Accuracy and hitting batters 10u

[uncdrew]

I love the psychology of coaches who yell out 'throw strikes' during a game. The hitter knows the next pitch is likely going slowly right down main street.

I would randomly yell out 'curveball', then watch the hitter start wiggling around, prior to their strikeout.

Not to mention that of course a 10U girl is trying to "throw strikes". That's the single-most focus. Telling her to do what she's trying desperately to do is kind of counter-productive.


Here's our 10U pitching core's stats. Not sure if it's average for 10U (travel - B) or not, but might be of slight interest to cnardone.

 

[uncdrew]

5 days per week, an hour per session seems fine, though on the heavy side. But hey, if they can put in that time, be focused, stay healthy... they'll improve quickly (assuming they practice well and have good mechanics).

For accuracy, look at Brush Interference (and of course I/R). I am a believer that both of those help with accuracy. There are sticky threads on both topics here in this forum.

 

[grcsftbll]

If I had one piece of advise when working with kids 10 and under and teaching them proper mechanics it would be spend almost all of your time working on the outside corner.

Bottom line is throwing inside with proper mechanics is easy, because it’s basically natural. Throwing outside and maintaining proper mechanics takes work. Once she’s proficient at throwing outside with proper mechanics her control will improve dramatically.

My dd was the opposite. She had better than average control in 10U but was so nervous about hitting a batter it was hard to get her to really go inside with it - she'd been pitching all fall and part of spring before she hit her first batter. We fixed it by making her pitch to her dad inside til she hit him. Got his elbow and it really hurt, but after that she started hitting the inside.

 

[sluggers]

If I had one piece of advise when working with kids 10 and under and teaching them proper mechanics it would be spend almost all of your time working on the outside corner.

Bottom line is throwing inside with proper mechanics is easy, because it’s basically natural. Throwing outside and maintaining proper mechanics takes work. Once she’s proficient at throwing outside with proper mechanics her control will improve dramatically.

He speaks!

If a kid can consistently throw low and inside and then low and away, the kid will do pretty good.

 

[Rocketech1]

Lisa Fernandez would tell the story that when she first started pitching she hit 15 batters. Her goal the next game was to "only" hit 14 batters, and so on. Pitching is a marathon and you might not see good results for many many months. But keep at it. It's all about proper mechanics, and practice, practice, practice.

At that age (9/10), my D would practice 3 or 4 x a week, close to year round but never for more than 30-45 minutes at a time, always included pre-pitch routine warm-ups. In addition, we would do something we called "sequences" at the end of every practice to simulate game situations.

How it worked, we pretended that there was a batter at the plate and DD had to "strike out" 5 batters before we were done. When she only had a fastball, I would call the pitching to certain locations (high inside, low inside, high outside, high inside) and if she didn't hit her spot, it was a "ball". As she progressed with a change-up, I would incorporate that pitch into the sequences.

What I liked about this drill was that it was fun and simulated having a real batter at the plate. It also got her into understand pitch strategy, for example, on an 0-2 count, practice throwing her fastball a few ball lengths off of the outside corner of the plate ("waste pitch"), etc.

Lastly, during team practices make sure she gets to practice pitching against live batters which will get her confortable pitching in real games without as much pressure on her.

 

[DNeeld]

Pitchers hit batters. At all levels. It happens, especially if the pitcher has the attitude (as they should) that they own the plate, not the batter.

The key is not to treat a hit batter like its a big deal. Girls get hit with line drives, grounders that take bad hops, and throws all the time. Its part of the game. So is a pitcher hitting batters. It is very important the young pitcher learns this and isn't afraid to hit a batter. Remember, there is an important distinction between being afraid to hit a batter and not wanting to hit a batter.

My DD's first year as a pitcher, she once hit every batter in the lineup during an inning. Coach left her in. That was some real dedication to development over winning.....

 

[SiB57]

My DD's first year as a pitch, she once hit every batter in the lineup during an inning. Coach left her in. That was some real dedication to development over winner.....

Our league has a rule that you can't hit more than 3 batters in an inning or 5 in a game. After the 3rd in an inning you have to play somewhere else (But can come back in to pitch) after 5 in a game you can't pitch anymore.

We haven't hit that threshold this year, but saw a game where they did in two innings. Poor kids were terrified to bat, girl threw hard but had no idea where it was going.

 

[hummingbird]

Sorry to bring back an older thread but was searching for some wisdom.

My 9YO DD, in her two previous seasons pitching has hit maybe 2 batters in all.
Started IR this summer and had some control issues. Had her first game and hit 4 batters!

I have a feeling this is mostly due to not utilizing brush interference consistently. I really don't know what else it could be.

The journey continues.

 

[ArmWhip]

Sorry to bring back an older thread but was searching for some wisdom.

My 9YO DD, in her two previous seasons pitching has hit maybe 2 batters in all.
Started IR this summer and had some control issues. Had her first game and hit 4 batters!

I have a feeling this is mostly due to not utilizing brush interference consistently. I really don't know what else it could be.

The journey continues.

How many walks? When I take on a new student I always tell the parent(s) that control is the last thing that comes.

 

[hummingbird]

How many walks? When I take on a new student I always tell the parent(s) that control is the last thing that comes.

She hit about 4 batters, and also had several walks.
It's something that I knew would happen because she constantly throws right during practice. I think it's her not staying close to the thigh on release as I've also tried learning how to pitch IR style and notice the same thing happening to me when I wasn't doing that on the release.