College life:

[smddad]

I'll share. DD#1 is a college freshman. Sep-Jan weekdays up at 5:45 for 1.5 hours of lifting plus 3 hour afternoon skills. Best shape of her life. After hitting .600 last 2 summers against mostly D1 pitching, .700 at ASA Nationals, 1 error in 200+ balls defensed (CF), she's rarin' to go. Yet not 1 freshman has reached the field except to pinch run (her, 5x) in 8 games. Starting junior CF is batting sub .200 with maybe 3 errors in 15 balls defensed. They tell her she's great, to 'pay her dues' and accept her role as a support player this year. Very, very frustrated. Angry. Hasn't sat since she was 10.

On the plus side, all A's first semester for a HS B student. She's totally focused on academics in her limited downtime. Lots of stories about other girls drinking. She can't. In bed at 10 to get up at 6 for doubleheaders on Saturdays. And she wants to coach HS ball. These coaches are teaching her unintentional lessons...

As a dad that loves watching her play, if softball gets her tracking the right way freshman year... maybe it's all for the best.

I went to watch a family friend's daughter, who is a freshman and is playing on a top 20 team. I got to see her pinch hit once in the two games. She has the 3rd best BA on the team and 1.000 fielding percentage. Although I was bummed, I understand the pecking order. She will be their starting CF'er one day.

I did make her sign her freshman card for me afterwards. I told her it was part of my retirement plan.

 

[riseball]

Thank 1696, I was just thinking about that all weekend watching SEC games on TV. Benches full of players that were always the superstar on their team, and now may never see a pitch. I've been reading Reille-Bouche's book about Bama and it sounds like they work hard to make it a great experience for every player, but I have to think that is the very rare exception.

I always tell potential recruits - You have to decide if you want to chase foul balls or fair balls.

 

[SoCal_Dad]

I went to watch a family friend's daughter, who is a freshman and is playing on a top 20 team. I got to see her pinch hit once in the two games. She has the 3rd best BA on the team and 1.000 fielding percentage. Although I was bummed, I understand the pecking order. She will be their starting CF'er one day.

Does she have enough playing time for these to be relevant? Did she play in games against the top competition? I'm not questioning her ability. IME the stats for reserves can be misleading due to small sample sizes and/or differing levels of competition.

 

[crankermo]

Great post CB. I hope BB is doing better and things have calmed down for her. These are exactly the things I have talked extensively with Brooke about to just get her ready for college next year. She will text me asking me to do something for her and I will tell her, ole dad won't be close to you next year you need to figure out a way to do it yourself. My wife and I have really worked hard on letting her fend for herself these last couple of years. Getting a scholarship is the easy part. Working to keep it and your academics up is the hard part that TV doesn't show.

I think what goes unnoticed by most parents is the effect of their child leaving has on their own lives. Brooke and I have gone through 4 cars driving all over the country during this journey. We've become so close that it's gonna throw me for a loop when she's gone but I know it's my job to push her out of the nest if she's gonna reach her goals.

This forum serves as a great therapist for all of us.

 

[Nickle]

It's hard duty to be a parent. When your children are old enough to leave parent house, you understand how hard is to let them go. But it's what should be done.

 

[PEPPERS]

I send DD a email everyday here is the one I sent to her today.

Bear is her Australian Sheppard dog.

Ty was her catcher in high school.

Hi,

Bear looks like he is losing a little weight, being on his diet and getting some exercise maybe helping him.

We saw Ty's mom at trade day she is going to school in Scotland her mom advised she is eating bread and cheese to be able to have money to tour the country on weekends with her friends.

Not much to tell, rain today and getting colder down to 30 Friday and 28 Saturday.

Keep your chin up and work to make yourself better as a student and a ball player it will pay dividends in the long run.

Good luck in the games today!!!!!!

Love dad!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Tip of the day:

“Confidence comes not from always being right but not fearing to be wrong”

Joke of the day:

Patient: "What are the chances of my recovering doctor?"

Doctor: "One hundred percent. Medical records show that nine out of ten
people die of the disease you have. "Yours is the tenth case I've treated;
the others all died."

 

[Cannonball]

Yesterday, BB was hit in the head by a piece of a Muhl Bag apparatus. She was sent home with a concussion. I don't know how she is doing today but thought I'd give you an update.

 

[Greenmonsters]

You can't make stuff like this up. Hope she's OK and back at it soon

 

[SB23]

Yesterday, BB was hit in the head by a piece of a Muhl Bag apparatus. She was sent home with a concussion. I don't know how she is doing today but thought I'd give you an update.

Speedy Recovery to BB !!

Please keep us posted on her recovery

 

[Cannonball]

BB played this weekend but still had a headache off and on. I wanted to mention some more stuff about college softball. BB had an assignment due over the weekend. She tried to log on and was denied or "blocked." She tried several times. I tried several times. One had to access her email to access another portal at school to access ... So, she was panicked about this assignment which was really 3 assignments. Other players had this same problem. One young lady said that this happened to her last year and she was told basically, "too bad so sad." Many of the classroom now offer these assignments and from a professor's viewpoint, it is up to the student to get the information no matter what. However, some wi-fi problems happen no matter where you go. The hotel we were in this weekend lost all wi-fi etc. because they had a small fire. (at 2:30 in the morning.) Often the buses that they use are supposed to have wi-fi and it doesn't work.

A few of the players, including my daughter have major events happening in their classes this week and they have a ton of games coming up in a short time. My dd will have to wear her uniform to an "exit" interview, do the interview with her professor and the teacher she is working with and get back to college. There is no room for anyone being late or for the meeting going over. DD is so stressed over this and knows she will be docked for wearing the uniform because the course says she has to be dressed professionally. Many of your dds will go through the same things. Finally, they missed classes for a rain out which was to be on Sunday but was moved to a Monday. So, her Monday professor changed his syllabus due dates and when dd asked what she missed did not include the changes. She thinks he will work with her and isn't as stressed over that. My perception of most of the dds of the members of this site, grades do matter and so, your dd will have to figure all of this out. How do they contact the professors if the email is out? How do they get the professors to understand that they are not shirking their classroom duties? How do they keep up with information discussed in class that is not contained in any brief of the class? Fun times!