Thanks for posting the Jenny Finch speeds. Note that it is for "top speed". Most pitchers have a top speed and a cruising speed (normal pitching speed during a game). My daughter's top speed was 67 mph at 22 YOA, but she cruised at 62 mph. Jenny's top speed was 71, but she cruises at 67.
My daughter (a good D1 pitcher) had a cruising speed of 55 mph when she was 14, 60 mph at 17, and then topped out at 62 in college.
One kid we knew had a great college career (much better than my daughter's), and she cruised around 65 mph, and had a top speed of around 68 mph. She had a good, but not great, rise.
A couple of kids we know had great riseballs but cruised at 55 mph. Both tried pitching D1, but it didn't work out. One became an extremely successful D3 pitcher, and had a great college experience.
We knew a lot of kids who threw over 60 mph, but had no "jaw dropping" breaking pitch. They weren't successful in college. The good hitters at any level in college (d1, d2, d3, juco) will murder anyone without a breaking pitch no matter how hard they throw.
If you are a parent, you can figure out if your child is good enough to play college ball. It really isn't very difficult to decipher, but parents being parents have a hard time rationally evaluating their daughter's abilities.
I've told parents a thousand times to go to a baseball academy to find out how fast their child really throws, and all I ever hear is, "We did that, but their speed gun was broke. It showed her throwing 10 mph slower than she really throws."
JRW
My daughter (a good D1 pitcher) had a cruising speed of 55 mph when she was 14, 60 mph at 17, and then topped out at 62 in college.
One kid we knew had a great college career (much better than my daughter's), and she cruised around 65 mph, and had a top speed of around 68 mph. She had a good, but not great, rise.
A couple of kids we know had great riseballs but cruised at 55 mph. Both tried pitching D1, but it didn't work out. One became an extremely successful D3 pitcher, and had a great college experience.
We knew a lot of kids who threw over 60 mph, but had no "jaw dropping" breaking pitch. They weren't successful in college. The good hitters at any level in college (d1, d2, d3, juco) will murder anyone without a breaking pitch no matter how hard they throw.
If you are a parent, you can figure out if your child is good enough to play college ball. It really isn't very difficult to decipher, but parents being parents have a hard time rationally evaluating their daughter's abilities.
I've told parents a thousand times to go to a baseball academy to find out how fast their child really throws, and all I ever hear is, "We did that, but their speed gun was broke. It showed her throwing 10 mph slower than she really throws."
JRW