adding to roster in July Pony rules

[fivepotsogold]

Team of 12 healthy kids ... been playing together all year. 6 of 9 completed Tourns.

Kid shows up to practice July 16th, plays in tourn two days later and is not on roster submitted.
Kids who have been there since day 1 sit bench.

Yes, I find this mean (especially when skill of new player is below current players), rude, unbelievable, etc.....

However ... isn't there a deadline (June 15) or is this
common among "thieves"?

Going into 2nd year of Travel ... the mean-ness by parents kids was not expected and adding letting go of players at will concerns me.

 

[calgofo]

Team of 12 healthy kids ... been playing together all year. 6 of 9 completed Tourns.

Kid shows up to practice July 16th, plays in tourn two days later and is not on roster submitted.
Kids who have been there since day 1 sit bench.

Yes, I find this mean (especially when skill of new player is below current players), rude, unbelievable, etc.....

However ... isn't there a deadline (June 15) or is this
common among "thieves"?

Going into 2nd year of Travel ... the mean-ness by parents kids was not expected and adding letting go of players at will concerns me.

I don't know of Pony rules as I never coached under those rules but there is a cutoff date in all organizations for additions to the post season roster.

You use the term "travel", to me that means A ball. IF this is an "A" ball team, then players or often picked up for post season play. At the BEGINNING of every season, I used to tell parents that, I was allowed to pick up players and if we chose to, we would AND they would play. Otherwise, "Why pick them up in the first place."

If picking up or cutting players bothers you, then perhaps travel isn't for you. "A" ball players scratch and claw their way to the top in hopes of getting noticed someday by college players. Its called competition. If in your view that is "mean" then, so be it. To use a phrase in the vernacular of today, "IT is what it is."

I would only add that competition is present in every facet of life. Everyone here who has a job competes against everybody else to keep it. I'm not in favor of sheltering kids from the realities of life.

JMO YMMV

 

[a softball life for me]

I would only add that competition is present in every facet of life. Everyone here who has a job competes against everybody else to keep it. I'm not in favor of sheltering kids from the realities of life.

I do agree with you that our children need to learn the realities of life. However, I think I understand what 5 potsofgold is getting at. If I paid $750 to be on the team, hawked raffle tickets all year and sweated my butt off through numerious carwashes, I don't want to see some mediocre talent walking on in the middle of July when I've been there since last August.

The lesson here is not that you are competing to keep your job, the lesson is that you just got taken advantage of.

 

[fivepotsogold]

Yup, we did get taken advantage of ...
or just plain screwed ...

Total in for all was $1400 (fees, uniform, equipment) .... plus gas food etc.

My kid knows what happened ... doesn't like it ... knows reality of life.

I probably could have swallowed it better if the kid was really good ...
nice kid (not unhappy with her) ... but my DD was better and still got shoved aside ... as well as 2-3 others who also worked hard and came to practice and worked hard. Just wish I knew why.

(I did the book/stats and kept everyone on schedule organized during tournaments, so I was a helpful parent)
(I did discuss playing the "bottom 4" more when we knew the game was going to be a mercy with the coach on several occasions and I was told to put them where I wanted after we were ahead by 15 ...at least they got one inning .. he did ask for my opinion observations a few times).

Enough of my whining ....
back to the rules .....

My question was: What are the PONY rules ... site says roster complete by June 15, no addition unless medical waiver....

Seems to me that this kid added July 16 should not have been playing ... nor should the other one added the following weekend (called us to give "new player #2" our uniform)(no way)(yes, they really asked us for our uniform).

Are there sanctions?
Do they ever check the roster?
Is this common?


This is 12U "travel" Pony ... isn't kids scratching way to college at this point.

 

[Mark H]

Players added at the last minute should be for injuries, to get all the way back through the loser's bracket without getting worn out if need be, to help the existing kids win thus getting everyone more games (no sense going 2 and Q if a stud pitcher splitting time gets you several more games). If a coach gets a rep for benching kids for the end of the year tourney in favor of kids who just joined the team that will hurt their recruiting. Dance with who brung ya' as Bum Phillips used to say.

 

[fivepotsogold]

We did have an injury early in May .... added weekend kid who ended up staying ...that was the 12th player ...
ended up playing 7 games that weekend and placing 1st ... it was helpful to have an 11th player instead of 10 that weekend.

Since then no injuries, same 12 kids ...

They don't care about their reputation, only # of flags/trophies.
Parents are arrogant enough to think that it won't happen to them or their kid.
One parent said "we will never know why, we just have to accept"
To a point true...but part of learning to work hard in life, and that life isn't fair, is to walk away from unhealthy situations and standing up to someone who is truly wrong (mean for no logical reason).
No one should put up with being treated like crap ... I do not want my DD to think that this is acceptable treatment.

Some parents will do anything to have their kid on a winning team...even allow their kid to be verbally abused and embarrased in public.
I'm just not one of them.

We didn't expect our DD play 100%.
She is average but dependable.

On the flip side: one of the teams she made last year has an incredibly loyal coach. My DD could eaily be paired (fairly equally) with his #1 and they could have done some damage. But he honestly told me that he wasn't going to displace his #2 and #3 pitchers. DD would make that team, but probably would not pitch.
We have crossed paths several times and he is one of the most positve coaches who really exlempifies sportsmanship.
I have remained on good terms with all of them and we always chat when we meet.

With a year under our belt we have been able to observe many other coaches and their approach ...


Moving on from this and working on turning it into a positve as we now know of three coaches we respect and my DD will tryout for those teams.

 

[Mark H]

And work her rear off so when she gets the chance to beat the old coach, she can. These things have a way of coming back around.

 

[fivepotsogold]

LOL .... that would be fun!

I think it would be great if she could get hits off the #1 "phenom" they have!

 

[calgofo]

And work her rear off so when she gets the chance to beat the old coach, she can. These things have a way of coming back around.

On the rare occasions when I did cut a kid, I always told them nothing would make me prouder than for you to come back and hand it to me one day.

And.......I did have it happen to me . Yep.....what comes around goes around.

 

[calgofo]

Players added at the last minute should be for injuries, to get all the way back through the loser's bracket without getting worn out if need be,

No doubt.

to help the existing kids win thus getting everyone more games (no sense going 2 and Q if a stud pitcher splitting time gets you several more games).

Or a stud anything for that matter.

Yes, I should have included that in my earlier post. The point of picking up players is to get deeper in the tournament thus increasing playing time for all.
That is the way it is supposed to happen.

If everyone will allow me an annecdote, Many years ago, I answered an ad for a team looking for an additional pitcher to go to a (albeit a small one) national tournament. The person who placed the ad had a daughter who was also a pitcher. I went into it just thinking of maybe my daughter will get a little extra pitching at an older level as my kid was just 12 at the time and the rest of the kids were HS age. As it turned out my kid got ALOT of playing time. To make a long story longer, the kids won the national tournament and my kid got the MVP trophy. The person's daughter who placed the add did not get the MVP. He could have easily not played my dd or not took her in the first place. But he placed the emphasis on the team and the betterment of ALL. Because he was selfless and looking out for the best thing for everybody, they were able to win it all.

In case you haven't figured out by now, the person who took my DD was none other than...........Mark H.

Many years later, my dd has cases full of throphies, MVP's and NCAA medals but the one she treasures above all others is the one she got from this little tournament.

IMO, thats what this should be all about.

If a coach gets a rep for benching kids for the end of the year tourney in favor of kids who just joined the team that will hurt their recruiting.

Indeed it will.

Dance with who brung ya' as Bum Phillips used to say.

Nothing like Bum Phillips for great country witicisms. I watched an interview with him one time and he was asked what made a great coach. He said a great coach was one that was a "his'n and your'n" coach. The interviewer, not understanding what Bum meant, ask him to explain. Bum said a his'n and your'n coach was one that could take his (his'n) team and beat your (your'n) team or take your (your'n) team and beat his (his'n).