Our team last year had 5 pitchers. 4 that pitched on a regular basis, and 1 that really didn't want to, but stepped up when someone else was missing for the weekend. She pitched JV because they had no other options.
Practice - during team practice, I would always try to find some time to allow each pitcher to throw to the team catchers to build some familiarity. The top four pitchers each went to pitching coaches, so I really didn't get involved in mechanics. We focused on simulated innings with a heavy focus on the mental aspects of the game. Controlling the pace. Body language. Short term memory. Diagnosing the hitters and adjusting to the situation. As cannonball and others mentioned, I see this as a pitcher/catcher process. Both need to be involved.
Warm ups - we always made sure that a minimum of two pitchers were ready to throw for each game. During the warm up we would determine their comfort level for their various pitches and would talk a little about our opponent. Especially if we have played them before and have some scouting history.
Game - During the game I made it a point to speak with the catcher and pitcher as much as possible between innings. What pitches are working? How is the umpire calling the zone (high, low, river, etc.)? Are certain hitters keying on certain pitches? Etc. My preference is to have the catcher call the game, but the head coach did not want to relinquish that part of his control. We were able to convince him to allow the catcher to call against weaker opponents. But in general, he wanted to call the game. We were able to convince him that the pitcher/catcher should be able to shake off the call, and that seemed to work well for 2 of the 4 pitchers and 1 of the 2 catchers. The others seemed nervous to try it.
Practice - during team practice, I would always try to find some time to allow each pitcher to throw to the team catchers to build some familiarity. The top four pitchers each went to pitching coaches, so I really didn't get involved in mechanics. We focused on simulated innings with a heavy focus on the mental aspects of the game. Controlling the pace. Body language. Short term memory. Diagnosing the hitters and adjusting to the situation. As cannonball and others mentioned, I see this as a pitcher/catcher process. Both need to be involved.
Warm ups - we always made sure that a minimum of two pitchers were ready to throw for each game. During the warm up we would determine their comfort level for their various pitches and would talk a little about our opponent. Especially if we have played them before and have some scouting history.
Game - During the game I made it a point to speak with the catcher and pitcher as much as possible between innings. What pitches are working? How is the umpire calling the zone (high, low, river, etc.)? Are certain hitters keying on certain pitches? Etc. My preference is to have the catcher call the game, but the head coach did not want to relinquish that part of his control. We were able to convince him to allow the catcher to call against weaker opponents. But in general, he wanted to call the game. We were able to convince him that the pitcher/catcher should be able to shake off the call, and that seemed to work well for 2 of the 4 pitchers and 1 of the 2 catchers. The others seemed nervous to try it.
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