Baseball Pitching Machine Review

The baseball pitching machine is a great way to get batting practice on your own and without wearing out a pitcher’s arm. The machine was actually invented at the very end of the 19th century, in 1897, by a math professor at Princeton. Of course, that first machine was pretty basic compared to what’s on the market today. If you’re thinking of buying a machine, you’ll have a lot to choose some. Here are some of the aspects you should weigh, so you know what you’re looking for before from the start:

• Baseball or softball? Some baseball pitching machines also double as softball machines (or even for hockey training if you are a goalie), with the capacity to pitch balls of both sizes and weights. You can buy machines that are exclusive to each sport, but if you or someone in your family plays the other, it might be a good idea to get a machine that does both.
• Mechanical style. Pitching machines come in a couple different styles, on a mechanical level. Some shoot the ball out of the hole using the force of swift, concentrated air. More powerful baseball pitching machines use two or three wheels that grip the ball and shoot it out of the machine. Still others use a sort of catapult style lever that simulates a pitcher’s overhand throw.
• Pitch capability. If you’re buying for a beginner or little league player, you probably don’t need a machine that throws different pitch styles; young batters are just working on making solid contact with the ball at all (and young pitchers aren’t that sophisticated anyway). For more advanced players, look for a machine that can throw a variety of pitches: fastball, curveball, slider, etc., and at different speeds.
• Loading style. Some machines, when turned on, are set running continually, and someone stands next to the machine, drops the ball in or hits a button when it’s time to pitch, and the machine pitches the ball. Others are set to automatically pitch a ball every certain number of seconds. The loading style you choose depends on whether you plan to use your baseball pitching machine alone or with someone else there.