From 10u to 12u

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Jul 28, 2019
75
18
DD is 11 and moving up to 12u. Of course with that comes the bigger ball size. She has some experience this past LL season with the 12” ball on her majors team and our cage time. She was also playing on her 10u TB team during that time with the 11” ball of course. Using the same bat for both balls(2018 LXT 30/20)

The difference in hitting performance was night and day. Rockets with the 11” ball, and a lot of flubbers with the 12”. It’ll be nice now to only be using the 12” ball from here on out.

My question is how long did it take your DD to adjust to the bigger ball?

My DD is kinda going through the growth spurt right now, strength is expected to come with that I know. I have a lot of video i take of her at bats, you can see how the 12” ball changes the trajectory of the bat once contact is made. I chalk it up to her expecting the same result as hitting a 11” ball but getting a totally different feel once contact is made.

Throwing wise, she’s become more accurate and stronger throws over the past 6 months with the 12” ball.

I am in the market for a new bat but that’s a whole different thread 🤪. I sometimes feel she has already outgrown the 30/20. She’s barely had it 9 months.

So, any tips or info on what you folks have done to make the adjustment?
 
Jul 14, 2018
982
93
I think timing is probably a bigger issue than the mass of the ball when they move from 10U to 12U. The difference between an 11" and a 12" ball is less than an ounce in most cases, but the pitcher moving back to 40 feet has a number of consequences.

Timing is one, but the pitchers are also making a (much larger) leap when they move up. Girls who were whipping 11" balls 35 feet suddenly lose the strike zone when they're throwing a bigger ball from further away. As a hitter, that means seeing fewer hard strikes and more balls that are floating around the strike zone. That can result in a lot of "flubbers."

In the fall of first-year 12U, DD had one of her best hitting seasons. The extra distance really helped her, and the ball being a little larger didn't hurt. She also used the same 30/20 LXT that she swung as a second-year 10U. Swinging the right-sized bat is more important than going larger just because the ball is bigger.
 
Jul 29, 2013
6,782
113
North Carolina
^^^ Rick makes several great points! I, just like thousands of dad's before me worried about it for no reason, don't overthink it! Trust me, it'll work out, the cool thing is she has no choice but to move up, she'll figure it out!

With our school conference, middle & high school both have to pitch from 43'......that rule was put in place my DD's first year of MS, she went from a 11" ball and 35' to a 12" ball and 43' in one day!! That was a little stressful for me, she handled it in stride!
 
Apr 25, 2019
285
63
Biggest difference I noticed is that the key to winning in 10u was pitching whereas the key to winning in 12u is hitting. With the extra 5 feet and bigger ball, the pitches slow down for a bit. Teach your DD to be patient and wait on the pitch. This may eliminate a lot of the flubbers. As for fielders, I agree with the accuracy part. My DD got a whole lot more acurate with the 12" ball and the strength of the throw came over time. It all balances out in just a few tournaments.
 
Jul 28, 2019
75
18
I think timing is probably a bigger issue than the mass of the ball when they move from 10U to 12U. The difference between an 11" and a 12" ball is less than an ounce in most cases, but the pitcher moving back to 40 feet has a number of consequences.

Timing is one, but the pitchers are also making a (much larger) leap when they move up. Girls who were whipping 11" balls 35 feet suddenly lose the strike zone when they're throwing a bigger ball from further away. As a hitter, that means seeing fewer hard strikes and more balls that are floating around the strike zone. That can result in a lot of "flubbers."

In the fall of first-year 12U, DD had one of her best hitting seasons. The extra distance really helped her, and the ball being a little larger didn't hurt. She also used the same 30/20 LXT that she swung as a second-year 10U. Swinging the right-sized bat is more important than going larger just because the ball is bigger.


Great perspective. I have noticed most of the time the girls that dominated pitching in 10u have a harder adjustment than the hitters coming from 10u, mainly your reasons you stated. Even 2nd yr 12u players don’t reach their 10u form. Seems like it comes together for them at 14u.
 
Apr 20, 2018
4,581
113
SoCal
The reason I think 12u level is tough is the age/size disparity in the girls. In other words you have young women competing against little girls at this level. So this fall you will have a 4 1/2 foot , 68 lbs. not yet 11 y/o little girl competing with a young woman almost 13y/o that is 5'10" and 145 lbs. Coaches can try to pick their competition in friendlies but come fall tourney time there will always be some second year 12u team that are giants looking for the shiny plastic. If you are on a all first year 12u team it can be discouraging. Maybe there should be 11u only tournaments is the fall.
 
Jun 8, 2016
16,118
113
The reason I think 12u level is tough is the age/size disparity in the girls. In other words you have young women competing against little girls at this level. So this fall you will have a 4 1/2 foot , 68 lbs. not yet 11 y/o little girl competing with a young woman almost 13y/o that is 5'10" and 145 lbs. Coaches can try to pick their competition in friendlies but come fall tourney time there will always be some second year 12u team that are giants looking for the shiny plastic. If you are on a all first year 12u team it can be discouraging. Maybe there should be 11u only tournaments is the fall.
They have some 11U tournaments here in OK...not a fan. It is softball, not boxing or football, taking your lumps once in a while is good for you :LOL:
 
Aug 2, 2019
343
63
They have some 11U tournaments here in OK...not a fan. It is softball, not boxing or football, taking your lumps once in a while is good for you :LOL:
I still don't think that would deal with the size differential. In the last tournament of the year, we saw three teams in 10U that would have had a size advantage over the moms on our team. I get it if you have a 10yo girl that's 5'7" 150lbs. But where the hell do you find 10 of them to put together on one team? And why are you playing C?
 

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