High School coach

[_MIA_]

And that's another thing is that the CF has more room to cover so they also get a ton of easier catches that boost their #s. A ball hit on the line to RF or LF is always going to be a problem unless you're already playing on the line.

 

[Orange Socks]

If you want to make a change in your daughter's standing next yer, find a way to suck up to the coach. Maybe try to play for his club team. Or make a donation to the school. Join the booster club. Donate some money for new jerseys. Don't assume a high school team is a meritocracy, because the chances are it's not. So if you want to improve your standing in the court, be prepared to kiss the ring.

I'm the President of the Booster Club and my DD didn't even make the JV volleyball team even though a girl made the Varsity team that had one year of organized sports experience in her life. That was freshman B team last year. She is tall and unathletic. My poor DD was heart broken and cried her brains out. I felt so bad for her. Good news is that she will most definitely make the JV softball team. LOL.

 

[reagansdaddy]

This has nothing to do with the OP, but HS softball gets a bad rap on here and it’s unfair. I may be biased as a high school AD, but the only folks who complain are the ones whose daughters aren’t playing. Maybe it’s because HS ball is strong where we live, but HS coaches generally do it for very little money and very little accolades. They often do their own field work and are mostly teachers who care about the kids.

The problem comes when “travel ball” players from watered down teams who aren’t very good sit the bench for the first time. Someone or something had to be the reason so it’s politics or bad coaching or any other reason than my kid isn’t good enough.

once again - nothing to do with OP just defending HS ball. I meet with upset parents for a living so I’m pulling the experience card here

I think you make a good point about players coming in from low level travel teams whose parents have cherry picked those teams over the years and who now have to sit for the first time.

But, I would also add that rec players/parents who are used to playing infield every game for at least an inning and roster batting every game also tend to be completely lost when they make it to school ball and coaches are actually trying to win for the first time. I know that the only major problem I had coaching MS ball came from this direction rather than from the travel world.

 

[_MIA_]

I think you make a good point about players coming in from low level travel teams whose parents have cherry picked those teams over the years and who now have to sit for the first time.

But, I would also add that rec players/parents who are used to playing infield every game for at least an inning and roster batting every game also tend to be completely lost when they make it to school ball and coaches are actually trying to win for the first time. I know that the only major problem I had coaching MS ball came from this direction rather than from the travel world.

Sitting sucks, you don't want a kid who likes to sit. That said it is all about how you handle it. I never sat till my freshmen year in college. The way I handled it was mixed in terms of appropriateness. As is typical for me, I made it too obvious I hated sitting (I have stories... ) but also then worked my rear off the summer in between Fresh. and Soph to improve my hitting (which was God awful my freshmen year..I was a better hitter my freshmen year in HS).

 

[OsDad]

I heard, like everyone else, how terrible school ball is and how you have to buy your kid's way onto the field, etc. After experiencing a season of school ball, here is my take:

Are a lot of the school ball coaches not all that great at coaching softball? Yeah, that's probably fair, but there is a difference in being bad at something and being malicious. Most coaches want to win, even when they're terrible at knowing how to make that happen. What they don't USUALLY do, is sit future D1 commits (who seem to be represented on the internet in a disproportionate amount) in favor of kids who can't catch, throw, or hit.

 

[IndyHScoach]

HS ball - P.U.N.C.H., Don't drink that kool-aid.

Politics
Un-earned spots
Not playing the best nine players
Clicks
HC's who don't know the game

Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

I understand that some HS coaches are not as good as some TB coaches. But this statement above is like saying that all TB coaches are SEC caliber or better and know it all.

I have read many people tell this forum how bad ALL HS coaches are and how it is not a good idea to play HS ball. I can assure you there are good HS coaches out there. Personally, I put in as much time preparing our program and learning more about the game as our basketball coaches do and I am in Indiana. I talk to college coaches at all levels and try to what is best for the team and not just our "best" player or the ADs kid. I promise you I play the best 9. The associate coach on our staff had a DD on the team and she started two games in her career, senior night and the last regular season game of the season.

I have been to travel tourneys to watch our HS girls play. Our coaching staff is as good as some but not all and I can admit that. I can also tell you that not all girls that play TB are the best either. My first year at this school we had two TB (freshman) girls that did not make varsity because we had better players.

Do the things above happen in HS ball? YES, of course they do. To group all HS coaches in such a negative light is disrespectful to those of us that work hard to build a reputable program.

Sorry- It hit a sore spot and I finally had to voice an unpopular opinion.
RANT OVER!

 

[NBECoach]

I heard, like everyone else, how terrible school ball is and how you have to buy your kid's way onto the field, etc. After experiencing a season of school ball, here is my take:

Are a lot of the school ball coaches not all that great at coaching softball? Yeah, that's probably fair, but there is a difference in being bad at something and being malicious. Most coaches want to win, even when they're terrible at knowing how to make that happen. What they don't USUALLY do, is sit future D1 commits (who seem to be represented on the internet in a disproportionate amount) in favor of kids who can't catch, throw, or hit.

I guess I'm missing something. Is the coach successful or not?
If so how do argue against success? If not then it is the responsibility of the AD to make a change.

If the coach is not playing the best lineup the proof will be in the won-loss record.

 

[bmakj]

Define success . . because in youth sports, including HS, winning % and titles should not be in the top 3, maybe not top 5

 

[Orange Socks]

Parents almost always only see the the game through the viewpoint of their DD. When DD was a freshman she started the season in the #5 spot in the lineup. She proceeded to hit for the 3rd highest average on the team and 3rd highest slugging percentage. A junior was the returning clean-up hitter. DD out hit her by 150 points and out slugged her by 250 points. DD was frustrated by the fact that she never moved into the 4 hole. I tried to explain to her that the coach had to look at the impact of that move on the team as a whole. In the coaches judgement he may have thought moving the upperclassman out of the clean up spot may have damaged her confidence and caused her to hit worse. In his judgement the team was better off with her hitting 4th and dd hitting 5th. He may or not have been right but it was his decision to make and his judgement. DD was a better hitter by the numbers but it is a team game involving lots of teenage girls. There are often other factors that weigh into the decision making process that we are blind to with regard to our dds

My DD hit in the 4th and 5th spot most of the time last year. This gave her more opportunities to get RBI's. Even though the first 2 batters had higher number of hits and avg, their RBI numbers were very low. DD also had more XBH's than the rest of the team, which can help moving runners. I actually see my DD as a 3 hole hitter, rather than 4th or 5th, but what matters most is where they are best suited compared to the rest of the team in the line up. DD's number 9 hitter led the team with HR's but had a dismal batting avg.

 

[OsDad]

... including HS...

I don't know that I agree with that, at least at the Varsity level (junior high and HS JV I agree with completely). Obviously helping them develop as people is way up there, and teaching them valuable life lessons, but HS varsity is the terminal point for a LOT of kids in their athletic careers and I think most of them look at it like "This is what we've been working for, let's go out and try and win this thing". I did, at that level. Club/travel sports seem to be where true development for college-bound players seems to happen. Football may be one of the only situations where that's different, but there is still an overwhelming amount of varsity HS football players that won't even attempt to get recruited, let alone play college ball anywhere. In Oklahoma, at least, "taking State" is still a huge deal in almost all sports.