Grabbing player's mask, ok or not?

[Greenmonsters]

ridiculous

Can you give just one good reason why it would be necessary to grab a player's face mask?

 

[Hit by the Pitch]

My daughter played for many teams and coachs. She is 110% all the time. Built in
If a coach ever grabed my DD facemask I would have probably stopped the game... It would have put be over the top and I am a very calm person 99% of the time. No way that happens to my DD....
SL

You have a very firm opinion on this topic.

Forget your DD what if you saw a coach on another Team grab a player’s face mask?

 

[NVfishing]

I've seen a coach grab a players mask to say great job. Nobody has a problem then.

 

[smddad]

While I may or may not agree that someone is being over sensitive, I have seen high school football coaches fired for doing the same thing to their male players.

If the coach plans on coaching school ball, ever, don't do it.

-W

Not at my alma mater. He was notorious for grabbing the facemask and screaming in your face, including the spittles flying. They erected a bronze statue of him next to the field after he passed away.

 

[straightleg]

You have a very firm opinion on this topic.

Forget your DD what if you saw a coach on another Team grab a player’s face mask?

I was very carefull to scout a coach my daughter played for over all the years. Never seen it happen on a team she played on.
I coached softball and basketball when she was 5 through junior high with 2 daughters, spent time with manyyoung girls...never even thought of doing that.



SL

 

[PA SB Dad]

IMO no need to ever touch a 10 year old player to make a point as a coach. What's more, 10 year olds make base running mistakes all the time and the world does not end. No reason for what is being described.

 

[Coach-n-Dad]

DW and I nearly pulled DD to never play softball again because of a coach doing this to her catcher.

It was DD's very first game at Little League Minors - 10U. Opposing team catcher made an error at the plate and the coach stormed out, grabbed her mask and gave her a stern, loud talking to. No shaking/jerking, just yelling. We thought "If this is what it's going to be like, no way!"

After the game we learned that the catcher was the coaches daughter, but that scene is still burned into my mind.

Momos Dad, I agree with you that it looks wrong and many parents/players will be bothered by it, even if it's innocent enough.

 

[coach james]

Stern and direct is solid coaching... grabbing her mask is intimidating her. Then its my turn to intimidate him!

 

[pizza-boy01]

Unacceptable. I've raised 3 DDs in this game; not to receive college scholarships, or win plastic trophies, but to raise strong young women. I think softball teaches our girls the skills it takes to be confident in the classroom, on the job, and in their relationships. Coach J got it right, grabbing the facemask is intimidation. I'm not going to have my DD's confidence undermined by a coach that resorts to using intimidation as a teaching method, regardless of his or her intentions. In the workplace, if this coach were to grab a subordinate by the lapels, he'd get canned.

 

[JDBerry]

Can you give just one good reason why it would be necessary to grab a player's face mask?

You tell me what's wrong with it.

There seems to be a lot of personal projection here on this issue Making something more out of it than it is. I can promise you wouldn't have a single one of my parents suggest that I have ever attempted to "scold" or "intimidate" any of my players. I've grabbed the catcher by the mask and gently shook her head when she made mistake and said "shake those cobwebs out". I've "popped" a facemask. I've popped a baserunner on the helmet when they made a mistake on pop fly, much like I would donk on the forehead. I've put my hand on top of their helmet and pointed their head. I've hooked my finger on a facemask so they are looking at me when they are crying and tell them that there is no crying allowed in softball. None of it was intimidating or even antagonizing. It was actually in good fun.

on a soapbox, and to be quite frank, this is one of the issues with bullying. too many helicopter parents look at everything all or nothing, black or white. If their kid is ribbed or picked on at all, then it's bullying. Same with this, the intent and harm has to be there. If it's not there, then it simply devalues the calls from those who truly are complaining about some coach truly bullying a player. Context, as with everything, is vitally important to decide if something is "right or wrong."