Pitcher Pregame Warmup Timing

[sluggers]

Am I looking at this wrong?

Yes, you are. Warming up (and pitching generally) is not about you, it is about your DD. Your DD has to take ownership of warming up. So, your job is as a guide, not a dictator.

You have to help your DD discover what works for her. You have to talk to her about her performance and her warm up and how they relate. Then, work with her to figure out what (1) what she needs to do to be game ready and (2) what she wants to do to be game ready.

Your DD has to learn to tell the coach what she needs to do. Most (all?) coaches will agree to whatever the pitcher says. Your DD has to learn that her team would much prefer her to be ready for the game rather than sitting around BSing with them. Also, there is nothing wrong with your DD going between innings and throwing a little to get everything perfect.)

As @YOCOACH pointed out, there is a mental and a physical side to warming up. She has to do both.

(As a note...Your DD needs to learn the absolute minimum she needs to do be ready. In college, things don't run like clockwork. She might want a 30 minute warmup, but she may only have 5 minutes. So, she has to know how to handle that situation.)

 

[jfitch12]

Warmups are one of those areas where it really seems to show if a coach has never pitched--particularly at the younger levels (in both baseball and softball). In baseball at least (and I assume softball), it is normal at any level from HS up for warmups to be routinized like a Swiss train. Here is an article about Clayton Kershaw's warmup routine: https://www.stack.com/a/clayton-kershaw-routine/. That level of precision may seem extreme, but it's also not uncommon, and makes sense if you think about it. Warmups are one of the few controlables that a pitcher can control. Yet few coaches seem to realize this unless they were pitchers themselves. I agree with Sluggers that at a certain age, it's on the pitcher to know what he or she needs and to communicate it. But for younger kids that can be tough. Is a 12 year old likely to do so? Maybe some would but some wouldn't.

I think my daughter has three warmups: a 20-pitch routine (for before a start), a 12-pitch routine (if going into a game or before a second start of the day where she was already warmed up), and a seven-pitch routine ("hurry up and get loose right now"). When she was about 13 or 14, she practiced these pretty regularly and would time them, along with any other drills she would do in warmups, so that she knew exactly how long it would take to warmup. Over the years, I think she has tinkered with the routines, and on any given day, if something is not working (and she has time), she will vary them to add a few more of whatever pitch isn't right. She also will usually go throw a little more if she has sat for more than 10 or 15 minutes (because of a long inning or a delay in starting the game). Then it's usually just 3-5 pitches to stay loose.

 

[canyonjoe]

Every pitcher should try and figure out what works best for them. Now I was at best an average pitcher but I always found out that if I warmed up too long it would just tire me out quicker. Others liked a lot of warmups. I think a good coach works with the pitchers and let's them figure out what works.

However, at some point you won't get the ultimate warmups needed. You might not be schedule to pitch that day and the P gets hurt or something funny happens and you have to go in to pitch. You might play back to back games where you warmed up 2 hours earlier, etc. You might even get put back in the game after getting taken out. As a pitcher you need to be able to get ready when it's not optimal as best as you can.