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It seems like every pitcher and their families (I apologize for generalizing; I know there are some who are not doing this!) rush to learn 6 pitches by the time they hit high school. Most end up with 6 pitches that do nothing but sit and spin due to the lack of actual development. Pitching coaches are constantly trying to bait families into paying for more lessons, so they feel the need to teach pitches too early.
Many of you know a lot of my story as a pitcher, but I’ve never really broken down what pitches I learned when or what MY own progression looked like. I say MY because yours will look different, just like it will look different than the other pitchers on your team!
7 years old – Played for our local Cinderella Softball League. Started pitching in the back yard with Mom and Dad, was completely awful - like literally sat there with a bucket and just launched them over my Dad’s head for an hour then went inside. I pitched in games when we were WAY ahead or WAY behind and never for more than a few innings. We attended weekly winter clinics with our local rec league but did not pay for private instruction.
8 years old - Played for our local Cinderella Softball League, and played All-Stars that summer. I continued to attend weekly winter Cinderella pitching clinics, started working one on one with a pitching coach once a week (still could barely throw strikes.) This year I pitched my first full game - we lost 8-0 in 5 innings and it was UGLY.
9 years old – Played for our local Cinderella Softball League, All-Stars, and after All-Stars a local travel league put together a 10u team taking the top few players from each league’s All-Star teams (The NY Lady Bandits). We played three tournaments after All-Stars, I mostly played first base and was a “Pool Play Pitcher” (Ugh. I hate the terms pool play and bracket pitchers, but I digress.) I still struggled to throw strikes, and had something that I guess we called a change up.
10 years old – Played Cinderella Softball, and my family decided to play a longer summer travel schedule with the Bandits, so I did not play All-Stars. I was still only pitching a fastball and a change up, working on accuracy and mechanics. At this point, I was working with a private pitching instructor. We attended 5 summer tournaments, without any trips outside of NY/PA. We did not play any fall or winter dome ball (crazy, dome softball wasn’t even really a thing) – but practiced on Sundays so we could all play fall and winter sports.
11 years old – Still played Cinderella softball, and was still with the Bandits. I almost quit pitching. I physically grew A LOT this year, and that combined with the move to 40ft and the 12” ball I was riding the struggle bus. On top of this, my private pitching coach wanted me to learn how to pitch a drop ball and it took my mechanics back at least two years. We made the decision to no longer work with that pitching coach, and I continued to work on my fastball and change up at home with my parents. It seemed silly to pay for private instruction when I hated going, and didn’t even know if I wanted to pitch anymore. Spent a lot of time in the back yard, worked through it, learned how to use my newly “grown up” body. Lots of tears, arguments, and balls later we (and I saw we because it was truly a family affair) finally came through it and I started to regain my confidence in the circle.
12 years old – Played Cinderella softball, played with the Bandits, and made the varsity softball team. This was my last year of Cinderella softball, as I missed most of the season due to making the varsity softball team. While I did not pitch on Varsity as a 7th grader, I did begin to work with our Varsity pitching coach. He also became my private pitching coach. After working to consistently hitting fastball spots and change ups we reintroduced the drop ball (a roll over, instead of the peel I had been taught previously) and it was legit (well, legit for a 12 year old). That summer I became a consistent pitcher (“bracket pitcher”) for our travel team and logged 2/3 of the innings.
13 years old (8th grade) – Played Varsity, still with the Bandits too. Halfway through our varsity season the senior pitcher was injured, so as an 8th grader I was pitching the second half of the season. I held my own and we made it to play offs – remember I was only throwing a fastball, change up, and a recently learned drop ball!
14 years old (Freshman Year) – Played Varsity, still with the Bandits too. The winter going into my freshman year of HS season (I was the starting Varsity pitcher now) I learned a curve ball. By the time high school season started the curve was okay – I threw it in games but it was really just a different look pitch that supported my drop. I also added an off speed pitch because my flip change was not good, to put it nicely…it was really never reliable throughout my entire career. During a random bullpen we were messing around with pressure points on the ball and somehow (I still don’t really know how) my off-speed turned into a really nice knuckle curve. That year during high school/travel season I probably pitched 50% drops, 20% knuckle curves, and 30% fastballs with a few curves and change ups mixed in.
15 years old (Sophomore Year) – Played varsity, still with the Bandits too. Still only threw a fastball, change up, offspeed/knuckle curve, regular curve, and a drop. We started attending some local showcase type tournaments, and I started to narrow down what I was looking for in a school and softball program. I also started attending camps and clinics of schools that matched what I was looking for.
16 years old (Junior Year) – Played Varsity, transitioned to a national travel ball team, the NJ Nightmare, working to get recruited. Learned a screwball over the winter – originally it was extremely effective and I threw it a lot. It started to breakdown my mechanics and I struggled to stay within the legal lines of the pitching rubber. Went back to old faithfuls with the drop and curve. The winter going into my junior year HS season I verbaled to play DII college softball.
17 years old (Senior year) – Played Varsity, continued to play with the Nightmare even though I had already signed to play at the next level. Continued to rely heavily on my fastball, knuckle curve, and drop ball. Occasionally threw curves and screws, I NEVER learned to throw a rise or a drop curve.
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Everyone’s journey looks different but for those that go on to play at the next level they all have one thing in common. They are a master at something, and good at a few other things. Without my drop ball – I wouldn’t have been nearly as effective as I was as a pitcher, or been recruited as heavily as I was. Was I the fastest? Absolutely not. Was I the biggest or the strongest or the most mechanically perfect? Absolutely not. Did I have the most strikeouts, no hitters, or best stats? Absolutely not. BUT I had something that made me different, something I had spent years and years mastering that college coaches were drawn to.
Why was my drop ball so effective? I threw it at two different heights – one that started at the knees and broke out of the zone, and one that started and the hips and broke to the knees. I could throw it inside at your hip like it was going to hit you and it would finish at your ankle after you swung through out. I could cut it across the outside corner and it would finish one ball off the plate – umpires almost always called it a strike even if you didn’t swing. I spent SEVEN YEARS enhancing and evolving my drop ball, instead of adding other pitches to my arsenal. I didn’t need a rise or a drop curve (or whatever other pitch you want to plug in there) to be effective and get looks from college coaches, because my drop ball was THAT consistent and could do THAT many different things.
When people ask me what I look for in a pitcher when I’m out recruiting, they are often surprised by my answer. Everyone wants to know the secret to being looked at as a pitcher who can compete at the next level right? My answer is always “I want a pitcher who brings something to the staff that we don’t already have.” To stand out, you have to do something different. Seems simple right? So why when it comes to pitching do we make it more complicated? More often than not, when I pitcher starts an email with “I throw 6 pitches”, I don’t bother to finish reading the email. If you throw that many pitches, how much time do you really spend mastering your best pitch?
Many of you know a lot of my story as a pitcher, but I’ve never really broken down what pitches I learned when or what MY own progression looked like. I say MY because yours will look different, just like it will look different than the other pitchers on your team!
7 years old – Played for our local Cinderella Softball League. Started pitching in the back yard with Mom and Dad, was completely awful - like literally sat there with a bucket and just launched them over my Dad’s head for an hour then went inside. I pitched in games when we were WAY ahead or WAY behind and never for more than a few innings. We attended weekly winter clinics with our local rec league but did not pay for private instruction.
8 years old - Played for our local Cinderella Softball League, and played All-Stars that summer. I continued to attend weekly winter Cinderella pitching clinics, started working one on one with a pitching coach once a week (still could barely throw strikes.) This year I pitched my first full game - we lost 8-0 in 5 innings and it was UGLY.
9 years old – Played for our local Cinderella Softball League, All-Stars, and after All-Stars a local travel league put together a 10u team taking the top few players from each league’s All-Star teams (The NY Lady Bandits). We played three tournaments after All-Stars, I mostly played first base and was a “Pool Play Pitcher” (Ugh. I hate the terms pool play and bracket pitchers, but I digress.) I still struggled to throw strikes, and had something that I guess we called a change up.
10 years old – Played Cinderella Softball, and my family decided to play a longer summer travel schedule with the Bandits, so I did not play All-Stars. I was still only pitching a fastball and a change up, working on accuracy and mechanics. At this point, I was working with a private pitching instructor. We attended 5 summer tournaments, without any trips outside of NY/PA. We did not play any fall or winter dome ball (crazy, dome softball wasn’t even really a thing) – but practiced on Sundays so we could all play fall and winter sports.
11 years old – Still played Cinderella softball, and was still with the Bandits. I almost quit pitching. I physically grew A LOT this year, and that combined with the move to 40ft and the 12” ball I was riding the struggle bus. On top of this, my private pitching coach wanted me to learn how to pitch a drop ball and it took my mechanics back at least two years. We made the decision to no longer work with that pitching coach, and I continued to work on my fastball and change up at home with my parents. It seemed silly to pay for private instruction when I hated going, and didn’t even know if I wanted to pitch anymore. Spent a lot of time in the back yard, worked through it, learned how to use my newly “grown up” body. Lots of tears, arguments, and balls later we (and I saw we because it was truly a family affair) finally came through it and I started to regain my confidence in the circle.
12 years old – Played Cinderella softball, played with the Bandits, and made the varsity softball team. This was my last year of Cinderella softball, as I missed most of the season due to making the varsity softball team. While I did not pitch on Varsity as a 7th grader, I did begin to work with our Varsity pitching coach. He also became my private pitching coach. After working to consistently hitting fastball spots and change ups we reintroduced the drop ball (a roll over, instead of the peel I had been taught previously) and it was legit (well, legit for a 12 year old). That summer I became a consistent pitcher (“bracket pitcher”) for our travel team and logged 2/3 of the innings.
13 years old (8th grade) – Played Varsity, still with the Bandits too. Halfway through our varsity season the senior pitcher was injured, so as an 8th grader I was pitching the second half of the season. I held my own and we made it to play offs – remember I was only throwing a fastball, change up, and a recently learned drop ball!
14 years old (Freshman Year) – Played Varsity, still with the Bandits too. The winter going into my freshman year of HS season (I was the starting Varsity pitcher now) I learned a curve ball. By the time high school season started the curve was okay – I threw it in games but it was really just a different look pitch that supported my drop. I also added an off speed pitch because my flip change was not good, to put it nicely…it was really never reliable throughout my entire career. During a random bullpen we were messing around with pressure points on the ball and somehow (I still don’t really know how) my off-speed turned into a really nice knuckle curve. That year during high school/travel season I probably pitched 50% drops, 20% knuckle curves, and 30% fastballs with a few curves and change ups mixed in.
15 years old (Sophomore Year) – Played varsity, still with the Bandits too. Still only threw a fastball, change up, offspeed/knuckle curve, regular curve, and a drop. We started attending some local showcase type tournaments, and I started to narrow down what I was looking for in a school and softball program. I also started attending camps and clinics of schools that matched what I was looking for.
16 years old (Junior Year) – Played Varsity, transitioned to a national travel ball team, the NJ Nightmare, working to get recruited. Learned a screwball over the winter – originally it was extremely effective and I threw it a lot. It started to breakdown my mechanics and I struggled to stay within the legal lines of the pitching rubber. Went back to old faithfuls with the drop and curve. The winter going into my junior year HS season I verbaled to play DII college softball.
17 years old (Senior year) – Played Varsity, continued to play with the Nightmare even though I had already signed to play at the next level. Continued to rely heavily on my fastball, knuckle curve, and drop ball. Occasionally threw curves and screws, I NEVER learned to throw a rise or a drop curve.
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Everyone’s journey looks different but for those that go on to play at the next level they all have one thing in common. They are a master at something, and good at a few other things. Without my drop ball – I wouldn’t have been nearly as effective as I was as a pitcher, or been recruited as heavily as I was. Was I the fastest? Absolutely not. Was I the biggest or the strongest or the most mechanically perfect? Absolutely not. Did I have the most strikeouts, no hitters, or best stats? Absolutely not. BUT I had something that made me different, something I had spent years and years mastering that college coaches were drawn to.
Why was my drop ball so effective? I threw it at two different heights – one that started at the knees and broke out of the zone, and one that started and the hips and broke to the knees. I could throw it inside at your hip like it was going to hit you and it would finish at your ankle after you swung through out. I could cut it across the outside corner and it would finish one ball off the plate – umpires almost always called it a strike even if you didn’t swing. I spent SEVEN YEARS enhancing and evolving my drop ball, instead of adding other pitches to my arsenal. I didn’t need a rise or a drop curve (or whatever other pitch you want to plug in there) to be effective and get looks from college coaches, because my drop ball was THAT consistent and could do THAT many different things.
When people ask me what I look for in a pitcher when I’m out recruiting, they are often surprised by my answer. Everyone wants to know the secret to being looked at as a pitcher who can compete at the next level right? My answer is always “I want a pitcher who brings something to the staff that we don’t already have.” To stand out, you have to do something different. Seems simple right? So why when it comes to pitching do we make it more complicated? More often than not, when I pitcher starts an email with “I throw 6 pitches”, I don’t bother to finish reading the email. If you throw that many pitches, how much time do you really spend mastering your best pitch?
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I was recently asked why I never post the pictures of the smiling pitcher holding the pocket radar, or radar gun with their new high speed. I’d honestly never thought about it before, celebratory MPH pictures were just something I never felt the urge to take. After a few days of reflection – here’s the best I could come up with! (100% my own opinions on this – I know a lot of successful pitching coaches who feel differently!)
I have nothing against the celebratory MPH picture – I just feel it’s more of something a parent does with their daughter. In the realm of pitching the role of the parent is to support, be excited, encourage, and offer tidbits of advice at practice on game day, etc. Parents are often SUPER excited about new high speeds – which there is absolutely nothing wrong with as they should be their daughter’s biggest fan. As a pitching coach, I feel it is my job to coach my athletes to be excited about all of their progress, not just what the radar gun says! My job is to help them become pitchers, and not just throwers. This often means celebrating things OTHER than speed – their spin rates, their mechanics, their consistency, their mentality, their focus, I could go on and on!
At the upper levels (not just college, this happens in travel ball and high school ball too) when our team sees a thrower who comes in and just chucks the ball super hard we get excited – because 9/10 times that’s all they can do…and hitters can adjust to speed SO MUCH BETTER than they can adjust to change in speed and movement. A thrower defines who they are based on the number on the gun – and their success will be short lived. A pitcher is so much more than the number on the gun. A pitcher uses all of the tools in their arsenal, including the radar gun, to become a master at spots, spin, AND speed.
1) Can you maintain your mechanics while pitching that speed?
2) Can you hit that speed consistently?
Use video to compliment to the radar gun, compare the pitches that you pitch harder to the pitches you pitch at your current speed. What changes? Do you stride further? Is your timing better? Do you snap at a different spot? Is your glove arm pushing out towards your catcher instead of to the side? How can you replicate the MOTION that creates that speed over and over again?
3) Can you hit spots while pitching that speed?
This one is somewhat self-explanatory. It doesn’t matter how hard you throw if you can only hit your top MPH throwing the ball into the ground, over the backstop, in the right-handed batter’s box, etc. In my mind, if you can’t pitch it for a strike it really doesn’t count as a new high speed. If you can’t consistently hit spots with it, you still have some work to do!
4) Do you have a change-up (or off speed) pitch that compliments that speed?
5) Can you maintain that speed while alternating your fastball and change up?
In my mind, this is one of the most important questions for pitchers overall. If you cannot change speeds, you cannot consistently be successful. No matter how hard you pitch, good hitters will adjust and by the second or third time through the line-up they will catch up. Working on increasing speed and perfecting a change-up go hand in hand. If you don’t have something to set up your fastball (Even if you only throw a change up and a fastball!) in the end your fastball speed really doesn’t matter.
My heart hurts when I see young pitchers SO focused on speed only (whether they are focusing on how hard they throw, or how they don’t throw as hard as others) when pitching is SO much more than that. Pitching is a mentality, it is a commitment, it is a passion. It is the mentality to work through when you feel you are peaking and aren’t getting better, to commit to creating the work ethic you need to continue to get better, and remembering the passion you have for being in the circle even when it is rough going sometimes.
Please remember that you are not defined by your speed. Being a pitcher means combining so many different aspects to become the best pitcher that YOU can be! I know a college pitcher who throws 55-57mph and broke the single season strike out record for her team in 2019 as a freshman. I know a college pitcher who throws 64 and only threw 15 innings as a freshman in 2019 because she had never mastered spin pitchers, and at the college level it just isn't enough to only throw hard. So yes, celebrate your new high speed! But also celebrate your new high spin rate, your new high first pitch strike percentage, your first game staying completely focused for seven innings straight, your first strike out on a perfect change up, you new lowest pitch count for a game, and whatever else you’ve been working on and are succeed at! Pitching is HARD, if it were easy everyone would do it…celebrate YOUR successes as a pitcher, not just as a thrower!
I have nothing against the celebratory MPH picture – I just feel it’s more of something a parent does with their daughter. In the realm of pitching the role of the parent is to support, be excited, encourage, and offer tidbits of advice at practice on game day, etc. Parents are often SUPER excited about new high speeds – which there is absolutely nothing wrong with as they should be their daughter’s biggest fan. As a pitching coach, I feel it is my job to coach my athletes to be excited about all of their progress, not just what the radar gun says! My job is to help them become pitchers, and not just throwers. This often means celebrating things OTHER than speed – their spin rates, their mechanics, their consistency, their mentality, their focus, I could go on and on!
At the upper levels (not just college, this happens in travel ball and high school ball too) when our team sees a thrower who comes in and just chucks the ball super hard we get excited – because 9/10 times that’s all they can do…and hitters can adjust to speed SO MUCH BETTER than they can adjust to change in speed and movement. A thrower defines who they are based on the number on the gun – and their success will be short lived. A pitcher is so much more than the number on the gun. A pitcher uses all of the tools in their arsenal, including the radar gun, to become a master at spots, spin, AND speed.
1) Can you maintain your mechanics while pitching that speed?
2) Can you hit that speed consistently?
Use video to compliment to the radar gun, compare the pitches that you pitch harder to the pitches you pitch at your current speed. What changes? Do you stride further? Is your timing better? Do you snap at a different spot? Is your glove arm pushing out towards your catcher instead of to the side? How can you replicate the MOTION that creates that speed over and over again?
3) Can you hit spots while pitching that speed?
This one is somewhat self-explanatory. It doesn’t matter how hard you throw if you can only hit your top MPH throwing the ball into the ground, over the backstop, in the right-handed batter’s box, etc. In my mind, if you can’t pitch it for a strike it really doesn’t count as a new high speed. If you can’t consistently hit spots with it, you still have some work to do!
4) Do you have a change-up (or off speed) pitch that compliments that speed?
5) Can you maintain that speed while alternating your fastball and change up?
In my mind, this is one of the most important questions for pitchers overall. If you cannot change speeds, you cannot consistently be successful. No matter how hard you pitch, good hitters will adjust and by the second or third time through the line-up they will catch up. Working on increasing speed and perfecting a change-up go hand in hand. If you don’t have something to set up your fastball (Even if you only throw a change up and a fastball!) in the end your fastball speed really doesn’t matter.
My heart hurts when I see young pitchers SO focused on speed only (whether they are focusing on how hard they throw, or how they don’t throw as hard as others) when pitching is SO much more than that. Pitching is a mentality, it is a commitment, it is a passion. It is the mentality to work through when you feel you are peaking and aren’t getting better, to commit to creating the work ethic you need to continue to get better, and remembering the passion you have for being in the circle even when it is rough going sometimes.
Please remember that you are not defined by your speed. Being a pitcher means combining so many different aspects to become the best pitcher that YOU can be! I know a college pitcher who throws 55-57mph and broke the single season strike out record for her team in 2019 as a freshman. I know a college pitcher who throws 64 and only threw 15 innings as a freshman in 2019 because she had never mastered spin pitchers, and at the college level it just isn't enough to only throw hard. So yes, celebrate your new high speed! But also celebrate your new high spin rate, your new high first pitch strike percentage, your first game staying completely focused for seven innings straight, your first strike out on a perfect change up, you new lowest pitch count for a game, and whatever else you’ve been working on and are succeed at! Pitching is HARD, if it were easy everyone would do it…celebrate YOUR successes as a pitcher, not just as a thrower!
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As many of you know, I’ve had two fantastic experiences at the DIII level and hold DIII week near and dear each year whether I am coaching at that level or not. As a coach with experience in DI, DII, and DIII that played DII, I love the opportunities that DIII provides athletes of all skill levels to pursue their dreams.
I got my start in collegiate coaching at Rhodes College, a high academic DIII program in Memphis TN. Starting out coaching at the DIII level taught me more than I ever imagined it would. I learned how to be the most efficient data driven coach I could be to take advantage of the short fall season. I learned how to support athletes as they balanced their athletic pursuits with their other passions. Later in my coaching career, I became a head DIII coach at Canton, a state school in Upstate NY. I absolutely loved being able to say YES to almost anything that my athletes wanted to accomplish outside of softball.
DIII changed my perspective on coaching, and I will forever be better for it. Travel coaches, parents, and players - I urge you to consider what each individual athlete wants to accomplish with BOTH their athletic AND academic pursuits. Each recruiting journey is 100% unique to the individual and it’s about what the best FIT for you is!
I wanted to share some of the things I’ve been able to say yes to at the DIII that I may (emphasis on may, each program is different!) not be able to say yes to at the DI or DII levels.
Your recruiting journey, just like your life, is 100% unique to YOU. There is no “right time” to do anything let alone commit to a school (because you really are committing to the school, and not the softball program). DIII should not be considered a back up plan or a last resort, and I wish more travel ball coaches would ditch that mentality. Some of my most successful (and favorite!) mentors are DIII coaches. Some of the most talented athletes I have coached are DIII athletes who CHOSE to play DIII for their own unique reasons! Division III will always have a special place in my heart, and I will always support and encourage athletes to at least consider it as they decide what they want their athletic and academic future to look like!
I got my start in collegiate coaching at Rhodes College, a high academic DIII program in Memphis TN. Starting out coaching at the DIII level taught me more than I ever imagined it would. I learned how to be the most efficient data driven coach I could be to take advantage of the short fall season. I learned how to support athletes as they balanced their athletic pursuits with their other passions. Later in my coaching career, I became a head DIII coach at Canton, a state school in Upstate NY. I absolutely loved being able to say YES to almost anything that my athletes wanted to accomplish outside of softball.
DIII changed my perspective on coaching, and I will forever be better for it. Travel coaches, parents, and players - I urge you to consider what each individual athlete wants to accomplish with BOTH their athletic AND academic pursuits. Each recruiting journey is 100% unique to the individual and it’s about what the best FIT for you is!
I wanted to share some of the things I’ve been able to say yes to at the DIII that I may (emphasis on may, each program is different!) not be able to say yes to at the DI or DII levels.
- A graduating senior completed a 600 hour internship during season getting her reps in every day at 6:30am. She missed practices to make up the internship hours she missed while we traveled.
- We never had to say no to a major - we could always find a way to make it work.
- 3 two sport athletes who started in both sports.
- 4 players are now pursuing a medical degree.
- 14 players were also active in their sorority.
- More than half of the student-athletes have also held a job during the school year.
Your recruiting journey, just like your life, is 100% unique to YOU. There is no “right time” to do anything let alone commit to a school (because you really are committing to the school, and not the softball program). DIII should not be considered a back up plan or a last resort, and I wish more travel ball coaches would ditch that mentality. Some of my most successful (and favorite!) mentors are DIII coaches. Some of the most talented athletes I have coached are DIII athletes who CHOSE to play DIII for their own unique reasons! Division III will always have a special place in my heart, and I will always support and encourage athletes to at least consider it as they decide what they want their athletic and academic future to look like!
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When did we stop letting players play? I’m thinking of pitchers right now, but it really can apply to hitters, catchers, any position out there! When I work one on one with pitchers, I ask a lot of questions and they always think I expect a specific response. Asking what were you thinking after throwing that pitch or did that feel comfortable somehow makes today’s generation of pitchers uncomfortable and feeling like I as a coach expect a specific answer.
My philosophy as a pitching coach focuses around the thought that it is my job to support a pitcher in being “their own best pitching coach.” I often joke with pitchers that my goal is to make it so they don’t “need” me at all. When you really think about it, there’s not much a coach can do from a bucket in the middle of a game…but the kid in the circle? She can do it all.
Now, as I start to create relationships with new players and families, it’s a whole new world for many of them. People are often trained to always seek the answer from a coach, rather than explore, play, and find one themselves. Our new era of players have a private pitching, hitting, fielding, strength and conditioning, mental training, etc., coach that leaves little room for players and families to find solutions on their own through trial and error. I usually say my brand of private coaching offers “guided play” for athletes. There is a balance between aiding in mechanical development, drill work, and muscle memory and allowing athletes to feel differences, understand what they are most comfortable with, and teach themselves.
Especially during “crazy times like these” as everyone keeps saying, it’s a great time for you to get out and play! I wanted to share a few examples of what I mean by this.
1) Pitcher A came to me with a change up she wasn’t comfortable with that “probably is only slow enough 25% of the time.” I asked her why she threw it - “Because it’s the one my last pitching coach taught me” …so if you’re not comfortable with it and it doesn’t work why are you throwing it? We spent the lesson trying out different types of change ups, changing the finger pressure she put on the ball, and seeing what felt natural to her. Once we found “the one” she liked, I sent her home with the homework of deciding whether it was the one or not. It’s HER change up, not mine.
2) Pitcher B came to me basically using a different pre-motion every pitch. We videoed 15 pitches to see how many different variations she really did (turns out it was 4). We narrowed it down to 2 that she was most comfortable with, and then tracked how well she did using each pre-motion, including more video to determine if either changed her mechanics at all. Once we found the more productive one, I sent her home with the homework of deciding whether it was really the one or not. It’s HER pre-motion, not mine.
3) Pitcher C came to me as an 8 year old newbie who had never really pitched before. By her third lesson she was working through some full motion pitches. Not a lot, but enough to start to learn what it’s supposed to feel like…what happens when she moves her hips a certain way, what happens when she lets go of the ball too late, what happens when she lands too far to the right. Small things, but things you cannot learn from drill work. I sent her home with the homework of working on the drills we learned so she can work more and more on that full motion pitch. It’s HER pitching, not mine.
My philosophy as a pitching coach focuses around the thought that it is my job to support a pitcher in being “their own best pitching coach.” I often joke with pitchers that my goal is to make it so they don’t “need” me at all. When you really think about it, there’s not much a coach can do from a bucket in the middle of a game…but the kid in the circle? She can do it all.
Now, as I start to create relationships with new players and families, it’s a whole new world for many of them. People are often trained to always seek the answer from a coach, rather than explore, play, and find one themselves. Our new era of players have a private pitching, hitting, fielding, strength and conditioning, mental training, etc., coach that leaves little room for players and families to find solutions on their own through trial and error. I usually say my brand of private coaching offers “guided play” for athletes. There is a balance between aiding in mechanical development, drill work, and muscle memory and allowing athletes to feel differences, understand what they are most comfortable with, and teach themselves.
Especially during “crazy times like these” as everyone keeps saying, it’s a great time for you to get out and play! I wanted to share a few examples of what I mean by this.
1) Pitcher A came to me with a change up she wasn’t comfortable with that “probably is only slow enough 25% of the time.” I asked her why she threw it - “Because it’s the one my last pitching coach taught me” …so if you’re not comfortable with it and it doesn’t work why are you throwing it? We spent the lesson trying out different types of change ups, changing the finger pressure she put on the ball, and seeing what felt natural to her. Once we found “the one” she liked, I sent her home with the homework of deciding whether it was the one or not. It’s HER change up, not mine.
2) Pitcher B came to me basically using a different pre-motion every pitch. We videoed 15 pitches to see how many different variations she really did (turns out it was 4). We narrowed it down to 2 that she was most comfortable with, and then tracked how well she did using each pre-motion, including more video to determine if either changed her mechanics at all. Once we found the more productive one, I sent her home with the homework of deciding whether it was really the one or not. It’s HER pre-motion, not mine.
3) Pitcher C came to me as an 8 year old newbie who had never really pitched before. By her third lesson she was working through some full motion pitches. Not a lot, but enough to start to learn what it’s supposed to feel like…what happens when she moves her hips a certain way, what happens when she lets go of the ball too late, what happens when she lands too far to the right. Small things, but things you cannot learn from drill work. I sent her home with the homework of working on the drills we learned so she can work more and more on that full motion pitch. It’s HER pitching, not mine.
I guess all of that is a long winded way of saying, what better time that for pitchers, and all players, to start playing at home again? Get out a net and spend an hour playing with different things - motions, grips, mentalities, self talk…what do you have to lose? Let your daughter get out and play! Learn to trust her instincts, her abilities, and help her remember why she fell in love with it in the first place.
It will change her perspective.
It will help her learn to be her own pitching coach.
It will help her grow.
It will empower her.
It will change her perspective.
It will help her learn to be her own pitching coach.
It will help her grow.
It will empower her.
- Published on
...and they need our support.
While my main interaction with students is through athletics, and my heart hurts for the necessary cancelations this Spring, students across the nation are all grieving something they have lost in the last few weeks. Whether it’s a Spring sports season, an academic celebratory ceremony, a canceled internship, the list goes on and on. The students I have had the pleasure of interacting with over the past few weeks understand the magnitude of this situation, but that doesn’t make their hurt go away. Comments such as “there’s a pandemic, your season is the least of the concerns” or “It’ll just get rescheduled, stop freaking out about it.” are being posted everywhere. Some of the attacks I have seen on social media are actually insane.
We, as the adults in their lives, need to support and help guide them through this. Students are going from having little to no free time on their hands to suddenly having more time than they even know what to do with. The same panic and anxiety we are currently feeling? They are feeling tenfold. Not only are they now concerned about futuristic things like jobs, grad school, etc. they have to worry about all the other things that come along with a pandemic. A ton of ideas on how to help support students and keep them on track for whatever their goals are have been flying around, and I wanted to compile a list of my favorites to share with you all!
1) Set a schedule, and stick to it - Still working on mine because we are up in the air a bit at work, but right now I am starting to schedule out my day to day to be sure I am getting up in the morning and getting productive!
2) Set long term and short term goals - weekly goals that help your achieve long term goals will absolutely help in getting through down times like this! For example, one of my weekly goals is to create at least two blogs and two videos per week so I have plenty to share even after softball takes over my life again!
3) Stay in contact with your friends/teammates - Our athletic department gets together for lunch once a week, and we are looking at doing Zoom lunches to stay connected! It’s possible, we just need to get creative.
4) Stay Positive - I am HORRIBLE at this…100% a glass half empty person. One of our players introduced me to the app “Motivate”, it sends notifications with quotes to my phone multiple times a day. I have also started journaling again which has helped a ton!
5) Keep up on your exercise/nutrition habits - Once we don’t have a schedule it’s easy to fall into unhealthy habits. I’ve had one weekend off and literally all I’ve done is eat because I’m bored - definitely not a sustainable plan. Getting back on track to normal nutrition and exercise habits will help keep us all sane!
6) Figure out who you are outside of your greatest passion - I learned this due to an injury and a surgery early in my playing career, it was one of the hardest things to come to terms with. Want to be a doctor? Get online, find webinars, and learn! Want to be a vet? Get to your local animal shelter and start volunteering (social distancing is for people, not puppies!). This is a great time to start reaching out to those who are top in the field you are studying - many of them are just as lost and bored as you are!
While my main interaction with students is through athletics, and my heart hurts for the necessary cancelations this Spring, students across the nation are all grieving something they have lost in the last few weeks. Whether it’s a Spring sports season, an academic celebratory ceremony, a canceled internship, the list goes on and on. The students I have had the pleasure of interacting with over the past few weeks understand the magnitude of this situation, but that doesn’t make their hurt go away. Comments such as “there’s a pandemic, your season is the least of the concerns” or “It’ll just get rescheduled, stop freaking out about it.” are being posted everywhere. Some of the attacks I have seen on social media are actually insane.
We, as the adults in their lives, need to support and help guide them through this. Students are going from having little to no free time on their hands to suddenly having more time than they even know what to do with. The same panic and anxiety we are currently feeling? They are feeling tenfold. Not only are they now concerned about futuristic things like jobs, grad school, etc. they have to worry about all the other things that come along with a pandemic. A ton of ideas on how to help support students and keep them on track for whatever their goals are have been flying around, and I wanted to compile a list of my favorites to share with you all!
1) Set a schedule, and stick to it - Still working on mine because we are up in the air a bit at work, but right now I am starting to schedule out my day to day to be sure I am getting up in the morning and getting productive!
2) Set long term and short term goals - weekly goals that help your achieve long term goals will absolutely help in getting through down times like this! For example, one of my weekly goals is to create at least two blogs and two videos per week so I have plenty to share even after softball takes over my life again!
3) Stay in contact with your friends/teammates - Our athletic department gets together for lunch once a week, and we are looking at doing Zoom lunches to stay connected! It’s possible, we just need to get creative.
4) Stay Positive - I am HORRIBLE at this…100% a glass half empty person. One of our players introduced me to the app “Motivate”, it sends notifications with quotes to my phone multiple times a day. I have also started journaling again which has helped a ton!
5) Keep up on your exercise/nutrition habits - Once we don’t have a schedule it’s easy to fall into unhealthy habits. I’ve had one weekend off and literally all I’ve done is eat because I’m bored - definitely not a sustainable plan. Getting back on track to normal nutrition and exercise habits will help keep us all sane!
6) Figure out who you are outside of your greatest passion - I learned this due to an injury and a surgery early in my playing career, it was one of the hardest things to come to terms with. Want to be a doctor? Get online, find webinars, and learn! Want to be a vet? Get to your local animal shelter and start volunteering (social distancing is for people, not puppies!). This is a great time to start reaching out to those who are top in the field you are studying - many of them are just as lost and bored as you are!
- Published on
Many times in the world of athletics we interchange the terms ownership and accountability. For example, “taking ownership over your actions” can be determined to be the same as “taking accountability for your actions.” Both are valid things to have in a program. But, what if we didn’t need the term accountability at all? What if we didn’t need to hold each other accountable? Wouldn’t the world, and our own individual worlds, be a much easier place to live?
We rarely use the word accountability. In our program, and lessons, we use ownership instead. If you, as an athlete, if you take ownership over an action, thought, experience, mistake, etcetera, and then you would never need to be held accountable by someone else. Whether that someone else is a coach, teammate, parent, teacher, the list goes on and on. If we, as a collective team, struggle at practice what is the conversation like at the end of practice? Is it the coach telling the players what they need to do better tomorrow, or the players telling each other what they as individuals, and a whole, can do better to help the team?
After games, what does your post game meeting look like? Whether a great game, an okay one, or a terrible one our post game meetings take virtually the same shape. First, we talk about the positive points and build each other up, whether it was getting a bunt down, solid defense, whatever it might have been that day. Then, we take ownership over what went wrong. As coaches we set the tone for what we expect from our athletes. Whether it was that we could have used more small ball, adjusted our outfielders better, whatever it may be on that certain day. The expectation is then that the athletes also take ownership, whether they could have supported each other more, communicated better, executed plays better, whatever it may be on that day. When interacting with your teammates, you take ownership over the program which in turn means that you hold each other accountable to the standards that we as a group have set.
In the beginning of my career I always talked about accountability, and how as a coach I hold my athletes accountable to the standards of the program or my lesson expectations. At the end of the day, whether an hour lesson or a three hour practice, the athletes leave. After they leave, I no longer have the control to hold them accountable. It was a little like being the parent who holds on too tightly (I am not a parent, nor am trying to judge parents!). The more I tried to hold players accountable the less they wanted to take ownership. After switching to an ownership based model, I feel that I get more out of my athletes, and that they get more out of each other. This applies to both my college athletes as well as the youth athletes I work with.
Most programs operate on a mix of the two, and I’d be lying if I said mine didn’t as well. Especially due to the fact that I am a new leader to my program this year, I am teaching and implementing a new culture. As we set a culture, standards, and goals my players are reminding each other and supporting each other as we navigate through the fall.
I watched an interview with Patty Gasso after Oklahoma has just won back to back WCWS Championships. The thing that sticks with me to this day pertaining to the interview was that she talked about how they were always a solid program. Yet, they became great when their players started telling them what their culture, standards, and goals were rather than the coaches telling the players. A player driven culture, while difficult to create, makes all the difference.
We rarely use the word accountability. In our program, and lessons, we use ownership instead. If you, as an athlete, if you take ownership over an action, thought, experience, mistake, etcetera, and then you would never need to be held accountable by someone else. Whether that someone else is a coach, teammate, parent, teacher, the list goes on and on. If we, as a collective team, struggle at practice what is the conversation like at the end of practice? Is it the coach telling the players what they need to do better tomorrow, or the players telling each other what they as individuals, and a whole, can do better to help the team?
After games, what does your post game meeting look like? Whether a great game, an okay one, or a terrible one our post game meetings take virtually the same shape. First, we talk about the positive points and build each other up, whether it was getting a bunt down, solid defense, whatever it might have been that day. Then, we take ownership over what went wrong. As coaches we set the tone for what we expect from our athletes. Whether it was that we could have used more small ball, adjusted our outfielders better, whatever it may be on that certain day. The expectation is then that the athletes also take ownership, whether they could have supported each other more, communicated better, executed plays better, whatever it may be on that day. When interacting with your teammates, you take ownership over the program which in turn means that you hold each other accountable to the standards that we as a group have set.
In the beginning of my career I always talked about accountability, and how as a coach I hold my athletes accountable to the standards of the program or my lesson expectations. At the end of the day, whether an hour lesson or a three hour practice, the athletes leave. After they leave, I no longer have the control to hold them accountable. It was a little like being the parent who holds on too tightly (I am not a parent, nor am trying to judge parents!). The more I tried to hold players accountable the less they wanted to take ownership. After switching to an ownership based model, I feel that I get more out of my athletes, and that they get more out of each other. This applies to both my college athletes as well as the youth athletes I work with.
Most programs operate on a mix of the two, and I’d be lying if I said mine didn’t as well. Especially due to the fact that I am a new leader to my program this year, I am teaching and implementing a new culture. As we set a culture, standards, and goals my players are reminding each other and supporting each other as we navigate through the fall.
I watched an interview with Patty Gasso after Oklahoma has just won back to back WCWS Championships. The thing that sticks with me to this day pertaining to the interview was that she talked about how they were always a solid program. Yet, they became great when their players started telling them what their culture, standards, and goals were rather than the coaches telling the players. A player driven culture, while difficult to create, makes all the difference.
- Published on
I was scrolling through Facebook earlier, wasting a few minutes while I waited for my Dunkin’ Donuts K-Cup to finish brewing in my Keurig so I could dump in some peppermint creamer and sit down to return a few of the recruit emails that have started to pile up in my inbox.
One of those “Share if you support, ignore if you don’t” posts popped up on my feed. (And of course now I can’t find it to share it with you all.) Normally I see those and just continue scrolling through the posts about babies, complaining, and work. This one caught my eye though, so I stopped and read the caption underneath the picture. The picture was a young boy, hitting a tennis ball off a tire using a stick. The caption stated: “We don’t all have $300 bats, $100 cleats, or $75 hitting lessons…but we all still want to get better.”
I am privileged. This is something I didn’t understand growing up (as most kids don’t), and now am thankful for every single day. My parents were at every softball game I ever played and traveled all over the country sacrificing their own lives for 20 years for my sister and I. I was able to accept a part-time position that paid $12,000 a year after college doing what I love because my parents helped to support me through college and I didn’t have loans to worry about. I now work for an institution where we have the budget to buy amazing technology like Rapsodo (Google it, it’s incredible!) for our softball program.
Every time I think of something like the gear we receive, the technology we are able to buy, the indoor turf facility we are able to practice in, I think of this picture. It makes my heart hurt when I hear athletes talk about how they don’t have time, don’t have a catcher, don’t have a net, etcetera and then in the next breath say they want to get better. If you want to get better, there is ALWAYS a way. It may not be the easiest, or the most fun, or the best way, but there is always a way.
We are privileged more than each of us know. The fact that you have a ball glove, a bat, and parents who bring you to practice or a lesson is so much more than some people have. Use your privilege for good. Work harder, get better, use what you are blessed enough to have! I am a firm believer that by 12 years old softball players should be volunteering working with younger players (even if it’s T-ball!). It puts in so much perspective where you came from, what you have accomplished, and the role model you can be. Use your privilege, be thankful that you have it, and pass on that appreciation to the next generation of softball players.
One of those “Share if you support, ignore if you don’t” posts popped up on my feed. (And of course now I can’t find it to share it with you all.) Normally I see those and just continue scrolling through the posts about babies, complaining, and work. This one caught my eye though, so I stopped and read the caption underneath the picture. The picture was a young boy, hitting a tennis ball off a tire using a stick. The caption stated: “We don’t all have $300 bats, $100 cleats, or $75 hitting lessons…but we all still want to get better.”
I am privileged. This is something I didn’t understand growing up (as most kids don’t), and now am thankful for every single day. My parents were at every softball game I ever played and traveled all over the country sacrificing their own lives for 20 years for my sister and I. I was able to accept a part-time position that paid $12,000 a year after college doing what I love because my parents helped to support me through college and I didn’t have loans to worry about. I now work for an institution where we have the budget to buy amazing technology like Rapsodo (Google it, it’s incredible!) for our softball program.
Every time I think of something like the gear we receive, the technology we are able to buy, the indoor turf facility we are able to practice in, I think of this picture. It makes my heart hurt when I hear athletes talk about how they don’t have time, don’t have a catcher, don’t have a net, etcetera and then in the next breath say they want to get better. If you want to get better, there is ALWAYS a way. It may not be the easiest, or the most fun, or the best way, but there is always a way.
We are privileged more than each of us know. The fact that you have a ball glove, a bat, and parents who bring you to practice or a lesson is so much more than some people have. Use your privilege for good. Work harder, get better, use what you are blessed enough to have! I am a firm believer that by 12 years old softball players should be volunteering working with younger players (even if it’s T-ball!). It puts in so much perspective where you came from, what you have accomplished, and the role model you can be. Use your privilege, be thankful that you have it, and pass on that appreciation to the next generation of softball players.
- Published on
Pitchers, parents, and coaches use the word fastball like it’s a dirty word. Like a throwing a fastball is something to be ashamed of, or something that isn’t worth your time. I have to laugh a little bit when I watch softball on TV, because I can see a pitcher throw a fastball and an announcer talk about how “flat” the pitch was and how the pitcher was “lucky.” Like no, I’m pretty sure that 67 mile an hour dead straight pitch to the black of the plate was exactly where it was supposed to be and did exactly what it was supposed to do...
“I only throw a fastball.”
“I throw a lot of fastballs, I’m not good enough for other pitches yet.”
“I’m sick of throwing fastballs, that’s why I left my old pitching coach.”
“Why can’t we learn new pitches yet? I’ve been throwing fastballs for years.”
With this new world of early recruiting, everything else about softball development seems to have been sped up as well. As a pitching coach, I see the impacts of early recruiting more and more on parents and players as the years go by. Pitchers are skipping fundamental skills because everyone wants to throw spin pitches ASAP to get recruited. Now that early recruiting has been “a thing” for a while now, we are seeing the negative effects of it at the high school level when pitchers are attending clinics and working towards playing college softball.
We hosted a pitching clinic at Holy Cross a bit ago for players in grades 7-12. Most of the pitchers in attendance were at least 10th grade or above. One of the youth pitchers that I work with attended as well, she’s in 8th grade…and guess what pitches she throws? A fastball, and a change up. It was a great experience for her to take part in an advanced skills clinic and see not only the expectations I have for high school level pitchers, but also the level of play required to compete at the next level.
At this clinic (of about 20 pitchers), more than HALF of the pitchers in attendance could not spot a fastball or a throw a change up at the correct speed for a strike...BUT almost all of them had every spin pitch in the book. (Side note…a lot of their “spin” pitches, did not have the correct rotation or break, and they couldn’t consistently hit a spot with them either.)
This is a partially a product of early recruiting, and the accelerated timeline that pitchers feel they need to keep up with to play at the next level. More importantly…this is a product of SELFISH youth pitching coaches. Yes, selfish. Pitching coaches feel the need to sell themselves and the “product” that they provide. Many feel that to keep pitchers and parents coming back they must constantly be doing something new and exciting and “better.” Pitching coaches are skipping the basics to jump to flashy exciting new spin pitches, when in reality they need to be focusing on fundamentals and consistency.
When I first started giving pitching lessons (at the wise old age of 18), I often let pushy parents dictate when I started teaching their kids spin pitches. I felt that parents would stop coming to me for lessons if I didn’t eventually cave in and start teaching spins when they thought their kid was ready (I was that selfish pitching coach to an extent). After a few years under my belt, I no longer cave. If a pitcher genuinely cares about pitching at the next level and getting better, they’ll put in the work on their fastball and change up to EARN learning to throw spin pitches. And in the long run, the kids willing to put in the work are the ones who will go far anyways.
While recruiting I look for pitchers who can do the following:
1. Spot a fastball on a dime
2. A change up that no one knows is coming, is the correct speed, hits a spot, and can be thrown in any count
3. Throw ONE amazing spin pitch
4. Throw ONE very good spin pitch that compliments their amazing one
Pitchers who are average at all six of the pitches that they throw don’t win college softball games. Pitchers who are extremely effective and consistent with a few pitches and can change speeds win college softball games.
This starts at the youth level with fundamentals. Until pitchers can spot a fastball consistently, and throw a change up that is the correct speed for a strike THEY SHOULD NOT BE THROWING SPIN PITCHES. PERIOD. It’s possible…I’m living proof. At 13 I won varsity softball games, with a fastball, a change up, and a drop ball. I didn’t even learn how to throw a curve ball until 17 (AFTER I had verbally committed), and it became my best pitch in college. You can bet that my fastball spots were dead on, and my change up was effective, or I wouldn’t have had the success as young as I did.
I’ll be blunt, there isn’t a place on my pitching staff for pitchers who are average at everything, or cannot spot fastballs and change ups. I’d also bet a lot of money that there are A LOT of other college softball coaches who would agree. Just food for thought the next time a coach wants to teach your 10-year-old a rise ball, or skip teaching a change up in favor of something “more fun” to come back to it later.
“I only throw a fastball.”
“I throw a lot of fastballs, I’m not good enough for other pitches yet.”
“I’m sick of throwing fastballs, that’s why I left my old pitching coach.”
“Why can’t we learn new pitches yet? I’ve been throwing fastballs for years.”
With this new world of early recruiting, everything else about softball development seems to have been sped up as well. As a pitching coach, I see the impacts of early recruiting more and more on parents and players as the years go by. Pitchers are skipping fundamental skills because everyone wants to throw spin pitches ASAP to get recruited. Now that early recruiting has been “a thing” for a while now, we are seeing the negative effects of it at the high school level when pitchers are attending clinics and working towards playing college softball.
We hosted a pitching clinic at Holy Cross a bit ago for players in grades 7-12. Most of the pitchers in attendance were at least 10th grade or above. One of the youth pitchers that I work with attended as well, she’s in 8th grade…and guess what pitches she throws? A fastball, and a change up. It was a great experience for her to take part in an advanced skills clinic and see not only the expectations I have for high school level pitchers, but also the level of play required to compete at the next level.
At this clinic (of about 20 pitchers), more than HALF of the pitchers in attendance could not spot a fastball or a throw a change up at the correct speed for a strike...BUT almost all of them had every spin pitch in the book. (Side note…a lot of their “spin” pitches, did not have the correct rotation or break, and they couldn’t consistently hit a spot with them either.)
This is a partially a product of early recruiting, and the accelerated timeline that pitchers feel they need to keep up with to play at the next level. More importantly…this is a product of SELFISH youth pitching coaches. Yes, selfish. Pitching coaches feel the need to sell themselves and the “product” that they provide. Many feel that to keep pitchers and parents coming back they must constantly be doing something new and exciting and “better.” Pitching coaches are skipping the basics to jump to flashy exciting new spin pitches, when in reality they need to be focusing on fundamentals and consistency.
When I first started giving pitching lessons (at the wise old age of 18), I often let pushy parents dictate when I started teaching their kids spin pitches. I felt that parents would stop coming to me for lessons if I didn’t eventually cave in and start teaching spins when they thought their kid was ready (I was that selfish pitching coach to an extent). After a few years under my belt, I no longer cave. If a pitcher genuinely cares about pitching at the next level and getting better, they’ll put in the work on their fastball and change up to EARN learning to throw spin pitches. And in the long run, the kids willing to put in the work are the ones who will go far anyways.
While recruiting I look for pitchers who can do the following:
1. Spot a fastball on a dime
2. A change up that no one knows is coming, is the correct speed, hits a spot, and can be thrown in any count
3. Throw ONE amazing spin pitch
4. Throw ONE very good spin pitch that compliments their amazing one
Pitchers who are average at all six of the pitches that they throw don’t win college softball games. Pitchers who are extremely effective and consistent with a few pitches and can change speeds win college softball games.
This starts at the youth level with fundamentals. Until pitchers can spot a fastball consistently, and throw a change up that is the correct speed for a strike THEY SHOULD NOT BE THROWING SPIN PITCHES. PERIOD. It’s possible…I’m living proof. At 13 I won varsity softball games, with a fastball, a change up, and a drop ball. I didn’t even learn how to throw a curve ball until 17 (AFTER I had verbally committed), and it became my best pitch in college. You can bet that my fastball spots were dead on, and my change up was effective, or I wouldn’t have had the success as young as I did.
I’ll be blunt, there isn’t a place on my pitching staff for pitchers who are average at everything, or cannot spot fastballs and change ups. I’d also bet a lot of money that there are A LOT of other college softball coaches who would agree. Just food for thought the next time a coach wants to teach your 10-year-old a rise ball, or skip teaching a change up in favor of something “more fun” to come back to it later.
- Published on
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!
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!
- Published on
Hi All!
The past few weeks I have been a little absent on social media as I settle into my new position at Holy Cross in Massachusetts. With new opportunities, there are always changes as I am continuing to grow as a coach. With the jump from Division 3 to Division I there are some changes within the guidelines of working with young student-athletes.
I have always taken pride in the fact that I can be a resource for parents and players even before I consistently began giving lessons. During my college career and while at Rhodes this never conflicted with my job or NCAA compliance at the Division 3 Level. I met with our compliance department at Holy Cross this past week, as the regulations and expectations are different at the Division I level. The institution that I work for can offer athletic money, so my interactions with “recruitable” prospective student-athletes are much more restrictive.
Due to my start date being July 5th and officially working for a Division I institution these new regulations were in effect immediately, which means I cannot email each of you to explain the situation. This is also why I have been absent on social media as I was unsure of what would put my new program in jeopardy. The best way I could think to share the information is through social media.
1. For athletes (and their parents) in grades 9-12 I cannot text, email, or talk to you on social media or respond when you contact me. If you call me I can answer and chat with you but I cannot initiate the phone call.
2. I can be friends with you on social media and “like” posts, but I cannot comment, send or respond to private messages (athletes 9-12 and their parents).
3. If you want to talk softball or want drills, you can call me and we can talk about it. I can then post a video or explanation to social media to help with something you are struggling with, but I cannot send you anything, tag you in the post, or return your phone call. (athletes 9-12 and their parents)
4. These regulations do NOT effect travel ball coaches at all, only student-athletes and their families. If a travel ball coach reaches out to me I can email, text, or call them back.
Thank you all for the never ending support as I work through this amazing new opportunity!!
The past few weeks I have been a little absent on social media as I settle into my new position at Holy Cross in Massachusetts. With new opportunities, there are always changes as I am continuing to grow as a coach. With the jump from Division 3 to Division I there are some changes within the guidelines of working with young student-athletes.
I have always taken pride in the fact that I can be a resource for parents and players even before I consistently began giving lessons. During my college career and while at Rhodes this never conflicted with my job or NCAA compliance at the Division 3 Level. I met with our compliance department at Holy Cross this past week, as the regulations and expectations are different at the Division I level. The institution that I work for can offer athletic money, so my interactions with “recruitable” prospective student-athletes are much more restrictive.
Due to my start date being July 5th and officially working for a Division I institution these new regulations were in effect immediately, which means I cannot email each of you to explain the situation. This is also why I have been absent on social media as I was unsure of what would put my new program in jeopardy. The best way I could think to share the information is through social media.
1. For athletes (and their parents) in grades 9-12 I cannot text, email, or talk to you on social media or respond when you contact me. If you call me I can answer and chat with you but I cannot initiate the phone call.
2. I can be friends with you on social media and “like” posts, but I cannot comment, send or respond to private messages (athletes 9-12 and their parents).
3. If you want to talk softball or want drills, you can call me and we can talk about it. I can then post a video or explanation to social media to help with something you are struggling with, but I cannot send you anything, tag you in the post, or return your phone call. (athletes 9-12 and their parents)
4. These regulations do NOT effect travel ball coaches at all, only student-athletes and their families. If a travel ball coach reaches out to me I can email, text, or call them back.
Thank you all for the never ending support as I work through this amazing new opportunity!!