Barely Any At Bats

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Sep 21, 2020
11
3
"but the coach never responds to me,"
^^^^^^^Unacceptable childlike behavior. My guess is she is an ex-college player lacking in common social norms.

Well, this is why I advocate to ask questions. Lots of questions before joining a team. By asking questions you set the tone of what you expect from the team.

How many players do you intend to carry on the roster?
How many pitchers?
Where do you see my DD in the batting order?
Will she get time in her secondary position?
What tournaments do you plan on attending?
Will we be taking a weekend off each month?
Are there any dads coaching on this team?
Will you be batting the roster at friendlies?

Your DD is a pitcher. She has the golden ticket! If she has a little speed and can throw strikes, she has lots of options. Next tryout offer you get remember to ask questions.




***Paid for the season??? That is not how it works in So Cal. Here you pay start up fees (uniforms) and monthly dues. Probably the reason why there is so much team jumping.
What do we do if we asked all those questions upfront and the coach end up do differently later on ?
For example , he said he will have 12 in roster but end up 14 .
(12U team )
 
Jun 8, 2016
16,118
113
What do we do if we asked all those questions upfront and the coach end up do differently later on ?
For example , he said he will have 12 in roster but end up 14 .
(12U team )
If it is actually a problem, chalk it up to "live and learn" and move on..? That said if one is looking for a perfect situation for their kid they may be looking forever. The coach could have a reasonable explanation for carrying a larger roster than what was originally promised..
 
Last edited:
Apr 20, 2018
4,581
113
SoCal
What do we do if we asked all those questions upfront and the coach end up do differently later on ?
For example , he said he will have 12 in roster but end up 14 .
(12U team )
If it is actually problem, chalk it up to live and learn and move on..?
I am going to let the coach know face to face I am not happy at all with his decision to add players strongly reminding him he said he would keep roster at 12 and if it effects my DDs playing time we might be moving on. I am sure other parents probably aren't happy either. Power in numbers. If he was going to add he should have called a parent meeting and get their input first.
Coach should not make promises they don't intend on keeping. If half the team left he would learn his lesson.
 
Jun 8, 2016
16,118
113
I am going to let the coach know face to face I am not happy at all with his decision to add players strongly reminding him he said he would keep roster at 12 and if it effects my DDs playing time we might be moving on.
Good luck with that. While admirable, IMO it is not a parent's job to be the NATO of TB. I've attempted to go down this path (not for this exact situation) both at the coach and org head level, it was fruitless. Do what is best for your kid. One of the best indications of the quality of a coach, in particular at the younger ages, is retention of players. If you want to alert the rest of the TB community about a bad coach the best way to do it is to leave a bad situation...
 
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Feb 8, 2009
272
18
I'll let the regulars chime in but for me it's inexcusable and you need to find a team once this is over where she will get at bats and have the opportunity to grow. I assume you paid up for the season? You need to talk to the dad since you have access to him.
I too, find this inexcusable. When you coach younger age groups, you have one on the future. You are committed to the growth of every girl you take at tryouts. I have always batted the roster . Whatever the result, I have never regretted it. Some of the girls have gone on to get their education paid for as a result of playing softball. Most find other avenues. At the end of every season, every girl should have improved appreciably. That includes hitting live pitching. End of rant.🤗
 
Dec 30, 2011
47
18
At that age she needs to be on the field and in the batting order almost all the time. She needs to be on a team that competes but has lots of fun doing it. She needs all the at bats possible. At her age it is not important to be on a highly competitive team that is all about winning and that always looks to improve the team by adding better players to replace the ones they already have. Playing a lot and enjoying the time with good coaches and good teammates is most important right now. She will develop her needed skills much quicker and better. She can later go to a more "prestigious" team after she has had lots of confident at bats and lots of time on the field.
 
Dec 13, 2021
3
3
Have your daughter ask the coach how she can earn more at bats. It is much harder for a coach to brush off the player, if they ask respectfully, than a parent.
 
Apr 11, 2016
133
28
Until they are in college, I believe all teams should be developmental, where every player should be given a chances to play in different positions and be at bat, at least during pool play games.

I never understand why coaches would put a player in a position 90% of the time. This happened to DD's last team, where there were 15 girls. Starters played 1 position 90% of the time, and the rest were on the bench For a 6-week fall season, we traveled out of state 4 times. Each tournament had at least 6 games, and a few girls only had 1 or 2 at bat the ENTIRE season. I am not sure why players are still on that team. I wouldn't pay all that money (team fee was over $2K + traveling $) to play a few times a season. DD was one of the starters, but we still took her out b/c we didn't want her to be pigeonholed into one position.
 
Oct 4, 2018
4,612
113
Until they are in college, I believe all teams should be developmental, where every player should be given a chances to play in different positions and be at bat, at least during pool play games.

I never understand why coaches would put a player in a position 90% of the time. This happened to DD's last team, where there were 15 girls. Starters played 1 position 90% of the time, and the rest were on the bench For a 6-week fall season, we traveled out of state 4 times. Each tournament had at least 6 games, and a few girls only had 1 or 2 at bat the ENTIRE season. I am not sure why players are still on that team. I wouldn't pay all that money (team fee was over $2K + traveling $) to play a few times a season. DD was one of the starters, but we still took her out b/c we didn't want her to be pigeonholed into one position.

The coaches really, really, really want to win.

They can then walk around the fields and at work with their chests puffed out. Well, the male coaches at least.
 

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