| Dr. Mike Marshall's Pitching Coach Services | ||
Duplicity and Insecurity at Saint Leo UniversityTherefore, in August 2007, Colin moved into an apartment in one of my duplexes and started my 727-Day Adult Baseball Pitchers Interval-Training Program. During the summer of 2009, Colin started searching for a college that would permit him to use the Marshall baseball pitching motion. Of course, my former assistant coach, John Maley, now the pitching coach at the University of Incarnate Word in San Antonio, TX, would permit Colin to pitch with my baseball pitching motion. Unfortunately, Incarnate Word is a private school and the costs are more than Colin and his parents can afford. Therefore, Colin sent emails and videos to dozens of colleges. He went to several tryouts. Finally, he found a nearby college that wanted him. The head and pitching coaches were interested in my learning my baseball pitching motion. However, it is also expensive private school. Nevertheless, with academic and athletic scholarships and loans, Colin and his parents felt that they could make it happen. About a month before Colin was scheduled to start the fall semester, I started to dismantle my Baseball Pitching Research/Training Center. To see whether any area baseball coaches wanted the still useable Astroturf I had, I telephoned the nearby high schools and colleges, including Saint Leo University, where I coached from 1984 through 1988. The Saint Leo head baseball coach said that he would like to see the Astroturf and, because he had attended my presentation in Houston, TX two years ago, he would like to talk with me about baseball pitching and see what we were doing. When the Saint Leo head and pitching coaches arrived, Colin and Jason Schmeidel, my two remaining trainees, were in the middle of their maintenance workouts. I had Colin and Jason demonstrate the wrist weight exercises, the iron ball throws, the lid and football throws, the Half Reverse Pivot body action; Pendulum Swing glove and pitching arm actions drill and their thirty-six bullpen maintenance baseball pitching workouts. The two baseball coaches said that he had never seen fastballs and curve balls move like Colin and Jason made them move. I told him that neither did the batters in the Tampa City League, where, on the previous Sunday's doubleheader, where Colin completed the first seven inning game and pitched four innings into the second game for a total of eleven innings in one day and struck out twenty-two batters. The head coach said that he wanted to see Colin pitch and asked Colin when he was going to pitch again. However, early that Sunday morning, the head coach emailed Colin that he would not be able to attend. The following Monday, without telling me what they were going to do, Colin and Jason drove the fifteen miles to Saint Leo University and talked with the head baseball coach. Because to the coach’s favorable comments about their pitches and his interest in watching them pitch, they thought that he might be interested in them pitching for Saint Leo. That and the hope that they could continue to live in my apartment, use my facilities, work with me and live for free. The head coach told my guys that, if they were better then the baseball pitchers on the Saint Leo team, then he would add them to the team. Then, they asked the coach the critical question: “Would they be able to continue to train and throw as they did when the coach visited my Baseball Pitching Research/Training Center? The head coach assured them that, because he saw my Houston presentation and had watched them throw at my Baseball Pitching Research/Training Center, they could continue to do train and throw as I taught them. During the first week of school, the baseball coach held a team meeting for all returning players, recruited players and walk-on players. He said that, until tryouts six weeks later, the walk-on players could not train with the returning and recruited players. Therefore, 'Walk-on' players had to train on their own. Therefore, every day from the first day of school until the ‘tryout’ day, Colin and Jason trained on the Saint Leo University baseball field. When the team was using the bullpen, Colin and Jason did my Half Reverse Pivot Long Toss Drill in the outfield. When the team was using the baseball field, Colin and Jason threw their daily bullpens. After about a month, a Saint Leo University player with whom Colin played throughout his adolescent years told Colin that the head coach said that Colin had the strongest throwing arm that he had ever seen. Colin told me that some players told him that, when he did my Half Reverse Pivot drill, the strength of his throwing arm was amazing. They also said that they did not understand how he could throw that way. They asked Colin to teach them how to do the drill. On my instructions, Colin told them that, until he was on the team and understood how the coaches would feel about him teaching them the drill, he did not want to do anything to upset the coaches. On several occasions, the head coach made encouraging comments and, on one occasion, sat with Colin at a high school game on campus and asked Colin to explain how he was able to throw intensive bullpens every day. Needless to say, Colin felt confident that the head coach was interested in him. A few days before the ‘Tryout’ day, because the head coach had contacted other high school baseball coaches, several of whom took all the remaining Astroturf I had, I telephoned the head coach to thank him. The head coach told me that, at that high school game on campus, he had long conversation with Colin. He said that it bothered him when Colin said he saw some pitchers bounce their pitching forearm and asked why the pitching coach taught the pitchers to do this. Neither Colin nor I knew that the head coach had been the pitching coach at a Division I university. I told the head coach that I had told Colin not to talk with any Saint Leo University baseball pitchers about what he is doing. I said that I was certain that Colin only wanted to learn more about how they teach baseball pitching. Nevertheless, I considered this comment as a negative sign. Because Colin had watched the returning and recruited pitchers throw, he felt very confident that he would make the team. On the Friday before the Sunday tryout, several of the Saint Leo players again asked Colin how he and Jason were able to throw bullpens every day without their pitching arms hurting. Colin told them that their arms never hurt them; they could pitch every day. These pitchers said that they needed to learn how to throw like Colin and Jason. On the Sunday ‘Tryout’ day, the coaches said that all pitchers were only going to do their 'Arm Care' drills that day; nobody would throw either bullpens or to batters. They put Colin and Jason in different groups. Therefore, Colin and Jason had to do all the 'stretching', medicine ball, hurdle, elastic band and other nonsensical drills that they made their baseball pitchers do every day. When Colin got the opportunity to throw baseballs, the pitcher paired with him threw only ten pitches and quit. Then, he asked Colin to teach him my pitching arm action. As instructed, Colin said that he could not do that/ The next day, Monday, the head coach had Colin start the inter-squad ‘Tryout’ game. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- First Inning: O1. RHB: torque pronation curve/low away (called strike one), two-seam torque fastball/middle away (called strike two), four-seam maxline torque fastball/middle away (called strike three) At Bat result: (Kc) 02. RHB: torque pronation curve/low away (called strike one), two-seam torque fastball/middle away (swing and hit) At Bat result: shallow pop fly (F9) 03. LHB: maxline pronation curve/low away (ball low), maxline fastball/middle away (ball outside), torque fastball/middle in (swing and hit) At Bat result: grounded to second baseman (E4) 04. RHB: torque pronation curve/low and away (called strike), two-seam torque fastball/middle away (swing and miss), four-seam maxline torque fastball/middle away (ball outside), torque pronation curve/low and away (called strike) At Bat result: (Kc) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- If I had been the head coach, when Colin struck out the first batter on three called strikes, he made my team. There is no jam where three pitch called strikeouts do not get pitchers out of trouble. After the inning, several guys on the bench congratulated Colin. They said that he had an awesome curve and nobody could catch up with his fastballs. They said that he had the best stuff that they had ever seen. The pitching coach said that Colin had the best curve that he had ever seen. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Second Inning: O5. RHB: torque pronation curve/low away (ball low), two-seam torque fastball/middle away (ball outside*), torque fastball/middle away (ball outside), maxline pronation curve/low and inside (ball low*) At Bat result: (BB) 06. LHB: maxline pronation curve/low away (called strike one), maxline fastball/middle away (ball outside), maxline fastball/middle away (ball outside*), torque fastball/middle in (swing and miss), maxline pronation curve/low and away (ball low*) At Bat result: (BB) 07. RHB: torque pronation curve/low and away (called strike), two-seam torque fastball/middle away (swing and hit) At Bat result: grounded to second (4-6) force at second base, base runner on second base advanced to third 08. RHB: torque pronation curve/low away (ball low), two-seam maxline torque fastball/middle away (ball outside*), two-seam torque fastball/middle away (swing and miss), torque pronation curve/low away (ball low*), maxline pronation curve/low and away (ball low) At Bat result: (BB) 09. LHB: maxline pronation curve/low away (called strike) catcher missed the baseball (PB) unearned run scored, maxline fastball/middle away (called strike), maxline torque fastball/middle away (ball inside*), torque pronation curve/low inside (called strike) At Bat result: (Kc) 10. RHB: torque pronation curve/low and away (called strike), two-seam torque fastball/middle away (called strike), four-seam maxline torque fastball/middle away (ball outside), torque pronation curve/low and away (called strike) At Bat result: (Kc) * An assistant coach called pitches from behind the pitcher. Colin thought that these pitches were strikes. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- After Colin had finished pitching, several pitchers asked him to explain his pitching motion. An excited Colin explained that he pitches this way because Dr. Marshall's baseball pitching motion eliminates pitching arm injuries, such that he can throw every day without any discomfort. Colin said that, since he started training with me, his release velocity has increased from 82-84 to 88-92 mph and he throws a wider variety of higher quality pitches. Colin said, when he takes the mound, he feels that nobody can hit him. Whoops. So much for not sharing what he does. I guess that the excitement of pitching and pitching well loosened his lips. After the game, the assistant coach that sat behind home plate with the radar gun told Colin that he threw harder than any other pitcher. Colin told me that, immediately after he pitched in the ‘tryout’ game, the pitching coach told him that he threw very well. He also told him that because Colin pronates so hard, he should learn how to throw a changeup. Colin told me that the other pitchers gave up extra base hits and runs. Driving home, Colin felt that he had easily made the team. Unfortunately, Jason did not pitch as well as he is capable. After six weeks of not pitching to batters, Jason did not throw the strikes that he threw in the Tampa City League games. Tuesday morning, Colin checked to see which ‘walk-on’ pitchers had also made the team. He was shocked to see that another 'Walk-on' pitcher that did not throw eighty miles per hour made the team and he did not. However, after his first class that day, he ran into several players and all were dumbfounded when they heard he didn't make the team. Two pitchers told Colin that, during the game, they over-heard the assistant outfield coach say, “How are we supposed to teach this guy anything?” Colin's 'Tryout' game catcher told Colin that he threw the best curveballs he had ever seen (maxline pronation curveball and torque curveball) and that his fastball had great movement. Another player told Colin that he can really pitch and he needs to play somewhere. The players with whom Colin had played with in youth baseball and high school told Colin that he was a hell of a lot pitcher now. Colin told me that most of the Saint Leo pitchers that talked with him said that because of the pain in their pitching arms, they could not throw every day. They said that the ‘Arm Care’ drills that the coaches had them doing do not work. They wanted to have Colin help them to learn how to throw without pain. Colin told me that a pitcher told him that, because he had better stuff then anyone on the team, it was bullshit that the head coach cut him. He also said that Colin threw as hard as any pitcher on the team. Colin told me that, after the ‘tryout’ game, a Saint Leo batter that, the year before, batted .380 and hit fifteen home runs, told him that the fastball he threw got to home plate so fast and was so difficult to pick up that it looked like it was 98 mph. Colin told me that the first baseman to whom he threw a pickoff throw told him that, because the baseball got to him unexpectedly quickly, he had difficulty catching the baseball. To this day, no Saint Leo University baseball coach has contacted Colin to tell him why he didn't make the team. With a few days after the head coach posted the roster that did not include Colin, I received a telephone call. The caller said that he over-heard the head coach tell his assistant coaches that the reason why he did not keep Colin on team was because his baseball pitchers were asking Colin about my baseball pitching motion. The caller said that the reason for his call was that his pitching arm always hurt. However, the head coach tells his pitchers that, if they complain about pain, then they would be done for the rest of fall practice and, if they continue to complain, they would be done for the rest of the year. Then, he asked whether he could learn how to throw without pain without the head coach knowing that he was using my pitching arm action. I told him that he could. However, when they start throwing my Maxline Pronation Curve and Maxline Fastball Sinker, the head coach might become suspicious. He told me that, on their weekly off-day, he and a few other Saint Leo pitchers would like to come to Zephyrhills and work with me. Therefore, the head coach’s effort to not lose control of his pitching staff has already failed. He lost them when his ‘Arm Care’ program did not eliminate their pitching injuries. Neither Colon nor I had anything to do with that. So dear readers, here we have another reason why my baseball pitchers are not pitching college/professional baseball. ‘Traditional’ baseball pitching coaches are so insecure that they will not allow my baseball pitchers to pitch with my baseball pitching motion. Therefore, they either refuse to give them an opportunity to pitch or, to insure that my pitchers cannot get anybody out, they force them to pitch their way. |
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