Command Over Velocity | Always

The best pitchers don't just throw strikes, they command them. And the ones who command their pitches do one thing better than everyone else: they repeat their delivery.

It’s that simple.

Command isn't just throwing strikes. It's throwing the pitch you want, to the location you want, when you want it. That takes mechanics, reps, and a trained mind. Here's where to start.

1. Stride Length

Your stride should be 5–6 of your own foot lengths. Measure it, mark it, repeat it. Consistency starts on the ground.

The further you can stride, the more energy you generate. That's what creates momentum toward the plate. The more repeatable it is, the more command your pitcher will develop over time.

*Foot lengths = the player's own shoe size

2. Keep Your Head Still

The head leads the body. If it's drifting, bobbing, or pulling off early, everything downstream gets messy. Quiet head, quiet delivery.

A simple fix: keep your eyes locked on the target longer. The longer your focus stays on where you're throwing, the better chance your head stays quiet and your body follows.

3. Stride Down the Line

Your front foot goes straight toward home plate, not opening up, not crossing over. Opening up early loses power, feel, and direction out of your delivery before the ball ever leaves your hand.

Here's a simple drill any coach can do right now: draw a line in the dirt on the mound. Don't tell the pitcher why. Let them throw 5 or 6 pitches and see exactly where that front foot lands.

Once you know how they're landing, grab a small towel. Place it on the side you want them to avoid. If a righty is opening up and landing left of the line, place the towel on the left side pushing them back toward the line.

If they're staying too closed and landing right of the line, place the towel on the right side, forcing them to step and land left.

Simple tool. Immediate feedback. The towel does the coaching.

4. Control Your Glove Side

This one gets overlooked constantly. After the hands break, a lot of young pitchers let their glove drop and it kills command. The glove side controls the front shoulder, and the front shoulder controls everything. Let it fly open or drop and the whole delivery unravels.

Here's a drill that works without overthinking it: have your pitcher play catch with a second ball tucked in their glove as they throw. Just having that ball in there forces them to stay aware of the glove and keep it under control without you saying a word about mechanics.

Simple and it works.

5. Train Your Eyes — Throw to Targets

Stop throwing just to your partner. Start throwing to their glove-side shoulder. Then their arm-side shoulder.

Big targets, small targets, long toss, short toss, throw on the run, and be athletic. You're training your arm to locate, not just throw. That's the rep that translates to the corner of the plate.

6. Pitch From the Windup

This one matters more than most coaches think. The stretch kills rhythm. Kids don't know when to start, they don't build any feel, and the inconsistency compounds fast. The windup gives you an athletic base, a timing sequence, something to feel and repeat. Be an athlete. Throw from the windup.

One of my top pitchers last spring was pitching from the stretch. Something caught my eye, he wasn't himself out there. Come summer, I pulled him aside one day, explained why I wanted him pitching from the windup, and asked him to trust me. It might take a little time to get comfortable, I told him, but stick with it.

He did.

And he was awesome. More relaxed, more confident, everything in sync. He trusted the process, made the adjustment, and never looked back. That takes guts for a kid.

I put together a quick reference guide for everything covered above. Save it, print it, share it with your coaches.

Keep it simple. The more a young pitcher is thinking, the less they're competing. Fix the big things: stride, direction, delivery and let the small things work themselves out over time. You can't coach everything at once and trying to will do more harm than good.

I tell my pitchers this all the time: hitters are not that good. Statistically speaking, the best fail seven out of ten times. Stop trying to strike everyone out and start learning to throw more strikes.

Work both sides of the plate. Keep your pitch counts down. That's why you have eight other guys in the field waiting to make a play. Let them.

Pitch to contact, throw fewer pitches, and enjoy the success that follows.

Of all the kids you've ever seen play in the Little League World Series on ESPN, in Williamsport, the whole show. Only 74 have ever made it to the big leagues.

74.

The early developer, the mature 12-year-old who dominates because of his size and strength, he's always going to win at this age. And there's nothing we can do about it.

Teach the game. Build the habits. Develop the pitcher.

That's the long game. Play it.

Record your pitchers.

A kid can feel like they're doing everything right and still be flying open, or drifting their head and they'll never know it without seeing it. Video doesn't lie. It shows you exactly what's working and what needs fixing.

Use the technology to your advantage.

Track their progress, spot the problems early, and show them the difference between where they were and where they are now. That visual feedback is one of the most powerful coaching tools you have.

Just like you teach hitters to visualize a good at-bat, do the same for your pitchers. The best ones believe every pitch is going exactly where they want it. They don't cross their fingers and hope. They believe, they attack, and they repeat.

I played with plenty of guys who threw harder than me. Many could throw 96-100mph but you've never heard of them.

Because ball four doesn't play. And velocity without command doesn't play. Ever.

Be a pitcher, not a thrower. And be athletic while doing it.

Help me keep more kids in the game. If you found this helpful, please forward it to another parent or coach.

Thanks for being here. See you next week Inside the Dugout.

-Coach Steve-

Steve Holmes
Founder, Inside the Dugout
2006 MLB Draft | All-American | Youth Coach | Dad