11 Year old next steps??

[Lenski]

I have an 11 year old that can hit all 6 spots with her fastball pretty consistent and also has a great back hand change. Should I start teaching spins (Curveball, Dropball, Screwball) I bet she is throwing in the 42-44 range...

Nah....I'd work on speed and rotation.

 

[MNDad]

^^^This, the dropball is just an extension of the fastball and a fundamental pitch so it's the place to go. My 11YO DD sounds pretty similar (maybe a couple MPH faster but not much). The drop is an excellent pitch for her, just as fast as her fastball. Even on days when she isn't generating enough RPM for it to move much it's a good low fastball which is where a pitcher with moderate speed needs to locate most of the time anyway.

Depends on the kid. DD's progression went fastball, rise, screw. She worked on change and drop early on, but wasnt consistent at either until recently.

 

[Classof2020]

Only throwing low 40s I would focus on any breaking ball...it won't move. I see so many of these pitchers with 8 pitches stepping left...stepping right...its just silly. Angle pitch is all it is when you do all of that stride adjuating. You can't make a ball spin with no power on the ball..42 is to slow and I'd work on power and maybe the mechanics of spinning the ball for now.

Don't worry about people that say this sort of thing. It's not true and you can't wait until you're throwing 55 to learn a drop and a rise. My DD's drop ball was dropping well at 44-46 MPH a few years ago and now she tops out at 52 and her rise was her best pitch this last year - and yes it's got the right spin and it's not just a screw or FB thrown high in the zone. Work on your drop and then start experimenting with the riseball spin when you have the time and interest like coach james said.

 

[Coach Up]

Didn't say you had to wait. I said you can still work on it but it Will NOT move. Comprehension is a wonderful thing

 

[Coach Up]

Ohhh yes....the ole 42mph drop ball...seen many of them.

 

[MNDad]

Don't worry about people that say this sort of thing. It's not true and you can't wait until you're throwing 55 to learn a drop and a rise. My DD's drop ball was dropping well at 44-46 MPH a few years ago and now she tops out at 52 and her rise was her best pitch this last year - and yes it's got the right spin and it's not just a screw or FB thrown high in the zone. Work on your drop and then start experimenting with the riseball spin when you have the time and interest like coach james said.

Is this a typo? Why can't you wait?

 

[Classof2020]

Is this a typo? Why can't you wait?

Ok I guess you could, especially if you are playing rec, but I can see a lot of reasons. If you don't hit 55 until you're 15 that seems a little late to finally try different pitches, especially a rise which can be challenging for some girls. It's a little boring for the kid I'd think. You better be AWESOME with your locations if you are only throwing a fastball and a periodic change-up at 14U ASA. Most coaches are looking for more variety I think post 12U.

I guess I also wasn't saying the drop specifically like it looks like in the highlighted area, I guess I should have said "you don't have to be throwing 55 to work on learning an additional pitch" that would have been more of what I was getting at, for some girls that might take some time.

 

[MNDad]

Ok I guess you could, especially if you are playing rec, but I can see a lot of reasons. If you don't hit 55 until you're 15 that seems a little late to finally try different pitches, especially a rise which can be challenging for some girls. It's a little boring for the kid I'd think. You better be AWESOME with your locations if you are only throwing a fastball and a periodic change-up at 14U ASA. Most coaches are looking for more variety I think post 12U.

I guess I also wasn't saying the drop specifically like it looks like in the highlighted area, I guess I should have said "you don't have to be throwing 55 to work on learning an additional pitch" that would have been more of what I was getting at, for some girls that might take some time.

I get what you're saying, but my experience was different at 14U. In 2012 we finished 4th at ASA/USA. DD was working on a rise that she could throw for strikes and other pitcher did the same with her drop. Primary pitches for both girls were fastballs of varying accuracy. They'd mix in an occasional change that sometimes worked, but more often missed badly. Any movement pitches were greatly telegraphed and these were two of the better pitchers around. It was rare to see anything other than fastballs from opponents and even rarer to see girls throwing 55+.

In my experience girls start to develop effective movement pitches at 16U/18U. Even then the ones with more than a fast ball are the exception rather than the norm.