Pitching Mechanics- Practice vs Game

[WindmillPitcher]

So, yea I completely agree with the helpful comments on here, i.e. Hillhouse. As a former pitcher, the mental game is 90%. You practice form and mechanics over and over and over in practice, but the mental is what's needed for games. My advice would be to know what motivates your daughter...I always talked to myself between pitches and for me, I was pretty harsh, b/c that's what motivated me "come on get it together, she can't hit you", you know all that...but if your daughter is motivated differently, maybe she needs to talk positively to herself "you're the best", etc. You could teach her those things, or have someone else if she's at that doesn't want to listen to you stage, but that's just game day pressure, she's trying to throw really hard so she's rushing...also really helps to teach her how to visualize, after she warms up she spends 5 minutes by herself undisturbed and goes through the game in her head imagining how each out is going to happen, how each pitch is going to be thrown..sounds hokey but it works.

 

[4 girl's dad]

I want to add this. I went to a 10u pool game today to check on a catcher we are working with. Immediately, I saw 5 coaches in one dugout and 6 in the other, all male (not saying that's the issue but that's what it was). The amount of coaches yelling at the kids while they were playing and after they made mistakes was just shocking, so I can understand a kid tensing up out there. They yelled things that would make an adult unable to complete a play. Who the heck needs that many coaches? The teams only had 11 players each. What happened to proactive instructions instead of slapping the hands of the so-called wrong doers (in their eyes) or yelling right when the ball is getting there? Some of it followed the kids off the field, criticizing whatever the kid did wrong,. It was so loud I had to cover my ears, and I never do that for cheers after plays...

It was like night and day from a HS or college game. The coaches were telling the batters stuff that would make me blush at a slowpitch game, in so far as aggression towards particular opposing players "choking." I asked the parents (BTW, all moms), and at least four of them told me they were shocked by the yelling but tune it out now.

One kid came off after they made three outs in the third inning, but did not complete a double play earlier on a line drive that scored a run. She looked like her dog just died. So I asked the score. The answer was 5-4. By the look on the kid's face, you'd think it was 20-0. When I was 10, I just liked trying, going for things I had never done before, getting dirty and running all out. I never cared the results; if I did not get the ball, I tried again. Adults: We need to change and we need to do it now.

Is this what we are coming too?

Does any of this apply to the OP? Seems like a worthless rant...

 

[Ball Game]

Sorry to the OP that you got this kind of snarky reply right out of the box. It isn't easy to put your DD out there for the world to see and you and her have obviously been working hard. So very glad that Mr. Hillhouse jumped in like a gentleman with his helpful and insightful reply - just ignore replies from folks who can't even use common courtesy.

You're off to a good start and it sounds like she is willing to put the time in to get better. You really can find all you need on this site if you don't have access to a good coach in your area.

Can you tell me what was snarky.