Posted by: daw (daw72756@comcast.net) on Wed Jun 13 13:28:01 2007

> How young is too young for a kid to start receiving training from someone other than a relative in the back yard. This would be like going to a certified or at least very qualified individual.
>
> I see many High school athletes that get trained in the wrong way by a coach that doesn't have a great track record for developing players.


I have worked with these mechanics the past five years with a fastpitch softball team. We started out 10U and are now 16U. In my opinion, the younger these mechanics are taught the better, assuming a qualified coach willing and able to effectively deal with younger kids. Ideally, these would be the first mechanics ever taught. My daughter picked them right up at age 9, I think because she hadn't been taught anything different. Conversely, even by age 11 or 12, kids with linear swings have shown lots of trouble converting, especially under the stress of games.