50mph or Bust

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Screwball
Dec 18, 2014
512
63
As the dad of a pitcher, I know how gruesome it feels to watch your daughter get lined with a shot. So I totally empathize with you on that one.

Regarding 50mph. At higher level 14U, a pitcher can throw 60mph but if it's flat and fat it's going to be timed up and hammered. I also know of girls who throw low fifties with decent control and spin and are fairly successful. Spin, accuracy, and timing are big factors. Speed isn't the ultimate tool, as it has to complement other aspects.
 
Nov 29, 2009
2,975
83
Why would your set an ultimatum? That's very counterproductive. There's no magic place to find velocity

^^^^^^ THIS!!!!! ^^^^^^

The simple answer is not every pitcher physically can throw over 60 mph.

What I tell people who say their DD woks hard and is not getting faster is this. If it were simply up to training to improve at a skill we could all run like Usain Bolt if we worked hard enough.

The last team I coached was an 11U team. I had one girl who consistently hit 59-60 during games. Had another one who hit high 50's with great spin and movement on the ball. These girls were loose and possessed the natural ability with good mechanics. They were ablt to chain the pitch throwing sequence to its maximum efficiency.
 
Oct 2, 2018
205
43
Georgia
There are 11 year old girls throwing 60mph and 11 year old throwing 40mph. But its very difficult to predict which one will still be pitching at 18 years old and which one throws 65 plus at 18 years old. Be your best now no matter the speed. Work on efficiency, balance, posture and mental toughness!
 
Apr 12, 2019
58
8
I appreciate the feedback and totally get where the comments are coming from.
My position at the time was that in addition to playing against HS age monsters, I didn't want her pitching from 43' and potentially sacrificing mechanics and risking injury trying to get the pitches working in her favor.
The decision to keep her in 12U was a good one as she found a good team that will all move to 13U. She pitched 101 K's to 34 BB's in a short 24 day season, but the fact remains she might not be throwing 50mph pitches and how to justify moving back to 43' now when it wasn't ok 6 months ago.
 
Feb 10, 2018
496
93
NoVA
From April




As the dad of a pitcher with average velocity, I feel you. When it comes to speed my DD is a hard gainer. She’s only about 5’4”, 120 lbs. at 14yo. Done long toss and other speed drills. Physical maturity has helped and I hope will help some more. We’ve not really worked the strength and conditioning part of it yet. Even so, I am not sure my DD will ever break the 60mph barrier. We are working hard to optimize her mechanics, but...

After sweating it quite a bit (and there are still days that I find myself saying WTF), I’ve decided to focus on my daughter’s strengths as a pitcher. She is a control pitcher with very good and increasing command of the ball and has the ability to keep the ball down and change speeds, inducing a lot of weak contact. Would she be better if she cruised at 55mph+ rather than 50-52mph? No doubt. But she is what she is and she is pretty effective at a relatively high local/regional level. We’ll keep chipping away at velocity while we keep enhancing the strengths she does have.

Based on the video, I think your DD looks good. I think I see a couple of things in her mechanics that, if addressed, should allow her to pick up some velocity (along with her just getting more mature physically):

1. She looks like she is bowing at her push off rather than getting into a sprinters lean. Better drive off the rubber could add velocity. Her knee should be 2 or 3” in front of her toe as starts to drive off.

2. I think her arm looks pretty straight as it comes around the circle. Better bend in her arm (target is 135 degrees) would lead to better arm whip and higher velocity. This is an issue my DD also has and we are working on.

3. It’s a little hard to tell, but it looks like her arm is also sliding through rather than getting a good brush trigger. Better brush (combined with better arm bend) should also help increase her velocity.

Two cents worth.
 
Feb 3, 2010
5,752
113
Pac NW
The magic four for speed:
-Posture
-Whip
-Brush
-Drive

I take that back... The special sauce for being the best pitcher you can be are the above 4. Speed is the result of practicing the above. Keep practicing the above 4 for more speed. From there, spin, spots and strategy are the best recipe for success.
 

sluggers

Super Moderator
Staff member
May 26, 2008
7,133
113
Dallas, Texas
@fistafury17

We've disappeared into a speed trap. No matter what anyone says, your DD is going nowhere throwing 45MPH at 14U.

This isn't rocket science. Your DD has a fundamental flaw in her motion. She doesn't throw very hard because she has *ZERO* front side resistance. She skips forward. She has developed a nasty habit somewhere, and it is killing her speed.

Simple example: Suppose you put a brick on the dashboard of your car, and you want the brick to go through the windshield. Are you going to come to a slow stop or are you going to slam on the brakes? Basically, pitching is momentum transfer....the body goes in a nice straight line toward the target, then the body stops and the arm continues moving.

Your DD's body needs to stop moving forward after release. Rick Pauly did a whole thread about this: https://www.discussfastpitch.com/threads/front-side-resistance.19828/

Here is Samantha Show. Look at her footwork. She isn't moving forward, and she is throwing 65MPH.

 
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