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Scouting Speed
Running
speed is a tool that you are born with. There are athletes who
have been able to improve their speed a step or two by adding
strength in their legs, increasing their lower half flexibility,
performing plyometric exercises, and just by practicing their
form and running, but those athletes had that potential already
built in and had not adequately developed it. If hard work was
all it took to run a 6.3 second 60 yard dash, then baseball
would be full of players who could steal 80+ bases a year. Hard
work, however will give you every opportunity to be your best.
Speed is a
valuable commodity for running the bases - and scoring runs -
and for defensive range. Quick ballplayers can catch more balls
because they can get to more balls.
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Timing the 60 Yard Dash
When it comes to evaluating speed, there are Major
League clubs who make it mandatory for their scouts to
run prospects in the 60-yard dash. Most clubs look for
times under 7.00 in the "60". Times of 6.7 - 6.9 usually
equate to an average runner on the playing field. Of
course anything faster is considered above average.
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Timing a Hitter From
Home to First Base
The universal way to scout speed on the playing field is
to time hitters from home to first base. The scout
starts the stopwatch on "contact," or as the bat is
hitting the ball; It is important to anticipate the
swing to get an accurate time. Most scouts will click
their watch as the ball is crossing home plate, whether
the batter swings or not, in anticipation of contact.
The scout then stops the watch as the hitter's foot
touches first base, again anticipating the contact to
stop the watch as accurately as possible. Since
left-handed hitters are a step closer to first base,
their times are graded a 10th of a second quicker. |
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Right Handed
Hitter |
Left Handed
Hitter |
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Above - Average |
4.2
seconds |
4.1
seconds |
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Average |
4.3
seconds |
4.2
seconds |
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Below - Average |
4.4
seconds |
4.3
seconds |
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Very Below -
Average |
4.5
seconds |
4.4
seconds |
Of course,
a player's position adds importance to the running times. A
catcher's or first baseman's running time is expected to be
below average, or worse. There are catchers in the Major Leagues
who run 4.8 to first base. There are power hitters in the
outfield who run 4.6 to first, but hit 30+ homeruns a year.
Speed IS important for shortstops and centerfielders, and to a
lesser extent, second baseman and third baseman. The bottom line
is this: If you are not going to be a power hitter or drive in a
lot of runs, you had better score runs or take-away hits and
runs with your speed and glove.
The times to first base can be deceiving if the hitter has a
swing with a long follow-thru, because those hitters are slower
to get out of the batter's box. It is essential that a scout
watches a player run around the bases - for example running from
first to third - in order to get an accurate feel for a player's
true speed. An outfielder can show his true speed by running
down balls in the gaps or to the fence. Stealing bases is also
another way to display your true speed. So, these running times
are a reliable indicator of speed, but they are not always the
whole truth.
Scouting Pitchers
When a scout goes to a ballpark to evaluate a pitcher, there are
a number of items that are observed and graded. Velocity is only
part of the evaluation; There are many pitchers in high school
and college that can touch 90+ mph on the radar gun but are not
really considered professional prospects. Listed below is a list
of pitching criterion used by most Major League clubs
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Fast Ball: We start with this because it is the most
obvious. Scouts want to see a pitcher'' average velocity
- what your fastball pitches at on a consistent basis
throughout a game. (some scouts call it "the cruising
speed") Your top velocity is also noted and may be used,
depending on your age and mechanics, to project a better
fastball grade in the future. Along with radar gun
readings, a scout must look at how the baseball moves,
sinks, cuts, etc. in order to complete the fastball
grade. If you throw 90 - 91 mph, but it is straight as
an arrow and gets hit frequently, your fastball may be
given a below average grade despite it's velocity.
The following fastball velocities are Major League
Baseball pitcher ratings
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Very Above Average |
94+ mph |
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Above Average |
92 - 93 mph |
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Average |
89 - 91 mph |
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Below Average |
87 - 88 mph |
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Very Below Average |
85 - 86 mph |
(Left-handed pitchers
are graded on the same scale, but fastball velocities
are usually given less weight if their breaking balls
and change-ups are effective.) |
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Arm
Action: Scouts will note at what arm angle you throw
from. Moving from highest release point to the lowest,
the arm angles are: over-hand, high 3-quarter,
3-quarter, low 3-quarter, or sidearm. Next, scouts will
determine how much tension, or effort, is in the arm
action. A max-effort pitcher is tough on his arm and
risks injury, as opposed to someone who is smooth and
effortless. Pure arm speed is also noted, which usually
translates to tighter rotation and better velocity with
pitches. A pitcher's arm action will also determine what
type f break a curve or slider will have (down break,
sweeping, sharp, loose, hanging, etc).
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Delivery: Are pitching mechanics clean and smooth,
or is there work to be done with the mechanics? There
are a wide variety of mechanical flaws that may prohibit
a pitcher from being efficient and consistent. Scouts
need to note both the good and the bad, or what needs
improvement.
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Breaking Pitches: This includes curves, sliders and
screwballs. A major league pitcher needs at least two
quality pitches to keep hitters off-balance. Scouts need
to grade the effectiveness of the breaking balls on a
Major League scale. Good breaking balls have velocity,
they break late (close to home plate), have a tight
rotation (tougher to read the spin), and hitters
struggle to make solid contact with them.
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Other Pitches: This includes the split-finger,
change-up, knuckle balls, etc. Again velocity, rotation,
sharpness, and how hitters react to them will help
determine their grade.
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Aggressiveness: Does the pitcher go after hitters
with his fastball? Does he challenge hitters with his
best stuff? Does he work quickly on the mound between
pitches? Does he intimidate hitters with his body
language and attitude? |
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Baseball Instincts: Does he have a feel for pitching
(knowing when to use his fastball or when to go
off-speed); Is there field awareness for where base
runners are and where the play needs to be made; does he
back-up bases and cover first base when necessary; and
does he support his teammates after an error is made?
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Control: Can the pitcher pitch, or does he just
throw in the direction of the plate? Can he locate his
fastball for a strike when behind in the count? Does he
pitch ahead-in-the-count, or behind? On average, a good
inning for a pitcher would be 15 pitches or less. Greg
Maddux of the Braves once threw a complete, nine inning
game on 78 pitches, which is fewer than 9 pitches an
inning ... on average.
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Physical Maturity: Scouts will evaluate a pitcher's
body to determine if he "feels" the pitcher can improve
his velocity in the future with added strength and
natural, physical maturity. Scouts will examine the
height, weight, visual body fat, and athleticism to help
them come to a conclusion. There are some 20 year old
pitchers who have been weightlifting for 3 or 4 years
and are so physically developed that it is difficult to
project any velocity improvement from maturation. But on
the other hand, scouts have seen high school pitchers
weighing 165-175 lbs. Adding 2-5 mph on their fastball
as they gain weight and strength in pro baseball. The
problem is, strength and maturity does not insure added
velocity, so this is purely speculative, or "playing a
hunch."
Each Major League team has their own report forms for
evaluations, and these items are on them. Arm action and
fastball grades are perhaps the two most important
evaluations. Arm action evaluations are important
because they will tell a team if there is a "better than
average" chance of a future injury, because of how the
players arm works. Arm actions are difficult to change
in pitchers, and there are risks involved in changing
how the arm works - velocity may decrease, the angle of
the breaking ball will probably change, and the pitching
arm is susceptible to injury because the muscles are
being used differently. So the arm action had better be
able to work efficiently and resist injury.
The
fastball evaluation is largely dependent on velocity,
but movement and how hitters react to it is also very
important. You can teach a fastball how to move, but
velocity is God-given. A Major League pitcher had better
be able to have enough velocity or movement to get the
best hitters in the world out.
Scouting
Catchers
The
evaluation of high school catchers may be the most
subjective of all the scouting involving young players.
Many professional scouting directors will tell you that
after pitchers the drafting of high school catchers has
the biggest "wash out" rate percentage among players
drafted each year.
Some
scouts like catchers with long lanky bodies, others
prefer shorter more compact or thick bodies. Beauty is
truly in the eye of the beholder when it comes to
evaluating catchers.
It used to be that if a catcher was a great defense
player (what is known as a catch and throw guy) he had a
chance to make it to the Major Leagues. In today's game
the catcher is also expected to provide a substantial
offensive output.
The days
of a professional baseball catcher being a big
slow-footed wide body are long gone.
It is
important to remember that the overall evaluation of a
player's baseball skills is subjective to the scout's
personal opinions about how those skills will play at
the Major League level.
The
Catcher
A scout will time a catcher's throw to
second base by starting his stopwatch as the ball hits
the catcher's glove and he stops it when the ball is
caught at second base. (this is called the "pop to pop"
time) A good scout will anticipate the ball-to-glove
contact in order to start and stop the watch.
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A solid Major
League time is under 2.00 seconds |
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Most Major League
catchers are in the 1.80 - 1.98 range, on
average |
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In college, times
under 2.10 will often work |
Throwing times will be affected by the
glove-to-hand transfer, or how quickly the ball can get
into the throwing hand. The catcher's footwork and
throwing action will also affect the release time for a
catcher. These things can be improved, and a scout will
judge how easily those changes may come for the catcher
- based on the overall athleticism of the catcher - as
part of the evaluation.
Other Things Scouts Look For:
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Stance - Athleticism |
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Setting Up For Pitches |
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Framing of Pitches |
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Blocking Skills |
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Throwing Footwork |
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Fielding of Bunts |
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Plays at the Plate |
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On
Field Leadership |
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How a catcher
works during a bullpen - This can be very
important - Does the player practice like a game
- or does he receive the pitches in the bullpen
with less than full effort and skills
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There is
little emphasis as to how a catcher "calls a game" or
works his pitchers in high school. This is due to most
of these items being done by the coaches. These are
skills that can be learned. Professional scouts
understand this and do not consider these factors
significantly when evaluating a catching prospect.
Arm Strength
Arm strength grades are very
subjective to the scout doing the evaluating. Two
different scouts from the same organization may evaluate
an arm at the same time but conclude two different
grades. It gets fuzzy sometimes trying to grade an arm
that is on the verge of being at the next highest grade,
but is not quite there yet. For example, you see a
fielder make a strong throw, but there is just enough
"pop" missing in the throw that you give a below-average
grade instead of an average grade, but the scout next to
you decides to give it an average grade. This happens in
real life. (If you want to get your throws as strong as
possible, you should play long-toss as often as
possible, as far as possible. You do not need to throw
more than 10 balls at your maximum distance when playing
catch to add, and preserve, arm strength.)
It is important that you try to
show-off your arm as much as possible when you are
playing in a game, because you never know who is
watching. In infield practice, before a game, show-off
your talents in case you do not get any plays during the
game that allow you to "air it out." Scouts always try
to see batting practice and infield/outfield before a
game to help them evaluate defensive skills and arm
strength, so BE READY.
Scouts grade arms visually; in
general, radar guns are not used to measure arm strength
in the infield or outfield. But if you do not have a
radar gun, average-grade velocities throwing from
shortstop to first usually around 85 mph and higher.
And, I have seen a Major League outfielder with an
above-average arm (when he was a minor leaguer) throw a
ball 91 mph from behind the mound to home plate.
What Scouts
Do Look For When Evaluating INFIELDERS
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True, raw arm
strength is best evaluated when having to make a
throw from a back-hand fielding position. This
position does not allow the fielder to gain
much, if any, momentum to throw across the
infield. Infielders usually have to plant their
back foot and throw to have a chance of throwing
out a base runner, and this type of throw will
display how strong an infielder's arm actually
is.
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Average Arm
Strength
Is graded when a
thrown ball can get across the infield ON A LINE
with some "pop" on the throw.
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Above-Average Arm
Strength Is graded when the throw stays on line
and really carries across the infield - like a
laser beam. Derek Jeter, Miguel Tejada, Rey
Ordonez, Alex Rodriguez and Chipper Jones are
all examples of Major League infielders with
great arms
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Below-Average Arm Strength Is graded when throws
are "soft", but they get across the infield to
make most of the plays. Below average arms can
look and "play" average if the player can get
rid of the ball with quickness. Mike Bordick,
does not have an average arm, but he makes the
plays because he gets the ball in-and-out of his
glove so quickly; Mike is considered an
above-average defensive shortstop, by Major
League standards. |
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Very Below-Average Arm Strength
Is given when the arm is barely acceptable at
the Major League level. There are very few of
these arms in the Major Leagues, and they are
usually at first or second base. Players with
very below-average arms should focus on their
foot and glove work to speed up their release
times; quick throws can be as effective as
strong throws. |
OUTFIELD Arm Strength
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Scouts look at
how the ball carries to the infield. Does the
ball stay up in the air with good back spin, or
does in sink and cut, taking the throw off
course. Outfielders should always be able to get
a 4 seam grip on the ball to help their throws
stay true.
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Scouts watch to
see how quickly an outfielder can catch and
throw the ball. There is a rhythm to throwing;
the footwork of the outfielder should be
in-synch with his arm so he does not have to
slow down to throw.
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Scouts will also
look at the distance an outfielder can throw on
as true a line as possible. In other words, a
"rainbow" throw is not as strong as one on a
straight line, or with only a slight arc.
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Above-Average Arm
Strength Is grade when the throw can get to it's
target ON THE LINE with POWER. Maybe the throw
has to bounce, but it is a long-hop that stays
on-line to it's target. Bernie Williams, Ken
Griffey Jr. and Andrew Jones all have great
arms. Great arms are rarely challenged by base
runners when the game is on the line.
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Average Arm
Strength Is graded when the ball can get to it's
target ON THE LINE with average velocity.
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Below-Average Arm
Strength Grades are for softer throws that may
arrive in one or two bounces, but they lose
velocity along the way. Below-Average arms are
occasionally said to be "playable" if they have
enough carry and are accurate.
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Very
Below-Average Arms Are seldom seen in Major
League outfields, and they are usually in left
field if they are present. These throws lack
distance and velocity, but have enough carry to
play if the outfielder can get some momentum for
his throws.
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Arm
strength grades are important to baseball because it may
determine where you best fit defensively on a Major
League playing field. You can improve your arm strength,
or at least maintain what you have, with long-toss.
There are players in the Majors with below-average arms,
but they are able to compensate with a quick release and
accuracy. |
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