POLL~ about WINNING

[RADcatchers]

Set the stage...

You are checking out a team to play for. Maybe it's a pre-season meeting with coach for school ball with everybody. Perhaps first group meeting with a travel ball team. (You haven't paid your dues yet.)

The coach says,
' I want to start off by letting everybody know winning is not important on this team. Win loss record does not matter.'

Would you want to play for that coach?

Would your answer change whether it is school ball or travel ball?

Enjoy!

 

[heman1202]

The philosophical "winning doesn't matter" is fine as long as losing doesn't define the team.

I think most logical folks understand that winning every game doesn't matter as long as players/teams are developing and moving towards a goal.

A better question is how much losing is accepted before winning matters. Because everyone will be good with the "winning doesn't matter, development first" mindset until that team is losing all the time.

Competitive players like to win. It inspires confidence. It motivates. It breeds competitiveness. Consistent losing does none of that. There has to be a balance. So yes, I firmly believe winning does matter.

*** If a high school varsity coach ever gave a "winning doesn't matter" speech, I would be concerned.

 

[earlg3]

Winning should not be above all else (i.e. player safety, ethics), but if you're going to have a competitive team (which is what travel softball should be), then winning should matter. If winning isn't important, then just play recreationally.

I also think "winning doesn't matter" is usually a euphemism used for excusing something ominous on the team.

 

[Chilixa]

In high school ball that would be an issue.

In travel ball I want to win but development is the priority. But if you are developing you are probably winning as a by product.

It would definitely give me pause if they said that right up front. Because the only real reason to say that is if your team is terrible. Hard to develop on a team getting killed by everyone also.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[warbird]

IMO. The only people who say "winning doesn't matter" are losers.

 

[Rolling Hard]

Winning doesn't matter = our pitching sucks

I like winning but if we lose 6 to 5 against a good team and my DD was 2 for 3 with a BB, I get over it pretty quickly.

 

[hipnix]

Travel team if you’re not winning you’re going home early and you aren’t playing many games throughout the season

 

[Cannonball]

Losing begets losing. I have coached at two schools that were schools with horrible sports reputations before I got there. Players want to win BUT there comes a point where even the hardest charger ask themselves why should they continue to give it their all. In both schools, the administration made commitments to change coaching staffs and make winning a priority. The climate of both schools changed as the sports programs improved.

Finally, at the last school, I was hired as an interim coach for one year. I was told that the school didn't care if the team won. I told them that they were hiring the wrong guy. At one point, the football coach stopped practice and brought the team over to watch us practice. Those players I inherited wanted someone to get after them and they wanted to win. We did win.

 

[daywalkerdad]

Depends on the reason “why”
If it is playing competition that might result in a losing record vs competition that the team will go 50-0. Would rather lose to a good team by 2 than beat a bad team by 10.