Assistant Coach Dilemma

[FPMark]

Being a head coach is a huge responseability. He is ultimatly resonsible for all aspects of game performance. As an assistant, you have to respect all his decisions. However he also cannot do it all himself, thats why he needs assistants. As others have suggested, you must first gain his trust. This may take some time. If you give him the feeling that he does ANYTHING wrong, he will never trust you. This is the most difficult part of your job.

Observe practice and games looking for ways to improve performance in small ways. (outfielders not getting the ball in quickly enough, not hitting cutoff, missplaying basehits, or whatever) Anything that you see needs improving that he may not have enough time to focuss on and vollunteer to work with those girls while he is doing something else. Always ask the head coach about where he wants the ball to go in certain situations, and teach them how to do it correctly. If the coach sees improvement, his trust in you will go up.

Bottom line is, take your time, don't expect too much respect too soon, and remember he's the boss. Your job is to make him look good. If you can't do that, look for something else to do.

 

[Carty]

"Observe practice and games looking for ways to improve performance in small ways. (outfielders not getting the ball in quickly enough, not hitting cutoff, missplaying basehits, or whatever) Anything that you see needs improving that he may not have enough time to focuss on and vollunteer to work with those girls while he is doing something else."

Well said.Places you can really look to is warmups, both practice and pregame routines. Good places to help the HC out while he attends other things and at the same time work on mechanics. Make sure you observe what is being done and then discuss it with him with a plan to improve.

I was in a similar situation this fall with a team. I was an asst coach, didnt know the HC or any of players except four. The first week no one really wanted to hear what I had to say. After that, I did the above, made improvement where I could, helped where I could. Eventually I built the trust needed to where many would ask for me to look at this or that, the prepractice and pregame was my job, etc. It took a lot of patience on MY part.

 

[Bishop]

Jeff,

As an assistant coach I encountered some of the same frustrations. Like you, I still don't think I'm ready to run the show. Though I'm getting pretty close. One thing I'd like to point out. There is something to learn from every head coach you work with. Find those things that this coach does well and learn the how and the why. Learn the things he doesn't do well to make sure you don't replicate those mistakes when you get the chance.

You mention you have two sisters in the program. Start there. I got some of the skills and techniques I wanted to teach introduced through my daughter. It's easy to discount someones advice or teachings when the person(s) they work with the most are mediocer. I got interested in hitting, did a bunch of research, studied a bunch of philosophies and picked out the one that made the most sense to me. Worked with my kid to figure out how to teach the material and go figure my kid started hitting better and better the more we worked on teaching Daddy to coach. Now people bring problem kids to my attention to try and figure out whats going wrong and how to fix it. Sometimes I even can. Try it with your sisters, if they will cooperated. Siblings are a different animal than kids, I can always with hold food from my kid to get compliance. I don't think that works with sisters.

Regardless, get through, over, under or around the frustration. There's way to much fun to be had coaching to let something like differences in coaching philosophy ruin it.

 

[coach_jeffobi]

I am still trying to understand what is so different about Candrea's approach (3 of them IIRC, on the video) from what you say.

I see a shuffle and a throw in one of the styles. Please explain further. Sometimes goals are pretty much the same, but we use different words--that I have come to learn, in politics, real life and softball!

Well he has them throwing back to each other, and catching the ball as their glove foot hits the ground(like a 1st basemen stretch & catch), then shuffling and throwing, and thats great if we were working on just force outs at a base, but I thought it was common knowledge that your body (for the most part) should be square to the ball as it's coming to you when your fielding grounders, flyballs, etc but especially when a ball is thrown to you. So I just had trouble understanding why he was shutting down what I was describing(the first throwing footwork Candrea describes). Because players aren't always going to be in that position to catch a ball that way. I was really just try to stress we should be learning/feeling proper body mechanics with the throw, but I'm just going to take in the advice I got here and try and come at practices in a different angle

 

[chinamigarden]

I don't know that it is common knowledge that you should be square to the ball. I have taught and the Candrea video teaches that the glove side foot should be in front a bit. And if you watch many games you see the best fielding SSs taking many balls, they could get square to, on the backhand side so they can transition to a throw faster. Just like you have third basemen running around a ball to get it on the glove side of their body so they can get their body moving toward 1st base.

 

[StacieM]

If you were coaching my child and teaching them to always catch or receive the ball square I would be upset! If I were assisting you and you insisted upon teaching the players on the team to always receive the ball square, I would be going as crazy as you are. lol

IMHO, there is nothing wrong with stepping TO the ball when you are going to receive it. Our game is quick and fast, you have to get rid of the ball as soon as possible. Receiving it SQUARE does not facilitate that. Baseball can do that because they have more time.

Can you tell I'm a Howard Kobata fan?

If you're ever walked through it and really focused on FEELING the difference between receiving square then trying to make a throw and receiving HK way, you would understand the difference.

Nothing wrong with receiving square if you don't have to make another play. But how often in our game does a player receive a ball than she doesn't need to throw anywhere else?

 

[coach_jeffobi]

If you were coaching my child and teaching them to always catch or receive the ball square I would be upset! If I were assisting you and you insisted upon teaching the players on the team to always receive the ball square, I would be going as crazy as you are. lol

IMHO, there is nothing wrong with stepping TO the ball when you are going to receive it. Our game is quick and fast, you have to get rid of the ball as soon as possible. Receiving it SQUARE does not facilitate that. Baseball can do that because they have more time.

Can you tell I'm a Howard Kobata fan?

If you're ever walked through it and really focused on FEELING the difference between receiving square then trying to make a throw and receiving HK way, you would understand the difference.

Nothing wrong with receiving square if you don't have to make another play. But how often in our game does a player receive a ball than she doesn't need to throw anywhere else?

Thank You for not helping in any way. My main question was how to deal with a head coach who doesn't necessarily respect me or what I'm trying to say. I didn't ask for the critique.

Once again, If I didn't clarify I am talking about partner to partner throwing NOT FIELDING, just throwing. The feel of the movement, what body parts need to transition in what ways, and I personally felt that if partners start square and transition their bodies into good throwing form (sideways, jab stepping with inside of the foot, etc) then they would be better able to transition to that form from whatever position they find themselves fielding from. I understand with desperation catches(backhand, glove side) your not going to be square same with a 2nd basemen opening up to give a solid force feed to SS at 2nd, and Outfielders catching a ball to there throwing side, but like I said that wasn't my main question.

But again I will take into account everyone's HELPFUL advice, and continue to work as a team with my head coach, I think i'm making progress, and I have MOST of you to thank for that.

 

[Greenmonsters]

Thank You for not helping in any way. My main question was how to deal with a head coach who doesn't necessarily respect me or what I'm trying to say. I didn't ask for the critique.

Once again, If I didn't clarify I am talking about partner to partner throwing NOT FIELDING, just throwing. The feel of the movement, what body parts need to transition in what ways, and I personally felt that if partners start square and transition their bodies into good throwing form (sideways, jab stepping with inside of the foot, etc) then they would be better able to transition to that form from whatever position they find themselves fielding from. I understand with desperation catches(backhand, glove side) your not going to be square same with a 2nd basemen opening up to give a solid force feed to SS at 2nd, and Outfielders catching a ball to there throwing side, but like I said that wasn't my main question.

But again I will take into account everyone's HELPFUL advice, and continue to work as a team with my head coach, I think i'm making progress, and I have MOST of you to thank for that.

Ummm...what was your complaint about the head coach - something about not being receptive? Stacie's advice is more relevant than you think - suggest you google Howard Kobata and then consider apologizing. I applaud and fully encourage your efforts to become a better SB coach, but you, Grasshopper, must recognize that there still is more to be learned.

 

[StacieM]

I was also talking about throwing. But in any case, I do agree with the comment about shoulders square.

Anywho - I also fins it interesting that you are grumbling about the coach not respecting you or listening to anything you say, then you do the exact same thing to me.

Why did you do that? You felt threatened? You felt it wasn't relevant to what you needed? Whatever you felt and whatever caused you to react that way to me is probably EXACTLY what this coach you are working with is experiencing with you.

Whatever alternative approach you think I could have taken to "help" you, go to him and use that approach.

 

[StacieM]

Sorry for the typos, I'm posting via mobile app and I don't see an "edit" button that allows me to go back and correct.