How to Throw 95mph and beyond

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If you want to throw in the mid-90s and beyond, you NEED an elite back leg.

But here’s the thing:

This isn’t about generic cues like “drop and drive” or “push off the rubber.”

Those phrases have been passed around for years, yet few athletes actually understand what they mean in practice.

To develop an elite back leg, you need to know the underlying principles—how forces are created, transferred, and expressed through the mound.

What Force Plate Data Says

Our team at The Pitcher Lab works directly with force plate experts, and the data is clear: elite pitchers minimize Y-force (side-to-side force) while maximizing X-force (force directed toward second base) and Z-force (force into the ground).

Too much Y-force means instability—your weight drifts too far toward the heel or toes.

You want to be neutral, with your center of mass balanced over the foot.

From there, the goal is to generate massive X and Z force—driving energy toward second base and into the ground.

This combination creates impulse: the total amount of force applied over time.

The greater the impulse, the greater the energy you can channel into your throw.

The Power of Impulse

A common mistake is treating the back leg like a dead anchor—just dropping and rotating.

That’s what I call a “dead back leg.”

There’s no energy being driven into the ground, no force pushing back to propel you forward.

Instead, you need to feel an impulse of energy through the ground.

When you drive force into the mound, the ground pushes back, propelling you forward like a spring.

This isn’t a triple extension or an active push.

Think of Shane McClanahan or Spencer Strider:

They look like they’re launching off the mound, but in reality, they’re just producing elite impulse.

One of our athletes went from mid-80s to upper-80s in a matter of weeks by simply adjusting foot pressure.

He was collapsing inward and rolling over:

Rather than putting force into the ground.

When we adjusted his foot pressure to the outside of his foot, he was able to create more ground forces.

He made the jump from 85 to 88 seemingly overnight.

Getting Into the Glute (Not the Quad)

Most pitchers make the mistake of trying to generate power through the quad.

But true force production happens from the glute and hip.

To find that position, think of creating a “pinch” between your upper thigh and your abs.

If you can hold a pen there without it falling, you’re in the right spot.

That hip pinch naturally counter rotates your pelvis and forces you to use your glute.

One of our athletes, Brody, used to dive straight into his quad, which caused him to open up early and lose all lower-body energy.

Once he learned to get into his hip and glute, everything cleaned up—he stayed counter-rotated longer, moved more efficiently down the mound, and threw harder.

The Shape of the Back Leg

There are three common delivery shapes:

1. L-Shape Delivery: The classic “drop and drive.” You sink deep, then explode. Effective for some, but taxing and inconsistent.

2. Diagonal Delivery: The “fall and rotate” pattern. Minimal force, minimal control—a dead back leg.

3. Curved Delivery (Ideal): A smooth drift forward before loading and driving. This pattern blends the best of both worlds—forward momentum with efficient ground force.

When I threw my hardest in the Phillies system, I used an extreme L-shape.

But it destroyed my back:

It felt like a 400lb squat every pitch.

Now, I train to be more efficient with a curved shape.

Rotation

Force without rotation is wasted.

The back leg not only creates linear momentum—it sets up rotational energy.

For advanced pitchers, this rotation often happens subconsciously through weight shift: you drive force into the ground, get to the front leg, and your hips naturally open as your pelvis unwinds into foot plant.

For others still developing, an active “corkscrew” cue can help. As you create impulse, think about rotating down into the ground, like screwing your hips open into foot plant. This shouldn’t be forced on the mound—it’s a drill cue to build that movement pattern until it becomes automatic.

Putting It All Together

The best pitchers in the world do three things with their back leg:

1. Create balanced force—neutral foot pressure, strong X and Z force.

2. Generate impulse—force over time, not just effort.

3. Rotate efficiently—using the ground to open the hips and transfer energy up the chain.

Hope you got value!