Pitching and Pitchers Discussion Lack of Girls Fastpitch Softball Pitchers !

[Westler33]

I thought every team had that 8yo throwing 72mph! lol

 

[dawgpound19]

I think it's a combination of things, like others have said more and more organizations are starting up which dilutes the pitching pool. I've coached 10U teams and almost every single girl wants to pitch the problem is to be an effective pitcher it takes a LOT of hard work and dedication and I'm just not talking about going to a pitching coach. To be effective and hit your spots at 14 and 16U a pitcher needs to pitch all year long, work on multiple pitches and be able to throw all of your pitches at different spots. Then throw in the fact that most girls can't throw 60+ and it's discouraging for young ladies. On top of that throw in volleyball, basketball, track, and whatever other school sports and it's hard to find the time to practice. My daughter plays volleyball and basketball along with travel softball so from the start of August until the end of February she has practice/games for volleyball and basketball every single day plus school and homework, etc. We need to find time to just see her pitching coach once a week let alone have time to throw two to three times a week so it takes a lot of dedication from young ladies and some girls just don't want to put the time in and that's perfectly fine.

Add all of these things up and you get girls that want to pitch but don't put in the hard work to become better so the good pitchers are hard to come by. One thing I see too and it might be the most important is that EVERY organization wants that girl that throws 60+ and can throw 4 pitches and be a #1 pitcher and those girls are hard to come by. At 14 and 16U I'll take 3 pitchers that throw mid 50's with tight spin, good movement, can locate pitches, and focus on defense, defense, and more defense.

 

[coachjwb]

I think the talent of the top pitchers continues to improve, but it seems like the number of "good" pitchers is going down. As the best get better, and as more players focus on the sport year round, my premise is that some of the girls who used to give it a shot and weren't that far behind the better pitchers are finding themselves too far behind and deciding not to put all of the work into it. While there are always new organizations/teams being added, I guess I'm not convinced that is outweighing the number that are going away.

 

[FPMom2000]

I agree with a lot of what was said here about diluting the pitchers pool and blind focus on that 60+mph pitcher! DD got passed up by several organizations because her speed wasn't up there. (Granted she was injured and going to tryouts was not helping) She barely hit 50 mph. But she has excellent movement. Great spin, her curve ball is insane. She had girls coming up to her at the tryouts asking her how she got her pitches to move so much!? But because she wasn't in the mid 50's they passed. That's fine. I get it. I think speed is easier to improve than movement. Once her back is healed, she'll be back to 55. Her movement pitches will be her bread and butter. I also think the whole notion of #1 pitcher is crazy. Why not have 3 very strong pitchers? Each with specialty pitches. How many fastballs do you see in college anyway? Be able to place your pitch exactly where you want it on the plate. A 60 mph fastball down the middle maybe fast, but its also a homerun! In college, not one of those D1 girls is a #2 or #3 pitcher. The true strikeout pitchers are rare, even the 70+mph pitcher that can't place the ball can be hit. The hitters have caught up and its time to change the thinking of strikeouts are the most important. An out is an out. No matter which way you get.

 

[spartansd]

In the last 8-10 years the hitting and swings have improved immensely.

So the pitchers do not look nearly as good regardless of how good they are. Lets assume the pitchers on a whole were getting good coaching all along. But it has only been the last 6+ years the hitters have been catching up.

Suddenly the pitchers seem to have declined.

I think the hitters have gotten better. Causing pitchers to learn how to "control" batters more rather than just shutting them down. And additionally, coaches need to up their game because now TEAM DEFENSE has become more critical sooner.

IMO the single biggest area of improvement in softball has been at the plate. Approach, coaching, swings have all improved and created a different game.

 

[FastBat]

I hope I'm not too off topic here, but I ran across this chart awhile ago, it's Jennie Finch's age and speeds as she grew. I believe, it was taken off Finch's website, because she is trying to promote proper pitching mechanics vs. speed. But, it's still fun, if you want your dd throwing 70mph here's the path to speed! Good luck!

Age / Top Speed
8 / 49
9 / 51
10 / 53
11 / 55
12 / 59
13 / 62
14 / 63
15 / 66
16 / 68
17 / 68
18 / 67
19 / 67
20 / 69
21 / 70
22 / 71
23 / 71

I found this on thesoftballchannel.com, under thread, "Jennie's Speed by Age".

 

[wow]

I hope I'm not too off topic here, but I ran across this chart awhile ago, it's Jennie Finch's age and speeds as she grew. I believe, it was taken off Finch's website, because she is trying to promote proper pitching mechanics vs. speed. But, it's still fun, if you want your dd throwing 70mph here's the path to speed! Good luck!

Age / Top Speed
8 / 49
9 / 51
10 / 53
11 / 55
12 / 59
13 / 62
14 / 63
15 / 66
16 / 68
17 / 68
18 / 67
19 / 67
20 / 69
21 / 70
22 / 71
23 / 71

I found this on thesoftballchannel.com, under thread, "Jennie's Speed by Age".

Fid it interesting no drop between 10 and 11??? That's not right...

 

[wow]

Two issues noted

1. Teams are ALWAYS looking for pitching. You don't want to pass over someone in case they are elite. This creates a "grass is greener" and some of the other issues out there. IE pitchers getting reduced fees.

2. The time it takes to be an elite pitcher. Out West and down South they are pitching year round and outside. We all know pitching is muscle memory and it takes years to develop pitches. Some of it is natural but most of it is just plain hard work. The work ethic around pitching is second to none. Pitchers have to make sacrifices and these levels not everyone is willing to put the work in. You need to be pitching 3-5 times a week, have dedicated time off, strength and agility training and study the game to be smart. Pitching is about being the whole package and not just able to throw smoke.

 

[brownsfan]

I started a long post but decided to chop it shorter as there are a lot of reasons why there’s a lack of pitchers with blame going around to all parties.

Does the girl have the work ethic to be a better pitcher? Are the parents willing to push the limits during a workout, or do they reframe from doing that and only saying positive things like “it’s ok Suzi, you’ll get it next time” while becoming a broken record with her not truly progressing. Yes there’s a fine line, but pitching is more mental than most realize.

Are the younger age group coaches given ample time to their #3 and #4 pitchers for their development instead of working their 6’ tall workhorse who throws 75 so they can beat their chest?

Schedule is also key. Facing weaker teams does not do a pitcher any good when they’re swinging at ball four or if the pitcher constantly misses a pitch and batters don’t know how to take advantage of it.

I don't think it's gotten too diluted. I just think coaches/parents expect these girls to develop like they were on a 4G network by Verizon and don't have the patience for them to grow into the position.

 

[total180]

A couple of the posts above are spot on when they say there are too many teams and organizations out there now.
Seems every know it all, wanna be, disgruntled x coach or dad feels he can just do some paperwork, find a few coaches, (mostly inexperienced) and start a new team in this day and age. This waters down the true talent pool out there. It takes time, effort, commitment and lets face it a lot of money paid out to be a good pitcher as you move up. A lot of people cant send little Susie to pitching coaches, batting coaches, pay fees, travel expenses etc. Little Susie would be way better off being surrounded by established coaches, players, and families in some cases who pitch in and really do want what's best for the girls and the team. Plus labeling kids #1 #2 #3 pitchers, that's just wrong anymore. You bleeding hearts can say it helps them work harder. The reality is you are clueless. Ask one of those pitchers who is labeled #3 how she really feels.
Just my 2 cents. I know some will totally disagree but, such is life.

 

[Ferrigno20]

Too many teams. I know teams that still have no pitchers and sister teams are missing 4-5 players but have 3 strong pitchers. Ego's have them being on team black and team white for the same org instead of mixing the team. SMH

 

[Westler33]

I see that to 2 or 3 teams in the same age group same org. 2 of the 3 are looking for players?

 

[Laser05]

I agree there are too many teams. I don't see a reason to stop playing during the fall like mentioned earlier. My daughter is a pitcher and young and she learns every time she steps on the mound, but on the other hand we are spending our free time now on speed, power, and spotting the ball drills.

Organizations with 3 teams in one age group is bad and even forces sister teams to battle for players. I think a true young team like 11U and then a max age 12U is max.

 

[JCellar17]

Too many teams. I know teams that still have no pitchers and sister teams are missing 4-5 players but have 3 strong pitchers. Ego's have them being on team black and team white for the same org instead of mixing the team. SMH

Yeah this makes no sense. We merged our 12U Buckeye Heat Central OH and Toledo teams due to the lack of players. This benefits both teams and the organization.

 

[Westler33]

Yes it does make sense to make one team per age group 01's, 02's etc. unless you have players to fill both teams but there are still orgs. out there that want to have two or three teams in the same age group and two of them looking for players.

 

[joboo1drew]

I think it is time to re post a long lost thread due to the 2014 crash..... When is it time to call it quits if you still need players? I would think if you still need 3 or more players now it is time to think about disbanding. That is unless you plan on carrying 14 on your roster.

 

[gholly00]

I think the issue is that when a parent or player get's upset with their current situation they leave and start their own team, thus taking some of the talented players with them. It seems that for each age group there are new teams/orgs popping up every year. Just my $.02

 

[hawaiidreaming]

Defense wins Championships.

This summer I reformulated this for another parent to also cover the notion of #1, #2 (etc.) pitchers:

If we hit the ball and play defense, it shouldn't matter who we pitch. If we don't do either of those things, it will NEVER matter who we pitch.

I am sure there are some holes in that theory, but it certainly helps me maintain perspective, as my DD is a pitcher, and I strive to not become one of "those" parents

 

[steeler]

Could it be the cost of being a pitcher? Your pitching coach cost and if you don't have your own space to practice then add this cost x3 per week. Are you able to catch for your dd or do you have to pay for a catcher. What would happen if the ASA would ever go to a pitch/inning count limit?

 

[Lenski65]

Fid it interesting no drop between 10 and 11??? That's not right...

What?? Why would it drop?