Sarah Pauly Pitching Clips

[FJRGerry]

Below is a link of Sarah pitching where she doesn't replant or leap. This is a better example of proper mechanics.

http://www.discussfastpitch.com/softball-pitching/1158-sarah-pauly-super-slow-motion-video.html

To me shifting the pivot foot to the center of the pitching rubber by lifting it slightly doesn't offer an advantage (but to my understanding it's not legal), but leaping does give the pitcher an advantage since there isn't the drag of the rear foot thereby allowing her a longer stride.

 

[ctfastpitch]

You're right. She does not replant in this video at all. Her footwork seems fine is this one. I've seen a number of pitchers shift their pivot foot to a different spot on the pitchers plate. Monica Abbott is a great example of it. If it is a slide, then I think it is perfectly legal. If she lifts it a little, again...no big deal, as long as her push off is starting from the PP.

One interesting thing I noticed is that she does not appear to have an exceptionally long stride. Someone like a Rachel Fico seems to have a much more explosive and longer stride in her videos. Granted this is slo-mo and it's only one pitch, but even taking that into account there seems to be a big difference. She must get a lot of her power from her long levers and big arm circle.

 

[Old Man River]

I am a pitching coach-maybe the best in the world(aren't we all) and I just was recently intoduced to this forum. When I watch Sarah pitch, my primary curiosity is" how is the ball spinning?" ( I am highly suspicious) and " who is Hal Skinner?" Old Man River

 

[Old Man River]

Hey! This is fun! Reply to a thread and see somebody's else's name show up instead of Hal Skinner's!! Old Man River

 

[halskinner]

I saw no crow hop in the three videos but one you dont see the foot and the rubber.

She was airborne / leaping on one.

She definitely brought the pivot foot forward of the rubber and was pushing off from somewhere other than the pitcher's rubber.

 

[sluggers]

SoCalASA: The videos were shot during a practice session, not a game. The point of the videos is to show body position and follow-through when throwing one of the pitches. The problems (a small leap and raising her foot off the rubber) are easily fixed during a game.

Would I as a coach bring this up during a game? No. I've seen the "illegal pitching" argument played out a 1,000,000 times, and it is really wasted effort. Here is how it works:

The coach starts yelling about an illegal pitch. He finally berates the umpire enough to call an illegal pitch, so the batter gets a ball (Holy cow! A ball! Whoopee! We're on easy street now!) called. The pitcher fixes it for three pitches, and then goes back to her old form. The coach starts complaining again. The umpire glares at the coach. The next close play, the umpire puts the screws to the coach. The coach's team then says, "We can't hit her. She is cheating." Now, the entire team has an excuse for not hitting the pitcher, so they collectively quit trying.​

No thanks. I'll pass, and focus on getting my girls to play as hard as they can.

(I do believe that umpires should do their job and call illegal pitches. But, they don't. During the CWS, you saw hundreds of illegal pitches, but nothing was called. The umpires are too timid.)

OldManRiver: While Hal may be ugly, he is a respected and knowledgeable pitching coach. He is a former fastpitch pitcher.

 

[SoCalASABlue]

You'll get no argument from me that my fellow umpires allow far too many illegal pitches.

 

[Renntiger]

SoCalASABlue,

Maybe you were the field umpire during one of our games at the State Games last year? Our opponent had been crushing the other teams with their hard-throwing ace pitcher, who was a leaping crow-hopper. Apparently no one made a fuss about it (including us) until she was called for leaping during our game. Her crow-hopping was tolerated so long as she maintained ground contact, but being airborne was evidently so ingrained in her mechanics that she never was able to make the adjustment, and ended up walking batter after batter on IPs, all of which were called by the field ump, who had a clear view of her feet (and didn't really have any other options once the first IP was called). I think everyone on our side was feeling sorry for her after the sixth or seventh walk, while the parents on the other side were clearly livid, at least one of whom was ordered to leave for shouting obscenities. The girl was eventually pulled, and the next two pitchers they put up had a lot of trouble throwing strikes. We won, naturally, but it was ugly. However, had we used our second pitcher, we'd have had a much closer (and even uglier) game, because she too, would have been called for leaping and/or crow-hopping.

Personally, I think the coaches and umps who tolerate these flaws when the girls are just beginning to develop their motion (U10, U12) are doing them a huge disservice. The longer they get away with it, the harder it is for them to make changes. Like speeding, they may be able to cruise along unfettered most of the time, but the one time they are caught, it could prove extremely costly, for them and for the team...

Gene

 

[SoCalASABlue]

Unfortunately, and anecdotally only from my perspective with the veteran umpires I have worked with, the mindset seems to be not whether the pitch is illegal from a rule book perspective but whether that particular umpire feels that there is any advantage being gained. I realize that this is not going to sit well with some but the rules are there for a reason. It's not my job as either a plate or base umpire to determine what - if any - advantage is being gained by replanting in front of the pitcher's plate or leaping without dragging. Both are illegal pitches and I call both whenever I see them in accordance with the rules. I guess I'm still a boy scout that way.

I have worked with some very experienced umpires whose work ethic and knowledge I respect very much. And what I was told - again, anecdotal evidence only - is that if Umpire XYZ makes a habit of calling illegal pitches at the college level on a regular basis, Umpire XYZ will simply not be assigned college work after a certain point...because school officials will make a call to the assigning organiation and let that organization know that Umpire XYZ is not welcome to officiate at ABC University's games. Umpiring is, after all, a business and folks that hire umpires are customers...and when the customer is unhappy, they go elsewhere...

 

[goosesdad]

Something that may be missed in this discussion is that an illegal pitch call is not always just a ball. An illegal pitch call is one which can most directly insinuate an umpire into the outcome of the game if it is called with runners on base, because the runners move up just like a balk in baseball. If there is a runner on third, that means the umpire's call results directly in a run. I have seen this happen with umpiring crews in the second game of a double header with the same pitchers pitching. If there is an illegal pitch to be called , it should be done early in the game IMHO. Also, if the umpires notice it during warm-ups, is there some way to notify the coach that it will be called if not corrected? I understand its not the umpire's responsibility, but it does help keep the game consistent, which in my mind is what the rules and umpires are for anyway.

I also understand that there can be a big advantaged gained by leaping or replanting. But sometimes, it is just a young pitcher struggling with varying mound conditions and maybe throwing a new pitch, and there is no advantage gained at all. Again, is there some way an umpire can let the coach or pitcher know in between innings or batters. I've coached and watched too many games to know that it is not possible for the field umpire to watch every pitch, every runner, and every swing. So, before an illegal pitch call is made with runners on base a call should always have been made earlier. But this is just my opinion on it- the call is often much more than just a ball and can have a direct effect on the outcome of a game. This may be why you don't see it as much at the college level.