Good stuff here. Just wanna add that at the high school level, Dialog with the HC about pitch count limits and shut down periods must always come from the parents. NEVER the player.This may be stating the obvious to some more experienced parents, but I didn't know this until a nationally recognized pitching coach at a local university here in Los Angeles told me. He said " You have to be the dick head here...not the player. The perception of the player always needs to be that he wants to throw.Keep a clicker and after the set amount pitches get close. Get a coaches attention and hold up 1 or 2 fingers to signal last batters"
I haven't yet had to be that demonstrative at a game, but I will if need be. HS HC is pretty arm health minded but I do initiate shut downs and I click the games and will not hesitate to shut him down or give notice to the coaching staff if need be
I just hope that in the near future rules will be set in place for pitch count so parents don't have to be the bad guy.
It's hard to enjoy a game when your son is pitching and you are worried about pitch count.
What strategy would you employ to shut your son down in case a HC ignores your signals?