Illegal pitching, acceptable !?!

STRIKE3 said:

...However, I have yet to see any (or at least not many) girls that pitch illegally AND throw faster, harder, or better than those who play by the rules...

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It makes no difference how they throw compared to others. The bottom line is that for most they are unable to throw at all unless they do so illegally. In the case of Miss Barnhill when she does throw legally it is substantially slower than when she leaps.

I don't know how it is in the rest of the country, but at least around here you'll be lucky to find 5 umpires that know the rules around pitchers and what's illegal and what's not.

Many of these college showcases instruct the umpires to ignore illegal pitches, leaving early etc. They want a show put on for the college coaches and figure the coaches should be smart enough to see if a girl is pitching legally or not or if a runner is leaving early or not. Just one more example of all these college showcases destroying the game of softball by dumbing down the rules, batting the lineup, free substitutions etc. etc etc.

90% of the IP's I've ever seen called have been for benign things like having hands together when steeping on the plate, then bringing them apart and back together again before starting to deliver the pitch.
Silly things like THAT will get called 9 times out of 10, but illegal moves like leaps and second-impulse crow hops consistently go un-called.

marriard said:

Welcome to the weird and wacky world of showcases.

No one does anything that supposedly takes away from players at these events. I am sure the pitcher already knows she leaps and steps and so do her coaches, parents and pitching coach. They are just on the side of "it is OK because they don't call it". And when you watch the CSWS on TV you can understand this thinking - even if it isn't right.

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It was a very interesting lesson in softball.

Hillhouse said:

I dont know much about showcases but, I know this... if you aren't cheating, you aren't trying!!!!! ha ha I tell all my girls, "win if you can, lose if you have to but, always, always cheat!!!". ha ha. Of course I'm not being serious. But threads like this always make me wonder.. did you see if any runner's left early? Were slapper's out of the box? Did the base coaches stay in their coach box to avoid picking the pitcher? Things like that. It's always the pitcher labeled as cheating.

One would like to think if a girl is illegal coaches would move on from her immediately. But, a college coach has a harder time than a HS coach. Lets face it, HS coaches get delivered who they get for pitching and it's entirely dependent on the local feeder system or a girl moving to your school district. A college coach has to prognosticate how good someone will be in 2 years, how much she will mature, etc. That's hard to do without a crystal ball.

Bill

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Winners don't get caught cheating...just kidding. It does make me wonder why one girl got called for not having her back foot on the rubber, yet, another pitcher clearly stepped in front of the rubber. As a parent of pitcher, I wanted to know if she was illegal. How else could she get better if she didn't know? I cringe every time I look at my own daughters old video because...I didn't know any better. I paid someone to teach her mechanics and never once was her crow hopping and replanting was addressed. It wasn't until I started asking questions here and doing research that I realize what was being taught to her was wrong. It was hard to admit that I paid good money that I could of just youtube for free...LOL... Bad mechanics also caused knee problems....something that could of and should of been avoided if I only knew better. I wonder how many girls could get much better if they just knew.

Just curious on your thoughts about girls committing to a college when they are just in the 8th grade? I saw at this showcase several coaches flocking to this 13 year old pitchers. She had a lot of hype and many people were talking about her. Do we know if she will be good or even want to play college ball. Who knows.

corlay said:

90% of the IP's I've ever seen called have been for benign things like having hands together when steeping on the plate, then bringing them apart and back together again before starting to deliver the pitch.
Silly things like THAT will get called 9 times out of 10, but illegal moves like leaps and second-impulse crow hops consistently go un-called.

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Stepping back was called IP at this tournament.

Comp said:

Many of these college showcases instruct the umpires to ignore illegal pitches, leaving early etc. They want a show put on for the college coaches and figure the coaches should be smart enough to see if a girl is pitching legally or not or if a runner is leaving early or not. Just one more example of all these college showcases destroying the game of softball by dumbing down the rules, batting the lineup, free substitutions etc. etc etc.

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It is weird paying between 2 and 10 times more for these showcases so that my DD can play softball without the goal of actually winning the game she is playing in.

Yes I know there is a a college goal in all this for the players, but playing competitively in non-competitive games is just strange.

marriard said:

It is weird paying between 2 and 10 times more for these showcases so that my DD can play softball without the goal of actually winning the game she is playing in.

Yes I know there is a a college goal in all this for the players, but playing competitively in non-competitive games is just strange.

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Im sure everyone has seen it before, but worth repeating.

http://www.discussfastpitch.com/softball-discussions/4276-candrea-playing-vs-competing.html

The format regardless if it is a showcase, national tournament, or even a practice really should not matter. Those who are the true competitors will be all in and going full out. Those are the players the college coaches are looking to recruit. That is why many colleges find out all they need to know about a potential recruit during warmups.