Today we’ll take a look at Flame-Thrower/All-Star Pitcher Gerrit Cole and what I see him do extremely well from a delivery standpoint. So first things first it’s always fun to look at guys who throw the ball as hard as Gerrit Cole throws it. Gives us a good idea of, “Well, he’s throwing extremely hard so he must be doing something right.”
In the videos below I will highlight a few things that I see him do exceptionally well throughout his delivery that tend to go overlooked by the naked eye. We’ll talk about his ability to get into efficient positions at crucial points in his delivery, hip rotation at optimal moments, and his linear energy transfer.
I have a free PDF where I talk about how to best go about optimizing the pitching delivery and you can pick up your copy by clicking on the link below.
9 Steps To Optimize Your Pitching Delivery
Before we dive in I’d encourage you, if you’re someone who struggles with mechanical deficiencies that is prohibiting you from reaching your velocity goals, to explore my Mechanical Video Analysis Service. This is a great service that gives me an opportunity to identify any “deficiencies” that are occurring throughout your delivery and how to best go about optimizing those movements.
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Breakdown
Rotation “into” Front Foot Strike
In this clip below I talk about Rotation “into” Front Foot Strike rather than rotation “then” front foot strike. I’d encourage you to click on that to get a better understanding for the importance of this move and how that can be another piece when attempting to throw at max power output!
Linear Energy
Obviously Gerrit Cole was blessed with a ridiculously powerful arm but I do want to highlight that he gets himself into extremely efficient positions.
I want to highlight a segment that MLB Network did on Gerrit Cole and his evolution from being with Pittsburgh and relying mostly on 2-seam Fastballs to now with Houston and showcasing the ability to spin that 4-seamer extremely high.
MLB Network on Cole
You’ll see that Cole has gotten away from his “sinking” Fastball that he threw a majority of the time when he was with Pittsburgh (they love the sinking fastball over there) and has switched to more of a “riding” fastball in which you see him throw these days.
The biggest thing that jumped out to me while watching Cole throw these days was exactly what the guys at the Network said in regards to “FREEDOM” in Cole’s arm action. This is something that I personally dealt with as well during my time in Pittsburgh because I was trying to make the ball move a bit… not saying that it’s bad or that is what he was doing just an observation.
You’ll see now based on Cole’s Data Analytics that his stuff absolutely PLAYS whether it be in the zone or out of the zone. That is a good sign of STUFF!
Cole’s Data Analytics
Avg FB Velo Per Year
Avg Spin Rate Per Year
In Conclusion
Personally I think it’s obvious to mention that this is a simple case of someone going to an organization which all the concepts match up. Not saying Pittsburgh is a “bad” organization I just think what they were trying to accomplish with Cole wasn’t what was going to allow him to be at his very best. Now you see a guy who just looks so free and is able to go out there and just focus on competing which he does extremely well.
When it comes to maximizing your pitching potential I think a huge component of that is finding a delivery that works best for you. What I mean by that is sticking to something that is going to allow you to be loose and free all while not having to worry about the actual delivery itself. Now I know everyone is going to be different in this discovery process but I find it extremely valuable to create as much athleticism throughout the delivery as possible. Now that’s not to say we don’t want to get into efficient positions during our delivery. But we can’t become robotic by doing that.
I think the biggest step in a Pitcher’s process is identifying the patterns that are inefficient towards ones goal. I encourage you to explore the option of signing up for a Pitching Mechanics Analysis with me so I can better equip you in your process of being the best possible Pitcher you can become.
More Content To Check Out
Arm Path Makeover – From 85 MPH to 95 MPH
Identifying A Mechanical Breakdown – Loss in Velocity
Weighted Balls + Efficient Throwing Mechanics
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Content Used
- MLB Network Video
- MLB.TV (edit myself)