another question. my number one pitcher is also my catcher. good catcher - consistant 1.85 - 1.9 to 2nd. nobody runs on him. how do you handle that as far as arm care? ive got a great throwing program - never have hurt arms/missed starts - throwing a catcher in there is a whole new ballgame. we play conference games monday and tuesdays and play at least 2 more games a week. this is high school - a good program in a good league. new situation - help.

My son did both in HS and college. In high school he would catch and pitch in the same week. In college he was used as a catcher/closer as a freshman. As a sophomore he caught all games up until the SEC conf games began and then became a starter on the mound and didn't catch any more games that year.

I know this will be confusing but I'll try to explain.
I don't get involved in coaching but I actually worked out a pitching/catching rotation specifically for my son (I know his recovery etc.) at the insistence of pro scouts. I asked told the coach to use my schedule since I was seeing overuse. Never pitch and catch two complete games in a double header. If you pitch in first game of a double header you can't catch at all in the other. If you catch the first game of a double header he could pitch with a reduced pitch count for game two --- about 50 if I remember right.
Pitch count NEVER to exceed 100. My wife used the counter.
Once you pitch you get 2 days rest before you can catch (rest on day 1 is the bench or DH. On day 2 I allowed him to move to 1b) and four days from his pitching outing before you pitch again. So if he pitched on Monday he would either be on the bench or DH on Tuesday, he could play 1b on Wednesday and he could catch on Thursday and/or Friday and be able to pitch again on Saturday. If his pitching outing was short I would monitor his arm and would allow him to "cycle" faster.
As far as catching/closing I saw no problems with arm fatigue or pain.
A lot depends on the player. My son stuck to his recovery work and never had any arm problems through high school, college or the pros. I think the real key is to monitor the recovery time, demand honest feedback from the player, and never vary from the plan.
Hope this helps,
Fungo

thanks. i was planning on catching him the monday conference game and pitching the tuesday game. if we play on wednesday he was going to dh or play 3rd. thursday games i wasnt sure about. i was wondering if his bullpen schedule should be the same as the other starters offseason/inseason?
the closer thing is an idea....i know etsu had a really good catcher that got drafted that they used as a closer a couple of years ago. ive never been much on closers in high school. ive always felt in high school there is a reason you are a starter or a reliever - results. we've been successful with the complete game thing.
thanks for the reply.

quote:

thanks. i was planning on catching him the monday conference game and pitching the tuesday game.

I dont think this is what Fungo is thinking at all.........his son would pitch and catch in the same week, but with rest in between....

Your plan is over use of his arm...........catching a monday game and then pitching tuesday is overuse.......would you (if the rules allowed, which they DONT) pitch any of your pitchers 2 days in a row?..........

Of course you wouldnt.........

A Catcher throws more times than a pitcher does in a game.....

Re-think this plan.........

Find yourself another #1 catcher or #1 pitcher---it will make life easier all around