Major Leaguers And
The Marshall Pitching Motion

9/11/2007

People are always asking me “Show me a pro who does what Dr. Mike Marshall advocates.” While I can’t show you one pro who does everything Dr. Marshall advocates, there are many major leaguers who do one or more things that Dr. Marshall advocates. Coincidentally, or not, many of these major leaguers are both highly successful and have had injury-free careers.

GET THE PAS FOREARM UP EARLY
Probably the main thing that Dr. Marshall focuses on is getting the Pitching Arm Side (aka PAS) forearm up as soon as possible. This idea, which he calls the Crow Hop Rhythm, copies what outfielders do when they throw the ball in from the outfield. Dr. Marshall believes that getting the PAS forearm up very early reduces the strain on the arm. Following this advice also makes it virtually impossible for a pitcher to have a problem with rushing.

Beltran Perez

DON'T LEAVE THE PAS FOOT BEHIND ON THE RUBBER
Dr. Marshall believes that it is best if pitchers throw with their entire bodies, and not just their arms. One way to do this is to maximize how much the hips rotate, and the way to do this is to allow the PAS foot to come off of the rubber.

Nate Robertson

Greg Maddux

LIMITED REVERSE ROTATION OF THE SHOULDERS
Some pitchers and their coaches believe that reverse-rotating the shoulders is a key to velocity. I don't think it is, both because great pitchers like Nolan Ryan, Sandy Koufax, and Juan Marichal didn't do it and because there are other ways to achieve a large degree of separation between the hips and shoulders. As a result, Dr. Marshall thinks that it's best if, after breaking their hands, swing their arms in line with Second Base and Home Plate. Another advantage of limited reverse rotation is that it helps the pitcher hide the ball from the batter, which often translates into a pitcher's being "sneaky fast".

Roy Oswalt

Kenny Rogers

Johan Santana

Daisuke Matsuzaka

HIPS ROTATING BEFORE THE SHOULDERS
Dr. Marshall believes that it is important that pitchers throw with their entire bodies, not just their arms. As a result, it is important that pitchers rotate their hips well before their shoulders. To facilitate this process, Dr. Marshall believes that it's best if pitchers take shorter-than-average strides.

Casey Fossum

Felix Hernandez

Wilfredo Ledezma

Tim Lincecum

EARLY PRONATION
In order to protect the UCL, Dr. Marshall believes that pitchers must powerfully pronate their forearms as their elbows are rapidly extending (and not just as they are releasing their pitches). This enables the Pronator Teres muscle to take up some of the load that is typically focused on the UCL.

Adam Ottovino