I have had the opportunity to attend many different softball pitching clinics through the years. As a pitcher myself and also as an instructor, I have seen average clinics and excellent clinics. Some of the down falls to pitching clinics are in the organizational process. If there is six hours set aside for pitching, and all six hours require a pitcher to pitch, this can obviously be a hazard to the arm of the pitcher. Not even a bag of ice at the end of the day will be able to save a pitchers arm with that amount of pitching repetitions.

That however is only one of the many mistakes. I’ve come to realize that most pitching camps don’t realize that they need an equal pitcher to catcher ratio. They always have more pitchers and not enough catchers. Since catchers need time to train on other parts of softball they can not be expected to catch the entire event. Some events in this situation will have pitchers catch for pitchers which is counter productive since the pitchers are not experienced enough to be a catcher. So how do you fix this problem?

Another alternative is to have nets set up to catch the pitches. This requires a large quantity of those nets and each pitcher to have multiple balls next to them to use. Now the pitchers have a target to throw to. Once they have pitched all of their balls, they can go and retrieve them from the net or fence.

Many of the better softball pitching clinics I have attended use variety in managing the time scheduled. The warm up is a good example which is very important for safety reasons. Taking breaks in between learning different concepts will allow for better understanding. Breaks are very important for taking pressure off a pitchers arm. Water and snack breaks must be planned as well to keep players properly hydrated.

Another attribute to a great softball pitching clinic is sending quality information home with the player for continuous improvement. Providing a side by side video of the campers pitching form and comparing it to a professionals pitching form is very effective. Giving out personalized booklets with the skills and drills from the camp is also beneficial.

Keep in mind, a softball pitching clinic can help improve any pitcher, but most of the time; they are their own pitching coach.

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