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Author Topic: Thumb pitches  (Read 1045 times)

NY Mike

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Thumb pitches
« on: June 22, 2006, 04:01:00 AM »

** SOrry posted this item in incorrect section **

I have been having a problem with tendinitis in my hand and have found
myself squeezing the ball to maintain control. Does anyone know if
using some foward pitch in the thumb would ease the urge to squeeze the
ball ?
Thanks in advance.


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Strider

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Re: Thumb pitches
« Reply #1 on: June 22, 2006, 03:15:50 PM »
Going more forward will put less stress on your hand.  You still need to make sure that your span and all of your pitches are correct for your hand.  Many hand problems are caused by spans that are too long.  Modern teaching says that if you put your thumb in the ball, your fingers should go be at least half way past the front edge of the finger holes.  That is with your hand relaxed, not stretched.  If you are squeezing, you probably need to go more forward.
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DanH78

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Re: Thumb pitches
« Reply #2 on: June 22, 2006, 04:17:57 PM »
Check your finger pitches too.  I was having a similar problem, went to my driller, and told him to pretend I was a first time bowler looking for a ball, he determined my span was fine, but thought I had too much reverse in the thumb and too much away in the fingers.  So we brought all three back towards the grip center and it's helped considerably.
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JohnP

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Re: Thumb pitches
« Reply #3 on: June 22, 2006, 08:02:31 PM »
quote:
Modern teaching says that if you put your thumb in the ball, your fingers should go be at least half way past the front edge of the finger holes.


This is unclear. I think Strider meant to say the first (closest to the tip) joint of the finger should be about half way past the front edge of the finger holes.  Or another way to look at it, the front edge of the hole should fall about half way between the first and second finger joints.  --  JohnP
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janderson

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Re: Thumb pitches
« Reply #4 on: June 23, 2006, 11:44:30 AM »
In general, forward pitch of the thumbhole will require less squeezing of the ball to keep it on your hand.  As stated above, the thumbhole should still fit properly.  An overlarge thumbhole will force you to squeeze no matter the pitch.

If you do plan on trying forward pitch with your thumbhole, I would suggest trying  Ron Clifton's method which worked wonders for me.  Start with your current thumb pitch and pitch your thumb forward 1/4.  If you can throw that with no problem, pitch it forward another 1/4.  Keep doing so until you struggle to get out of the ball cleanly, then backoff to the previous amount.

You should also consider shortening your span as you pitch your thumb forward, it will help create a relaxed grip without the need to squeeze to hold onto the ball.

Personally, over the course of about 7 months, I went from 3/8 reverse to 3/8 forward and shortened my span a total of 1/4 inch in the process.  It definitely helped my game and tendonitis.
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