To pitch or not to pitch

[obbay]

Throwing 52-54 at 13 is good- you don't think she'll improve?
are you sure she is done growing? I know of some girls who didn't finish growing until possibly after HS.
there is a lot of change that can/will happen between 13 and 17- don't feel like you have to decide yet.
I work on both hitting and pitching with DD who is 17, 5'-2", about 125 lbs and throws 52-54 mph.
last year I was thinking the same as you but other coaches convinced me to let her keep pitching because even though she's not a flamethrower, she has good control and is very smart.

in summary- don't rush it, let her do it her way. when My DD was 13 she still thought she could pitch for Alabama! Since then she has learned of the commitmemt required in DI and thinks that could interfere with her studies. so she is adjusting her goals accordingly.

good luck!

 

[CoogansBluff]

Keep in mind that when you say D-I, that's a broad expanse. There are some 300 D-I teams. The top five D-II teams would beat most D-I teams. A top-20 D-II team would be very competitive in the mid-major conferences. Just make sure she understands what D-I and D-II mean. Many players opt for D-II, not just for playing time, but to play more meaningful games. A top D-II team playing for a conference title, an NCAA tournament berth, etc., could be more fun than toiling for a mediocre mid-major.

 

[Ken Krause]

Here's what you know right now: she loves pitching. How many kids at age 13 have that kind of passion about anything? Especially these days.

Here's what you don't know: whether she will even enjoy playing D1 softball even if she does make it there. I know plenty of girls who made that their goal, played for a year, hated it, and never went back. So to give up something she loves for something she may or may not even like later on makes little sense to me.

Then there's the question of why she wants to play D1. Is it because in her eyes it's "the best?" See CoogansBluff's post above. Or is it because she wants to go to a large school? Does she even realize how large many D1 schools are, and is that the experience she wants for college? She has to think beyond the softball part of it.

To me, way too many unanswered or maybe even unanswerable questions at this point to give up something she loves. A lot can change for her in the next four or five years too. Let her pursue her passion.

 

[riseball]

Once again, D1 does not necessarily mean high level of competition. Most D1's would get their tails whipped by the better D2, D3, NAIA, or NJCAA teams. Contrary to popular mythology, most pitchers in D1 are not 6' and do not throw 60+. What you see on ESPN/SEC is certainly the exception not the norm. If your DD loves to pitch and works hard there are opportunities at every level.

FWIW - As of right now my DD is probably the only pitcher at SC that is game ready. This will change in the next month but were the season to start today, other players who threw in TB but were recruited as OF and IF would pick up the slack in the circle. Having pitching experience is never a bad thing.

 

[JAD]

If your DD has a passion for pitching I would encourage her to continue. It is amazing how a players perspectives/goals can change between 13 and 18. Pitching will open a lot of doors, and a pitcher who can HIT and play another position is a hot commodity. At 13 everyone wants to play for a top D1 school, but by 18 a lot of things sort themselves out, and a lot of players decide it is better to go to a mid level D1, D2, D3 or NAIA school and field fair balls vs. chasing foul balls at one of the P5 schools ($1 to [MENTION=10413]riseball[/MENTION]).

BTW - Amanda Scarborough is @ 5'-6" and was a great pitcher for aTm, so it CAN be done, but a shorter pitcher has less margin for error in her mechanics.

Fastpitch Pitching Mechanics Analysis - Amanda Scarborough

 

[quincy]

I think Dd's weakest in SB is pitching.

She is a good fielding and hittimg.

Told her to not pitch at tryouts, just make the Team.

I asked her howit want. I pitched well.

 

[csonka22]

JAD thanks for the prospective. Very on the mark.

 

[Rocketech1]

If I had a DD that wants to get up at 4:30am to go practice pitching I would be thrilled and would get her the best pitching instruction I could afford. Let her follow her passion and see where it goes? A college scholarship is just icing on the cake.

 

[YOCOACH]

As others have said, the mythology of D1 is exactly that...mythology. There are numerous D3 teams as well as D2 teams that can beat most D1 teams. Maybe not the top 20 but the top programs in D2 and D3 could probably give them one heck of a game. That said, at age 13, and for her size, I'd be hard pressed to quash her dreams of pitching at the higher levels. Bill Hillhouse had a pitcher he used to call "shorty". She was 5 foot nothing and threw in the upper 50's and probably hit 60 occasionally. Mechanics has more to do with speed than size. Don't get me wrong, size helps, it's just not the end-all be-all that many college coaches believe. If I were in your shoes, I'd let her practice as much as she wants. By the same token, I'd be going full bore on getting her hitting the best she can. Most college coaches will tell you that if she hits, they'll find a spot on the field for her. If not....?

So the best thing you can do for your DD is to practice hitting and teach her the positions she's best at other than pitching as well as continue to work on pitching. JMHO

 

[JAD]

Can your DD pitch D1? Probably not. If your DD were 6', I would tell you the same thing...not many kids can. (You look at a college softball team with 5 pitchers, and look at the stats...the team actually has *ONE* pitcher. )

More and more teams are going to a pitching staff vs. riding an ACE. Even great pitchers have bad days, so coaches better have a plan B...