Height?

[CoachFP]

A coach would have to be a fool to walk away from a kid because they are a 5'4" pitcher, even though they may throw the heck out of the ball. It just so happens that size and strength play a big role in pitching speed but is not the only factor. But some college coaches don't have the self confidence to buck the system and go for a girl that doesn't fit the mold.

 

[starsnuffer]

You have to keep in mind how young the pitchers are being recruited for these schools. How hard they throw by the time they graduate HS is a guess, whereas most girls have grown to 90% of their full height by 14-15yo. If they throw hard (57ish) and are tall at 14 or 15, the coaches will take a risk, hoping that they will continue to throw harder and get to that magical 65mph number by the time they start college. If they throw hard but are short, the coaches might not see the potential for as much progress. At the same time, if they're throwing 60-62 already at 14-15, then yeah the coaches will recruit them regardless of their height. That's the difference 5mph makes.

I'm playing devils advocate here, I'm not agreeing or disagreeing, I'm only pointing out that a lot of factors come into play when you're trying to pick your pitcher 4-5 years before she'll ever pitch for you in a game.

-W

 

[crystlemc]

Rick, if I may ask, how did she increase her speed enough to be recruited? I ask because my dd is 14 and is cruising around 53. Last winter, she topped out at 56, but has since lost weight and speed. She goes to Hillhouse for lessons andhe is awesome. Just looking for some additional perspective. Her goal is major D1. She is 5'8" and about 130lbs.

 

[TNdad]

If a pitcher is playing in tournaments against excellent competition and getting people out and in command of games, coaches will notice. I am like most everyone, when I see a 6ft tall girl pitching, I stop and see how she throws. Coaches I have talked with don't seem to be hung up on height. Mound presence, speed, command, how they handle adversity are several other things I've heard coaches talk about.

 

[GOINGDEEP]

Height is a good thing, I know cause my DD towers at 5'4.

Seriously there is much more than speed and height college coaches from both sides of the male/female game look for.

Speed: They look for the cruising speed to calculate ( from their experience ) what you will top out at. It's a guess for sure but most realize with proper instruction you can gain 2-5 MPH in four years of college.

Arm action: Are they smooth? Even if they are overpowering with speed, if the arm has too much tension the chances of injury are greater. If they can achieve good constant speed "effortlessly", that's a major plus.

Breaking pitches: They want late breaking balls as oppose to ones who might move more..........but gradual. They want high velocity breaking pitches.

Change up / off speed: Gotta be able to mix speeds and maintain control of them.

Control: Low walks. Can he/she hit her spots 90% of the time.

Inning pitches: This gets overlooked by many. Higher levels of ball keep track with how many pitches it takes a pitcher to get out of an inning on average. ( and yes it's important in FP too, you got usually one mule once you get to the playoffs, you need her to be strong for as long as she can )

Attitude: Does the pitcher take command of the rubber? Do they go "after" the batter? Do they get rattled?

Talent after the pitch: Can they make the play? Do they know where the play should be?

 

[Rick Pauly]

Simplest answer is she finally matured into her frame.....it is my experience that tall girls are about a year behind shorter statured girls when they are 12-13......then when the muscle growth catches up with the height things begin to click.
Next answer is she worked hard, had a crazy dad, and most importantly had some competitive fire in her belly. We would go to group lessons where there were some very good pitchers.......speed was measured every lesson and announced in front of everyone...big motivator for her. The group lessons had the best coach and mentor I have ever run into....Ron Bouldin, who had been the pitching coach at the University of Arizona when they began their run of championships.
Lots of that competitive fire still exists......she told me recently she was going to pitch until her arm fell off.
If you are looking for the one drill that may have had the most positive effect it was distance throwing.....also a staple at Ron's sessions.

Rick, if I may ask, how did she increase her speed enough to be recruited? I ask because my dd is 14 and is cruising around 53. Last winter, she topped out at 56, but has since lost weight and speed. She goes to Hillhouse for lessons andhe is awesome. Just looking for some additional perspective. Her goal is major D1. She is 5'8" and about 130lbs.

 

[marriard]

Is there a minimum height that colleges will consider regardless of the pitcher's skill?

Sounds odd, but I recently heard a person well connected from a recruiting standpoint say that a recent D1 national champion won't even look at a pitcher if they aren't at least 5'11". I understand the taller the better, the longer the levers the more potential, ...etc.

Just like the coaches who say they wont look at players wearing fielding masks and catchers who don't have certain pop speed and time-to-first times and other meaningless non-standardized non-game related stats... blah, blah, blah...

In reality, the coaches who are successful get over it if they have the opportunity to recruit someone who is going to materially help their program. Because if they don't, someone else will and then that player will be in the opposing team's dugout motivated to remind you about how dumb they think you are.

 

[wichita]

Regardless of what you may think there are a lot of coaches that have a height requirements regardless of the quality of player. The reason I know this? I have a daughter that is in the recruiting process shes a junior in HS. She is not a pitcher but a SS and has been told by D1 and D2 coaches that she doesn't meet there height requirement. This is even before they have seen her play so it is not a matter of if shes a stud or a rec ball player. I also know of a couple other girls that were pitchers in the late 90's one of which played on the east coast for top D1 schools and before she was recruited she was told by other top D1's that she didn't have the height to pitch for there colleges. Now I'm not saying that all schools are that way but it is more than just the top 25 D1 schools I know that for certain.

 

[Greenmonsters]

If a coach's time and recruiting resources are limited, it's much more efficient to initially rule kids out based on a minimum height than it is to review their skills videos or see them play in person. Regardless of whether its right or wrong, the undersized player has to go further to get a real look and chance to prove themselves capable and worthy. For some, its motivation to work even harder and they play with a chip on their shoulder. I haven't heard anyone approach and tell Dustin Pedroia he has to give back his WS rings and Gold Gloves because he's too short to play pro ball.

 

[WaSpeed02]

My DD is pretty tall for her age. Just turned 11 at the end of July and is 5'5".

Let's say in 5 years she's 6 ft tall but hasn't increased her speed much. Let's assume she is average. Does the fact she's tall give her an advantage over other girls? Also, she's a lefty. Does that give her an advantage over RHP's in the recruiting world, all other things being equal? IOW, do coaches actively seek tall girls and lefties, or is that more myth than reality?