0 - 2 Counts

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Dec 12, 2012
1,668
0
On the bucket
Let's hear your thoughts and reasoning on pitch type and location for a 0-2 count.


DD has experienced three different scenarios in the past few years:
1) Old travel ball team: Pitch must be off the plate by 5 to 6 ball widths.
2) Current travel ball team: Use the pitch you can own that exposes the hitter's weakness.
3) Current HS team: Pitch must be unhittable. Their definition of unhittable is off the plate enough they can't reach it.

My thoughts are don't give them a fatty. Use a deceptive pitch that makes them think they have to swing, but can't make solid contact. A pop up or ground out is fine with me. This unhittable or 6 balls off the plate nonsense amounts to a waste pitch and gives the hitter one ball in the count working in their favor. Why help the hitter and use a pitch that won't likely result in an out? I don't get it.

Teach me something!
 
Last edited:

JAD

Feb 20, 2012
8,231
38
Georgia
Our coach last year really like to throw a lot of "waste" pitches 5-6" off the plate, but I prefer to be aggressive and keep the pitch count down. There is nothing more frustrating than going from an 0-2 count to 3-2....therefore, 0-2 I like to throw an offspeed curve outside, a change up or a riseball.
 
Sep 17, 2009
1,637
83
Move off the plate yes but not a ton and with a goal to continue to hit spots and "help" the umpire expand his zone for when you really need it.
 
Jun 27, 2011
5,089
0
North Carolina
In MLB last season, at-bats that reached 0-2 would end on the next pitch 30 percent of the time, with half of those being strikeouts.

What does that tell us? I don't know. I don't have data on where those pitches were located. But it's food for thought.

Keep in mind that some of the 70 percent that survived 0-2 were foul balls, so the chances of the hitter swinging is probably closer to 40 percent, maybe higher. That suggests that MLB pitchers rarely just totally waste one.

On the other hand, the batter's chance of success doesn't improve much from 0-2 to 1-2 or even 2-2. All those situations result in batting averages below .200. So except to save your arm, there doesn't appear to be much incentive in throwing one in the strike zone.

That makes me wonder if these stats have changed over 30 years as MLB has evolved from starting pitchers throwing complete games and needing to conserve themselves to today's pitchers who are throwing as hard as they can for as long as they can. It's not going to matter if a closer throws 15 or 18 pitches. He can waste one. But maybe Tom Seaver couldn't afford that and still throw 300 innings. Maybe travel ball pitchers who are going to throw 20 innings over 2 days would need to think about that. I don't know. My daughter's not a pitcher, so I'm just throwing out numbers and ideas. Maybe y'all can make sense of it.
 
Last edited:
Jun 17, 2009
15,105
0
Portland, OR
Our coach last year really like to throw a lot of "waste" pitches 5-6" off the plate, but I prefer to be aggressive and keep the pitch count down. There is nothing more frustrating than going from an 0-2 count to 3-2....therefore, 0-2 I like to throw an offspeed curve outside, a change up or a riseball.

More frustrating is to go from an O-2-count to giving up a home-run on the next pitch.
 

JAD

Feb 20, 2012
8,231
38
Georgia
More frustrating is to go from an O-2-count to giving up a home-run on the next pitch.

Giving up a home run is frustrating regardless of the pitch count....and usually means the pitcher made a mistake and hung something belt high over the middle of the plate.
 
Nov 16, 2015
184
18
It is going to be different based on the age of the players involved. You can go 5-6 balls off the plate with younger kids.

I teach 2 balls off the plate and try to use it as a set up pitch. If you out pitch is down and away or a change up, we are going up and in.
 
Nov 16, 2015
184
18
Let's hear your thoughts and reasoning on pitch type and location for a 0-2 count.


DD has experienced three different scenarios in the past few years:
1) Old travel ball team: Pitch must be off the plate by 5 to 6 ball widths.
2) Current travel ball team: Use the pitch you can own that exposes the hitter's weakness.
3) Current HS team: Pitch must be unhittable. Their definition of unhittable is off the plate enough they can't reach it.

My thoughts are don't give them a fatty. Use a deceptive pitch that makes them think they have to swing, but can't make solid contact. A pop up or ground out is fine with me. This unhittable or 6 balls off the plate amounts to a waste pitch and gives the hitter one ball in the count working in their favor. Why help the hitter and use a pitch that won't likely result in an out? I don't get it.

Teach me something!

These are different philosophies and none of them are truly wrong.
 

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