Dugout question

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Aug 10, 2016
686
63
Georgia
In our EOS tournament this weekend, we had a little drama related to the dugouts.

I know that with the brackets, a lot of tournaments say the team on top gets the 1st base dugout and bottom gets the 3rd base dugout. That's generally how we play until you get into the loser bracket games.

The way we've always played is that if the same team is continuing to win and it's not two new teams playing, that the new team will take the other dugout - regardless of top/bottom.

So we were in the loser's bracket and won the last loser's bracket game to make it to the championship and happened to be on the 1st base side. I think the way the bracket was, we were on top anyway but we took it because the team we had played was in the other dugout.

So our team is setup and resting for the next game - our parents are completely set up.

While our game was finishing, I guess the other team had their stuff outside our dugout. And when our game ended assumed they would take that dugout. Our HC talked to their HC and asked if he wanted the dugout but the other HC was fine with it. But prior to this, the parents from the other team were pissed that they had to go to the other side.

Is there really an advantage to which dugout you are in. And in the 6 years DD has played SB and in DE tournaments, it's always just been common courtesy to allow the team to stay in the dugout they were just in. Unless the HC specifically asks to take the dugout. Also it's rare for the TD to even specify who gets which dugout based on the brackets. And with pool play, if your team is already there and has to play right after, you just stay in your dugout - it's just dumb to make the entire team and parents move. If we had to have moved and then ended up winning the championship and forced the IF game, it's not like we'd have been like - okay shift - everyone change dugouts again!

Anyway - just curious of thoughts on this.. Fun drama to end the season - I think it really pissed off their parents - probably didn't help that the ump had to tell them to turn down their walk up music so our HC could call pitches :/
 
Aug 19, 2015
1,118
113
Atlanta, GA
If we're going to play on the same field for two consecutive games, we stay in the same dugout. I don't ever remember having to move based on where we are on the bracket. Just seems like common sense to me?
 
Jun 12, 2015
3,848
83
That's one of the stupidest things I've ever heard. We always assume if we're playing a team on the same field where they just played, we'll take whatever dugout they're not in. It never even occurred to me that someone would expect a team to move just to go to the other dugout. Who cares. I see no advantage either way. It's a dugout. I don't see how it's going to have much influence on the outcome. I haven't noticed any correlation between dugout side and wins. Get a life is right.
 
Aug 23, 2016
359
43
Several tournaments DD plays in specify that teams should not change dugout between games. The schedule is usually so tight that it's better for the schedule if no one moves.

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Feb 13, 2015
164
18
I am curious to see any discussion on the advantage to either dugout. In our middle school games, I see our team in the 3rd base dugout at all our away games. Our local field (shared with a rec league at a park next to the school, the 3rd base dugout is labeled "Home" and we use that dugout. Never really thought much about it until I saw this post. Is it just a baseball/softball tradition that home team occupy first base dugout?
 
Aug 10, 2016
686
63
Georgia
At our fields, Home dugout is always first base side. I don't know if it's an advantage but maybe just to not be like - oh what dug-out should we take?
I do know that when we played in some MS games at HS fields, the sun was a lot worse on one side or the other. So that is the only thing I could see that would make a difference? Maybe the coach's view is better from 1st base?

The whole thing was just so silly and when some of the parents were yelling about it - I was like "umm this is rec sb guys, just chill" It was just so weird to watch their team cross the field from 1st base to 3rd base. Just figure out which team is winning and set up on the side of the other team - it's not that big of a deal... The last game was going to start at 815 and had to run a full 7 innings - that would have been so dumb to make everyone shift. It takes long enough waiting for the leaving team's parents to get out of their spots when you're trying to play after..
 
May 17, 2012
2,804
113
The only advantage is with regards to weather (sun and wind). 95% of the time it just doesn't matter and as a coach I don't really care.
 

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