Timmy: Throw Arm
You might think that the throw arm is the most important part of throwing the knuckleball, but you’d be mistaken. If you perform the mechanics of the lower body properly, then the throw arm doesn’t have to do much work at all. In fact, it goes along for the right as your body pulls the arm through to release. As Charlie Hough always told me, “The knuckleball lives in the movements between your knees and your rib cage.”
Throw Arm Mechanics
#1: Handshake.
We want to set ourselves up for an efficient arm path to reduce wear-and-tear and to deliver the knuckleball smoothly. It all starts with how you orient the grip in your glove. Simply hold the ball in your glove in the same hand position as a handshake. This reduces tension in your traps and allows the scaps to sit in the proper place.
#2: *DANGER* Delay Ball Dropping Out of Glove.
Some guys will struggle with this, but it’s imperative for a smooth delivery. Ignore this adjustment if it’s early in your knuckleball journey as it can really mess with the quality of your knuckleball at first. But we don’t want the ball to fall out of the glove too soon. In fact, we want to delay it until your just after you begin falling down the mound. This cuts down the time that your arm can do stupid things, like engage the traps, and it delays upper body rotation for maximum velocity.
#3: *DANGER* Cut Down Arm Action Behind Body.
What you do behind your body with the ball is not really up to you. You probably haven’t thought about it much, but some guys get a really long arm swing while others have shorter paths to the throwing position. But, if you can cut down your arm path to make it shorter, then you’ll have a better chance at properly timing the release each and every throw. This adjustment cannot be done by everyone and stop if it causes pain. And don’t mess with this early in your knuckleball journey.
#4: Land in Throw Position with Back Knee Down.
Here’s the critical timing part. You need the front foot to accept weight just as this arm gets cocked up to throw in the L position. The back knee needs to be completely rolled down to the ground at this moment. If the knee isn’t rolled, then you have no stretch reflex through the core and you’re pushing the ball. That leads to inconsistency and injury.
#5: Critical Ball Flip Up Into Grip.
The way you flip the arm up into external rotation is almost as important as the knuckleball release. You need strong external rotators so that you can flip the ball up to sit into your grip so that the ball can accelerate to the plate getting sucked to your hand like a passenger in a rollercoaster. If you flip the ball up incorrectly or out of balance, then you’ll have a terrible time accelerating into release.
#6: Wait for Stretch Reflex Then Pull Peck.
The stretch reflex coming up from the effort of your legs through the core will eventually pull on your peck muscle if you stay relaxed enough. The second you feel the pull on your peck, it’s time to accelerate to the plate. And you accelerate the ball by pulling with your peck into release. If you do this properly, then the ball and arm will feel weightless until they are out in front of the body.
#7: Extend Over Front Leg.
Here comes the big test of your strength. And remember — strength is critical for the knuckleball and getting strong will make you just as good as practice. Do them together, like in the International Knuckleball Academy’s 18-week Program, and you’ll see the best results. But now you need to extend your throw arm out over your front leg which is posted firmly into the ground. The leg will extend the arm. Not your arm. And it will take STRENGTH!
#8: Pull Arm Through In Front Of Body.
The arm action for the knuckleball, including the majority of the acceleration coming from the stretch reflex of the body, must happen out in front of your chest. You should be able to see the blur of your arm in your peripheral vision and you should be able to see your release. If you acceleration is happening behind your body, then your legs and hips didn’t do their job. You’re probably climbing the elbow to throw uphill which puts excessing strain on the UCL and leads to injury.