protecting catcher's legs/knees

I have 10 yo DD who was made catcher by default. (Other catcher got injured and no one else on the team could do it). She basically catches every game now for one of her teams. By the time the 3rd game of the day is done her legs are killing her. She's used to playing 3 or 4 games/day, but never at catcher. She has great speed right now so I'm afraid down the road this will affect her knees/legs and slow her down.

What measures can be done to protect your catcher's legs/knees? Catch less? Part of her game is the speed game. She's still young but I'd hate for that to go down the road possibly from extended catching.

thanks in advance for any advice or past experience.

I would never put my daughter on a team where she would be the only catcher. 3 or 4 games a day, two days a weekend, every weekend for several months is too much.

Your daughter is NOT the only option. If she got hurt, they would throw the gear on another girl and she would now be their "only" catcher. Make that point and demand that they rotate at least one other girl in there on the weekends and that might actually prevent your daughter from getting injured because she is playing exhausted catching her 4th of the day.

FYI,

Catching will enhance her speed IMO. The explosive muscles that get you out of the blocks quick are constantly being worked when catching. Even if they aren't the fastest on the team at full sprint, usually the catchers have a good first step.

Yeah, that is way too much. You need another, so they can rotate.

She can do wall sits to help build the leg muscles up. Also, make sure she is thoroughly stretching before playing catcher.

Fastpitch,

SnocatzDad has said it all. I steer my catching students away from teams that only have one catcher. Especially at this young age. The best comment was "Your daughter is NOT the only option. If she got hurt, they would throw the gear on another girl and she would now be their "only" catcher.

Ask the coach who will jump in if your DD is sick or hurt. Time to start that girl catching at practices etc.

Having a girl do all that catching is the fastest way to make softball seem like a job to a kid...then all the fun is gone.

Coach Weaver

Thanks for all the good advice! I will be sure to look out for those things in the future. This team she is the only catcher on only has 2 more weeks left until the season is done here so she should be OK. Maybe the other girl will come back before its over also.

Fastpitch,
My DD has been in the same boat. Snocatzdad and Catching Coach are right. Don't accept the situation. What you didn't mention was whether she enjoyed playing the position. Does she want to continue to catch? If she does, then utilizing proper stances will aid in reducing fatigue, wear and tear on the legs and specifically the knees.

Chaz @ Advanced Catching Concepts

fastpitch said:

I have 10 yo DD who was made catcher by default. (Other catcher got injured and no one else on the team could do it). She basically catches every game now for one of her teams. By the time the 3rd game of the day is done her legs are killing her. She's used to playing 3 or 4 games/day, but never at catcher. She has great speed right now so I'm afraid down the road this will affect her knees/legs and slow her down.

What measures can be done to protect your catcher's legs/knees? Catch less? Part of her game is the speed game. She's still young but I'd hate for that to go down the road possibly from extended catching.

thanks in advance for any advice or past experience.

Click to expand...

I would agree that catching 3-4 games a day is too much. My daughter is a 10U lefty catcher and would play a hundred games if I would allow it. I told her head coach that it is a must to be three deep in that position because of the wear and tear.
To protect my daughters body, we have her in strength and conditioning in the off season to strengthen her body and to make her durable through the softball season. Her strength coach recommends not only squats, but you must also work on the posterior chain to prevent ACL injuries. Dead lifts. He also recommends core exercises and agility drills.
To further protect her legs, we ice her knees, ankles, shoulders, and elbow to prevent inflammation. We also do mayo facial release( roll her muscles out) before and after games and workouts to further prevent injury. That along with proper diet, rest, and a professional catching coach to insure proper technique should protect (knock on wood) and her mother to keep things grounded should help protect her from head to toe.

Best thing I could tell anyone wanting to be a catcher??? is get this DVD

DVD Site

btw, thread is 4 years old.

But the advice is still right on target