Appearance opinions

[txfirewife99]

Just curious to see how many teams/players/coaches look at a pitcher when they step on the mound and get an opinion before they even pitch. Do you look at a girls size and automatically think, "Man she looks like she is going to be a good/bad pitcher."?

What attributes do you see that gives you this assumption?

 

[lawdawg]

I used to until a 5' - 90lb pip squeek threw a no hitter against us in 14u. She had 4 legit pitches - probably five but we never saw a fastball that I remember. In another tourney there were rumblings about a girl throwing 63-65 - consistently. As usual I discounted that by at least 10%. Guess what, she was about 5'4" 120 and she threw 63-65 consistently. Once, my assistant clocked her at 67 from 40'. She never appeared at 40' again - last I heard she was playing for an 18uA team in the southeast. In contrast, I've seen some big girls serve up batting practice gravy. I don't judge until I've seen em pitch. I think the girls will still judge on appearance - I hear them make comments.

 

[sluggers]

Do you look at a girls size and automatically think, "Man she looks like she is going to be a good/bad pitcher."

Not really. You can usually find out how good/bad the pitcher after the five pitches.

Before the game, I'm looking at their motion to see what they are doing. Usually, you can determine from their motion what they can throw.

lawdawg: A 14 YOA girl with 5 pitches--right. I've only been following softball for 20 years now, and I haven't seen every pitcher, but I've yet to see anyone with 5 pitches.

 

[halskinner]

I always payed very close attention to what the pitchers would do in their warm ups BEFORE they stepped in the circle.

Ex: If they liked to show off by throwing huge long distances in the outfield to their catchers, you can bet the farm the first three batters at least are going to get pitches WAY high in the zone.

EX: If you see the pitcher coming down with a greatly exaggerated angle on the stride foot, break out the ice packs because she will probably be all over the place and nail several batters.

All kinds of batting habits to look for. Doesnt matter if they are the size of Tinker Bell or Godzilla. It's all about how smart they are.

Sneak Softball Pitching

 

[Coach JV]

I watch the warmup in earnest. I never guess how good or bad she is until
she has been thru a couple of batters. I had a pitcher last year that was a bit
wild before settling into her groove. The first inning was always an adaventure
as more times than not she would give 1 or 2 batters a pass to 1B either HBP or
a 4-5 pitch walk. Once she got past the first couple batters she became almost unhittable
for the remainder of the game. Her first game was a no-hit 3-3 tie.

I have found over the years that rarely does a 14U have more than 3 pitches that work well.
It is not the speed of the pitch as much as location that separates good and bad pitchers.
What difference does it make if a pitch is 50 mph or 55 mph when it is right down the pipe?

 

[lawdawg]

lawdawg: A 14 YOA girl with 5 pitches--right. I've only been following softball for 20 years now, and I haven't seen every pitcher, but I've yet to see anyone with 5 pitches.

If I remember - she threw drop, drop curve (maybe fb), screw, change. She's now 16 and has added a rise - can see her this Fall - starts for a 2A H.S. in South LA - verbally committed to ULL or SLU, I think. Still only weighs about a buck twenty.

"I always payed very close attention to what the pitchers would do in their warm ups BEFORE they stepped in the circle."

Not to change subject - have y'all had pitchers play "possum" in warm ups (short stride, no spin, no velocity, etc.) then had them explode in 1st inning. That seems to be fairly common in some circles. Catchers do it all the time.

 

[txfirewife99]

We are in the middle of a transition age from 10u to 12u. Of course coaches/players/teams (and let me add parents) look at the younger ones and expect them to perform less than the 98's or even 97s that may be playing at the 12u level. I just wondered if that continued as they got older, or just something we are dealing with now.

And I just wanted to get OPINIONS from others who are a part of the softball community.

 

[TeNeetKeeMom]

I always payed very close attention to what the pitchers would do in their warm ups BEFORE they stepped in the circle.

Ex: If they liked to show off by throwing huge long distances in the outfield to their catchers, you can bet the farm the first three batters at least are going to get pitches WAY high in the zone.

EX: If you see the pitcher coming down with a greatly exaggerated angle on the stride fott, break out the ice packs because she will probably be all over the place and nail several batters.

All kinds of batting habits to look for. Doesnt matter if they are the size of Tinker Bell or Godzilla. It's all about how smart they are.

Sneak Softball Pitching

Question: Do you think long pitch should be included in a pitcher's warm-up routine before they pitch in games?

 

[cshilt]

Question: Do you think long pitch should be included in a pitcher's warm-up routine before they pitch in games?

While we're waiting on Hal's answer, I'll offer my opinion (for what it's worth). I don't usually have my DD do long toss during pre-game warm up, but if I did I would work back in. By that I mean when she reached the distance she could no longer throw it to the catcher in the air, I would have her move closer to the catcher for a couple of throws until she got back to her normal pitching distance.

 

[txfirewife99]

Not to change subject - have y'all had pitchers play "possum" in warm ups (short stride, no spin, no velocity, etc.) then had them explode in 1st inning. That seems to be fairly common in some circles. Catchers do it all the time.

My 99 told us recently that she tries not to throw her other pitches (change up and curve) when warming up. She only throws the fb so that the other team doesnt see what she can do. This is no instruction from us as parents or her pitching coach, just something she has recenlty started doing. So I guess she plays "possum". Not that she has much to throw at this point, but her mentality of the game often surprises me at her age.