Changing speeds

Welcome to Discuss Fastpitch

Your FREE Account is waiting to the Best Softball Community on the Web.

Jan 28, 2017
1,662
83
How do you go about this? Different pitches or just throwing one pitch hard and the next one not as hard or finger pressure or how.
 
May 23, 2015
999
63
You can drastically change the speeds of pitched by choking the ball or getting it out on your fingertips, stiffening your wrist and reducing finger pressure while keeping your arm speed the same
 

sluggers

Super Moderator
Staff member
May 26, 2008
7,133
113
Dallas, Texas
My DD would take 5 to 10 MPH off her drop ball. Then, she would go "all in" for a couple of pitches during the inning. In a typical inning, most of her pitches would be in the 62-63 MPH, and there would be a couple of 65+MPH pitches, and a few 55 MPH drop balls.

She did all the speed changing herself. No one was telling her to. If the batter fouled anything straight back, she would throw the off speed pitch.

Our biggest regret is not working more on a true changeup.
 
Mar 20, 2015
174
28
Max Scherzer's fastball cruises at about 95/96 the whole game but when he is in a tight situation and he needs a strike he suddenly pops one for 98/99.
 
Dec 5, 2012
4,143
63
Mid West
When throwing fast, she must incorporate a whipping action (often referred to as I/R and brush) This is accomplished by the elbow leading the ball... when throwing a change up, she simply eliminates the whip by ensuring the ball is leading the bent elbow in a shoving fashion. This is the most basic way to describing it...
PM me for anything further
 

sluggers

Super Moderator
Staff member
May 26, 2008
7,133
113
Dallas, Texas
This is accomplished by the elbow leading the ball... when throwing a change up, she simply eliminates the whip by ensuring the ball is leading the bent elbow in a shoving fashion. This is the most basic way to describing it...

I think he is talking about an off speed pitch and not a change up.

My DD's PC stressed changing speeds. He said it was one of the most overlooked areas of advanced pitching.

Good hitters will hit your best pitch. Against good hitters, you are trying to keep the from getting the timing down. Varying speeds a few MPH every pitch creates timing issues for batters.

Developing an off speed breaking pitch is easy. Your DD knows how to throw one...because she already throws one when she warms up her breaking pitch. (She starts slowly to get the spin correct, and then ramps up to "game speed".)

A couple of pointers:

1) The "trick" is to help her find a speed where her arm isn't noticeably slower. A batter can't tell the difference in arm speed between a 55MPh drop and a 60MPH drop. But, the batter can tell the difference between a 50MPH drop and a 60MPH drop.

2) *IMPORTANT*: The spin is critical. Your DD has to be able to spin the ball on an off-speed breaking pitch. She has to get the correct spin 99 out a 100 times. If she doesn't, you will have a tough time finding the ball in the weeds on the other side of the road.
 
Jun 19, 2013
753
28
I am trying to figure out if my DD has enough range in her pitch speeds or if we need to work on a more significant off speed too. My DD's cruising speeds for RB is about 50-52, FB is about 52-53, her DB is usually 54-55 (I think that may be coming up a bit more now) and CU is about 48. Hoping with some posture work and work on keeping spins true this fall and winter that there may become more of a spread. Such as when she focuses on true spin for her RB it is slower than if she gets lazy and it goes bullet and then it's same speed as FB just with upward trajectory. And working on good 12-6 spin on DB instead of tilted seems to keep that on the upper end of speed.

But I'm wondering if to fool batters if we need to have two speeds for the same pitch like Sluggers is explaining . . .
 
Apr 28, 2014
2,316
113
I am trying to figure out if my DD has enough range in her pitch speeds or if we need to work on a more significant off speed too. My DD's cruising speeds for RB is about 50-52, FB is about 52-53, her DB is usually 54-55 (I think that may be coming up a bit more now) and CU is about 48. Hoping with some posture work and work on keeping spins true this fall and winter that there may become more of a spread. Such as when she focuses on true spin for her RB it is slower than if she gets lazy and it goes bullet and then it's same speed as FB just with upward trajectory. And working on good 12-6 spin on DB instead of tilted seems to keep that on the upper end of speed.

But I'm wondering if to fool batters if we need to have two speeds for the same pitch like Sluggers is explaining . . .

I think the change up would be more effective if it were slower. Usually look to 9-12 MPH slower than FB.
 
Jun 19, 2013
753
28
I think the change up would be more effective if it were slower. Usually look to 9-12 MPH slower than FB.

haha I thought what is he talking about I think it's TOO slow and realized I put 48 when i tried to type 38. Although in games you never know what you are going to get with change up, really need to use it more in games and get more consistency.
 
Jan 28, 2017
1,662
83
12 year old DD has been working on a rollover drop for awhile. It's very good but not consistent at all. She asked, yesterday if she has to throw it hard. She said, if I slow my arm down I can make it move but not when I throw it 100%. i didn't know how to answer her ? since we are always pushing her to throw hard. FB was around 50-52 yesterday. Hard drop was around 50. One with good bite 46-48.

FB around 50-52
curve around 50
change around 38
The three that she throws in the game. Can throw FB to location and throw strikes with the other two.
 
Top