Domino effect? mechanical breakdown= pitcher parent panic?

[SoftballMom2]

DD had to change her motion this past week..was told last Sunday that her back foot was coming off the rubber. Ok thought we fixed that this week. Seemed she got back in rhythm. Pitched great during the week and had great 9 innings Saturday .(plus one inning of 3rd game where ump said she was not taking the sign long enough(??) I counted well over 3 secs but OK..and she ensured she slowly"took the sign" so ump knew, then gave up a walk and a hit and was pulled.

Then today she was struggling with finding the umps zone, got 5 Ks but gave up 5 walks (OUCH!)and a hit in three innings before she was pulled.. I thought she just wasn't focusing because did not get enough sleep but....

I had taken some continuous action photo shots during her warm up and live innings and could see she was bent a bit over after/during release..what causes this? Forcing the ball? Fatigue? Lack of sleep? What can I do to help her fix it? Not sure she can get in with PC this week.

Any suggestions/drills to please to help her get herself back??

 

[halskinner]

Is she landing with the body on a backwards lean? When the stride foot touches down? If she has a decent push off and lands standing tall, the forward momentun will carry her forward after release or at release and she can bend forward at the waist or walk through the pitch with an extra step..

Sounds like the ump just wanted a couple extra seconds to get himself in position. Alot of the older heavier umps seem to do that. Thank God I'm slim and trim (Cough, cough).

 

[SoftballMom2]

LOL It was the Field ump yesterday who told her. She was pulled that game but came back and pitched the next pretty well. (got a little high in some counts but pulled it out)

Actually the pics I have of her bending don't have the ball in them so I don't know where exactly the bend comes into play..probably close to right after release because you can see her arm muscles and hand is across body.She does seem to have good push off as she drives out probably 5-6 feet? (people always comment what a great stride she has)I have some pics right before her stride foot touches down and she appears to have decent but not great backwards lean..shes kind of in x..pitching elbow is not locked, the ball is facing 3B and hand is diagonal from her stride foot (hmm..is this too late?)

 

[X pitcher]

Why would she have to change her motion, because of her back foot not staying on the rubber? Have her try a little rock and fire to her motion of getting off the rubber. It's rhythm and stride. Dance off the rubber.

 

[X pitcher]

Why is everyone so hard on her, down to every walk and hit. One hit and you get pulled?

The game meant too much for the coach, I guess.

 

[KCM]

My daughter has a bad habit of leaning forward when she gets physically tired from pitching a long inning or did not get plenty of rest.

Our pitching coach ties a bungy style work out cord around her stomach and pulls back while she pitches. It helps. During a game I just pull it out the bag if she leans forward and she usually straightens right up.

 

[SoftballMom2]

The game meant too much for the coach, I guess.

Yep but I get that especially since the ump was not "feeling her" and not calling the pitches she usually gets called strikes

 

[SoftballMom2]

Why is everyone so hard on her, down to every walk and hit. One hit and you get pulled?

I ask myself the same question..Hubby thinks it is because they expect a lot from her and she usually does deliver but if she is "off" it can not be pretty. Although they don't seem to be as quick to pull AC DD who gives up bombs of hits or walks...But I try to stay positive and realistic. It is an A team though so she DOES need to deliver...the few hits she gave up over the weekend were not good timing after walks and errors (didn't yank any error making fielders off LOL)

 

[SoftballMom2]

My daughter has a bad habit of leaning forward when she gets physically tired from pitching a long inning or did not get plenty of rest.

Our pitching coach ties a bungy style work out cord around her stomach and pulls back while she pitches. It helps. During a game I just pull it out the bag if she leans forward and she usually straightens right up.

LOL. She went to a clinic once where the PC held her pony tail to keep her back..today I told her to remember the PC who held her ponytail! Hubby videoed her with the Coaches Eye App and she looks good today Fingers crossed for the weekend

 

[Greenmonsters]

Gotta love the Ex-baseball player coaches with quick triggers. At the highest level of softball for most, college, they often have slow triggers or only one ace.

IMO, you're better off pulling a pitcher too soon rather than too late. Even an ace can have a bad day. In SB it seems like pitchers more often are pulled too late and the balance of the game has tipped out of hand. In BB it seems that often it is the opposite and an effective pitcher is pulled before or at the first sign of trouble. In MLB the quick or auto hook is promoted by the "save" stat (See Alan Schwarz' book "The Numbers Game: Baseball's Lifelong Fascination With Statistics" for an interesting read).