NSA goes to 43 Feet

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Sammy the 40' pitch distance does not belittle the players or the game any more than the 60' bases or the 200' fence, ?it is simply the rules of the game. ? The 43' difference is not going to make a huge difference in the play of the game or in the players self esteem. ? By your logic then we should move the base back to 90' and why stop at 43' feet lets really prove how macho the chicks are and move the pitcher back to center field. ? Maybe girls should be insulted and quit playing basketball until they get to use the same size ball that the men use. ? The pitcher will be at 43' across the board eventually. ? The entire reason is the same reason for the change in college, ? too many people think the game is boring and want more offense. ? Maybe that is why it was dropped from the olympics and from the number of people who seem to make that point, ?even among those who know the game, ? the olympic committee was probably justified. ?

 

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The girls basketball is smaller for physiological reasons - smaller hands. Same reason for using the smaller softball at 10u.

The actual measured distances, whether it be pitching, baselines, fences or distance to the porta-john is not my point. It is the discrepancy of the distances between different levels - specifically 14u through 18u (excluding gold) versus college. Don't get silly timac. I'm all for the betterment of the game of softball, and girl's sports in general. Comparing and contrasting male and female sports is a slippery slope. A more logical view would be to see the success other sports have had with using standardized dimensions.

I do agree with your statement that the pitcher will be at 43' across the board eventually. I'm just amazed that it took this long to start the process.

 

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Since I do not coach an 18u team, the rule that interests me the most is the re-entry of subsitutes. I like that I can now use a pinch runner more than once and my fear of leaving someone on the bench in case of injury is over.

 

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Why does the discrepancy matter. ? The dimensions are arbitrary and could be anything. ? There are discrepancies at different levels for most sports. ? ?I just don't believe that there is any reason for making the change. ? Yes the colleges are there, ?this move was simply to get more offense, ? they were not always at 43'. ? ?Yes the ASA gold teams play there, ? but those teams in no way represent the talent and ability of the typical 18U player. ? ?Many 18U players are 16 just turning 17 when they have to move to 18U. ? Lastly I don't think there will be as much offense added to the game as people hope. ? ?Maybe I'm just a traditionalist, ?I don't like the basketball games where players are aided by trampolines either. ?

 

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timac4, I'm with you. So we move it for 18's, then what? Move it for 16's, maybe? Will there then be pressure to move to 43' for 14's? I hope not.

 

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My DD pitching coach has her throw from 43 and she is 12. This builds up arm strength and speed. But I agree with Bigtran. I've been coaching for 12 yrs and this argument keeps coming up. 10U is 35,, most have problems with the 12 inch ball, and 40 ' change. You give them one year and you jump them to 43 in high school after one year at 40? That makes no sense? . Sure you have some, but with the amount of teams and each needing three pitchers I don't see it. The only good that I see at 43 ( and from a father of a pitcher)) , more time to react to the ball from the new bats. I forget what the formula stated on this website for each foot how much slower the ball travels, but it would be easier to hit. We have a great sport for our DD's that has had tremendous growth why would anyone want to mess with it..

 

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my dd pitched from 43' in fall ball on college field rise balls were coming in a little high,she adjusted that but it seems funny nobody has mentioned the extra 3' the batter gets to look at the ball

 

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Florida HS went to 43 feet this year and I really did not hear a lot of complaining. The comment about problems for tournaments is accurate. Simply adding an additional pitching plate is not the answer. Many pitchers could land on the 40 foot plate. On the good sites the plates are permanent and can not be removed for 18u games.

 

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My 15U DD has tried throwing from 43' and most of the movement pitches look 100% different from the extra 3 feet. The catchers also have a big adjustment to the pitches. I think the pitchers who start practicing Now with the catcher that will catch for them this summer will be ok, but the teams who do not practice together much will pay the price with many wild pitches/past balls. jmho

 

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At the NFCA course last weekend, Coach Clark from Texas said that when she is observing pitchers for recruitment, it makes her life easier when the mound is at 43 feet. She indicated that most young ladies make the transition fairly easily but that she has had questions about some pitchers' ability to move back and wished in those situations that she'd been able to actually see the girl pitch from 43 feet.

 

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this past summer our team about 50% of season @ 43' , Rising Stars was @ 43' this year too, a big difference between 18u pitchers and 14u pitchers is not necessarly speed but ball movement.....ball movement is what really separates the good from the best....it is much more effective and noticible @ 43' in IMHO, @ the top levels a good batter can crush a fastball....it is a litte more challenging for the batter when the pitcher has movement....it was really surprising how fast our pitchers and catchers adjusted to the extra 3'.... really think that it demonstrates our sport @ it best....

 

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The document that I have for my Glove radar says for every 7 feet you loose 1mph. So moving back 3 feet will not change the speed across the plate very much but may make ball move more.