Agreed.. and coaches only make right decisions when relying on their gut.. insert sarcasm
How important are stats?
- Thread starter Lobster Birch
- Start date
Welcome to Discuss Fastpitch
Your FREE Account is waiting to the Best Softball Community on the Web.
It's important to know your players.. but when external factors such as feelings towards a kids family dictate how much playing time that kid gets, then you have a problem. A coach should make an effort to know each kid at the same level. And even when your personality does not gel with a certain kids personality, that should not dictate playing time either... unfortunately it happens all the time. That's the beauty of stats(accurate), it takes all that BS out of the equation.
And stats are not the main reason that causes a kid to play scared, the feeling of not being able to make a mistake causes more players to play scared than any statistical measure. Some kids know they have to be perfect to stay on the field... the coaches perception is often skewed because of a biased feeling, or favoritism towards a certain player, allowing them to make mistake after mistake and still get more playing time.
GC isn't just about keeping stats, it lets family "watch" the game remotely in real time. It's downright addictive. And the audio play by play is absolutely awesome to listen to in one ear when you're working, especially when the computer butchers names...
- Jun 11, 2013
- 15
- 3
I've always felt stats are just for parents; that they're the most subjective metric of all. As for playing time, coaches play the players they want to keep. I think things work better when 'everyone' understands that.
- Jun 11, 2013
- 15
- 3
I agree with the 'why' part, but more like why 'waste your time'. I've never had a coach give an honest answer to anything. "You're starting next game", "I'm going to carry two catchers", etc.,. If a coach says it, it's as worthless as the clipboard he/she's carrying.
That's just too funny. 1 + 1 = 2, 1 + biased opinion = WTH
Coaches play the players they want to keep? Yes that's probably true, why do they want to keep them? WTF knows.
Are there other metrics? Gut feelings, biased opinions, favoritism, not subjective at all.. LOL. Actually that's the definition subjectivity
Subjectivity - the quality of being based on or influenced by personal feelings, tastes, or opinions.
Stats help delimit subjectivity, not create it. Of course they are not the be all end all.. there are other factors to consider.
Most people or coaches who hate stats are the ones that either don't understand or understand enough that it don't support their biased opinions and decisions.
My DD's team play against teams that are heavy into stats. Do they have a better team? No, but they win because they play the numbers. This hitter chases the high pitch, this one can't hit a change up, pitch this one outside, play this one up the middle.. etc. Our coaching staff gets badly out coached and it's obviously because of stats... not gut feelings. Yeah stats are just for parents
Last edited:
I coached softball for 40 years, HS, Rec, Travelball etc. . My winning % speaks for itself on all levels. I liked keeping book so that I could use stats to set my lineup and batting order. 99% of the time my starting lineup was based off my stats. Remember, this is competitive softball not playground stuff. Did anything else factor in? Sure, but the stats were my #1 deciding factor.
- Jun 11, 2013
- 15
- 3
You fail to realize at the club level, it is usually Tommy's Mom, or the Short Stop's Dad (which may very well be a head coach or assistant) inputting data. Garbage in, garbage out. Was that an error? Was that a sacrifice? What was the situation. Moreover, most scorekeepers (not unlike most coaches) couldn't tell the difference between a rise and a high fastball, and the data points you cite above are not typically recorded in club level stats. Why? Because the integrity of the data is unreliable.
- Nov 18, 2013
- 2,258
- 113
Who's keeping your book? 99% is an awfully large percentage to rely on someone who likely doesn't know how to keep stats. Before you say they know what they're doing, ask what a wild pitch is and I guarantee thy'll get it wrong. Unless they look it up of course.
He said "I liked keeping book so that I could use stats to set my lineup "
