Who should call the pitches the coach, dad, or catcher?????

[eddie35]

Once again Sluggers you dont know what your talking about. I have no problem with another coach calling her pitches because i think another coach can still set up the hitter as well as pitch to where the defense is set. My question is what is the benifit to the team. I talked to the head coach tonight and i told him on Sat have his daughter the catcher call some innings and then we can help her develope a understanding of whats being called and why. You make statements about me and you know nothing about me. I want whats best for the team not a solo player.

 

[eddie35]

I forgot to mention i have coached for the past 30 years i coached many years before i was married and had children. I haved worked with Howard Carrier and Crystle Bustos. And as i stated before i am one of the coaches on the team. And not some misguided parent. I believe in Big team little me.

 

[SBDadSanDiego]

I forgot to mention i have coached for the past 30 years i coached many years before i was married and had children. I haved worked with Howard Carrier and Crystle Bustos. And as i stated before i am one of the coaches on the team. And not some misguided parent. I believe in Big team little me.

I wonder if she would be offended at the way you spell her name?

 

[eddie35]

I hope shes not offended, and yes i added the e

 

[NorthMS]

I caught for a number of years and started calling the pitches around 10yrs old. I NEVER made the pitcher throw something he didn't want to throw. A pitcher must have confidence. At worse, I would go to the mound and explain what I was thinking and then ask him what he was thinking. This kept him from feeling like I was showing him up. The final call was the pitcher's. As a catcher, if you gain the confidence of the pitchers and treat them as equals, they don't shake off many calls. Just my $.02

 

[Greenmonsters]

Here's a link to a very similar topic that was discussed here about 6 months ago that I think some may find more constructive

http://www.discussfastpitch.com/softball-pitching/1757-who-should-call-pitches.html

IMO, if you haven't caught, you will have a difficult time appreciating why the catcher should be calling pitches - there's so much a coach can't see or read quickly from the bench. If you're really interested in player development and whats best for the team, then begin teaching your dedicated catchers (i.e., not girls who catch) how to do it early on.

GM

 

[eddie35]

Greenmonsters, a point well taken. I believe if we let one catcher call the pitches then why not the back-up catcher also. I believe we can start by letting the catchers call a few innings a game and try to learn from that. Do you think a few innings a game would be enough?? This is a very good travel ball 12 u team thats plays on average 5-6 games a weekend tournament.

 

[SoCalSoftballdad]

I think as coaches we try to micro manage the game too much. It's a girls game, afford them the opportunity to learn the game, including calling their own pitches as soon as possible. This is really the only way they are going to learn how to do it on their own; by practicing and experimenting in real game situations. If they wait for the pitch selection from the coach every time, they become robots and don't think for themselves. We have to let them fail sometimes in order for them to learn, but I think most coaches are too focused on immediate success (i.e. the win) that they won't / don't give the players an opportunity to grow.

 

[Greenmonsters]

Greenmonsters, a point well taken. I believe if we let one catcher call the pitches then why not the back-up catcher also. I believe we can start by letting the catchers call a few innings a game and try to learn from that. Do you think a few innings a game would be enough?? This is a very good travel ball 12 u team thats plays on average 5-6 games a weekend tournament.

Eddie - Try letting Cs call during pool games and see how it goes before deciding who calls during elimination games. Even now w/ 16Us, I verbal location or pitch maybe half a dozen times a game if I see something specific. Make sure to let your Ps know whats up and understand that they have "right of refusal" and can shake off the pitch - IME, nothing good happens when a P has to throw something they're not comfortable throwing in a given count or situation. Review results and discuss upcoming batters between each inning. You don't make all your Ps throw the same pitches, or have every baserunner steal, or every hitter take 3-0 - base the pitch calling on demonstrated ability and interest of the individual catcher. You'll see that some take to it very quickly while others really don't want the responsibility and accountability - the former are catchers while the later are girls who catch.

The following link is to another thread w/ a pitch calling chart that's been kicking around for a number of years

http://www.discussfastpitch.com/softball-discussions/1821-pitch-call-chart.html

IMO, its a great starting point, but not an absolute because I believe that you should start with the premise that you pitch to your pitcher's strengths. Regardless, the goal is simple - minimize solid contact. It can be done by calling pitches conventionally, unconventionally, or even randomly. Back in the day, I sometimes told batters what was coming for several pitches in a row just to get them 'thinking' instead of focusing and reacting!

Good luck and have fun - GM

 

[softball_chic_12]

in high school the coach gives me the signal and i give it to the pitcher. she might shake it off. In the 18 & under league I call the pitches.