End of season parent complaints!

[BB875]

Here is my opinion on pick up players. I play them without fail like any other full time kid. Pick up players (and families) have given up their weekend to come and help out your TB team. Period. Seriously, if you need a fill-in player its because a full time player has put some other commitment ahead of your TB team. So, you do what you have to do to field a team & be gracious about it.

I have had many many pick up players through the years and four of them are now full time players for our team. Another kid, a real stud catcher, filled in back in July and I got a text from her dad inquiring about upcoming try-outs... Treat the kids/parents good and they will treat you the same.

I really don't care if parents have a problem with it or not. If the pick up player is good enough for you to ask her, then she's good enough to play.

 

[FrozenRope]

Here's my thoughts on pick up players. Some will like it, some will not. If my full time left fielder is out on vacation or is hurt... I pick up a player to fill that void. I don't go out and pick up a stud shortstop and put my regular shortstop in left field mid season. If it's a competition for the spot during the normal tryout period and someone beats your kid out... OK. Good for them. But if your kid put in the time, and was there for every practice, and all of a sudden in a weedend tournament, she's bumped by a sub. Sorry, I'm an unhappy parent as well. Just like anything else in the world, loyalty and integrity come into play here. This kind of coaching can destroy teams. PERIOD. It proves to EVERY parent on the team that winning is EVERYTHING.

 

[DD11]

Here is my opinion on pick up players. I play them without fail like any other full time kid. Pick up players (and families) have given up their weekend to come and help out your TB team. Period. Seriously, if you need a fill-in player its because a full time player has put some other commitment ahead of your TB team. So, you do what you have to do to field a team & be gracious about it.

I have had many many pick up players through the years and four of them are now full time players for our team. Another kid, a real stud catcher, filled in back in July and I got a text from her dad inquiring about upcoming try-outs... Treat the kids/parents good and they will treat you the same.

I really don't care if parents have a problem with it or not. If the pick up player is good enough for you to ask her, then she's good enough to play.

I'm sure parents and players appreciate showing up at every practice and being the first one to the field and then having to sit out because you think someone is better than them. Bet that works for you - long term.

 

[Perfect Circle]

Forget Complaints... Keep a list of things you don't like. Then make sure next year, that you find a team that will only have less than 50% of the stuff to have to write down for the next year.

 

[Coach-n-Dad]

I'm sure parents and players appreciate showing up at every practice and being the first one to the field and then having to sit out because you think someone is better than them. Bet that works for you - long term.

There are 2 sides to that coin... A couple of weeks ago DD was asked to pitch for a team on Sunday. Saturday the only pitcher threw all 3 games and the team was in last place in their pool.

DD was called late Saturday to play for this team, she got up at 4am on her "day off" and we drove for over an hour to be early. DD sat on the bench for 4 innings of a 5 inning game, coming in with a 4 run deficit. It was too late for the win.

Being the first one to the field on her day off then having to sit out because the coach didn't think it was fair to start a pick-up player really worked out well.

 

[CoogansBluff]

Being the first one to the field on her day off then having to sit out because the coach didn't think it was fair to start a pick-up player really worked out well.

Yes, but the real problem here is communication, not player usage, IMO

- Did the coach say he would use her in a certain way and not deliver? Coach's fault.
- Did he not say how she would be used? Coach's fault, but some parent/DD responsibility here also to ask.
- Did he say she might not play, especially if the team played only one game? Parent/DD responsibility.

There will be no problem w/ pickup players if the coach lets everybody know the role of the pickup player ahead of time, and then sticks to the gameplan.

Well, I should add that there will be no problem if the coach can persuade the parents that the pickup player's role is a 'fair' one. It's not that hard, IMO.

 

[CycloneSoftball22]

I have pretty much just made it my policy to not have pick up players unless the team is truly shorthanded.