[Fastpitchfan]

What is the one most important thing a team has to be able to do to win. Pitch ,hit, field . I know a combination of all three is the ticket but if you had to pick one what would it be. I ask because so many teams fall into the category of leaning on just one of these .

[Panther Thunder]

In my opinion, at the high school softball level, and anything level of baseball or softball, the most important component is pitching.

[Fastpitchfan]

I only asked the question because so many teams out there rely on just 1 of the 3 . Pitching is what I said to . The more I think about it I might be wrong. I think most would say pitching but I think there is an argument for the other 2. I would like to hear more comments about this.

[Johnny_Ringo]

Pitching is great but if you cant hit, you cant score runs. Most teams I have saw throughout the years could not hit a lick. I also think a team that was really good defensively could win a lot of games with just a Lobber. Just someone that threw the ball over the plate legally enough to throw strikes. Make the other teams hit. If you have girls that cant really pitch, just teach them to throw strikes. Almost like Slowpitch but flat. You'd be surprised at how some teams you think are good cant hit slow pitching.

[foxbat]

If you have girls that cant really pitch, just teach them to throw strikes.

If they cant pitch, they cant throw strikes.
Take a look around, Ill bet that you will find the best teams have the best pitching staff. It takes much less time and energy to develop a hitter than a pitcher, not saying that is easy, but it is easier than developing a quality pitching staff.
If you have a team of sluggers with poor pitching facing a team of average batters with excellent pitching, all other things being equal, I believe the team with the better pitchers gets the nod.

All that said, it is best to have a well rounded team if possible.

[Panther Thunder]

I think it is obvious that if you have one really good aspect and 2 poor, you are not going to be ultra-successful. No one is saying, "Well, if you give me Jennie Finch and 8 scrubs, I will win Olympic Gold." Other aspects are vital to a team's success, but IMO, the most critical to determine the great from the good is elite pitching.

[Bobsoftball]

Pitching, if you have somebody that strikes a lot of people out and no walks, your team doesn't need a great defense.

[Fastpitchfan]

The team that wins must score the most points . Most teams have 1 out the 3 they do pretty well , few teams do it all well . The bigger schools in the best regions are closer to doing it all well , but there is all ways a winner in there games, and it is always the team with the most points. Great pitching can shut down a great hitting but so can great defense , great hitting can beat great pitching . I guess I'm stuck on being descent at all three will probly go the farthest and the best programs are working hard to get better in all 3.

[blaze9]

Quality pitching is most critical, followed by speed. Speed puts so much pressure on the defense, they make mistakes. Throw strikes. Force mistakes by the defense, leads to producing runs.

[cksportsfan]

In softball, you must have pitching first.

Look at All-Area, (-District, -Region, -State) Teams. More often than not, a pitcher is in the top two spots.

You can get around a speedy centerfielder (bunt) or a slugging third baseman (walk her). A good pitcher is unavoidable.

Great pitchers make horrible teams respectable (in my area in the last 10 years or so, Whitney Valentine of Elizabethtown and Andrea "Andi" Whelan of North Hardin single-handedly made their teams respectable because they owned hitters (10Ks per game, ERAs less than 1).

Good luck finding a team that doesn't average more than 1 run per game.

Second would be defense. In the past few years, Green County and Meade County were always in the top 25. Neither team is great offensively 1-9.

Third is batting. I've seen teams, often several a year, win with fewer than four hits. However, I've seen FAR FAR FAR FAR more have 5-6-7-8 hits and still lose (because of errors they made, walks they allowed or the fact they have a worse pitcher or are facing a better-hitting team).

[Fastpitchfan]

Some very good points cksportsfan but I was not talking about walking runs in . I was talking about a decent pitchers that couldn't shut down a offence , I think there are far more good pitchers that keep you in the game than pitchers that control the game . I think there is a lot of pressure put on some pitcher because of poor hitting and poor defense. I know it's easier for a pitcher to perform when she knows she's got a defense behind her and her team can and will score some runs . You are right dominant pitching is the ticket but most teams don't have that.

[Johnny_Ringo]

Well foxbat, I don't know if you ever played any slowpitch softball before but you can throw a real flat pitch for a strike all day long without doing all the windmill pitching. Some coaches come in and coach at programs that don't have a pitcher at all. But however had really good defensive players. But they get beat to death because their pitcher that has never pitched in her life is up there trying to throw hit out of the windmill. Girls have to start pitching at such a young age. If you can make teams swing the bats and not be up there to take walks, you can win more games. Some girls cant do nothing but bunt. Cant swing the bat with any power to hit it anywhere. YOU CAN THROW STRIKES if you keep one foot on the mound and step forward with the other foot. You can even put a little heat on it at times. It takes so long to develop a good dominate pitcher. But yes if you do have a dominant pitcher, it just makes everything much better. If you are a coach, you better find you some 3rd grade girls and start working them right now if you want them to learn how to pitch the proper way. But if you are in a spot and don't have a real pitcher, just step forward and bowl it over. Perfectly legal.

[foxbat]

If you are a coach, you better find you some 3rd grade girls and start working them right now if you want them to learn how to pitch the proper way.

I couldnt agree more.

Can you play ball with a pitcher that just throws the ball over? Yes, but you won't win games. If I was coaching against that pitcher I would dare my players to swing, when they did it would be a bunt, once the corners stay pulled in and with slow pitches coming to the plate I would steal bases the whole game. My guess is I would win just based on walked in runs.

Im not saying you have to have a dominant pitcher to be competitive, but by having one you will be competitive, even with weaker bats.

That being said, defense and speed are critical too. Fastpitch softball is small ball and smart base running. I think sometimes we like to think of it as baseball with shorter bases.

[outsidein]

I don't think there is a correct answer for this question..... There all important .... attitude is important ... discipline is important ... mental game is important .... shoot there are a ton of things that are important ... attitude and work ethic will make the difference in her... I don't think pitching or hitting or defense wins ball games .... it can determine ball games ... these three things are the results from other factors .... Just my thought

[Ball 1]

The girls have to get along for it to work, on the field anyways!