3/24/97
Which Wise Man Was It?
Which wise man was it that made the rule that substitutes should only bat (at least) one
time during a game with 6 consecutive outs in the field? How is this fair to the
substitutes? How does this promote good sportsmanship and team work? Is this a commonly
used rule or are some coaches giving it a liberal interpretation? If little league is only
meant for the best of the best. Why doesn't it say on the application, "only future
Babe Ruth Jr. should apply?" or "sign your son up (and pay a lot of money) for
him to sit on the bench and cheer our sluggers on?" Why doesn't anyone tell the subs.
what's up so they can decide for themselves if they want to be the teams dead weight? And
why was my 9 1/2 year old son sitting in the dug out ( on the first game of the season )
with tears in his eyes as he was passed over again and again? What are you
parents/coaches, or baboons? Who gave you the right to cut down our kids self confidence
that took us years to build up? Come on gentleman! Lets bring it back down to earth! We
did not ask you to pick our sons for your team, but now that you have, we expect you to be
fair.
GIVE OUR KIDS THE CHANCE TO MAKE A MISTAKE OR CATCH THE FLY BALL THAT WINS THE GAME! We
appreciate the time you spend with our kids and your dedication... but if you're still
confused next time try singling your child out. Don't tell them that their only batting
one time in the game and make sure you position them somewhere in the field where the ball
won't be hit to them for 6 outs. And when they become upset, just tell him it's all about
winning at any cost!!!
My philosophy is: If you pick 'em, you play 'em. You're right, it's not fair to select a
player and then hide behind the official rules and limit a player's time to 6 outs and 1
at bat. Thankfully, in our local league we have adopted special playing rules that we use
for all our regular season games at all levels. One is that every player is included in
the batting order. Every kid averages about 3 at bats per game. On my own team, I keep
records of playing time. Each player, regardless of age or ability, plays at least 4
innings a game (rosters are typically 12 players/team). Does this system jeopardize
winning? Not at all, every kid is involved and the game experience improves their
concentration and performance. And, if you only count wins as the measure of winning, our
kids took first place in that column too.
L. Frank (from the CYB message board)
In Reply to: Which Wise Man Was It?
In most cities there are in-house baseball leagues, and then there is the more competitive
travel leagues. In-house leagues are intentionally kept less competitive for just the
reasons you have given. Winning is secondary to having fun and learning something about
the game of baseball. The teams are usually selected in a blind draw, so the teams are
usually pretty evenly matched. When you step up into competitive ball though, I disagree
with you very strongly. I hand pick my team, and due to the competitiveness of the league,
I cannot afford to let everyone play everywhere. I keep my roster smaller than most teams
on purpose so that I can give each of my kids a lot of playing time, because
I agree with you that even at this level no boy wants to just sit. I hold a preseason
parent/player meeting with everyone, and one of the first things we talk about is playing
time and who gets the choice fielding positions. Bottom line on those two points - I don't
guarantee the boys or the parents either. They know this coming into my program, but they
also know that their son - regardless of where I play him or bat him - will be a better
ballplayer for having played for me.
Winning a ball game is not my number one priority, but it is pretty darn high on my list.
Fair play, good sportsmanship, teamwork, hard work, learning not to give up when behind
(or letting up when ahead), learning to get along with people who you might not ordinarily
associate with, encouraging a teammate to do his best, and to back up that teammate even
when he makes a mistake, these are the things I teach my boys. We also hold a lot of team
parties so that the boys have plenty of time to just be boys. I also teach them how to
field, throw, bat, and run the bases correctly, and I teach them what it takes to be
mentally into every pitch. I spend an awful lot of time preparing myself for our practices
and games, and we have a very definite program that we run. My parents and players know in
advance that how the boys perform in practice is how my coaching staff and myself will
decide who starts and where they'll play.
Does this put pressure on the boys, yes it does. Do all of the boys handle it equally
well, no they don't. If a boy wants to be my shortstop, he doesn't get it simply because
he wants it, he has to go out and earn it (sounds an awful lot like the real world doesn't
it?). All of the parents know this, and I encourage them to come to our practices to see
whether or not they feel their son is getting a fair shot, and to see whether or not I am
a capable coach. I also encourage them to talk to me whether it is something negative or
positive.
I was your boy when I played little league, so I know how your son felt when he was passed
over. I contend, however, that rather than sit there crying during only the first game of
the season, that if he made the determination at that point that he was going to make his
coach play him based on his hard work and effort during practice, he would be a thousand
times better off for it, then to simply have been given what he wanted without needing to
earn it. And even if after all of his hard work he still wasn't given the position or
playing time he wanted, he could look himself in the mirror and say that he gave it his
best shot - and be proud of himself for it. Sitting on the bench crying was not perhaps
the best response he could have had in that situation.
Finally, did you attend any of his practices, did the coach have any ground rules before
the season
started, and have you talked to this coach about your feelings? More importantly, just how
important is baseball to your son? How often do you and he go out and practice together,
or sit down together and watch a game on TV and discuss what the players are doing that is
right or wrong? To label an adult a baboon simply because your son wasn't in the starting
lineup of the first game of the season is an awfully strong emotional reaction on your
part. I also suggest that for you to say your son's coach cut down the self confidence
which took you years to build up, (again, you apparently are basing this on the first game
of the season), that you have definitely overreacted here. Maybe your son simply isn't a
real good baseball player. So what? Encourage him in those areas where he does excel.
Finally, the simplest solution to all of this is to have your son play in a less
competitive baseball program, one which plays the game as you suggest it should be played.
R. Bing
3/97
Having a Successful Tryout
In many parts of the country, baseball tryouts will be taking place in the next couple of
months. There is no way to make baseball tryouts fair. There simply isn’t time to run
a few weeks of scrimmages, which would be ideal, so we are left with a day or two of
fielding, throwing and hitting evaluations which may or may not have anything to do with
how a kid will perform in a game. And, many evaluation strategies compute an overall
evaluation score by summing across a variety of categories. Thus, accuracy of a throw from
the outfield carries the same weight as hitting a fastball.
Having been involved in lots of evaluations with different groups of people at different
age levels, I have usually found a great deal of variation in the scores, at least among
the kids who are not clearly at the top or not clearly at the bottom in terms of skill. A
lot of this variation comes from the different impressions a coach has about players, much
of which is developed early in the first tryout.
Given the importance of impressions, players trying out for a team and their parents need
to pay some attention to impression management. Managing the impressions given off to the
evaluators really will make some impact on their judgments about skills and may make
enough of a difference to get a player selected to or excluded from a team.
Many evaluators are coaches and human beings (at least some) with less than perfect
objectivity. When they think about having a particular player on a team, they often
consider how likable the player is and, if known, how the player’s parents might
behave during the course of a season. A nice kid with a good attitude and hustle, even
though he may be a bit short on skill, might be someone the coach feels he can work with
during the season.
As a coach, I know it is a lot easier to spend time teaching and working with likable
kids. I want to see nice kids who work hard succeed a whole lot more than kids with an
attitude; it’s human nature. Of course, every coach will overlook the personality
flaws of a big moose that can throw the ball harder than everyone else. So the kid’s
got a criminal record and his parents like to spit at coaches. He just needs a little
understanding if he’s 12-years-old and can throw the ball 65 miles-per-hour.
The advice I give my boys (and other kids) before going to a tryout is as follows:
· Always throw the ball hard during the tryout. Make sure your arm is ready to throw the
ball hard. You should have been throwing a ball a few weeks before the tryout and make
sure you loosen it up before you arrive at the tryout (sometimes you aren’t given
enough time to get loose). Having a "cannon" is usually more impressive than
having "pinpoint accuracy," at least early in the year.
· Always run. As you go from one station to another or head out to the outfield to catch
fly balls, always try to be the first one there. Coaches like kids who hustle.
· Dive for balls whenever possible. Coaches like kids who are aggressive.
· Don’t talk to any other players during the tryout. You might miss some instruction
if your complete attention isn’t given to the evaluators. Also, there are always some
kids who goof off at a tryout. This is understandable when boredom sets in waiting for a
turn at something. So if you don’t talk to anyone, you’re less likely to look
like you’re not paying attention.
· Take batting practice right before you go to the tryout. If a coach will pitch at the
tryout, find someone to pitch to you. Practice hitting at different speeds, from lobs to
speeds faster than you would ever see in your league (I’ve seen both kinds of
pitching at evaluations). If a pitching machine is used at the tryout, hit off a pitching
machine, again at varying speeds if possible.
· Have a parent watch the tryout (for younger ages). This provides some level of
accountability for the evaluators. Offer to help only if there is clearly a need for help.
Otherwise, don’t even talk to the evaluators and don’t tell them about your
son’s talent.
Anonymous
2/97
Constructive and Destructive Advice
How many times have you seen this? A young pitcher is on the mound. He just walked a
batter and has thrown two straight balls to the next batter. He’s obviously
struggling with his control. Almost in unison, the coaches, his father and people he
doesn’t even know are yelling, "Just throw a strike." What do they think he
is trying to do? Walk another batter on purpose? The only thing these people have
accomplished is to increase the pitcher’s tension. In doing so, they have lowered the
likelihood that he will throw a strike on the next pitch.
Similar advice is often given to a hitter: "You have to get a hit." Getting a
hit is outside of the player’s control. He can take a good swing at a hitable pitch,
but he can’t keep a line drive from being snagged by the defense. One irritating
remark often heard is "just make contact." Hitters who take this advice to heart
will start their bat real early and real slow, tapping a weak ground ball to someone.
A less damaging but equally useless comment is to tell the hitter to "straighten it
out" after fouling off a pitch. What’s he supposed to do? Actually, this advice
is probably not even heard by a hitter and is shouted out for the sake of interacting with
the game. We can live with it.
Constructive advice doesn’t involve asking the player to do something he can’t
control. It also gives the player some direction. If the pitcher isn’t throwing
strikes, makes sure he isn’t doing something wrong mechanically. "Keep your
elbow up" is probably a lot more useful to a pitcher than "get it over the
plate." When a pitcher is on the emotional edge and is getting wild, and his
mechanics appear fine, it can be helpful to reassure him that the game is just a game,
nothing to get too serious about – just concentrate on the catcher’s mitt and
keep adjusting until you hit it.
In terms of hitters, proper constructive advice is often evident. If they are swinging
late, tell them to get their stride foot started earlier or to hit the ball further out in
front of the plate. When they swing and miss with good timing, they may need to be
reminded to keep their head still or to keep it down at contact. These are things they can
control.
The next time I hear a coach yell at a pitcher who just loaded the bases,
"There’s no place to put this next guy, you better not walk him," I would
love to hear the pitcher respond, "But coach, I really enjoy letting the other team
score runs."
Anonymous
1/97
I take exception to some of the "expert" opinions on what should be emphasized
in youth baseball, particularly among players between 8 and 12 years old. The enjoyment of
being part of a baseball team is not the same as the kind of enjoyment one gets from going
to a circus. Baseball is a coordinated, participative sport. I don’t think that
"fun," contrary to most opinions, should necessarily be the main goal of youth
baseball. Instead, I want my children to participate on teams (whether it’s baseball
or some other sport) that include the following goals:
1. Learning the fundamentals of the game (which can bring enjoyment for a life-time
through participation and being a knowledgeable spectator).
2. Development of satisfaction, which comes by improving skills and coordinating one's
efforts with those of a team in competition.
3. Trying to beat one's opponent. We play baseball games, not baseball activities.
Competing with the goal of winning is the motivation factor that inspires young players to
practice and develop skills. Competition is part of any game and is often misunderstood.
Coaches are regularly accused of putting too much emphasis on winning. Actually winning is
somewhat irrelevant, but trying to win is very important. In trying to win, young players
are (or should be) focusing on the process rather than the outcome. They practice and
improve (process) so they have a better chance of obtaining the outcome. I want my
children to grasp the value of it’s not where you end up (in baseball or life in
general), it’s how you get there.
The goal of having fun and being non-competitive may well have its place in relation to
baseball. If a child wants to have a shot at playing the game in high school, however, he
needs to play on a team with a different focus. This is not to say that players fail to
have fun when playing competitively, but that fun is not a major goal in itself.
Some years ago, I coached a fourth-grade basketball team in a league where they
didn’t keep score. The reason was that they wanted kids to just learn the
fundamentals and they didn’t want anyone to feel bad if they lost. The kids learned
some of the mechanical fundamentals (e.g., shooting, dribbling, passing), but failed to
learn the fundamentals of team play. They would shoot 20-foot shots instead of passing to
an open man under the basket. They wouldn’t set screens. They didn’t play
defense. Why? Because each player’s goal was simply to score as many points as
possible. After each "game" players would talk about how many baskets they made.
The goal of coordinating efforts in an attempt to beat another team was taken away. These
boys were cheated from developing as players and having the satisfaction of playing on a
TEAM (which was reduced to several individuals with personal goals). In addition, the
games really weren’t very fun for the players given the loss of the team concept.
Anonymous
Top 20 Reasons to Coach Youth
Baseball
from Dr. Jon Hoelter
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You get to spend most of your summer with other peoples’ kids instead of your own.
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You get to rake fields and set up bases just like a real grounds crew member.
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You get the credit whenever a kid isn’t playing well.
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You get to put off your vacation until right before school starts.
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You get a great farmer’s tan.
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You get to be the last one home after a game.
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You get thick skin by being second guessed about 2500 times or so by parents.
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You get to spend a lot of evenings of the phone instead of with your wife.
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You gain deeper insight into the game by hearing such novel bits of wisdom as
"straighten it out" and "throw a strike" from the stands.
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You get to drive a bunch of dirty kids around in your car.
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You have lots of meaningful conversations with parents, like about how great their
kids can pitch.
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You get great insight into emotional disorders in children in case you want to pursue
a career in counseling.
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You get to spend your own money on extra balls and equipment.
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You get to leave work early to get to the field early.
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You get to leave work even earlier to pick up kids without rides.
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You develop humility when the kids get the credit for wins and you get blamed for
losses.
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You get the honor of coaching a bunch of kids that think they’re doing you a
favor by showing up.
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You get to have a party at your house after the season with your own food and pop.
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You get a small gift certificate after the season for a restaurant you don’t even
like.
-
(I had to remove one that my wife said was in bad taste)
Anonymous
Strange Sports Stories
A Poor Choice of Words
Our 11/12 team was playing in the semi-finals of a fall baseball tournament some years
back. The opposing team had a big, powerful kid (the kind that shaves early) who had
doubled earlier in the game. Our pitcher threw very hard for his age, but their big kid
was also a quick kid. He was due up the next inning and the game was close.
I never believed in intentionally walking anyone at this age, but there are times when you
don’t want to throw a hitter a pitch in the strike zone. I explained to my pitcher
that I would like him to keep the ball high, out of the strike zone. An aggressive kid
like this may well go after it and pop it up (which had often worked in the past).
I should mention that the team we were playing came from a pretty rough neighborhood.
Earlier in the season, playing at their field, our game was stopped for a short while to
let what appeared to be gang members finish their stroll through the outfield.
The score was close when the big kid walked up to the plate. Everyone got kind of quiet. I
yelled out to my pitcher, "Do what I told you!" He gave me a nod as he straddled
the rubber. My pitcher reached back and threw the first pitch hard – and out of the
strike zone – but right at the big kid. The ball hit him in the middle of the back
and he went down with a groan. As he went down, the fans on the opposing team went up and
focused their attention on me. A few started coming toward our bench. They really thought
I had told my pitcher to throw at their player.
A lot of fast talking on my part saved me from a beating and what could of turned out to
be a small riot. To this day, I am a lot more careful about what I yell to a pitcher while
he’s on the mound.
Anonymous
3/1/97
Kaopectate Saves the Day!
Last night we went to watch our 16-year-old son wrestle in the biggest match of his short
career. His team was undefeated in the league as was their opponent and archrival. The gym
was packed (actually it was mostly filled, which is packed when it comes to wrestling).
The crowd was noisy. Tonight’s match would determine the league championship.
After a couple of light-weight matches, my wife noticed that our son wasn’t in the
gym. She sent me out to look for him. I found him walking out of the restroom, pale and
sweaty. He had diarrhea and wasn’t sure if he could wrestle. Within minutes he was
back in the restroom. Again, I went to check on him (ordinarily I let my wife deal with
such matters but it was a public restroom). My son told me he couldn’t wrestle. He
basically planned to spend the rest of the night in a stall.
A wrestling match in our state includes 14 weight classes. Our son was scheduled to
wrestle in the 13th match (215 lb.). When I returned to the stands (I wasn’t going to
spend the evening in a restroom), the 8th match had just begun, and we were losing. It was
then my wife suggested that I find a drug store and buy some anti-diarrhea medicine,
insisting that I find one that’s "fast-acting."
I sprinted to the car and drove off. Fortunately, there was a drug store about a block
from the high-school. I ran into the store and grabbed a bottle of Kaopectate. I
couldn’t find anything about "fast-acting" on the label, but I didn’t
have time to search the shelf. I hurried to the checkout. Two registers were open, each
with a line of people. I went straight to the first clerk and tossed down a ten-dollar
bill. I said, "Here’s ten bucks—this bottle is less than six bucks—I
gotta go." Without waiting for a response, I sprinted out of the store and to my car.
On my return to the school, my parking space was gone so I pulled into a handicapped spot
(these people shouldn’t be out in the dead of winter anyhow, I thought). I raced to
the restroom and found my son in "his" stall. I handed the bottle to him and
told him to take a big gulp (I didn’t have a measuring spoon). A few minutes later,
he came out and I handed him the bottle again. I told him to take another gulp given that
the directions said he could take six doses in a 24-hour-period.
I returned to the stands. I had managed to get to the drug store and back within ten
minutes. The 9th match was just ending. About ten minutes later, our son began to warm up.
My wife thought his color was starting to return.
Finally, it was time for his match. Our team was ahead, but needed one more win to clinch
the match. Our son went out and pinned his opponent in the second period. The team won the
league title. And we have Kaopectate to thank, in part.
On the way home I told my wife about my experience in the drug store. She laughed and said
the people in the store must have thought I was desperate to get to a restroom myself.
Anonymous
2/7/97