Jay Johnson

Quick story: Working with a young pitcher (11 years old) last night and just as with every bullpen, we finished with a simulated batter. His father was catching and called for a 2-2 fastball up. Pitcher shakes it off. Couple pitches later throws strike three. I ask after why he shook off the 2-2 FB up and his answer was “Because if the batter doesn’t swing at that pitch it would be ball 3.” PERFECT ANSWER! When it comes to pitch selection, we should always be looking to avoid a three ball count. (Unless of course we are pitching around a batter late in a game, yes I know that’s what some are thinking after that comment! 🤣) We’ve talked at length about pitching, pitching selection, situational pitching, etc. He’s a smart kid that retains information well. I know not all are like that, especially at that age, but he is. That led into a short conversation about his coaches calling his pitches and not letting the players do it. Most coaches who call pitches struggle with the actual teaching of it and just do it themselves in the game because to be real, it’s easier and they struggle with the idea of a pitcher throwing something they wouldn’t. Many will give the reason of “they aren’t ready for it” when saying why they call it themselves when in reality they haven’t even given them a chance (way more than one time) to see what they “are ready for.” We need to flip that attitude and see what they can do, how they handle the information, before we label them “not ready.” There are players out there like this young man who without a doubt can handle it all day every day but most likely won’t get a chance because the adults are afraid to give him that chance. Coaches, it’s time to coach. How about we start giving them the opportunity first, and then see how we can help. The day they start pitching is the day we start giving them opportunities. We say “Trust the Process” so let’s start trusting it.