When success shows up....

[MikeP]

Just my opinion, but there’s no need to jump to A until 14U. I would stick with the good coaching as long as your DD is improving.

It's not that we necessarily want to jump to A, the lack of dedication by other people gets old but she is definitely getting good coaching. We have a lot of ball to play this season so I'm sure some issues will resolve on their own.

 

[_MIA_]

When we 1st joined the org the coaches tried to change a few things with my DD's swing which wouldn't matter in the long run. When I saw this I went over to them and explained what we were working on and why we working on it. To their credit, they have largely left her alone from that point on. I remind them once in a while what it is they should be looking for with regards to what she is doing with them in BP/games so they remind her without Dad hovering. Admittedly they trust my judgement (for various reasons) so I am not sure how this would work for other parents/coaches but it is probably worth a try.

 

[Lemond]

I don’t know if I’ve ever mentioned this here, but DD has never gone to a private instructor in her life. At 10-12U played for a great coach who taught her fundamentals, catching and a lot of situational stuff. During this time I found DFP. I started asking questions. A long time member here befriended and me and helped me understand some of the intricacies of a high level swing. He even went so far as to make an instructional video for DD. I really dove in to learning all I could about hitting and catching, so I could separate good instruction from bad.

I don't know, but sounds like your DD had a great private instructor with 24/7 access!

I would be more inclined to trust my DD to a coach/instructor who was a continuing student of the game, than someone who just played back in the day and froze their learning to that time.

 

[CoachYodaD]

One of my favorites:
"Coach, why are you trying to change my daughter's swing? She hits bombs to the fence."
No sir, your daughter hits knee-high fastballs to the fence. Anything belt high or above is an out.
"This is how her hitting coach is instructing her. He wants her launch angle at 45%."
Great. She is doing that. Perhaps you should ask her hitting coach if she is supposed to use the lower half of her body. She swings all arms right now.
"I will ask, but please don't change anything. We are paying for an instructor."
Ok.
Fast forward to mid-season and we have a parent meeting to talk about playtime.
"Coach, I am concerned about my daughter's playtime. She is a very strong hitter and I don't think you are giving her a fair shot to show you what she is capable of."
I understand your concerns. Your daughter got one hit in our first three games in the 4 spot, and no hits when we moved her to the 6 hole.
"She hits the ball hard almost every at bat."
Yes sir, she makes contact, but she pops it up. The other times she hit weak grounders, or struck out.
"You don't know what you're talking about. I have been keeping her stats ever since she was little. She is batting 400 which is a lot better than (insert player name here)."
Fielder's choice and errors do not count as hits sir. But I will go back and check our books to make sure.
"No, don't bother. We are going to move schools next year anyway."
Ok.

My biggest struggle these past few years are with the immediacy in which athletes and parents need to see results. For example, girl comes to a program/team and she is pitching with HE and is 60% effective. Now, coach tries to help the athlete by teaching her IR and her success drops to 30%. They (athlete and/or parent ) are upset about the recent change in effectiveness without realizing the growth period as the brain and body adapt to the new system. This creates resistance to change, even though the change is the most desirable for future growth and improvement.

 

[radness]

Great point coachyoda
" the immediacy in which_______to see results"
You wrote the point making a change... regarding development over time.

*This post regarding tryouts.

It would be appropriate to acknowledge talent at a tryout!
Rather than make an adjustment.
"LIKE" that in your post
commented it can have adverse affect at first and take time for that adjustment to then take affect?
*To coachyoda point making a change may counter effect a current result at first.

Need time/training with to see if it may or may not eventually help.

Plus comming to a tryout is NOT
"Hi our kid is successful. We came here so you can change her great results."
*Its to check eachother out!

Lol,
how would that be if a player told the coach
" coach your running your infield drill wrong"
Seriously some players showing up have more gathered knowledge than some coaches....simply because of being exposed to more softball clinics other coaches and private instruction.
Just saying....
Coaches dont like parents pointing out what they think coach is doing wrong.
How do those coaches think it comes across to people who are successful?
No one i know stays with a team with this tryout scenario.

Think its best to start with positive. !!!!

 

[Rick M]

I’ve seen coaches who don’t instruct players who make errors. “That’s OK, good try, you’ll get the next one”... But will talk for 5 minutes to a kid who made the play, but he thinks it could have been done better.

DD's coach does this a lot, and I think it has to do with a player's frame of mind after making (or not making) a play. A kid who made the play is generally going to be more receptive to input than one who just made an error. The kid who made an error is feeling bad, and doesn't need the coach to point out what she did wrong. She needs a lift --"it's okay."

The kid who made the play is feeling good about herself, and can take some feedback for what it is: advice on how to perform better and not just a criticism. It's opportunistic coaching. I think the worst dressing-down DD ever got from her coach was in the middle of a no-hitter. On 0-2, she threw a pitch right down Broadway which, luckily, was fouled off. "You CAN NOT throw there on oh-and-two! Use your head!!" her coach screamed from the dugout

As for the original topic, no coach at a tryout is trying to fix a kid's swing or her pitching mechanics. If they ask a player to do something different, they're trying to gauge her ability to take some direction and put it into practice.

 

[CoachKevin]

It's just not TB.... seen College coaches do exactly the same thing. A few years ago player had one of the worse swings I've seen in a long time, she hit .400 + with 8 HR that summer.... plays for a pretty successful DIII school, coach doesn't like her swing and changes it. She comes back to us the next summer and hits a whopping .200 with 0 HR, but her swing looked pretty.... so yeah

 

[radness]

Pardon ?...@Rick M
A Coach/person saying to another person/player
"you are doing it wrong"
And then telling them
" Do it this way"
is a direct statement made to change what they are doing!

It happens & it happens again to others!


To the first explanation in your post...
? Why should a coach speak to the successful play one way...and the error another?
Ease pressure vs. create pressure?
How would it be when the successful athletes recognize the other player its okay to suck. And themselves get the pressure after doing their job?
Thats just interpreting possible mindsets.
Imo,
Standards should be equal.
The bar is set the same. Teach all moments at appropriate times. Doesnt have to be right after a play.
Equal praise and support!

 

[CoachYodaD]

Great point coachyoda
" the immediacy in which_______to see results"
You wrote the point making a change... regarding development over time.

*This post regarding tryouts.

Wouldnt it be appropriate to acknowledge talent at a tryout?
Rather than make an adjustment that in your post
commented it can have adverse affect at first and take time for that adjustment to then take affect?
*To coachyoda point making a change may counter effect a current result at first.

Need time/training with to see if it may or may not eventually help.

Plus comming to a tryout is NOT
"Hi our kid is successful. We came here so you can change her great results."
*Its to check eachother out!

Lol,
how would that be if a player told the coach
" coach your running your infield drill wrong"
Seriously some players showing up have more gathered knowledge than some coaches....simply because of being exposed to more softball clinics other coaches and private instruction.
Just saying....
Coaches dont like parents pointing out what they think coach is doing wrong.
How do those coaches think it comes across to people who are successful?
No one i know stays with a team with this tryout scenario.

Think its best to start with positive. !!!!

My post was more in line with what I thought the latter part of the discussion turned to. Where others were talking about coaches changing players.

In regards to the original point. I do not do any "coaching" during tryouts. I will re-instruct what I am looking for, but I don't explain any technique or way to accomplish the task. After the tryout, when I am selecting the team, I will have a conversation with both the player and the parent about what I saw, and whether or not it needs to be adjusted. This gives me better insight as to how receptive the parents are and the player. Very important information before the season begins.

 

[RedeemerKing]

We have a somewhat standard rule, try everything. You never actually know where a small tidbit of advice or instruction could come from, and sometimes small things can have big results for different girls in different ways. So give it an honest try, what's the worst that can happen? Is trying something new for 30 minutes seriously going to forever change their swing, or their pitching? If so, their fundamentals aren't set in firm enough.

After being in TB for a few years, private lessons for pitching and hitting for a while, we're just now getting to the Jr High softball scene. First practice, 8th grade coach (not even DD's own 7th grade coach) tries changing the way she swings. She came home mad that he was trying to change it. I agreed with her in the fact that what he was trying to do went against several things private coach had been working on for past few weeks. She said she smiled, did what he said, and waited until he walked away and went back to normal, so she could talk to me about implementing school coaches changes first.

First, I don't agree with him making changes literally on his first look at her, and/or without asking why she may be doing exactly what she was doing. Second, I don't agree with exactly what he wants her to do (bat path down toward ball in this instance). He has no idea that over the past three years she's historically hit down on the ball and we're working to bring her bat path to a slightly positive angle to get the ball up more. So right now she's been exaggerating the upward path when on a tee in hope to find a middle ground against live pitching. But he hasn't got that far yet, this was first practice, double tee work with second tee lower than first ball and she wasn't hitting the second one.

But that's not to say that he won't have some piece of advice along the way that could help, maybe if even just a small tweek that helps her swing, So I don't want her to totally dismiss her coach. I want her to try what he's suggesting, and see for herself what the results are. If it helps, then great. If results are poor, then we'll appease him by trying but still not making permanent changes. If a 20 min tee station breaks her swing then I have bigger problems anyway.

Coach is advocating bat path down and the double tee drill? Run the opposite direction and don’t look back!