At what age do pitchers only pitch?

At what age/level do pitchers only pitch and give up the bat?

I ask because I've heard that pitchers are too valuable to be batting. I've heard a very good pitcher will only pitch and not bat by 16U. Supposedly it's too risky for a good pitcher to bat and risk an injury. My take is if a pitcher can hit, let her hit. This may be slightly controversial. And perhaps the premise is wrong. I'm talking 'A' level. (Yes, DD is a pitcher and she does swing the bat...and has batted as high as #3 but typically is a #6/#7 hitter)

My daughter still bats and run bases at 18u. She normally bats at 6th/7th spot in the lineup. When guest playing some teams put in at the bottom of the lineup, mostly for her slapping ability and they don’t want to move the top of their normal lineup. Then some teams put her 3rd in the lineup. It will be interesting to see this fall if she will bat at the college level.


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From my experience - they stop being in the batting lineup when they either 1) Want to or 2) Are on a team where they are not on of the top 9 batters

Want to:
Some girls decide they just want to pitch. Batting/fielding is like a second sport and requires a lot of time and effort. Some girls decide they want to concentrate on one.

Not in the top 9 batters:
Often they are 'A' pitchers but not 'A' batters - and on an a true 'A' team they are competing against 'A' batters. I have seen the other way as well - players who give up pitching because they are 'B' pitchers but are 'A' batters or fielders - they end up on an A team and they are no longer needed to pitch. It is a decision that many players end up having to make - do I want to be on a higher level team for my pitching and give up my batting.

Coaches who have an absolute 'my pitchers don't bat/field' are just close-minded on the topic. Wasting a big bat on the off-chance they might get hurt running to first is a waste of a big bat.

For my DD pitcher/SS what has happened is that she no longer runs bases very often. That is where the most injuries occur so DD is run for over 90% of the time - even when she is not pitching. She is on a higher end 16U-A team and bats 5ish - she also bats 3rd for HS. She is not giving up her bat - and frankly the colleges my DD wants to play for in college WANT pitchers who bat and can field. It is like recruiting 2 players in 1

DD's current Team realistically has 1 OK pitcher, she pitches and plays too much IMO.

Give her a break, not that much of a drop off to other hitter.

marriard said:

From my experience - they stop being in the batting lineup when they either 1) Want to or 2) Are on a team where they are not on of the top 9 batters

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Good answer. Thanks from the peanut gallery...

My about-to-be 14U daughter is an, um, less than stellar batter. Bottom of the order even in C ball, but she's a solid low A or high B level pitcher and knows her own strengths and weaknesses. I think she's more angry and nervous than any parent or Coach when she's up to bat on Saturday.

DD hits 4 or 5 on her A travel team (could throttle her HS team). On her HS she doesn't hit. Not sure that there is a science behind the whole thing

It depends upon your DD's strengths and weaknesses.

On high level 16U teams, it is tough for a pitcher to play any position other than 1B. The outfielders are usually very fast. SS, 3B and 2B are usually well trained. So, the issue eventually boils down to, "Does your DD hit better than the kid who usually plays 1B?"

If your DD is a great hitter, she will always be in the lineup. If she is above average, she'll sit.

My DD stopped playing a field position at 14YOA. She pitched almost every game...which was OK with her. On the occasions when she didn't pitch (e.g., a meaningless pool play game), she rested.

My DD batted a few times in college. Her last at bat was a double. The SS tripped her as she rounded 2B and she took a hard fall. The coaches told her they couldn't risk losing her. My DD was a good hitter...but, holy cow, there were some other kids on the team who could hit the snot out of the ball. 3B looked like she could press 6X her body weight.

And that was that.

We have always let the pitchers hit in travelball, they will usually set when not pitching, but always will get their chance at the plate. Both are good hitters though

sluggers said:

It depends upon your DD's strengths and weaknesses.

On high level 16U teams, it is tough for a pitcher to play any position other than 1B. The outfielders are usually very fast. SS, 3B and 2B are usually well trained. So, the issue eventually boils down to, "Does your DD hit better than the kid who usually plays 1B?"

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With a good coach - with DP/FLEX it should come down to "Does your pitcher hit better than ANY fielder". My DD flexes for our 2B or RF a lot. Our 2B in particular is an outstanding fielder but hit her hitting is just not there.

The answer is "it depends"....

If a pitcher is an exceptional hitter they will hit their entire careers - Megan Good, Kelani Ricketts, Alexis Ocasio, Lauren Haeger, ect. If a pitcher is an ACE, then she will have to be head and shoulders better than some other hitters on the team in order to keep swinging the bat.

When my DD moved up to 16U, her TB coaches wanted her to "pitch and sit" because they had 16+ girls on the roster and DD was an average hitter at best. This made things easier on the coaches, but my DD was still hitting in HS, so I wanted her to continue getting some at-bats, but it is tough to justify the extra time and money for batting lessons when your DD is taking private pitch lessons and pitching 5 days a week. When DD went to college the plan was for her to pitch and sit, but after the team struggled offensively in the fall, I told her she should ask the coaches if she could have a bat to start taking some reps at BP, and the rest as they say "is history". DD is still not a great hitter, but she contributed offensively last season and hit the first HR in program history.