Knew a baseball kid who quit during a game after the coach got in his face to forcefully tell him why he was costing them the game, tapping him a few times in the sternum for emphasis. Kid calmly gathered up his stuff and walked out. Hissy quits usually happen when emotions are running high. I'm good with this one because the kid had had several 24 hour cool down periods dealing with butthead coach before this tourney. This was the straw that finally broke the camel's back. The kid did have some slight remorse for quitting during the game since it left them one player short, automatic out for his turn at bat that punished his teammates who were still his friends.
POLL~ about QUITING during the...
- Thread starter RADcatcher
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- Apr 14, 2022
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As others have said physical harm, etc yes.
Other than that more than that a probable no. The reason for the no would be teammates and not letting them down.
If the team had subs were they were covered and it was really bad a maybe. Definitely not because of playing time etc.
Other than that more than that a probable no. The reason for the no would be teammates and not letting them down.
If the team had subs were they were covered and it was really bad a maybe. Definitely not because of playing time etc.
Most I have seen have been after the weekend. The soonest was immediately after being eliminated from a national tourney. It was about playing time in the summer. P5 Player who had already graduated, so I guess they decided the travel wasn't worth it for the next month. I felt bad she wasn't playing much but of course was happy my kid was on the field.
The only real hissy-quit I've seen in person was in 14u when a dad pulled his kid out of the dugout mid-game. She was crying about it, obviously not her choice. Dad was upset about playing time, since she was not in the lineup. He didn't know she wasn't feeling well and had asked to sit out the start of the game and was going to go back in the next inning. Oh well.
The only real hissy-quit I've seen in person was in 14u when a dad pulled his kid out of the dugout mid-game. She was crying about it, obviously not her choice. Dad was upset about playing time, since she was not in the lineup. He didn't know she wasn't feeling well and had asked to sit out the start of the game and was going to go back in the next inning. Oh well.
- May 27, 2013
- 2,387
- 113
Saw a college player walk off the field in between innings and leave with whom I assumed was her dad. Not sure what happened but the dad started yelling at the coach and then told the player to grab her stuff and they left.
I have witnessed one situation that would have made me walk with my daughter during a game. This was 10u B softball coach was pissed at a kid who was subbing for them for a looking strike out. Sent the kid to the plate without her bat because she told her she wasn’t going to swing anyway so why bother. Kid was of course in tears. Coach is shockingly still around. If it had been my kid I would have stopped the game and we would have left right then. If I was on the team we would have left probably right then.
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As a high school coach, I have never had a player quit mid game. Have had a couple quit right after.
I agree that there are reasons of safety or abuse to quit mid game or mid tourney. Taking out those extremes, I think parents are getting softer not just players. Having coached for more than a decade of high school sports not just softball, I have had some real winners as parents blame me for their daughters poor self esteem.
I feel that I am a fair coach when it comes to playing time. At the varsity level no one is promised any time. We play to win. Our JV team everyone gets a chance to play in every game (we let juniors play JV). There have been a couple years that we did not have enough players for a JV so playing time was tough to come by for some players. (These also are players that do zero off season work.) So I have dealt with players quitting often.
I agree that there are reasons of safety or abuse to quit mid game or mid tourney. Taking out those extremes, I think parents are getting softer not just players. Having coached for more than a decade of high school sports not just softball, I have had some real winners as parents blame me for their daughters poor self esteem.
I feel that I am a fair coach when it comes to playing time. At the varsity level no one is promised any time. We play to win. Our JV team everyone gets a chance to play in every game (we let juniors play JV). There have been a couple years that we did not have enough players for a JV so playing time was tough to come by for some players. (These also are players that do zero off season work.) So I have dealt with players quitting often.
How is this coach still around? What a loser.
In that situation~
Shouldn't the coach be removed?
The strength of the many remove the individual who is the problem.
This would be the ideal solution, if it is possible. In some cases, especially with rec teams, finding a replacement coach may not be possible. So removing the coach essentially eliminates the entire team. While that may still be the right decision, it is something to consider.
Personally, I never requested to be a coach. When my daughter started rec ball I was contacted by a league representative asking if I would be willing to coach. I resisted at first. A few days later that representative called back stating that they were not going to have a team because no one was willing to coach. I stepped up at that point. I never regretted that decision and actually enjoyed being a coach, but it wasn't my original intent. If I stepped down for any reason, I'm not confident anyone else would have jumped in.
I always see this and the rationale is because we have to "teach commitment", but no where in life is this important. I've never felt the need to take my DDs off a team mid season, but wouldn't hesitate to do so if I thought it were in their best interest. No where in real life do adults show such commitment. It isn't shown in jobs, nor in marriages (I don't need to point out divorce rates). While it may be extreme to say that commitment in marriages doesn't matter, the strength of your DD's marriage isn't going to depend on her ability to tough it out with a 12u coach that doesn't give her playing time.
I'm not saying that the decision to go back on an agreement should be taken lightly. One should of course think through the potential consequences to themselves and to others. But life is too short to blindly imprison yourself in miserable situations just for the sake of teaching commitment.
Top_Notch
Screwball
- Dec 18, 2014
- 522
- 63
At Nationals, 800 miles from home. At the field while awaiting our next game apparently 1 player/family decided they had had enough and were on their way home. Quite the drama, with people chasing and calling everyone. We ended up winning the whole enchilada and that family did return for the next game if I recall. She left the team the following season. We should have too...lol.
<== This signed softball was from that tournament.
<== This signed softball was from that tournament.
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