Increasing Speed

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Nov 16, 2017
2
0
Hello

Looking for suggestions for anyone willing to give them. My DD just turned 16 and has and was late getting into pitching having only started a year and a half or so ago doing it seriously. She takes lessons from Bill Hillhouse, who is great by the way. She is doing a great job on the mound, hits her spots and rarely has hard hit ball off her. Most are just ground balls and fly balls. She is not a big strikeout pitcher but this past weekend had 8 or 9 in the two games she pitched in. has very few walks.

Now that that is all out of the way let me get to why I am posting this.... Her pitching is much slower than other players her age. She pitches around 47 to 49 and will touch 50 every now and then. She is 5 foot 9 and weighs around 150 pounds - The issue we are having is every coach we have heard from at camps and showcases "she needs to be faster to pitch for us"

I know that speed is not the end all be all and that a pitcher that can hit her spots and has movement (which she does, and has) can be just as effective as a pitcher that is throwing upper 50's and into 60's. However, the college coaches do not seem to think that. We have had two coaches from bigger D2 schools tell us "We like your pitching, but you need to get faster to pitch for us". it is starting to get her down that she is a 2020 with no offers yet.

What can I do to help get more speed? Weight training? Drills? Open to any suggestions.
 
Feb 17, 2014
7,152
113
Orlando, FL
Refine her mechanics and have her do long toss every time she laces up her cleats. Serious long toss daily for 4 weeks will yield significant results.
 
Jun 7, 2016
275
43
Rise, define "serious" eg number of reps, distances etc. What regimen did you and Jake do daily? My DD does a progression from mound going back 3 -5 yds and does three quality tosses, then moves again until she cant reliably get ball to me. At that point move forward in larger segments throwing 2 tosses, ending at the mound then throws 8-10 for all shes worth, not beign concernd about location. Ive read Rick Paulys posts and can brainstorm other ways to augment but I'd rather go with routines that are "prove".
Thanks in advance (always appreciate those who have done, or still doing, providing guidance to us in the earlier stages of the process)
 
Jan 26, 2015
92
8
Southeast
Refine her mechanics and have her do long toss every time she laces up her cleats. Serious long toss daily for 4 weeks will yield significant results.
THIS!!! And either get in with a strength/conditioning coach to work with her legs. Longtoss and getting in the legs....

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G920A using Tapatalk
 

JAD

Feb 20, 2012
8,231
38
Georgia
As [MENTION=10413]riseball[/MENTION] mentions, long toss is a great place to start. Hitting the gym and doing core and leg/arm workouts never hurts. I have also heard some coaches (Mickey Dean) really like a weighted ball regiment during the offseason, but I have no experience with it.
 
Oct 4, 2016
176
18
Rise, define "serious" eg number of reps, distances etc. What regimen did you and Jake do daily? My DD does a progression from mound going back 3 -5 yds and does three quality tosses, then moves again until she cant reliably get ball to me. At that point move forward in larger segments throwing 2 tosses, ending at the mound then throws 8-10 for all shes worth, not beign concernd about location. Ive read Rick Paulys posts and can brainstorm other ways to augment but I'd rather go with routines that are "prove".
Thanks in advance (always appreciate those who have done, or still doing, providing guidance to us in the earlier stages of the process)

Please! :)
 

JAD

Feb 20, 2012
8,231
38
Georgia
Rise, define "serious" eg number of reps, distances etc. What regimen did you and Jake do daily? My DD does a progression from mound going back 3 -5 yds and does three quality tosses, then moves again until she cant reliably get ball to me. At that point move forward in larger segments throwing 2 tosses, ending at the mound then throws 8-10 for all shes worth, not beign concernd about location. Ive read Rick Paulys posts and can brainstorm other ways to augment but I'd rather go with routines that are "prove".
Thanks in advance (always appreciate those who have done, or still doing, providing guidance to us in the earlier stages of the process)

DD and I used to do something similar. She could get to about where CF would play on a 200' fence. The sad part was I had to throw them back to her on a hop! LOL I always had dreams of DD playing CF in a game and throwing a tagging runner out at home plate with an underhanded throw!
 
Feb 17, 2014
7,152
113
Orlando, FL
Rise, define "serious" eg number of reps, distances etc. What regimen did you and Jake do daily? My DD does a progression from mound going back 3 -5 yds and does three quality tosses, then moves again until she cant reliably get ball to me. At that point move forward in larger segments throwing 2 tosses, ending at the mound then throws 8-10 for all shes worth, not beign concernd about location. Ive read Rick Paulys posts and can brainstorm other ways to augment but I'd rather go with routines that are "prove".
Thanks in advance (always appreciate those who have done, or still doing, providing guidance to us in the earlier stages of the process)

This is great and should not be limited to just pitchers. Don't care who you are if you do this regularly you will get faster. Once you get your core warm and arm moving you should get right into progressive long toss. Keep in mind that this is throwing practice not pitching. Focus on a fast arm and quick feet. Unless you are specifically working on leg drive do not worry about it. Step and throw. Loft the ball up to 45 degrees and if possible throw a riseball spin. When you start one hopping the ball you are out far enough. Keep track of how far out and note the progress over time. Sometimes we finish with 10 tosses, hard and fast at 45-50 feet. The hard and fast is also a great finish for catchers and infielders. Again this is throwing practice, not pitching. Couple this with the strength training that other mention and you are on your way.

Amazed how many pitchers and others lament about their speed, yet when you ask the questions you find out they are doing nothing that would cause them to pick up speed? Again, that insanity thing...
 

sluggers

Super Moderator
Staff member
May 26, 2008
7,132
113
Dallas, Texas
(Excellent post by Riseball)

When working on speed (or anything, for that matter), sometimes Daddy just has to shut up and leave her alone and let her figure it out.
 
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