Finding a quality pitching instructor

My point

So this is exactly my point. Its hard to know exactly what they teach by
talking with people.

To answer some qeuestions. Im not treating this like a buffet style instructor (Ill have some of that, and one figure 4 etc.) When my daughter started, I knew nothing we went to a place that was recomended by a pitchers dad who was a good pitcher yet young. We went there and after a few years I was reading up and it seemed it was a step style pitching instructor that may limit her ultimate speed. So we found a new instructor, recommended again. Bought a few things online from someone who puts some instructions online and asked some questions and they explained watch out for "slam the door". that was a technique taught in the 80s and after a study done on the elite pitchers none of them were doing it. They said go look at the elite pitchers and whatch what they do. Sure enough I did and I bet within the next two weeks the instructor was saying the harder you slam your hips the more power you have. Well we found a new one....very recomended and it was close but not very leg aggressive, more causual with movement. Looked into another and the pitcher we say had a lot of vertical bending when throwing movement. Why not have both....leg drive, work on speed and movement?

SO...no not buffet style but someone who follows the guidelines suggested here. Leg drive, power line, reverse posture in the air, front leg resistance, timing, whip. All of that. I have/am trying to convey that to my daughter but dads are limited and she is very very close and I believe she can pick up speed and movement when it clicks. tough cause she is 15, trying out for some A and Gold teams and is right there...so an instructor could make the difference. (Besides..not sure if you heard, Dads dont know everything)

It is just hard for a parent to find this. Most parents have no idea when they are first looking at all. I feel I do....but as they say time is money and your usually a few months in before details come out.

So my post was....hey anyone know someone in st. louis that teaches this leap/drag leg drive, just like the elite pitchers, with movement combination of finch/osterman,Ueno style pithcing coach? ) sorry couldnt resist.

Sorry for the long post....

Mike

To Pridefpsb, all of those championships are nice, but they don't necessarily mean that this guy knows how to throw and teach someone to throw a softball. I watch the College World Series and there are girls on there who have made successes of themselves and have extremely poor form. They are getting by on talent. There are coaches out there who get the best players and everyone assumes they are great coaches. I know of several who can't coach a lick but because of their record are supposedly good.

AS TO The ORIGINAL QUESTION:

Sponge, as someone who has been where you are: At her age, the time for her learning how to pitch is pretty much over. She need to transition to doing the best she can with the tools she has. You need to find a pitching instructor who has worked with lots of talented pitchers and who has seen hundreds of pitchers and can help your DD figure out how to win with what she has got.

From here on, her improvement is going to be incremental. It will be as the result of lots and lots of repetitive, boring work. At her age is when pitchers are either made or quit. The good ones accept the challenge and work their buns off for every extra MPH. The others quit.

If you want to find out how good your DD is, go to Theresa Carlton at Diamond Sports Academy in Mokena, Illinois. She pitched in college (she was named "College Workhorse of the Day" by ESPN for winning 7 *college* (i.e., 7 inning games) in one day. She was one of my DD's pitching coach. (My DD had a group of 3 people teaching her pitching.) She has probably coached 300 or 400 girls, so she has seen it all.

She is one of my favorite people in the softball universe. She is absolutely a delight. Unlike most coaches, she will tell you straight if your DD has any talent or if you are wasting your time.




AS TO DENNY THRONEBERG: Denny is a friend of mine. He pitched in northern Illinois during the time of Harvey Sterkel. At that time, northern Illinois was the center of the fastpitch universe, primarily due to Sterkel and the Aurora Sealmasters. The Sealmasters won 5 or so national men's major championships. Denny was a very good Men's Major ASA pitcher. He wasn't in Sterkel's league, but who is? He definitely knows how to teach and pitch.

Denny taught in Casey, Illinois--a town of about 6000 people, and probably 200 miles from "civilization". His teams were consistently in the top 10 in Illinois.

He doesn't teach "close the door". My DD went to him a few times before we found someone closer to home. All my DD has is a closet full of plaques, trophies, ribbons, and newspaper clippings.

Good morning.

No, I knew Denny didn't teach a narrow tunnel vision lesson and that he works with each individual girl, but it is hard to explain to people just how really good he is.

I had the pleasure of being a Casey woman's FP player, back in the day when Denny was "setting them up and sitting them down." He was fabulous. His DD was no slouch, either.

Are you aware that he changed from pitching with his left hand, to pitching with his right, just so he could be a better instructor?

But, I digress. I wouldn't let the "closing motion" deter me from using a pitching coach that I really liked.

I am flexible with the girls that I teach. If a 16 YO comes in and she is happy and successful, we go from there, we don't reinvent the wheel.

Whatever you are learning now, will all change in 10-15 years and will be back to something different, anyway.

I am still waiting for a successful slingshot pitcher to come on the scene. I can teach slingshot.

redhawkridge said:

One small tip on finding a decent coach -- make sure he has pitching experience.

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That's a factor but Ernie Parker never pitched so I wouldn't make that a deal breaker.

redhawkridge said:

Our HS has a pitching coach who pitched baseball not softball, but now he's read the books, watched the videos, and attended the clinics. He still doesn't understand what's really happening.
jim

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If your HS coach's resume included Lisa Fernandez and the like I could live with his lack of personal pitching experience. Sounds like you are not quite that lucky.

CoachFP said:

I'll say it. Slamming the door is "wrong". This tells me this guy has no idea what he is doing. This is how girls were taught 20 years ago. I guess he still has that book on the shelf.

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People mean different things with the same words sometimes/often/usually. I think this pelvic action within the whole motion is efficient and effective. MOV 1 of 3, Windmill

And this. MOV 3 of 3, Windmill

didn't mean to get everyone up in arms about my post, I stated right off how much success he has had and that he is a legend. He may have changed what he teaches I don't know, but 3 years ago, he was teaching what I call "close the door" and what I mean by that is timing the closing of the hip with the hand passing right in front of it and landing facing the catcher. It works for some very well, it didn't work for my DD, but that doesn't mean it is wrong either, it just means it wasn't for her. I respect everyone here and have learned a wealth of info here, but he "did" stress the closing of the hips, I was there with 3 of my travel pitchers, it worked for one but not the others. Just know that I was not criticizing Denny at all, like I said he is a "legend" So if I sounded negative I am sorry for that, it was not intended that way at all.

If I had hips like Cat, I could pitch with my hips closing, too. Anymore, I am lucky to even get to "open."

I wouldn't characterize Cat's hips as skinny. She's built like a woman. Just a very tall woman with long limbs and fingers. It's the turning over of the whipping loop that takes her arm around her hips. Same with Ueno.