Things to say to a pitcher when she can't find the zone

[JJsqueeze]

there is nothing you can say to a pitcher in the middle of a game to get them to improve, they will either work out the kinks or they won't. If they work it out in time great. If they don't then replace them.

 

[James Smith]

I have seen some pretty heated exchanges when the pitcher is the coach’s kid. I have heard their advice about throwing strikes from down the OF line but would not recommend it so will not post them.

 

[guero_gordo]

IMHO: If your catcher isn't already doing this for you, you're working on the wrong player. You didn't mention an age though.

 

[softball_mom#7]

My two comments usually are "Relax" and "You've got this". Her dad makes the comment like nanotech, "I can't, believe, I pay $100 an hour for pitching lessons and the ball has found every thing in the park, but the strike zone." LOL

A coach once walked out to the circle told her to "just throw strikes", as she was seriously struggling and no other pitcher to put in. Her reply was, "with all do respect coach I am, trust me I am".

 

[JJsqueeze]

"i'll buy you a pony if you get us out of this inning"

 

[T.J.]

Me: I don't know about you...but i"m friggin hungry.

DD: Oh my God, me too...I'm starving!

Me: How about we throw some strikes so me and you can go home and eat.

DD: Deal!....WAIT!

Me: What???

DD: Can we stop at McDonalds?

Me: No.

 

[02Crush]

I have one pitcher that I ask how she is feeling. When she says fine. I respond with I do not believe you. What are you worried about? She then usually tells me. I then tell her to not take it so seriously and throw the ball like it is me and her doing some pitch and catch.

The other pitcher....I ask one of three things...Do I have a booger hangin' out of my nose; does my breath stink or some other extremely random funny thing. She then laughs at me, calls me silly. I then tell her I like it when she laughs. I them walk away and the next pitch is always a good one.

I think it depends on the player and the age. However I find it always help to get them to relax. Then give them a batter to pitch in a relaxed mental state. Then we see better results. Works a lot so far in 2 years for us.

 

[Txwalt]

Also, many times they are just working too quickly and aren't even breathing, correctly.

Last inning. We are winning. One out. Two bombs to the fence. Two walks in a row. I call time. I know she is worried she is gonna be pulled when I walk up to the circle. "We are not taking you out of this game". "I just wanted you to have a break". "I know your pitching around the zone because this team can hit". "Don't worry about that". "Let your defense help you". "We can't walk anymore batters". She struck out the next two batters. I got a few atta boys from the parents after the game. "I don't know what you said but, it must have been good". Another parent, "What did you say to her". Little things like that from parents will make a coach remember. This was a All star sectional tourney. For the record, she never said a word. Almost never does. Nods and shrugs are the usual answers. She might have struck those next two batters out anyway. I'll take whatever credit I can get or take.

 

[cmustangsfp]

I posted this in another post but felt it might get more innings here. See my final comments about directing the focus of the problem to the mechanics and not the girl to see how I handle this situation. Also laughter works wonder too. So sometimes I will "trip" on the way back to the dugout.......

I only tell my parents to refrain from saying things that are derogatory, like "C'mon you can do better than that!". If they want to correct mechanics, I do not have a problem with that. I do have a problem with the "Throw strikes" comment. Are they not trying to do that anyways? Is it going to suddenly dawn on them that they should have been trying to throw strikes instead of balls? It reminds me of an event that happened at a local car race track. This guy running the race had his buddies watching him from the stands. He was not in the lead but was trying to do so (like everyone else out there!). Every time he came past his buddies in the stands they would make hand motions for him to pass the cars ahead of him. I thought to myself "What do these guys think he is trying to do out there? Is he going to take the time one lap around to look over at his buddies, see them telling him to pass the car and go 'Oh! you want me to pass him? Got it! I'll get right on it.' ?" I mean he looks like he was trying pretty hard to do that to me.
If a parent notices something about their mechanics, such as the stride comment, I let it happen. If they are putting pressure or demeaning the girls, I stop it with a quick "Mom/Dad, I got this." comment.
Things I discourage:
"Don't lose this one!"
"Don't let this one get away!"
"We need this out!"
"FOCUS!"
"You can throw better than that!
"The team is counting on you!"
"Throw strikes!"

In my first mound trip I will speak to the girl and ask "What do you think is going wrong with your motion?" I will listen to her response and say "Good. Sounds like you know what to do to fix it. I believe in you, go get them. And take a moment between pitches if you need to." Second mound trip will be more like "It looks like you are getting frustrated and before you get too frustrated, let's give you a break and shake the other team up by bringing in someone they haven't seen yet. I still believe in you. We will work on your mechanics in practice on Tuesday. Thanks for being strong and taking the mound today."
If the girl makes any comment about her ability, I redirect it to her mechanics. So if she says "I'm not doing so hot today" or "I suck today" I say, "No. There is something off in your mechanics. When your mechanics are functioning correctly, you get the ball right in the place it is supposed to go. You and I both know that. We have seen you do that before, so something is off. We will work on it and figure it out in practice (or in between games during a tourney).
By placing the emphasis on the mechanics being the problem and not the girl being the problem, I have found that my pitchers bounce back well and continue to enjoy the game. They also become less dramatic.

 

[Indiana]

^^^^ I like that. I read an interesting article a while back - the basic message was that pitchers tend to think BIG. If their curveball isn't working, they think that they "stink" and that's just that, life is over, time to move to Fiji and become a surfer. By focusing on mechanics, the pitcher will realize that no, it's just that her curveball isn't breaking today. Just fix that little bit of mechanics and she will be "Great! Life is great! I feel amazing!"