Question for Up and In,

I've really enjoyed reading your blog as has my son. My question or questions are at what age should a kid get serious about pitching? They start player pitch in my area at 9, is that to early? At that age, all kids are pitchers, or they think they are anyway When should you consider getting a pitching coach and lastly, what drills or things should you be doing with young pitchers in practice. Oh, one more. At this age, 9-10 year olds, should they throw change ups or stick to 2 seam and 4 seam fastballs only. Thanks again for your help!

 

Hey Wildcat,

Hope this helps...

What age should a kid get serious about pitching?
This question is tricky for me. The reason being, different kids are ready to be serious at different ages. I've worked with a 6 year old who had some of the best natural mechanics and desire to improve. As well as high school kids who honestly just want to please their parents by showing up for a lesson. When I was 8, my South Park coach told our team that he would stay late and teach anyone who wanted to learn how to pitch. This was great, because only the kids who wanted to get better showed up.

They start player pitch in my area at 9, is that to early? At that age, all kids are pitchers, or they think they are anyway When should you consider getting a pitching coach?
That is about when I started pitching. The difference now is, when I was coming up in the Charlotte area youth leagues, it was fall-baseball, winter-basketball and spring-baseball. These days, it is travel ball year-round.

As far as getting a coach, I would say that it definitely couldn't hurt letting your son work with an instructor once a week or 2 during the winter. When he is in-season, it should just be fun and time to play.

What drills or things should you be doing with young pitchers in practice?
Here are some drills I would recommend for a 9-10 year old:
1- Towel Drill
2- Balance drill- Let the little guys get used to standing on one leg. When I was 8, my coach would play a game with the guys who wanted to pitch where we would stand on one leg and see who could stand the longest. That game would get heated.
3- Flat ground work- After your guys play catch, let one throwing partner be catcher and the other work on his delivery. Just have the guys focus on throwing strikes and commanding their fastballs.
4-Target Practice- When the kids are playing catch, have them give their partners a target. Each time a throw hits the glove where the spot is, a player gets a point. This allows the kid to focus, compete and work on their feel for throwing a baseball. It is important to be able to control the baseball on a flat ground before a player can take it to the mound.
5-2 knee throwing- Have the kids throw to each other while on both knees. When they get on their knees, have them close off their front side a bit. This will better simulate the throw from a mound when your foot hits the ground. When doing this drill, focus on a couple of things 1) Their rotatation of their hips 2) When they break their hands; they should break their hand from the glove when they start to rotate and close off their front shoulder. 3) Pointing their glove at their target. 4) Taking their head straight to their target 5) Following through after their throw; their weight should be going straight towards their target. (They might have to catch them selves with their hands on the ground)

At this age, 9-10 year olds, should they throw change ups or stick to 2 seam and 4 seam fastballs only?

It definitely couldnt hurt teach the little guys a change up. When I was their age, I throw a "palm ball" grip. Which ever grip they choose or you show them, have them play catch with that grip as well. The change up is a "feel" pitch, the more you throw it, the better a pitcher's command tends to be. For more advanced little guys, have them focus on releasing the pitch out front and keeping it down during their flat grounds.

--Again, hope this all makes sense and helps some. If your son enjoys learning and getting better, 9 is not too early. Just pay attention to how eager he is to go to lessons or work on the game. Lessons and extra work can be a great thing, but there are times in a players careers when less is more.

All the best,

Robert

 

Thanks so much for the advice and tips!

We will continue to follow your blog!