To know when you need to get back, you need to read the pitcher. While each will have some distinctive moves, here are some common "tells".
Watching for the Pick Off
Right-Hand Pitcher: The most important area to watch is hisrright heel; he can't turn and throw without lifting it up to start either the pivot jump or a step back off the rubber.
Left-Hand Pitcher: Looking for the "tell" with a leftie is less obvious. Watch for a pulling back of his left shoulder, this is the give-away with most LHP. While it is possible to throw without winding up, distance, accurancy and speed all suffer. The other thing to look for is the white of the baseball. When throwing home the pitcher's hand is more likely to take the ball back toward 2nd base. But when throwing over to the base, the hand will come up, ball exposed.
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