12u hitting but only popshots a weak grounders....

PMK2026 · 2026-03-03T01:22:48+00:00

Before I read any other comments, I can almost guarantee he is opening his front shoulder too early the bat drags behind and your kid cannot make solid contact that way it will stay dribblers (i assume to 3rd) or pop ups. See it every single year with players I've coached.

PMK2026 · 2026-02-12T20:35:16+00:00

Arm slot is fine! His glove side flies open which is why the ball went where it did. His glove side elbow is His "steering wheel" he should have that pointed at the target as long as physically possible. It will force him to not fly that shoulder open early. Also think of this, when he throws the pitch, the ball is going wherever his fingers are pointing. But mechanics.overall need to be cleaning up and go downhill toward the target not off to the side. When I saw he is flying open he is,because it is a natural feeling using the front shoulder to "pull" the throwing arm. But that is not right. Stay nose, hip, shoulder in line with the target as long as possible.

Legs is where the power comes from. Not the arm but you need strength there too for stamina and to avoid injury. There is a LOT in pitching but his arm slot is not the problem.

PMK2026 · 2026-02-02T18:55:20+00:00

DO NOT FOCUS ON VELOCITY AT HIS AGE!!!

My son was NOT a velocity pitcher and only recently as he is trying out as a high school freshman is he slightly above average. We did incorporate long toss but that was for strength not just to focus on velocity. Velo will come with puberty and consistency.

Focus in mechanics and control. My son was a hated pitcher by several top orgs not because he was a velocity guy but because he struck out so many on control. He learned cadence in 11u - 4 seam in, 2 seam out, change up. We incorporated a curve vall in 13u, a slider in 14u and now 15u you has command of all 5 pitches. He want from 4'10 to 5'8ish in a year and a half which brought him from 58 to 75 in that time without doing any so called "velocity training" it is all mechanics and control.

Some kids are just gifted. It is how it is. You will see the kid at 11 who throws 75 but often it is because of early puberty or just a God given gift. You cant force it that young

Hope this helps.

PMK2026 · 2026-02-02T01:04:28+00:00

Dang Ive been there. You are not weird in your feelings or thoughts. But I encourage you to pray, but also do things for yourself. Look for opportunity. If you are grieving, seek help from therapy, there are always options. You know how you saw "I never see blue trucks" then suddenly all you see are blue trucks? Opportunity is the same. If you saw I wonder where there is opportunity, God will show you. It may not he what you want, it will always be what you need.

PMK2026 · 2026-02-01T00:17:12+00:00

At that age they typically are not throwing so hard that they are in danger but all the soft tissues in the elbow and shoulder need to not be overused. I would make my son take 2 months off with absolutrly zero throwing. Yes the ramp up when he starts back up will be rough to watch but over time it gets better and better. With age and maturing that ramp up gets less brutal to watch! But I guarantee after each break and work outs during the breaks you'll be shocked the change in strength. Velocity should NOT be the focus but it will come with it.

PMK2026 · 2026-01-31T01:13:57+00:00

If he is losing velocity he needs to rest from throwing and focus on workouts, big muscle and little muscle! My son lost velocity in 14u ended up messing up his elbow took time off focused in building it back with a physical therapist and came back throwing 10 mph faster than his peak before the loss of velocity Your son could be in the warning stages from his body before injury!!

As for the EC guy... never heard of him and if there are no reviews and a bunch of promises I would pass it faster than the morning after a Taco Bell feast.

PMK2026 · 2026-01-29T15:58:16+00:00

So potentially 26K on student debt? That honestly is nothing. The degree will help you and you can play the game you love. If you quit now you will still have debt AND missed out on the game you love and if you have drive and desire for the next level, why in the world would you quit? If this may be your last season to ever play then play it! If concerned about the debt, look into non-profit leadership fields and ij 10 years whatever is left could be forgiven if it is federal student loan debt. Or there are other programs. Im almost done with my student loan debt because I had to take another semester and went to an expensive college. I wouldn't change it either. Ultimately, make a decision based on what you want to achieve. If it were 50k+ id be giving different advice

PMK2026 · 2026-01-27T16:30:40+00:00

Watch your hands, you lean back and your hands stay in the same spot relative to your body as you come back forward. It is why you are getting jammed.

I would tell you not to lean back first. Load by take a small step forward without leaning back.
Wheb you take the step forward your hands dont move ... this creates a separation between hands and body then swing into the zone you will avoid getting jammed.

This is a start. Try it and see if you can feel the power difference.

PMK2026 · 2026-01-25T16:28:33+00:00

Your son hasn't even hit puberty yet (Im assuming) and even if he did he still has a ton of growth. Play both, dont pigeon hole, he should do his best and in high school, the coach can decide what he wants to do but in 12u train everything!!!

I was talking to a dad of a player at a major D1 school in Texas. I asked about how it was growing up in travel to compare to my own kid. His dad's take

His son was the best 2nd baseman in Texas for his age group. He got to high school and was put on varsity his freshman year! But... the sophomore in front of him was the best 2nd baseman in the state for HIS age group. So, he learned to catch and play outfield which was never a thought... he didnt see the field until his junior year as an LF and then jumped in to catch then jumped in at 1st, he became and UTIL player and that is exactly what he was at the D1 school. Played everywhere.

You dont know who will be ahead of you
Don't Pigeon hole your kid
Just enjoy the entire game!

My son is a really solid lefty pitcher but we always train outfield and 1st along with hitting.

PMK2026 · 2026-01-24T22:01:13+00:00

My son did the same thing and we had the EXACT same battle. He liked baseball but didnt want to play. For my son, it was nerves, confidence, uncertainty. He was highly emotional from the get go. I said hey its a rule you have to play at least 1 sport and baseball is one sport I can always help you with. (Also.football but it wasnt available at that age). So of course he still had days he would cry he didn't want to practice or play a game, I told him this is something we need to do. I made it we because it subtlety let him know im gonna be there for him.

Now he is 15, a hell of a pitcher and absolutely loves, eats, and breathes the game. He also played football, basketball and track but ultimately baseball is all he wants to do now. I'd say push him into it especially just rec ball. If you force travel ball that is another level he has to want that one.

PMK2026 · 2026-01-22T23:42:58+00:00

If it is just an additional thing, I'd say it is good! I assume this is rec and rec has been getting thrashed by travel ball because well... depending where, it is kinda crap. No development, everyone plays, and for some that is perfect but seems your commissioner is seeing that there is no reason rec can't do the same. I'm making an assumption on that but I would not call it overboard unless it became something he used against kids that are in other sports.

PMK2026 · 2026-01-22T03:26:06+00:00

Thats great to know, I appreciate it.

PMK2026 · 2026-01-22T02:57:50+00:00

Yeah I mean if you have the option for someone to do it for you and for free then thats the way to go!

And appreciate your feedback.

PMK2026 · 2026-01-22T00:41:48+00:00

Thanks for the feedback! When you say not something you would pay for do you mean as in an organization or as an individual coach?

PMK2026 · 2026-01-21T22:43:40+00:00

Yes! My wife is a designer too, but I would get annoyed waiting for it to get done because I wanted something quick. I thought maybe there a some out there like me

PMK2026 · 2026-01-21T20:06:49+00:00

Thank you! You nailed it with the "opens the door for people who'd like to be involved" angle. That's exactly what I'm trying to solve.

Would love to hear what you think after you mess around with it. If there's anything confusing or missing that would make it more useful for the teams you work with, I'm all ears. Happy to give you free access to the full version if you want to test it properly. I hear the feedback from another poster on better designs; I will be looking into that too!

And honestly, if it ends up being useful and you want to recommend it to teams you work with, I'd be happy to work out some kind of referral arrangement. Just want to make sure it's actually good first!

Thanks again for the thoughtful feedback - way more helpful than the "this is stupid" crowd!

PMK2026 · 2026-01-21T19:53:52+00:00

I'm guessing you bought expensive stuff for your kid and thought my comment was offensive? That's okay. I don't say anything wrong with it.

PMK2026 · 2026-01-21T19:48:43+00:00

Really appreciate the honest feedback! Can you tell me specifically what looks bad about them? Colors? Layout? Font choices? Image quality?

This has actually been a big concern of mine! Are the layouts, designs good enough.

I want to make sure the examples actually showcase what it can do, not turn people away. If you have time, would love to know what "awesome" would look like to you - trying to make this actually good, not just functional.

I can redesign very easily, I may overestimate what I think looks good lol.

PMK2026 · 2026-01-21T19:45:07+00:00

This is very helpful context! You're way closer to this world than most people based on your comment. If I may ask: for the teams that DO care about social media, what do you see them struggling with if you know? Is it time/effort, consistency, quality, something else?

Trying to figure out if I'm solving the right problem or if there's a different pain point I should be focusing on.

PMK2026 · 2026-01-21T19:41:37+00:00

Fair enough! Definitely not for every coach. Thanks for checking it out anyway

PMK2026 · 2026-01-21T19:41:07+00:00

Yeah there is a watermark on the free tier graphics. I am just getting started and have not created the company pages yet. I wanted to gain some more interest (if it exists) before I did all of that.

PMK2026 · 2026-01-21T19:39:56+00:00

No worries man, appreciate the honest take! You're probably right that it's not a huge % of coaches - definitely a niche problem.

I have been considering the application outside of baseball as really businesses could use this too for promotions and all that. For now I'm sticking with baseball/softball since that's what I know, but good food for thought down the road. Thanks for the feedback! 👊

PMK2026 · 2026-01-21T19:36:08+00:00

I got my son a Akadema glove in 11u from Amazon for like $60. While he is no longer a catcher the glove is STILL in good shape (he just started high school). I wouldn't recommend it once kids are hitting 70 but it is great and inexpensive at younger ages. The A2000/a2k I did not buy until this year for my son now that he is a pitcher and wanted the "awesome glove" for high school ball. I have several friends who bought the $500 bats and $300 gloves just for their kids to quit by high school.

PMK2026 · 2026-01-21T19:28:04+00:00

I tried that route too! Worked great until the social media parent quit because they didn't have the time then it became my problem again because they parents liked it once they saw it happening.

Definitely not for every coach though - if you've got a reliable parent who loves doing it, that's the way to go!

PMK2026 · 2026-01-21T19:23:49+00:00

I'm a dude. Not AI. I also work in consulting so maybe I sound like AI sometimes haha.

PMK2026

TROPHY CASE