Catcher vs Coach Calling Pitches

It makes a BIG difference

It makes a difference. I know of three one run HS games for sure this year that would have had a different outcome if a coach had been calling pitches versus the catcher. I also saw a lot of 0-2 pitches hit hard that shouldn't have been. Most kids don't know what to look for or even know what the count is.
Plus, WndMillR brings up good points in setting defense, pick off plays, etc. One of the biggest problems in HS ball is there are some coaches that just put 9 players on the field and let what ever happens......happen with no strategy. Pitch calling is part of the strategy.

 

Well when i was in 10u -14u my dad or my coaches have called my pitches but i never really thought much about it back then , but now ever since i turned 15 my catcher has always called my ptches and i have loved it it makes us have a better battery and we can have better communication. right now my current catcher is one of the best pitch callers i have ever had. and shes only 15 catching a 17 year old and ihave a total of 11 pitches but she works every single one of them to a tee and we have signals thati do that tells her if i want to throw a certain ptchlike a change right now or this is the perfect time fr my trick pitch . but overall i think it depends on your catcher if she as the ability and confidence to do this and how the pitchers relationship is with her. but i hope when iget in college i have a catcher as good as i got now !

 

A Little Bias!

I have been waiting for 4 years or more for this thread and I hope I do it justice.

Obviously the level at which your playing will have a greater effect as to who calls the pitches, as will the level of your catcher and your coach.

WndMillR is right about the defensive sets, Dukedog4 about Pitcher/Catcher relationships and the paycheck thing. 4Kings I understand you, however, there are way too many variables to blame a pitch call on a catcher or coach unless you were behind the plate.

A good catcher will study reports, do her own scouting when possible, have full knowledge of the game and her opponents including the opposing head coach. She will also know all the pitchers in every detail from ability to mentality which changes constantly during and from game to game.

Are catchers perfect? No! And I have yet to see any one who is.

I had a coach get on on of our catchers last season during TB, 0-2 count and lets say the pitch was not where it was called and hit very well. The catchers was none to pleased with the pitcher or the coach and her response was defensive, "I didn't release the ball". What this catcher failed to understand was that, it was her and will always be her responsibility as long as she is calling pitches.

Bottom line if you catcher posses the ability to call or the ability to learn to call, let them do it, this is perhaps the most enjoyable game within a game that anyone could play.

I can say having three children who are or were catchers at one time has made my life most enjoyable on the ball field.

PS. My All Conference, All District and All State DD Catcher Starts at Wingate this fall.
Dad

 

i dissagre to some point that sometimes from a pitchers perspective you sometimes have a mis pitch on a 0-2 that accidentally went down the pipe when the cather actually called a curve high and way outside, i think that coachs do somewhatof a good job with pitch calling but they cant always see f the batter is crowding the plate or backed of of it some . but i do also agree as some players are not mature enough to handle this responsiblitly this is when the coach needs to take care of whats being called

 

Has to be both...

The only way this will work is if the catcher studies the game and has a coach calling pitches who knows what they doing while they are learning. During this time, they both have to be in lock step. The catcher has to ask and understand why the coach called a certain pitch at a certain time and the coach should be asking the catcher what the batters are doing (trying to make adjustments, crowding the plate, backing off, moving back and forth in the box, etc.) to make sure she knows.

It should and will get to a point where the coach starts letting the catcher call the pitches but the catcher should turn to the coach and let them know what pitch they are going to call and the coach simply either nods their head in agreement or tells them a different pitch to call and then explains why they wanted the other pitch thrown at that time.

 

Catcher intelligence

My DD's four-year catcher went to work for these people right out of school. She was pretty good at 'strategery' although most her visits to the circle were about things other than pitch selection (lots of chuckles on those visits!).

 

calling pitches

Whoever calls the pitches better know what they are doing. I don't think there are very many high school catchers that can call pitches like they should because they have not had enough time behind the plate unless they are playing TB and have a catching coach which is just as important as a pitching coach. There are also a lot of high school coaches who know nothing about calling pitches and let the catcher call without giving them any knowledge about what they are doing. Most coaches like to call because good ones have the charts in front of them on what the batter has done all game and what pitches they were thrown. Its hard for a catcher to keep up with where they were in the box last at bat,if they dropped their hands, if they have slow or quick hands, if their back side collapsed, and a number of other variables that has to be looked at and control the game but there are some that are very talented that have a feel for the game and can do it. Its always funny when you have a 0-2 count and call a waste pitch and the pitcher throws it down the gut and its hammered and everyone in the crowd is asking why did he or she call that and all of a sudden they are professional pitch callers. ( not really funny but it happens)

 

Good Post

Some good points! In my years of coaching if there is one thing players need to work harder on, it is softball IQ! Most do not have an understanding of the game, the rules, the reason for strategies being used, or situation management! Some will say if they had all that knowledge you have no need for coaches, I say the better knowledge, skills, and experiences you have, the more fun softball becomes! Thus better players, less issues, and more smiles and enjoyment while improving the game of softball!

 

On Target

This is one of the big differences in coaching boys and girls. Very few girls ever sit and watch a game (baseball or softball). Nothing is second nature to them. The concept of a force play or tagging up a fly ball is no more familiar to most than a post pattern or 3/4 front. To expect them to grasp the nuances of pitch selection is simply not realistic for most. My DD profited from being raised in baseball crazed town and playing and watching beginning at age five. Most girls just won't do this.

 

Good Points

All good points and kinda where I was trying to go with my original reply, you worded it a lot better than me

With that said, I do agree with some of the comments on my original reply. There are quite a few young ladies out there that are very capable of calling pitches very well and I have seen that. I was looking at it more from the HS side than TB. In HS ball, there are many cases where the school may not have a true catcher and put a young lady behind the plate that can get the job done but that may not be their primary position in TB. For these girls it's enough just to focus on receiving the ball and watching for steals. In this case, I think a coach calling pitches would be beneficial.