the final straight part of a racecourse before the finish line the horses are in the (final) stretch —often used figuratively She’s in the final stretch. The baby’s due next month.
Pitching from the stretch is a baseball term that means to throw the ball from close to home plate. Throwing from the stretch can be used as an effective way of getting out of a jam.
A case study of pitching velocity in MLB games shows that MLB pitchers throw fastballs just as hard from the stretch as they do the windup. Similarly, command should be as good or better from the stretch because the simpler motion makes it less likely for something to go wrong, particularly for young pitchers.
With a runner or runners on base, a pitcher will be presumed to be pitching from the set/stretch if he stands with his pivot foot in contact with and parallel to the pitcher’s plate and his other foot in front of the pitcher’s plate.
Why do pitchers pitch from the stretch? Pitching from the stretch position prevents runners from stealing during the delivery of the pitch. Pitchers will pitch from the stretch when there are runners on base or when they are more comfortable pitching from the stretch.
In higher levels of baseball the windup is used when there are no runners on base or when there are no runners with a potiential to steal a base (bases loaded for example).
I recommend pitching in the stretch more often because you will throw your most important pitches there. If you are more comfortable in the windup then this is usually because you throw more practice pitches in the windup.
Rule 8.01(a) Comment: In the Windup Position, a pitcher is permitted to have his “free†foot on the rubber, in front of the rubber, behind the rubber or off the side of the rubber.
A pitcher can not feint a throw to first base.
With runners on base, the pitcher must be wary of any movement that could be construed as a balk. So, can a pitcher waggle his glove in an attempt to get the catcher to roll through the signs? Yes.
The pitcher may not go into a set or stretch position. If the pitcher does, it is an illegal pitch . NOTE: When a pitcher holds the ball with both hands in front of the body, with the pivot foot in contact with the pitcher’s plate, and the other foot free, that pitcher will be considered in a Windup Position.
In 1893, the pitching distance was changed, and the box was replaced with the pitcher’s rubber. Pitchers discovered that they could get more speed on the ball if they were allowed to stride downhill, so their groundskeepers would provide them with a mound.
8.04 When the bases are unoccupied, the pitcher shall deliver the ball to the batter within 12 seconds after he receives the ball. Each time the pitcher delays the game by violating this rule, the umpire shall call “Ball.”
He is limited to not more than two pumps or rotations. After he starts his movement to pitch, he must continue the motion without interruption or alteration. With his feet in the wind-up position, the pitcher may only deliver a pitch or step backward off the pitcher’s plate with his pivot foot first.
In professional baseball, under Rule 6.02(a)(9), a balk occurs if the pitcher is standing on or astride of the pitching rubber without the ball. As play after a foul ball, hit batsman, or time out, must not resume until the pitcher is on the pitcher’s mound, the infielder cannot use these times to obtain the ball.
He usually only pitches one inning, the last inning, and only if his team is in the lead. This is to preserve his strength and energy; managers don’t want their closers tiring themselves out on a game the team might lose, when it is better strategy to use the closer to solidify a probable win.
The pitcher is still allowed to fake a throw to second base while in contact with the rubber provided that he steps towards second. Note that a pitcher, when faking a throw to second base, is not required to have arm motion in the fake, although a legal step is required.
The long reliever can also be useful in extra-inning contests, when the timeframe for a game’s conclusion is uncertain. Relievers typically throw harder than starting pitchers because they can afford to throw at maximum effort, knowing they are unlikely to throw more than 30 pitches in a day.
Umpires will judge a quick pitch as one delivered before the batter is reasonably set in the batter’s box. With runners on base the penalty is a balk; with no runners on base, it is a ball. The quick pitch is dangerous and should not be permitted.
Pitching from the windup position
The pitcher cannot hesitate or stop. If he has runners on base, he cannot throw to a base once he’s started his pitching motion. He must deliver the pitch, or it is a balk.
So during the windup, the pitcher moves his entire body weight back behind the pitching rubber. Then he thrusts it forward to deliver the pitch. This transfer of momentum from body to ball involves a biomechanical principle called sequential summation of movement.