Should a High school player play both Pitcher and Catcher?

[bleumax]

My DD is the #1 pitcher on her HS JV team and as far as I can tell, appears to be the #1 catcher when she isn’t pitching. She is inexperienced at catcher, but volunteered to play catcher if needed…mostly thinking she would be an emergency catcher.

I’m concerned about her arm health and the risk of injuries from playing catcher that may hinder her ability to pitch. Is this something that I should be concerned about? In the first full game of the year, she threw well over 100 pitches.

 

[cnardone]

I am no expert, but I'd only 2nd guess if you play double headers.

 

[chinamigarden]

Which position does she love? Play that one.

 

[bleumax]

Which position does she love? Play that one.

She’s a pitcher and middle infielder. She’s only playing catcher because she has the best arm on the team. She’s willing to play wherever they need her, but catcher would probably be her 4th or 5th preference.

Since this is high school, she has to play where the coach assigns her. My concern is that there’s a lot of wear and tear on her arm between pitching and catching - albeit, a different throwing motion. I’m also concerned about my DD potentially injuring her hand, especially since she’s inexperienced at catcher.


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[radness]

So she's a pitcher, probably works on pitching throughout the week.
That said
Befor this seasons predicament
Did you ever consider how much she throws over hand simply training with the rest of the team? Going to guess possibly she plays other positions to like maybe Outfield or another in field position over the years?

It's an interesting thing that happens that people will talk about pitchers overextending by throwing too many pitches. But I don't see very many conversations about arm care as far as how much players throw overhand regularly and extensively at practices where they'll be over hand throwing over 300 throws at each practice.
That said suggestion for everyone
Focus on Mechanics and a prepaired healthy body.
Along with that simple notation
Any player at any position can overextend themselves.


Also would add that pitching is not just arm care.
It has a lot to do at the entire body, torso and legs, that is something that should be considered with catching
being a very weight-bearing position.

For the most part catchers throwback to the pitcher 43ft most of the time not making longer throws. (obviously the consideration of throwing Runners out on occaision)
but extensively she'll be using her legs and torso in the crouch down & up.
weight-bearing.
that I would consider over the arm making short throws.

 

[bleumax]

So she's a pitcher, probably works on pitching throughout the week.
That said
Befor this seasons predicament
Did you ever consider how much she throws over hand simply training with the rest of the team? Going to guess possibly she plays other positions to like maybe Outfield or another in field position over the years?

It's an interesting thing that happens that people will talk about pitchers overextending by throwing too many pitches. But I don't see very many conversations about arm care as far as how much players throw overhand regularly and extensively at practices where they'll be over hand throwing over 300 throws at each practice.
That said suggestion for everyone
Focus on Mechanics and a prepaired healthy body.
Along with that simple notation
Any player at any position can overextend themselves.


Also would add that pitching is not just arm care.
It has a lot to do at the entire body, torso and legs, that is something that should be considered with catching
being a very weight-bearing position.

For the most part catchers throwback to the pitcher 43ft most of the time not making longer throws. (obviously the consideration of throwing Runners out on occaision)
but extensively she'll be using her legs and torso in the crouch down & up.
weight-bearing.
that I would consider over the arm making short throws.

I agree with your thoughts on the legs and torso as well. I view catcher as the most demanding position on the field. Since her primary position is pitcher, I worry that the demands of catching will make her more susceptible to injury and possibly hurt performance too. Her high school future in softball is unlikely to be at the catcher position.

Of course, arm care is important for pitching and overhand throwing. I suppose we will need to incorporate some J-band work.

Perhaps I am overthinking this. When I coached, I was very careful about how I used catchers and pitchers since I wanted to limit their risk of injury. This does not seem to be a concern for my DD’s coach.


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[Strike2]

Throwing repetitions are something to watch, but if she's inexperienced, THAT is how you get hurt at catcher at older ages. Not knowing how to set up and avoid problems is what will quickly cause injury.

 

[Northball]

Not a medical expert, but I don't forsee any problems playing both. Performance-wise, she should not catch the first game of a DH, and follow that up by pitching in the 2nd. The legs may start to feel like jello and the pitching mechanics will nosedive.

 

[EDen]

Writing as a National Level 18u Pitcher

It's been a few years but I used to be a Pitcher/Catcher combo player. I started playing softball when I was 8, and I started as a catcher. But when I reached 12u I was the tallest girl on the team, with the best arm. So my coaches wanted me to try pitching as well. Pitching came pretty natural to me, so I became a Pitcher catcher combo for a few years, up until 15u. I loved throwing down to second, and trying to pick runners off. But that mean more throwing than necessary on your arm, especially when you might have to go in to pitch the next game. As I was the best pitcher and or catcher on the team I had multiple instances where I would be pitching, be pulled, then be put in gear and go out to catch in the same inning. which as you would think, is not the best for a young arm. when I got to 15u my mechanics coach, who was a physical therapist for 40+ years, specifically working with athletes, Said I really needed to choose one or the other. because as I got older the more stress it would put on my arm, constantly switching between the two.

I guess in summary I would ask her if she actually wanted to catch, or if she just feels obligated too because shes the best on the team at it. Let her make the decision for herself, and make sure she knows that if she chooses both, it could possibly take time away from her pitching in games. If she ultimately chooses to do both. Make sure there are sufficient breaks between her switching between pitching and catcher, just to give her arm time to rest and reset, and get ready to be throwing as hard as you can from the opposite release point. And if you can, if she watch to do both, I suggest getting her to a catching coach and pitching coach if she doesn't already have them. Because you can take all the precautions you want, but if her mechanics throwing over hand, and her pitching mechanics are not correct, she could get injured very quickly.

last thing to think about. If she wants to go play College level softball, I have never heard of a pitcher / catcher combo being recruited for both. its always one or another because colleges are able to recruit catchers specifically for the position of catching. They don't need someone who will do both, when if could just be a injury prone athlete they would have to take the chance on. So if she wants to be a pitcher in college, i would put all my time and energy into becoming the best pitcher possible. Not splitting it up between the two positions. And you never know who is in the stands. What if her dream college was watching the game, but since she was catching, she never even had the chance to get into her primary position in front of that coach.

Hope this helps!

 

[bleumax]

Writing as a National Level 18u Pitcher

It's been a few years but I used to be a Pitcher/Catcher combo player. I started playing softball when I was 8, and I started as a catcher. But when I reached 12u I was the tallest girl on the team, with the best arm. So my coaches wanted me to try pitching as well. Pitching came pretty natural to me, so I became a Pitcher catcher combo for a few years, up until 15u. I loved throwing down to second, and trying to pick runners off. But that mean more throwing than necessary on your arm, especially when you might have to go in to pitch the next game. As I was the best pitcher and or catcher on the team I had multiple instances where I would be pitching, be pulled, then be put in gear and go out to catch in the same inning. which as you would think, is not the best for a young arm. when I got to 15u my mechanics coach, who was a physical therapist for 40+ years, specifically working with athletes, Said I really needed to choose one or the other. because as I got older the more stress it would put on my arm, constantly switching between the two.

I guess in summary I would ask her if she actually wanted to catch, or if she just feels obligated too because shes the best on the team at it. Let her make the decision for herself, and make sure she knows that if she chooses both, it could possibly take time away from her pitching in games. If she ultimately chooses to do both. Make sure there are sufficient breaks between her switching between pitching and catcher, just to give her arm time to rest and reset, and get ready to be throwing as hard as you can from the opposite release point. And if you can, if she watch to do both, I suggest getting her to a catching coach and pitching coach if she doesn't already have them. Because you can take all the precautions you want, but if her mechanics throwing over hand, and her pitching mechanics are not correct, she could get injured very quickly.

last thing to think about. If she wants to go play College level softball, I have never heard of a pitcher / catcher combo being recruited for both. its always one or another because colleges are able to recruit catchers specifically for the position of catching. They don't need someone who will do both, when if could just be a injury prone athlete they would have to take the chance on. So if she wants to be a pitcher in college, i would put all my time and energy into becoming the best pitcher possible. Not splitting it up between the two positions. And you never know who is in the stands. What if her dream college was watching the game, but since she was catching, she never even had the chance to get into her primary position in front of that coach.

Hope this helps!

Thank you. This is super insightful and highlights my concerns. She is certainly doing it for the team’s sake.


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