The Retired Drop Ball Pitcher, With the Rise Ball Staff

I had an interesting conversation with a colleague the other day about my pitching staff. My crazy, wonderful, completely unique staff of five. I’m thankful they put up with me every day as I can be crazy, out there, and sometimes a bit obnoxious, as most of you already know!
 
She asked if I was excited to get “my kids” in the program. And I laughed a little bit on the inside. What defines who is my kid and who isn’t? Yes, we recently verballed a 2019 pitcher who is the first pitcher that I’ve had “a say in” but she isn’t any more “my kid” than the five I currently work with or our 2018 pitcher. They all want to win, they all want to work hard, and they all want to get better. Any kid that feels this way I consider mine...well, a loose interpretation of the word mine!
 
I have five incredible young women who have bought in wholeheartedly to what we are creating, but I have also had to buy into them and their style as well. After my first week with them, which feels like years ago, I came home and laughed a bit as I now have a staff with a huge rise ball strength, as a pitcher barely throw a rise ball in her career. My junior year of college, my coach wanted me to learn a rise ball at 21. I basically threw high fastballs and we all pretended they were rise balls. I didn’t actually learn how to throw a true rise ball until AFTER my pitching career ended. (I figured if I want to teach someone how to throw one, or ask someone to make adjustments I should know how to do it myself!) Last year when I called pitches, did I throw a lot of rise balls? No, because I didn’t have a rise ball staff. We threw a ton of curve balls because that’s what their strength was. This year, you better bet that I call more rise balls.
 
Am I excited for the future, and for the pitchers we have coming into our program? Absolutely. I am also just as excited about the senior, two juniors, sophomore, and freshman that I have the privilege of working with on a daily basis. They are MY kids, and they deserve the same amount of investment whether I played a part in recruiting them or not.  They want to win, they work hard, they want to get better. I take extreme pride in the fact that they are amazing young women who are not only talented pitchers, but also are going to do amazing things in their post softball life as well.
 
I feel proud of each of the softball players I have had the opportunity to work with over the past 6 years. Whether I still talk to them often, worked with them for years, or it was just a few lessons. I am constantly cheering for you all and proud of you for the awesome things you are all accomplishing. Social media is an amazing thing, even though I may be far away I still get to see you all grow up. I cheer for the National Honor Society Inductions, the top 25 in state cross country performances, the trips to the White House to represent your school, the science fair 1st place ribbons, and the list goes on and on. I am so proud of each and every one of you every single day for the amazing young women you are becoming, and so thankful that each of you have been a part of my life and journey as a coach!