3 Pitchers, 3 Different Pitching Instructors

[Ravenstown]

As a coach for a travel team, I have 3 pitchers that have 3 different pitching instructors. This is a young U10 team and it is very difficult to hold a pitching practice when the instruction they are receiving is different from what I am trying to assist them with. First, I want to clarify that it is great that they are all dedicated and they work hard to improve. Our pitching practice is more about trying to get in quality pitches as opposed to quantity of pitches. This is where the problem resides. I try to encourage the Hillhouse methods from his Building the House DVD as this is the same instruction that my DD gets from her pitching coach. However, some of the other pitchers do things entirely different then what I believe is correct in terms of mechanics. I understand that every pitcher has a different style and what works for one may not be the best solution for another. But when it comes to their mechanics, they have to be sound. I am not a qualified pitching instructor, but I don't think it takes an expert to repeat and demonstrate some of Bill's instructions that he has provided via his DVD and other Web videos. For example... load and drive off the pitching plate, shoe laces facing home, Letter K position, ball towards third, glove hand pointing to the target, No broomstick arms, touch in two places (bicep by the ear, forearm by the belly), power comes from across your body. What also muddies the water more is the parents of these players. How do I approach them and suggest that they could be wasting their money in pitching lessons and causing their child to build bad muscle memory habits or even possibly causing their child to have a future injury. I would love for them to all be on the same sheet of paper as far as mechanics are concerned because it would be a whole lot easier to practice. However, I don't want to play God and say who is right and who is wrong. Suggestions please!

 

[lhowser]

Personal meeting with parents and take Sandwich approach - (Complement - Content - Complement).

Complement - You are glad they are taking lessons and working hard.

Content - Here are some of the things you have discovered about pitching...not all pitching instructors are equal... Bill Hillhouse has these qualifications...somethings I've noticed that are different from what Bill teaches and what your daughter is doing...just want you to be heading down the right path because it is very hard to unlearn habits...We will be using all of our pitchers based on their effectivness in game situations when it ccomes to accuracy, speed and getting people out as they learn new pitches...

Complement - Look forward to your daughter improving with her lessons. If I can ever help or if you want more information about the instruction I have received and the instructional videos I use I'll be glad to help you out in any way I can

 

[Ravenstown]

LHowser, this is exactly why I visit this forum. Thank you for the advice and approach to solving my issue. (I won't be suing you, lol) Your response was very helpful as I am sure that I am not the only coach to ever be in this situation.

 

[jinjet95]

They're only 10, so may not be practicing correctly what their pitching instructors are teaching. Have you tried meeting with their respective pitching coaches to see what they're teaching and why? That way, you can help enforce what they're being taught. It would be too confusing for a 10 year old for you to be teaching something that may be contrary to what their pitching coach is teaching.

 

[ranstl]

this is a common issue. you hate to change something mom and dad are paying good money to get. first question i ask when instructing new kids - are you taking batting lessons? pitching lessons? etc. if no, then they do it my way. if yes, i find out who/where and and get an idea of what they teach. i will point out things to the player and offer an opinion, but ultimately leave it up to the parents and the player to decide what to do going forward. now, if good results aren't there, then... whole other conversation.

i'm fortunate. my primary pitchers all use the same pc. altho they are very similar, each girl does things a little different, but i know the how and why they do what they do. i have a very good relationship with our pc, so help is just a phone call away for me (and trust me...i've worn out the speed dial!).

 

[Dusty]

I'm in a similar situation as an assitant coach for a 10u travel team and the team's unofficial "pitching coach". My qualifications amount to going to all of my dd's private pitching lessons with a well known instructor in our area who teaches in a manner consistent with what Hillhouse teaches on his dvd's (he recommended them to us).

My dd and one other kid go to the same pitching instructor and are taught the same way. The other two, who are bigger kids and harder throwers and have played travel longer, have been taught to pitch around their hips, "closing the door", and finish with their elbow up on their throwing arm side. This is my dd's first travel team and my first experience coaching travel and I was shocked at how many kids pitch this way, not just at 10u but at older ages too both in our org and others in our area.

I decided early on not to be a fresh from rec know-it-all and reinvent the wheel in regard to these other kids pitching mechanics. We did a film session early on in our winter workouts and sat down with the coaches and the other pitcher's parents to view them and I invited them to offer their own critique of their dd's pitching mechanics based on what their coaches were teaching them. I had some basic knowledge of that style from my oldest dd's first year of rec and I supplemented that with the other pitchers parents feedback on the video.

It may be a cop out on my part but I wasn't willing to take on the role of pitching instructor for these other kids and I don't think their parents would have been receptive to me doing so. I'm happy to offer my unvarnished opinion from anyone who asks for it but I know these kids would take at least two steps backwards before going forward. When we parents talk about pitching instructors the conversation is always the same; they know my pitching instructor but consider him to pricey and they got some girl who got a full ride to such and such U to give their dd lessons on the cheap. It just reinforces my conviction that, generally speaking, you get what you pay for in pitching instructors.

 

[tojo]

They're only 10, so may not be practicing correctly what their pitching instructors are teaching. Have you tried meeting with their respective pitching coaches to see what they're teaching and why? That way, you can help enforce what they're being taught. It would be too confusing for a 10 year old for you to be teaching something that may be contrary to what their pitching coach is teaching.

I totally agree with you. Don't tell a child that what they are learning from their PC is not correct. Talk to the parents or their PC rather than casting doubt on a young mind that is doing what she is being told. As stated,the child may not be practicing correctly what her PC has shown her. The thread poster(Ravenstown) admits he is not a qualified pitching instructor.

 

[ranstl]

i consider this situation an opportunity for the girls to really "own" their assignment - learn your style and apply it the best you can.

 

[Jojo]

You may have problems there. Every PC is going to tell their parents that their way is the best way. Some PC's are real salesmen and can really sell their methods. Like what Dusty relayed, a faster pitcher isn't going to help matters, I hear so many times, "Wow that pitcher pitches fast, I want her instructor!". Sometimes that isn't even a real observation, just a rumor through the bleachers that 10yr Sally throws 52 mph, even though Sally is only throwing 42.
Around where I live, we have a lot of step style instructors and slam the door instructors and even a closed style PC.
I remember once when my DD was in high school, she was helping another pitcher who was struggling with her rise ball. After a few suggestions the closed style pitcher told my daughter, "If I move my hiney even just a little bit, I'll get yelled at."
You may try and handle it by asking their parents "What is she working on in pitching class right now?" It very well may be something you can help her with at practice.
I do understand your frustration, I have had several students of mine, leave my classes after the students have done well with the leap and drag and go to another instructor with a slam the door elbow up style because their friend goes to him and their friend says she throws harder. ; )

 

[Ravenstown]

Dusty, if I didn't look at who posted what you wrote then I would have thought I wrote it. I am in the exact same situation. I am not an expert and my qualifications are about the same as yours. I go to my DD's pitching practice, catch for her, and listen to what her pitching coach is teaching so that when we work outside of her lesson I can help reinforce what she is learning. I act as the "unofficial pitching instructor" as well. I thought that the other kids would benefit by watching my DD pitch and see that what she is doing works. Although she is actually one of the youngest kids on the team at 9, she has been working extremely hard on her mechanics for almost a year now and the results are really starting to show. I tried to speak to the parents about this issue of "you get what you pay for" but I can't change their attitudes. Hopefully in time, things will work out. Like I tell my DD, although some girls may throw a little harder, that may be as fast as they ever get with those mechanics. Thanks for all the posts and replys