Heck, my DD's 12U TB team had that issue in a tournament 3 weeks ago. Low 40's from 40' resulted in our girls hitting weak grounders to the middle IF all game long, and we got eliminated by a team we have never lost to. It was a sad day.
10U pitch speed
- Thread starter Orthodoc
- Start date
Welcome to Discuss Fastpitch
Your FREE Account is waiting to the Best Softball Community on the Web.
Heck, my DD's 12U TB team had that issue in a tournament 3 weeks ago. Low 40's from 40' resulted in our girls hitting weak grounders to the middle IF all game long, and we got eliminated by a team we have never lost to. It was a sad day.
We played many games last year with pitchers throwing 47-50. They depended on their speed and we won about 70% of those games. The toughest pitcher they faced last year was mid 40's at most and had a devastating change up.
They are still 10U this year and are so used to facing fast pitching that in one game this fall they looked really bad when they faced a super slow pitcher.
They are still 10U this year and are so used to facing fast pitching that in one game this fall they looked really bad when they faced a super slow pitcher.
So excluding the top and bottom pitchers at 10u I've seen. I would say the following is pretty consistent.
Elite/phenom 48+ with control of the changeup
Fast 50+
Good 45+
Slow 44 and under.
I really like the off speed or spin pitchers in 10u. I coached a girl that threw 47 and could control 4 pitches in 10u. Rarely lost. It wasn't until 14u that she ever got hit hard. Now her 51mph gets hit every game. Never learned how to pitch.
Elite/phenom 48+ with control of the changeup
Fast 50+
Good 45+
Slow 44 and under.
I really like the off speed or spin pitchers in 10u. I coached a girl that threw 47 and could control 4 pitches in 10u. Rarely lost. It wasn't until 14u that she ever got hit hard. Now her 51mph gets hit every game. Never learned how to pitch.
shaker1
Softball Junkie
Most of the phenom's we seen at 10u, lived on the heat till 14u. Now they are trying to catch up.
- Jun 7, 2013
- 984
- 0
My DD in 10U cruised in the mid-40's, kept it low and outside, and had a killer CU. She average about 2 K's per inning against good teams.
There are lot of 10U phenoms who are washed up by 14U because they never learned how to throw anything but gas, and by 14U the batters have caught up to them.
- Jun 12, 2015
- 3,848
- 83
My DD is the slowest of the 3 we have (very close to one, the other is a good bit faster) but her location is extremely good and she has a wicked change up. She can throw off-speed fast balls that really throw batters off and her ball to strike ratio is best of the 3. Speed isn't everything 
Of course, we're still hoping to add a few MPH before spring. Right or wrong, some coaches seem to really prefer the faster pitchers.
Of course, we're still hoping to add a few MPH before spring. Right or wrong, some coaches seem to really prefer the faster pitchers.
10U - In the end, early maturity generally wins the 10U division. For 10U Pitchers - breaking 50 is REALLY rare and I have never seen a girl who wasn't a real early maturer genuinely do it (not to say it hasn't happened) and it really is no indicator of future performance. If you hovering in the mid-40's and working on a changeup and experimenting with other pitches, you are in a pretty good place long term.
The fastest pitcher in 10U when my DD was in that age group still throws exactly the same speed in 14U and I expect she will probably give up pitching and probably softball in the next few months. Of course she is still pretty much the same size as she was in 10U as well.
Some of the other 'big' girls in 10U are starting to break down with injuries as well as they have terrible mechanics and have thrown a lot of pitches already.
A few of the real hard throwers in 10U have really developed and also are now starting to mature and grow further (we have some real good PCs in the area) - they can be a real handful in games now but they tend to be either 'on' or 'off'.
Much more of the 'control' 10U pitchers have stuck with it and as they have matured they have become the premier pitchers in the division now. Most of them threw in the lower 40's (sometimes even not that hard) in 10U and are now in the lower-mid 50's in games with some of the 2nd year 14U players closing in on 60 (maybe a couple have got there). They are tough - the ball is starting to real move for them (not just move, but MOVE), they hit their spots more often than not, they change speeds and they are developing into smart pitchers.
My DD is the slowest of the 3 we have (very close to one, the other is a good bit faster) but her location is extremely good and she has a wicked change up. She can throw off-speed fast balls that really throw batters off and her ball to strike ratio is best of the 3. Speed isn't everything
Coaches prefer faster pitchers because it is easily quantifiable (radar guns) and most are more interested in winning games than they are in long term pitcher development. TB coaches leave it up to the pitcher and her parents to develop her skills outside of normal practices.
College coaches like to recruit pitchers who throw fast because it is easier to teach control than it is to increase speed, assuming a pitcher has good mechanics. Control can be learned through repetition while speed is often a God given talent.
- Jun 12, 2015
- 3,848
- 83
I like reading this. I feel like my DD has a lot of finesse for her age and experience level. I'm hopeful as she matures and gains speed naturally, it'll catapult her up the ranks because of that.
