Having location and command was the full reason why Dustin was able to have a successful career collegiately and professionally.

Coaching at Mount St Mary’s he was able to improve their pitching staff from one of the worst walk rates in the country to a substantially better number.

He’s found a need for pitchers to buy into a commitment to command. Pitchers today are fully focused on velocity and not enough time - or any really - is spent on teaching command.

Pitchers who are afraid that unless they get that extra mile an hour or two on every pitch they won’t get an opportunity down the road will have a tough time focusing on the finer points of command.

When you ask a pitcher who is throwing hard but not locating why they can’t locate, 99% of the time the answer is “I can’t feel it. I can’t feel how I’m letting it go.”

The next step is to slow it down some and then they can say “Ok I can feel how I’m letting it go now.”

There is a process. To begin you have to back off the effort to 60-70% in order to establish *feel*, and then work up from there.

Keys to focus on to improve command:

1. Make sure you are picking up the target, and make sure you have a GOAL of hitting that target. Some just look at target and throw. You must set your attention on where you want to throw and be aware of where you actually threw it.

2. Keep your head steady. Poor mechanics or overthrowing can cause this. Try to keep your chin up and moving toward the target.

Glove position connects to the release point: After you separate, you want to move your glove (in an upward direction, from roughly waist height to shoulder height) into the window of where you will release the ball.

Essentially your glove goes into the release point area and you’ll then replace it with your throwing hand/ball.

They’re not the exact spaces. But you can help dictate your release point by where you place your glove.

This is a refined/advanced movement.

By sending your glove up into the release window and across your body (pointed more toward the on deck circle vs directly to home plate it will keep you closed more and will make you more deceptive to hitters.

Striding in a straight line is not mandatory. You’ll step where you step, though you’d prefer to be straight or slightly closed vs open.

Consistent chest position/posture is key to maintaining consistent release point. (Drill demonstrated in video)

Before you need to try to start moving in and out, you should demonstrate proper command of one part of the plate - probably outside corner.

Miss zone: if you’re trying to hit low outside corner and you’re missing over the plate, you need to miss your entire target over (catcher moves the target further, for example).

Bruce Lee : I don’t fear the man who practices 10,000 kicks, I fear the man who practices one kick 10,000 times.

“Proper command” = 10/10 is the target...but not realistic. A realistic target in a game would be hitting your target 7 out of 10 times.

Dustin’s custom level system: In order to move up a level he’s have to hit is desired location 7/10 times.

Guys in the 40-50% range would struggle quite a bit during games.

Again, miss zone is key. If a good pitcher will miss 30% of the time, it is important for that 30% to be a ball vs a meat ball over the plate.

Visualization is vital. 1) Understand what the strike zone is in their mind. 2) Understand where your pitches need to be 70% of the time. And 3) visualize what their body needs to do and feel in order to execute their pitch.

Visualization is hugely important and beneficial. Do it pregame, at home, wherever you can.

Being a positive contributor to the team and having success (getting outs) has a lot to do with controlling the fastball. There is no reason why a player cannot do both: command and throw hard, but players must think harder about how they’re training.