The slope of a pitcher's mound seems like a small, insignificant detail on a baseball field, but the mound actually means much more. The mound's slope can affect pitch velocity, pitch movement, the success of hitters and even the likelihood of a pitcher being injured.
Pitch Velocity
According to Pinstripe Alley, a higher mound allows pitchers to throw the ball harder. This added velocity is due to the pitcher using the mound to push off and for momentum. The mound's slope allows the pitcher to build momentum during the delivery and that momentum coupled with the higher release point allows gravity to put more force on the ball. These factors combined means that pitchers can throw the ball harder from a higher-sloped mound.
Pitch Movement
The slope of a mound also has a great impact on the movement of the pitch as it comes to the plate. Baseball Hall of Fame player Stan Musial says that lower slopes give batters an advantage because the ball comes in at an angle that is easier to hit. When throwing from a sloped surface, pitchers release the ball higher and it actually moves downward on the way to the plate. If there were no slope, meaning a flat mound, the same release would leave the ball traveling straight with less movement.
Batters
Because of the pitch speed and movement factors, a higher sloped mound is a disadvantage for the hitter and the offensive team. Faster speeds are harder to hit because batters have less time to react. In addition, pitches that move are harder to hit because it is tougher to judge where they are going to be so as to hit them hard or square. The higher mounds give pitchers a better chance to make batters miss the ball or hit it weakly and make an out, while flatter slopes often leave the ball high in places easier for hitters to connect. Musial notes that it also is harder for hitters to see the ball coming from a higher mound than it is to see the ball coming from a lower-sloped surface.
Pitcher's Health
Former baseball pitcher Mickey Lolich notes that he had elbow pain when Major League Baseball lowered the mound for the 1969 season. Pinstripe Alley says that flatter slopes put more stress on the throwing arms of pitchers. This likely is due to pitchers getting less leverage and having to force the arm into unnatural positions to get the location and movement that they want.
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