Batting 9 vs roster batting

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May 2, 2018
200
63
Central Virginia
So everybody that is advocating for cutting is fine with cutting a kid after the season has already started (because it has already started it appears) and most rosters are filled? To me that is more of a di*% move (or a "cowards" move as our resident moral compass put it) then possibly limiting their bracket ABs 🤷‍♂️ .
Definitely not. I didn't clarify but this is most certainly an in between season decision. It just seems like these kids were kept on from one season to the next because the coach couldn't handle cutting them. I doubt their work ethic changed so that means she just kept them hanging around knowing they were the bottom 2-3 kids who may not necessarily have a place on the team. I have no doubt the coach is hoping it "works itself out."
 
Jun 27, 2021
418
63
HC of our team, I am an assistant, is seriously considering only batting the top 9 possibly 10 this spring on bracket day. We batted the roster last fall and will still do so in friendlies. We have 2-3 girls that don't put in work outside of team practice and it shows. Looking at the stats for last fall, these girls had single digit hits in 50 or so at bats. Lots of weak hits for outs or K's. We played a pretty weak schedule and really want to step it up this year. I agree with her decision but I also struggle with it. We are a 2nd year 12u team. Thanks.
Players/families will get away with what is allowed by the coach. If best 9 play, they will either do what is expected to get into the lineup or they will look elsewhere. Job of the coach is to make the lineup, job of the player is to be on it.
 
Dec 5, 2017
514
63
It has been said already but, it is ok in bracket play to hit your best 9 or 10 depending on drop off. If you can work in a DP / Flex situation, great. Get the girls on the bench base running opportunities when you can. Get the girls on the bench pinch hit ABs when the game is out of hand (in either direction). There is no shame in cutting down for bracket.
If there are questions about playing time politely discuss the lack of effort, focus and attention in practice as well as the performance you are seeing during pool play. You should not feel bad here.

Even if it is obvious to you that they are not working at home, unless you know for sure you can't really go their with the parent. but you can point to the direct behavior and performance you see in practice and games
We ask at every practice, who did what at home over the last week. When they say nothing we ask why and then explain why it is important to work outside of team practice.
 
Oct 4, 2018
4,611
113
Agree that if the 4 hitter goes 0-12 on Saturday the coach will usually just say she hit the ball hard but just got unlucky and keep her in the same spot on Sunday.

This one could go either way. We've all seen times a girl crushes the ball but doesn't come away with the BA to show how well she did. I sure hope parents understand the concepts of hard hit balls, contact, etc.

But yes, we've also seen the best hitter on the team strike out a ton and look bad but not get bumped come Sunday.
 
May 21, 2015
116
43
South
Bracket play: bat your best 9. Pool play: bat line up with weaker players batting at the top of the order so maybe they get an extra at bat.
 
Apr 1, 2017
535
93
This one could go either way. We've all seen times a girl crushes the ball but doesn't come away with the BA to show how well she did. I sure hope parents understand the concepts of hard hit balls, contact, etc.

But yes, we've also seen the best hitter on the team strike out a ton and look bad but not get bumped come Sunday.
Sample size comes into play too though. If someone has been the best hitter on the team all season, or even multiple seasons, does it make sense to bench them on Sunday because they had a bad Saturday? to me, the consistently best hitters on the team have earned a pass for a "bad day".
 
Jul 16, 2013
4,659
113
Pennsylvania
??? Let's play the weaker develop players in pool play (even though we may lose and end up in a lower bracket the next day)
So on sunday, in the tournament portion...
Play in the lower bracket,
we will play our starting 9,
and kick everybody's tushie,
so we can win the lower bracket.

Hmmm?
Isn't that like sandbagging so you can come out and get a trophy on Sunday?

I definitely would not condone this. However, most of the tournaments that we played in didn't have separate brackets on Sunday. There was only one bracket. So your record on Saturday determined your seeding for Sunday. Good record on Saturday typically leads to a weaker opponent in game 1 on Sunday. Poor record on Saturday got you a date with a tougher team in game 1 on Sunday.

When we were at 12u, winning one game on Sunday was our goal. And, unfortunately, we did not accomplish it very often. It's hard to get everyone much playing time if you are 1 and done. At 14u, we became more competitive. Winning games on Sunday was much more common, but we still struggled to finish the job. At 16u, our attitude completely flipped. Pool games really didn't matter at all because we were confident enough in our team that we expected to be in the championship round nearly every time. As a result, seeding didn't matter. We felt that if we played our best ball, we had a chance to compete with anyone there. If we were good enough to win the tournament it didn't matter if we faced a good team in game 1 or the final.
 
Jun 8, 2016
16,118
113
I definitely would not condone this. However, most of the tournaments that we played in didn't have separate brackets on Sunday. There was only one bracket. So your record on Saturday determined your seeding for Sunday. Good record on Saturday typically leads to a weaker opponent in game 1 on Sunday. Poor record on Saturday got you a date with a tougher team in game 1 on Sunday.
While I get why TDs do it (it is appealing to some that there can be multiple bracker "winners"), I am not a fan of "tiered" brackets. Opens up the possibility of manipulation of lineups (for those inclined to do so) in pool play, which wouldn't necessarily happen with one bracket. The manipulation can go from one spectrum (play all of your best players so you can try and get into the top bracket) to the other ("sandbag" to get into a lower bracket).
 
Jul 16, 2013
4,659
113
Pennsylvania
While I get why TDs do it (it is appealing to some that there can be multiple bracker "winners"), I am not a fan of "tiered" brackets. Opens up the possibility of manipulation of lineups (for those inclined to do so) in pool play, which wouldn't necessarily happen with one bracket. The manipulation can go from one spectrum (play all of your best players so you can try and get into the top bracket) to the other ("sandbag" to get into a lower bracket).
I agree. I am not a fan of tiered events. Honestly, after being in one or two of them, we made it a point to avoid them afterwards. There are teams that try to sandbag. But it really isn't any different with the A, B, C process. When we first started as a travel team, we had no idea if we were A, B, or C. We registered as B just because we figured we would be in the middle in regards to talent. At our very first tournament (ever) we saw a team that was classified as C but was also called "Elite". I remember thinking to myself at the time... How can this be? If an "Elite" team is truly C level, how good are the A and B teams?
 

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