A Simple Way to Organize Pitching Workouts

We are now in the offseason (August - December) of softball. This is the time that allows for the greatest growth as a pitcher. Since the season is so far away, she can correct mechanical imperfections and get stronger without pressure maintaining command.

As a youth pitching coach I'm not in total control over my students 100% of the time. Unlike college coaches who watch their players every day, it's difficult to prescribe a specific practice plan for pitchers in between lessons. It's impossible to know how tired she is or how many pitches she's throwing without following her around all the time, But guess who does follow her around all the time? You! The parent.

This is one of the main reasons I require parents to learn about pitching in addition to catching for their daughters.  Below is the best outline I've found on how much to pitch and what to do during practice. You'll see it doesn't offer an order of pitches to throw or an exact pitch count each day. That's up to your judgement.  I've borrowed Courtney Hudson's viewpoint as shown below, which coincides with a number of great coaches I've learned from. I love how she organizes the concepts. 

Ideally, you want to build up to 400-700 pitches per week without a mechanical breakdown or reduction in speed. These do NOT include warm ups that don't make it beyond the 12 o'clock position or that are not full speed. 

In practice, once a pitcher’s mechanics break down, it’s time to stop pitching. Usually 8-12 year olds can’t tell when their mechanics are breaking down which requires parents to be extremely involved.

To build up endurance properly, count every pitch thrown in practice. Once the pitcher has a mechanical breakdown (you’ll know what that looks like from coming to lessons) she should stop and note the number of pitches she threw. Call it a day. Then repeat again the next day. Take two full days off per week from full-speed throwing with a ball.

In order to increase the number of pitches she can throw repeat this process weekly. Adding in strength and agility training will speed this process up and prevent injury.

There are four types of practices. Long, short, medium and recovery. The amount you do of each type depends upon the season you are in. During the off season you can throw more pitches, consequently being a bit tired, because you don't have to be fully recovered to deliver fine motor skills during games. Here is where you grow.

Long - Pitch as many pitches as possible until the first mechanical breakdown. Take a 10-15 minute break, then start again until your second mechanical breakdown. Call it a day. 3 days per week.

Medium - Pitch as many pitches as possible until the first mechanical breakdown. Call it a day. 1 day per week.

Short - Throw 50 pitches. 1 day per week.

Recovery - After many tough workouts in a row make a day to relax. Toss back and forth or 15 long tosses. 2 days per week.

If a pitcher wants to reach her full potential, whether it be a great high school player or an Olympian, she must follow these guidelines. The parent is ultimately responsible for being able to identify mechanical breakdowns and speed changes.