- Jun 23, 2020
- 10
- 3
My daughter was pitching in a 12U USSSA open tournament last weekend. She worked on adding the step back throughout the winter, following the advice of her pitching coach. Her first pitch of the tournament was called illegal based on the movement of her hands. She struggled to adjust her windup on the mound, so she didn't pitch very long. Our second pitcher was called for the same thing.
I talked to the umpire after the game just to make sure I could help my daughter develop a proper windup. He explained that when using the step back, once your hands come together, you may no longer move backward in any way. For reference, her windup is similar to this explanation video: .
Was this a misreading of the new rule by the ump, or are windups like the one show illegal? It seems to me that if you have to take the step back prior to putting your hands together, pitchers would have to find grips with the ball on their leg. It also seems to reduce the effectiveness of the step if your upper body (hands) have to move together during or after the step back.
Any help is appreciated!
I talked to the umpire after the game just to make sure I could help my daughter develop a proper windup. He explained that when using the step back, once your hands come together, you may no longer move backward in any way. For reference, her windup is similar to this explanation video: .
Was this a misreading of the new rule by the ump, or are windups like the one show illegal? It seems to me that if you have to take the step back prior to putting your hands together, pitchers would have to find grips with the ball on their leg. It also seems to reduce the effectiveness of the step if your upper body (hands) have to move together during or after the step back.
Any help is appreciated!