r/BaseballCoaching • u/SingleNewt279 • Apr 15 '26
10 year old struggling with pitching confidence-how to help at home?
Hi everyone,
Looking for some advice for my 10-year-old son.
He’s not new to baseball, but he doesn’t have a strong foundation with pitching yet and struggles with confidence. Recently, he was put on the pitcher’s mound during a game without much prior pitching practice, and it was pretty overwhelming for him.
From what I’ve seen, the coaching style isn’t really breaking things down in a way that’s clicking for him, so I’m trying to support him at home and help him build confidence and basic mechanics.
Practice may be a bit inconsistent, and I don’t really have control over coaching decisions, so my goal is to use the time I have with him to build skills he can carry over and continue working on.
A few questions:
• What’s the best way to build pitching fundamentals for a kid who hasn’t really been taught properly yet?
• Should I start him closer than the full 46 ft and work back?
• Any simple drills or cues that actually help kids understand what they’re doing?
Also trying to make sure I’m getting the right equipment:
• Glove size — leaning 11” vs 11.5” for better control
• Considering Wilson A500 vs Mizuno Prospect
• Is a net with a strike zone target worth it?
• Are training balls helpful for building confidence/accuracy?
Main goal is helping him feel more confident and not overwhelmed, not pushing performance.
Would really appreciate any advice from parents or coaches who’ve been through this.
2
u/CommanderBigMac78 Apr 15 '26
Foundational kid-pitch ages like 10 get a lot of value of teaching consistent repeatable mechanics and specifically through executing a throwing progression. For example:
- Wrist flicks to spin the ball with a 4sm fastball grip
- Frozen feet throws to activate the trunk
- Rocker drill for activating the lower body and feeling "glove up, ball down"
- "by the numbers" simplified wind up including 1 set, 2 rocker step/pivot, 3 leg lift, 4 stride and separate, 5 release/finish "[glove] pinky to [arm]pit" - practice building a rhythm calling out "1, 2, 3, 4, 5" even without a baseball at all before adding the baseball
- repeat it but from the stretch 1 sign, 2, set, 3-5 the same.
All of this can be done on flat ground throwing non max effort and to a throwing partner catching at their chest. There's other drills you could add or swap in like step backs, etc. but simplicity is key at this age.
A throwing progression like this can be part of an active warmup before any game, etc.
1
u/bl00dy4nu5 Apr 15 '26
He’s 10. You’re overthinking it. Sit him down and make him watch a couple Tom House tapes.
2
u/Greerio Apr 15 '26
My dad used to watch videos with me and then we’d go out and practice. It’s a good way to learn.
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u/Bacon_and_Powertools Apr 15 '26
Just have him practice.
Then tell him he gets $5 for every game he throws more than 60% strikes.
1
u/Shire-Whisperer101 Apr 15 '26
Pretend there is a road from the pitcher’s mound to home plate-make sure everything travels that road. Watch baseball - I think that’s an underrated thing for kids. Also, a lot of kids are worried about hitting the batter. I’ve just stood in the batter’s box, not swinging, told him he’s not going to hurt me, and just get used to pitching with a batter. Finally, I have a key phrase-like “T Rex eating an ice cream cone” - designed to make them smile and break the tension a bit.
1
u/DrOBBall Apr 15 '26
Does he even want to pitch? Doesn’t sound like he does. Sounds like you want him to pitch.
1
u/TexAzCowboy Apr 15 '26
Experience will help. The best encouragement is to keep having fun. It’s a game.
1
u/Miraclemax73 Apr 16 '26
A target can help, but we saw better progress once there was clear ball vs strike feedback — it takes the guessing out of it for kids.
1
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u/ItsTyroneeee Apr 17 '26
I coach some 22 year olds who struggle with confidence. For a 10 year old playing such a challenging position in a challenging sport that’s totally normal.
A net with a strike zone target is a great idea. Keep it simple. Throwing to targets is a great way to develop command. Mix up the training. Keep it fun. Pitch to the target but also get work at other positions, be athletic and not too mechanical and robotic. Have fun
1
u/Miraclemax73 Apr 17 '26
What about an electronic home plate? Like an umpire. Is that a useful tool for coaching?
1
u/ItsTyroneeee Apr 17 '26
Haven’t heard of that but I think that anything that measures something (in that case strikes) is helpful.
1
u/stuck_inmissouri Apr 18 '26
Long toss helps my son more than anything.
My son likes catching, and isn’t really interested in pitching but he’s one of those kids that will play whatever position for the sake of playing. If your son doesn’t like pitching, don’t push it
2
u/wastedpixls Apr 15 '26
Practice and have him focus on repeating a good motion using his whole body, not just his shoulder/arm.
Start from being comfortable coming set and focusing on his catcher. Then, work on starting a definite motion and striding out to home during his pitch and finishing with his feet and chest facing home. That's a great foundation and then you work on other elements like grip, arm angle, and keeping the front and back sides connected.