Why so many Bad Innings this year?

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Sharing a great message that my DD's pitching coach shared.

The State Tournament draws are over and Sectionals begin this weekend!!! One thing that many of you need to address is that ONE BAD INNING!!! The State Tournament is a SINGLE ELIMINATION TOURNAMENT, so there is no room for a BAD INNING!!! It is ONE AND DONE!!!

So, why are we having BAD INNINGS and how do we eliminate them??

HERE ARE THE REASONS I HEAR FROM SOME OF YOU AS TO WHY YOU ARE HAVING BAD INNINGS:

1. The umpires strike zone changed! He squeezed me!! He took away my best pitch!!
2. My catcher's pitch calling was terrible!! She wasnt throwing my change, my drop, my rise or whatever!
3. My coaches pitch calling was terrible!! and same as above.
4. There were so many errors!! I can't believe my teammates can be so bad, they really hate me!!
5. The conditions were terrible, too wet, too cold, it snowed, it rained, blah, blah, blah.


HERE ARE THE REAL REASONS WHY YOU ARE HAVING BAD INNINGS:

1. 43 feet!!!
2. Hitters are adjusting
3. Whoever calls your pitches has a pattern.
4. You are losing it mentally.
5. You are tired and not as affective as you were
6. You are facing some very good hitters
7. You just lost it and need to come out

HOW TO AVOID THOSE BIG INNINGS:

1. Think in the present!! Not on the last pitch or on the outcome of the game, THE NEXT PITCH ONLY!!
2. Hit your spots!!! YOU CAN'T WIN GAMES BY THROWING THE BALL IN THE RED ZONE!!!
3. Be mentally tough!! Get RID OF THE BLAME GAME AND THROW GOOD PITCHES WITH GOOD MOVEMENT!!
4. Stop thinking so much AND TRUST YOUR SKILL!! Quit questioning everyone and just pitch!!
5. Have a back up pitcher. Coaches! at 43 feet the game has changed causing a need for another pitcher to be ready. Hitters are making adjustments and sometimes the best adjustment is to put in another pitcher for a different look!!

Basically what I am saying to all you pitchers is, BE REALISTIC!!! IT IS WHAT IT IS!! And, most of you are doing that and I am extremely proud of you. However, there are some of you who get into this BLAME GAME and end up making things worse. The best comment I had from one of our pitchers this year who just took a very tough loss was, "coach, I just couldn't throw my best pitch, what should I have done?" This is a pitcher BEING REALISTIC! I was there and she was right on!! She wasn't being squeezed, She wasn't making excuses and even though her teammates did make some mistakes, SHE DIDN'T BLAME THEM!!!

One more point. I recently talked to an umpire who was getting some grief from a pitcher about his strike zone. He said it was getting pretty embarassing and he was getting disgusted. Now, he didn't say that he '"SQUEEZED" her, but he did say that if it was close, she didnt get it!! PITCHERS BE SMART!!! Umpires are human and don't want to be embarrased. They are mostly really good people who love the sport and are trying to do a very hard job!!! AND!!! THEY ARE ADULTS and deserve your respect!! Best response to a call that didn't go your way??? Just a smile and look away, that is enough!!! Not "THE STARE,THE LOOK, THE STOMP, THE WHATEVER!!! They can see right through that and if a college coach is watching, you will be OFF THEIR RECRUIT LIST, I CAN GUARANTEE THAT!! Oh, that pitcher who was upset about the strike zone??? Yes SHE WAS ONE OF OURS and yes, SHE DID LOSE THAT GAME!! (I'm sure that she probably blamed him, or the weather, or her teammates, or her coaches or whatever)

GOOD LUCK IN THE SECTIONALS, REGIONALS AND STATE!!!

 

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Nice post.

Mental toughness is every bit as important for a pitcher as a good change-up or drop ball.

 

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Mental toughness is more important than athleticism in my opinion

 

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43 feet is the main reason behind the increased scoring and bad innings.

I did not catch as many games as I did last year with all the rain outs but a couple of things stood out in the 12 I attended.

For the most part we had the same umpires we have had for years.Players that struggled batting their weight improved a lot.
Good Pitchers that had a decent era and win / loss record last year are not enjoying the same success.
The defense was exposed with more balls getting hit.


Last year if you had a decent pitcher you were very competitive.
This year teams with a true ACE were the only ones I seen that did not have the run explosion.

 

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When I saw the subject line, I had to read your post. (Which is the sign of a good subject line!)

Our number one pitcher got lit up for 10 runs in the first inning last night. But, I don't think it was much of her own fault. Sure, she walked a couple of batters. But fielding errors, lack of hustle, throwing errors in run-downs, insufficient base-coverage: all contributed. (I'm not the pitcher's dad, BTW)

Sometimes you have a BAD inning, and it seems like nothing you can do can stop the bleeding. Mental toughness on everybody's part & perserverance will eventually get you through it. Keep the enthusiasm up. If they can score 10, so can you.

 

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We just haven't been able to get enough games in that we can find any rhythm. The teams just haven't looked sharp, the hitting is off, the fielding is off and the pitchers just aren't strong.

I'm blaming the weather. We have gone a week getting ready to play, riding buses and then going home. 43' might have something to do with it but it just feels like we are still playing our scrimmage games. A bad inning keeps on happening.

Maybe if we can get into May and start playing some games in a row the teams will perform better.

 

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DD is aware that pitching is different this year due to the distance. She also knows that she needs to trust the rest of the team on the field to make the plays. However, trust is hard to come by when fielders make up to 8 errors a game, 3 in that one bad inning.
The weather has been a huge factor this season. Hard to play your best when muscles are too cold/tight to allow for agility and proper mechanics. It has also interfered with games and outdoor practices that create the timing needed for error free innings.

 

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Most bad innings happen because one or more players lose focus. When the dike begins to leak, the defense becomes vulnerable. A good coach will recognize the symptoms and plug the hole before the dike can break, then we hold our breath and hope it ends before it’s too late. Lol.

One thing I do want to point out is a statement from any umpire that they change the way they would call a game for any reason. Umpires are paid to call the game by the book. Do not believe you have any right to make any call different from the pattern you set throughout the game. Do your job by the book, stay consistent, or know you'll be judged for changing during a game to make something personal. Be a professional as expected of you or take off the blue.

 

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Last night was a good example of an umpire changing his strike zone based on the pitcher. The girl just couldn't throw a strike, so after the first inning anything from the chin down was a strike. After the first inning everyone knew we were going to run rule the team we were playing. I have seen this more than once this year. Some kids are really having problems with 43 feet.

 

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I will be the first to call out my catcher & pitcher DD's for not going with the right pitches...I don't know how many batters have hit an 0-2 and 1-2 pitch on them!!...but the umpires, and maybe it is just our games?!, have been absolutely horrible when it has counted ie), close calls. I can't count on just 2 hands how many times a girl who is clearly out is called safe and vice versa - and this has happened against and for us. Luckily we have shot ourselves in the foot to lose most of the games we have and only a couple of these calls could be described as game changers, but they will be, come tournament time when the games will be decided by just a run or two. As far as plate umpires, I don't think they have changed in the 4 years I have been rubbing my temples. Someone needs to explain to them that any part of the ball crossing the plate (not just the white part now!) at the correct height is a strike, not just a ball that the batter swings at and misses.

 

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Our HS team has been plagued with this all season. I think for us it boils down to one reason. The bad weather, which makes for less games, and then in our case, less practice. We have won a few games because other teams have had a bad inning also, so I suspect that this is happening to a lot of HS teams.

 

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In my 8 years of HS coaching we have had many a "bad inning." I have come to the conclusion that it usually starts with walks or a hit, but when ever you put runners on base the mentality of the players on the fields change. Heck, it even changes in us coaches. The pitchers get focusing on the runner stealing, or the hitter bunting, while the fielders are worrying about where they need to be on the steal or the bunt. One baserunner completely changes everyones outlook and responsibilities in the game, while subsequent baserunners only multiply the anxiety.
You are not going to stop people from getting on base. Us coaches need to do a better job of preparing our players both mentally and physically for these types of situations, but it has to start with the pitchers. They have to stay focused and continue to make the necessary pitches that gives their team an advantage, being ground balls and popups. If they get rattled and just start chucking it in there the result is more walks, HBP, passed balls, and gappers...believe me I know all to well. Preparation is the name of the game, or tons of advil.

 

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In softball, I see baserunners affecting catchers more than pitchers (baseball is another story). If they're calling pitches, it sometimes affects which pitches they'll call because they get preoccupied with holding or throwing out the baserunner instead of retiring the batter. Some will cheat up in their crouch which leads to 1) pitches getting by them they'd normally catch/stop and 2) blocking the umpire from seeing the pitch.

Experienced pitchers don't get affected by someone reaching base - it usually takes a combination of events to affect them (i.e. walks, HBPs, hits and/or errors). Regardless of what they feel inside, they have to maintain their composure in order to get out of the jam. If not, it will affect their ability to execute pitches and the defense is going to lose confidence.

The biggest issue is giving the other team extra outs due to errors or making unsuccessful attempts to retire the lead runner. Experienced fielders don't tense up or rush themselves when there are baserunners. When trying to execute a double play, they follow the axiom "First one sure, second one quick" which means make sure you get at least one out by not rushing the initial play.

As for the OP, a major factor in any increase would be the change in pitching distance and the resulting increase in balls put in play.