I'm curious, how many different pitches does a college pitcher need if he throws with average velocity for his conference? My son is a college freshman (D3) and is getting some appearances on the mound. He had average velocity in HS (topped out around 80 mph) but was successful because he could throw several pitches for strikes. This year he is in the low 80s and his college coach has helped him with his breaking pitches so he can use 4 pitches confidently in games (fastball, changeup, curve and splitfinger). Of course he is also working on his strength and mechanics to improve velocity, as his goal is to get to 90 mph during his college years. I'm sure he also understands about changing speeds, location, etc. I'm not asking on his behalf, as he is happy to just do whatever his college coach asks, but I find the topic of pitching very interesting and was curious what is a typical number of different pitches for a college pitcher to use to be successful.