Best Pitching Machine Reviews 2018

Swinging a bat around in hopes of hitting some fast-flying balls can be an exceptionally fun activity, especially if you're not forced to pitch the balls yourself! If you agree with this statement, a pitching machine might be just what you've been looking for. Here at TopProducts.com, we've assembled a top five list of the best pitching machines currently on the market! Read on and find the best model for yourself!

Overview

PROS

CONS

SPECS

Type

Feeder

Shot Types

Speed Range

Dimensions

Our Top Choice

Louisville Slugger Blue Flame Pitching Machine

Tough and featuring an interesting mechanical construction, this Louisville Slugger pitching machine can be an excellent solution for a novice in need of a simple pitching contraption!

A company with a long tradition in producing baseball requisites. A compact design. Completely manual.

Some reports that the stabilizer bar wears off after time.

Mechanical

Manual

Strikes, fly balls, grounders

18 - 60 mph

32 x 14 x 6 in; 12 lbs

Best Value

Jugs Small-Ball® Pitching Machine

Featuring a self-feeding tube and a kid-friendly, happy-go-lucky-looking build, this Jugs Small-Ball Pitching Machine can be a smashing hit on your local baseball field!

An experienced pitching machine-building company. A simple and attractive design. Can be fed manually or automatically.

Only works with balls of smaller dimensions.

Electric

Manual and automatic

Fastballs, curveballs

Up to 75 mph

26 x 14 x 10 in; 23 lbs

First Pitch Curveball Pitching Machine

Featuring a simple, highly-adjustable construction with two wheels, this First Pitch is an adaptable pitching apparatus that can help you practice on a range of shots! Tricky curve balls in particular!

An enthusiastic pitching machine-producing company. A powerful two-wheeled design. Adjustable legs.

A bit bulky compared to some other pitching machine models.

Electric

Manual

Curveballs, sliders, knuckleballs

Up to 105 mph

110 lbs (shipping weight)

Heater Power Alley Pro Baseball Machine

Offering a modern design that's simple to use and relatively low maintenance, the Heater pitching machine can be your new weapon of choice for your upcoming hard-core training sessions!

A well-known company for sports requisites. An attractive simplified design. Nylon fiberglass housing.

Real baseballs may get stuck every so often. (Not a big deal though; a gentle push will resolve the problem.)

Electric

Manual

Fastballs, grounders, pop-flys

45 - 60 mph

36 x 36 x 48 in; 13 lbs

Franklin Sports MLB® Electronic Pitching Machine

Coming from a company with a long tradition in making high-quality sports products, the MLB Electronic Pitching Machine is one of the best learn-to-play ball-throwing machines currently on the market!

A well-known sporting goods company. A small easy-to-carry design. An easily-adjustable pitch angle.

It's pretty lightweight, so keeping it in place on an unsteady surface can be a challenge.

Electric

Automatic

Plastic balls - Little League

Children's practice speeds

17.75 x 9.5 x 9.9 in; 3.4 lbs

(Updated November 16, 2017)

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How Do I Choose the Best Pitching Machine?

Stable, sturdy, and spewing one fast-flying ball after another, a pitching machine is a mighty sporting accessory that can help you hone your baseball or softball skills and make you a player of swinging might in the field! (You can also use this apparatus to exercise your dog, if you can't be bothered to chuck the balls about yourself.) With one of these pitching contraptions in your backyard, you may enjoy glorious activities of leisure such as 1) sharpening your ball-hitting abilities, and 2) witnessing your neighbors as they stare at you swinging your bat as though you've just been attacked by a swarm of killer bees! In this section, we'll present some facts about these machines that can help you understand them a little bit better.

It's important to distinguish between the two major types of these exceptional sports props: manually fed pitching machines, and automatically fed ones. Manual-feed machines typically come with some sort of mechanical spring-based system. You place the ball on top of a platform, and then load the spring until it's tense enough to send the ball flying across the field. The automated versions of this apparatus usually feature two spinning wheels facing each other, between which balls are fed through some sort of funnel-like piece. Some manufacturers make their pitching gear so that you may pick between these two modes of functioning, which can be handy at times.

You'll also want to consider the kind of pitches a pitching machine is capable of emulating. Virtually all the models you can find on the market nowadays have some sort of adjusting mechanism, often with a couple of levels of settings. You can adjust the direction and the height of the "launching pod," and the height settings of the legs, so that you can achieve the optimal position for the machine, which subsequently affects the quality of the pitches. Depending on the combination of various adjustments, you can create the effect of curveballs, fastballs, sliders, knuckleballs, grounders, you name it! Whether you're wielding a junior's bat or the real deal version for adults, you can count on your pitching machine to provide challenging fast-flying balls for a training session whenever you like! If you've got a batting cage as well, you can set up a proper little training camp in your backyard!

Price

A pitching machine is a wonder of technology that acts as your mechanical pitching buddy, and can deliver a constant feed of speedy balls coming right at ya! They come in all shapes and sizes, and represent perhaps one of the weirdest products when it comes to their price range. You can find some cheap pitching machines at around $30, but if you'd like to treat yourself to a heavy-duty ball-feeding contraption, you'll have to dish out as much as $1,600. This extreme difference is due to the construction of the machine itself, and the power of its mechanism. Kid-sized versions tend to be less expensive, while some of the more robust models built for professional players are towards the high end of this massive range. Whatever your pitching needs are, we bet you can find a decent model among the five products we've provided! Read through and make a confident choice!

Features

Pitching machines are positively crucial for the development of a young and passionate baseball player, but they can represent a bit of a puzzle for a newbie in this particular category of sports props. To acquaint yourself with these items more closely, check out the list below!

Here are some features to check when buying a brand new pitching machine:

Material
Top pitch speed
Delivery height
Type of feed
Adjustable legs
Motor power (if it's automatic)
Shape of the ball feeder
Warranty

If you can't be bothered to pitch balls yourself, or are too lazy to even place them on a smallish platform, obtaining an automatic pitching machine can be an excellent solution!

Construction and Design

Since pitching machines utilize a variety of ways of launching a ball towards your respectable self or your eager bat-wielding kid, their designs vary quite substantially. There are two major groups of pitching machines: those that rely on a spring mechanism and a bit of human strength, and ones with some sort of electric motor to keep things moving. The automatic feeders attached to these devices usually come in a couple of different shapes, including spirals and certain variations on the shape of a funnel. It's worth noting that models meant for kids (and perhaps some cheeky adults) are usually brightly-colored for obvious reasons.

Performance and Ease of Use

Once you have your very own personal mechanical pitcher, the deal is pretty straightforward. Depending on the model, all you need to do initially is either set it up and pull a lever or two, or plug it into your power grid for instant success! Feeding the balls in is a piece of cake. It boils down to placing a ball into a certain mechanism, or chucking a bunch of 'em into the automatic feeder. Other than that, make sure not to leave your pitching machine out in the rain, and keep it away from children!

What is the Best Pitching Machine?

If you're annoyed by your pitcher's ball-throwing skills, and at times feel like swinging your sporty baseball or softball bat directly at them in anger and despair, stop right there! There's a great solution to this potential crisis waiting just around the corner. That's right, a mighty product of sporting prowess and sheer skill, called a pitching machine, can become your new game-time companion, and help you sharpen your skills in your very backyard! As there are many models currently on offer on the market, we've hand-picked five of the best, so that you can make an easier choice. Find the best model for your needs and start swinging in no time!

Our Top Choice

Featuring a compact build that can snugly fit in your car boot, the Blue Flame Pitching Machine can be a perfect solution for an avid baseball player with some space issues! If you want the same great quality you get from Louisville Slugger but something more accommodating to your budget, check out the Triple Flame Pitching Machine, which can throw regulation baseballs up to a whopping 30mph!

Louisville Slugger UPM 45 Blue Flame Pitching Machine

Louisville Slugger Pitching Machine L60111

Features

Louisville Slugger is a company that's been producing high-quality baseball requisites for a long time—132 years of constant development and hard work, to be exact! Their work philosophy revolves around constant trailblazing efforts combined with a strong tendency towards expanding horizons in every direction that can make their offer of sporting goods more well-rounded and competitive.

As for the pitching machine in question, it sports a curious appearance reminiscent of a praying mantis sculpture made out of secondhand formula one parts. This Louisville Slugger pitching machine will present your batter with a proper challenge of curvy, fast-flying balls! Also, you as the feeder can have a proper little workout mounting the balls into the mechanism! (Not that the mounting process is too difficult.)

Besides just standard leather baseballs, you can use this machine with a variety of other balls, including fast pitch softballs, dimple balls, light flight, plastic balls, or even soccer and volleyballs! This can be great for helping your local soccer goalie practice catching tricky shots, or pulling pranks on your baseball batter by throwing him a volleyball once in a while!
The list of features for the Louisville Slugger Blue Flame Pitching Machine:

Easily adjustable speed controls
Completely manual
Throws slow-pitch softballs
Throws accurate fly balls
Portable and lightweight

All in all, an excellent solution for anyone in need of a simple and easy-to-carry pitching machine requiring no electricity or additional support. Its design enables you to use it with a variety of balls, meaning that with this mean tossing machine you won't be restricted to baseballs only! Use it for soccer and volleyball practice, too! Goalies will hate you!

Not exactly what you were looking for? Check out the other Louisville Slugger pitching machines before deciding.

Best Value

Simple-to-operate and with a construction that looks like bubble-gum packaging, this Jugs Small-Ball Pitching Machine will become an instant hit with your kids! Just set it up, and see it shoot baseballs away at speed! If you’re in the market for something different, check out their Curveball Pitching Machine.

Jugs Small-Ball Pitching Machine – 25 Ball Manual or Automatic Feeder

Jugs Pitching Machine M7000

Features

In the year of 1971, John Paulson, a gentleman of leisure and a father of two plucky baseball players, constructed the first ever fully-operational baseball pitching machine! This glorious undertaking was sparked by his desire to help his boys become better hitters, which demanded that someone throws a ball at them regularly. Having realized this requirement, Paulson went on to construct a pitching machine, NOT because he was too lazy to pitch the balls himself, but because he was a man of sportsmanship and creativity.

Following the emergence of his great invention, many other people suddenly wanted to buy one of these machines, and the project soon gained nationwide popularity. Everybody from the members of the little baseball league all the way to the professional players started getting themselves pitching machines, thus creating a proper little revolution in this great American pastime!

The model we've decided to feature here is a typical Jugs pitching machine, featuring a simple 'n' sturdy construction and enabling you to throw balls in a variety of angles and speeds! The whole thing is also fairly lightweight and it doesn't take up too much space, meaning that you'll be able to carry it with you effortlessly.
The list of features for the Jugs Small-Ball Pitching Machine:

Made out of heavy-duty steel
Realistic delivery height
Adjustable legs
Can be fed manually or automatically
Speeds up to 75mph
1-year warranty

Sporting a small build with an easy-to-operate feed system, this Jugs Small-Ball pitcher can be a perfect warm-up solution as it fires the kind of balls that are half the size of the standard baseball! The ancient wisdom says: “Hit them while they're small with the help of Jugs’ Small-Ball pitcher, and you'll give your opponents hell once you start using the big ones!”

Not right? That’s okay. Take a look at what other pitching machines Jugs has to offer!

Boasting a weighty build that can be a true tough 'n' rugged softballer's companion, this First Pitch pitching machine allows you to practice a variety of shots! If you don’t need a pitching machine quite so powerful, take a look at their Original Baseball Softball Combo Pitching Machine up to 80mph.

First Pitch Two Wheel Curveball Softball Pitching Machine Up to 105mph

First Pitch Pitching Machine 713651406076

Features

Located in Maple Plain, Minnesota, the First Pitch company has been providing the great American populace with high-quality products for a number of years now. It all started when the initial crew behind the First Pitch business came up with their first pitching machine, which turned out an instant success among the local softball community. Sooner than anyone had hoped, the word was spread further and more and more people started getting interested in this new line of pitching machines!

Today, the First Pitch provides the entire country with their top-notch machines designed to enable each and every person, big or small, to sharpen their softball/baseball skills to the greatest possible extent! Also, they take pride in their policy of constant donations, which states that anyone can become a donator to their local little softball or baseball league!

The First Pitch Curveball pitching machine offers a tough 'n' sturdy build with two mounted wheels. This bulky configuration will enable you to create a number of different throwing combinations and practice a number of shots, from curveballs and sliders to knuckleballs, fastballs and other!

The First Pitch—a list of features:

360-degree swivel base
Two 1/3 HP motors
Adjustable legs
Dual handle
Made out of steel/aluminum combination
Side-to-side adjustment
5-year warranty

All things considered, the tough build of this training contraption combined with the swivel base equipped with two high-performance wheels makes this pitching device a powerful solution for a variety of shots. Also, this particular model from First Pitch is well-known for its looks. Get ready to turn heads and fire balls at speed!

Undecided? Check out the full range of pitching machines from First Pitch and see which one is best for you!

Stable and meant to be used predominantly in your backyard or some other smaller practicing area, this Heater PowerAlley model can be a perfect solution for a beginner! If you’re looking for a smaller pitching machine, take a look at the Heater Sports Crusher Mini Lite-Ball Pitching Machine, which accommodates 24 mini balls.

Heater Sports PowerAlley PRO Pitching Machine with 45 mph baseball speed

Heater Pitching Machine HEAS1021

Features

As far as companies dealing in sports equipment go, the Heater factory is one of the most well-rounded manufacturers in the business, at least when it comes to the sports where you hit a ball with a stick. Baseball, softball, golf, pickleball, and even cricket are all covered with a variety of handy products which will not only help you sharpen your skills, but also look good and stylish when out in the field! Even if your batter game isn't at its best yet!

Their products are typically simply built with the accent on durability. Also, a big part of their way of producing their new lines of products is the idea of less meaning more, which in practice results in a relatively small pitching device (in this case) capable of mimicking a variety of tricky shots that appear as though they come straight from the pro field!

Once you've loaded the ball in the machine, you can set it to elicit a number of different pitching styles, resulting in variety of ball throws: fastballs, grounders, pop-flys and so on. The speeds at which these colorful pitches will fly at the bewildered batter range from 45mph to 60mph!

The list of features for the Heater PRO Pitching Machine includes:

Nylon-fiberglass housing
Tubular steel tripod
1/8 horsepower motor
Adjustable pitch height
Tripod with rubber tips
Uses standard A/C power

Coming from a company experienced in making of the high-quality sports ware, this Power Alley Baseball machine can be an excellent solution for a person who appreciates compactness and high efficiency! The set-up is simple, the firing speeds are challenging, and the whole contraption looks sleek and attractive for good measure! What's not to love?

If this pitching machine isn’t the one for you, why not browse the rest of the options from Heater here?

Sporting a cheeky and convenient feeding spiral, this Franklin Sports pitching machine is a small but plucky device that can serve you greatly, especially if you're making your first steps in baseball! Also great for kids! However, if you’re looking for something more advanced, try the Franklin Sports MLB Batter & Fielder 4 in 1 Pitching Machine instead.

Franklin Sports MLB Learn To Play Electronic Pitching Machine

Franklin Sports Pitching Machine 6696S4

Features

Starting off as a small brand specializing in all sorts of sporting equipment back in 1946, Franklin Sports gained widespread recognition when it got affiliated with one of the most well-known athletes of the period—Joe Namath. Soon enough, the range of products they manufactured was spreading more and more, attracting many other famous sportsmen to represent them in professional games that were enjoying nationwide coverage!

Thanks to them playing their publicity cards right, the Franklin brand would go on to expand additionally, and nowadays it does business with a number of organizations, ranging from NFL to Disney! The work philosophy behind their products is that they should cover the needs of everyone with a burning passion for sports, from young children to amateur adults and professional players!

The Franklin Sports model we've chosen to feature on this list is a perfect example of this all-inclusive practice of theirs, as this pitching machine can be used by virtually anyone (older than five years, that is)! The ball is pre-set to be pitched at every seven seconds, and the angle of pitching can be adjusted according to your personal preference.

The Franklin Sports pitching machine features include:

Pitch angle adjustment
Red flashing LED light
6 AERO-STRIKE plastic baseballs
Ball pitches every 7 seconds
Spiral ball feeder

If practicality and small dimensions are your top priorities when it comes to pitching contraptions, this Franklin Sports model might be just what you've been looking for as it is easy to mount and fires the balls itself! Also, adjusting the angle is a piece of cake, so all you need to do is set it up and batter those balls away!

With so many choices, why not browse the rest of the pitching machines Franklin Sports has before making your decision.

Get the Best Pitching Machine of 2018!

Kids love them! Dogs are initially confused, but grow to adore them soon enough! Cats are mostly disinterested! Pitching machines are a great means of having some fast-flying balls soaring through the air for purposes of fun and sporting leisure. With one of these mean machines, you can train yourself senseless in the privacy of your own home, and reach new athletic heights you previously thought were unattainable! We hope you liked our top five reviews, and wish you a hassle-free purchase, lots of sporting success and fun, and cheers!

Our Top Choice

Louisville Slugger Blue Flame Pitching Machine

Best Value

Jugs Small-Ball® Pitching Machine

First Pitch Curveball Pitching Machine

Heater Power Alley Pro Baseball Machine

Franklin Sports MLB® Electronic Pitching Machine