Show me a left hander who throws like a right hander, and I will show you a
pitcher with potential to be very successful. Left-handed pitchers who throw
like right handers have a greater opportunity to achieve MLB success than their
right-handed counterparts.
One of the more blatant examples of how little MLB pitching coaches really
know about pitching mechanics was the trade by the Mets of Scott Kazmir for
Victor Zambrano. The word on the street was that the Mets' pitching coach,
Rick Peterson, thought Kazmir’s mechanics needed to be changed to prevent
future injury. Apparently Kazmir did not agree, and hence the trade.
I found it quite interesting because I fell in love with Kazmir’s mechanics
the very first time I saw him throw baseball (high school video clip).
I will also say that it appears that Kazmir’s mechanics have changed his since
high school, and in my opinion not for the better. Possibly that's a subject
for another day.
Some of the young guns who have right hander “stuff,” starting top left-hand
corner and going clockwise: Scott Kazmir, Erik Bedard, C.C. Sabathia and
Dontrelle Willis.
Erik Bedard throws the ball well, having led the American League in strikeouts
last year. He also has a very interesting baseball history.
A Franco-Ontarian, Bedard began his baseball career in the Orleans Little
League and the Ontario Baseball Association. He pitched he 1992 Orleans Junior
Red Sox team which beat Glace Bay in the 1992 Canadian Championship. Bedard did
not play high school baseball, which is the norm in Canada due to the short
season. Just 5-foot-4 and 120 pounds as a senior, he grew seven inches and
gained 30 pounds during the summer between graduating from high school and
beginning college. He accompanied a friend to a tryout at Norwalk Community
College in Norwalk, Conn., and made the baseball team as a walk-on
While in college, he added 10 mph to his fastball, gained another 30 pounds,
took the "lowest level" non-credit English language course to enhance his
knowledge of the language, and became a junior college All-America.
Bedard has the throwing tools to be a successful left hander. At least the
Mariners think so.
Willis burst onto the baseball scene in 2003 as much for his funky delivery as
for his success on the pitching mound. Willis’ delivery was a throwback to the
likes of Louis Tiant. And Willis can throw the ball. He had statistically solid
years from 2003 until last year. His ERA jumped, as did his home runs, and his
ability to locate seemed more a problem than in previous years. It would be
interesting to compare his mechanics of 2003 to what he was doing last year to
see if he is another potential victim of MLB coaches making his mechanics
“look better.”
Sabathia is probably the most interesting of all. The Cy Young Award winner in
2007, he has gotten off to a shaky start. And then there is the little matter
of his pitching for contract this year. The hot stove talk before the season
began was whether Sabathia would break Johan Santana’s contract record. (The
three largest contracts for pitchersall have gone to left handers—Mike Hampton
, Zito, and Santana.
Sabathia has been a workhorse for Cleveland since 2001, averaging almost 200
innings a year. Hde can get it up there (fastball consistently in the low 90s).
But I never liked the way he threw the ball—a portion of his velocity is
simply due to his size, in my opinion.
Raw throwing ability does not guarantee major league success. You still have to
know how to pitch. But given two pitchers of equal throwing ability, the left
hander has a greater chance of achieving success.
Still, the same things that work for a left hander are also working against him
. And in some ways, the left hander is on a more precarious precipice than his
right-handed counterpart.
Next: What the Lord giveth, the MLB hitter taketh away—and exactly what are
effective throwing mechanics?
假如一位左投学会怎样投起来像右投，那他将有潜力成为非常优异的投手。比起右投，投
起来像右投的左投有更高的成功机会。
从Scott Kazmir的交易案中可以知道大联盟对投球机制是有多么的不了解。有传言说大都
会队的投教Rick Peterson认为Kazmir需要改姿势以避免受伤。显然Kazmir不这么认为，然
后就被交易了。
我觉得(这件事)很有意思因为我在看到Kazmir投球的第一天就被他的投球机制所吸引。
(这是高中时期的影片)
此外我还要说的是在高中后Kazmir的投球机制有些改变，而这些改变我认为并不是往好的
方向前进。也许这会是另一篇文章的主题。
一些有右投手的stuff的年轻左投。顺时针方向:Scott Kazmir, Erik Bedard,
C.C. Sabathia, Dontrelle Willis。
Erik Bedard丢的很好，在去年的美联三振排行榜上名列前矛。他的投球生涯也是相当有意
思。
身为一位说法语的加拿大人，Bedard在Orleans Little League和Ontario Baseball
Association开始他的棒球生涯。在1992年率领Orleans Junior Red Sox拿下加拿大冠军。
他在高中时没有打棒球，这在球季短的加拿大是很常见的。高中时还只有5-4,120磅的他，
升大学时一口气多了7吋30磅。他和一位朋友一起去Norwalk Community College测试，并
成了队中的一位板凳球员。
在大学时，他又多了30磅，球速加快10mph，英文能力变强，并取得美国大学生的身分。
Bedard有成为成功左投的丢球条件，至少水手队是这么想的。
Willis在2003年以他奇怪的姿势和优异的成绩在棒坛中崭露头角。他投球姿势很像以前的
那个Louis Tiant。他懂得怎么丢球，有好几年优异的表现。但在去年，他的各项成绩大幅
衰退。比较他现在和以前的的投球机制应该会很有意思。也许他又是另一个大联盟投教帮
他把姿势变得"正常"的另一个受害者。
Sabathia也许是其中最有意思的。2007年的赛扬奖得主，在今年开季时有点挣扎并有些关
于合约上的事情。在开季前的一个热门话题是他的新合约会不会打破Santana的纪录。
(获得投手前三大的合约都是左投:Hampton, Zito, Santana)
Sabathia在2001年后每年都贡献近200局给印地安人队。他有能力和打者正面对决。但我从
不喜欢他的丢球:我觉得他的球速有部份是靠他的身材。
光只有丢球能力并不能在大联盟立足，你还是需要知道如何投球。但比较两位丢球能力相
同的投手，左投有更高的成功机会。
然而，同样的事情也可以是反作用力。在某些方面而言，左投比起右投更靠近灾难的边缘
。
下一章:What the Lord giveth, the MLB hitter taketh away—and exactly what are
effective throwing mechanics?