Dr. Tom House
Considered the "Father of Modern Pitching Mechanics"
Topic: "S.T.A.T."
S - Screening Weak Links
T - Testing Athleticism
A - Assessing Movement Efficiencies
T - Training for Workloads
Tom has devoted a lifetime to research and instruction. Always on the path of discovery, Tom said in the early 90’s that his biggest technique debate came from his earlier produced books and VHS tapes. Tom once said, "If I show up with last year’s information I’m not needed!" Many criticized Tom in those years for changing his mind so much. Eager students did not. Baseball has a major league reputation for resisting change of any kind. Tom and a few of his early students, including at that time old pros like Nolan Ryan and Randy Johnson, broke that barrier. In addition to his mechanical focus, Tom’s devotion to nutrition, conditioning, and video analysis has developed a method of instruction that has as its hallmark the term information retention. He has led a movement that focuses not merely on repetition of practice but players owning the information; a complete understanding of the fundamental concepts. A generation of new pitching coaches has become successful largely due to the work of Tom House.
Tom House created a need to know about pitching. Prior to his work, many assessed the problems of a pitcher from a series of assumptions. Tom relentlessly sought to bring people together to find the facts, explain the scientific and kinesthetic causes and effects, the truth as it was known at that time. As we know, science is in constant evolution. If we have learned anything from Dr. Tom House it is that we must continue to open ourselves to change. We owe it to our students to constantly learn.
Tom created the National Pitching Association (NPA), an organization devoted to clinical study and the education of pitchers, parents, and coaches to support … "non-professional baseball programs, (youth, Little League, college, etc.). Too many pitchers get injured thus limiting their opportunity to continue playing baseball. Many times the desire to win has superseded what is best for a young athlete's development and future potential.
Baseball continues to rely on conventional wisdom that has prevailed throughout its 100+ year history. From the pros to youth leagues, baseball is still reliant upon wisdom that has been handed down from generation to generation instead of taking advantage of the opportunity of advances in technology, nutrition, and conditioning. As a result, the Rod Dedeaux Baseball Research Institute (RDRBI), housed at the USC campus, takes advantage of over 40 years of research by Dr. Tom House and the National Pitching Association (NPA) to establish itself as the leader in the field of baseball research. While the NPA is focused primarily on pitchers, the underlying curriculum in the areas of conditioning, nutrition, and the mental/emotional side of the game will be the foundation on which the hitting and three-dimensional motion analysis of hitting, pitching and throwing mechanics will enable RDRBI to continue research originated at the NPA to identify high risk areas of injury, as well as improve body mechanics efficiency for optimum performance. The NPA is the vehicle by which the findings at RDRBI are disseminated to the baseball community.
Click HERE to view a demonstration by Tom House and the National Pitching Association (NPA) on the "Lift and Thrust Phase" during the pitching sequence.