Let's consider the skill level standards and the techniques that amateur baseball pitchers should acquire.

In amateur baseball, there's a really wide range of pitchers in terms of skill level.
There are various skill levels, from people who have played at the amateur baseball level to complete beginners with no prior baseball experience.
This time, I'd like to create my own criteria for determining the skill level of amateur baseball pitchers.
These criteria are based on interviews with other amateur baseball players and my own thoughts.
I expect there will be some disagreements.

Level 0: The next skill a player who is not yet a pitcher should acquire.

This level of pitcher is not yet at a level where they should be pitching in exhibition games.
First, let's practice so that you can clear the following checklist items.

Understand balks correctly and be able to set them up.

Mastering balks and sets is absolutely essential, as without them, the game cannot proceed.
You need to learn how to step on the plate and which parts of your body should not move in the set position.
Regardless of whether each movement is performed well or poorly, the important thing is whether the movements do not violate the rules.
A common misconception is,Nobody initially expects speed in feints or anything like that.That's the point.

When practicing, aim for a strike rate of 50% or higher.

The strike rate is based on my personal criteria of "it should be around this much," so it's a relative condition.
However, from experience, if you can't throw a single strike and keep giving up walks, it creates an awkward atmosphere for both the opposing team and your own team.

It's common for pitchers to miss strikes during a game due to nervousness or other factors, so to some extent, it's unavoidable.
However, if more than half of the shots are lost to the ball even during practice, it must be said that this indicates a lack of skill.
A pitcher who can't throw strikes at least half the time might be seen as disrespectful to the opposing team.

Level 1: The next skills a beginner pitcher should acquire

He's a pitcher who's at a level where he can pitch in exhibition games without any problems.
However, he's not yet at a level where he can compete against batters.
We're at the stage where we're having exchanges like, "I threw the ball and it got hit," or "I threw the ball and they got the out."
Generally speaking, if you've reached this level, I think you should be able to pitch in a game without any problems.

If you want to move up to the next level, you should complete the following checklist items.

You will be able to make appropriate warnings to each runner.

It's necessary to master pickoff throws to first, second, and third base, both those where you step off the plate and those where you don't, and to be able to throw them calmly.
As mentioned earlier, there is no need to be able to stab or otherwise deter the enemy in this situation.
The goal is simply to keep the runner from taking too large a lead.

You can understand when a base cover is needed.

If the ball is hit towards first or second base, the pitcher will run to cover first base.
This is a movement that needs to be ingrained in your body, but I often see people who can't do it.
Be careful, as covering first base and receiving the toss can be surprisingly difficult if you haven't practiced them.

Furthermore, in the event of a wild pitch with a runner on third base, the pitcher must cover home plate.
Additionally, if a hit is made from a scoring position, or if the ball is returned to third base, you must cover the area behind the base.

Running to cover is tiring, but once the pitcher has thrown the ball, they are just another fielder.
Not providing cover is seen as laziness and will make your teammates think badly of you.
This may seem obvious, but let's make sure we don't forget it.

You'll be able to throw strikes with curveballs.

I believe this is precisely the biggest difference between beginner and intermediate levels.
Many amateur baseball pitchers throw curveballs, but a pitcher who can throw a curveball for a strike is quite a handful.
For pitchers who have a slower breaking ball in addition to their fastball, it's common for all of their slower pitches to be called balls if the batter lets them go.
In this situation, the batter will only be expecting a fastball, so there's not much point in throwing a curveball.

Just not knowing whether a curveball will be a strike prevents the batter from narrowing down their target pitch, and the count gradually becomes unfavorable.
Instead of memorizing many pitches that only change slightly,First, let's hone one reliable breaking ball.
Aim to be able to control your pitches well, even when alternating between fastballs and other pitches.

Level 2: The next skills an intermediate pitcher should acquire

A mid-level pitcher would be comparable to a mid-tier starting pitcher on a typical team.
This means being able to pitch a reasonable number of innings, manage the game, and avoid a major collapse.
At this level, you should be able to play as a pitcher for various teams.
However, I think it will take considerable effort to reach an even higher, more advanced level from here.
I'd like to think about what I need to do to level up even further.

From here on, we've gathered opinions from people with high school and college baseball experience.
There may be disagreements, but I hope you will read it as one possible perspective.

You can throw the ball to different parts of the course.

To reach an advanced level, I believe it's necessary to be able to throw the ball in four or more different ways: high, low, inside, and outside.
In addition to throwing fastballs, you'll also need to be able to throw a variety of breaking balls.
There are up to four different pitching patterns: strike to ball, strike to strike, ball to strike, and ball to ball.
What's important is the first half of the game: the pitches that start as strikes but become balls, and the pitches that change from strikes back to strikes.
If you can consistently differentiate your throws in this area, I think it's safe to say you're at an advanced level.

He has multiple patterns for striking out batters.

Apparently, top-level pitchers have multiple patterns for striking out batters.
You shouldn't just rely on patterns like throwing a curveball when you've cornered the batter; you need to be able to use a variety of patterns.
Apparently, when it comes to how to get the first and second strikes, and what to do after getting ahead in the count, you shouldn't just leave it up to the catcher, but you should also have your own vision.

If you're playing against a weaker opponent, a single, predictable strategy should be sufficient.
However, it's also true that you can never become a high-level player by only playing against weaker opponents.
There's no doubt that you can grow by fighting against opponents who are of equal or superior strength.

You can shift gears

In a match, there are situations where you absolutely cannot afford to concede a single goal.
The ability to shift into an even higher gear during a crisis is what defines an advanced level of skill.

In critical situations, even pitchers of any skill level tend to see a decline in performance.
If you throw the ball the same way you normally would at that moment, you obviously won't get good results.
They shifted into a higher gear in a pinch, and now they're finally back to their usual selves.
I'm sure they're not slacking off during normal pitching, but I feel that having a trump card for when things get tough is a common trait among winning pitchers.

Level 3: Advanced Pitcher

If you can clear the points I wrote about in the section for intermediate pitchers, I think you'll probably be able to become an advanced pitcher.
However, since I don't know any pitchers like that around me, there's a lot of mystery surrounding their behavior.
I think they're probably playing at a much higher level than the amateur baseball I play at, with advanced players competing against each other.

summary

I've written down some criteria for pitchers from level 0 to level 3.
Based on this classification, I feel like I'm probably a beginner pitcher, just barely avoiding the intermediate level.

What's important is not just practicing aimlessly, but accurately understanding your own level and acquiring the skills you need most right now.
This time, I wrote about the necessary skills, but I didn't touch on how to acquire them.

I hope to introduce the specific details in the future, but since I'm still at a level where I'm not even close to intermediate, I can't write about it from personal experience yet.
I intend to continue working hard so that I can write about such topics with pride.