As a pitcher, I have had many comments said to me. Whether it's in a game that your team is dominating or a close game there are a few phrases that you should steer clear from saying. The following phrases are more likely to make your pitcher angry than they are to help even if you mean well.
1. Don't lose her!
If the count is 3-0 or 3-1, do you honestly think your pitcher meant to be in that situation? Nine times out of 10, no, they didn't plan that. They don't want to walk the batter just as bad, if not worse, than you do. Don't tell her to not lose her; instead, tell her she's got this!
2. Just throw it in there!
If it was that easy, everyone would be a pitcher, but they aren't. Sometimes a pitchers arm doesn't bounce back, it happens. Pitchers are going to have bad days just like everyone else. It's not as easy as we make it look okay? If we could "just throw it in there" we probably would don't ya think?
3. Just blow it past her.
There is so many things wrong with this statement. Number one, pitching is about hitting your spots. The batter may not be the strongest hitter on the team but anyone who's decent can hit a fastball. Not only that but don't you think that's what every pitcher is trying to do for every batter? Just saying.
4. Rock 'n fire.
Come on now. Every pitcher I know is trying to throw as hard as they can on every pitch. It's not like we can just magically throw 65 miles per hour. There is more that goes into pitching then people realize. Don't tell us to just rock 'n fire because it's a lot more complicated than that.
5. Just throw strikes.
Yes, as pitchers we get that. We want to throw strikes more then you know. That's our goal too. We don't want to walk people either but sometimes it happens. It's not like we are trying to just give free bases or up our pitch count. Typically pitchers want to win more then anyone else on the field, so yes we are doing our best to throw strikes without them hitting the ball hard.
Pitchers do their best every single day. They do not want to lose whatsoever. So next time you're about to say one of these sayings please think twice. We work hard every single day to be the best for our players, coaches and fans. Reinforce your pitchers with positive sayings like "you got this" or "play your game" instead of "just throw it in there." Your pitcher will appreciate it and his or her performance may show to be better with the positive reinforcement.
