Technique question

[sluggers]

The pitching coach has instructed her to violently bring her right foot forward, creating a really forced closing of the hips. That is wrong.

 

[SoCalSoftballdad]

The pitching coach has instructed her to violently bring her right foot forward, creating a really forced closing of the hips. That is wrong.

sluggers - it may not be ideal for pitching mechanics, but several PCs in my area also teach beginning pitchers to get in this ready position right after release so they can field the batted ball more quickly. Not saying its right, but that is the theory behind it. As the pitcher gets more experience, fielding (while important) will be a secondary issue to the actual pitch mechanics.

 

[RandomDad]

A couple of observations:

- I like that she gets into the same pre-motion routine everytime, which is very important when working on her accuracy. Most 8YO video here shows the pitcher all over the place with no set routine.

- Never have her pitch unless she has gone through all of her warm-up drills in the correct sequence. For example, a) overhand throw, b) wrist snaps (optional), c) "T" or "K" drill; d) arm circles, lower body stationary; e) "walk throughs".

- as suggested, have her slow down her pre-motion, once her hands come together, have her pause 1 to 10 secs before she pitches (ASA rules). She shouldn't pitch until she is ready and concentrating on each and every pitch.

- Only introduce the next pitch (change-up) once she has control (not necessarily command) of the fastball.

- Once she gets fairly accurate, pretend there is a batter at the plate and do pitch sequences using balls and strike counts.

- If possible, have her pitch 3 x week (even if its only for 30 mins each time). If she wants to be a good pitcher she should never take more than a couple of weeks off in the off-season.

- I don't see a pitching plate for her to push off from? If not, get one. Same goes for a portable home plate. You want to replicate the pitching environment she will be pitching in during the game.

- If she loves to pitch, she will be very good in a year or two. Enjoy!

Thank you SoCal. I am going to start tonight on having her pause with the ball in the glove. Perhaps we do shortcut too much on warm up. We play catch (over hand), then she'll do 20 or so walk throughs and then it's on to pitching. I have noticed that she doesn't hit full velocity & accuracy (they go together) until about 20 pitches after we actually start pitching. She started last summer and we practiced all winter. She would throw a softball sized nerf ball in the house when it was too cold outside. I saw a video on here of a girl pitching into a tarp. I'm going to set up something like that in my garage too. That's a great idea! Right now, we practice 4 days (average) a week. Her coach wants her to through 100 pitches every day, but I worry about burning her out at such a young age.

 

[RandomDad]

sluggers - it may not be ideal for pitching mechanics, but several PCs in my area also teach beginning pitchers to get in this ready position right after release so they can field the batted ball more quickly. Not saying its right, but that is the theory behind it. As the pitcher gets more experience, fielding (while important) will be a secondary issue to the actual pitch mechanics.

Exactly. She's pushed this point to her for fielding purposes. She may be slamming her foot down too hard and that's something we can work on, but the intent is to have her in the fielding position. 8U pitching distance is 30', so she's probably 26' away from the plate after a pitch, so she wants her to be ready should a ball be lined back at her. btw, I do have a mask that she'll wear in games.

 

[Jojo]

Bill--You stated in your thread---"I've noticed recently that my daughter's form seems to be different from some of the pitchers I've seen lately. Would you all watch the video and let me know what you think?"

What is it that you notice is different? Is it her windup, push off or her finish?

 

[Amy in AZ.]

She's pitching from 30 feet? Yikes. I am thinking that whomever made up that rule, is thinking that little girls are just tossing the ball across the plate. I have heard of 32 feet, but here it is 35 feet.

Please teach her not to throw down the middle of the plate. Set your glove up inside and outside, and insist that her catcher does, too.

 

[RandomDad]

Bill--You stated in your thread---"I've noticed recently that my daughter's form seems to be different from some of the pitchers I've seen lately. Would you all watch the video and let me know what you think?"

What is it that you notice is different? Is it her windup, push off or her finish?

Yes, I could have been more clear in my first post. Mainly, the two things I was concerned about was the leg slap and her back swing. I watched Florida vs. Kentucky the other day and neither pitcher did the back swing nor did either have the leg slap. In general, their motions seemed 'easy' if that makes sense. They didn't appear to be working hard. I don't mean that as they were being lazy, but that they were effective without over-exerting themselves.

Apparently she has a lot more going on that can be improved than I imagined. lol

 

[RandomDad]

She's pitching from 30 feet? Yikes. I am thinking that whomever made up that rule, is thinking that little girls are just tossing the ball across the plate. I have heard of 32 feet, but here it is 35 feet.

Please teach her not to throw down the middle of the plate. Set your glove up inside and outside, and insist that her catcher does, too.

Yes, it's only 30' this year. It goes to 35' (I think) at 10U. I've had her throw batting practice a couple of times. When she's not worried about hitting the batter and actually throws that ball like she can, no one on her team has been able to catch up with her speed. Granted...we are a rec team with several first year players.

 

[Amy in AZ.]

In general, their motions seemed 'easy' if that makes sense.

Exactly. But, that will come.

 

[SoCalSoftballdad]

ASA 2011 Pitching Distances:

8U = 30'
10U = 35'
12U & 14U = 40'
16U, 18U, & 23U = 43'