Is the average 9-10yo athletic ENOUGH to throw a ball correctly?

[marriard]

Nothing I like better than getting a player BEFORE they learn to throw. It is easier to get a tee-baller to throw properly than it is to change a 12 year old who already has bad technique ingrained.

Nothing is worse than realizing we have a player we are going to have to work on the entire season to get them throwing properly. Building a throw up from the ground up is brutally hard work for everyone (player, coaches and parents). You need the player to realize they have to get this right otherwise it will never work - and then they need to work on it multiple times per week.

 

[joeman39]

biggest problem i have seen with people teaching girls to throw at 8-9 or so is they first try to use a softball. Young ladies hands are small and they usuallu puish the ball instead of throw the ball because they can't hold on to it with there fingers. When they first learn to throw use a small ball, a small rock or something they can grip with there fingers.

 

[PA SB Dad]

Add average rec coach (and maybe TB coach too) to your statement and I'm with you 100%

Watch any 14U travel team warm up, and I would bet less than a third of the "B" teams have proper mechanics when they throw, which comes back to proper coaching all the way back to 10U and 8U. The 14U A teams are usually better, but not always.

I have worked with both boys and girls that could not throw the ball properly and even after working hard with them for an entire season during practice they still do not necessarily throw correctly.

Maybe I do not do it correctly but I think it might be the hardest softball/ baseball skill to teach.

We will have 2 players on the team this year “who cannot throw”. Forget the arm and hands; I cannot get their feet working. After working with a player for a few months last year I would bet money they will still step to throw with their right leg, RH player. Try stepping with your throwing arm foot and throwing, it feels really awkward.

It is what they have done for 11 years so it is a hard habit to break. If someone helped them when they were 4 or 5 throw something it would be ingrained after 6 more years already, unfortunately a bad habit has been practiced for 6 years.

I agree with Ken’s premise that generally less boys fall into this category for the reasons he mentioned not based on any inherited skill.

I've seen plenty of boys in LL who cannot throw properly, but you are right, numerically there are more boys who throw correctly in our LL than girls.

As painful as it is, sometimes you have to break it down to something so simple they "can't" fail, but it is something you have to have the parents practice with them at home - you can't do it in practice except the 10 to 15 minutes you use to warm up. I stripe balls along the 4 seams and reinforce grip, I get street hockey pucks and have the girls throw those against a wall, I use tennis balls and Lite Flight balls so they aren't struggling with the weight or size of the ball, the Throw Max, anything to make it easier for them to get the proper feedback when they are throwing.

 

[tghorley]

Kids learn by copying. If they are around throwers they pick it up earlier. There is a huge environmental aspect.

I agree if they pick it up early enough, but "athletes" will pick it up faster, they just seem to be "natural" at it. My oldest DGD did not start playing softball until she was 10. When she started, she was basically throwing "correctly" and has picked up more definition rather quickly. But she worked at it, throwing weighted balls, footballs, long toss, asking questions, etc. She now has "more correct" mechanics and has developed a pretty strong, accurate arm.

My 6yo DGD does competitive dance now, but she gets her dad out in the back yard to play toss almost every day, weather permitting. She learns a lot from him (former baseball player) but has learned quite a bit by going to watch her cousin play softball. She even has the little flick of the wrist at the end of the throw. Heck, she has started the pitching motions just from watching the games.

Their 7yo neighbor comes over some to get into the action. She has trouble with throwing off of her wrong foot, not holding her arm correctly, etc. Love this little girl, she listens to instruction well and wants to do it right. But she just has a hard time applying what she has learned. But she is doing well and hopefully by the end of this summer she will be on her way to doing it correctly without thinking about it.

 

[Steve Huff]

I have a theory on girls and boys throwing that is only half facetious. Boys throw all the time for all sorts of reasons. To a boy, rock + duck on a pond = throwing practice. Most girls would never think to throw a rock at a duck, squirrel or their friends. As a result, boys throw more, with a purpose, which helps them learn faster.

I believe anyone can be taught to throw, however. They simply have to be willing to learn. I've had plenty of players (females) who throw every bit as hard as a boy, and they do it with a larger, heavier ball.

I completely disagree with you Ken, Most of the women I have been with throw more pots and pans ....... with a purpose! And they are pretty accurate!

 

[redhotcoach]

biggest problem i have seen with people teaching girls to throw at 8-9 or so is they first try to use a softball. Young ladies hands are small and they usuallu puish the ball instead of throw the ball because they can't hold on to it with there fingers. When they first learn to throw use a small ball, a small rock or something they can grip with there fingers.

Yep! I never thought much of it until at a coach's clinic Kate D (Northwestern) had us coaches trying to throw volleyballs with correct form. She said they use baseballs in their camps with young girls.

 

[Sweet Lou]

Is the average 9-10 year old athletic enough to throw a ball correctly? Absolutely yes.

Is the average parent or coach of a 9-10 year old smart enough to be able to teach said 9-10 year old to throw correctly? No.

Yeah because a coach can teach so much seeing 12 kids for 2-3 hours a week. I can show everyone reasonable proper mechanics in a few minutes but if the kid doesn't play catch at home, no amount of coaching is going to help him or her much. You simply can't get enough good reps in to reinforce it.

 

[SnocatzDad]

biggest problem i have seen with people teaching girls to throw at 8-9 or so is they first try to use a softball. Young ladies hands are small and they usuallu puish the ball instead of throw the ball because they can't hold on to it with there fingers. When they first learn to throw use a small ball, a small rock or something they can grip with there fingers.

Totally agree here. That's why those ZIP balls are great for teaching young kids to throw properly. Can't teach a kid to throw properly when their hands are so small they cannot grip it properly, If boys learned to throw with a volleyball instead of a baseball they would look similarly challenged. Many of the "girl" throwing problems result IMO from learning mechanics that involve cupping the ball and throwing because not cupping results in dropping the ball that is too large for them to grip.

 

[PA SB Dad]

Yeah because a coach can teach so much seeing 12 kids for 2-3 hours a week. I can show everyone reasonable proper mechanics in a few minutes but if the kid doesn't play catch at home, no amount of coaching is going to help him or her much. You simply can't get enough good reps in to reinforce it.

I completely agree with you. But please understand my point. Exceptional coaches of 9-10 year olds teach proper mechanics. The average parent/coach of a 9-10 year old doesn't.

 

[PA SB Dad]

Yeah because a coach can teach so much seeing 12 kids for 2-3 hours a week. I can show everyone reasonable proper mechanics in a few minutes but if the kid doesn't play catch at home, no amount of coaching is going to help him or her much. You simply can't get enough good reps in to reinforce it.

I completely agree with you. But please understand my point. Exceptional coaches of 9-10 year olds teach proper mechanics. The average parent/coach of a 9-10 year old doesn't.