How many pitchers does a good team need?OPINIONS WANTED

[The Viking]

Just curious what the softball world thinks.How many pitchers does a team need?Is two enough?What if one gets hurt.Three too many as far pitching time goes?Is a three pitcher rotation not enough time for some pitchers?OPINIONS APPRECIATED.......

[watcher]

DD's gold team has 4-5 on any given weekend

[NBMnJMM]

3 is a good number. More than that and you'll quickly find that only three really have a pitching job.

[xxxYerOut]

3 - I agree. It is tough to get by with only 2, especially when you hit the double elim's. If you end up in the loser's bracket early, you will have to have 3. I think we saw a team in 12u Nat's last year that played 5 games in one day (TNT I Think).

[The Viking]

spazs what if it was your dd that was deamed #3 but the team or I should say that the coaches said that there was a 3 rotation but your dd thru obvious play was the 3 would you stick around?Is it about the team or your dd playing time?But the team needed a 3rd that was going to be worked in a 3 pitcher rotation.Is being #3 a reason to be # 1 on a lesser team?Team in the midwest going thru this.

[2bucketdad]

Three is a good number, it gets harder as you go up or down from there...IMO it is hard to keep young pitchers motivated, on improving etc, especially when they are in a comfortable #1 spot
more playing time may be good for one, while working to improve her posisition in the rotation may be better for another. A kid that wants to and is willig to work as hard as it takes to get better is rare at the younger levels...

[softball_parent]

As the parent of a former pitcher you don't get better without game mound time especially at the younger ages. The need to pitch a whole game and work through the problems not get yanked the first time they walk a batter. I saw the same pitcher throw 3 games in a row in 12U and 2 pitchers sit the bench. If there are 3 pitchers, coaches need to make sure in friendlies they all get time and not get so caught up in winning.

[DonnieS]

>> but your dd thru obvious play was the 3 would you stick around?Is <,

Get all the time in the circle you can. The best situation is to play on as good a travel team as you can get on - but also any time that they are not playing, you pitch on any team you can get time on.

[Tucson]

I would say 3 and I am hoping that they are playing other positions. If I hadn't taught DD 1st base and OF, she would have been out of the game at 16. (shoulder injury.)

[artomatic]

3 is a good number, especially here in socal, where you play alot of 3 game friendlies, where each can throw a full game.