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(79,80,81)

Few pitchers are throwing this hard on any high-school team, the best are throwing 85 and there is a big drop off after taht i would say the average is around (72 or 73). Remember average is everyone, I'd say in the eighties if you have any ambition to go anywhere, scouts need to see some velocity. The thinking is that you can teach movement but you can't teach someone to throw that hard. Plus most pitching coaches can add five to ten MPH to your fastball the next stage is getting good movement. So John J your wrong but you are right in the aspect that anyone with a chance of moving on averages about that.

Hope This Helped!!!

P.S.----One of the best pitches in baseball, SPLITTER!!! Throw it, use a softball to stretch ur ligaments then find the grip on the ball for more info just ask!
CLD

That is for seniors

From my experience the elite pitchers in HS (JR/SR) are all above the 85 MPH mark--yes there are some over 90 but the vast majority are in the 85 to 88 range

At the FR/SO level I have seen arms over the 90 mark but the top notch pitchers at the FR/SO level are in the 80 to 85 range.

JMHO

TRhit
There is no average high school speed. You would have to know the speed of every pitcher in high school baseball to get the average. No one knows that. The very best of course throw much better than 85. BetterthanJeter, 72-73 for a high school senior is lower than average. Anything less than 72 is very slow, shouldn't be pitching. Dangerous advice about throwing the splitter by BetterthanJeter. Most high school pitchers who are still growing should STAY AWAY from the split. It is very hard on the arm especially the elbow in young pitchers.
'07 crafty lefties dad:

I've seen guys that throw over 90 in their early high school years, but, most of the time, their arms are finished by their senior year in high school. Think of what throwing 90 at 14 or 15 years old can do to an arm. Throwing at that speed has a high risk of messing up undeveloped bone, ligament, tendon, and muscle tissue. It is best to not worry about velocity. Roger Clemens was throwing 81 mph when he graduated high school. Besides, your boy is a lefty and based upon the draft leftie's average velocites were 3-5 miles an hour less than right hander's. This puts the arm velocity he needs to get looked at would have to be around 87-91. this velocity is similar to James Howser who went 2nd round last year. But the key to really getting looked at is having command of at least three of your pitches with some good fastball movement and deceptive off-speed pitches.
Presently, I am a high school junior that just turned 16 and a lefthander, I am consistently 83-88, depending on the rest I have had in between starts, and have been recruited by almost 30 of the top D-1s in the country. So, don't worry about velocity, worry about how well he hits his spots and his movement on his pitches. That will get him further than throwing a ball through a brick wall, but misses the brick wall everytime because he has no control.

P.S. This is the lhp, not the momoflhp.
quote:
the average is around (72 or 73)


72-73..?? That is the average for 13-14 yo old travel teams in So Calif.. Most of the top 12 yo's throw low 70s... around here.

So I guess it really depends on the area.

The top P on most HS teams in our area throw upper 80s or more. And the slowest is throwing at least 79-80. Plus if you are throwing low 80s you better have great control and some other pitch or you will get hammered.

I estimate the average in So Cal for Varsity pitchers is 84-85. And there are very few if any that can't throw at least 80.


Now for the question of ELITE pitchers at each grade level... Remember San Diego has produced recent Pitchers such as Prior and Zito. But My son's high school runs a summer camp for JR HIGH age and incoming Freshman. Each session they clock every ones throwing velocity from the mound. They keep track of the best players over the last 12-13 years. So for players in the summer between their 8th and 9th grade... The top figure was 84 mph and 12 players that age have thrown 80 mph or better.

I would then estimate adding 2-3 MPH per year from there. With the top few ELITE seniors being able to throw low to mid 90s. Last year SD had Adam Jones throwing 95 and there will be at least a few more this year throwing low 90s
12 Year Olds Throwing 70!!!!
Either there is that much difference between the east and west coast or you have so major Danny Almonte Problems!!!!
The Splitter is a harmless pitch if thrown correct!!!!!! The FORK BALL can harm you arm, the splitter is totally harmless!!!!!
TRHIT you are correct i misspoke, what i meant is to an extent you can't teach a kid to throw hard! You can teach them to throw harder, I throw about 70(not a pitcher) theres no way i'm going to be able to get anywhere near 90 but i know a kid that throws 83 he will be able to get near 90. duel
OPPPPS...sorry for the mis-post

At any rate, there is a reason why half of the draft is from California!
Personally, I've had 10 boys at 72 and up, with 3 over 75 at 12 yrs old.
They ALL are 90 plus at 16-17 yr olds. 2 were 90 plus at 14-15!!!
2 of them, probably 3, will end up having been first rounders...1 down, 2 to go...

On the splitter...growth plates are still not closed/hardened at 17 yrs old. Extremely wary of showing an adolescent this pitch...
If you really need this thing, at this early of an age, to get guys out as-using it as your "out pitch"- you are already DONE, you just don't know it yet....sad, even a bit harsh...but probably true.
Betterthenjeter...

Yeah, the draft, in VERY rough terms, is soething like this: 50% California, the next 50% is then: 40% Texas, 40% Florida(appx!!), and the last 10% of the OTHER 50% is THE REST OF THE USA. This is VERY rough, but not too, too, far from reality.

As for the 'Varsity' pitcher aspect, see the quip as to bone maturation.
Getting back to the original thread...the "national average" for HS ptchers is, according to one of my Stanford Alum budddies 3 days ago, is 78 MPH!
There are quotes elsewhere on the board relating the relative differences of "baseline" from FLA, and Ill. Keep the perspective in focus.
Most of those speeds seem to be way too slow for high school. Our select teams for 13 yr old are 70 - 80. The 14/15 year olds are 75-84. The senior varsity players are 85-90+. I've clocked many of them myself with my Jugs.

P.S.
I suppose though if you averaged out all the total pitchers who can pitch on every team that the counts would go down.

Knowledge is Power! Thank you Mavens and HSBBWEB!
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Doc,
They are off Nov and Dec, practice for hs in Jan, start playing again Feb. For high schoolers you have your high school season, then summer select and then fall select. Of course this means no football. For 13 and under they will start select ball practice in Jan and some will start playing tournaments in Feb. We always waited til March and end about 1st of September. What about you?

Knowledge is Power! Thank you Mavens and HSBBWEB!
Chicks my season (Junior League ages 19,20,21, but I'm 18, I got called up) begins in April and runs into half way through August, than I take sept/oct and part of novemeber off, and than I begin training mid Nov until April, Since we live in a cold climate we only have the one season which really sucks. I'll be in the Chat room for a while, sinc I've got nothing to do for New Years
Last edited by Wales
From a good source......I looked at the max pitch speeds for '04s (seniors) at one of PGs 2003 Showcases. Out of 31 pitchers, five threw mid-to-hi 70s, 25 threw somewhere in the 80s, and ONLY ONE hit 90. The average for the group was 83mph. I assume the readings were all taken on the same day with the same gun. If you really want to see what the Joneses are throwing, visit PG and spend time clicking through their numerous Profile Reports - it's fascinating!!

"Son, when you pitch a strike, Mr. Hornsby will let you know."
DOK...If you are 18, why aren't you going to college? If you throw consistently @ 87-90 you need to move. Find a league fast..are you a late HS player? Graduated? RHP or LHP? What about the Canadian teams Ontario Blue Jays...Team Ontario? If you are 18, that is an age that is close to being done if you are not bound for college.

Good Luck!

"If you can imagine it you can create it. If you can dream it, you can become it". William Arthur Ward

"Baseball is Life"

I really think most of you are thinking of the average pitch speed for the very top teams in your area. My team was 24-3 last year. Most of the season we were #2 in New Jersey behind the team that wound up #8 in the nation (they are also in our conference). Needless to say, it is very good baseball around here. The average speed on our team last year was around 80, and the average on the team ahead of us was probably 84 or so. Now there are also tons of teams that our JV team could probably beat, and their average speeds are somewhere in the mid 70s probably. Remember an average is ALL teams combined.

The future ain't what it used to be.
Yeah well it does depend on where you play, I'm from one of the best pitching areas in pretty much the whole country, nearly every team in my district has a 2 or 3 guys that throws 90-94 range with a few who have touched 97-98. Last night i batted against a guy who was clocked at 96 throughout the whole game and he hit his spots. He is projected in the 3rd round of the draft. And just look up Bryce Harper, that kids a freak of nature
Hey guys I normally don’t come in here but just popped in here to check on bats for my son and saw this thread. I can help fill in some gaps for you.

FWIW my son just finished his first year of Varsity ball and I have a stalker and log pitchers for the team. I do not have the book here but will go through it and come back with more details, but from memory this is what I have seen. This is for very competitive Division 1 & 2 baseball in Southern California.

Average FB for team’s number 1 & 2 pitchers: 80-83
(Saw a couple in the 83-85 range)

These are the “league guys” not the Saturday starters.

Numbers 3+ (Saturday starters and relievers): 78-81

There are always anomalies but this was pretty typical. I also saw guys who were effective throwing 72. Our top reliever throws 72 but has the second lowest ERA on the team. He is not a starter but a situational reliever and is very effective 1 time (maybe 2) through the order. Our number 1 is a big lefty (6’4” 220) Sr who normally throws 80-81, but hits his spots and has one of the lowest ERA’s in our league. (around 1.4)

Elite starters: 85-91

These are the few elite guys who end up in the draft or go to the top 25 D1 colleges. After 35 games this season I saw 3 of these guys. (2 on the same team) These are the guys you read about in your local papers, and have scouts at their games. 91 was the top velocity I recorded.

Upcoming underclassmen:

I have seen one sophomore throw 85-87 and there are three in our league are in the 83 area +/- a little. Two are the number 1’s on their team and the other is the number 2.

Hope this helps.
Last edited by BOF
BOF,
We had 2 of the 85-91 types. They totalled 12 innings between them. One, a junior, had control problems due to lack of innings more than anything else and the other, a young senior, was very effective but simply wasn't given a chance. Meanwhile the mid to upper 70s junkballer with a 4.7+ seven inning ERA got about 30 innings and led the team in losses. Guess who's dad coached the head coach's son's little league team?

Their velocities were 86-87 touching 88, with little movement, and 85-87 working with good movement respectively. The velocities were recorded by scouts on Stalkers throwing to hitters in games.

Our #1, a senior, typically threw 83-84 although he dropped off later in the season after being over used. He had the ability to touch 87 although I never saw that in a game. Very good ERA although he gave up a lot of unearned runs due to working backward a lot. Walks tend to lead to unearned runs. Our #2, a senior, topped out at about 81 and threw more sliders than fastballs. Not surprisingly his arm was toast by the end of the season. His results were mediocre at best, especially against stronger hitting teams. The last few games of the season since they hadn't made any effort to get the talented pitchers any innings they used a mid to upper 70s lefty with good control and a decent curve. He was pretty effective and can be expected to be a slightly above average pitcher next year as a senior in a down year for the Marmonte league.
Last edited by CADad
2 of the upper 80's kids I saw were from a Marmonte team expected to go deep in the playoff's. The other is Valdez, who you know and is expected to go pretty high in the draft next year. I have heard quotes of him throwing 94, but in three games I never saw it. Actually I thought he was more effective in the 85-87 range where is ball had more movement. Regardless he is quite a player.

I don't know if it is just me but there seemed to be a lot fewer high 80's kids this year on the West Coast. I have heard this from several people and observed it also. That said there are a number of dynamite Sophmores coming up in the Pacific View, Marmonte and Channel Leagues that have the potential to be dominant type pitchers in the next two years.

OK guys I'm done posting in your area. For those of you in playoff's GOOD LUCK!
From the WWBA 16u in Atlanta this year:

15 guys threw 90+ top was 94
17 guys threw 89
23 guys threw 88
35 guys threw 87
44 guys threw 86
51 threw 85

PG listed velocities of 78 or more for this tournament. There were 952 pitchers throwing 78+. I would imagine there were many more throwing below 78, so I can't come up with a total average. The average for this group was 82. Kids who threw 85+ comprised 19% of this group. It would probably be a smaller percentage if they included all velocities.

Keep in mind, this was a 16u tournament which included rising Juniors, Sophmores and possibly Freshmen. There were no Seniors in this tournament, just 2011 graduates and below.
Last edited by bballman
Take 3 or 4 mph off those speeds to see what speeds they could have some command at. Then realize that these are the elite. So take another 5 mph or so off and you've got average HS pitching velocities for this age group. Add about 3 mph back to get them back up to 18u on average, so in the end take about 5 mph off the average and you've got an average HS velocity of about 77.2 mph as the 151 who were 85 and above don't change the average that much and the overall average is 82.2 mph not including those under 78. You could probably add 1 or 2 mph to get to the average for HS seniors only.
When you discuss anything high school you have to look at the demographics. Is is a baseball hotbed or is it the middle of nowhere? Is the area metro or rural? Is it a large high school or a small one?

My son plays for a large high school in a cold region. The top three pitchers last year threw 82-84. They've gone on to D2 and D3 ball. In our conference if a hitter can't turn on an 82-84 mph fastball he doesn't have a chance against half the regular pitchers. The first place team had three guys 85-88mph. The school is huge.

On the other hand when we went to watch a friend play in the small school classification district final, I think a good 14U travel team would have smoked their pitchers. It looked like 73-77.
Last edited by RJM
We have lots of statistics on these type things. Unfgortunately our statistics would be geared towards the higher talent level, rather than over all numbers.

Most recently we completed the PG WWBA Championship in Jupiter a couple weeks ago.

There were 85 teams. After averaging out all the fastball velocities of all the pitchers on each team, we found that...

all but two teams averaged over 80 mph.

75 teams averaged over 82 mph.

64 teams averaged over 83 mph.

59 teams averaged over 84 mph.

51 teams averaged over 85 mph.

41 teams averaged over 86 mph.

25 teams averaged over 87 mph.

13 teams averaged over 88 mph.

8 teams averaged over 89 mph.

5 teams averaged over 90 mph.

2 teams averaged over 91 mph.

Out of all those who pitched in that event... 127 topped out at 90 mph or better. 331 pitchers topped out at 87 or above. This was out of 817 pitchers who threw at that event. About 50 of the 817 pitchers topped out below 80 mph. The average top fastball for every pitcher at the 2009 WWBA in Jupiter was 85.25 mph.

Not sure if this information is interesting to anyone or not?
Having a son who just entered high School I find this information very interesting. As a pitcher if he wants to think about pitching at the next level or at least helping his cause greatly he knows he has to work hard to try and get his velocity to at least 85mph. Which as a lefty would be really good..not great but good! Especially if he has to go the route of finding a team to add him to their roster so he can attend the Jupiter tournament or beg you to put him on one of the PG teams Razz.
I live in NH and the upper eschelon of the pitchers probably cruise in the 80-85 range. The "average" varsity starter would probably be in the 75-80 range IMO. Sure the big guys might hit 90 once and a blue moon but for the most part they cruise low to mid 80's. Remember we lose 4 plus months to the winter so you can't long toss year round etc... We have had a few 90 plus pitchers that have made it to the big leagues with Chris Carpenter probably being the best known at the moment. That type of pitcher only shows up in NH a 1/2 dozen times a decade though I'd bet.
redsox8191.. those in the north are NOT at a disadvantage when it comes to pitching. My son grew up in a "cold-weather" area (Washington State)and yes, he long-tossed year-round since age 11 or 12. It can be done. In Bum, Jr.'s case he did it by throwing against a racquetball court wall. Others can rig up a net in their basement and simulate throwing for distance.. either way.. where there is a will, there is a way.

Washington State is #7 in players drafted, and most of them are pitchers. These players play 80-100 games a season, then in the offseason continue to train indoors. In my son's case, he also continued to throw. As for velocity, the average senior is 80-81.. the average h.s. fastball 78.. but as PG Staff once pointed out, what good is it to be "average"?
Nice post Bum. Average is taking all the pitchers that pitch and then coming up with a number. Of course your elite guys are the 90 plus guys. Then your upper tier guys are your upper 80'guys. Your above average guys are your mid 80's guys and your average would be 80.

I would say from my experience that the average HS varsity pitcher is 77-80. And its the reason when someone pitches at 84-86 everyone swears he is throwing 90.

Its very easy to be average. Just do what everyone else is doing and use them as an example of what you want to be.
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Long Island Rules Baby!!!!!
quote:
Originally posted by SultanofSwat:
Based on PG reports and a recent statewide showcase, there are approx. only 20-25 HS kids (not just Srs) in all divisions in our state that max at 85+.

I see low 80s in 5A for the typical starter.


I am curious about the report you mentioned. Can you tell me how to look it up?

It seems like at showcases and PG tournaments, you start to feel like if you aren't at 89, you arean't worth looking at!!

Ya I think it all depends on your area. I am a freshman and I top out at 74 avg is about 69. The sophmores usually throw high 70s and occasionally reach the 80s the junior throw mid to low 80s anwe've have 2 seniors that throw 90 consecutively and the others seniors throw high to mid 80s im a catcher and the coach clicked every pitcher including me so I know roughly everyone's pitch speed.

 

I have a 10U select team that all throw 90MPH.  No, not really.

 

80 is your average HS Fastball.  I've seen kids throw harder and get hit pretty hard and I've seen kids throw slower that kids just couldn't hit.  I've also seen kids throw 90 that usually ended in a one to two hitter and seen kids throw 75 that got shalacked.  It's always interesting to watch HS pitchers.  Some of them are so good.

This is probably selectively biased toward higher speeds (because generally only better players attend and get measured by PG), but the player profile pages on Perfect Game report where a kid's FB velo stands relative to his class.  According to PG, the average velo for the Class of 2014 is 80 mph; for the Class of 2015 it is 79; and for the Class of 2016 it is 76. I suspect if the pool of players being "averaged" was all HS pitchers instead of the subset of HS pitchers who attend and pitch at a PG event, those numbers would be a tick or two lower across the board.

I think any reported velocity needs to be adjusted down 3-5 mph depending if the parent is the one taking the reading. 

 

My son is a freshman this year and has always thrown hard in league play and actually was the top pitcher (velocity, location, and pitch command) on his travel team.  I have never had his speed gauged but will starting this year or maybe next year to target improvements.  I just hope someone has a reliable radar gun I can use.  

Originally Posted by baseballmania:

I think any reported velocity needs to be adjusted down 3-5 mph depending if the parent is the one taking the reading. 

 

My son is a freshman this year and has always thrown hard in league play and actually was the top pitcher (velocity, location, and pitch command) on his travel team.  I have never had his speed gauged but will starting this year or maybe next year to target improvements.  I just hope someone has a reliable radar gun I can use.  

Alot of phones have a radar app on them.  My kid threw 108 last high school season...i think with growth and stronger arm he will break 115 this year.  Woot!

Originally Posted by monkeyboy:
Originally Posted by baseballmania:

I think any reported velocity needs to be adjusted down 3-5 mph depending if the parent is the one taking the reading. 

 

My son is a freshman this year and has always thrown hard in league play and actually was the top pitcher (velocity, location, and pitch command) on his travel team.  I have never had his speed gauged but will starting this year or maybe next year to target improvements.  I just hope someone has a reliable radar gun I can use.  

Alot of phones have a radar app on them.  My kid threw 108 last high school season...i think with growth and stronger arm he will break 115 this year.  Woot!

My phone app said HS Jr. was @ 99...then I looked again and notice I had my phone up side down.......haha ha.

Last edited by jlaro
Originally Posted by monkeyboy:
Originally Posted by baseballmania:

I think any reported velocity needs to be adjusted down 3-5 mph depending if the parent is the one taking the reading. 

 

 

Monkeyboy...(btw love the avatar !)

 

There is a HSBBW theorem that goes way back that has proven to be irrefutable: 

 

A pitcher velocity = "ask dad subtract 7"

 

Try it you will be amazed how accurate it is.

 

Cheers.

I have heard a lot of exaggerations from dad's when talking about their sons. However, I've also heard the truth from some.  One dad told me last spring that his kid will throw 90 at one of the sunshine showcase events. He topped out at 94!

 

I guess the harder they throw the less the dad exaggerates. We had a kid that touched 99 mph this year, actually 100 at another event.  Using the 7 mph theory, his dad would be claiming his kid throws 107 MPH. (LOL) If a dad told you his kid throws 107 mph, would you subtract 7 MPH and think he throws 100 MPH? Or would you think Dad is an idiot?

Originally Posted by PGStaff:

However, I've also heard the truth from some. 

Thank you for saying that PG.  I have been trying to say this for years, but am not always listened to because I am a dad.  The subtract 7 rule is not universal.  There are some of us out there that are reality based and actually tell the truth.

 

All of you on here are parents.  Do every one of you exaggerate about your son's velocity?  If someone asked each one of you how hard your son threw, would you add 7 mph to the actual number?  I seriously doubt it.  This is not a universal truth that you have to subtract 7.  In some cases, yes.  But not every case.

I think most dads quote what top velocity their son has hit...not what they actually average...there can be a big disparity.  Mine has hit 92 or 93 but averages around 87 or 88...big difference.  But if i went around telling everyone mine pitched 93 while i guess technically the truth it wouldn't be the whole story.  Rose colored glasses are great but we have to keep it in perspective.  While my sons top velocity may provide a glimpse of his capabilities the reality is is average velocity is much lower and we need to work if we have an eye on pitching beyond HS. 

Originally Posted by monkeyboy:

I think most dads quote what top velocity their son has hit...not what they actually average...there can be a big disparity.  Mine has hit 92 or 93 but averages around 87 or 88...big difference.  But if i went around telling everyone mine pitched 93 while i guess technically the truth it wouldn't be the whole story.  Rose colored glasses are great but we have to keep it in perspective.  While my sons top velocity may provide a glimpse of his capabilities the reality is is average velocity is much lower and we need to work if we have an eye on pitching beyond HS. 

But you're being honest.  I don't think there's anything wrong with if someone asked you what your son throws, you responded with - He tops out at 93.  You can add that he usually sits at 87-88, but you wouldn't be lying if you said he tops out at 93.  The way I see the subtract 7 thing is if someone is asked how hard does their son throw and the kid tops out at 84, but the dad says he throws 91.

Many dads asked me how hard my son threw in h.s.  I always told them the truth and, of course, they'd come back saying their kid threw that or harder.  Of course, I knew it was nonsense.

 

I don't worry about it anymore because all of those dads and their players have disappeared.

 

Tell the truth about velocity.  You don't want some college or pro scout to show up thinking your son is tossing 89 when he's really at 80.  If your son takes a sudden jump thereafter it may be like the boy who cried wolf.

my son is similar in size and  hit 90 this Fall. While Most pitchers r bigger guys it's not always the case. Does he want to pitch in HS and beyond?  If he goes to a showcase he will get a velocity number. It's only part of pitching but a big one. The number gets their attention, but he has to have more than that-location, and good offspeed pitches. What it comes down to is not the size of the pitcher but how the ball comes across the plate. 

Originally Posted by playball2011:

my son is similar in size and  hit 90 this Fall. While Most pitchers r bigger guys it's not always the case. Does he want to pitch in HS and beyond?  If he goes to a showcase he will get a velocity number. It's only part of pitching but a big one. The number gets their attention, but he has to have more than that-location, and good offspeed pitches. What it comes down to is not the size of the pitcher but how the ball comes across the plate. 

Yes I hear you, size is not the only factor but it does matter more for RHP when it comes to recruiting. He can take it or leave it as far as pitching, but would do so if asked. He would rather be a position player if given the choice.

Amen bballman and rynoattack.  I don't exaggerate my son's velocity for the same reasons.  Plus I keep score in iScore with a radar gun (to accurately enter speeds, and hopefully accurately peg pitch types and locations) and anybody around me can see what the radar says!  LOL...

 

Bum has been saying for years that the average speed for HSV pitching is 78, and that jibes pretty darn well with PG data.  I do believe more parents exaggerate than don't, and very often somebody will tell me their son throws "mid-80s" and they rarely break 80 on the gun.  The "rule" discussed here is probably a decent rule of thumb, but most aren't dumb enough to exaggerate quite THAT much to somebody holding a radar gun!  Though they do still exaggerate (most, not all).

 

BTW, I do agree that an accurate picture can't be painted with only reporting peak velocity.  I almost always report peak + a "sits at" range, whether for my kid or anybody else's.

Don't get me wrong everyone. I know there are people who exaggerate their kid's velocity. I've seen it myself. It just personally bothers me when the generalization is made - with a smirk - because I don't do that. And I know there are others, I'm sure most on this board, who don't either. Just kind of a bug-a-boo I've got.
Originally Posted by monkeyboy:

Now that we have solved that lets talk about parents and POP time exaggerations. 

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

Amen to that, brother!  Not only do you have the parental exaggeration factor, but even when the time is correctly reported, you have the "catcher fudge factor" where the kid is practically standing before he even receives the ball!  Not sure I trust any POP time that isn't recorded during a game....

Exaggeration just sets the kid up for failure.  Others become quickly disillusioned when a player and his abilities are exaggerated.  We had a dad on our travel team that would over hype his son, pimp him out to all sorts of other travel teams, only to have those travel teams quickly become disappointed with what they actually saw this player was able to do. He was quite a player at the younger ages, but was not projectable, and sure enough, did not keep up with the others as they grew.  I am sure that exaggeration of abilities would be no different with college coaches, scouts, etc.  Just isn't fair to the kid, to exaggerate his abilities.  Will come back to bite you. 

I think if my son topped out at 90 I could say he has touched 90.  I don't have to see consistent 90 mph, to know 90 is something possible for that pitcher.  Sure, the consistent 90 is better, but the one time 90 is very good.

 

also, from past experience I think some parents get confused rather than fibbing.  We once had a dad complain about the top velocity we reported for his son.  He claimed he saw our gun read 93 mph.  Actually he did see that, but it was definitely the velocity off the bat. Seeing that we record every pitch, we explained that his son's fastball ranged from 82 to 85 and topped at 86 on one pitch.  When this happens a pitch doesn't out of nowhere throw one 93.   But dad saw it and thought his son threw one 93. BTW, this is something that happens more than you would think.

 

also, sometimes parents will ask someone with a radar gun what velocity they got on their son.  This information is not always accurate,  sometimes they give MPH of a different pitcher. Sometimes they just blurt out a number so they don't have to look it up.  And sometimes the number is actually different than what we got.

 

Point is that parents are not always exaggerating. Sometimes they're just misinformed.

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