How to tell coach my dd isnt a robot?

[Traps71]

Why would you ask an 11, 12, or 13 year old girl to carry a heavier pitching load than you would ask a 20 or 21 year old woman to shoulder in a college level contest?

A college coach might push the limits in a particularly meaningful game (with a young lady throwing, say, north of 150 pitches). But college level pitchers in most games are probably going to settle somewhere between 100-125 pitches if they are throwing a complete game (assuming no extra innings). And they aren't going to pitch a second full game the same day--unless perhaps it is NCAA Regionals or something like that. Maybe they would come in for a few innings of relief.

Why would you ask a still developing child to shoulder a greater load than what you would expect of a grown woman, who, in some sense, is getting paid to perform that role (through athletic scholarship money)? Developing a pitching staff is important, even if there is always an ace.

 

[Shiloh]

This such old school thinking and unsupported rumor.

A quick search of softball pitching injury and looking in The American Journal of Sports Medicine will give you plenty of evidence that softball pitchers suffer from injuries (biceps problems, tendonitis, rotator cuff and tendon strain, ulnar nerve and more) coming from overuse and fatigue.

Little League Baseball and USA Baseball now have the pitch limits and required rest periods that are VERY restrictive. 311 game pitches in a day would be the max of 4 baseball pitchers of that age. And they would all have 4 days of rest.

LOL!

alrighty then

 

[MoJo]

LOL!

alrighty then

Still stuck in the stone age I see.

 

[black17]

Still stuck in the stone age I see.

Not to respond for someone else, but there was no disagreement that injuries still exist from softball pitching. The reason there are pitch counts in baseball has little to no bearing on the windmill pitch in softball. As you know, it has to do with the shoulder and elbow support structures in kids being prone to damage due to the 'normal overhand throwing motion' which is an unnatural movement pattern. Although you can certainly pitch underhand in a manner that can cause similar damage, this isn't 'proper form' and not the norm for a majority.

 

[efastball]

1. How do I tell my dds middle school coach that my dd is throwing too many pitches.

2. She pitched 3 complete games. 2 back to back then a hr break then play again. No one kept a pitch count for her until after the tournament was over. Then they counted the using then score book.

3. The coach said she pitched 311 pitches. My dd just turned 13 last week.

4. I'm really mad about this.

1. You are the parent. You tell the coach her pitch limit before the season. Period.

2. 3. Good Lord.

4. I am mad at you, and the coach.

 

[RIZZARIJOE]

This such old school thinking and unsupported rumor.

A quick search of softball pitching injury and looking in The American Journal of Sports Medicine will give you plenty of evidence that softball pitchers suffer from injuries (biceps problems, tendonitis, rotator cuff and tendon strain, ulnar nerve and more) coming from overuse and fatigue.

Little League Baseball and USA Baseball now have the pitch limits and required rest periods that are VERY restrictive. 311 game pitches in a day would be the max of 4 baseball pitchers of that age. And they would all have 4 days of rest.

I have read some of the data in the American Journal of sports medicine and the most common injury is the back, and that is from overuse and over development. In fact, the journal of pediatric medicine compared the most common injury suffered in baseball as opposed to softball. The injury sustained in baseball on the shoulder girdle and rotator cuff was approximately 14 times greater Than that of a softball player. The windmill motion is a more natural motion and does not play some stress on the shoulder girdle or even the ulnar nerve. Think about it, Even if the hand ends up pronating, you aren’t leading the pitch with the elbow as he would in baseball. One thing I would agree with you on, and both journals support this, is the incidence of tendinitis. Studies have shown that baseball players tend to suffer more tendinitisIn the elbow whereas softball players Tend to develop tendinitis in the biceps area.


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[RIZZARIJOE]

I'm wondering if pitching overuse injuries creep up on a pitcher with warning signals or if everything seems fine until it isn't.

My experience in working with pitchers Is that overuse and over development of one side tends to cause back problems.


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[RIZZARIJOE]

I totally agree that the kids at this age need to start stepping up their responsibility to communicate with coaches in all aspects of the game, but especially wrt health and injuries.

That being said, the parents and coaches still need to play a vital role in assessing an athlete’s health. At least into if not through high school, these kids will not always recognize or understand precursors to overuse injuries, and blast right through to the point of a debilitating and sometimes permanent injury!

Yes, some kids are stronger and in better shape than others. Yes, some teams only have limited pitching capability. Yes, some kids try to pitch on more than one team.

All of these things need to be considered for the individual athlete, and coaches and parents should communicate, not assume anything. (E.g., kids never says a peep, coach assumes she’s fine. Parent sees kid pitching all weekend and thinks coach is a monster. One quick talk - Coach: “Hay, Mary! How’s Suzy holding up after the second game?” Mary: “She says she’s fine, but I know that look from pitching lessons. She’s almost out of gas.” Coach: Got it. We throw Jill tomorow and give her a rest. Let me know when you think she’s ready, and let me know what that cue is to look for when she’s gassed.”)

Interestingly, I heard a comment from Ken Eriksen a couple of years ago noting that he thought pitch count limits might not be too far out in the future for softball. (Although I have my doubts on their usefulness/effectiveness for baseball.)

Did I miss something? The original thread stated that the player played both travel ball and middle school ball. Why would anyone be complaining to the poor middle school coach who has absolutely no idea what the player did in the previous weekend. I would be more upset With the Travel ball coach. In my mind, the team must be a horrible team to have only one pitcher. Better to be the small fish in a big pond then the big fish in the fountain


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[Shiloh]

Still stuck in the stone age I see.

LOL

truly

 

[Lemond]

@RIZZARIJOE I’m not sure if you missed anything. My answer was generally speaking, not necessarily directly applicable to the OP. The point was definitely not to complain to anyone, it was to communicate. And it shouldn’t only be with the TB coach, it needs to be with both!