Is it harder to pitch to shorter players or?

[efastball]

After watching my son pitch for 15 years, yes, it's more difficult for most pitchers to throw strikes to very short players. Plus, it gets in the pitchers head.

 

[radness]

This is why there is a shortage of pitchers and also why a lot of kids quit softball.

When kids are young and just getting started pitching, they are pitching to the smallest strike zone they will ever see. Inexperienced pitching + a tiny strike zone = terribly boring games = kids quitting softball for soccer, etc.....

It's totally backwards. When young pitchers need the most help with a strike zone they are pitching to 4 footers. When they have a ton of experience and can hit a pie plate they are pitching to 6 footers. Odds are stacked against poor pitchers.

Like the thought process in this Texasheat!
Similar experience with catchers.
Younger age pitchers struggle makes it most difficult behind the plate. Especially while catcher learning, devolping strength and reaction.
When pitcher gets control becomes much easier to be a catcher.

 

[riseball]

This is why there is a shortage of pitchers and also why a lot of kids quit softball.

When kids are young and just getting started pitching, they are pitching to the smallest strike zone they will ever see. Inexperienced pitching + a tiny strike zone = terribly boring games = kids quitting softball for soccer, etc.....

It's totally backwards. When young pitchers need the most help with a strike zone they are pitching to 4 footers. When they have a ton of experience and can hit a pie plate they are pitching to 6 footers. Odds are stacked against poor pitchers.

STAY AT 17 INCHES. | Baseball Life

www.sperrybaseballlife.com

 

[hummingbird]

My DD had one of her worst games against a team of munchkins. Gave up so many walks that game. Had to explain to her that strike zone changes with body size lol.

Definitely harder to pitch to shorter batters, but you gotta deal with it as a pitcher. Stay at 17 inches was a great read btw. Love when sports lessons can be applied universally to life. Thanks.

 

[2br02b]

We used to try to make our line-up based on short - tall - short - tall. Of course they had to be able to hit in *that* spot too, but it doesn't hurt to put the shortest girl on the team after the tallest...

 

[julray]

I will say that my daughter who is shorter than most on the field has a much higher percentage of strikes called on her that are at neck level or above. It is very frustrating for her, and not something she's adjusted to, but it's definitely a thing.

Maybe one day I'll put together a video compilation of some of the ones I have.

Same thing as my DD, except I found it doubly frustrating because they also called lower strikes on her because while they seen the pitch into the catchers glove on high "strikes" they also called the low ones.. because she was shorter..LOL. At the end of the day it made my DD more aggressive which I prefer anyway, but damn did she ever swing at some bad rise balls.

 

[badmonkey]

Nose to toes! At 10u rec ball, if the catcher can catch it, then it's a strike!

DD has always had a discerning eye at the plate. Watching her spit on pitches in machine pitch used to make all the coaches in the dugout crack up. At 10U I had to reinforce shin to chin, instead of the strike zone as I taught her. She would always pick up the high ones quickly and drop her hands and stand up straight, then get called for a strike. Took a long time to get her in the habit of "showing" the ump where the pitch is by leaving hands high to match the pitch coming in neck high.