OK. I'm really in the learning stages here, trying to help my son. This is the first major disagreement I've seen where you say no kids should learn a cutter. Trevor Bauer on the other hand says the cutter is the very second pitch a kid should learn (10 to 12) and the change up is the very last pitch.
wow, all my years pitching, (i’m 64😂) and i never heard such an insightful and well explained breakdown of the cutter… now i will try it thx man!!!! 👍⚾️
makes sense. i started pitching 3 years ago, and am going to try out for an adult squad next season. i was playing around with adding a cutter to my repertoire, but not that i know more about the pitch and what it does, I know that I won't be needing it at all. my velocity is probably at high school level anyway, so that's fine to know that I can better use my practice time on the pitches i know i have.
Great Video Dan , I would add a 3rd type pitcher Corbin Burnes 😂 The Unicorn the newest Oriole to our Squad😁 he throws the most nasty cutter as a primary pitch ratio for a starting pitcher I have ever seen which he offsets with his sinker.
I remember once when I was practicing my slider I accidentally threw a cutter, and it was really really good, but unfortunately ive never been able to recreate the motion, my coach also tried to teach my the cutter but it was really difficult for me
Easiest pitch for me as a lefty to.throw. it was all on my grip. Instead of across the seams like a 2 seam fast ball, I threw min with the seams. I didn't know what I was throwing but I knew what it did
I have heard 3 youth players (12U) and below claim they throw a true cutter. Their parents claim they do too. They don’t and I have only seen a single high school kid that actually had a ball cut properly. Also, I bought Pitching isn’t Complicated Dan. Good book for parents that are ignorant to pitching or coaches.
Every pitch I throw has natural cut to it well all my fastballs do I wonder what a cutter would do for me. I'm a very accurate pitcher 3 to 1 ratio on strikes. I think this would improve my game thanks for the tips
Hey Dan, my 11 year old has been developing pretty good command of his fast ball, and his velocity is getting consistently into the mid 50s. He throws pretty near over the top, lefty, so when i am watching the spin from the catcher position, the seams are moving up from about 630 to 1230. I showed him a couple grips just for fun, including the 3-finger and circle changeup grips. So he tries a couple grips and its not really working well, but he keeps fooling around. Eventually, he winds up gripping the open end of the horseshoe so his index lies along and outside the horseshoe seam, his thumb along and outside the other side of the same horseshoe, so the seam end of the horseshoe completes a circle with his thumb and index, but much bigger than a typical circle changeup grip. He chucks this thing hard and it spins 900 to 300 from my view, fast, but not as fast as his backspin on the 4seamer, and it runs hard to his arm side. It sinks, relative to the 4seam, and its slower. So i stopped him and asked him to show me what his hand is doing. As far as i can tell he's throwing that circle at my glove, and due to the lopsided grip, his hand naturally comes off the inside of the ball. I dont think he is pronating much if at all. Definitely not supinated. I don't let him throw it in a game or his team practices. I only let him throw it at most maybe five times per session when we're practicing at home. It runs maybe 4 to 6 inches to my right over the 45 foot throw. He throws it so the spin axis is vertical and at right angles to the direction of flight. So my questions: What is this pitch? I want to call it a changeup, but I feel like that's supposed to have more backspin and less run. Is it useful? His arm action is almost identical to his 4seam pitch, but the spin is pretty obviously different. Since he's not rolling his hand outward, is it safe? Thanks for any input you might have.
@@josephmannix5120 My actually slider has similar movement but a later and more loopy break, but the cutter kind of starts sclicing downwards and away slightly
Great video, as always. I have a 12U team. I have a few pitchers that have good command of the fb. I have been working with them in bullpens with spinning, fundamentals of curves, sliders, have had some decent results. So now they get to throw one or two in a game. Wouldn’t be a good idea to start practicing this pitch, say next year to try and develop this over time?
For 12U teams, I would say work on a 4-seam fastball, a 2-seam fastball and a change-up. Maybe through a sinker in there. Got to protect the young arms. When they get a bit older, THEN I would start looking at curves and sliders. My thoughts.
Does the choice to spend time and energy to develop a cutter comes from a high arm slot? So it would be a natural complement to a 6-12 curveball thrower?
Great video as always. I am curious about your pitch clock comment. You say right handed pitchers move their fingers to 11 on a clock face, but it looks like you put your fingers at 1 o clock (shifting to the right). Thanks
Hey Dan, I’m a 12 year old and I’m trying to learn a pitch that can move a bit without hurting my arm. Circle changes hurt my elbow if I turn my hand towards the ground. Got any suggestions for pitches I could learn?
@@DanBlewett it doesn’t really hurt basically what I’m saying is if I do turn my elbow in I can’t get a good release so I’m worried to keep doing it because I don’t want it to be to hard on my elbow. Instead what I do is throw the pitch without turning my hand. What could be something to help me get a good release
Im 14 and throw 75mph, I have a good solid consistent 2 seamer but good hitters are often on it later in the game, I’ve tried to throw the Trevor Bauer cutter and get some good movement on it while it also remains in the high 60s to 70mph, is this nessesary or will it not make a very big difference in swings and misses, thx will
I understand cutter is to offset fingers right, so the ball break left. But why can't pitcher offset fingers to left, so the ball break right like a sinker? I mean, sinker is usually thrown as 2-seamer, the grip is entirely different from the offset-4-seamer-cutter. Can a pitcher throw cutter as reverse-offset-2-seamer or throw sinker as reverse-offset-4-seamer?
I get tons of late cut when I grab Across the seams where they get narrow (two seamer). Middle finger pressure and just throw it. I was told that’s a natural cutter. Never gripped the off axis fourseamer spot like you described. It freaks people out during catch if I don’t warn them. Is that not a true cutter?
I think the term "natural" cut really just means "Accidental" cut. If you're not purposefully trying to make it cut, then it's not helping your command. Every pitch should have its purpose, whether it to cut, fly perfectly straight, or whatever - it should do what you intend it to do. But pro pitchers who choose to throw cutters rarely throw 2-seam versions.
Makes sense. Explains why my 2seamer never was very good. Getting the ball to run (change up, 2seam) was always harder for me. Always appreciate your videos man!
My question is if we need to learn any other pitches, because you are always saying that we will only need three, a fastball, a change up, and a curveball, which excludes a lot of pitches
I’m just a bit confused about when we are supposed to learn new pitches. Should we wait until we have mastered the first three that you have recommended.
Ok thanks a lot, and thanks for your videos too, they are really helpful. There was so much before that I didn’t even know about or was doing wrong that I have fixed with the help of your videos
I mean exactly that - it will fly almost exactly straight when not thrown very hard. Its hard to tell if your cutter is even cutting during games. I have some footage where you can see it clearly from behind the plate, but I couldnt tell during a game. Cutting 4 inches is a very tiny amount given the ball flys 726 inches...
You cant throw full speed every day; shouldnt throw full speed more than a few times a week. And it probably won't visibly break until very close to full speed. And even then, its hard to see the break because its so subtle and the head movement of a pitcher at release makes it difficult to track. If you can see it break during catch I'd basically guarantee its not thrown correctly - too big, like a slider.
The pitching coordinator of the travel organization I coach for is all about teaching a "cutter" to kids of all ages even before the curve ball. They all end up throwing a little league slider. He's a good, coach better human just goes to show how pervasive mis-information is in our game.
@@DanBlewett I don't want to drop his name but he did pitch in the twins org for 6 season in 00's. I'm not sure if he doesn't know what he is doing or relying on information he was taught 12 years ago and is unwilling to change.
too many people teach things that worked for them at certain levels or in certain time periods without really considering the implications for players at lower levels or in different places in time.
I'm not sure what you're asking exactly, but cutters break 4-6 inches generally, but when youre learning one, it's better that theyre shorter than too big. If you take your cutter and make it bigger, it becomes a slider
I clicked on this video thinking I would see a cutter pitch. For anyone watching this video, their is zero pitches of any kind in this video. Perhaps it is time to find some juggling videos that never shows a person juggling.
seeing it thrown won't help you throw it. I taught YOU, disgruntled viewer, the same way I've taught many people in real life to throw various types of pitches. Turn on a baseball game on TV if you want to see cutters and complain less. This isnt' juggling.
![Diggy Graves - Red Vineyard [Official Lyric Video]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/8Ro085T0mnQ/mqdefault.jpg)
🚨In this video you can see me throw a 4-seamer (first pitch) followed by a cutter (2nd pitch): ruclips.net/video/b_4V3q9mRfs/видео.html
OK. I'm really in the learning stages here, trying to help my son. This is the first major disagreement I've seen where you say no kids should learn a cutter. Trevor Bauer on the other hand says the cutter is the very second pitch a kid should learn (10 to 12) and the change up is the very last pitch.
very detailed, practical and professional explanation and demonstration
wow, all my years pitching, (i’m 64😂) and i never heard such an insightful and well explained breakdown of the cutter… now i will try it thx man!!!! 👍⚾️
makes sense. i started pitching 3 years ago, and am going to try out for an adult squad next season. i was playing around with adding a cutter to my repertoire, but not that i know more about the pitch and what it does, I know that I won't be needing it at all. my velocity is probably at high school level anyway, so that's fine to know that I can better use my practice time on the pitches i know i have.
Great Video Dan , I would add a 3rd type pitcher Corbin Burnes 😂 The Unicorn the newest Oriole to our Squad😁 he throws the most nasty cutter as a primary pitch ratio for a starting pitcher I have ever seen which he offsets with his sinker.
love your explanations Dan. Hope all is well
Always appreciate the quality of the contents, coach! Looking forward to more tutorials.
I remember once when I was practicing my slider I accidentally threw a cutter, and it was really really good, but unfortunately ive never been able to recreate the motion, my coach also tried to teach my the cutter but it was really difficult for me
Great video. Thanks for your effort & Happy Memorial Day Weekend
Easiest pitch for me as a lefty to.throw. it was all on my grip. Instead of across the seams like a 2 seam fast ball, I threw min with the seams. I didn't know what I was throwing but I knew what it did
I have heard 3 youth players (12U) and below claim they throw a true cutter. Their parents claim they do too.
They don’t and I have only seen a single high school kid that actually had a ball cut properly.
Also, I bought Pitching isn’t Complicated Dan. Good book for parents that are ignorant to pitching or coaches.
Is there a big velocity difference from ground pitching vs mound difference?
This is great. I keep telling my 12u guys "None of y'all throw hard enough for a cutter to cut."
TRUE
How fast do you have to be to throw a cutter
Great advice
I've been watching all of your stuff, very informative. So a curve ball has top spin and curves down? Is that correct?
Yes, correct.
Every pitch I throw has natural cut to it well all my fastballs do I wonder what a cutter would do for me. I'm a very accurate pitcher 3 to 1 ratio on strikes. I think this would improve my game thanks for the tips
Hey Dan, my 11 year old has been developing pretty good command of his fast ball, and his velocity is getting consistently into the mid 50s. He throws pretty near over the top, lefty, so when i am watching the spin from the catcher position, the seams are moving up from about 630 to 1230.
I showed him a couple grips just for fun, including the 3-finger and circle changeup grips.
So he tries a couple grips and its not really working well, but he keeps fooling around. Eventually, he winds up gripping the open end of the horseshoe so his index lies along and outside the horseshoe seam, his thumb along and outside the other side of the same horseshoe, so the seam end of the horseshoe completes a circle with his thumb and index, but much bigger than a typical circle changeup grip. He chucks this thing hard and it spins 900 to 300 from my view, fast, but not as fast as his backspin on the 4seamer, and it runs hard to his arm side. It sinks, relative to the 4seam, and its slower.
So i stopped him and asked him to show me what his hand is doing. As far as i can tell he's throwing that circle at my glove, and due to the lopsided grip, his hand naturally comes off the inside of the ball. I dont think he is pronating much if at all. Definitely not supinated.
I don't let him throw it in a game or his team practices. I only let him throw it at most maybe five times per session when we're practicing at home. It runs maybe 4 to 6 inches to my right over the 45 foot throw. He throws it so the spin axis is vertical and at right angles to the direction of flight.
So my questions:
What is this pitch? I want to call it a changeup, but I feel like that's supposed to have more backspin and less run.
Is it useful? His arm action is almost identical to his 4seam pitch, but the spin is pretty obviously different.
Since he's not rolling his hand outward, is it safe?
Thanks for any input you might have.
I dont know.
My cutter has a ton of vertical sliding movement, but I only pitch as a hobby and so I have no velo 😅
Probably a fast slider
@@josephmannix5120 My actually slider has similar movement but a later and more loopy break, but the cutter kind of starts sclicing downwards and away slightly
Great video, as always. I have a 12U team. I have a few pitchers that have good command of the fb. I have been working with them in bullpens with spinning, fundamentals of curves, sliders, have had some decent results. So now they get to throw one or two in a game. Wouldn’t be a good idea to start practicing this pitch, say next year to try and develop this over time?
no. no 12 year in the world needs to start working on a cutter
For 12U teams, I would say work on a 4-seam fastball, a 2-seam fastball and a change-up. Maybe through a sinker in there. Got to protect the young arms. When they get a bit older, THEN I would start looking at curves and sliders. My thoughts.
Does the choice to spend time and energy to develop a cutter comes from a high arm slot? So it would be a natural complement to a 6-12 curveball thrower?
Great video as always. I am curious about your pitch clock comment. You say right handed pitchers move their fingers to 11 on a clock face, but it looks like you put your fingers at 1 o clock (shifting to the right). Thanks
mis-speak
@@DanBlewett so, 1 o’clock then? Thanks
my fastball naturally cuts and i struggled throwing a two seamer/sinker/changeup
this video explains how to fix the cut: ruclips.net/video/t82tKENmxig/видео.html
Hey Dan, I’m a 12 year old and I’m trying to learn a pitch that can move a bit without hurting my arm. Circle changes hurt my elbow if I turn my hand towards the ground. Got any suggestions for pitches I could learn?
go see a doctor. no pitch should hurt your arm.
@@DanBlewett it doesn’t really hurt basically what I’m saying is if I do turn my elbow in I can’t get a good release so I’m worried to keep doing it because I don’t want it to be to hard on my elbow. Instead what I do is throw the pitch without turning my hand. What could be something to help me get a good release
7:27 What about someone like corbin burnes who uses it as his primary pitch? He's an exception to the rule but still
Pros can use it - sure. I never said they couldnt, its just really not good for young pitchers
@@DanBlewett I'm curious on something... screwballs. Would you recommend using it or not, why if the answer is no
@@TeemoQuinton No, it's an arm killer
Are there any negative effects on the arm or elbow? I imagine no because it’s the same release as a fastball?
it's not the same, but i cant speak to the stress on the arm.
How should a player with small hands hold the grip???
My hands are small, so there are a lot of inconveniences when I play baseball...
there is no difference - your hand size I'm sure is fine. I've worked with lots of little kids and they can all grip the ball just fine.
Im 14 and throw 75mph, I have a good solid consistent 2 seamer but good hitters are often on it later in the game, I’ve tried to throw the Trevor Bauer cutter and get some good movement on it while it also remains in the high 60s to 70mph, is this nessesary or will it not make a very big difference in swings and misses, thx will
Cutters aren’t a smart pitch for your age.
You know when you say 75 we all m is it’s 68-69😂
@@davidvandyke2586 at 14 I threw around 71 wdym?
I understand cutter is to offset fingers right, so the ball break left. But why can't pitcher offset fingers to left, so the ball break right like a sinker? I mean, sinker is usually thrown as 2-seamer, the grip is entirely different from the offset-4-seamer-cutter. Can a pitcher throw cutter as reverse-offset-2-seamer or throw sinker as reverse-offset-4-seamer?
tinker and try it
I get tons of late cut when I grab Across the seams where they get narrow (two seamer). Middle finger pressure and just throw it. I was told that’s a natural cutter. Never gripped the off axis fourseamer spot like you described. It freaks people out during catch if I don’t warn them. Is that not a true cutter?
I think the term "natural" cut really just means "Accidental" cut. If you're not purposefully trying to make it cut, then it's not helping your command. Every pitch should have its purpose, whether it to cut, fly perfectly straight, or whatever - it should do what you intend it to do. But pro pitchers who choose to throw cutters rarely throw 2-seam versions.
Makes sense. Explains why my 2seamer never was very good. Getting the ball to run (change up, 2seam) was always harder for me. Always appreciate your videos man!
it was hard for me too - i was a high-spin but little movement 4-seam guy.
Would throwing this in live ab's work instead of throwing it in a game right away until I get used to it and see if it works
Practice is always good
of course
My question is if we need to learn any other pitches, because you are always saying that we will only need three, a fastball, a change up, and a curveball, which excludes a lot of pitches
And what’s your question
I’m just a bit confused about when we are supposed to learn new pitches. Should we wait until we have mastered the first three that you have recommended.
yes. Mastering three will get you to the big leagues. Messing around with 5 will only waste your time.
Ok thanks a lot, and thanks for your videos too, they are really helpful. There was so much before that I didn’t even know about or was doing wrong that I have fixed with the help of your videos
no prob big dog
What do you mean it won’t break in practice even if it’s thrown correctly? But it will in a game?
I mean exactly that - it will fly almost exactly straight when not thrown very hard. Its hard to tell if your cutter is even cutting during games. I have some footage where you can see it clearly from behind the plate, but I couldnt tell during a game. Cutting 4 inches is a very tiny amount given the ball flys 726 inches...
My second pitch in this at-bat is a cutter: ruclips.net/video/b_4V3q9mRfs/видео.html
@@DanBlewett So you don’t throw it hard as necessary in practice or warm up?
You cant throw full speed every day; shouldnt throw full speed more than a few times a week. And it probably won't visibly break until very close to full speed. And even then, its hard to see the break because its so subtle and the head movement of a pitcher at release makes it difficult to track. If you can see it break during catch I'd basically guarantee its not thrown correctly - too big, like a slider.
The pitching coordinator of the travel organization I coach for is all about teaching a "cutter" to kids of all ages even before the curve ball. They all end up throwing a little league slider. He's a good, coach better human just goes to show how pervasive mis-information is in our game.
yeah he doesnt know what he's doing, not a good thing to teach.
@@DanBlewett I don't want to drop his name but he did pitch in the twins org for 6 season in 00's. I'm not sure if he doesn't know what he is doing or relying on information he was taught 12 years ago and is unwilling to change.
too many people teach things that worked for them at certain levels or in certain time periods without really considering the implications for players at lower levels or in different places in time.
So, a 2 inch break on a cutter becomes a slider? Just asking. Fairly new to baseball. Just play MLB road to the show.
I'm not sure what you're asking exactly, but cutters break 4-6 inches generally, but when youre learning one, it's better that theyre shorter than too big. If you take your cutter and make it bigger, it becomes a slider
I clicked on this video thinking I would see a cutter pitch.
For anyone watching this video, their is zero pitches of any kind in this video.
Perhaps it is time to find some juggling videos that never shows a person juggling.
seeing it thrown won't help you throw it. I taught YOU, disgruntled viewer, the same way I've taught many people in real life to throw various types of pitches. Turn on a baseball game on TV if you want to see cutters and complain less. This isnt' juggling.