Fake bunts and walking your way to a win!

[SoftSocDad]

I am not understanding how they won with that many strike outs. What was the score?

Generally, you can't win a game by hoping for walks.

I don't fault the winning coach. Blame the pitcher for that many walks. Do we know how many it was?

Truth.

Different strategies win different games, regardless of the sport.

Better to win this way than on some obscure rule. The girls took advantage of the fact that the other pitchers couldn't throw enough strikes.

I think it's silly to say that the less talented team should've just rolled over and been their sacrificial lamb.

 

[Hoover's Dad]

I dont know how I wrote 16 K's, it was like 11. with the other outs coming from popups, and weak grounder or two. One inning the starting pitcher and relief walked in like 3 runs, then struck out the rest of the batters in the inning. the better looking team hit every ball straight at some one for outs.

If a team is not swinging and missing at pitches, the pitcher has got to pitch dang near perfect.

 

[EP Dad]

I have one DD in softball and she's been 10U now for 3 years and will more to 12's this fall. We've never employed that strategy and don't believe in it. I can't believe anyone wants to win that way. We've got a girl that my kids been playing with the 3 years who when she started she couldn't hit a thing, throw a thing, it was something. No rec experience at all. She now hits for power and plays a mean first base. You don't learn how to hit IMO looking to walk. We teach aggressiveness the plate. When we face lesser pitchers in the fall we tell the hitters to "open up the strikezone" and find something to hit. Walking is boring and you don't learn anything from it. The girls learn real fast that drawing a walk on an "Ace" is ok and good strategy but walking to a pitcher that might throw you one or two strikes a trip and they're only going 35 MPH is a wasted at bat.

Oh, and our pitchers don't walk batters that much so I'd love for the other team to try this.

 

[Ken Krause]

There was a team we used to play years ago that had that philosophy. It worked when they were younger. Their girls would wait for walks, and score on wild pitches, while my girls were up there to hit. We lost some games to them early on. By 14U we were run ruling them, because their girls still couldn't hit and our pitchers could throw strikes. And our girls had learned how to hit by swinging the bat.

As Sluggers said, there are a lot of easier and cheaper ways to get a trophy.

 

[PlanoHeat]

We saw it happen at 10U as well. Team got into the championship by putting the ball into play 1 time in the semifinal game (yes one hit in a 6 run game). They would walk to get on and then steal around since it's so hard to have a dominate catcher at that level in rec ball.

I actually called the coach that they played in the championship and told him to slow down his pitcher who was his DD and take something off it and just throw them meatballs. She did it, the other team got NO hits, they crushed them and all was right in the softball world. Plus it lead to his DD coming to play for us.

I watched the standings this season and that team that walked went 3 and 7 this season. Once the pitchers get to 12 or so and can throw strikes that strategy won't work and by that time the batters who didn't swing are behind the curve. I would pull my daughter from a team that played ball like that win or not.