A Tale as Old as Time: The Secret to Throwing with High Velocity Starts in the Trunk

A Tale as Old as Time: The Secret to Throwing with High Velocity Starts in the Trunk

How the secret of throwing with high velocity (or moving powerfully to throw or swing) starts in the middle of the body -the trunk.

Chubbs was right in a sense: “It’s all in the hips.”

Or a caring dad-coach saying, “You gotta use your legs.” Again, right in a sense. Modern coaches talk about the “intent” to throw hard -they’re right too, not wrong. And the highly technical coaches who dive into the kinetic chain, explaining how it starts from the ground and sequences all the way up the body till ball release? They’re right as well.

Ever since I can remember, I’ve had the ability to throw a baseball fast. From the first time playing catch with my Pops -purposely throwing it over his head to make him chase it because I thought he was impressed with my arm strength (he was, by the way) -to this day, as a 40-year-old writing this blog post, I can still pick up a ball and throw it where I want, pretty firmly for my age. I can play long catch with kids across the whole field, multiple times a day if needed.

I still rely on those simple cues: “Get heavy. Stay relaxed. Be fast.”

My Early Discoveries

As a kid, I didn’t know much about the delivery. I just knew what felt right and what worked. If I wanted to throw farther, I coiled my body more and built momentum toward my target. I tried to feel a stretch and move really fast as I pulled into the throw - it seemed to make everything easier and faster.

If the ball was tailing side to side, I noticed that keeping my fingers behind it as long as possible made the flight straight -and it went farther.

Throwing from a high arm angle helped the ball fly straight too. As a kid, it felt like I could really pull down into release from that strong position.

Looking back, I think about all the things I did just playing and having fun. We had time to experiment because playing outside meant coming up with new games every day, beyond just ball in the street.

The Pool: My Unexpected Training Ground 

Time is funny -I can close my eyes and be right back in my parents’ backyard while the pool was being installed. It was a big deal; my Pops was spoiling us kids. Not many pools in our neighborhood back then. I remember standing in the empty hole with my siblings and grandparents, thinking how cool it was to be in a pool with no water.

Little did I know, learning to swim at Las Palmas Community Pool and having one in the backyard became the springboard to becoming a powerful athlete. I learned how to move from the middle of my body with power, rhythm, and accuracy. Moving in the water laid the foundation for maximizing my body’s potential to create power from the trunk.

Connecting Play to Training

After years studying the pitching delivery and exploring training methodologies, I’ve learned a ton. Whenever I discover something “new,” I reflect: Did I kind of do this as a kid?

Weighted ball training, for example -I didn’t follow a program, but I threw wiffle balls, tennis balls, racquetballs, baseballs, softballs, footballs, basketballs, volleyballs, Nerf balls, and anything else that wouldn’t hurt. That was weighted ball training. And while throwing those, I moved the way each sport demanded. Basketballs are heavier than baseballs (22 ounces compared to 5.25 ounces)- I’d sling them full-court with passes and shots, never thinking about the weight. We just played until we couldn’t anymore.

We’d launch Nerf footballs down the street, listening to the whistle as they spiraled. It was a blast (and still is -this is your PSA to go outside and have fun).

Back to the Pool 

Getting in the water. Learning to swim. Jumping, flipping, spinning into and underwater. Swimming underwater. Floating. I spent hours and hours in there. My mom called me “Foca” (Spanish for seal -I’m half Mexican) because I’d stay in all day, especially underwater.

Swimming and floating underwater puts pressure against your entire body. Your sensory system gets constant feedback on every movement. Sometimes I’d just float in the deep end, eyes closed, holding my breath for the quiet peacefulness. Move, and you feel the water press against your skin; stay still, and it’s like your body disappears.

We’d challenge ourselves to swim the length underwater. That’s when I started mimicking a dolphin -partly because my arms got tired, partly because it felt faster and easier. I’d segment my upper trunk from my pelvis in a wave, then kick my feet together like a fin. I didn’t realize it then, but this was training my trunk in multiple planes with resistance at end ranges of motion.

What the Water Really Built

Spinal extension and flexion, side-to-side bending, anterior and posterior pelvic tilting -all amplified by arms and legs, powered from the middle. Spinal engine theory believers (I am a believer) would love this training.

The water builds cardiovascular endurance too -you get tired moving all day, then eat the best meal of your life (mine: a loco moco in Hawaii after ocean time with my wife on our honeymoon).

As a kid, fun trumps sleep and food. Playing until exhausted exposed me to fatigue and how to manage it. When my arms and legs were dead weight, I’d move purely from the trunk just to stay in longer. I learned to whip my arms from trunk rotation -and that hinging, stretching, and coiling the trunk made everything faster and more powerful. The water’s feedback was instant: better movement felt smoother and quicker. It was a proprioceptive dream.

The pool taught me end-range coordination and powerful trunk-driven movement.

You don’t need a pool, though -that’s just where I built the foundation with natural resistance.

Connecting It to Throwing 

Training the trunk and spine is key to powerful, healthy movement. Maximizing coordinated range of motion lets a thrower produce as much force as possible within their build.

Separating pelvis from upper trunk is crucial early in the throw. To load and coil, the pelvis moves first -rotating and tilting forward so the center of mass sinks. This lets the spine tilt while keeping the head back near the drive foot.

That gives the upper trunk time to counter-rotate during the stride, creating more separation. At lead foot strike, the stretched fascia (the spiral line connecting hips and shoulders) recoils -when timed right, it sequences hips, trunk, shoulders, arm, hand in accelerating angular rotation to release.

Simply: Twist the pelvis away while sinking and keeping your head back -that loads the trunk to unleash toward the catcher. Doing it repeatedly requires training and coordination.

How to Build It Without a Pool

First, build capacity and functional mobility for these positions.

Building the Foundation: Spinal Waves 

Start by learning the spinal wave: Segmentally move your spine from head to hips in a wave-like pattern.

One progression: Stand with your spine flat against a wall, feet slightly forward. Slowly peel away starting from the head until the pelvis detaches. Do 3-5 reps, then reverse -stand away and roll back onto the wall from head down. Progress to free-standing waves.

Another: On hands and knees, wave slowly while breathing deeply. Add speed as coordination improves.

Coordinating the Movement

Once confident, try waves while hanging or in a deep squat (hold a weight if needed to avoid tipping).

Add side bending. Put on music with a beat -it helps rhythm and timing.

Tests for Progress 

    -   Back bridge (once every couple weeks): Lack of uniform spinal curvature makes this tough.

    -    Thrower’s stretch: Assesses tilt, rotation, and pelvis-to-spine separation. (Can assess more frequently, once a week)

Putting It Together

Blend spinal waves into throwing segments.

Start with knee throws: On knees facing the target, arms dead weight, back rounded. Expand the chest, counter-rotate the throwing shoulder, capture the wave momentum, and throw.

Progress to standing (feet planted, bigger wave).

Then stagger feet (drive foot forward), starting loaded with arm at 90 degrees -feel hip/shoulder separation.

Single-leg version adds coordination and athleticism.

Add rocking and side bend for linear drive.

Incorporate the mound to feel the slope and timing. With confidence, add steps, hops, step-backs -so the full delivery feels natural.

Sample Throwing Day (Medium Workload or After a Light Day)

Volume depends on the individual. Built-up, in-season players can handle 50-60+ throws in warm-up/programs. Example spread:

    -    Kneeling throws: 5-8

    -    Staggered throws: 5-8

    -    Single-leg (facing target): 3-5

    -    Dual-leg (facing target): 3-5

    -    Rockers: 3-5

    -    Athletic (side-to-side and walk-ins) for the rest: 20-30 throws

Beginners or light day: Cut in half (30-40 total throws). Focus on the trunk driving; let the arm ride along.

Throwing workload is totally individual -some guys can go all day. Monitor yourself, train smart, use a radar gun for measured intensity monitoring and remember to keep gas in the tank. Light or no-throw days every few days aren’t lazy -they’re smart for long-term health.

Hope you enjoyed this post! Please share it and let me know what you think in the comments.