When you can throw your Slider to both sides of the plate, your pitching prowess will take off!!!  Plain and Simple.  Mastering the Backdoor Slider will quickly elevate you above your peer competition.  Command of a breaking ball to both sides of the plate can even make or break many Major League Careers.

The more advanced hitters become, they get better at guessing where to look for pitches.  When you can only throw your Slider to one side of the plate, good hitters will either lay off of it, or tee off when it is elevated.  

The good thing about a hitters vulnerability, is that they can only protect one side of the plate. So when you have this advanced Dominant weapon, good luck to them trying to guess correctly.

As I mentioned in a previous article, I would touch on the Backdoor Slider.

 

The Movement of the Backdoor Slider

 

 

Inverted to the regular Slider, the best backdoor Sliders will start out off the plate then break back across the outside corner.  Thus getting a called strike on the pitch or a reactionary last second feeble attempt of a swing by the hitter.  

It is easier for hitters to pick up on a pitch that starts away and continues to move away from them.  They can recognize and lay off the pitch.  A pitch that starts away and breaks back towards the hitter is very difficult to anticipate, let alone protect.  Quite often, mentally  they have already given up on the pitch.  

The advantage that a Backdoor Slider has over a Curveball of the same nature, is that the velocity is higher.  So this forces a quicker reaction time for the hitter.  Plus, the Slider looks more like the Fastball coming out of the hand at release.  This deception asks the hitter time and time again, the age old, frustrating question, Oh, To Swing or Not to Swing.

When you are in control as a pitcher, you are forcing the hitter to make adjustments…as it always should be!!!!  On a pitch down and away, the hitter has to do the most work to hit it.  Now add a sharp, late breaking movement to the end of the pitch……Good Luck!!!

 

 

What’s the Trick to Locating the Backdoor Slider?

Lead with your front hip towards your target, keep your hip closed a split second longer than usual before rotating.  Really focus in releasing it out in front and of course, as always, throw the Slider Downhill, Downhill, Downhill.  If your hips and shoulder open up too soon, it’s going to be a mess.  So focus on staying closed the releasing the Slider out in front.  

Repetitions are everything in this game.  Be sure to get in your work to make you comfortable throwing the Backdoor Slider in games.  This is a very valuable weapon because hitters can only protect 1 side of the plate.  Master this Game Changing Pitch, and…

 

…Have Fun Ruining a Hitter’s Day!!!!

 

Keep Dominating!!!!