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| SOFTBALL LINKS |
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Bullpen Catcher
by Dave
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Several years ago I gave you a tip on improving your hitting. It was self-serving at the time but I honestly felt it could make a huge difference. Recently, a friend of mine ratified my tip and explained what it had done for his daughter, a top level player being looked at by major universities.
My big tip for you, the average softball player, is to don the gear, get behind the dish, and play backstop for pitchers, during their workouts and lessons, whenever you can.
Look, I'm approaching 50. My knees are shot. My quads are not what they were 10 years ago, let alone when I was 15. I have tendonitis, probably arthritis, in my shoulders, elbows, wrists, neck, back, etc. I could probably use rotator cuff surgery in at least one of my shoulders. My vision is not great. My daughter is 14, needs to throw 4 times per week for an hour, throws in the upper 50s, near 60, has good, sometimes slightly unpredictable movement. Her drop is pretty good but the idea is to bounce it in front of the catcher, me, and while I have managed to survive so far, my days are numbered. The other kid is also a pitcher who needs to throw 4 times per week, etc. But at least she's just 13 and does not have the speed or movement of her big sister.
I am able to fool my daughter into believing that we are throwing from 43 feet through the winter because one day she'll have to pitch from that distance. During the summer, I try to work in long toss, from the outfield, several times and she knows this is an effective practice technique. But I'm speaking frankly here. My primary reason for using these techniques is self-preservation.
I could always use a little help from a volunteer catcher.
But that's besides the point. That is the self-interest part of the equation. It says nothing about the benefits to the catcher. Those are significant.
My friend's message to me went something like this: "one other thing, aside from the other important techniques she is learning, she started catching pitchers. She goes to pitching practice with local pitchers, puts on the gear and catches for them. This helped her with spins, hand/arm/body positioning and just seeing/tracking pitches. That was big for her."
If you think of the early years, say 10U and 12U, most of the success of pitchers has to do with quirks. That is, frequently we see very successful pitchers who have odd motions and release points. They don't throw a lot of movement and their location skills are not yet well developed. But they are successful because kids have trouble picking up the ball out of their hand. People, especially pitcher's parents, don't like to admit it but much of the success of young pitchers has to do with these quirky deliveries.
I remember several years ago a team I coached having loads of trouble with a particular pitcher who didn't snap true. I thought she was throwing a drop curve. That's certainly not unheard of with 12 year old pitchers. And this kid was throwing a ball that moved like a drop curve. When I approached her father to ask what she was throwing, he informed me that she has not been pitching for very long and had had little formal instruction. She only had, according to this father, one pitch, the fastball. Later she hurt her elbow due to her quirks. She never regained her stature as a pitcher but that too is besides the point. This kid was successful because kids had trouble picking up the ball out of her hand and because she had funky movement, however slight. I imagine that if every kid on our team had caught this kid enough to really get comfortable with her release and the trajectory of the ball, which was always pretty much the same, they would have had no trouble hitting her.
In later years, say at 14U and 16U, real pitchers remain and those who merely possess quirks start to disappear. Pitchers mechanics are much improved over 12U ball. They throw harder, of course, but the batters' nervous systems are better developed and speed doesn't thwart that many hitters. These more developed pitchers throw far superior location and their movement pitches are actually doing what they are supposed to do. The tricks to hitting them are 1) seeing the ball out of the hand; 2) judging the trajectory of the pitch based on the visual clues; 3) knowing what a ball is going to do, subconciously, based on spins visible in a very short period of time; and 4) judging the location as quickly as possible.
Don't be confused by my emphasis on seeing and judging the pitch. Hitting mechanics are still king. But assuming a certain level of skill in this regard, picking up the pitch, knowing where it is going, and understanding movement make for better hitters. I also put a ton of stock in visualization but I'm assuming you are doing everything right and now need to be better at the rest of the hitting game.
I have watched a number of kids with outstanding mechanics, etc. struggle at the plate. I often hear complaints from parents about how the hitting instructor is great but uses the tee, some other device or a pitching machine, and cannot offer the opportunity to hit off live pitching. My daughters have, from time to time, been asked to pitch batting practices so hitters can get to face live pitching. Teams we have been involved with have run entire practices, sometimes multiple ones each week, at which nothing else was done aside from live pitched batting practice. Yet, seeing a single pitcher and taking a few hacks so everyone can get through the workout just does not provide hitters with as much experience as catching a full stable of pitchers often, frequently can.
If you hit at a private workout with a pitcher available, chances are pretty good that you'll get 10 to 15 minutes of drills, another couple spent on techniques, and then perhaps ten minutes worth of pitched practice. You'll see maybe 25 - 50 pitches. If your team of 12 rostered players shows up for an hour and a half batting practice, chances are pretty good that you'll see even fewer pitches. On the other hand, if you catch a pitcher's workout, you will be catching pitches for a half an hour. You'll probably get to catch as many as 150 pitches of all sorts and to all locations. It is a much more full experience.
At one of the lessons my pitcher-daughters go to, the pitchers all have to spend half their time catching other pitchers. They rotate through so they each, at one time or another, catch every pitcher in their group lesson.
While not all that many dedicated pitchers have the time to also take batting instruction, many of the local pitchers are among the best hitters. Of the very best pitchers from this stable, those who attend lessons at the highest levels and see almost every good local pitcher, some are absolutely the best hitters around. Why is that? Are they just better athletes than all the other girls at other positions? I doubt it.
Another thing that is evident is many catchers from local travel ball also happen to be among the best hitters. They get to catch a bunch of different pitchers during their travelo experiences over several years. That experience makes them better hitters. Of those who are not pitchers and catchers, many once were. I think that speaks for itself.
You can figure out how to get behind the dish at pitching lessons and practices merely by asking around. If the pitcher on your team goes to some privates with a coach, ask to attend and volunteer to catch. Then, when you are there, give that private coach your phone number and tell him or her that you would be willing to catch other pitchers. Somebody should bite and give you a call when the usual catcher is ailing or when dad or mom finally decides they don't want to do this anymore. When you are practicing with your team and the coach is looking around for catchers, volunteer. It might take you a little time to get used to the gear but it will be a worthwhile experience.
If I have not convinced you that catching pitchers is a great way to improve your hitting, at least let me convince you to give it a try. Then judge the results for yourself. Don't get hooked into always catching the same pitcher. Try to get behind the dish for as many pitchers as possible regardless of skill level. See as varied an assortment of pitchers, motions, release points, and pitches as you can. I know I will thank you from the bottom of my back, my shoulders, my face, etc. And I believe in the end you will be the one giving the thanks to the pitchers who allow you to catch them!Labels: batting
 
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