by Richard Todd, Head Coach, WebBall

I watched a ballgame on TV just before the 2007 all-star break which makes the case I have tried to make for years to separate style from substances when it comes to discussions on mechanics. And to be very careful in thinking that you, or I, should ever try to mold all players into the same mechanics.

The two starting pitchers in this game were about as opposite in wind-up as you could imagine. Josh Towers pitching for the Blue Jays is from the L.A. area right through college ball (Oxnard). Paul Byrd pitching for the Indians is from Louisville KY, going to pro ball by way of LSU. Somewhere along the way each of them developed a very distinctive rhythm for their pitching.

Towers is very much a control pitcher - not only in his command of pitches and his ability to hit the catcher's target, but in his very methodical delivery. His body remains very still and his leg lift is slow and quiet. You see very little apparent loading up, no dynamic leg-lift, no torque-back, very much an upper body and arm type pitcher. You might wonder what velocity he could get to if he engaged more of his lower body in power development and building momentum, but that's not his approach. It's not that his mechanics are off - just incredibly lacking in kinetic energy transfer. And yet with his command comes success.

Byrd, on the other hand, is so old school that he reminds you of the pre WWI era. As he starts his rock back, his arms reach back low behind him - not over the shoulders but at hip height. The arms swing forward and then up and over, and then back down as he turns his front hip way inward, bringing the leg high and tight, the body almost collapsing in, hunched over. A rare and huge amount of pre-throw action in both arms and body. He, too, has success with his approach. And his pitches even have an old school charm - the big breaking overhand "uncle charlie" curveball vs Towers harder breaking pitches.


Of course. And what they each do has substance - helps them apply the muscles as they want, gives them physical consistency, no doubt is part of their focus and mental process, too.

And both approaches work. In this game, both pitchers went 8 innings of shutout baseball before the only run of the game got on base. While one pitcher took the loss, the other did not earn the win. (That's why W/L is the least meaningful pitching statistic to me.)

BOX SCORE	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR
Byrd	8.1	4	1	1	0	2	0
Towers	8.0	3	0	0	0	4	0

If you look at the individual box scores, you'll also notice that neither gave up a walk or homer, and the hits really had to be earned. That, my friend, is pitching.
                           
So, before you correct anything in any player, make sure why you want to do it. Always keep the difference between style and substance in mind. Imagine if these two pitchers had run into the same coach at some point in their youth, a coach who wanted to control Byrd's excessive wind-up action, or add more dynamics to Towers leg lift. Would I have still been watching them on TV on Sunday?


Of course not. But understand the outcome of any change. Understand that if you add something, you might be taking away something.

After all, at the end of any season, baseball is a zero sum game: some teams win more games and others have to lose them. Likewise with players: if all your pitchers have low ERAs, then the other team's have to be higher or you still don't win. And with mechanics: if all your pitchers throw exactly the same way, then you gain less when you change pitchers - a new arm might be fresher but it won't be anymore deceptive. You need all kinds and styles to win.