This is part of the game. I hope they never go to the robo strike zone. I actually went to an Independent League game where they were testing robo strike zone. Robo ump took something away. Part of the fun of going to the game is ‘you missed that blue’! If they go to robo ump, I hope they go for the option to allow for appeals for x number of ball strike calls.
Yea I pitched from little league to highschool and at age 13 I started to play travel baseball for coaches that played pro or college. But Realmuto is a catcher that young catchers should pay attention to if they want to play at high levels. Because as a pitcher if you can frame pitches and make them look like strikes well then your going to make that umpire behind the plate think that it's strike. But when I started playing travel baseball I realized that there is a lot more to it than just sitting behind the plate and catching the ball. Because Realmuto is really good at throwing runners out at bases and I wish that Matty would have done a video on how Realmuto sets his feet to throw at second base for example. But not only can he throw runners out at bases but he has the ability to call the game but he also has to tell the infielders like first base and third base on when to cut the ball off or let it go through. So there is much more responsibility that a catcher has behind the plate
Ok good strategy on a low & outside pitch especially on a major league level when the pitchers can consistently hit that area. But does he drop the glove on every type of pitch or every area of pitch ? Like you say it would be more useful in youth leagues but would the advantage be negated by youth pitchers not consistently hitting the right area & causing more passed balls because the catcher is not as good as to be able to reach out of area pitches ?
The most difficult pitch up receive well, i think, is the lefty curve ball. Catching a pitch that's curving off the inside (, catchers left) are the toughest to make look good.
So, for youth baseball, most youth, put the glove in the strike zone, and give the pitcher a target. But according to the video, you should start low with your glove. I do like the video and I learned a lot. But I was wondering if that will work for youth since they usually have to give a target right down the middle. Any thoughts on that? Hi Coach 13u. Thank you so much.
My thoughts are that, at 13, they are already going to freshman ball, so their accuracy should be good enough to not need a target down the middle. Maybe when they first start pitching, but 13 is a bit old. I guess it might also depend on what kind of league it is. Travel ball would definitely need it and freshman, maybe not as much in pony or jrs
You may notice in the beginning of the video that JT actually holds the glove up for a target before moving the glove to the ground. That's what my daughter does in 12U. Make the target for the pitcher, then bring the glove down low to receive the pitch in the upward motion like JT does. He may not do it all the time in this session because he is catching for a machine...
If you watch even youth catchers, once the pitcher releases the pitch, they glove naturally goes to a relaxed position before then catching. Our catcher was really good at this, but he held the target longer and was still able to get under the pitch, especially on curve balls which are more important to catch correctly (like this) than a fastball. I also umpire, and I'll tell you that all the good umpires I speak with agree that catchers lose strikes by catching poorly and a few might get me to call a ball a strike, but that's more rare. The big issue with how this is shown in this clip is that many catchers can't do it and will miss catching pitches. But I've umpired behind a varsity catcher that could do this. When you see it as an umpire, it's amazing. The reason it's more important on a curve ball is because they tend to drop below and out of the zone by the time it reaches the catcher's glove.
Wow. You guys are great!! Thank you. I am well versed on most baseball aspects and coaching. Not so much for catcher. But this year I am working with the catchers as well. I have now learned how important this technique is. Much appreciated……
I wish umpires would call these a ball when catchers move their glove this much. I think catchers do this and then complain that umpires cannot call balls and strikes properly.
@@brandonkula1313 Moving the glove is trying to receive the umpire, causing more mistakes. This is why people want robo umps, which will be a disaster.
What do you think about catchers mits? Have professional catchers been using a glove more like a first base mit? Or have catchers mits over the last 20 years stayed the same?
As a former mexican league catcher, which is a curveball league, i can assure you that properly receiving a curveball is a huge benefit to your pitcher and your team. However, what I see here and with almost all current mlb catchers is way too much glove movement. Taking a ball off the dirt or off the plate and ending with your glove in the middle of the zone is ridiculous. Glove movement has to be subtle and shouldnt be much more than a turn of the wrist or a bend from the elbow. Bench, sciosia, yadi, i-rod, carter, tony pena, etc were fantastic at just nudging a ball back into the zone. Todays catchers, like realmoto in this video, jerk the glove halfway across the plate and make it look ridiculous. JT does a great job getting behind the ball but would be better suited subtly getting the glove up to his knee rather than yanking it up to the middle of the plate.
There are metrics that quantify this at the MLB level. Statcast/Baseball savant has the 2023 numbers. JT is near the bottom when you filter for a minimum of 1000 pitches. But he does make up for it in other areas. His blocking, arm , and game prep keep him elite.
His 'timing' is merely a function of repetition of this drill. It ALL will fall apart the moment that other factors (most notably -- that pitchers do NOT throw all curves and do NOT pitch on the same cadence/tempo). This is a VERY flawed analysis.
what do you think of one leg down catching. tony pena invented that and they should call it his style. all this framing stats are a bunch of baloney. that cannot prove what would have been a strike or ball nor did they save any runs.
As an umpire who sees hundreds of catchers, I can assure you that you're incorrect. Especially having a good curve ball received well. Not sure about "inventing" a knee down receiving? Again, from the view of an umpire, it's great because I see the zone better and low pitches are easier for the catcher. For the catcher it's less stress on the body. With no one on base and less than two strikes, there's no reason to block.
MLB uses Doppler radar and can track the relativity of the ball to the plate with extreme accuracy. Then you can use that data to quantify which of the catchers can get the most strike calls made outside of the zone. Pena is a shaky comp. Pena basically sat down behind the plate. Modern style is a different technique. You can't easily block from where Pena is. And he didn't do it with base-runners on. The new style allows you to stay over the ball when blocking. Footage of Pena. th-cam.com/video/RUT4Piei7vw/w-d-xo.htmlsi=knmRJWH14uxToezf
You are probably one of the best channels for baseball content
agreed
Dang, I wish I had your channel when I was coaching my kid's teams 20+ years ago. What a tool for today's youth coaches.
I like your videos! They help my sons learn the game so much. We watch as a family. We appreciate you big time!
Really great breakdown! Thanks!
This is part of the game. I hope they never go to the robo strike zone. I actually went to an Independent League game where they were testing robo strike zone. Robo ump took something away. Part of the fun of going to the game is ‘you missed that blue’! If they go to robo ump, I hope they go for the option to allow for appeals for x number of ball strike calls.
Might as well use robo players. The team with the best tech has the advantage, but there'd be no errors, bad pitches, or swings and misses.
Realmuto brings the low pitches up to middle-middle. Is that ideal, or is that showing the movement of the glove too much?
Coach, at what age I'd this movement taking the place of giving the pitcher a big target? Thanks
Yea I pitched from little league to highschool and at age 13 I started to play travel baseball for coaches that played pro or college. But Realmuto is a catcher that young catchers should pay attention to if they want to play at high levels. Because as a pitcher if you can frame pitches and make them look like strikes well then your going to make that umpire behind the plate think that it's strike. But when I started playing travel baseball I realized that there is a lot more to it than just sitting behind the plate and catching the ball. Because Realmuto is really good at throwing runners out at bases and I wish that Matty would have done a video on how Realmuto sets his feet to throw at second base for example. But not only can he throw runners out at bases but he has the ability to call the game but he also has to tell the infielders like first base and third base on when to cut the ball off or let it go through. So there is much more responsibility that a catcher has behind the plate
Ok good strategy on a low & outside pitch especially on a major league level when the pitchers can consistently hit that area. But does he drop the glove on every type of pitch or every area of pitch ?
Like you say it would be more useful in youth leagues but would the advantage be negated by youth pitchers not consistently hitting the right area & causing more passed balls because the catcher is not as good as to be able to reach out of area pitches ?
The most difficult pitch up receive well, i think, is the lefty curve ball. Catching a pitch that's curving off the inside (, catchers left) are the toughest to make look good.
Yep. That is a candidate. RH sinker in with a lot of movement to inside is also a bear when guys are throwing with 90+ velo.
So, for youth baseball, most youth, put the glove in the strike zone, and give the pitcher a target. But according to the video, you should start low with your glove. I do like the video and I learned a lot. But I was wondering if that will work for youth since they usually have to give a target right down the middle. Any thoughts on that? Hi Coach 13u. Thank you so much.
My thoughts are that, at 13, they are already going to freshman ball, so their accuracy should be good enough to not need a target down the middle. Maybe when they first start pitching, but 13 is a bit old. I guess it might also depend on what kind of league it is. Travel ball would definitely need it and freshman, maybe not as much in pony or jrs
@@swagmuffin9000 thanks for the reply. Great info.
You may notice in the beginning of the video that JT actually holds the glove up for a target before moving the glove to the ground. That's what my daughter does in 12U. Make the target for the pitcher, then bring the glove down low to receive the pitch in the upward motion like JT does. He may not do it all the time in this session because he is catching for a machine...
If you watch even youth catchers, once the pitcher releases the pitch, they glove naturally goes to a relaxed position before then catching. Our catcher was really good at this, but he held the target longer and was still able to get under the pitch, especially on curve balls which are more important to catch correctly (like this) than a fastball. I also umpire, and I'll tell you that all the good umpires I speak with agree that catchers lose strikes by catching poorly and a few might get me to call a ball a strike, but that's more rare. The big issue with how this is shown in this clip is that many catchers can't do it and will miss catching pitches. But I've umpired behind a varsity catcher that could do this. When you see it as an umpire, it's amazing. The reason it's more important on a curve ball is because they tend to drop below and out of the zone by the time it reaches the catcher's glove.
Wow. You guys are great!! Thank you. I am well versed on most baseball aspects and coaching. Not so much for catcher. But this year I am working with the catchers as well. I have now learned how important this technique is. Much appreciated……
I wish umpires would call these a ball when catchers move their glove this much. I think catchers do this and then complain that umpires cannot call balls and strikes properly.
Umpires are supposed to call the pitch and not the glove. They shouldn't call it a ball just because the glove moves.
@@brandonkula1313 Moving the glove is trying to receive the umpire, causing more mistakes. This is why people want robo umps, which will be a disaster.
Nice video
Why are there no left handed catchers? Second base or shortstop I get cause it would be hard to do
Someone did a good video on this. A lot of analysis. Conclusion: there should be left-handed catchers.
If as a lefty your arm is good enough to throw out runners as a catcher, then you're probably more valuable as a pitcher
What do you think about catchers mits? Have professional catchers been using a glove more like a first base mit? Or have catchers mits over the last 20 years stayed the same?
As a former mexican league catcher, which is a curveball league, i can assure you that properly receiving a curveball is a huge benefit to your pitcher and your team. However, what I see here and with almost all current mlb catchers is way too much glove movement. Taking a ball off the dirt or off the plate and ending with your glove in the middle of the zone is ridiculous. Glove movement has to be subtle and shouldnt be much more than a turn of the wrist or a bend from the elbow. Bench, sciosia, yadi, i-rod, carter, tony pena, etc were fantastic at just nudging a ball back into the zone. Todays catchers, like realmoto in this video, jerk the glove halfway across the plate and make it look ridiculous. JT does a great job getting behind the ball but would be better suited subtly getting the glove up to his knee rather than yanking it up to the middle of the plate.
There are metrics that quantify this at the MLB level. Statcast/Baseball savant has the 2023 numbers. JT is near the bottom when you filter for a minimum of 1000 pitches. But he does make up for it in other areas. His blocking, arm , and game prep keep him elite.
I agree! This is embarrassing! You missed Gary Carter😉
@@rubberside3969 nope, listed him right after i-rod, dude was a beast behind the plate.
@@digitalmdrealmd9124 oops! Sorry🤷♂️ Definitely a stud!
He .makes it look like it's the same pitch over and over again like it's a replay not a new pitch
His 'timing' is merely a function of repetition of this drill. It ALL will fall apart the moment that other factors (most notably -- that pitchers do NOT throw all curves and do NOT pitch on the same cadence/tempo). This is a VERY flawed analysis.
what do you think of one leg down catching. tony pena invented that and they should call it his style. all this framing stats are a bunch of baloney. that cannot prove what would have been a strike or ball nor did they save any runs.
As an umpire who sees hundreds of catchers, I can assure you that you're incorrect. Especially having a good curve ball received well.
Not sure about "inventing" a knee down receiving? Again, from the view of an umpire, it's great because I see the zone better and low pitches are easier for the catcher. For the catcher it's less stress on the body. With no one on base and less than two strikes, there's no reason to block.
MLB uses Doppler radar and can track the relativity of the ball to the plate with extreme accuracy. Then you can use that data to quantify which of the catchers can get the most strike calls made outside of the zone.
Pena is a shaky comp. Pena basically sat down behind the plate. Modern style is a different technique. You can't easily block from where Pena is. And he didn't do it with base-runners on. The new style allows you to stay over the ball when blocking. Footage of Pena. th-cam.com/video/RUT4Piei7vw/w-d-xo.htmlsi=knmRJWH14uxToezf
Can't wait for robo umps so we can get away from tricking the umpire being a catching skill.