Upper pitching limit

[bigdave622]

I manage a girls 10U All Star team. At this age during the season we face some very accomplished pitchers and some lobbers who pitch with almost a slowpitch arc. Is there an upper limit where a pitch is illegal in Babe Ruth ? Pony ?

Dave

[umpire34974]

DAVE:

Not to my interpretation.

IMHO if a pitcher complies with the rules of the fastpitch game (The pitching rules) I could care less if the ball was LEGALLY pitched 250 feet above the level of the field. I will call the flight of the ball as it crosses the plate.

If it is in the defined strike zone ... it is a strike. If not, 4 of them and the batter gets to advance to first base without liability to be put out. Four advances like this equals one run. It makes for an ugly game.

I have called many an ugly game. I hate them with a passion. That is why I collect the big bucks. I still hate ugly fastpitch games.

But, I will call my 24th year this spring. I am a glutton because I love the game. And the benefit; I do not have to listen to the whiney boys. Now a few of the male and female coaches ... they are alleged adults......

Regards,

John

[Skahtboi]

Originally posted by bigdave622
I manage a girls 10U All Star team. At this age during the season we face some very accomplished pitchers and some lobbers who pitch with almost a slowpitch arc. Is there an upper limit where a pitch is illegal in Babe Ruth ? Pony ?

Dave

As far as fastpitch goes, no association of which I am aware places a height maximum on the pitch.

No minimum nor maximum in Fast pitch as long as the pitch is legal and goes through the strike zone. Sounds like our Rainbow league here (so named for the pitches that we see in that league!).

[Dakota]

Legally speaking (i.e. according to the playing rules), "fast" pitch is actually "allowed to be fast" pitch rather than "must be fast" pitch.

[Andy]

Originally posted by Ref Ump Welsch
No minimum nor maximum in Fast pitch as long as the pitch is legal and goes through the strike zone. Sounds like our Rainbow league here (so named for the pitches that we see in that league!).

For these games, I say that I am working a game using "fastpitch rules" as opposed to a "fastpitch game"...

[bellnier]

While we're on the subject of FP pitching...

1. At lower age levels (10U and even sometimes 12U) our rec. league umps tend to open the strike zone when the pitching is less than precise. The philosophy of the rec. assn. is that this is an "instructional" level of play and that they would rather have girls swinging the bat than taking walks. I can see where this could be a good idea except that the girls that also play travel and are more experienced are pretty good about adapting to different sized strike zones, but the lesser skilled kids don't seem to adjust well to the different sized zones from game to game. Is this is good idea, or is part of "instructional" level FP the exposure to the same strike zone every time at bat, every game, so that it is burned into the players memory banks?

2. In 16U FP, at our park once you reach age of 16 you can play but can no longer pitch. I'm not sure what the reason for this is, but it seems a shame that coaches and trainers spend 5-6 years or more developing pitchers, and then can't use them in their last year of rec. league play. This, as expected, results in lots of good pitchers leaving the park a year early (and leaving kids they played with for those 5-6+ years) and playing only travel ball. Opinion?

[Skahtboi]

Originally posted by bellnier
2. In 16U FP, at our park once you reach age of 16 you can play but can no longer pitch. I'm not sure what the reason for this is, but it seems a shame that coaches and trainers spend 5-6 years or more developing pitchers, and then can't use them in their last year of rec. league play. This, as expected, results in lots of good pitchers leaving the park a year early (and leaving kids they played with for those 5-6+ years) and playing only travel ball. Opinion?

To me, that is utterly ridiculous. These kids paid to play just like everyone else. I am surprised that there is even a 16U league where these kinds of constraints exist. What is the inane reasoning for this rule???

[bellnier]

I've been a coach and a players' dad at this park and have never gotten a straight answer to that question. I'm guessing that many years ago the parents of less competitive players may have complained that their DDs could not hit the better pitchers. As you surmised, the number of players returning to this program does take a pretty steep dive between 14U and 16U for this, and some other, reasons. Not only do they lose some pretty good 16 y.o. pitchers, but many of the accomplished hitters move on because they are not being challenged. Worse yet, the assn. board is (and has always been) controlled by 'baseball' guys and (surprise!) there is no such age restriction on the guys.

[3afan]

we have also struggled with being under a "baseball board" in our town ... we brought in more $s than any group but had to fight & claw to get any of it to spend. thats why starting this year the girls fastpitch has broken away and incorporated and are going at it alone ..... wish us luck!
http://www.metroeastsoftball.net

[mcrowder]

As to your first question, if a good umpire doesn't widen the strikezone at the younger ages, especially when NEITHER team can pitch, no one learns anything. I agree with the idea of widening the zone. It's important to get a handle on this early though, so as to not be constantly changing zones.

Regarding the players on travel teams and instructional teams at the same time, I'd recommend, as a parent, not to let your travel player play instructional unless it's to learn a new position. It will screw up your timing and your ability to judge the strikezone.

One rare example of a time the zone expanded greatly during a game. Where we are, the girls can pitch 6 innings in a week. Most teams have 3 girls that can pitch - so this is not a problem when you play 2 games a week per team. Once, due to rainouts, we had FOUR games in a week for 2 teams. During that 4th game, both had a few leftover innings to start the game, but it was a blowout anyway after 4 innings... something like 15-2 or somesuch. The losing team had to bring in a girl that had NEVER pitched, not even in practice. The timing of the game was such that this was likely the last inning. With the leading coach's permission, we basically told the girls that if they could reach the ball with their bat, it was a strike. I reminded them as they came to bat, and made the point on the very first pitch - cap-high and a foot outside. Very loud and demonstrative - STRIIIIIKE! They swung the bats. Zone got even bigger on 3-ball counts. Winning team threw in a girl that couldn't pitch as well for the bottom of the inning - they all took it in stride.