Biggest Change from HS to College as a Pitcher

something else pitchers don't realize is the difference that the climate can make.  i grew up in hawaii where it was so warm and humid that i was always three pitches away from being ready to go.  Went to school in Oregon where i don't think i was ever truly "warm"

I’m with PitchingFan. Been there, done that when I played. When I saw the title the first thing I thought, “Everyone  can pound the ball. There isn’t any, “Here it comes. You don’t have a chance.” If command was off that day in high school it didn’t matter against half the lineup.

Add in relieving was hard versus in high school, “I get the ball Friday. I’m going seven.”

Agree with all of the above. Getting into a routine as a reliever is a big adjustment. Good programs will post a pitching plan on game days to indicate who is scheduled for 1st, 2nd, 3rd out of the pen. Doesn’t always hold to form but it puts guys on notice to be prepared to pitch that day. Then it’s up to each individual to do whatever he needs to do to be ready before his name is called. Then it may or may not happen. And you do it again the next time. Such is the life of a reliever.

It depends on the level you play.  There are D3 teams and low level JUCO teams that are shockingly bad, a good high school team from a Baseball hotbed could run rule them.  It’s all relative.

Getting used to being a reliever vs being a starter is a big adjustment no matter what the level of play.

Lesson 1 (of many):   You are not routinely blowing fastballs for a strike by a D1 college hitter.   

Another difference is from LL through high school I played every inning on the mound or in the field unless the score was lopsided. It was hard to sit still in the dugout or bullpen. I learned how to juggle and how to toss bats out a few feet and have them bounce back to me.

I had been recruited as an outfielder. I wasn’t playing a lot freshman year. I stepped forward to, “Is there a damn lefty who can come out of the pen throwing strikes?”

I thought I screwed up having a good year out of the pen. Not playing all the time drove me nuts. As it was freshman year I was sitting more than playing as an outfielder. Fortunately a good recruiting year for the pitching staff got me back to competing for an outfield position.

The difference is survival as a  "thrower" in HS and as a "pitcher" in College.

A key to survival is the type of pitch thrown on the 3-1 count.

BOB

@Consultant posted:

The difference is survival as a  "thrower" in HS and as a "pitcher" in College.

A key to survival is the type of pitch thrown on the 3-1 count.

BOB

as usual Bob nails it here. How do you get out of a hitter's count? In HS you pound an above-average fastball and get misses or weak contact. In college you have to locate or throw secondary pitches for strikes.

The switch from starter to reliever is huge as has been mentioned. You would be really surprised how many guys come out cold or at the very least - not fully warm. You can go from "Get loose you're starting the next inning" to "If he walks this guy you're in" in a matter of two pitches.

The other is mistakes. Mistakes went for a single or double in HS. In college - they end up on twitter, or even worse sportscenter, as the beginning of a 480ft HR with a bunch of people commenting what a trash pitch that was. And they're usually right.

That being said - I still think the transition for a pitcher is much easier for a pitcher than it is a hitter.

Also all it takes is two bad outings or a meltdown in a key spot and you may not find yourself in a meaningful game for weeks at a time - until someone else melts down.

I remember my son playing on the incoming HS freshman team, waiting to play a scrimmage while the varsity team was finishing their practice. The game was so fast, I thought there’s no way my kid gets to that level. Then your kid gets there, and the game slows down and seems normal.

HS to juco was the same, the game sped up again and everyone who played and some who didn’t were their HS’s top talent, and again the freshman adjusted (or they left) and the game slows down.

Juco to P5 D1, the game didn’t speed up much, but everyone on the field was really good! Everybody is phenomenal at something, or they’re not on the team and especially the field. The ones there for hitting, don’t miss mistakes – the defenders are elite, and make all the plays they should and many they shouldn’t, and the pitchers have big league velo, nasty stuff or know how to get outs – possibly all three.

When the kid entered pro ball in short season A ball, it really wasn’t much different than D1. Seemed like junior and senior D1 all-star league with some younger Latin players mixed in. The blues get better, and the strike zone gets smaller and more consistent (this is incrementally true with each subsequent pro level).  

At this point I’m wondering why all the pro levels? Development, rookie, short season A (which is gone I believe) A, A+, AA, AAA, MLB – is there that much difference? The difference from short season to A+ was huge, you just don’t see it as a spectator because they’re all at that new higher level. It’s visible when new guy gets there and must figure out how to compete – or hang up his cleats.   

The kid got to AA, was invited to his first MLB string training, I flew to Florida, and I watched him give up 4 dingers in two innings and that was it for any game time. I’m glad I was there to support him – but not much fun.

Every step up in baseball is adjustment (youth to HS, HS to college, college to pro and pro level to pro level), it’s about leveraging some ratio of physical gifts, work ethic and mental strength to compete at that next level.

@Consultant posted:

The difference is survival as a  "thrower" in HS and as a "pitcher" in College.

A key to survival is the type of pitch thrown on the 3-1 count.

BOB

I feel like a key to survival is not getting into 3-1 counts.

Very interesting discussion. He started as a reliever as a FR/SO in HS so had that experience. But was never given time to warm up since he would come from SS to throw. The starter for 2 years. But in HS coaches called all the pitches and then never let him use anything but FB. Sad because that is his 3rd pitch.

In college he is getting a big change because he is back to bullpen but given way too much time to warmup. Last game he must have thrown 100 in warm up waiting to get in.

Then he has to get used to catcher calling throws as well as now the FB is actually his 3rd pitch.

Seems to me getting used to it but I would be interested in some old pitchers chiming in on how to not throw 100 in bullpen and still be ready.

Other thing I have noticed is that some highly recruited pitchers with velo but little movement are getting shelled. D1 guys can hit.

@old_school posted:

I feel like a key to survival is not getting into 3-1 counts.

Thank you Captain Obvious.  But every pitcher gets behind in the count from time to time. Even the very best ones. And Bob is 100% on point. To be a successful pitcher at the college level you have to be able to throw an off speed pitch for a strike in a FB count. Unless you throw 100 - and if you do you won’t be in college very long.

@Good Knight posted:

In college he is getting a big change because he is back to bullpen but given way too much time to warmup. Last game he must have thrown 100 in warm up waiting to get in.

Then he has to get used to catcher calling throws as well as now the FB is actually his 3rd pitch.

100 pitches waiting to go in, if he does need to go in, is unacceptable and a poor refection on whoever is in charge (usually pcoach) as well as working with the bullpen catcher.

Managing the teams bullpen is more than just telling a guy to go warm up. 

JMO

TPM is right but each pitcher also needs to regulate his own warmup routine. He needs to know how many pitches and how much time he needs to get ready. He may not always get the time he wants but he should know. He should also know when is enough w/o being told. Coaches can get caught up in lots of things during a game and even though a coach should always be in the bullpen it isn’t always the case. Part of the maturation process of every pitcher is them learning to be in charge of their own career - which includes knowing how to train, how to warmup, etc. This would include knowing when to shut it down in the bullpen if you haven’t entered the game.

I have also been tracking % of hits that are singles for a number of pitchers. Tracking 6 pitchers and it ranges from 91% to 46%.

Am I looking at the wrong think? is is it mainly situational?

Good Knight, are you saying that the catcher actually calls the pitches rather than the coach?  I've watched due to conversations on here and have not found an SEC catcher who calls pitches.  They are always called by the PC through some mechanism.  Every SEC team has some coach in the bullpen telling guys where they are in the process.  Ours tells son to get ready quickly, slow down, just toss or sit down or shut it down.

Yes I think they do.