Discussing practice plan with HC

[Sparky Guy]

We might be what you are referring to. We can only draw from our local rec league, more of an all star team that plays travel tournaments. The league decided a few years back to start an "elite" program but we lose a lot of talent to the pure travel teams in Louisville. Last years team struggled terribly and didn't win a game. This year after rec ball I was voted to coach all stars and was able to get some girls that wouldn't play for the coach of the travel team. We actually won a small tournament and was very competitive at the Ruth Babe Ruth regionals and state. We lost half of that team due to age this fall and my daughter wanted to tryout for the Sluggers travel team. She made it but they couldn't get enough girls to tryout and fill a roster, which was very surprising for that organization. In Louisville and the surrounding area's, we are south of Louisville, a lot of teams struggled this fall to fill 8u rosters. So that's the whole story. We are a small town team trying to compete against mostly teams from Louisville.

That clears up a lot of things. I don't mean to sound derogatory, but you are a rec team. With a rec team comes the rec ball mentality and level of commitment. The majority of the parents are happy with the no pressure type of practices you described. They don't know what good instruction is so they are none the wiser. The coach does not realize how much he doesn't know. You seem to have an idea of what the real travel softball world is and the amount of work and instruction it takes to be competitive. With a rec league board running things the team will never be what you envisioned.

So what are your options? You can continue to try to teach the head coach. I don't see that going very well. You can try take the team over. I don't see that going very well either with the heavy rec ball mentality of most of the parents. You can try and find another team, but at 8U there are not very many like-minded parents like yourself out there. At 10U there are many more players/parents who want something more than rec ball for their DD's. Your best option at this time. Take your DD and the other girls who are looking for something more. Start to work on your own with them. Work the drills and the fundamentals. Don't make a big announcement about it, the word will get out you're working with girls who want to put in extra time. Most rec ball players are "Practice Players." They will do nothing outside of team practices. If you have other players who show up to the workouts then you have an idea who the real players are. The HC may get all butt-hurt over it. What you need to tell him is it's all voluntary. You'll run the risk of being accused of trying to take over the team. In the end, from what you described it sounds like you'll most likely end up having to leave the team to keep your sanity and travel a little farther to find a situation that is travel based for your DD.

BTW There's more than enough daddy ball to go around in travel softball too. And you'll find plenty of parents with unreal expectations too. Especially at the younger levels.

 

[Sparky Guy]

Thanks. We have some really talented girls but usually by their 2nd year of 10u we lose them to Louisville teams. My dd likes playing here at our home ballpark with her friends but she also gets tired of losing to the bigger organizations. Next fall we will age up to 10u and I don't know what we will do,stay local or move on, since half our team is 7 and won't move up with us. Hopefully we have a good spring season, have fun playing rec and all stars with her friends and make lots of good memories.

Take your que from the the girls who've left. They are looking for like-minded players to compete with and against. The friends thing can be one of the biggest detriments to a player's development. Your DD needs to look at it as gaining more friends on a different team rather than losing friends. If the girls on the current team will not be her friend because she left then they were never true friends.

 

[Sparky Guy]

Just wait until 12U! The size dynamic is pretty ridiculous.

As well as the drama. 12U is THE most drama filled age in softball.

 

[Sparky Guy]

Hope so.

My DD1 played for one summer on a town team. She made good friends, but her priority was softball, and the quality of the team was holding her back. She joined a good TB team. Her twin spent a full year with that town team, having a good time with friends was more important to her than softball. Then she was bit by the pitching bug. She quickly became the best pitcher on the town team, and in a matter of a month decided she wanted a better team. Her team friends were not as important as playing the best she could. She tried out and made the same team her sister is on.

DD1's coaches last year, who were sisters, told me they made the mistake of staying with the mediocre TB team their friends were on, rather than moving up to a better team. They regretted it later.

I wouldn't know how to advise a young girl what to do, since both of my girls found their way, in their own time.

This post should be mandatory reading for every parent and serious player.

 

[Eric F]

As well as the drama. 12U is THE most drama filled age in softball.

Agreed. 10U was a very close second, however.

 

[marriard]

Agreed. 10U was a very close second, however.

Mixed 14U Middle School/High School teams are high up in the drama game as well as player and parent and team goals all diverge rapidly in a matter of like 3 months...

But the absolute worst is the 1st year 14U team where all the real nutcases from 8U to 12U all end up on the same team because they all have nowhere else to go. That is a total train wreck.

Back to the original poster:
Look, you just have different goals than the HC. It isn't gong to work, because deep down you want to be the HC or want a team for your DD which is run different to this one. When goals don't match for whatever reason it is a recipe for disaster. It is probably better for all that you go find a situation you can work with because I don't see how this currently will work out.

Also this statement concerns me:

We invest too much time and our girls work too hard on their own time to waste valuable field time like this.

It is 8U. They are 7 years old. Settle down. Nothing REALLY matters that much in 8U (or even 10U.. or 12U)

Yes you should still teach and develop skills and I am not suggesting dumbing it down or not wanting to have a team coached properly and I agree the practices are not well run - but that is not my concern. Your #1 goal is making sure they WANT to still be there playing at 14U or older. You are not 'investing' anything - it is an opportunity to (hopefully) have a great time with a great bunch kids and parents. If you look at it as investment and start chasing 'the best' at this age they WILL be out of the game at 12. I see it ALL the time. A lot of the comments you will get here are also coming from seeing this over and over again.

 

[MikeP]

Mixed 14U Middle School/High School teams are high up in the drama game as well as player and parent and team goals all diverge rapidly in a matter of like 3 months...

But the absolute worst is the 1st year 14U team where all the real nutcases from 8U to 12U all end up on the same team because they all have nowhere else to go. That is a total train wreck.

Back to the original poster:
Look, you just have different goals than the HC. It isn't gong to work, because deep down you want to be the HC or want a team for your DD which is run different to this one. When goals don't match for whatever reason it is a recipe for disaster. It is probably better for all that you go find a situation you can work with because I don't see how this currently will work out.

Also this statement concerns me:



It is 8U. They are 7 years old. Settle down. Nothing REALLY matters that much in 8U (or even 10U.. or 12U)

Yes you should still teach and develop skills and I am not suggesting dumbing it down or not wanting to have a team coached properly and I agree the practices are not well run - but that is not my concern. Your #1 goal is making sure they WANT to still be there playing at 14U or older. You are not 'investing' anything - it is an opportunity to (hopefully) have a great time with a great bunch kids and parents. If you look at it as investment and start chasing 'the best' at this age they WILL be out of the game at 12. I see it ALL the time. A lot of the comments you will get here are also coming from seeing this over and over again.

Maybe invest wasn't the proper term but I have 3 children involved in activities and to stand around for an 1 1/2 twice a week is not a good use of time. We have girls that love to practice but are getting bored, that will make them not want to continue in my opinion. I realize they are only 7 & 8 and remind myself of that constantly. My kid loves it and puts in work at home or we go to the field on our own a lot. Having read the responses to this post I will just give my 2 cents when appropriate and just go with the flow until the fall season rolls around and probably move on at that point. Thanks.

 

[quincy]

Honestly if that is your plan, just drop your kid off and go to Starbucks.

No reason for you to sit there stewing for an hour and a half.

 

[Il softball fan]

I have been an AC on a couple of different teams. Not for long, so only around 4 years experience with it. I understand where you are coming from. HC is in charge and makes the final decisions. Here is what I did, and it worked. The HC seemed to appreciate the help. Hopefully it would work with your HC. Bring some hitting nets, tees, cones, what ever you can come up with. When ever HC starts the batting practice, grab 3/4 girls that are standing around and pull them over to the side and do front toss bunting station with them. Have each girl bunt 15/20 balls or how many ever you have, and then send her back to his area. Rotate them through so that when girls are finishing their turn with HC the are coming to you,and when you are done with them you are sending them back. Set up a tee and have another station they can go through. Always have the girls that are waiting in line to help pick up balls and throw them back into the bucket for the next girl. Goes much quicker than one girl picking up the balls. Much better than having a bunch standing around.

One thing to definately stress to everyone....Quincy touched on it above. SAFETY. With girls that age, Rule #1. If you are not at a station actively taking your turn. Bat down on the ground. No swinging the bat if it is not your turn. PERIOD. When DD was 12U age, a girl that had never played before attended a practice and had never been taught Rule #1. I can still hear the sound of the bat hitting a girl in the forehead. That was around 5 years ago.

 

[Il softball fan]

Well, someone cared enough to send me a PM and tell me my above post was wrong. Also suggested that the girls should always wear batting helmets. Well, that is a given. During any batting practice, our teams always wore batting helmets. The occasion that I referenced above, was actually when practice was just finishing up, and the girl that hit the other girl was not part of the team at all. Just a friend of someone on the team.

My PM today also advised me that if I did the above, taking part of the girls to work with them, that I would be kicked out of practice and made to leave. Well, I did it with our team and was not kicked out, and it did work. So in short, MikeP, good luck and I hope it works out for you. You may have a HC like I had that did not mind, and you may get kicked out of practice.