Height?

[cuzmail]

Is there a minimum height that colleges will consider regardless of the pitcher's skill?

Sounds odd, but I recently heard a person well connected from a recruiting standpoint say that a recent D1 national champion won't even look at a pitcher if they aren't at least 5'11". I understand the taller the better, the longer the levers the more potential, ...etc.

 

[Rick Pauly]

The trend has been toward taller pitchers......but if a top college coach saw a 16U girl throwing 65 MPH they would definitely stop and take a good look. Most college coaches have their "absolutes", but you would be surprised at how flexible their "absolutes" can become. Taryne Mowatt and Lisa Fernandez are not real tall and I think a lot of coaches would still look at them.

I kinda like the old saying: "its not the size of the dog in the fight, its the size of the fight in the dog"

 

[starsnuffer]

Understand that there is a huge difference between the recruiting tendencies for a top 25 D1 school, any other D1 school, D2, D3, NAIA, JC, ect.

If the pitcher is 5'1" and throws 60mph, she will be overlooked by the top schools, but that does not mean she would be overlooked by other schools.

I was recently asked why one of our local pitchers who won the last two sectional championships (equal to state championships for other states) received no offers and went to a JC as a walkon. The pitcher in question was 5'2" and threw about 60 with good movement. The reason for the lack of interest had nothing to do with her height, it had to do with her poor scholastic performance and lousy attitude.

-W

 

[cuzmail]

Thanks Rick.

Your answer makes me think about multiple minimums including top speed and movement along with height.

Is there any room for a sub 5'4" pitcher? Sure it is a tougher road to go down if you don't have the height and/or 65mph speed, but you would think that ability would carry some value.

Looking at reality here, my DD is probably not going to exceed 5'6" if she even makes it to that height. She probably won't be a flamethrower either. At 12 (almost 13) she is at a 54 top speed and cruises between 49-50mph. Her movement is great and this comes from her PC who has put a lot of D1 girls into leading pitching roles at respected colleges (Osterman, McDuffie, Fox, ..etc). BTW, Rachele has worked with DD and she is 5'4".

 

[cuzmail]

Star,

Crappy attitude is a sour no matter how fast or how tall you are.

 

[Amy in AZ.]

Almost every town in Il. Has a college and a softball team. There is always a spot for a pitcher with good grades. You may have to move to a different part of the country, though.

 

[smddad]

Is there a minimum height that colleges will consider regardless of the pitcher's skill?

Sounds odd, but I recently heard a person well connected from a recruiting standpoint say that a recent D1 national champion won't even look at a pitcher if they aren't at least 5'11". I understand the taller the better, the longer the levers the more potential, ...etc.

I just spot checked several different top D1 rosters. The vast majority of them are under 5'11".

OK, UF, UG, Missou, Tenn, AL, UW, UO, Cal, Stanford, UCLA, Ariz, ASU.

Alabama does not have any under 5'11", but the others do.

 

[Greenmonsters]

I just spot checked several different top D1 rosters. The vast majority of them are under 5'11".

OK, UF, UG, Missou, Tenn, AL, UW, UO, Cal, Stanford, UCLA, Ariz, ASU.

Alabama does not have any under 5'11", but the others do.

And remember, those are reported heights - likely very generous!

 

[Jojo]

I think it's something that the head coach considers, not necessarily the school.
I know my DD's college coach told me she liked big corners and small middle infielders. Small outfielders, big catchers and big pitchers. She did make exceptions for talent and grades though as my DD and her catcher were both on the small side of the team.

I think you'll get a lot more looks being tall, but never ignore grades, passion and skill, because eventually that's what it's going to take.

 

[Rick Pauly]

Cuzmail
Sometimes it is just not in the cards for a young lady to throw 65 mph.....if I had a perfect crystal ball and new 60--61 mph was going to be her college game speed I would put a ton of work into ball movement and variation of speeds (location being a given).

You just made me go look at the old pitching speed record sheet my DD (and me) kept from the beginning of her career and have still added to it in recent years.....at age 13 her top speed was a whopping 46.8 mph. Latest speed on a fan friendly minor league baseball park radar gun was 73 mph....17 years later she is still gaining speed.

It is probably not time to give up on speed yet.