Anyone like outs at 2nd?? 10U

[radness]

That’s what I was thinking @RADcatcher. Shortest distance between 2 points being a straight line and all.

theres the math!

Think theres a balance in where to play defense.
Pending how hard (or fast)
The ball is being hit
And how fast runners are...
Usually throwing speed/accuracy makes up the gap in making the play.
Imagine at 10u this factor may be more important?!!

Usually learning to throw hard at that age is still developing,
While running fast for many is pretty obvious to do.

This is why in younger ages
'runners running a muck'
Scores more runs
By pushing bad throws
( slow & off target )

 

[Towny9]

theres the math!

Think theres a balance in where to play defense.
Pending how hard (or fast)
The ball is being hit
And how fast runners are...
Usually throwing speed/accuracy makes up the gap in making the play.
Imagine at 10u this factor may be more important?!!

Usually learning to throw hard at that age is still developing,
While running fast for many is pretty obvious to do.

This is why in younger ages
'runners running a muck'
Scores more runs
By pushing bad throws
( slow & off target )

One of the hardest things to break at 10U is when they field the ball many of them will stand straight up (stopping all momentum) and wind up to throw. There isn’t much sense of urgency. We work a lot on staying low, moving through the ball in the direction of the throw when possible, and getting rid of it quickly in rhythm.

 

[radness]

One of the hardest things to break at 10U is when they field the ball many of them will stand straight up (stopping all momentum) and wind up to throw. There isn’t much sense of urgency. We work a lot on staying low, moving through the ball in the direction of the throw when possible, and getting rid of it quickly in rhythm.

That is a great post of its own!!!

At times see people doing field work WITHOUT finishing the throw. ( or atleast transition threw)
Think fielding the ball is great, super important, but
transitioning into our throw is vital!
The down time after receiving the ball could be the error in the play.
(this is the same thing as catchers and our pop times!!
From the moment we touch the ball, to the moment it gets to the next glove.
Includes body mechanics and throwing speed!)

Get To the ball & Throw Threw to ball.
Body energy driving forward helping us throw.

Sidenote~
It's interesting to hear the words
let's warm up our arms
*we really don't only throw with our arms. we throw with our body which includes our arms. Lets make a mental note to communicate what's really going on.

 

[Fury_Mike]

That’s what I was thinking @RADcatcher. Shortest distance between 2 points being a straight line and all.

I meant more time to cover ground defensively, not to the bases.

 

[Towny9]

I meant more time to cover ground defensively, not to the bases.

Gotcha. At 10U I would love to play middles a little deeper, but so many dribblers hit in front of them it makes it tough too. As we get better at attacking the ball and improve arm strength I think we will be able to gradually play deeper for the reason you stated.

 

[Fury_Mike]

I started using J-bands and a progressive under/over loading program when my girls were 11U. Now all but one throw over 60 and 5 are 64 or greater (at 14U). This is all predicated on teaching proper throwing mechanics. Wasserman or Blewett are great resources for this.

 

[uncdrew]

It has to be a balance.

It isn't even a matter of W-L - If you have a lower level team you can quickly lose the parents/players/others if they are fielding for 30 minutes per half-inning every time - especially in the heat of summer - and are losing ALL the time. Also I want game at-bats in their development so I want to get their swings in as well.

As the skills develop then you can move to making the 'better' or 'right' play as you move forward and they have a chance of success (even a small one). You will still get plenty of balls in the outfield - that is all OK. Moving them through these things are all part of good coaching in my opinion.

Agreed. Get the outs. Yes, you're not teaching them the "right" way to play the game. But think of it like teaching algebra. You don't start with algebra. You start with arithmetic and get the skill and confidence up first. Then you advance. There's a reason you don't teach the 6-4-3 double play to beginners. You have to work up to that. Outs at first, then outs at second, then double plays.

What's pretty cool is watching the girls' lightbulbs go off, when they ask: "why don't we get the runner out at second".

But in 8U (and some 10U) there's just too many moving parts to get the out at second in most cases. But your 1B is pretty used to getting to the base and waiting for a throw in the early stages of softball development.

So get your outs at 1b in the short term and work towards getting the outs at 2B when you feel the skill and knowledge are there to pull it off more than half the time.

 

[uncdrew]

I know, but I am actually going a step further and saying I'm almost always OK with the 2B taking the out at first unless the out at second is the obviously easier play (ball up the middle, runner is super slow or forgets to run, etc). And even in those cases, if she gets the out at first, I'm not gonna be too upset about it.

I look at it like this: Is the out at second better? Of course. But I want the out. Any out. Any out at all is going to lower their RE for the inning, and we don't play too many 3-2 games. If we get those outs, even if they're not the optimal out, we're going to end up winning most of our games.

Plus in 10U almost anyone can (and does) steal second on the first pitch. So congrats on getting the lead runner, but one pitch later it doesn't matter much that you did. If you've coached 10U in the last year or so (I have), the double play just isn't something that happens on most teams. Certainly not in rec, certainly not in lower levels of travel. Haven't seen a single one in hundreds of games.

I'm all for teaching it, and trying it. But get an honest feel for the talent of your squad before spending time on it. As most coaches know, there's just never enough time to practice everything at the young ages. In theory, you teach to get the lead runner. But in reality, it might be a disaster. Yes, you'll lose tons of games, but that isn't the disaster part. The disaster part is that you've made the game no fun for the girls. I'll be curious to see how it goes for the OP. Just saying be flexible and adapt to what you are seeing - going for impossible plays when they're not ready for that won't be a good strategy.

 

[Towny9]

I’m a big advocate for getting the lead out when it’s the easier play. For example groundballs to third with runners on 1st and 2nd - field it and touch third. Groundball to SS runner on 1st flip it to second. Bases loaded hit to the pitcher throw it home. I would argue that those are all easier plays than going to first. I’m ok with adjusting to the talent that you have - just don’t tell them to throw it to first every time regardless of situation.

full disclaimer - I can count on one hand how many times we have held the ball with the catcher on 1st and 3rd plays. We almost always try to make a play somewhere. I realize that aggressive style isn’t for every team or every coach, but as the season went on we learned how to handle the ball in those situations.

 

[uncdrew]

I’m a big advocate for getting the lead out when it’s the easier play. For example groundballs to third with runners on 1st and 2nd - field it and touch third. Groundball to SS runner on 1st flip it to second. Bases loaded hit to the pitcher throw it home. I would argue that those are all easier plays than going to first. I’m ok with adjusting to the talent that you have - just don’t tell them to throw it to first every time regardless of situation.

full disclaimer - I can count on one hand how many times we have held the ball with the catcher on 1st and 3rd plays. We almost always try to make a play somewhere. I realize that aggressive style isn’t for every team or every coach, but as the season went on we learned how to handle the ball in those situations.

Well said. It's not an automatic "play's at first".

For us adults who have been around the sport (watching, playing, coaching, whatever) we know where the play is on every situation. But a 10 year old girl just isn't there yet. It seems so simple to us but there's a learning curve. We all see some girls get it quicker and younger than others. Those girls with the "good softball IQ" -- heck, we've even coined a phrase for it.