LL Minor B - Kid Pitch

[heretolearn]

Well, we had our first "kid pitch" game in LL Minor B and I must say, BORING. This isn't even baseball. If you can petition your league to change the rules to have coaches pitch all year or get a machine, DO IT!! Most of the kids are 7 & 8 and it was just unbearable to watch the frustration mount and the boredom grow. They don't learn defense, they don't learn how to hit, they don't learn how to properly run bases or read pitch angle. They learn nothing from this.

We are talkign with the LD to get it switched to coach pitch, hopefully they will comply. If not, I will be switching to the other league that offers machine pitch for this same age group next season. Two at-bats per game that are walks isn't developing anyone. I had my son stand in the front of the batters box just to try and find something to hit and he was able to swing the bat ONE TIME in his plate appearances, and he fouled it straight back. Nothing else was even close.

Just my thoughts.

[tg643]

We used a machine in 7/8's. At the beginning of the season it pitched at 40-42. By mid season we had it at 45. Most kids hit the ball by the second or third pitch. The best hitters tee'd off on the first pitch. The game moved quickly. No one got bored. While 9/10's was the right time to start kid pitch it was sometimes boring due to the lack of enough pitchers to consistly throw strikes.

I can't imagine 7/8's pitching. So few of these kids will play high school ball. It's more important to make the game as fun as possible and develop baseball fans.

[CircleChange11]

I remember this.

1. If a batter has any plate discipline, they'll walk most of the time ... when we want them to swing.

2. Kids have to learn how to pitch sometime. It won't magically get better just because the kid is a year older. Bigger hands could help some accuracy issues though. Usually the dads that want the kids to pitch are those that have a kid that's ready to pitch. Those that will likely enjoy this include 2-3 kids and their parents.

3. Machine is the way to go, IMO ... at least for the 1st half of the season, while the team continues to work with pitchers on accuracy. when pitchers can throw 50% strikes (at least), they will be ready to pitch to batters.

I absolutely hate coach pitch. First, too many coaches throw from a standing position + throw a rainbow. Imagine you as an adult hitting against a pitcher 12-feet tall throwing a ball coming down vertically in the zone? At least get on a knee and throw a line drive.

Coach pitch is primarily about the coach's ability to throw the ball where the player swings. If the coach can't then coach pitch is baseball hell. Use a machine, show the defined standard (this is what kids should be able to hit), practice to improve.

[The Uncoach]

7/8 is too young for kid pitch. Machines just add an extra object on the field. At 9/10 in house the rule should also be only 2 walks per inning. After that, any other batter can't walk. On the 4th ball the hitting team's 3B coach comes in to the mound and pitches to the kid. The batter either hits the ball or strikes out, but there are no more walks that inning.

[tg643]

7/8 is too young for kid pitch. Machines just add an extra object on the field. At 9/10 in house the rule should also be only 2 walks per inning. After that, any other batter can't walk. On the 4th ball the hitting team's 3B coach comes in to the mound and pitches to the kid. The batter either hits the ball or strikes out, but there are no more walks that inning.

I was on the board for fourteen years. We never had an issue with the machine being a safety issue. If the ball hit the machine it was a ground rule single.

[bbrages]

Our rec league starts kid pitch early. Too early, I'd say.

Anyway, they start the kids pitching at 39 ft at age 8, and by 9 they have upped it to 42. At 39 ft with a generous strike zone, you have a real probability that the game will be a strikeout-fest instead of a walk-fest.

The problem I see with machine pitch is that you're teaching kids to hit off of a machine instead of a live pitcher. But this still seems like a good thing -- let the kids mature a bit more before they have to learn to handle the stress of staying in the batter's box against a wild hard thrower.

[heretolearn]

We used a machine in 7/8's. At the beginning of the season it pitched at 40-42. By mid season we had it at 45. Most kids hit the ball by the second or third pitch. The best hitters tee'd off on the first pitch. The game moved quickly. No one got bored. While 9/10's was the right time to start kid pitch it was sometimes boring due to the lack of enough pitchers to consistly throw strikes.

I can't imagine 7/8's pitching. So few of these kids will play high school ball. It's more important to make the game as fun as possible and develop baseball fans.

We did machine pitch league fall of last year and I should have stuck with it. I agree, it's more important to develop baseball fans at this point and try to teach fundamentals as best you can. They were throwing from 40ft, very few strikes.

I remember this.

1. If a batter has any plate discipline, they'll walk most of the time ... when we want them to swing.

2. Kids have to learn how to pitch sometime. It won't magically get better just because the kid is a year older. Bigger hands could help some accuracy issues though. Usually the dads that want the kids to pitch are those that have a kid that's ready to pitch. Those that will likely enjoy this include 2-3 kids and their parents.

3. Machine is the way to go, IMO ... at least for the 1st half of the season, while the team continues to work with pitchers on accuracy. when pitchers can throw 50% strikes (at least), they will be ready to pitch to batters.

I absolutely hate coach pitch. First, too many coaches throw from a standing position + throw a rainbow. Imagine you as an adult hitting against a pitcher 12-feet tall throwing a ball coming down vertically in the zone? At least get on a knee and throw a line drive.

Coach pitch is primarily about the coach's ability to throw the ball where the player swings. If the coach can't then coach pitch is baseball hell. Use a machine, show the defined standard (this is what kids should be able to hit), practice to improve.

I agree with coaches pitching from standing, they should kneel or throw underhand. I do front toss with my kids for their bp as the angle and release are more realistic for them. And you are correct, they have to learn to pitch at some point, I just don't think 7-8 y/o is the best time to learn. Throwing consistent strikes from 40 ft away for these kids is just a lot to ask. Getting them to throw in the vicinity of a base is often challenging enough for this age.

7/8 is too young for kid pitch. Machines just add an extra object on the field. At 9/10 in house the rule should also be only 2 walks per inning. After that, any other batter can't walk. On the 4th ball the hitting team's 3B coach comes in to the mound and pitches to the kid. The batter either hits the ball or strikes out, but there are no more walks that inning.

They played machine pitch this past fall and there were no real safety concerns. A ball that hits the machine or the guy feeding the ball was an automatic single. But, it kept the game moving and kept them entertained defensively. That's an interesting house rule though.

Our rec league starts kid pitch early. Too early, I'd say.

Anyway, they start the kids pitching at 39 ft at age 8, and by 9 they have upped it to 42. At 39 ft with a generous strike zone, you have a real probability that the game will be a strikeout-fest instead of a walk-fest.

The problem I see with machine pitch is that you're teaching kids to hit off of a machine instead of a live pitcher. But this still seems like a good thing -- let the kids mature a bit more before they have to learn to handle the stress of staying in the batter's box against a wild hard thrower.

These poor kids were throwing from 40' as 7 & 8 y/o. The worst part was me having to umpire. Trying to balance calling strikes while at least giving the kids a chance to swing at some decent pitches was a lot of pressure.

[heretolearn]

Okay, another piece of information to add to this. They have the mound at 46 ft for this league with kids 7-9. Seems like this is a bit too far? My son tried once and his mechincs fell apart trying too hard so I'm going to shut him down for pitching from that distance.
Thoughts?

[tg643]

Okay, another piece of information to add to this. They have the mound at 46 ft for this league with kids 7-9. Seems like this is a bit too far? My son tried once and his mechincs fell apart trying too hard so I'm going to shut him down for pitching from that distance.
Thoughts?

The league is probably afraid to move the pitcher closer to the hitter. I believe they should set a pitching machine in front of a mound.

[songtitle]

Relax. Enjoy. Remember, the game is not about you.

[clayadams]

Okay, another piece of information to add to this. They have the mound at 46 ft for this league with kids 7-9. Seems like this is a bit too far? My son tried once and his mechincs fell apart trying too hard so I'm going to shut him down for pitching from that distance.
Thoughts?

For 7 to 9, maybe. My kid is 8 and has no issues with it. There's an 8yo on our team that I've clocked at 49mph and can throw 50% strikes. However, on our rec team with is 9-10yo's, there are plenty that are throwing at around 40mph. The games really come down to who has the best pitchers.

I think our rec league has it right though. 6-8 is perfect for machine pitch. 9-10 is perfect for kid pitch. Our league also has VERY specific pitch count rules. I couldn't be happier with our rec league.

[real green]

4-6 Tball
7-8 Machine pitch
8-9 Modified Kid pitch 40ft no walks coach pitch after ball 4
9-11 AAA full LL rules
10-12 LL Major's

Seems to work well for us.

[leecemark]

--We have the no walk rule too. After 4 balls it switches to coach pitch. This is for 7-9 yo. We have no machines, but its 5-6 to tee ball, 6-8 coach pitch and 7-9 kid/coach pitch. We haven't had our first game (Opening Day rained out yesterday), but at least in practice we've got a few kids who can throw a reasonable amount of strikes. One 8 and one 9 yo can throw straight and hard. One 7 year old throws rainbows, but gets them over the plate pretty regularly. Our other 2 pitchers its more just occassional strikes and I expect to get a good workout in their innings .

[heretolearn]

The league is probably afraid to move the pitcher closer to the hitter. I believe they should set a pitching machine in front of a mound.

When our coach went to the meeting since a few coaches were complaining, they said they couldn't move it any closer due to liability. It really is a game of walks.

Relax. Enjoy. Remember, the game is not about you.

I completely agree, but when my kid says his arm hurts it's kind of hard to ignore that. I thought I included this part in the update earlier, sorry I left it out.

For 7 to 9, maybe. My kid is 8 and has no issues with it. There's an 8yo on our team that I've clocked at 49mph and can throw 50% strikes. However, on our rec team with is 9-10yo's, there are plenty that are throwing at around 40mph. The games really come down to who has the best pitchers.

I think our rec league has it right though. 6-8 is perfect for machine pitch. 9-10 is perfect for kid pitch. Our league also has VERY specific pitch count rules. I couldn't be happier with our rec league.

I like this format. Giving the kids a bit more time to mature before they start pitching is probably the best.

He hates pitching as well, told me he wanted to throw up when the coach told him he was pitching. Yikes.