Pretending that the clock isn't part of the game in travel is ignoring what you are playing. Sure HS is 7 innings and college is as well - but that is for another season. I have a team to coach right now. Also I want to make sure the parents and players are getting a lot of softball for their $$$ which means regularly winning bracket games and going appropriately deep into the bracket for the level of team we have. In m mind there are reasonable ways to manage the clock without stupid levels of stalling or making up ridiculous delays. A time out or a pitcher swap is fine. Taking lots of pitches and your one allowed offensive conference when batting fine. Stepping on the plate and bunting if you need another inning to hit in - all fine. The obviously fake shoe tie or the stepping out every pitch or taking 2 minutes to walk from the dugout to the plate... not so much. And it is not so much I will say anything because it is legal by the rules - we'll just remember it happened for the next time we play you.
That said...
On pool days I don't do really anything apart from move the game along briskly - with the only exception being that on pool days we have one goal: Don't get the 8am game Sunday. I will do what needs to be done to make that happen. If you are playing us in the game that decides sleep-in versus getting to the field before the sun makes an appearance, that is a bracket game for us. We always play MUCH better with a first game after 9:30am - or at least it is a much more pleasant team to be around.
I wont do anything stupid on bracket day like the catcher swap or the untied shoe, but I am happy to swap pitchers or take a time out or take some pitches when batting especially on days when we could have a long, long day ahead.We won a six-game Sunday ASA qualifier with what was our #1 and #3(developing) pitcher one season after our #2 broke her arm on the Saturday sliding into third. That was 30 innings in 90+ degree heat that we had to manage - we made sure we didn't have to play any extra innings in ANY game if we could avoid it in any way.
That said...
On pool days I don't do really anything apart from move the game along briskly - with the only exception being that on pool days we have one goal: Don't get the 8am game Sunday. I will do what needs to be done to make that happen. If you are playing us in the game that decides sleep-in versus getting to the field before the sun makes an appearance, that is a bracket game for us. We always play MUCH better with a first game after 9:30am - or at least it is a much more pleasant team to be around.
I wont do anything stupid on bracket day like the catcher swap or the untied shoe, but I am happy to swap pitchers or take a time out or take some pitches when batting especially on days when we could have a long, long day ahead.We won a six-game Sunday ASA qualifier with what was our #1 and #3(developing) pitcher one season after our #2 broke her arm on the Saturday sliding into third. That was 30 innings in 90+ degree heat that we had to manage - we made sure we didn't have to play any extra innings in ANY game if we could avoid it in any way.