What is more exciting than World Series softball? NOTHING tops it in my world. And this year in 2022, I was especially excited about Northwestern making it to OKC. It’s fun to see MidWest teams representing softball on the biggest stage - especially because it’s not as prevalent as the southern and western teams who make it to Oklahoma City year after year.
Read MoreI remember I loved checking my game stats when I pitched for Ithaca College. The sports information department would put up the box score with more information than ESPN does for the MLB! As soon as I got back to my dorm room after a game I'd hop on the computer and look up my ERA. My goal was to stay under 1.0. Being able to see the eb and flow every day really motivated me. The best softball pitchers at the time were under 1.0 ERA and I knew that if I could do that I'd be a great pitcher.
Read MoreAs the DI NCAA Softball Championship tournament begins, you’ll see amazing pitchers firing the ball the upper 60’s, low 70’s with extreme movement and devastating change of speed. How do they get to this level? Each began where many of you are today and slowly put in the work to be great. Here are five things it takes for you to do the same.
Read MoreI explain quickly, "Not exactly. I suggest you tell the coach that you know you can get the next girl out so give me another chance!" Although I understand Emma's logic, that players think they are helping the team by removing their poor-performing selves from the game, I explain several different concepts. You only fail when you give up. You always have to believe that the next pitch is going to be a great one. A good attitude regardless of the circumstance raises performance. And finally, it’s your coach's decision on who should be put in or taken out, not yours - even if she asks.
Read MoreJoan Joyce - Not just the best female pitcher in fast-pitch softball history, but the best female athlete who ever lived.
If you have ever seen the likes of Monica Abbott, Cat Osterman, or Yukiko Ueno on the mound, it may be hard to believe that a woman who is over double their age was once a better and more accomplished pitcher. And what’s more, she did it with a slingshot delivery - not a windmill motion.
Who is this incredible softball pitcher, you ask? It is none other than the recently deceased Joan Joyce, 81 year old Head Softball Coach of Florida Atlantic University, where she resided at the helm for 28 years while also coaching Women’s golf for much of that time. You also may have heard of the Brakettes. Joan Joyce put them on the map.
Read MoreIn order for a player to want to change for her team, or at least live up to her existing role, she needs to be encouraged. There are a bunch of ways to get her excited about the role that she has or the role she wants to accomplish. These are some ideas I have learned from college, travel, and high school coaches I have met along the way.
I hear it all the time, “Is there some kind of trick that I can use during a game to prevent me from going into a downward spiral?” It’s frustrating (and even more confusing) to start off well and then lose this “groove” later in the game.
While at first it seems sometimes coaches over-analyze what could have happened…”she got tired”, “she lost it mentally”, “she stopped performing her mechanics properly,” and so on, at second thought, I believe this is an under-analysis or a faulty analysis without proper work on the back end to diagnose issues and adjust practice accordingly. In order to identify the issue take a cue from college teams. They are always recording a huge amount of stats throughout the games. For them, there is no “guessing” when it comes to the issues they face during game time. They try to make it as objective, and therefore easy, as possible to make decisions.
Read MoreThe Little Engine that Could, so he did!
Most of us learn the story of The Little Engine that Could from a young age. “I think I can, I think I can, I think I can.” Making his way up a steep mountain with hardly any steam left to get to the top, it took a mindset that Yoda from Star Wars teaches us: “Do or do not. There is no ‘try’.” The power of the human mind can be extraordinary. At its best, it leaves no room for failure or excuses. When the mind meets the will and becomes singular in their focus, achieving even the most unlikely of goals becomes more than just possible, but probable. Ted Lasso says, “BELIEVE,” and Yoda says, “DO.” The combination of those two entities is magical. Just ask that Little Engine who finally made it to the Top.
And for you sports fans out there, another “Little Engine” made history last night in the men’s basketball March Madness playoff games. Did you fill out a bracket? If so, it is likely that this little miracle team just unraveled some of your predictions.
Jim Rohn is one of my favorite motivational speakers. Aside from his exceptional rags to riches story of working his way up from a store clerk to a mentor for self-improvement greats like Tony Robbins and Jack Canfield, he is an extremely quotable person, perfect for coaching. As a pitching instructor, I only have one hour per week to make an impact on the way players think and act, so I have to it right Plus, we instructors like to hear ourselves talk quite a bit, so Jim is inspiring me to improve on being succinct.
Read MoreThere are two very powerful schools of thought for how pitchers ought to attack the strike zone to be successful.
Attack the strike zone directly
Paint corners and live in the rivers
How can both be correct when they are in direct contradiction to one another? Which option ought pitchers pay heed?
To get to the bottom of this question, since I work with all of you at lessons instead of games, I went back to all of my notes from previous pitching conventions where I was able to listen to philosophies on pitch calling from the elite coaches in our game: Lonnie Alameda (Florida State), Larissa Anderson (Missouri), Beth Torina (LSU), Missy Lombardi (Oregon), Karen Weekly (Tennessee), and Stephanie VanBracklr (Alabama) just to name a few.
Read MoreFor years, nothing has “wowed” the crowds quite like a fastball coming in at 70mph+. There is no doubt that a pitch thrown that hard (by the likes of Monica Abbott, Rachel Garcia, and Montana Fouts for example) will turn the heads of every Power 5 collegiate program in the nation. If you also have total control over the location of that 70 mph+ pitch, like Abbott, Garcia, and Fouts do, you have the potential to be one of the elite. But there are VERY few pitchers who will ever be able to hit 70+. So the new kid in school that is garnering all of the attention is “the movement pitcher.” And not just any movement pitcher, the one who amasses swings and misses with regularity. And creating true movement on a pitch (that will cause many hitters to swing and miss) is a skill that any pitcher can learn.
I want you to read that last sentence again: “Creating true movement on a pitch (that will cause many hitters to swing and miss) is a skill that any pitcher can learn. “
Read MoreThe episode was released after my last blog, so I broke it down for you below to make it easy to listen to the best parts. A lot of this will seem quite familiar to you, since I borrow most of DePauw University’s material for pitching school :) Guess where I got the idea of “The game of 5?” and “The Hit/Miss game?” Listen to find out!
Read MoreIf you have followed some of my blog articles in the past, you may remember that my cousin Erica, Head Coach at DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana, is also a former high school and collegiate pitcher like myself. She and I have a lot of great conversations, especially surrounding pitching: development, fundamentals, coaching, training, recruiting. Erica was interviewed by NFCA (National Fastpitch Coaches Association) Director of Education, Joanna Lane
Read MoreThe most successful pitchers have involved parents. This can be tricky, because that means you’ll have to put a high percentage of effort as well. That’s why I call it a partnership. It’s best if you both decide to take on the challenge together.
If you want to give her the opportunity to reach her full potential, you'll have to catch for her - a lot. Here are a few catching techniques to get you through the times when you don't quite feel like getting out there with her.
Read MoreIs one of your biggest struggles getting your daughter to practice? Are you having trouble getting yourself to practice with her? Do you want to teach her to be independent and take initiative on working hard? Would it be better if she could sacrifice her current comfort for her future success?
Read MoreThe best pre-motions, or "take-aways" as I call them, are simple ones. Pitchers prepare themselves for success by performing a take-away that doesn't result in mistakes later in the delivery. When making up for a mechanical mistake during the motion, such as a crooked arm circle, the price she pays is a loss of speed.
Read MoreTo moms and dads who obsess over YouTube pitching videos: I’ve been there to. You love the “forearm fire,” Bill Hillhouse, and Amanda Scarborough’s Power Drive.
Bill Hillhouse promotes a cross-bodied follow through to the opposite-side shoulder. Below I will clarify what he means when he talks about this and why I teach something else. The follow through others teach is a straight-arm one with the hand pointing to the target at the end. I call this the “hand-shake” follow-through. I teach most players to point their elbows, not hands, to the target, referred to as “hello elbow.” I’ll discuss each follow throughs and what they mean to your pitcher.
Read MoreYou put in so much effort to be a pitcher. Going to lessons, practicing, and always being sore are tough things to commit to if you don’t get to play. If this hasn’t happened to you, consider yourself a very lucky pitcher. How, then, do you deal with this situation to your benefit?
1. Use it as motivation to better.
I admit - it was a bit of an attention-grabber headline. Even so, there is truth to why I would never teach a pitcher to throw like Monica.
When you watch the Olympics, and if you paid attention in class, you’ll be able to see what the pitcher is doing well. Is she doing her 5 fundamentals ? Is she executing her take away, plug, stride, arm circle and banana? If not, how is it possible this pitcher could still get to the Olympics? Should I do it that way too?
Whether your daughters is a beginner or a college-bound pitcher, she'll benefit from learning a pre-pitch routine. I call it the think/play box concept, which I borrowed from Annika Sorenstam's (regarded as one of the best female golfers in history) sports psychologist team, Pia Nilson and Lynn Marriott. They wrote a book called Every Shot Must Have a Purpose.
Read More
Powered by Squarespace
![Drills & Tools For Success [Video]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/56a0f458b204d5ee03895a17/1624042258572-AKZDNQ89CHS7KZ3GVOOF/thinkplay.jpg)