How to handle the know everything coach???

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Jun 18, 2012
3,165
48
Utah
Yeah, I know coaches who have a softball god complex, thus feel not need whatsoever to seek out answers to questions regarding things a hitting or pitching coach is teaching.
 
Jun 27, 2011
5,083
0
North Carolina
I think it's laughable to believe a team coach would actually try to understand what the hitting coach has taught. Or vice versa. My experience is that most coaches don't give a fart what a player's hitting coach is teaching the player. They just assume it's wrong if it's not the hitting style that is taught in the coach's program. One example comes to mind.... A HS coach that says, "You won't be using a stride here." Maybe the hitting coach has the player using a stride for a specific reason to fix a particular problem the player has, like getting the hips involved or getting the lower half activated. No, I don't think this "work together" is all that common. It should be, however!

No, it's not common. By 'relationship,' I don't necessarily mean that the team coach and hitting coach are corresponding on a regular basis. But as a team coach, if I see a major problem, I'd want to know what is being taught, even if I'm getting it from the player. I might ask the player to ask the hitting coach a question to clarify what's being taught.
 
Jul 2, 2013
679
0
Had a similar experience when I heard a D1 coach telling players at a clinic (including a few of our players) not to stride; that they could learn the stride later. These were 12U at the time. Not a small D1 either.

I agree 100% with this D1 Coach.

At high speed college D1 pitching, the stride is the 1st thing that must go.

Yet the hitting boards focus on various, ad nauseum, explanations of a stride. While a big time D1 coach eliminates it all.

This D1 coach is not saying to learn to stride later. He is saying to minimize, almost eliminate the stride FOREVER. Quicker to the ball. Half step and pop the hips, period.

Who is correct?
 
Jul 2, 2013
679
0
No, it's not common. By 'relationship,' I don't necessarily mean that the team coach and hitting coach are corresponding on a regular basis. But as a team coach, if I see a major problem, I'd want to know what is being taught, even if I'm getting it from the player. I might ask the player to ask the hitting coach a question to clarify what's being taught.

The parent is the key to this "relationship". All the parent needs to do is ask the coach "tell me the objective is here, so I can work on it at home... and lets take this one step at a time so we can get one thing right and cemented in her mind before we move to the next" It really is that simple folks. But the parent has to approach it in the manner I describe.
 
Jul 2, 2013
679
0
This board does that with pitching, saying they can learn the stride later. I think it is detrimental in both situations. People are thinking short term over long term, because kids are in games, and coaches can't have kids lose, with paying customers wanting wins.

Back to the OP: No one needs instruction right before a game, and no one needs more than about 12-15 swings. It is warm up, not practice, not fix every supposed flaw in side toss (which has no bearing on real hitting) 10 seconds before the game. The rest is busy work that messes with your head. I say direct conversation.

I know nothing about pitching, and have no way of knowing if this compares.

My player is a no stride hitter with tremendous power. I am a firm believer of a no stride approach to hitting. Think it is a complete waste of time ... and prevents a hitter from being elite at 65-70 mph.
 
Feb 17, 2014
7,152
113
Orlando, FL
...At high speed college D1 pitching, the stride is the 1st thing that must go...

While I agree with your statement, let's keep things in perspective. The vast majority of D1 pitching is not high speed, and most is anything but high speed. The speeds shown on ESPN during the WCWS are not by any means typical.
 
Jun 27, 2011
5,083
0
North Carolina
While I agree with your statement, let's keep things in perspective. The vast majority of D1 pitching is not high speed, and most is anything but high speed. The speeds shown on ESPN during the WCWS are not by any means typical.

You would agree that the stride is the first thing that must go? I respect the no-stride school of thought, but I'm not in that camp and am not a fan of travel and high school coaches who would insist on it. (Naturally, my DD has a stride. :) )
 
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Feb 17, 2014
7,152
113
Orlando, FL
You would agree that the stride is the first thing that must go? I respect the no-stride school of thought, but I'm not in that camp and am not a fan of travel and high school coaches who would insist on hit. (Naturally, my DD has a stride. :) )

Not necessarily. To me is one more thing that can go wrong but does little in the way of increasing performance. Power hitting in FP softball is an oxymoron given 110lb slappers can easily hit the ball out of the park. The real question is can your DD hit? If the answer is yes than let her stride.

People make way too much of the mechanics of hitting without proper regard to the mental and visual skills required. Great mechanics does not make you a hitter, rather it allows you to hit the ball well. I will take a kid that sees the ball well and a great mental approach over a player that has a textbook swing and no skills above the neck.
 
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Jun 27, 2011
5,083
0
North Carolina
Not necessarily. The real question is can your DD hit? If the answer is yes than let her stride. People make way too much of the mechanics of hitting without proper regard to the mental and visual skills required. Great mechanics does not make you a hitter, rather it allows you to hit the ball well. I will take a kid that sees the ball well and a great mental approach over a player that has a textbook swing and no skills above the neck.

That makes sense. I'm good with, ''You're struggling, let's see if shortening or eliminating the stride will help you put barrel on ball.''

What I don't get is, ''No stride is the way we do it here, period.''
 
Jun 18, 2012
3,165
48
Utah
All one need do is go through the Model Swing sticky thread to see that there is plenty of striding going on in D1 softball. Do I teach all my hitters to stride? Heck no! Do some of them stride? Heck yeah! Why, because striding, particularly of the pull the leg/foot back only to put it approximately where it started type, can activate lazy legs and hips more so than is otherwise possible with the lazy leg types. And, it's not only the lazy leg types that can benefit from this leg action. Again, is a stride good for all hitters? NO! Is it absolutely bad for all hitters? NO!
 
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