Real Issues or Symptoms?

Many pitchers turn their front foot to the side, or take a slight step forward, as they try to drive off the mound. Everyone agrees that it is a big problem, but few people understand the real cause of the problem. It almost never has anything to do with the foot, so don’t run out and buy tools that try to straighten the foot.

That is a symptom of a larger problem.
The root of the problem is far higher than the foot. Let’s start at the next lowest location. In a rare few cases it is simply a matter of the kid turning the knee too early. The foot can’t turn if the knee doesn’t turn. They are much more aware of knee position, so we begin with some exercises we have created to help keep the knee in line. If it works, wonderful, but it isn’t usually that simple.
The knee has a hard time staying in line if the pitcher twists the hips during her backswing. Hips must stay parallel to the mound until the arm comes upward and the hips naturally open as she leaves the mound. Just because she doesn’t have a backswing doesn’t she won’t have this problem. In fact, kids who have a “rocker start” often try to get momentum by twisting the hips and may have a worse problem
Now, what if the hips seem to be okay? Look further up and see if shoulders are turning on the backswing. The hips may try to hold their position, but if she twists the shoulders to try to gain extra momentum, just before she comes forward, the hips will collapse into the same position as shoulders and that will force the knee to turn, pulling the foot to the side.
But, that’s just the beginning. If the pitcher has too much weight on the heel of the back foot as she tries to push off the mound, she will find herself stranded back there, and will have to take a tiny step forward to gain momentum. The body instinctively knows it can’t get open easily with momentum generated in this fashion, so the knee often gets out of line trying to open the body enough to allow the arm to make a circle.
Now you are seeing all of the little intricacies that make great pitchers truly amazing. But, we are not finished yet. One of the major causes of the foot turning is weaknesses in the core, specifically hip flexibility or mobility. If she has the wrong muscle structure in that area, she physically cannot attain the position we need. Needless to say she will only frustrate or injure herself by trying to push through this limitation. Trying to fix it with a tool or drill can actually increase the risk. The body must be fixed first and you need a pretty sophisticated program designed specifically for the problems pitchers develop.
There are a couple of other causes for the foot turning early, but the ones above are among the most frequent that we see. The more we work with truly elite pitchers the more impressed I am with how many things they must do right. The more we learn, the more we can help average kids break through barriers that have separated them from their dreams. If you are a former college pitcher who would like to help kids better break through barriers, contact us about our Instructor Certification Program. You will be surprised at the things we have to offer.