WebBall.com - Challenge 02

2002 WebBall Pitching Challenge

5 instructors, 5 approaches.

In the Spring of 2000, five instructors were invited to state their case for their style of instruction and their preference in pitching mechanics. WebBall visitors were then invited to vote and comment - , without knowing who the authors were.

This was our first stab at a challenge with guest authors. See note to right on how/why it was conducted. We revisited the topic with a second pitching challenge in 2004, and plan another in the near future.

How we set this up.

The premise was simple. Invite different pitching instructors to explain their approach to pitching. The first challenge was ours - to find instructors who would best represent different styles, from 'old school' to the lastest research in athletic performance and/or biomechanics. The second challenge was to limit them to 1,000 words because pitching is one of those topics discussed endlessly. And also to ensure they were positive about their own techniques rather than slamming others.

The final challenge was for WebBall visitors - to read through the approaches and assess their best qualities. And to make that more interesting - it was set up like a blind taste test - authors not identified until after the voting was completed. Finally, we decided that in tabulating results we would give more credit to those voters who correctly attributed 5 different statements to the correct essayists. (Assumption: if you understand the issues more thoroughly your vote should count for more - imagine trying that in an election!)

All challenge articles express the opinions of the authors (and voters) and do not necessarily reflect the approach recommended by WebBall.

Survey Results