Can't Wait for the Spring Season to Start

[Ivy's Dad]

My DD has her first batting cage practice for the Spring Season this Sunday, and she was working last night in the garage with her Hit-A-Way (I have it hanging from the ceiling, and she hits it up into a tarp). Even though we have 6 inches of snow in the backyard, I'm getting a strong itch to get out and start throwing again. I don't think March will get here soon enough! Pray that my DD never gives up softball, 'cause I don't think I could handle the withdrawal.

 

[KevinC]

I'm with you. My DD's Rec league started their indoor winter skills clinics two weeks ago.

 

[SoftSocDad]

I'm with you. My DD's Rec league started their indoor winter skills clinics two weeks ago.

Tell me more about this, please.

 

[3'sDad]

DD's team begins their Winter Workouts Sunday Morning. As a pitcher, she's been throwing since Fall Ball concluded at Halloween. It will be nice to see her team mates/friends she hasn't seen since then.

 

[KevinC]

I'm with you. My DD's Rec league started their indoor winter skills clinics two weeks ago.

Tell me more about this, please.

I’m lucky to be in an area with a strong rec league and associated travel teams.

They rent out an elementary school gym for six Sundays in a row. Separate sessions for the different age groups and a special pitchers / catchers session. The skills covered are fairly basic but it gets the girls warmed up and excited for the spring season. The clinics are run by the 18 year old travel team girls (I think this is the best part – the younger girls really look up to them) with minimal supervision from the league president. They charge $15 a session.

The first week they had over 50 girls show up. You can find a flyer about the clinics at www.VGSL.org

 

[98Fastpitch30]

I'm also lucky to be in an area (well not really DD travel team is an 1hr. 10 min.) where travel teams practice and play year round.In the winter when we move indoors we play 6v6,I really don't care for the 6v6 format, but you can never substitute live pitching and live game-time scenarios so it's good for the girls...But I can't wait till the snow thaws and the grass is green...

 

[CPSBDad]

Same here.

Hitting coach on Sundays. Alot of fun here because of the interaction with highschool girls. Open gym sponsored by local rec league on Tuesdays. Good for playing catch, work on grounders, some catching, and some hitting. Actually, the hitting is pretty well organized with three stations leading up to a batting cage. DD catches for a pitcher during her pitching practice on Thursdays. Then if the weather is OK, we go in the garage and work on blocking and other catching drills ( Coach Weaver's DVD drills ).

 

[NVfishing]

We started pitching practice in December to get ready for spring ball. DD will be trying out for the high school team this year. I don't think she'll make the varsity squad as there are so many good ballers around here. Most likely JV. DD is up to six or seven practices a week right now. Saturdays and Monday are TB team practice. Tuesdays and Thursdays are pitching practice. Then she has non mandatory mandatory practice for the high school two or three times per week. DD got a great hit off the varsity pitcher today and all the coaches were giving her fist bumps. She liked that.

 

[SoftSocDad]

Thanks for that link, Kevin. There's some valuable information there that I hope might benefit our league.

If I may ask - and at the risk of derailing your thread - how is your retention from 6u to 8u to 10u to 12u? I'm not looking for specific data, just an estimate based on your observations. Also, do most leagues in your region have machine pitch/coach pitch (instead of player pitch) for 8u?

 

[obbay]

SSD- i find that all girls tend to forget a lot during the off-season and that every spring it seems like I'm teaching the same things. the difference is that (hopefully) each spring it doesn't take them as long to re-learn it.

a few years ago there was one girl who had a nasty hitch in her swing. she would sort of drop the bat and then swing up at the ball. we worked with her constantly and got her swing to the point where it was looking good and working well. then she played in a rec league (LL) where there was slower pitching. her coaches did nothing to help her compensate for the change in speed and she gradually went back to the drop-and-swing-up method. 2 or 3 years later and she is still doing it but has improved her hitting so now nobody wants to mess with it. (It's wrong, but it appears to work)