Youth baseball is an excellent opportunity for children to learn the fundamentals of the game in a safe environment. Organizations like Little League not only offer players the chance to participate in games, but a chance to practice regularly prior to and during the season. They do this with an eye on safety, particularly for young pitchers, who must be protected from throwing too many pitches in order to protect their elbows, shoulders, arms, and overall health.
Pitch-Count Limitations
The pitch count was instituted by the Little League organization in 2008 to protect pitchers from overuse. While many individual leagues used their own pitch-count rules prior to 2008, it has become universal since. Pitcher who are 11 and 12 may not throw more than 85 pitches in any outing; 9- and 10-year-olds may not throw more than 75. If an 11-year-old pitcher has thrown 84 pitches and a new hitter is coming to the plate, the pitcher will be allowed to pitch to that batter. If he has thrown 85 pitches, he may not pitch to any more batters.
Pitching Rest
All pitchers need a break from pitching after their game stint on the mound. A pitcher who has thrown 61 or more pitches in a game must rest for the next three calendar days before she may pitch again. So if the pitcher throws 70 pitches on Sunday, she may not pitch again until Thursday. A pitcher who threw 41 to 60 pitches must rest two calendar days, and a pitcher who threw 21 to 40 pitches must rest one day. Pitchers who threw 20 pitches or less may pitch the next day.
Reporting Pitch Counts
In any Little League game, the scorekeepers are responsible for keeping pitch counts and reporting them to the league officials. In many leagues, the visiting team's scorekeeper will keep the official pitch count for the home team and the home team's scorekeeper will keep the pitch count for the visiting team. In most cases, each scorekeeper will compare notes at the end of every half-inning to make sure that both sides are in agreement.
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