Strike out

[mmeece]

My guess is your DD is throwing too many strikes. Doesn't grasp how to get them to chase. You should be calling and throwing about 60 percent strikes.

This ^^^ In all likelihood she needs to be throwing fewer called strikes, especially once she is ahead in the count. DDs pitching coach used to joke that "strikes are a last resort". Get ahead and see if you can get them out without throwing a pitch that would be called a strike. Sometimes it's tough to convince them to miss on purpose after coaching them to throw strikes for so long.

 

[JayW]

Maybe try an experiment. Take 3 of your good hitters at practice and have each girl pitch to them rotating through their pitches. Should be pretty easy to see which pitches cause more misses. In general, it seems that you get the most misses from either extreme speed or deception, e.g., a slow change after a hard fastball.

 

[GunnerShotgun]

Sometimes it's tough to convince them to miss on purpose after coaching them to throw strikes for so long.

Nothing makes me more nervous than calling a pitchout. No matter how much the pitchers say they practice some just won't/can't/refuse to do it consistently. Throw it in the other batters box? I got this coach....

 

[Tango]

Maybe try an experiment. Take 3 of your good hitters at practice and have each girl pitch to them rotating through their pitches. Should be pretty easy to see which pitches cause more misses. In general, it seems that you get the most misses from either extreme speed or deception, e.g., a slow change after a hard fastball.

Maybe try an experiment. Take 3 of your good hitters at practice and have each girl pitch to them rotating through their pitches. Should be pretty easy to see which pitches cause more misses. In general, it seems that you get the most misses from either extreme speed or deception, e.g., a slow change after a hard fastball.

We have a college commit that's a junior that can really swing it, another junior that can swing, and two sophomores that can really swing it. Her change is her best pitch as far as swing and miss. We do a lot of 2-2 counts and so on in the preseason.

Off season, I did a lot of work with both of them on 3 pitch sequences, if first two pitches are strikes third is a ball off or two balls off. Really good at hitting the spots.

 

[Towny9]

Last night 33 strikes out of 46 pitches. Nothing down the middle. Their a two hitter in 5 innings of work. No walks and 2 strike outs. One ball hit hard all night.

Try having her pitch a little backwards one game. Throw more offspeed early in the counts to get ahead and then put them away with fastballs. If you’re change up is good it’s pretty effective.

 

[NJSwampdragons]

deception? Is one motion herky gerky? One of my pitchers (12U) does something where the ball totally disappears (to me as a catcher) then explodes from her hip. Like a freaking magician. It is gone, then it is on top of me. As a first year 12U she pitched REALLY well against some good competition last year. Way better than her control and velocity would suggest.

Could it be that there is more movement on the pitches? Just a little more run, sink or fade on each pitch?

Sounds like you’re coaching my DD. Also 1st year 12-U. Had no idea why she was striking out so many girls in the fall vs good competition (mostly 2nd year teams). But I’ve had multiple coaches over the years comment how well she hides the ball then it’s suddenly on them.

 

[Tango]

Try having her pitch a little backwards one game. Throw more offspeed early in the counts to get ahead and then put them away with fastballs. If you’re change up is good it’s pretty effective.

If her drop/curve is on she uses it like her FB and we may not throw a FB the entire game. She throws it as hard or harder than her FB. It is her best pitch when on.

 

[ArmWhip]

It's an interesting question, it could simply be that your daughter is generating more weak contact early in the count and doesn't get to as many 2 strike counts. That would fit your scenario of the runner on 2nd with no outs scoring on 2 balls put in play. In most cases I favor weak contact early in the count over swing and misses. How do the 2 pitchers compare in total pitches per inning or better yet pitches per batter?

 

[Tango]

Similar but DD a little less.

Friend- 7 innings, 54 strikes out of 61 pitches. Umpire was giving a very wide strike zone. Better than normal.

DD- 5 innings, 33 strikes out of 46. Umpire was very tight this one. Normal.

Last two outings

 

[jmpauter]

id rather have the pitcher that induces 3 soft ground balls with 3 pitches than the strike outs. LOL

To quote the great Crash Davis: "Strikeouts are boring. Besides that, they’re fascist. Throw some ground balls. It’s more democratic.”