Softball pitcher - practice schedule

[Anonymous]

If you have a daughter who plays/played softball and her primary position is pitcher - how often did she practice? Did you work with a pitching coach? What was done outside of team practice or time with pitching coach? I have a 13 year old who plays 14u and preparing for HS. TIA

[Anonymous]

For my 10 year old it depends on what season it is. She usually pitches 4 times a week, but the breakout of that depends on if she is pitching in games vs offseason workouts. There isn’t much time for pitching at actual team practice. She always throws the day before a game a light bullpen session. She’s had a pitching coach for a year and a half who she sees weekly. Every pitcher or kid trying to pitch on our travel team sees a pitching coach.

[Anonymous]

My DD does not pitch, but all the better pitchers we know at this age see a private pitching coach regularly.

[Anonymous]

My 12 year old pitches 4 times a week in the off season. Sees her pitching coach for an hour a week. In season, there is a little more variability. She pitches every Saturday and Sunday on tournament weekends (typically three per month) and usually pitches once with her pitching coach and once or twice on her own, but lighter workouts than in off season because she pitches a lot in tournaments. She often does not pitch more when she has an off weekend--gives her arm the rest it needs.

[Anonymous]

Almost 12 year old has been pitching for a little over a year and takes private lessons about every other week for 45 minutes. During the season typically practices 2-3 times a week outside of practice (lesson would count as one of those times if it's a lesson week). Off-season over summer it was about 4 times a week or more. Lately it's been only about 2x per week because it's winter and we've had a tough time figuring out where to grab a pitching lane to practice.

She only plays rec and has no interest in travel, but she really loves pitching and wants to do well.

[Anonymous]

Thanks. Info is very helpful!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Almost 12 year old has been pitching for a little over a year and takes private lessons about every other week for 45 minutes. During the season typically practices 2-3 times a week outside of practice (lesson would count as one of those times if it's a lesson week). Off-season over summer it was about 4 times a week or more. Lately it's been only about 2x per week because it's winter and we've had a tough time figuring out where to grab a pitching lane to practice.

She only plays rec and has no interest in travel, but she really loves pitching and wants to do well.

Where do you live?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Almost 12 year old has been pitching for a little over a year and takes private lessons about every other week for 45 minutes. During the season typically practices 2-3 times a week outside of practice (lesson would count as one of those times if it's a lesson week). Off-season over summer it was about 4 times a week or more. Lately it's been only about 2x per week because it's winter and we've had a tough time figuring out where to grab a pitching lane to practice.

She only plays rec and has no interest in travel, but she really loves pitching and wants to do well.

Where do you live?

Close enough to plenty of gyms (mostly baseball, we aren't in weeknight driving distance to a SixFour 3, I wish), but when I check them out they seem to be booked solid between lessons, existing rentals, and travel teams doing winter training.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you have a daughter who plays/played softball and her primary position is pitcher - how often did she practice? Did you work with a pitching coach? What was done outside of team practice or time with pitching coach? I have a 13 year old who plays 14u and preparing for HS. TIA

At any competitive HS you know the answer to this already because she'd be on an A-level or B-level travel team practicing with the team two/three times a week and getting separate pitching lessons at least once a week and pitching on her own three other days a week.

If she's NOT already doing those things, she's not going to be pitching in HS.

I don't mean to be mean or rude, but that's just reality.

Now, if the school doesn't have a lot of girls who play travel ball and doesn't field a competitive team, she MIGHT make it.

Pitching is a huge skill position. The ones who succeed typically throw 100 pitches six times a week.

-- A-level travel coach.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Almost 12 year old has been pitching for a little over a year and takes private lessons about every other week for 45 minutes. During the season typically practices 2-3 times a week outside of practice (lesson would count as one of those times if it's a lesson week). Off-season over summer it was about 4 times a week or more. Lately it's been only about 2x per week because it's winter and we've had a tough time figuring out where to grab a pitching lane to practice.

She only plays rec and has no interest in travel, but she really loves pitching and wants to do well.

Where do you live?

Close enough to plenty of gyms (mostly baseball, we aren't in weeknight driving distance to a SixFour 3, I wish), but when I check them out they seem to be booked solid between lessons, existing rentals, and travel teams doing winter training.

Yes, my first rec would have been SF3. We are not particularly close, but go out there all the time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you have a daughter who plays/played softball and her primary position is pitcher - how often did she practice? Did you work with a pitching coach? What was done outside of team practice or time with pitching coach? I have a 13 year old who plays 14u and preparing for HS. TIA

At any competitive HS you know the answer to this already because she'd be on an A-level or B-level travel team practicing with the team two/three times a week and getting separate pitching lessons at least once a week and pitching on her own three other days a week.

If she's NOT already doing those things, she's not going to be pitching in HS.

I don't mean to be mean or rude, but that's just reality.

Now, if the school doesn't have a lot of girls who play travel ball and doesn't field a competitive team, she MIGHT make it.

Pitching is a huge skill position. The ones who succeed typically throw 100 pitches six times a week.

-- A-level travel coach.

That’s dangerous.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you have a daughter who plays/played softball and her primary position is pitcher - how often did she practice? Did you work with a pitching coach? What was done outside of team practice or time with pitching coach? I have a 13 year old who plays 14u and preparing for HS. TIA

At any competitive HS you know the answer to this already because she'd be on an A-level or B-level travel team practicing with the team two/three times a week and getting separate pitching lessons at least once a week and pitching on her own three other days a week.

If she's NOT already doing those things, she's not going to be pitching in HS.

I don't mean to be mean or rude, but that's just reality.

Now, if the school doesn't have a lot of girls who play travel ball and doesn't field a competitive team, she MIGHT make it.

Pitching is a huge skill position. The ones who succeed typically throw 100 pitches six times a week.

-- A-level travel coach.

That’s dangerous.

No, it isn't. The underarm pitching motion doesn't put the same stress on the elbow as overhand. It's common for players to throw 300-400 pitches in a weekend tournament. In college, if there's an extra-inning game, you'll see a girl throw 200 pitches. In international, the men will throw that many, too.

Please don't opine about things you know nothing about. Thanks.

[Anonymous]

NP here. Not to derail the thread too much, but for the A level coach, can you share what a girl’s arm feels like after throwing that many pitches in a weekend?

My son plays baseball and I knew from one of his teammates with a softball-playing sister that their teams might have 2 pitchers on them who go the distance in a tournament, whereas a baseball team needs a ton of pitchers to go deep in a tourney. I get that the motion is different and the stress/strain is not the same as a baseball pitch, but do their arms ever just feel tired? Like not hurt or sore, but just tired?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:NP here. Not to derail the thread too much, but for the A level coach, can you share what a girl’s arm feels like after throwing that many pitches in a weekend?

My son plays baseball and I knew from one of his teammates with a softball-playing sister that their teams might have 2 pitchers on them who go the distance in a tournament, whereas a baseball team needs a ton of pitchers to go deep in a tourney. I get that the motion is different and the stress/strain is not the same as a baseball pitch, but do their arms ever just feel tired? Like not hurt or sore, but just tired?

Yes, of course they do! There has not been nearly as much research on this subject as there has for baseball, but there is some and I would not be surprised if 10 years from now we have pitch limits for youth fastpitch. As a parent, I monitor pitch counts and have discussed (somewhat flexible) limits with my daughter's coach based on discussions with her (a pitcher herself), my daughter's pitching coach, and the research I have seen. I have seen tons of coaches overpitching their aces though. Its all about the Ws for a lot of coaches. Read this as just one example of some of the research that is out there: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8645320/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:NP here. Not to derail the thread too much, but for the A level coach, can you share what a girl’s arm feels like after throwing that many pitches in a weekend?

My son plays baseball and I knew from one of his teammates with a softball-playing sister that their teams might have 2 pitchers on them who go the distance in a tournament, whereas a baseball team needs a ton of pitchers to go deep in a tourney. I get that the motion is different and the stress/strain is not the same as a baseball pitch, but do their arms ever just feel tired? Like not hurt or sore, but just tired?

Yes, of course they do! There has not been nearly as much research on this subject as there has for baseball, but there is some and I would not be surprised if 10 years from now we have pitch limits for youth fastpitch. As a parent, I monitor pitch counts and have discussed (somewhat flexible) limits with my daughter's coach based on discussions with her (a pitcher herself), my daughter's pitching coach, and the research I have seen. I have seen tons of coaches overpitching their aces though. Its all about the Ws for a lot of coaches. Read this as just one example of some of the research that is out there: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8645320/

Sorry, I know you were asking the A level coach--I am not a coach at all but a parent of a pitcher.