Which catcher would you go with?

[Six11 Hitting]

I would say that this also depends on what kind of pitchers you have. If they are accurate and you don't think you will have a lot of passed ball then take the one who is game smart.

If your pitchers aren't accurate and you anticipate having a lot of passed balls then you take the fast one.

I would say you should take both. That sounds like a good mix of catching skills to have.

 

[marriard]

We carry 4 catchers obviously with secondary positions for all of them - for some of them catcher is the secondary position. If you have two girls who can catch (and don't already have a couple of catchers) you take them both.

Travel tournaments are long and hard and the more girls you have who can catch and pitch the more options you have.

 

[ArkFastpitch]

I absolutely agree.. Depth at critical positions is an absolute must. We currently roster 4 pitchers( all have secondary positions) and with the addition of the 2 catchers we will have 3 in that spot. The two girls I mentioned will be my primaries with the other being a secondary back up. My # 3 doesn't particularly like to catch and tends to gas out pretty quick.

 

[canyonjoe]

I would find another #3. It's hard enough to play if you like it.

 

[ArkFastpitch]

Thats on the ajenda for off season. Kind of have to play the hand I'm dealt for fall..

 

[YOCOACH]

It's hard enough to find girls that are willing to catch at that age with the beating they take behind the plate. If you have two that are willing to do it, then take both. For #2, technique can be taught in the off-season. Game smarts and situational awareness will come with time behind the plate and through situational instruction so I would put her in the games that are out of hand whether you're winning big or losing big and especially scrimmages to develop her. For #1, aggressiveness can often come with confidence and speed will come with clean/proper pop/throwing technique and strength. If it's foot speed your talking about, then you can work with her on developing her quick twitch muscles to get her a better start out of the box.

As others have said, tournaments are long. Last year we were playing in a double elimination tournament, lost the first game and came out of the losers bracket to play in the championship game (lost). That day we played 7 games after playing 3 afternoon/evening pool games the day before. If we didn't have 3 catchers rostered, I'm pretty sure we would not have made it as far as we did.

 

[Bill Bollinger]

Many of the sanctioning bodies allow a courtesy runner for a catcher. I would many times roll with 2 catchers in a lineup. One would bat 4th and another would bat 9th. As soon as the 1st catcher would hit, I would have them change positions so I could end up getting an extra courtesy runner each time though the lineup. It also allows them to catch many more games because they are not catching inning after inning.

Bill

 

[ArkFastpitch]

We use courtesy runners when we can for both our pitcher and our catcher. We only have 10 on our roster and have to be strategic with the lineup. For now #1 is my go to catcher. She works really well with my #1 pitcher. #2 is a work in progress and will catch my lower pitchers and when games are out of reach.. She understands she needs to learn and is eager to. #3 is just there if one of my primaries get hurt.

 

[cmustangsfp]

Also if you have 2 (or more) Pitchers on your team, you can give both C's work catching for the P's when they throw. Make a game out of it. Which C can catch the most balls in a row? Take them both and develop them both. I had a girl who was raw, but athletic. She had never played C before and was already close to consistently getting it to 2B in under 2 seconds. She wanted to try it and was tall and aggressive. I took her in and by the end of the season she was picking off people at 3rd and 1st and getting them out in run downs. Sometimes as a coach you get blessed with talent.....

 

[James Smith]

This year we were in desperate need of another P and SS. So HC took the most athletic player, she is great, and tried to put her in both positions. She did OK at both but she really just wanted to put her catcher’s gear on and get behind the plate.

She was willing to do what the Team needed but was happy when the season was over so she can go back to catching.

She is by far the most athletic player on the Team and wants to catch. She told my DD to let her know when her pitching lessons were and she would come and catch for her. I am losing my job.