14 Year Old Daughter - First time at Softball...

[TripleB]

I have a 14 year old daughter who has tried a lot of different sports since she was 5 but has yet to find one for which she has a passion. She played soccer at 5 years old, cheerleading at 6, basketball from 7 to 12, and volleyball from 10 to 14.

I always assumed she would play basketball because of her height (currently 5' 10.5" in 8th grade) but she no longer has any interest in it (I think because everyone asks her all the time if she plays basketball).

She has decided now that she would like to try fastpitch softball.

I took her out to throw some for the first time ever and I was surprised by her arm. Very strong and a lot more accurate (although the furthest we've thrown is probably 80 feet) than I thought. Playing the pop ups is pretty good although I need to teacher her to catch the ball moving forward and ready to throw. Grounders are really good...I think the movement in volleyball and being used to staying low helps her here.

Batting however is a different story. She watches the ball well but her form is too mechanical right now (understandable considering she's never even tried softball before). At times her right wrist tends to roll under her left instead of over it like it should be doing.

And as far as how the game of softball is actually played (who moves where, where to throw the ball, cut off man, double play, etc.), she has no clue. However I taped the Tennessee/Miss. St. game last night and am going to go through it with her this week to try and teach her some of the game.

Right now we are using a borrowed glove, borrowed bat, and borrowed balls in order to see if the interest is truly there.

I guess I'm wanting to know two things:

1) Is 14 years old too old for her to learn the fundamentals of softball and become a quality player?

2) What advice would you give me in order to help her learn the game more easily?

So far what we've done is: throw the softball back and forth (varying the distance ever so often), slow pitched tennis and whiffle balls from the front, tossed a paper/tape ball from the side, worked on thrown pop flies, worked on thrown grounders.

During our Easter break I plan on taking her to an actual softball field and work on fielding drills.

Thanks for any and all advice!!!

TripleB

 

[starsnuffer]

I coach a travelball as well as a 14u recreational team. I have several new 13-14 year olds on my rec team who have never played softball before. Most of them have good natural athletic ability (one is a cheerleader/gymnast the other has a soccer background, the third does not have much sports background).

They all have progressed quite well in the last 4 weeks we have been practicing, our game season for rec ball starts in 2 weeks. Hitting is the biggest challenge. Of the 6 teams we have in our 14u rec league, all 6 teams have two or more travelball pitchers. This is great for the league, however for new players, hitting against kids throwing 40-50mph trying their hardest to strike the batters out is quite a shock, and honestly, not something that is easy to do even for the well seasoned player. Because of this, I have focused a lot of time on bunting and "slug hitting" mechanics, in addition to teaching the normal swing and having extra practice sessions focusing on hitting for these new players.

So onto your question:

1.) I do not think that 14 years old is too old. The goal here is for her to have fun and give her the best opportunity to develop a passion for the sport. Your daughters love of the game will dictate if she's open to spending the time and effort to become a "quality player".

2.) Get her signed up for rec softball straight away. Most leagues are already up and running if not partially through their season, but it is not too late. There are also wonderful institutions around that offer private hitting and fielding lessons that can get your daughter up to speed much quicker then you might imagine.

Good luck and I hope she loves the game!

-W

 

[SnocatzDad]

You have a unique opportunity to teach the skills needed to bat to a kid who hasn't got 6 years of baggage and who is starting with their near adult body and near adult coordination. Should be no problem for an athlete to learn this sport and become effective quickly. I would get her to a batting coach. You may "think" you can teach her to bat, but you would be suprised how many people eventually come to the realization that they were fooling themselves about their ability to teach that skill.

 

[EP Dad]

There was a girl in our local High School who didn't play softball until 14 and received a scholarship to a D2 school. This was at a very large competitive High School too. If the natural talent is there 14 isn't too late to start.