A pitching machine is a machine that automatically pitches a

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

to a batter at different speeds and styles. Most machines are hand-fed, but there are some that automatically feed. There are multiple types of pitching machines; softball, baseball, youth, adult, and a combination of both softball and baseball.

History

In 1897, mathematics instructor

Charles Hinton Charles Howard Hinton (1853 – 30 April 1907) was a British mathematician and writer of science fiction works titled ''Scientific Romances''. He was interested in higher dimensions, particularly the fourth dimension. He is known for coining t ...

designed a gunpowder-powered baseball pitching machine for the

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial Colleges, fourth-oldest ins ...

baseball team's batting practice. According to one source it caused several injuries, and may have been in part responsible for Hinton's dismissal from Princeton that year. However, the machine was versatile: it was capable of throwing variable speeds with an adjustable breech size and firing curve balls by the use of two rubber-coated steel fingers at the muzzle of the pitcher. Hinton successfully introduced the machine to the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...

where he worked as an assistant professor until 1900. The arm-type pitching machine was designed by Paul Giovagnoli in 1952, for use on his driving range. Using a metal arm mounted to a large gear, this type of machine simulates the motion of an actual pitcher, throwing balls with consistent speed and direction. One- and two-wheel style machines were originally patented by Bartley N. Marty in 1916. US Patent 12044

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Design

Pitching machines come in a variety of styles. However, the two most popular machines are an arm action machine and a circular wheel machine. The arm action machine simulates the delivery of a pitcher and carries a ball at the end of a bracket, much like a hand would. The arm action machine then delivers the ball in an overhand motion. The circular wheel machine contains one, two or three wheels that spin much like a bike tire. The wheels on these machines are usually set in either a horizontal or vertical fashion. With a circular machine, a ball shoots out towards the hitter after it is fed into the wheel or wheels. Three-wheel machines are more easily adjusted to be able to throw a variety of pitches and they can be used for a wide range of other practice scenarios, such as ground work or flyballs. The use of pitching machines allows baseball and softball players the opportunity to get batting practice on their own. Most batting machines are set up in a

batting cage A batting cage (or tunnel) is an enclosed area for baseball or softball players to practice the skill of batting. The optimal material for batting cages is netting, and they are typically rectangular in shape. Chain-link fence is not required bu ...

, a netted area that will contain the balls after they are hit. By using a pitching machine and a batting cage, hitters can get a huge number of batting reps without having to drag other players out to a baseball field or wear out the arms of team pitchers or coaches. The cost of pitching machines varies greatly.

Use in Little League

In the youngest divisions of Little League, and other youth baseball organizations, pitching machines are used instead of live pitching. This is done to give the kids more experience hitting the ball, as pitchers at that age would tend to throw few strikes. Simple spring-loaded manual models are common (such as from Louisville Slugger) as are battery-powered compressed-air machines (such as from Zooka).

Notes

{{Baseball Baseball equipment Baseball pitching

History

Design

Use in Little League

See also

Notes