Natural vs Trained Mechanics

[Rick Pauly]

This topic is being rather "intensely" contested in another thread. I thought it might be worthy of its own Thread.
Below is a quick video comparison of a young pitcher and my DD, Sarah. The intent is to show that not all girls are naturally gifted pitchers right from the start. I've made just a few comments about the young ladies issues.....the list could be a lot longer, but this is just to get the discussion flowing. IMO, there have been some very valid points made on each side of this discussion. I hope we can bring out more good points on each side.

 

[Doug Romrell]

Boy, talk about contrast!

 

[JJsqueeze]

My money is on both girls being Sarah. That would be a cool way to drive the point home.

 

[Stand an]

My money is on both girls being Sarah. That would be a cool way to drive the point home.

Well, if it's true you called it. It would be pretty cool.

 

[RubberBiscuit]

Comparing an 11 yr old to a late teen (guessing) and calling it a result of meticulous mechanics training is like saying she grew to be 6 foot by feeding her a glass of milk every day.......

 

[Madsdad]

Rick,
It is very difficult to see clearly but, even as rough as the girl on the left looks, she still does not seem to be pushing the ball. If this is a take off from IR1, 2, and 3 thread I think it needs to be pointed out that no one meant to say that anyone just naturally can pitch. I would hope that everyone who comes to this site for info. knows flat out that it takes hours, days, weeks, months, and years to get good. Without the desire to get better no one can get to that level. This is why we lose some many young girls. In little league every little girl wants to pitch. Once they find out what it takes to get better, most fall to the wayside. Some will continue with "poor" instruction (these are the girls we need to save) and most will never reach their potential.
I can only speak for myself when I say I think that some girls intuitively know how to pull the ball to some degree. I would ask if you found this to be true with Sarah early on. Did she seem to know how to use her body to pull the ball to some degree? This is what I mean when I say it came naturally. Not the whole pitching motion and all of the work that goes into learning. I have video of my dd at 9yr pulling the ball and she was never taught to do it.

 

[GatorGirl]

For us, once she found her whip, we discussed that it "felt more natural" but it never came naturally. If it takes 6 months to accomplish then it isn't natural. Some might say poor instruction, but there is the catch 22. If it is natural, you shouldn't need to teach it and break it down step by step. I guess I really just don't understand the reason for such a huge debate, but here it is.

 

[splinterpicker]

That is a pretty cool before and after. Besides the IR discussion, it shows what hard work and dedication can achieve. It also shows that many years of dedication were involved. As far as it being natural I do not know, but one thing is certain. The good lord truly blessed her.

 

[Madsdad]

GG,

No need for debate, my question for Rick, did Sarah push the ball to some degree without training. You say it felt more natural and poor instruction. If a girl is taught or shown to push the ball, she is doing what she is told or taught, that in IMHO is the catch 22. I wish BM's drills would have been on here sooner, I would have never questioned what my dd was doing. What we had was Rick's thread to help convince me that my dd was on the right path.
And for what it is worth, questions and debating are how we learn. I read a lot here that seems silly to me but I read it knowing that we all have questions no matter the level.

 

[WillyT812]

Mickey Mantle once said...it took me about four years to develop this natural swing. I'm sure Sarah worked a lot longer than that to develop her natural effortless looking pitching style.

I'm pretty sure that about sums it up.