- Nov 3, 2012
- 480
- 16
My DDs current situation is she is on a team with a lot of pitchers. I mean, a lot. This is a nationally ranked organization that has a good off-season workout program for hitters and pitchers. We've already attended one of the hitting and one of the pitching workouts and they were both really good. Is it more important for her to spend the year in this organizations program to improve her overall mechanics, continue to work with me and her PC while only getting a couple of innings here and there (maybe like 3 innings every 4 or 5 games) or is it more important to just continue to work with me and her PC while getting a much larger lions share of innings in tournament games.
Just curious, how much importance do you place on getting innings in games and how many does a developing pitcher need?
If you're DD is just starting to be a pitcher at a younger age, this might work for you. I would only do this if she's getting playing time and hitting time at another position. Nothing more miserable then sitting the bench and watching other girls play. Sounds like you're not sure if she's a pitcher or going to play some other position. If she's getting good instruction from the organization, then it might pay off to be patient. But this only lasts so long.
If you're DD is really committed to pitching, she's going to be going to lessons once and a week and practicing on your own. I know personally and from experience, that if you're putting time and money into something, you're going to expect to see progress and an opportunity to measure the progress. The trick is finding good instruction and a team/coach that will work with you.
My DD first travel team at 12u had 5 pitchers and all pitchers had minimal experience. She got limited time, and was rewarded for pitching more innings later is she did pitch well. But this put competitive pressure on her, and I the parent put unnecessary pressure on her also. And she went through a phase where she would tighten up and pitch poorly and didn't get any innings. Just keep in mind its developmental and there's a lot of pressure on these kids. Make sure she's in a situation that's and fun, and that's it a developmental process and girls develop at different rates. You do need experience in a situation where she can learn and fail without significant penalty to her pitching time.