FRAMING THE INSIDE PITCH

with September Feature Catcher - Gia, 11

An area of my game I worked hard on this month was framing the inside pitch.  The safest way to frame an inside pitch is by keeping my glove side elbow outside of my knee.   Catchers want to reach out away from the body when framing an inside pitch to avoid hurting their thumb or wrist. Keeping my glove side arm outside of my knee frees my wrist and mitt to cradle the ball into the zone safely. 

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I learned it is important for catchers to have a strong forearm and wrist to control the ball.  Clean framing happens when I control the ball and not allow the ball to control my glove. I need to squeeze the ball in the pocket.  Focus on squeezing my thumb and pointer finger together when catching a pitch.  The catcher becomes the shock absorber for the ball. 

The catcher wants to reach out away from the body when cleanly framing the inside pitch to protect their thumb and wrist from getting jammed.  Avoid pulling or jerking the glove toward the zone.  Sticking the ball in the zone will help the umpire see the strike. Do not let the ball control you.  If the ball is going to be a ball let it be a ball.