Coach wants DD to switch PCs

Eric F said:

You make a valid point. Some coaches aren't so good at taking input from "stupid parents". I guess approaching the coach with something like this is largely dependent on the coach. From my point of view, as a former all-star and TB coach, I made an attempt to stay out of the way of the instruction players were getting from paid instructors - whether I agreed with it or not. In those situations, I focused more on mental approach.

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We can only wish there were more who take this approach...maybe a "DFP Good Coach Clinic" should be held along with the pitching, hitting, catching clinics! ;-)

Tatonka said:

We can only wish there were more who take this approach...maybe a "DFP Good Coach Clinic" should be held along with the pitching, hitting, catching clinics! ;-)

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I will point out as a coach that the scenario that is described (player is getting proper IR taught by the pitching coach and the head coach is trying to teach inferior mechanics) occurs very infrequently compared to the opposite scenario where the PC is clueless and the head coach tries to help.

I have had quite a few heated discussions with parents and their "paid coaches". Parents who pay money for a service don't like it when you tell them they are getting poor advice.

As a coach I try and identify players with inferior pitching (and hitting) mechanics in tryouts. One question I always ask on the info sheet is who your pitching and hitting coach is. Some players get excluded on that alone (sad but true).

GunnerShotgun said:

I will point out as a coach that the scenario that is described (player is getting proper IR taught by the pitching coach and the head coach is trying to teach inferior mechanics) occurs very infrequently compared to the opposite scenario where the PC is clueless and the head coach tries to help.

I have had quite a few heated discussions with parents and their "paid coaches". Parents who pay money for a service don't like it when you tell them they are getting poor advice.

As a coach I try and identify players with inferior pitching (and hitting) mechanics in tryouts. One question I always ask on the info sheet is who your pitching and hitting coach is. Some players get excluded on that alone (sad but true).

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And I am absolutely, 100% confident that you are correct based on the lack of quality PC's in some parts of this country!

Lightning said:

DD's all-star coach wants DD to use his daughter's PC and I don't want to switch. Not only is this PC a big believer in HE, but she charges twice as much as DD's PC to dole out this advice.

Coach tells me that DD isn't serious enough about pitching because we have no interest in his PC. He's threatening DD's pitching time.

So far my husband and I have told DD to pitch the way she pitches and then let her results speak for themselves. But her coach is spending practice time questioning her mechanics because, for example, she doesn't keep her arm totally straight during her windmill.

How do we handle this?

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Pitching coaches are not "one size fits all" and DD went through several before she found one she liked. Not sure why a TB coach would push a player to change pitching coaches, when I was coaching we were thrilled if our pitchers were taking lessons at all! Sounds like you need to make some calls and be prepared to change teams.

JAD said:

Pitching coaches are not "one size fits all" and DD went through several before she found one she liked. Not sure why a TB coach would push a player to change pitching coaches, when I was coaching we were thrilled if our pitchers were taking lessons at all! Sounds like you need to make some calls and be prepared to change teams.

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This is rec league all-stars, not TB. Changing teams is not an option.

Eric F said:

This is rec league all-stars, not TB. Changing teams is not an option.

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Well I will have to say that I am impressed that a REC league all-star pitcher has a pitching coach! What age group? Is your DD ready to transition into TB?

JAD said:

Well I will have to say that I am impressed that a REC league all-star pitcher has a pitching coach! What age group? Is your DD ready to transition into TB?

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She's a first-year 10U, and in her league at least 75% of the pitchers have coaches.

We're not ready to move into TB any time soon. DD still has plenty of room to grow within this league (most of the coaches truly are amazing) and the only way she can participate in her other sports (volleyball and basketball) is if she keeps playing rec.

Just remember, being a good pitcher is a marathon not a sprint and while i can appreciate the notion that you want her to pitch in all stars and get lots of playing time summer, you need to look long term. If she puts in the work and gets better, next season, and the season after, she will be in high demand as teams are always looking for effective pitchers no matter who their pitching coaches are. Good luck.

Eric F said:

This is rec league all-stars, not TB. Changing teams is not an option.

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1. This is just rec-all stars? Really. The all star season cant be that long. How many games are you playing? Kind of silly that an all-star coach would have the ego to even suggest that at the expense of playing time. I would just play this politically not try to piss the coach off, and just say I respect your advice but im staying with your PC. Just try to appease him so he doesn't take innings from your DD. When you get into close games, good coaches want to win and will start forgetting there silly bias and put out the best pitcher.

2. My experience is that things eventually work out, and try to look at the big picture. So your DD gets screwed out of some rec innings. When you look back at in 5 years, this moment will be trivial. Keep in mind, pitching is a journey. If your DD develops good mechanics, this will pay huge dividends in the long run. That should be your focus. She probably has many travel ball games, middle school games high school games, etc in her future. Sometimes you have to stick out a short term situation out and make lemonade out of lemons. My DD is a Jr in high school now and doing well. But I look back at the ups and downs, and I remember all the times I perceived a coach didn't give my DD a fair shake. I remember a lot of moments I was mad then she didn't get the pitching time I thought she should get, but she kept working hard and I kept getting her the best coaching, and its been paying off. Just keep in perspective, and you'll laugh about this situation in 5 years from now.

Just accept that your DD may not be the #1 pitcher for the All Star team. Simply tell coach you are not changing PC at this time. You don't need to explain anything to him. If she continues getting HE instruction, tell her to listen politely, then pitch the way her pitching coach instructed. An AllStars coach should be results driven, so either a pitcher has the stuff, or they don't.

I chuckle at the IR crowd on here who are as set in their beliefs as your All Stars coach. Pushing IR on an HE is no better than Pushing HE on an IR.