). Only if those bones were broken or missing would you not be able to draw a straight line from the elbow to the wrist."

And here is how O'Leary defines the elbow picking up the ball:

“A better definition of the elbow picking up the ball is that the elbow stays above the level of the hand and the ball until just before the shoulders start to rotate, as you see in the arm action of BJ Ryan (who has arm problems as a result of his arm action)"

The definition O'Leary uses is much too narrow in my view. The definition of the elbow picking up the ball is not a black and white mechanical attribute. There are many ways to do this and to do it correctly.

I interpret the "elbow picking up the ball" to mean the ball never getting higher than the elbow until just before the elbow rotates (about 4 or 5 frames before foot plant) and the fact of the matter is you should be able to draw a line from elbow to wrist to ball in a downward or even plane direction. I neglected to give a direction of that line in my original definition, but I thought the two graphics explained the point I was making. You can go back to the graphic used of Oswalt graphic and note the red line on the arm of Oswalt as he works through his wind-up. The ball doesn't get higher than the elbow until just before it starts rotating.

While I can continue to describe in writing what the elbow picking up the ball means. I think the best way to explain this is with the use of visuals and that is exactly what we'll do when I bring you part 2 of this series.