Live pitching practices VS bullpens/lessons

[RADcatcher]

My issue

Yes, can see your issue LOL...
bottom line
it is difficult to find a pod of coaches who are all going to agree on the exact same practice.
You're not the first coaching staff to want to figure out what the best practices are. The good thing is you can do different practices and still accomplish each coaching goal! You just have to be willing to listen and apply what other coaches are saying.

was that some of the coaches think we should do more live practices compared to bullpens + live practices. Geez

LOL GEEEZ.....
Sometimes, Overblown overthinking makes an issue that isn't there. Can do both, mix practices a little reduces redundant boring practices.
Can do both...
Bull pens warm up pitchers. Then go do live hitting only going to be throwing to three or four or five batters 15 to 25 pitches (1 bucket) move on.
Satisfies all the coaches practice desires LOL

 

[_MIA_]

Overblown overthinking not that huge of an issue can do both share the coaching of the team geez

You cannot hit live as much as possible and also only do it once a week anymore than you can lose weight and gain weight at the same time..

 

[RADcatcher]

Because so often you are practicing on one field with no cage…. It’s all you have. Have had access to some really nice multi field set ups though. I would use my imagination on that deal!

Like the thinking their @Westwind about what type of facility or field as part of the equation!

 

[RADcatcher]

You cannot hit live as much as possible and also only do it once a week

Lol, yes I agree hitting once a week is not as much as possible! Being that there are some teams that have practice three or four times a week

Don't have to do the same practice every week!
Even if the coaches finally decide to weekly, Adding a live hitting station once a week mixed in with other hitting stations/ practice stuff, will not hurt.
Holy mackerel doesn't have to be hours and hours at the live hitting station,
Simply five pitches each player and move through it. Gives everyone experience of seeing more game like situation. Pitchers with batters, Batters with pitchers. Good stuff!

 

[_MIA_]

Don't have to do the same practice every week!

While personally I don’t think in the current situation hitting live more than once a week is a good idea, this is certainly true.

 

[RADcatcher]

Reflecting on doing bull pens~
Ask these questions,
How much about pitching do the coaching staff know to help the pitchers in their bull pens?
What do the bullpens consist of at practice?
Is there a pitching instructor there?

Potentially ONLY throwing bull pens at practice
>could be
Redundantly ~redundant for pitchers that are throwing on their own at home anyway

Here is the Answer again....
When the pitchers are warming up to go throw live would be sometime in a bullpen type practice and then they can jump in the circle and throw to batters.
= both things happening at the same practice!

 

[Westwind]

One of my DD’s briefly played for a four year college softball player. The worst (softball) coach either of my kids played for. (There was a headcase basketball coach that was worse. Also a former player, so she OBVIOUSLY was awesome.)

She absolutely could not run any live pitching scenario thats didn’t devolve into absolute effing disaster. Disaster that lasted for HOURS.

I guess that’s why I’m against it. Even in small doses. If she can’t figure it out, how is some dad going to figure it out? Thats my advice, not only do less of it, don’t do it.

And yet… the old geezer genius that coached my youngest dd at 10u had machines whirring and adult arms a throwin’ at every practice while pitchers pitched off to the side with supervision and other players were working infield and outfield fly balls….. That team could hit. And had pitching. Never pitched to our own batters. That geezer coach never coached past 12 u. Yet you could pick out his players IN HIGH SCHOOL because of the way he practiced and played the game when they were 9-12 years old.

This is the problem with “former player” coaches. They do it because “it’s what they did”….

 

[Westwind]

Practice with a full defense and live hitting is probably one of the least beneficial ways to spend your time during team practice at the 10u level.

I would recommend spending more time on groundballs and fielding footwork than any other aspect of the game.

After that focus on throwing and outfield. I will admit, that throwing was one of the most difficult problems to fix, it really takes a ton of time. You should be working on throwing at every practice. Even at the High School level, I would estimate that half of girls on my daughters High School still throw poorly.

You still have to work on base running, bunt defense, pickle or run down plays, cutoffs, etc. What I am saying is live hitting that takes up your entire practice field should be at the bottom of your priority list.

When you are done with those practice scenarios above, do more groundballs, footwork and throwing because i guarantee you at 10u you are lucky if you have two girls that do that stuff correctly on a consistent basis. Please be careful and overdoing the overhand throwing, you can work on groundballs and footwork without throwing.

When you only practice one or two days per week, pitching and hitting need to be done on their own unless you have a batting cage to work in. Just too inefficient to do live pitching and hitting on the only field you have to practice on.

This is a great post.

The old “geezer genius” coach that I admire admitted to me years later he spent too much (all of it) hitting hard ground balls at the girls. His dd was a third baseman so he hit to all players in a way that they could field any hot shot but even his most athletic players didn’t learn to move their feet. To this day I am thankful he coached my kid. I wish I would have known to get my older dd on his team. But this was his one weak spot….. I didn’t know at the time what we needed to work on outside of practice. And my youngest dd would have benefited greatly from what you are advocating. (She is a college senior this year).

 

[RADcatcher]

. If she can’t figure it out, how is some dad going to figure it out? Thats my advice, not only do less of it, don’t do it.

True not everybody has good facilitation management communication skills.

And we know there are different ways to run effective practices. And every team does not run the exact same practice plan.

And yet… the old geezer genius that coached my youngest dd at 10u had machines whirring and adult arms a throwin’ at every practice while pitchers pitched off to the side with supervision and other players were working infield and outfield fly balls….. That team could hit. And had pitching. Never pitched to our own batters. That geezer coach never coached past 12 u. Yet you could pick out his players IN HIGH SCHOOL because of the way he practiced and played the game when they were 9-12 years old.

Therein lies the discussion of the multiple different ways to run practices!

Beyond that topic, to get results
Possibly the question/ answer is simply how many players are doing reps on their own?! Hard to determine if one practice a week is really the determining Factor. imo Probably practicing one day a week is not.



But to the Ops 'issue' their coaches are at a conundrum of bullpens or live hitting.

Could take this perspective,
If you have pitchers who are throwing on their own weekly there is the consideration that doing any bullpens at one practice a week is unnecessary.
Well,... then it makes me think of the practice it gives for the catchers.
So for that I like the catchers to get some work with pitchers!!!

 

[Westwind]

There is no conundrum to me.

At 10u, they shouldn’t do more. They shouldn’t do less. My advice is to not do it, unless the team is practicing at least 3 times per week. And who does that.

It sounds like OP team has a staff of 5. With 5 coaches, you can get A LOT done. And that will pay dividends exponentially at the 6 month, 1 year, 2 year etc mark. Well begun is halfway done.