The K Zone Inc.

One of my girls gave me this tonight, you think they are trying to tell me something?

Congratulations to Scarlett Clark in throwing a Shut Out and in hitting a Homerun today!

I am coaching one of the High School teams "The Green Team" looks like a fun day!

Good Morning Softball Community!!

The schedule for the 3rd annual Colorado Fastpitch Draft is LIVE!!!

Find the schedule and brackets and follow along here: https://tourneymachine.com/R184660

As a reminder we will be streaming and scoring all games on GameChanger Events. So if you can volunteer to stream and/or score for your team please let your coaches know!!

By this time, you all should have access to your team's Group Chat on Sports Engine and heard from your Draft Coach!

We will have multiple vendors on-site including food, coffee, hair braiding (you can add your teams colors!), a nail booth, clothing, and equipment! So during your breaks you can check out our local businesses and grab some yummy snacks!

As usual, we will be holding a 50/50 Cash Raffle! We will be making announcements throughout the day.

In addition we will be having a TikTok competition! Can be with your team or any players/coaches/parents. Winners will receive a gift card!

Also don't forget to sign up for our HOMERUN DERBY!! Each player will get 10 balls thrown by our very own Draft coaches! The players from each division to hit the most homeruns will receive a brand new bat!!! 14U and HS have their own dedicated times. 12U can show up for either times and we will announce the winner at the end of the day!

Register for the Derby here:
https://coloradofastpitchdraft.sportngin.com/register/form/793823953

ALL ORDERS for Draft gear are due by Sunday night!!! So if you'd like to rep your team's colors or just have some swag to show off throughout the year don't wait! All orders will be with your coaches come Saturday Morning for pick up!!

Draft Store:
https://colosports.chipply.com/cofastpitchdraft26/?action=viewall

More info to come out next week!!!

We're so close, it's getting exciting!!

Shout out to Grace Becker in throwing a Shut Out at the Triple Crown Nationals in St. Loius, MO. yesterday.

Thoughts from a pitching coach as the season is beginning to wind down. These are thoughts from watching both players who I do know & do not know, so I’ll try to keep it unbiased. 😉

1. Girls who have heavily relied on speed through 12u & below are now getting LIT UPPPP in 14U. This is where I noticed the biggest bridge between age groups. There is a LOT of maturing & growing between 12u to 14u, & more often than not, 14u is when girls who really don’t love it start quitting. So you are going to play against some good girls and some BIG girls moving into 14u, & you have to know how to work the zone. You can absolutely still throw your fastball from time to time. BUT, you better have pinpoint location & accuracy with it. I LOVE speed. Who doesn’t. My goal is that we can someday have all of my pitchers throwing in the 60s. BUT, it literally does nothing in older age groups if you don’t have the spin & spot placement to go with it. & that 57 mph that was fast at 40 feet in 12U? Yeah, it’s not fast any more at 43 feet. Feels pretty average. So learn to do something else that’s above average. Speed, spin, & location. & do your research on what spin actually is, because it’s not “move your hand like this to make the ball go this way.” I can’t tell you how many times I get girls who tell me they throw a curve & it literally just goes to the outside. Their eyes are huge when I teach them how to actually spin it & they see the true movement for the first time.

2. Fellow pitching coaches, talk with your girls about spot placement & where to throw in certain situations. There is so much more to it than just being able to throw the ball. I have seen WAY too many balls being hit on 0-2 & 1-2 counts. I don’t want a hitter to TOUCH a ball 0-2 or 1-2. Talk to them about when to throw a change-up, when you shouldn’t pitch inside to a batter, how to work an umpire’s zone, etc. This is also a great conversation for catchers & coaches to be a part of.

3. Coaches, talk with your pitchers about where they need to be in certain situations. From ages 10u-14u the past couple of months, I have seen WAY too many runners score due to a ball being thrown past 3rd or home, & nobody being there to back it up. Sometimes, it differs from team to team, but generally, the pitcher backs up throws from the outfield to third or home. I also saw several runners advance from 1st to 3rd on bunts due to no one covering 3rd when every one crashed. The point is: pitchers, you CAN leave the circle.

4. Pitchers, MAKE SURE YOU ARE GETTING A GOOD WARM UP IN! Coaches, BE SURE YOU ARE GIVING PITCHERS ENOUGH TIME TO WARM UP. This is one of the most overlooked things, & it’ll probably be its own post in the future. But I truly believe that 90% of bad first innings could be avoided with a better warm up. (Learned it the hard way in my career). Coaches, if there’s any chance AT ALL that you might need someone else to go into pitch, at least make sure they also warm up before the game. Also, be sure that you have someone on standby to quickly warm them up if time comes where it’s needed. If you don’t have an extra player, talk with a team parent before the game & ask if they can help if needed.

5. Pitchers, find the optimism in every situation. I know things suck sometimes, but it helps nothing to show that you’re upset. If you give up a base hit, good, you’re throwing strikes, now think about where you threw that pitch & throw the next one where she can’t get her bat on it. If a teammate makes an error behind you, good, you’re throwing pitches to get ground balls & pop ups. Keep doing your job. If you get pulled out of a game, great, you’ve got time to rest, reset, & come back stronger for the next game. Find the positivity in everything when you’re on the field. Positivity & confidence go hand in hand.