Does LHP need a screwball?

[MandM]

DD is almost ready for new pitch (she is LHP; 1st yr of HS), has FB, good CU, curve, & drop - effective in that order. HS coach is anxious for her to have screwball- which DD does not throw, and would not likely learn next as SB has tendency to reinforce bad mechanics, but coach does not seem to accept this rationale. How necessary is it for DD to have SB?? Would like ammunition for argument (or reason to learn)

 

[GOINGDEEP]

Does LHP need a screwball

Does a fat baby fart? lol

What pitch do you have now that is moving/running "away" from a RHB? Not an angled pitch.

My LH DD would not be crap without her curve and screw. The abilities to run the ball into the handle or the cap at any given pitch makes for some weak hits easily handled by the defense and a good number of double plays.

I'll try to RDBASS a few gifs of DD and how the formula works.

 

[LeftiesDad]

DD is almost ready for new pitch (she is LHP; 1st yr of HS), has FB, good CU, curve, & drop - effective in that order. HS coach is anxious for her to have screwball- which DD does not throw, and would not likely learn next as SB has tendency to reinforce bad mechanics, but coach does not seem to accept this rationale. How necessary is it for DD to have SB?? Would like ammunition for argument (or reason to learn)

DD Is a LHP. 16u, Freshman HS. Her FB has a natural tendency to screw. That said he HC decided to teach her a SB. She picked it up in a couple sessions and when her "homework" was to throw one in a game it quickly became obvious that it was a great pitch. This was against a coach that DD had pitched multiple times so he know what she threw. She proceeded to throw it for multiple innings the RHBs would either hit it weakly or just watch it get called for a strike much to the opposing coaches unhappiness.

Does a LHP NEED a screwball? No.

Can it be used effectively? Absolutely.

 

[MandM]

Thanks, as Rick said "I was misinformed"

 

[chinamigarden]

No one "needs" a screwball in fact no one "needs" more then 3 good pitches

 

[GOINGDEEP]

You can actually do a lot with the screw, and I'd have to say LHP have an advantage with the screw with the "mysterious" tailing ability that comes natural to most lefties. Sorry for the quality, next set of games I'll use the GOPRO or Ipad with a better camera. But you can still see the results, and where the catcher is handling the ball.


You can move the axis a tad to run it and drop.

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You can throw that sucker in their eyes looking like a fat pitch, but it tails away.

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You'll get a bunch of these running the screw to the cap, we call them "long strikes".

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[luvmyrise]

DD is almost ready for new pitch (she is LHP; 1st yr of HS), has FB, good CU, curve, & drop - effective in that order. HS coach is anxious for her to have screwball- which DD does not throw, and would not likely learn next as SB has tendency to reinforce bad mechanics, but coach does not seem to accept this rationale. How necessary is it for DD to have SB?? Would like ammunition for argument (or reason to learn)

A screw ball could be an effective pitch for a LHP, but is there a reason the coach is pressed on her having this? It sounds as if she has many pitches already, especially for a freshman in HS. Does her curveball and dropball move, or does she just throw them? I got through college and still play in Women's Majors with 3 pitches (aside from a FB). Girls don't need 4-5 pitches. They need 3 EFFECTIVE pitches. If the other two aren't strong, then sure, move on to another pitch and see how she handles it. As for mechanics, I'm not a huge fan of a SB or a CB, mostly because of the way the pitcher comes several inches off the power line. A drop curve, and a rise ball I believe are two similar pitches that keep your mechanics very similar to the FB. Good luck.

 

[MandM]

First - to out in left field- with regard to SB not causing/reinforcing bad mechanics- of course that is true- but my DD had bad mechanics to begin with, the biggest problem of which was that she leaned significantly to her left and had a problem with her pitches tailing to the left inadvertently. Her PC corrected these issues over the past year, but was concerned that the SB for her, may cause her to slip back into some bad habits. Catching for my DD - I would say this is a valid concern.

I was more along the lines of luvmyrise- her CB works well for a relatively new pitch (< 1 yr old), FB and CU are good and she spots them well, and the drop which is the newest, will be a great pitch for her. I wondered why the pressure for the SB and really if the other pitches worked well, why it seemed to be a "must have"- to them, especially if her PC had concerns about introducing it at this time. I guess that is the missing piece of info. PC just does not think she should learn it now as it may cause some old problems to resurface. Her HS coaches are really focused on this however.

Anyway, I do appreciate (as always) the advice.

 

[smddad]

Her PC corrected these issues over the past year, but was concerned that the SB for her, may cause her to slip back into some bad habits. Catching for my DD - I would say this is a valid concern.

This says enough to me. Have her let the HS coach know that there is no screwball at this time, because the PC says so. Also, do not allow the HS coach to teach her anything about pitching. That's why she has a PC and why you pay them, not the HS coach.

Just my 2¢ worth.

 

[David Carter]

In all honesty the fastball she was throwing was probably closer to the peel drop Hillhouse talks about here below: If she can throw a peel drop on the outside corner she can probably live without the screwball. It is all a matter of how much you and her PC thinks her mechanics break down the more she tries to get the right rotation for a screwball and how much movement she can get on the peel drop.

"There really is no deep dark secret when it comes to the peel drop. And while I've made no secret that I am totally 100% against the "fastball" that many young girls are taught, the irony is that most girl's fastball that they are taught is, in reality, a peel drop! The difference in the pitch is simply the release point. The rotation and mechanics of the pitch are the same as 99.99999% of the "fastballs" I've seen. It has just simply never made any sense to me to teach someone to throw a fastball, which stays straight, when they could be throwing the drop, which changes planes. Both pitches can be thrown strikes, at corners, etc. And with the drop, even the slightest movement can be enough to keep the batter from getting a solid part of the bat on the ball. "