Travel vs. School vs. Private Coaching Conflicts

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Aug 4, 2020
13
3
Hello Everyone. My DD is an 8th grader. Been playing ball since she was 6, travel teams from 10u until now. She was on a really good 12B team for 2 years, and now on a 14B team with a big organization. She has had really good training and we have spent 2 and a half years with the same batting coach. We are on week number 2 of 8th grade ball, we did not have a 7th grade year because of covid, and this team is stacked. They have 8 players that play on top or very competitive travel teams which is not common for middle school in this area. The softball IQ on these girls is crazy good. They all play for travel coaches that have taught the girls to run their own games defensively and be very aggressive.

So far it has not been a great start. DD is a third baseman, has great reaction speed, and has been trained to play up almost her whole time in travel ball. During tryouts the coach made a comment that "we have to fix that". During one of the first practices she was playing up, a ball went past her to short, short made the play and the coaches felt it should have been her ball. (She has played with the shortstop for multiple years in travel and the shortstop and her know how to work together).

Today, they were doing a batting drill. My daughter talked to the coach and said the drill was messing with her swing. And the coach's response was thousands of girls do this drill without issue. And a second comment was made to the girls that their batting coaches are not always right. Half of our girls see batting coaches with great reputations.

DD struggles a bit with adapting to change and does take a little longer to make adjustments some times. As parents we do not really like to get involved with coaching and feel it is up to her to talk to them. (Although based on the comments made so far I don't think the coaches are open to the discussions.) We have told her that this middle school season is only two months and a great chance for character building and playing with girls she has known for a long time but we know that the first time she misses an out from third because she is playing back she is going to be mad.

Any other parent or coaching advice for making it through the season? Or even just anyone who can commiserate with us? lol
 

NBECoach

Learning everyday
Aug 9, 2018
408
63
Have DD stick with her current swing if she is getting the job done. When and IF that changes then you make changes with the swing. And it may not even be a change but rather a correction to get her swing back.

I coached a girl who got a scholarship to a D1 school with the oddest stance I have ever seen. I would never recommend or teach such a stance, but it worked for her. Oddly enough she is now a D3 hitting coach.
 
Aug 4, 2020
13
3
Have DD stick with her current swing if she is getting the job done. When and IF that changes then you make changes with the swing. And it may not even be a change but rather a correction to get her swing back.

I coached a girl who got a scholarship to a D1 school with the oddest stance I have ever seen. I would never recommend or teach such a stance, but it worked for her. Oddly enough she is now a D3 hitting coach.

Thanks for the feedback. That is the approach that we are taking. Interestingly enough she had the hitting instructor for her travel ball organization tweaking her stride a couple of weeks ago so she has been playing around with old vs. new over the last couple of weeks. She felt like she was cheating on her regular hitting coach. lol. We are just going to keep working on what works for her because it has been a work in progress to get her where she is at.
 
Oct 3, 2011
3,478
113
Right Here For Now
The long and short of it is this, she needs to learn to make the adjustments. Every coach has their own way of doing things and not all of them will fit in with what she was taught how to play. Some of those reasons may be good and some, well, may not be so good. Either she adjusts or she won't see as much field time as she or you want. If she wants to play at the college level this is more often than not the case. Many players at that level are thrown into positions they have rarely played but that's where the coach feels they best fit the team's needs. No matter the level of play, remind your DD that this is a team sport and not everything will, or should, be done the way she was taught. Especially when the current batch of coaches she has determines her playing time.

As for hitting, I'd suggest the nod and smile approach if it contradicts what her hitting coach teaches. If they get insistent on the changes, have her ask them to explain in minute detail why their way is better and ask her hitting coach about it.
 

radness

Possibilities & Opportunities!
Dec 13, 2019
7,270
113
Hello Everyone. My DD is an 8th grader. Been playing ball since she was 6, travel teams from 10u until now. She was on a really good 12B team for 2 years, and now on a 14B team with a big organization. She has had really good training and we have spent 2 and a half years with the same batting coach. We are on week number 2 of 8th grade ball, we did not have a 7th grade year because of covid, and this team is stacked. They have 8 players that play on top or very competitive travel teams which is not common for middle school in this area. The softball IQ on these girls is crazy good. They all play for travel coaches that have taught the girls to run their own games defensively and be very aggressive.

So far it has not been a great start. DD is a third baseman, has great reaction speed, and has been trained to play up almost her whole time in travel ball. During tryouts the coach made a comment that "we have to fix that". During one of the first practices she was playing up, a ball went past her to short, short made the play and the coaches felt it should have been her ball. (She has played with the shortstop for multiple years in travel and the shortstop and her know how to work together).

Today, they were doing a batting drill. My daughter talked to the coach and said the drill was messing with her swing. And the coach's response was thousands of girls do this drill without issue. And a second comment was made to the girls that their batting coaches are not always right. Half of our girls see batting coaches with great reputations.

DD struggles a bit with adapting to change and does take a little longer to make adjustments some times. As parents we do not really like to get involved with coaching and feel it is up to her to talk to them. (Although based on the comments made so far I don't think the coaches are open to the discussions.) We have told her that this middle school season is only two months and a great chance for character building and playing with girls she has known for a long time but we know that the first time she misses an out from third because she is playing back she is going to be mad.

Any other parent or coaching advice for making it through the season? Or even just anyone who can commiserate with us? lol
Read in your post the coach wanted to change things from the beginning seeing an aggresive 3rd baseman playing up at tryouts.
Then change her swing (or atleast knowingly ask her to do something she is aware is bad for her swing)
And the season is only two months.
*the coach also knows 2 months...thats it.

Just a guess :)
The coach is a narrow minded micro manager with an ego stuffed in their ears so they cant hear or see the bigger picture.

Dont change the success she is already building on.

This is not a situation to adapt to the coach.
 
Last edited:
Oct 10, 2018
305
63
I can totally commiserate. DD's MS coach was actually a soccer coach and he had the girls doing crazy things like backhand balls that a shuffle could easily put them behind and didn't want to hear anything but his own opinion. I told DD to be respectful but as soon as he wasn't looking to do what her (excellent) TB coaches taught her and blame muscle memory if he said anything. Also told her the season is only 2 months and she'd never see him again as the following year she was eligible to try out for the HS team.
 

radness

Possibilities & Opportunities!
Dec 13, 2019
7,270
113
You seem to have a special place in your heart for HS coaches....🤣
Haahhaaaa i was being gentle...

imo
When a dedicated player shows up. Who has been investing effort, time, money and has an instructor, to any technique of hitting...
THEN ANY coach who wants to change batters swings immediatly, without using game/live pitching practice performance to look at success or not,

is a red flag.

Will add this ~
As an instructor, I do have a particular set of hitting mechanics that I believe works really well and it works really well for a lot of people. it's what I teach. Also have set of mechanics that I believe in that works really well that I teach for catching.
That said
Also know that when I'm coaching players there are people who are dedicated to mechanics that I don't do or teach. However i respect they are purposely training to achieve success with the mechanics that they are using.
As a coach I find it much more worthwhile to pay attention to what the players are trying to accomplish with mechanics that they are utilizing.
By doing so I can find successful athletes to build a team with, coach to what they are doing.
Not build a team based on changing them all.

Look for dedication in athletes.
Look for what they bring as individuals.
Hold a standard to performance on the field.
Not hold a standard to what mechanics they use.

The performance on the field
imo is whats important.
 
Last edited:

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