Giving signs from 3rd base

[lynx]

You old school style coaches that still just give signs to hitters/ runners...no wrist bands, numbers ,etc.....would like some simple but effective signs for HS players

 

[quincy]

Pick something on your body, anything is fine. That let's them know the next thing you touch is real. Let's say tugging left ear starts it.

Touching your belt is the universal sign for a bunt. Might be in all the rulebooks but not positive.

Anyways ....

Touch your belt all you want means nothing. Tug left ear then belt in sequence means bunt.

 

[gdc03120]

What I've done in the past is told my girls, for a specific inning, "[Number in order] thing I touch is your signal." So the first inning, this may be the first thing I touch/do to indicate a signal. So if this was in play and belt = bunt, and the first thing I touched was my belt, they knew bunt was on, everything after was meaningless. In other innings, I may switch and say "last thing I touch is the signal". This way your signals stay the same but WHEN they identify it differs. This keeps things pretty straightforward, especially if you have girls that still struggle reading signals or executing.

 

[kennykozman!!]

I have found with younger players to usually give the indicator or sign last......because if you give it first or in the middle many players look away before all the signs are given.

Or you could say RED 321, Yellow 524, Blue 132 on every stinking pitch........guess that's the new way. Drives me bonkers

 

[Butch18507]

I'm not a fan of the wristband method either, it slows the game down in my opinion especially when they are just starting using it. I like to give our catchers and pitchers some independence at the 12U level to start calling pitches. They are used to looking to the dugout so if I want a certain pitch I know I can get it in. Just my opinion though, I know a lot of coaches like them.

 

[Greatdaytobeawildcat]

Open/Indicator (e.g. face)
One touch on torso - bunt
Two touches on torso - steal
Three...etc. (but really, in softball what more is there?)
Close (e.g. leg)
Wipeoff (e.g. arm)

If you don't open or close the sequence, it's nothing. Or if open/close but wipeoff it's nothing.

This is the "even 3rd graders in the DR can understand this" that our college coach used for 25 years.

 

[Hawk_]

So many people are really bad at this. Obvious calls with no indicators (belt bunt) that it drives me nuts. I was stealing signs on the regular, doing nothing with it at a young age, so I wondered how bad I was even with an indicator and switched to numbers.

 

[gdc03120]

Or you could say RED 321, Yellow 524, Blue 132 on every stinking pitch........guess that's the new way. Drives me bonkers

As an umpire, it makes me so annoyed that time is wasted every single pitch having to open/close wristbands, makes sure the right numbers were found, all that garbage. Then coaches get mad at ME for moving the game along (making the girls hustle in/out of the dugouts between innings instead of the lollygagging around) - sorry coach, but I'm going to make sure every possible minute of the game gets played.

 

[Hawk_]

As an umpire, it makes me so annoyed that time is wasted every single pitch having to open/close wristbands, makes sure the right numbers were found, all that garbage. Then coaches get mad at ME for moving the game along (making the girls hustle in/out of the dugouts between innings instead of the lollygagging around) - sorry coach, but I'm going to make sure every possible minute of the game gets played.

You can't tell me that a whole signal routine is faster than numbers.

 

[Cornbread]

Just do the number system unless you want players to miss calls. I’ve done both. Numbers is much more reliable