To throw left-handed?

[Strike2]

Pitcher, 1B, and OF are the most common places for a LHT to land. Lefty pitchers are highly valued by many. An athletic lefty thrower can play any position...OU's Jayda Coleman spent lots of time at SS...but many coaches have the traditional biases against them. It can be a real uphill climb. If you can train her to throw effectively right-handed, that probably works out best.

 

[CoachJD]

Pitcher, 1B, and OF are the most common places for a LHT to land. Lefty pitchers are highly valued by many. An athletic lefty thrower can play any position...OU's Jayda Coleman spent lots of time at SS...but many coaches have the traditional biases against them. It can be a real uphill climb. If you can train her to throw effectively right-handed, that probably works out best.

It's not "traditional bias." It's geometry.

You were able to cite one (1) top-level athlete who plays at the best school in the country and even she is a center fielder now because a left-handed person has to be so much better than even an average right-handed person to play the position just as well.

It's wild to me that people think with the billions of dollars that have gone into player development at the Major League level that it's simply "traditional bias" that is the reason why there has never been a single left-handed thrower who regularly played the position. I don't think any lefty has played more than a couple dozen innings there.

 

[Strike2]

It's not "traditional bias." It's geometry.

You were able to cite one (1) top-level athlete who plays at the best school in the country and even she is a center fielder now because a left-handed person has to be so much better than even an average right-handed person to play the position just as well.

It's wild to me that people think with the billions of dollars that have gone into player development at the Major League level that it's simply "traditional bias" that is the reason why there has never been a single left-handed thrower who regularly played the position. I don't think any lefty has played more than a couple dozen innings there.

The top level of softball or MLB is something that 99%+ of players won't achieve, regardless of which arm they use. My example of Coleman was to illustrate that a LHT could play infield positions at a high level in travel ball. It's not a stretch to say that if she went to a lesser college team, she might get the chance to line up at SS. It is wild to me that coaches will not give a kid a shot at a particular position on their rec or club team because of what they see at a MLB ballpark. The same fielding geometry argument applies to a LHP, but that doesn't stop coaches from putting them out there.

 

[CoachCeetar]

It's not "traditional bias." It's geometry.

You were able to cite one (1) top-level athlete who plays at the best school in the country and even she is a center fielder now because a left-handed person has to be so much better than even an average right-handed person to play the position just as well.

It's wild to me that people think with the billions of dollars that have gone into player development at the Major League level that it's simply "traditional bias" that is the reason why there has never been a single left-handed thrower who regularly played the position. I don't think any lefty has played more than a couple dozen innings there.

It's more numbers than it is geometry. There are some benefits to being a lefty at certain positions, and when only 1 in 10 is a lefty, they tend to get funneled to those positions without really much worry of being blocked or having leftover lefties you need to stick somewhere. And it starts early "stick the lefty at first/LF and suddenly that's their position.

I would think Lefty catchers in softball would be more of a thing in softball with more plays/bunts in front of the plate.

MLB's not exactly rife with non-traditional thinking, but they're not gonna convert kids to lefty SS that don't exist in college/HS even if they didn't dismiss the idea.

 

[Comp]

I have never bought into lefties can't play infield except first base. What is backhand for a righty ss is forehand for a lefty and vice versa. Balls hit to a rightys left make them turn their bodies to make the throw to first which is the exact argument of why a lefty can't play infield. Yet that same ball to a lefty puts their body in good position to throw to first. My brief search showed no actual studies of right vs left, just a whole bunch of lefties can't do it. I have seen plenty of lefty softball infielders that were extremely good. But, it's become the norm that everyone thinks they can't do it so why even give them the chance.

 

[murphdog]

DD was a L/L centerfielder. She does write righty but that’s the absolutely only thing she’s ever done righty.
Growing up she played some 2b but as she hot older she became a very good outfielder and would rather be there than anywhere else.

 

[Sweet Lou]

I have never bought into lefties can't play infield except first base. What is backhand for a righty ss is forehand for a lefty and vice versa. Balls hit to a rightys left make them turn their bodies to make the throw to first which is the exact argument of why a lefty can't play infield. Yet that same ball to a lefty puts their body in good position to throw to first. My brief search showed no actual studies of right vs left, just a whole bunch of lefties can't do it. I have seen plenty of lefty softball infielders that were extremely good. But, it's become the norm that everyone thinks they can't do it so why even give them the chance.

Depends on the level. There is a reason you almost never see left a handed player in MLB play 2B, 3B or SS except in emergency. And it's quite simply the throw is a much more natural across the body throw for a right handed thrower than left handed thrower for the vast majority of throws an infielder needs to make to 1B. The same applies to softball.

 

[PJR202]

I'm unaware of any advantages for a left-handed pitcher in softball. It's a different look, but I don't believe you have the same platoon advantages against left-handed hitters you do in baseball.

As others have said, don't force her to throw lefty. In fact, if she's about equally proficient at both, have her throw righty, but keep her batting on the left side. That's ideal in softball.

Maybe advantage isnt the best word for it, but think of something like a lefty being able to throw a curve inside on a RHB. I think that's more than a look, because a RHP cant throw that pitch to a RHB. And the simple stat of every team having more RHT/RHB players, it seems having a left-handed pitcher would be beneficial. That kind of thing.

 

[PJR202]

Depends on the level. There is a reason you almost never see left a handed player in MLB play 2B, 3B or SS except in emergency. And it's quite simply the throw is a much more natural across the body throw for a right handed thrower than left handed thrower for the vast majority of throws an infielder needs to make to 1B. The same applies to softball.

If there's one thing I've learned in my short coaching career, it's that softball and baseball are a game a game of milliseconds. Every inefficiency you can find and eliminate can be the difference between winning and losing.

 

[daywalkerdad]

Which way do you teach a fielder to catch the ball and turn on relays? On the glove side? Would you say it does matter which way they turn?
A lefty infielder is equivalent to turning a relay backwards. Not saying it cannot be done just saying it is less efficient.