What is th average speed of a high school varsity pitcher? Just wondering .:dodgy:

one thing to learn right now: Velocity isn't everything. Doesn't necessarily always make you a successful pitcher if you can shove it up there 90 MPH

Depends on the make up of your team and how many pitchers in your district you have to draw from.
88-92 Elite
85-87 Above Average
80-84 Average

I used to recruit for a college and I would say that FirstandTen is very close although the 87+is very rare. 83-86 is your dominate "ace" or #2 while about 78-82 is your norm. Now the big thing that I always bring up is whether or not it is consistent. If a kid touches 88 yet averages 85 he throws 85 consistently (and that is the key word). Our college would receive hundreds of prospective forms saying a player throws 85 but when we'd get him on the radar threw only 81-82. Like darby said velocity itself can wow people but its not what I got excited about...I wanted to know if he could locate it too, if he had a 2nd pitch or an out pitch, was a pitcher or thrower, how was he mentally (how did he respond to failure), etc. These are just a few things to also consider.

80-84 is not average if they can control it--that's above average for high school.

Honestly, average for high school is probably more like 70-75.

Always hear a lot about how hard some high school kids can pitch and then when they get on an accurate gun they're embarrassed. People always overestimate their abilities rather than underestimate.

If you are in Florida the average is close to 86 IMO. There are lots of kids who hit 90+ there. here is another story. I would say the over all average here is 78.

SQ_Crazies, as stated, it all depends on the size of your school district and who you have to draw from. Div. I, 70 - 75 is more in line with Junior High School averages.

^LOL, no it isn't.

But I know where you're coming from, everyone wants to believe they throw harder than they do or they're batting against faster pitching than they are.

Trust me, high school--all around the US, all divisions--average speed falls somewhere between 70-80, and more like 70-75. Again, that's AVERAGE. I suggest you look up the definition of average if you're having a hard time following. Clearly there are guys who throw harder.

SQ_Crazies wrote:
Always hear a lot about how hard some high school kids can pitch and then when they get on an accurate gun they're embarrassed. People always overestimate their abilities rather than underestimate.

Exactly, people just don't realize how rare it is for a kid to throw consistently around 90. The moment they see someone throw above average they just toss out absurd numbers and it is quite funny.

Dominate junk ball pitching is way better than speed.More colleges want these guys as speed pitching is a dime a dozen.

if it is a dime a dozen, why is the average speed in D1 in the mid-80's?

I'm trying to understand this as well......

W8nC wrote: Dominate junk ball pitching is way better than speed.More colleges want these guys as speed pitching is a dime a dozen.

You serious Clark???

if you can't keep junk down anybody can hit it. Trust me. changing speeds and hitting spots wins you games. But overpowering velocity is also nice to have. Doesn't make you everything, but its good to have

A few years back when sonHitsRus played, the best pitcher in the county league threw low-mid 80's. Like Darby said He changed speeds well and could locate. He attracted ZERO D1 or pro interest. ( He ended up playing D3 but not as a pitcher).Another guy who was not nearly as good "pitcher" could touch 90 on the gun, had interest from some pro's who helped line him up at a JC. (he was not a D1 candidate because of academics).
Bottom line...if you want to play upper level college ball or pro, you need to develop the fast ball. That is the pitch that sets up all the others.

and not only develop it but be able to spot it and be able to own the inside part of the plate

My 14 year old already throws mid 80's. My 12 year old throws mid 70's.

Keep him throwing hard...lots of fastballs...and work on his mechanics. I've seen more than one 14yr. old who could throw 80+, never get better.They rest on their laurels because they can throw it past middle school kids. Darby is spot on when he says you have to develop it.

This is why I see many kids struggle is they are just hard throwers and never learn how to actually pitch.

Change speeds and placement!!!