Weplay®
 
  •  Explore
    • Skills & Drills »
      • Baseball
      • Basketball
      • Cheerleading
      • Football
      • Soccer
      • Softball
      All skills & drills »
    • Play Games »
      • Grand Slam Derby
      • Striker
      • Gadget Golf
      • Prep & Landing
      • Click-a-Pic
      All games »
    • Community
      • The WeBlog
      • The Props Wall
      • Points Leaderboard
      • Mascot Leaderboard
      • Weplay Moms
      • Weplay Answers
  • Sign up!
  •   Already a member? Log in
    • I forgot my password
      Leave unchecked if on shared or family computer
 

Weplay Answers

More than 400,000 parents, coaches
and players here to help you.
 Join today! It's free
  • Answers
  • Question
  • how do i convince my daughter to throw with all her strength? Her accurracy is suffering

Question

Michelle Dougherty
Michelle Dougherty
Baseball, Softball, Coaching, Parenting

how do i convince my daughter to throw with all her strength? Her accurracy is suffering

my daughter pitches very hard and pretty accurate. During her season the catchers were asking her not to throw so hard because it hurt their hand. In one game she went thru 3 catchers in four innings. Most girls were afraid and she went thru 7 drop 3rd strikes in a row. I tried to convince her not to back off but she is afraid to hurt her friends who catch. Some of the girls catching ended up with sprained or broken fingers and my daughter feels bad.Since she started backing off her speed her mechanics are off.We are now working on this in the off season and some fall ball but her friends are still in the back of her mind.And she is having trouble with closing her hipwhich came with easing up on her speed

  •  Email
  •  Report inappropriate

Answers (9)

  • Ken Bergren
    Ken Bergren
    Answered October 02, 2009
    Report inappropriate

    Very sorry to hear this. I'd have her focus on her form and continue building her power as she's able to control it. If you're not already playing her up, try to find the highest level club you can get her into.

    Also, if she has good control and can hit her corners 3 out of 4 times, it's time to start on her junk pitches. Start with a change, then a curve (or slider,) screw ball and then the rise.

    Unfortunately, if her catchers aren't able to track a fastball into the pocket, the breaking balls will be even tougher... What age is she in? I wouldn't worry too much about closing, unless she is closing early. I believe closing late will self-correct when she goes back to throwing in her comfort zone.

    Best of luck with this...

    Great Answer!
    1 comment
    1. I missed the drop ball. Often the third pitch learned.
      Ken Bergren · October 07, 2009
    2.  

    Log in or Sign up to post your comment.

  • John Long
    John Long
    Answered October 03, 2009
    Report inappropriate

    Don't fix the symptoms, fix the problem. The issue is that the catchers are having issues with speed and force, teach them how to absorb the pitch and get them an inner catching glove with extra padding. I agree that throwing nothing but fast balls is a bad idea for your team and for your child... you'll burn her arm out.

    Great Answer!
    Add Comment
    1.  

    Log in or Sign up to post your comment.

  • Angel Goodrich
    Angel Goodrich
    Answered October 08, 2009
    Report inappropriate

    if she likes dousent let her hurt you

    Great Answer!
    Add Comment
    1.  

    Log in or Sign up to post your comment.

  • Kali Morris
    Kali Morris
    Answered October 12, 2009
    Report inappropriate

    Well ask her this
    "is it them who is trying to make it big?
    or is it her?
    because she cant slow it down just beacuse she hurts her friends, her friends need to suck it up. it is softball, their are no wines, and complains.

    Great Answer!
    Add Comment
    1.  

    Log in or Sign up to post your comment.

  • Coach Lia Roque
    Coach Lia Roque
    Answered October 14, 2009
    Report inappropriate

    That's tough for your daughter. Maybe you can help the catchers out by help them get quality gloves and add more padding if possible. It will be good practice for the catchers as well because as they get older they will face faster pitches. and remind them to use the pockets of the glove.

    http://www.softballperformance.com/softball-fielding/softball-catching-tips-to-consider.html

    Great Answer!
    Add Comment
    1.  

    Log in or Sign up to post your comment.

  • Monica Metz
    Monica Metz
    Answered October 17, 2009
    Report inappropriate

    My daughter too pitches. In recreation league and in All Stars, the girls won't even throw with her. They ducked. My daughter is 10 years old and is a pitcher also. We went with travel ball and haven't had any problems with other girls ducking at all. She fits in better and is making friends with the travel team. I suggest you play her up or go to travel ball. Don't slow her down and don't let her slow down because she is better than the other players. It was easy for my daughter to move up because those other girls didn't throw with her anyways so she felt that they weren't her friends. Sometimes you have to just make new friends on another team and move up to get the better ball that your daughter is playing. My daughter called her other team, baby ball. Now, she is playing to her level and they are winning games. Do what makes your daughter happy. Do what is best for her in the long run. She isn't getting any better by playing with those girls that can't catch her.

    Great Answer!
    Add Comment
    1.  

    Log in or Sign up to post your comment.

  • Jennifer Bogar
    Jennifer Bogar
    Answered October 29, 2009
    Report inappropriate

    Try putting a bucket upside down and placing a helmet, basketball or something that can withstand being hit numerous times on top of the bucket. The idea is to knock the object off of the bucket. Have her start a little short and back up farther away as she gets better. I helps tremendously with accuracy and strength at the same time..

    Great Answer!
    4 comments
    1. Good one! I like to use a large construction cone and start with a large ball, and later use a softball as a target. We have competitions and it seems to be one of the favorites. We line up and go one after the other using walk-through pitches a couple buckets of balls back behind the rubber. Fun game.
      Ken Bergren · October 29, 2009
    2. You know another one is to use a velcrow bullseye and the cloth tennis balls. You hand the bullseye and throw the balls trying to hit it. The balls are lighter but the acuracy you get from it is great!
      Jennifer Bogar · October 30, 2009
    3. I meant hang the bullseye
      Jennifer Bogar · October 30, 2009
    4. Thanks to all for the advice. these sound like fun drills and i'm sure she will get a kick out of them..my daughter is 13 and getting more confident in the off season during pitching practice. she is improving on all her pitches and is now learning a drop(already has a split change up and drop curve).she is pretty accurate with all but when her team is playing the catchers are afraid to catch her.
      Michelle Dougherty · October 30, 2009
    5.  

    Log in or Sign up to post your comment.

  • Amber Lamastus
    Amber Lamastus
    Answered November 07, 2009
    Report inappropriate

    not to make it sound so heartless but you have to tell her that when they step onto that softball field they are softball players. they have to work through the hard times for the better sake of the team

    Great Answer!
    Add Comment
    1.  

    Log in or Sign up to post your comment.

  • Rose Warner
    Rose Warner
    Answered November 15, 2009
    Report inappropriate

    My daughter is a catcher and we have had the same problem with complaints of her "hurting hands". We played her up in rec ball but finally resulted to travel ball. A much better fit for a strong arm. I would suggest to your catchers' and their parents to get some catching lessons. They should be taught how to properly catch with a catchers glove, which apparently they are arent doing. I agree, not to sound heartless, but if you are afraid of the ball, you shouldnt be on a softball field. When your daughter is being held back by others, you are truly doing her an injustice. If all else fails, move her to another team where she can shine and grow. She will adjust quickly and enjoy the game much better.

    Great Answer!
    Add Comment
    1.  

    Log in or Sign up to post your comment.

Log in or register for a free Weplay account to post your answer
- or -

wat organization helped u get drafted? im getting all these prospect and show case things in the mail and i have no clue which one is better

Find an Answer

  • Baseball
  • Basketball
  • Bowling
  • Cheerleading
  • Football
  • Gymnastics
  • Hockey
  • Running
  • Soccer
  • Softball
  • Swimming
  • Volleyball
  • Wrestling
  • Coaching
  • Parenting
  • Nutrition
  • Health
  • Equipment
  • Safety
  • General
  • Weplay Support
  • All

Advertisement

Question Stats

Asked October 02, 2009.
This question has been viewed 525 times.
ADVERTISEMENT
Follow Weplay
Check out our Facebook page Follow us on Twitter Tune in on YouTube
  • About|
  • Advertise|
  • Safety|
  • API|
  • Terms of Use|
  • Privacy|
  • Contact|
  • Sporting Goods|
  • Blog
  • Youth Baseball|
  • Youth Basketball|
  • Youth Bowling|
  • Youth Cheerleading|
  • Youth Football|
  • Youth Hockey|
  • Youth Lacrosse|
  • Youth Soccer|
  • Youth Softball|
  • Youth Volleyball|
  • Youth Wrestling|
  • Youth Sports|
  • Weplay Groups & Teams
© 2012 Weplay, Inc. All rights reserved.