MVP Pitching

This Post will be PINNED to the top of my page to live there forever.

Everyone’s obsessed with the radar gun right now. 68…70…72… like that number is the golden ticket. Like if you hit it, everything else just magically falls into place.

It doesn’t.

I just called a game with Duke Blue Devils softball vs Tennessee Volunteers softball and let me tell you something… hitters were sitting on 77 and fouling it off like it was BP. Not guessing. Not late. On it. Because that’s the reality—these hitters see velocity ALL. THE. TIME.

You think your 70 is blowing it by them? It’s not.

Velocity is sexy. I get it. It turns heads. It looks good on social. But if you can’t locate for s**t and you’ve got one speed? You’re getting exposed. Maybe not at 10U… maybe not even at some travel ball tournaments… but step into the college game and it’s a different conversation real quick.

Because the separator isn’t how hard you throw.
It’s how annoying you are to hit.

Can you live on the edges?
Can you make them uncomfortable?
Can you change speeds so well they’re out in front one pitch and late the next?
Can you move the ball instead of just throwing it hard?

That’s the game now. And honestly… it always has been.

I’ve watched elite arms—elite—with ridiculous velo get rocked. Not because they weren’t talented… but because hitters weren’t fooled. Same speed. Same look. Same outcome.

And on the flip side? I’ve seen pitchers who don’t light up a radar gun absolutely carve… because they can spin it, place it, and mess with timing.

Stop chasing a number like it’s the only thing that matters.
It’s not.

Spin.
Location.
Change of speed.
THEN velocity.

If your whole identity is tied to how hard you throw, you’re building on a shaky foundation.

And if someone’s teaching you that velo over everything?
You might wanna rethink who’s guiding you.

Congratulations Ava!! You are going to do amazing at USC!