How do you feel about intentional wild pitches

[Amy in AZ.]

No, I would never have my DD intentionally throw a wild pitch.

 

[SoCalSoftballdad]

High and tight is good also but if they did miss their spot could get hit or end up drilling the girl and putting her on.

You said in the OP the pitchers had "great" control, so I thought that they could just brush back the batter pretty easily. Just seems a little better strategy than throwing very wild pitches. This way the pitcher is in total control of the situation and the batter knows it.

 

[Duane]

Yeah they do have good control but nobody is perfect.

Should have clarified a bit more in my original post also - This wasn't something we did every inning or even every game. Really depended on the team we were facing, situation, batter, etc... I might not have done this against a weaker hitting batter for example.

 

[SoCalSoftballdad]

Kinda like Randy Johnson facing John Kruk in the all-star game a few years back?

Your strategy reminded me of a tactic a team attempted on my DD who was pitching one particular game last year. The opposing team knew they were outclassed so in the first inning, in desperation, they had their batters move up in the batters box and wave their bat around in an attempt to distract our pitcher. After she struck out all three batters, they went back to their normal batting stance in the second inning.

My point is we should teach our daughters to play the game the way it was meant to be played. Not with psuedo bush league tactics but by teaching them to have confidence in themselves as ball players so they can excel at this game. IMO, asking your pitchers to purposefully throw wild pitches instead of trying to get the batter out with her best stuff sends the wrong message. But others might disagree.

 

[Duane]

Hmm.. Never said we didn't go after the batters. Quite the opposite actually. Just wanted to get the groups thoughts on this tactic as a way to set the tone of the at bat.

Not sure I'd consider it a bush league tactic but I guess we all have our opinions.

 

[quincy]

If my pitcher was good enough to just give away pitches, I would have them pitch their throwaway inside. Sure they might hit the batter if it gets away from them but it is part of the game.

The good batters are paying attention and might open the outside of the plate later in the game.

 

[CoachFP]

Good pitchers don't need gimmicks like the one brought up here. Save that stuff for people who don't know what they are doing. By the way, just because Crash Davis likes it, I guess it is gospel. Give me a break.

 

[NVfishing]

I don't think throwing a wild pitch is a good idea. Throwing a pitch on the inside real tight is great. My DD is asked to do it all the time if the batter is crowding the plate. Even high and tight if necessary. Throwing something that would hit a batter is wrong. The batter can crowd the plate if they want but the pitcher has the right to crowd the batter. Just part of the game.

 

[NVfishing]

I prefer as many strikes as possible. I don't mind defense. Save the pitchers arm.

 

[Lozza]

Inside and tight is something I will throw if a batter is crowding the plate (and I have no issues doing that first pitch, I have enough control that one ball won't hurt me. I pitched shocking last game and only gave up two walks in five innings) But throwing it wild on purpose? No, I find it a waste of a pitch and just puts the batter ahead. Even with players with heaps of control there is no point in throwing a ball with no benefit. Throwing it inside gets the batter away from the plate and sets you up for an outside pitch. Throwing wild just gives them a ball.