Left Handed Pitching Tips

Because they comprise 10 percent or less of the population, left-handed people are rare enough in baseball to be greatly desired, especially as pitchers, in which position they are particularly effective against left-handed batters. They have other advantages, too, and so training as a left-handed pitcher requires special attention to stance and the types of pitches to throw.

  1. Picking Off First

    • Because a left-handed pitcher faces first base while in a neutral, resting position, it is more difficult for runners to steal second base from first without attracting a left-handed pitcher's attention. Coaches should develop lefty pitchers' pickoff moves so they can minimize the threat of a stolen base. By learning to pitch without crossing their lifted leg over the rubber, lefty pitchers can always be ready to pick off first base without drawing a balk.

    Curveball

    • For reasons that aren't clear to sports scientists, left-handed pitchers tend to throw curveballs with a slower velocity and wider break than right-handed pitchers. By working on the curveball extensively in practice alongside the more traditional fastball pitch, a left-handed pitcher can develop an arsenal of pitches with varying velocities, and this will throw off batters' balance and prevent them from settling into a groove.

    Circle Changeup

    • Because pitchers tend to be most effective against batters with the same dominant hand, it's important for left-handed pitchers to come up with a plan for right-handed batters, who otherwise have a statistical advantage against them. The circle change-up is one pitch that left-handed pitchers can develop for this purpose. When properly thrown, a circle change-up will break down and away from a right-handed batter.