Coach wants DD to switch PCs

Lightning said:

OP here with a small update.

We have one tournament under our belt and I don't think it matters who DD's pitching coach is, I think coach is just using that as an excuse not to pitch DD. It's obvious that his #1 priority is making sure his daughter gets as much pitching time as possible.

DD had a great weekend, and even opposing coaches commented that she looks like the staff ace. She had an inning where no one could even make contact with her pitches - three up, three down, three Ks, and every swing was a swing and a miss. But coach wasn't happy and he told the team that when hitters can't make contact with your pitcher that means she's inconsistent, and that you want them to make lots of contact because that means your pitcher is throwing strikes.

By that measure, coach's kid had an awesome weekend - she gave up more than 20 runs in less than 9 innings (limited to 5 runs per inning) and one team managed to get six hard hits in a row off her.

It's almost easier knowing he's an idiot because the less he likes DD's pitching, the more I know she's on the right track.

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Eric F said:

I just spit Diet Coke on my desk after reading that (bold). LMAO!!!

If your DD gets a chance to show herself a little more, I'm guessing that the rest of the parents catch on pretty quickly, and when they do, it might not be pretty. 10U all-stars is serious business.

Are HC's kid and your DD the only 2 pitchers? If they are, either the HC rides his kid into the ground, or your DD will get plenty more opportunities.

Good luck to your DD in the next tournament. Keep us posted.

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Lightning said:

Sorry about the Diet Coke on your desk.

There is a third pitcher, who is also more effective than coach's kid but she gets even fewer innings than DD.

The ACs are already grumbling about the pitching situation, so you may be right about the parents catching on.

DD will be fine. She had a great tournament, and she's doing her best, so we're trying to get her to focus on that. She's been talking with her BFF who played for this coach in the rec season, and it helps her to see that the problem is not her, it's the coach.

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Lightning said:

OP here with a small update.

We have one tournament under our belt and I don't think it matters who DD's pitching coach is, I think coach is just using that as an excuse not to pitch DD. It's obvious that his #1 priority is making sure his daughter gets as much pitching time as possible.

DD had a great weekend, and even opposing coaches commented that she looks like the staff ace. She had an inning where no one could even make contact with her pitches - three up, three down, three Ks, and every swing was a swing and a miss. But coach wasn't happy and he told the team that when hitters can't make contact with your pitcher that means she's inconsistent, and that you want them to make lots of contact because that means your pitcher is throwing strikes.

By that measure, coach's kid had an awesome weekend - she gave up more than 20 runs in less than 9 innings (limited to 5 runs per inning) and one team managed to get six hard hits in a row off her.

It's almost easier knowing he's an idiot because the less he likes DD's pitching, the more I know she's on the right track.

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riseball said:

I had plenty of advice from coaches during my youngest career. Quit coaching her, let her grow. Do not have her throw a riseball because college coaches want drop ball pitchers. A 2 seam is not a legit pitch. Do not go the JUCO route because it is a dead end.

She won a national championship in JUCO, named NJCAA Pitcher of The Year. just graduated on Saturday from South Carolina, and today I am taking her to the airport so she can fly to Europe and play pro ball this summer.

Do what you know is right and support her, the rest is just noise.

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Eric F said:

If your DD gets a chance to show herself a little more, I'm guessing that the rest of the parents catch on pretty quickly, and when they do, it might not be pretty. 10U all-stars is serious business.

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Lightning said:

Eric, you were 100% correct. Parents are growing impatient when coach keeps putting his daughter in to get slaughtered until the lead is too great to make up and DD comes in and pitches well. One team was treating coach's kid like batting practice and then DD came in and the opposing coach was yelling at these same players to stop jumping out of the box every time DD hit the inside corner.

But DD continues to have a positive attitude, and thanks to GameChanger there are now other coaches (and board members) in our league who are noticing how well she's doing. I have to remind her that her attitude and her work ethic will help her in the future, not only building her reputation with her league but also teaching her that the best response to Daddy Ball is to play her heart out and show everyone how wrong coach is.

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Eric F said:

Has your DD gotten an opportunity to start a game, or is coach's DD starting all of them?

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Lightning said:

She started one game but it was because they played back-to-back games and coach said he'd let her pitch her one inning at the start of the game because she was already warm.

The only time she got more than one inning was when an AC stepped up and insisted, but that AC is not around much and the other ACs just go along with coach.

Coach's kid has pitched about twice the innings DD has, but that stat is deceptive because in many innings coach's kid gives up the run limit before getting the third out. If you compared the number of innings each pitcher started, coach's kid has probably pitched in three times as many innings as DD.

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