Learning Fastpitch

[wtriplet 0]

hi,I was just wondering if my daughter was on the right track with her pitching.we normaly practice three to four times a week and she throws 100 to 125 pitches when we practice.my question is she can normaly land about 20 to 30 strikes out of 100. is this ok for a young girl who just started learning back in november or should her control be better by now.she just turned 9 in march so she is still young i know.she has pretty good mechanics and has a beautiful pitching motion.but i am concerned about her accuracy.any comments would be great.Thank You Will Triplet ( Coach and Dad)

[hollad6636 0]

wtriplet,

Here are some things to think about.

Throw a minimum of 300 practice pitches each week. If your daughter is serious about pitching this season she needs to Practice…hard, serious practice is everything. Windmill pitching is not going to be easy. You need to build up to the point where you can throw 100 to 125 pitches every two or three days.

Master the mechanics of the pitch first…then speed. Work on learning and developing proper mechanics. Then as you become more smooth and consistent with your motion, start adding speed. Do NOT worry about control right now…it will come later. Make certain you use: Consistent arm speed the whole way around; Arm extended (not bent) the whole way; Don't use only your arms and upper body to throw the ball...as your arm reaches your hip, bring your hip through with the pitch; Release the ball at your knee with the inside of the wrist straight ahead…facing home plate. Then follow-through…let your hand come up after the release, usually palm up, or whatever is natural to you. Get your speed consistently fast.

You can develop good control ONLY if you can control yourself. Stay in your own head…whether in practice or in a real game situation…don't get distracted. Don't worry about a bad pitch, or fans or teammates yelling, or the umpire's call. Don't complain, whine, or make bad facial expressions. You MUST keep control…and show everyone else that you are the one in control. YOU run the game.

Coach Ernie Parker has some great videos for the windmill pitcher. Below are some of the videos I would recommend.

The Basics and Fundamentals for the windmill pitcher

Ultimate Troubleshooting for the windmill pitcher

The Drills Video

Good Luck and God Bless,

Schann

[CoachH 0]

My daughter is 9 as well - what a wonderful age! I don't think you should be too concerned about her accuracy at this point - that will come with the more she does it. The main concern for a variety of reasons is that she has proper mechanics. If that is in place then obviously the concern for injury is lessened. She will become more accurate as her strength improves and through repetition. Good Luck!