Help Critique my 11 Y.O.

[leerph]

Hi guys. Just wanted some other people's opinion on my girls pitching. She started taking lessons when she was 9. Was taught hello elbow. A year later she was stuck at 36 mph and could not get any more speed. That is when I ran across this forum. After much reading on IR, we decided to break her down and start over using IR. Slightly less than 1 year later, she is not only much more accurate, but is now hitting 43 mph. She is a very small kid and always the smallest one on her team. It gives me great joy when they send her to the mound and the other team starts snickering until they see her turn one loose and then they give her some respect. I feel like we are on the right track and don't see much to work on except that at the top of her circle she has it pointed more towards first than to the catcher and then down the backside at the 3 o'clock position she also has it pointed more towards first than to the sky. However, I did notice that after the 3 o'clock position she does appear to turn it skyward as she gets into the 6 o'clock position before using IR at release. I also think maybe her elbow is a little to straight at release but not sure. The video quality is not the greatest so I apologize for that and the speed is at 1/4 normal speed. Anyway, I would be thankful for any feedback. She had to move to 12u travel ball this year and so she went from being one of the best in 10u to being an above average pitcher at 12u as we have several girls that throw 46 mph with good control. Thanks for your help! This forum has been the best thing to happen to my girl's pitching. Now when we go to games and see girls doing hello elbow my daughter just nudges me and we both laugh quietly to ourselves.

 

[leerph]

Thanks for the info. So to make sure I am understanding, you mean at the end after she has released the ball, she shouldn't let the drag foot come on forward and end up parallel to the front foot? I have noticed other pitchers never fully "close" at the end of their pitch but then I also worried about her not being in a very good fielding position if she remained "open" after the pitch was released. I know not to encourage a closing of the door during the pitch b/c it can lead to problems down the road but after the pitch is gone do we still need to worry about not getting closed? Does that make sense?

 

[BoardMember]

Yet another affirmation about how focusing on I/R FUNDAMENTALLY CHANGES EVERYTHING.........I LOVE IT!

The only thing I would comment on in her progress now are the ball positions she's using in the circle.........She's "inverting" the ball outward, thumb turned under the elbow.....(wiping the wall) as soon as her hand passes her rear hip on the way up the circle, placing the ball outside at the top, and outside down the back.......The ball turns up for a brief moment as it passes through 9:00, allowing an I/R delivery.........

Turning the ball INWARD on the way up will place the ball more forward at the top.........The more forward it is at the top, the more "loaded for I/R" it stay approaching 9:00.........

Hi guys. Just wanted some other people's opinion on my girls pitching. She started taking lessons when she was 9. Was taught hello elbow. A year later she was stuck at 36 mph and could not get any more speed. That is when I ran across this forum. After much reading on IR, we decided to break her down and start over using IR. Slightly less than 1 year later, she is not only much more accurate, but is now hitting 43 mph. She is a very small kid and always the smallest one on her team. It gives me great joy when they send her to the mound and the other team starts snickering until they see her turn one loose and then they give her some respect. I feel like we are on the right track and don't see much to work on except that at the top of her circle she has it pointed more towards first than to the catcher and then down the backside at the 3 o'clock position she also has it pointed more towards first than to the sky. However, I did notice that after the 3 o'clock position she does appear to turn it skyward as she gets into the 6 o'clock position before using IR at release. I also think maybe her elbow is a little to straight at release but not sure. The video quality is not the greatest so I apologize for that and the speed is at 1/4 normal speed. Anyway, I would be thankful for any feedback. She had to move to 12u travel ball this year and so she went from being one of the best in 10u to being an above average pitcher at 12u as we have several girls that throw 46 mph with good control. Thanks for your help! This forum has been the best thing to happen to my girl's pitching. Now when we go to games and see girls doing hello elbow my daughter just nudges me and we both laugh quietly to ourselves.

 

[Carly]

Great stride, posture and leg work for an 11YO, especially a small one! It's hard to tell from the video quality, but it looks like at the end of her release her shoulder is very slightly too tense, moving up toward her ear. She'll have more speed and less strain if she makes sure the IR turnover comes from her forearm/wrist and not the whole arm/shoulder.

My other advice isn't pitch-specific, but it is equally if not more important. Adolescence is around the corner and her body will inevitably be changing. She will need to get strong in order for these good mechanics to keep up with the changes in her body. If she's serious about pitching, as she starts to grow and develop more in the next year or two, get her evaluated by a reputable strength trainer and have him/her write up a workout plan.

 

[leerph]

Yet another affirmation about how focusing on I/R FUNDAMENTALLY CHANGES EVERYTHING.........I LOVE IT!

The only thing I would comment on in her progress now are the ball positions she's using in the circle.........She's "inverting" the ball outward, thumb turned under the elbow.....(wiping the wall) as soon as her hand passes her rear hip on the way up the circle, placing the ball outside at the top, and outside down the back.......The ball turns up for a brief moment as it passes through 9:00, allowing an I/R delivery.........

Turning the ball INWARD on the way up will place the ball more forward at the top.........The more forward it is at the top, the more "loaded for I/R" it stay approaching 9:00.........

Great comments guys. Thank you so much. Just to make sure I am understanding your post above, are you saying at the top of her circle she should have the ball facing towards the catcher and not towards 1st base and that will allow her to be in a better position to release the ball down the back side using I/R. As far as her shrugging her shoulder at release that is something that I never would have caught so thanks to Carly for pointing that out to me. We will start working on that immediately. Thank you so much guys for the feedback!

 

[Carly]

Carly, I think the changes make you stronger and many pitchers have no issue going right through and getting stronger. I don't want girls to think that growing up makes you less athletic and you will "have trouble and must work harder/differently than now." Kids live up to expectations (oh it will be a pain and why us, etc.). Plus that is what they taught us when I was young (often that for example, you lose all your running speed and won't be able to throw a ball, no kidding) and we need to ditch that attitude.

Getting a trainer and working to get strong should be related to the growth plates being fully formed and being a better athlete, not because of growing into an adult woman.

I do agree that we as coaches should not add to the emotional stresses of adolescent girl-hood by suggesting to a kid that she will naturally become weaker as her body changes. I would only ever mention that to the parent, and to the kid I would just say that if you're serious about softball (or any sport) it's important to become stronger no matter what. I also do know that there are many kids who power right through with no problem.

I do respectfully disagree with the idea that the changes make you stronger in general. Maybe the issue is that "stronger" is not the best word I could have used, because generally a teenage girl should be "stronger" than a little kid... but there are things that happen in most developing girls, such as the hips becoming wider than the knees, the legs growing faster than the torso, increased fat mass, increased joint laxity, etc. that can affect body control (more than strength) and predispose girls to injury. Of course many girls will not experience any problems, but you don't know if you will until you're already hurt. So I always recommend training before a kid reaches the point where she becomes more susceptible to injury, hoping to help avoid it altogether.

 

[JJBonyai]

Carly, I think the changes make you stronger and many pitchers have no issue going right through and getting stronger. I don't want girls to think that growing up makes you less athletic and you will "have trouble and must work harder/differently than now." Kids live up to expectations (oh it will be a pain and why us, etc.). Plus that is what they taught us when I was young (often that for example, you lose all your running speed and won't be able to throw a ball, no kidding) and we need to ditch that attitude.

Getting a trainer and working to get strong should be related to the growth plates being fully formed and being a better athlete, not because of growing into an adult woman.

Screwball, my name is Joe Bonyai and I'm a strength and conditioning coach from NY. Carly asked me to comment, but I will be brief and don't intend to hijack the direction of the original thread. I just posted a review of the physical deficits that accompany maturation in adolescent females. This review wasn't inspired by this thread, and was actually reposted from another site that I contributed to. I don't believe kids should be pressured into training, but rather inspired through appropriate (fun) strategies/training programs that will intervene with these developmental deficits.