Black Flame Pitching Machine

Perfect pitching machine for my 8 yr old who is in Coach pitch. He was tired of me accidentally hitting him when I would pitch to so I purchased this during the Black Friday deals. It pitches relatively straight with adjustable speeds. My son no longer has to worry about getting hit by the ball. He can concentrate on his mechanics and hitting. He has improved so much from the beginning of the season. He went from the end of the batting order to the #3 hitter due to his consistency and line drive hits. The machine is easy to put together, very light to transport, and anchors well into the ground. Simple to adjust pitches when setting up. I recommend this for anyone needing an affordable dependable pitching machine. All you need is a big yard, park, or open field.

This pitching machine is awesome! It makes our backyard training sessions so much more productive. The machine is 100% more accurate and consistent than I am or will ever be (Not saying every pitch will be perfect but the GREAT MAJORITY will be over the plate and in the strike zone). I personally only use the machine to pitch from the pitching rubber. The machine is easily dialed in for the proper ball flight and speed. My daughter has played softball since 8U and I’ve been blessed with the opportunity to watch/coach her for years, she now plays 12U. With hindsight I should have picked this product up years ago, the max ball speed is advertised at 44 for softballs and from what I recall my daughter faced a couple very talented pitchers in 10U slinging at least that if not faster out in California. With all that being said I’m very happy with my purchase, my daughter and I consider the machine as an advanced form of tee work due to the speed limits it has. Hope this help in case you might have been on the fence. Last thing I want to note... you will experience different ball flights with different brands of balls and types. Our dimple practice softballs fly straight into the dirt in front of the plate... Same setting, load a Dream Seam and it tends to rise but still in the strike zone... Same setting, load a dicks value buck ball and it travels more middle strike zone. I personally don’t see this as a problem... I consider the variation a plus since not all pitches are right down the pipe.

As a youth and tournament baseball coach, I have relied on the pitching machine extensively, having used it in approximately 20 games. However, I am disappointed to find that the machine is starting to fall apart already, despite having purchased it just this March. The durability of the machine has not lived up to my expectations, with missing screws and a broken flyball attachment necessitating repairs. I am currently in the process of replacing these attachments and screws, which are minor yet crucial for the machine's functionality. I have reached out to the manufacturer for assistance in obtaining the necessary replacement parts. Despite these issues, I must acknowledge that when the machine functions correctly, it proves to be a valuable tool for my coaching sessions. Its precision in delivering flyballs or pitches, depending on the setting, enhances the efficiency of training sessions and allows for a more focused and productive practice. I look forward to resolving the current maintenance issues so that I can continue to benefit from the machine's capabilities in enhancing the skills of the players I coach.

installation instructions are vague and minimal at best. (personally, i HATE when businesses give you a barcode to scan for initial/additional instructions. like, WTH. who has the time and patience for that) (and btw i went back and scanned that code to see if this was covered and no, they didn't go over this very important detail) WHEN INSTALLING THE ARM (the part that does the throwing. it swings back and forth w a spring attached to it) PAY CLOSE ATTENTION, BE SURE TO PLACE THE BLACK PLASTIC PIECE (the one attached to the end of the spring) in between the hole of your choice. (the holes that dictate the speed of the ball.) with the black plastic piece sitting on both sides and the hole from the frame in between both sides of the plastic (now when i say right side, you should be at the back of the machine with the hitter in front of you, as if you're the operator, throwing the pitches) take the pin (the only pin given, thats attached to a key ring) take that pin and insert through the black plastic piece first, then through the hole of your choosing. when i first got it, i made the mistake of placing the spring to the right of the holes and put the pin through the left side. BIG MISTAKE. pitches were not accurate, and after throwing the spring would be all over the place, pin fell out multiple times till finally, after about 20 pitches, the black plastic piece broke. wasn't very happy at that point. but after speaking with Amazon and a person @LOUISVILLE SLUGGER CO., everything was made right. very satisfied with my purchase. great product. highly recommend. (edit. so on the replacement ireceived, it came w very good, clear instructions this time. very cool. iwonder why those same instructions weren't in the first one) hmmm. well, I'm happy regardless. thank you guys.

I should note that this review is for the "Black Flame," which should have a stronger spring than the Blue Flame. I have 3 grandchildren playing either baseball or softball. I am also 72 years old and have two bum knees. I was really wondering if I would be able to depress the pedal with my really bum right knee. Yesterday I was doing it for 2.5 hours without any significant ramifications! As for Accuracy, it seemed to have some drift when pitching baseballs (Higher setting than Softballs). The back end drifted a bit but my Grandson was able to determine where the pitch would come within about a foot or so with great accuracy so that helped. The spikes in the front end were not moving at all. I guess in softer sand that may be an issue. The fly ball option was decent with a baseball. I was able to launch a baseball over the head of my grandson making him turn and run back for a catch. Any 3rd grader that can do this regularly is an upper level player. I have not even see many teams practice that. But with a softball, the ball weighed enough that it was maybe a bit better than a looping line drive over the 2nd baseman's head. Get some of the smaller lighter weight softballs, but even with those it may not be the best for fly balls. Nothing beats a 25 year old arm for throwing fly balls that challenge the outfielder without simply giving him running practice. I have seen reviews on line that suggest that the spring can come loose and hit the person running the machine in the thigh causing a large bruise. Just make sure you know exactly how to attach the spring to the footpedal to minimize the chances of this happening. I am also thinking that there might just be a way to minimize the potential of this happening, so that even if it broke loose a bunge cord properly positioned, or even a couple of very strong 150# zip ties might take most or all of the sting out of the recoil.

If you want an affordable pitching machine thats easy to drag around this thing can't be beat. Currently using it to help my daughter and her team (11-13 yr olds). Definitely want to be careful when letting the kids use this as they will be eager to run the machine themselves... need to make sure and supervise that no one is near the business end of the catapult and gets hit on the wrist or something... We've found that it is plenty fast and usually bring the bottom spring tensioner down 2 notches from max speed. Would probably work as a decent low cost option for high school as well although I would say high school pitchers are going to exceed this speed eventually. There are rubber strips on the ball holding rail that will rip off quite quickly but I feel like it still works without them. Would buy this again definitely. Use the chart on the machine as a guide, but once you learn how it adjusts you won't need it... you'll just dial it in with 5-10 pitches or so first then go live...

Easy to put together and operate. Pitches very fast and far. Great for team practice or backyard fun with the kids. Highly recommend. Would work for kids and adults.

I have used this pitching machine through several hitting sessions so far with my team, and I am fairly pleased. It does not throw regular baseballs quite as hard as advertised (clocked at 38mph average on max setting, as opposed to advertised 50mph). Still quite useful for youth baseball batting practice, this is about the average speed the kids will see in game, although some kids are throwing harder. Also fairly accurate in hitting the strike zone, with enough variation the batter has to adjust their swing, with the occasional pitch in the dirt which I like to keep them paying attention. Easy to assemble, easy to use. Not easy to transport. The two spike legs on the front are also a terror on floors during storage. Useful for stability on the field, but a cover or similar for storage to protect floors would be nice. Also the unit is awkward to transport; would have been easy to put on a carry handle, but as it is, the thing is not convenient to carry long distances (i.e. to and from the field). Because of the lower speed and problems listed, I only give it 3 stars. It works for its purposes, but could very easily have been a much better product with a few simple changes. In hindsight, I wish I had bought the previous model for $50 less. Still if you are a youth coach, you will get your money's worth out of this product if you don't have access to powered pitching machines and have a bum shoulder like me.

Works really well for baseball batting practice, baseball fielding practice, baseball catching practice, and even for cricket batting practice.

Very well made and is as advertised. Fully adjustable for high and low pitches at various speeds. My son loves it. Saves a sore arm for sure! Highly recommend.

Its really help during my training with my children. And its function well. Easy to installation. Thank you!!!

Easy to set up, good value for money, accurate, easy for children to use, predictable pitching. Very pleased, absolutely recommended.

We really love this product. I bought it for my kids and my U14 team that I coach. It is easy to assemble, easy to use and I have already seem improvements in my own kids batting. I'm planning to unleash it on my team next week.