I think the solution is clear. She keeps missing practices. And her dad is calling pitches for her. A pitcher who is missing practice either gets benched, or plays the minimum required innings in LF. Then dad can call all the pitches he wants.
We asked the pitcher if she could throw some BP to the team to help get them used to faster pitching. Didn't want her to do anything but throw fastballs down the middle so the girls could work on timing. She complies, and he starts yelling at her for not throwing all of her pitches, or picking the corners. When I walked over and calmly explained what we were trying to do, he said he was trying to make sure she was ready for a state championship game, and if a batter was standing in front of her, she should never do anything but try and strike them out. This was last year, when all of the girls were in 6th grade.
Simply put, i don't believe that pitching in game situations has special significance that can't be found in practices. Is there more pressure in a game? Yes. Does that automatically mean every kid responds the same way to the pressure? No. Does success in a game build confidence faster than in practice? I think yes. Does failure in a game erode confidence faster than in practice? Again i think yes. Failure when the lights are brightest could have either effect. Maybe it's my background in physics that causes me to be skeptical of anything that can't be demonstrated or proven, but i find that argument really tiring. It's something people have to believe, it's not a fact.
The actual dad relative to this post is about as far from a baseball/softball person as you could find. I can literally throw farther with my off hand than he can with his dominant. He did not grow up around the game and it is evident in the way his advice is clearly just stuff he heard somewhere which he repeats but always applies to the wrong situations. A girl is missing the ball and he tells her to choke up, not able to recognize she is actually swinging early. That's a literal example. i could give dozens, but i digress. Probably the most annoying thing about dealing with this dad is that he takes whatever the PC says, and accepts it as gospel. He has no foundational understanding to critically analyze anything and form his own opinion.
I'll end this post with a question for trojans29. Do you think if the PC had told said dad that his daughter's best chance to pitch in college would be to pitch left handed, and gave some argument of authority for the reasoning, that dad would have accepted it, and we would be dealing with her trying to pitch lefty? I genuinely think that outside of the fact that the learning curve would be so steep and he wouldn't have the patience to wait that long for her to be in the spotlight, he would have done it.
I disagree. Pitching in game situations inherently has special significance because it IS the game versus practice. There is data and studies that show a physical affect to the body when under pressure and in stressful situations. The muscles tighten, the blood pressure rises, the heart rate increases, etc. Anyone who has been around this game for any length of time can attest there is much, much less pressure/stress throwing practice, or warmups versus a game. I also believe there is a correlation between the relative importance of the game/event and the amount or degree of pressure/stress. All that to say, I know for my DD the more exposure she gets to throwing under pressure/stress the better she's able to cope. So, I have no problems with a pitch caller, calling changeups during a rec league game to help improve that pitch both mentally and physically (assuming that pitch ability can be demonstrated outside of the game).Simply put, i don't believe that pitching in game situations has special significance that can't be found in practices.
IMO:
The HC shows poor judgement by how pitchers are used in BP, and allowing inexperienced / under qualified parents in the dugout calling pitches.
I know i will probably get some pushback on this statement, but pitchers aren't special. They are 1 of 9.