Can someone give me a range/estimate on division 1 oufield velocities...what is considered aversge/above average?
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It would depend on the position (LF, CF, RF) and usually the players with the best arms end up in RF.
To answer the question, at the D1 level I would say an "average" OF arm would be around 87-90 MPH and most right fielders would be around 92+ from the outfield.
To answer the question, at the D1 level I would say an "average" OF arm would be around 87-90 MPH and most right fielders would be around 92+ from the outfield.
Correct me if I'm wrong but I thought having a great arm is good, but I thought that the reason a outfield is recruited to a D1 school is because they can hit very well or they are fast, not because they can throw. Don't get me wrong I still think a good arm is important, but that it is more of a bonus.
Yes as previously mentioned, arm speed in the OF doesn't matter if you can't hit.
If a team has of guys that can hit and throw, they will generally try to get someone in the high 80's to 90 range in RF. You live with someone at 80 in LF and CF.
imo if you can throw 92 from RF you'll be a pitcher not an OF!
If a team has of guys that can hit and throw, they will generally try to get someone in the high 80's to 90 range in RF. You live with someone at 80 in LF and CF.
imo if you can throw 92 from RF you'll be a pitcher not an OF!
I would agree as well that hitting and speed are the two primary attributes looked for in outfielders. Being able to throw is great but without one of the other 2 it doesn't really matter. A guy who can run and throw will still have to hit at some point to get in the lineup.
While it's often measured, I'm not sure that MPH from the OF is that important?
If so,it's way behind the other factors:
-Hitting
-Foot speed
-ability to take a good route to the ball and actually catch it!
-accuracy
-ability to get the ball out quickly and headed towards the right base
My Son is an OF in a D1 program and throws 90+ from the OF, but how many times does he really need that?
An OF assist is a rarity. It's more about keeping the hitter off of second on a single and it doesn't necessarily take a cannon to do that.
To be honest, I am surprised at the number of College OF's that are really not very good defensively.
Many are former IF's or converted Catchers or Pitchers who can hit.
If so,it's way behind the other factors:
-Hitting
-Foot speed
-ability to take a good route to the ball and actually catch it!
-accuracy
-ability to get the ball out quickly and headed towards the right base
My Son is an OF in a D1 program and throws 90+ from the OF, but how many times does he really need that?
An OF assist is a rarity. It's more about keeping the hitter off of second on a single and it doesn't necessarily take a cannon to do that.
To be honest, I am surprised at the number of College OF's that are really not very good defensively.
Many are former IF's or converted Catchers or Pitchers who can hit.
Some guys in the Majors over the years who were known for having a real "cannon" were also known for trying to show it off constantly on inappropriate attempts to nail runners at the plate. Raul Mondesi was known for that and there were others.
Some great points gitnby. As stated the arm strength you would like to see is between 80-90mph. But more important is the accuracy of the throw and other attributes. The angle the OF takes to get to the ball and make his throw. The ability to play the ball quickly and at the right angle can cut down on a signicant amount of time that can equate the throwing velocity to much higher then one who doesn't get to the ball as quickly and releases as quickly. So bottom line throwing strength needs to be pretty good but angles, approach, and getting the ball in accuratley plays a large role into throwing runners out or keeping them honest.
Good post. Look at it this way. You can have a very average arm and be in the line up every day in the outfield as long as you can adequately defend and mash. In fact you can have a below average arm. Heck even a poor arm. But if your a defensive liability because of poor reads , routes , glove , too slow, you could have a hose and never see the field out there.
Arm strength is the least important tool for an outfielder imo.
Arm strength is the least important tool for an outfielder imo.
Coach May is spot on. Another way to highlight this is by run production or run saves.
A good HS outfielder may generate 50-60 RBI's + runs in a season. (run production) He may catch 30-50 balls hit to him. He will have the opportunity for 5-10 outfield assists where he actually has a chance to put a runner out. You can see from the numbers how important a great arm is.
A good HS outfielder may generate 50-60 RBI's + runs in a season. (run production) He may catch 30-50 balls hit to him. He will have the opportunity for 5-10 outfield assists where he actually has a chance to put a runner out. You can see from the numbers how important a great arm is.
All I know is what I've seen this week. We've been doing a college tour, and there is one 2011 RF/C who threw 91 from the OF at PG nationals. We've been playing at mid-D1s and the college scouts are most definitely interested. He got at least one offer a couple of days ago. Don't know if he'll verbal to them or not. We play in Gainesville this afternoon. It will be interesting to see who shows up to watch.
If he got an offer simply based on his arm strength from the outfield he wont be playing outfield in college he will be on the bump. I would imagine he also ran well , hit well and can play.
He runs right around 7.0, ranked a 9 by PG. Not a big guy, very quiet, a hard worker, and 2B definitely likes to receive his throws down on a steal. Good for everyone to have a kid like that on a team, anyway. The local D1 coach was there for both games of Friday's double header. Can't buy that kind of exposure. Very nice, down to earth guy, by the way. 
(I didn't talk to him - didn't want to distract him - but several others did and came away impressed.)
(I didn't talk to him - didn't want to distract him - but several others did and came away impressed.)quote:Originally posted by Coach_May:
Good post. Look at it this way. You can have a very average arm and be in the line up every day in the outfield as long as you can adequately defend and mash. In fact you can have a below average arm. Heck even a poor arm. But if your a defensive liability because of poor reads , routes , glove , too slow, you could have a hose and never see the field out there.
Arm strength is the least important tool for an outfielder imo.
spot on as usual coach... goes back to what I was told by a AAA mgr.. hit and you will play.. the rest just go towards the 5 tools and the more of those you have the higher you will be rated/drafted/paid etc
My grandson (15 yr old) attended 2 One Day showcases held at D2 colleges in our area with his travel ball team this weekend. Each showcase was open to High School players. Most players were Juniors and Seniors with my grandson being one of the few Sophomores. At one school he was singled out by the college coach as the best overall player at the showcase.
The thing that singled him out was his power hitting and overall size and athleticism really helped as well.
His stats are as follows = Height: 6’3”, Weight: 190
*Skill test = 60 yd Dash: 6.92, Throwing Velo: 90mph, Exit Velocity: 95mph *Skills test results update 6/31/2019 (Grandson now 16)
He just started lifting weights in July and his trainer says he has the body type of a D1 power hitter. It’s encouraging to get the positive feedback from college coaches and hopefully with hard work he will be able to realize his dream of playing college baseball.
One of the college coaches told the group that getting exposure is good but it only helps if you’ve got the goods to play at the college level. Both college coaches told my grandson privately they were very impressed with his play and would be following his career. NCAA rules prohibit any actual recruiting until September of a players Junior year in High School.
Peach49 posted:
NCAA rules prohibit any actual recruiting until September of a players Junior year in High School.
This is wrong. There are specific rules in place about contact, but recruiting can happen before Sept of your Jr year. Heck softball had an 11 year old commit last year.
Also, you dredged up an 8 year old thread. If you have a specific topic you want to discuss I suggest you open a new thread.
I can attest to the fact that throwing 90+mph from the OF as a HS'er will get you attention from RC's. Son threw 91 and 92 at a showcase when he was 16, and it got him a lot of attention. It seems that earlier in the thread that having a strong arm is somehow equated to being an incompetent fielder, rather than looking at it for what it is, a positive attribute. For every OF arm that is in the 90's, there are 25 that run a sub 7 60.
I don't know the answer to the OP's question, but will venture a guess that high 80's would be good enough for the RF/CF at the D1 level, assuming that they can hit, and run reasonably well. There is no absolute answer, as any player can be more, or less, than the sum of his "tools", but I will say that 90+ does get you noticed.
From what I've seen, if a player shows outstanding in any one of 3 areas coaches will notice and at least take a closer look at the player.
Arm Velocity: 90+
60 Time: Below 6.7
Exit Velocity: 90+
My 15 yr old grandson showcased Exit Velocity of 91 and was told he got himself on several coaches list to follow. Now he just has to continue to grow and proform well.
Yeah, as soon as my 16yo threw 91 from the OF at a PBR showcase he was asked to throw from the mound, where he promptly walked 3 batters in a row.
Still, there was a big uptick of interest from schools after that. I think that there might be some sort of system that alerts schools when someone hits certain numbers.
At a recent showcase a college coach was addressing the players and specifically pointed out that coaches do talk to each other and share information on players.
There are plenty of college left fielders with mediocre arms. It’s one of the places (along with 1B and DH) players who can hit but don’t have great arms relative to the competition get placed. There are center fielders who can cover a lot of ground who don’t have great arms.
If a player doesn’t hit there’s only one position a great arm matters. It doesn’t involve hitting.
Hitting is a great tool, but harder for coaches to judge, when they've only seen a player a couple of times. A great hitter can have a bad day and ground out weakly multiple times, but a fast runner is always fast, and a strong arm is always a strong arm (as long as it's healthy).
Special jr. went to two different school camps on successive weekends. He sucked at both camps in first round of BP. Second round, he hit one out about 375', then hit a couple of fences to Right center and Left Center with liners at one camp, while at the others he struggled to hit singles. Both coaches had only seen him at a HF camp, and maybe on some video.
Guess which school offered him on the spot? Not a trick question... it was the first one where he hit a bomb.
My point is that that he was the same hitter, but just had a good day at one school, and a bad day at another. His arm and speed is never so finicky, and in any event, coaches will accept velo's if they are available online from a respected source like PBR, PG, or some camps. Hitting is harder to judge. Exit velos tell some of the story for a hitter, but don't tell you anything about a hitter's ability to square up a pitched ball(exit velos are taken from tees), strike zone judgement, etc..
Not trying to be argumentative. Just my experience has been that having speed and a strong arm opens up a lot of doors for a player. If you throw 80 MPH and run a 7.4...then you better be one hell of a hitter! I agree that those numbers don't always tell the correct story. I've known guys who are fast and with great arms that can't catch a ball, throw accurately, or make sound decisions on the field. I also know kids who get exit velos in the high 80's/90's that can't hit consistently well.
It’s typical to run and field/throw before hitting at a showcase. My son opened eyes with his sixty and arm. It warranted paying attention when he hit. But the player still has to hit. You can’t steal first.
I agree with RJM, coaches are looking for athletic players that can help their program. All 3 skills are important, but 90++ Exit Speed power hitters are always at a premium.
As the saying goes, "You hit you play."
During our Goodwill Series in Korea, Doug DeCincas 3b of the Orioles traveled with his son. We discuss the "great" Earl Weaver the Orioles manager.
Earl had three average arm OF, but strong hitters. He sent Cal Ripken to "long" cut off from the OF.
Managers can adjust to their teams strengths and weakness and WIN!!!! Only one DH is allowed.
Bob
I also think that below pro ball hitting and catching the ball have clear priority. Even in pro ball a weak arm can play but then it is always LF only (see Johnny Damon and khris davis).
If I was a college coach I wouldn't care about arm if he catches the ball and hits the ball.
It does make a difference if you get drafted because weak arm means LF only in mlb which means you need plus power because you don't start in leftfield in the majors with 15 homers a year even if you can hit.
For prospect status arm is important but below that I wouldn't worry too much. Just make sure you work some on your arm so it isn't a total noodle because throwing rainbows or two hoppers back into the infield looks terrible.
Tony Gwynn did okay with an avergae arm
Damon had a weak arm but he did lead the Red Sox to the WS playing CF.
JCG posted:Damon had a weak arm but he did lead the Red Sox to the WS playing CF.
Damon was a four tool player. The only thing he didn’t have was an arm. He had above average power for a lead off hitter.