Are Good Ball Throwers Born or Made?

[Bullaholic]

I always wanted to know what everyone thought about whether a kid with a good throwing arm is more born than made or vice-versa? Why can some kids that don't really have "guns" throw a baseball or football like a rocket at short distances and a long ways even when they don't seem to have practiced that much? How do those little baseball players throw "heat"?

[waterboy]

Ability (talent) is God-given. Some people have all the talent in the world but are unable to harness it. Mechanics and muscle memory, along with repetition is what fine-tunes ability. To get the most out of a person's raw talent it must be learned, i.e. accuracy, manipulation of flight, and vision (in football). That's the way I see it.......

[Electus Unus]

I think arm strength is born but the accuracy comes from being made.

[nobogey72]

Originally posted by Electus Unus
I think arm strength is born but the accuracy comes from being made.

I agree. I always thought a "good arm" whether it was football, baseball, rocks, or whatever is kind of like footspeed. You can work hard and improve your footspeed and armspeed but the core talent is either there or it's not.

[STANG RED]

You have to be born with the God given talent for sure, but it can be greatly enhanced with the correct workout routines and drills, and just good ol practice.
I think we have all seen many examples of kids born with tons of natural talent and ability, but without the work ethic and/or sometimes guidance to develop it to the fullest. It's a shame, but it happens all too often.

[Old Dog]

I think the great majority of the time they are Born. I'm a good case study for the opposite conclusion. My dad had enough baseball throwing speed and accuracy to attract minor league attention, but even with him working with me, I could never throw a decent fast ball or throw with pinpoint accuracy. The pitcher gene jumped over me.... LOL

[coach]

Originally posted by nobogey72
I agree. I always thought a "good arm" whether it was football, baseball, rocks, or whatever is kind of like footspeed. You can work hard and improve your footspeed and armspeed but the core talent is either there or it's not.

actually footspeed is more genetics and a good solid arm is easier to improve