POLL~ Have you ever went to overhand throwing lessons?

Chilixa said:

I have tried helping a few older girls with bad throwing mechanics but it is tough. They have done the same bad mechanics for so long it is hard to get away from. Very similar to when pitchers have to switch their form.

Emphasizing throwing correctly at young ages should be a major part of their age groups.


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Exactly. When I was coaching 10U there was a girl that needed help. I gave her drills and instructions. I showed them to her and her parents, walked through them, gave them detailed instructions (with images) on paper, etc. Gave them the "do this daily for 15 minutes and you'll see huge improvements soon..." talk.

4 years later I watch her throw a ball and I cringe.

Hard work is hard work.

DD is going now…she really wants to get her overhand velocity up to the 68-70 range. She’s been stuck at 64 consistently since maturing size wise and all her regular strength training hasn’t budged it. Shes looking for anything that will help her compete for time in college.


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Most girls HS and below could stand to improve their throwing mechanics. However, I don't know if anyone would know how to teach them how to improve.

I tell boys and girls to think about touching their neck with their throwing hand and it seems to help, quickly. I told a HS outfielder this once and he threw 30 feet further on the next long toss throw.

Most people think the arm stays in an "L" position during the throw. The forearm must flyout.

The guy my daughter hits with says his daughter getting with a boy's pitching coach, that we both know, was huge for her. She played mid major college ball.

Every now and then we'll pitch next to a girls who are decent pitchers but look like they have never thrown overhand when they are warming up.

bsbs said:

The guy my daughter hits with says his daughter getting with a boy's pitching coach, that we both know, was huge for her. She played mid major college ball.

Every now and then we'll pitch next to a girls who are decent pitchers but look like they have never thrown overhand when they are warming up.

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We actually did an overhand throwing lesson because DD wanted to throw harder/further overhand and at the time, she actually probably could have thrown harder pitching underhand. It was just some minor tweaks but had quick ROI.

uncdrew said:

No, but we worked on several Wasserman drills and feel that was a good use of time. We still warm up throwing with one of his drills.


Between HS and travel teams, I do see about 5% of girls who just don't have the right mechanics. I always wonder if coaches and parents notice it. I suspect they do, and I suspect they largely ignore it.

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He actually just had a clinic here about two weeks ago and from those that attended, they said it was pretty informative and helpful.

uncdrew said:

No, but we worked on several Wasserman drills and feel that was a good use of time. We still warm up throwing with one of his drills.


Between HS and travel teams, I do see about 5% of girls who just don't have the right mechanics. I always wonder if coaches and parents notice it. I suspect they do, and I suspect they largely ignore it.

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Five percent is way to low. I would estimate:
10U 45%
12U 35%
14U 25%
16U 15%
College 1- 2%
What is good throwing mechanics?
Wasserman is good. Most players would feel weird doing water bottle drill. 16U players should be able to throw overhand at least 60 mph. Players with good mechanics rarely have sore arms while those with funky mechanics throwing often get hurt.

My DD learned how to throw properly from watching a lot of softball before she started playing. Two problems cause poor throwing mechanics in softball. 1) Coaches who teach wrong. Even today, some teach wrist flicks, feed the giraffe, and the L shape. 2) The softball is too big for smaller girls' hands, so they push the ball. That is why Nor Cal switched from the 11" to 10" ball for 8u about 8 years ago, and So Cal has used the 10" ball in 8u for a long time.

I took my DD to see Austin Wasserman just before she turned 9 because a couple of coaches were worried, she would hurt her arm because she threw so hard, and it wasn't the way they had been taught to teach throwing. I wanted confirmation from an expert she was throwing correctly, and Austin said she was throwing 99 percent right.

Rolling Hard said:

Five percent is way to low. I would estimate:
10U 45%
12U 35%
14U 25%
16U 15%
College 1- 2%
What is good throwing mechanics?
Wasserman is good. Most players would feel weird doing water bottle drill. 16U players should be able to throw overhand at least 60 mph. Players with good mechanics rarely have sore arms while those with funky mechanics throwing often get hurt.

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I would say 1-2% for college is too low, also. I've seen some P5 players with, shall we say, questionable mechanics. I've seen more than a few who push the ball. I think once you reach a certain age, changing mechanics is really tough.

And what @Dabears17 said sounds like a great idea. Even an 11" ball is too big for the small girls. I'd actually prefer they learn to throw a baseball first until their hand can accommodate a larger ball.

Rolling Hard said:

Players with good mechanics rarely have sore arms while those with funky mechanics throwing often get hurt.

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This is what I have noticed over the years.