Fastpitch Softball Pitching Instruction

Fastpitch Softball Pitching Lessons
"Wind-Pitch"...short for Windmill Pitching.
Proven techniques, Proven results...Get Serious.

This pitcher/catcher call chart has been around for years. I'm not sure where it originated. I was given a copy of it around 1993 or so. I have seen countless versions and flavors of it. I am in no way taking credit for writing it or developing it. I have used it and found it very helpful increasing general knowledge about calling pitches. I have added to it, deleted from it and generally made modifications, but it is essentially the same document I was given years ago. I have formatted it into an HTML table and made it available here. If you know who actually wrote it, I'll be more than happy to credit them here.
- Ron Holt

Characteristics	Weakness	Pitch
Stance
Up in front of box	Fast Ball High	Fastest Pitch, rises
In back of box	Breaking Balls	Breaking ball (drop or change)
Closed stance	Inside	Drop or rise, screw
Open stance	Outside	Out drop or rise, curve or curve drop, or rise
Overly erect	Low	Inside Drop, screw
Wide stance	Low	Drops or curves low and on corners
Crouches over	High	Rise in or out, curve rise, change
Close to plate	Inside	Drop, fast ball or rise inside
Far from plate	Outside	Out drop or rise, curve or curve drop or rise
Even with plate	High-low	Rises, drops, curves, screw on corners
Tilted Head	Inside	In rise, drop or screw
Weight overshift	Low & outside	Out drop, curve drop, curves to front leg
No weight shift	Inside	Drop or rise, screw
Stride toward plate (closed)	Inside	Drop or rise, screw
Stride away from plate (open)	Outside	Out drop or rise, curve or curve drop, or rise
Long stride	High	Rise in or out, curve rise, change

Hands/Swing
Hitch	High	Rise in or out; curve rise; change
High, Mix	Rise in or out, change
Hands high	Low	In or out drop, curve drop, screw
Hands low	High in	Rise in or out; curve rise, change
Hands away from body	Inside	In drop or rise, screw
Loopy swing	High	Rise in or out; curve rise, change
Choppy swing	High	Rise in or out, curve rise, change
No arm extension	Low & outside	Out drop, curve drop, curves, fastball
Parallel bat	High	Rise in or out, curve rise, change
Slow bat/sweeper	Inside	Offspeed, in rise, drop, screw, change
Quick bat	Low	Change speeds, keep hitter off balance
Inside-out swing	Low-in	In drop, screw, change, low rise
Swings up	High, low in	Rise in or out, drop in, screw

Appearance
Weak batter	Low, outside	Fastball, out drop, curve drop, curves
Strong batter	Low; extreme	Change speeds, drops, drop curve, corner fastball
Relaxed batter	Faster delivery	Pitch with quicker rhythm, change speeds
Tense batter	Slower delivery	Use speed as waste then break ball
Aggressive batter	Change rhythm	Off-speed, In rise, drop, screw, change inside
LH Batter with speed	Low out	Drop, screw, rise, curve, in rise high

Game Situation	Result Wanted	Pitch to hit
Runners
On 1st, bunt situation	Poor bunt or pop-up	High in or out Very inside and low
On 2nd, RH-less than 2 outs	Ground ball left side	Low in, change in, high in
On 3rd, RH-less than 2 outs	Ground ball corners	Very low, in or out
On 2nd, LH-less than 2 outs	Ground ball left side	Low out, change out, high out
On 3rd, LH-less than 2 outs	Ground ball left side	Low out, change out, high out
On 3rd, less than 2 outs,	Poor bunt or pop out	High in or out, very low in or pitchout
Batter bunting or pick-off	NO CHANGE-UPS
Bases Loaded, or on 2nd & 3rd, less than 2 outs	Ground ball	Low in or out

Batter
Hitter bunts for hit (LH--out & away)	Poor bunt Force to hit	High in or out,change in
Hit and runs	Pop up or ground ball	Low in or jam high in
Ahead in count		Pitch to pitchers strike zone, just outside of batters strike zone; make batter swing at a ball.
Behind in count		Pitch to umpire's & pitcher's strike zone, never pitch to batter's strength

Defense
Right side weak	Ball hit to left	Pitch inside
Left side weak	Ball hit to right	Pitch outside
Outfield weak	Ground balls	Low in or out
Infield weak	Pop ups, fly balls	High in, rises, change-ups
Pitcher tired		Stay away from rise or curve
Pitch not working		Don't use it except as a waste pitch

Field
Fence Short	Ground balls	Low in or out
Fence Long	Pop ups, fly balls	High in, rises, change-ups
Wet Field	Ground balls	Low in or out, stay away from risers

Weather
Humidity high, low altitude	Pop ups, fly balls	High in, rises, changes, breaking balls
Humidity low, high altitude	Ground balls	Inside, drops, in rise curves, change low in
Wind at your back	Jam Pitch	Low,inside (faster ball), high rise inside
Wind in your face	Vary Speeds	Use speed as waste then break ball low, outside

Miscellaneous thoughts on pitching
In facing a batter, have 3 or 4 pitch sequences in mind before you throw the first pitch. Hopefully your catcher "understands the show". Throwing low to bunters who drop the bat head can generate foul balls. Throwing high to slappers can generate easy pop-ups. If they pop the ball up, it does not matter how fast they are. Be careful using the change-up with runners on base. Pitch change-ups anywhere in the count. Don't save them for the 3rd strike. Be careful using the drop with runners on base. Be careful using the drop as a 3rd strike. Drop balls are more frequently in the dirt than other pitches. Brush back hitters dug in or crowding the plate. Know what the batter did the last time at bat. Get the first out of the inning yourself. Watch hitters practice their swings. When in doubt, pitch opposites; high/low, inside/outside, fast/slow. Keep the fat part of the ball away from the fat part of the bat. Use your best stuff on the weakest hitters. They will hit off-speed every time. Trust your catcher's abilities. Don't pitch to her based upon her skills. Ball movement is more important than speed. To pitch faster, learn to pitch slower. Perception is everything. Know when to walk a batter. Be a good batter. A pitcher who hurts the opponent on offense and defense is a formidable player. Keep your attitude in check. There's nothing worse than being beaten by a nice, polite person and team. Pitch Fearlessly.

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