How to make a kid HATE school ball in 3 easy steps

[riseball]

Then there is this conversation, Recruiter: so how's your High school games going, Player: I'm not playing any High school ball, Recruiter: why is that? Player: well the coach does not know what he is doing, err no ,its my parents they don't like how the coach coaches, err ,no really its because I felt I was way to good for JV, NO err Its really because they would not let me play my TB position, No really because I sat to much. well, err Naw just couldn't get along with a few Team mates. Recruiter, Well I understand completely now,Best of luck as he turns and draws a line thru players name. For goodness sake encourage her to play and find a way to make the best of this situation, That skill will serve her well long after she hangs up the cleats.

If your college future in some way hinges on playing HS ball, you did not have much t\of a future. There are many reasons why to play or not play HS ball, none of which matter beyond the current HS season. I have yet to find a college coach that put much stock in HS or TB accomplishments. Your demonstrated skills and game acumen are what is important. You should never make the most of a situation. Rather make the most of the time you have to invest. If HS ball is not a good investment of your time, then you should not waste a minute of your time.

 

[Lenski]

If your college future in some way hinges on playing HS ball, you did not have much t\of a future. There are many reasons why to play or not play HS ball, none of which matter beyond the current HS season. I have yet to find a college coach that put much stock in HS or TB accomplishments. Your demonstrated skills and game acumen are what is important. You should never make the most of a situation. Rather make the most of the time you have to invest. If HS ball is not a good investment of your time, then you should not waste a minute of your time.

HS ball is much like college ball in that you play for your school and community. Is the player committed and passionate about their school and it's team? Is the player committed and passionate about the community? There are more correlations between HS ball and College ball versus TB and College ball, and some coaches frown upon a player not playing HS softball unless they are playing another school sport instead in the same season. True, they don't appear worried about HS accolades (except maybe scholar athlete). When my dd went through the recruiting process she was asked on more than one occasion about HS ball......did she like playing for the school, was she a captain, what she thought of the coaches, etc. Not every college coach mind you, but some.........

 

[bucket pinata]

I get your point but for me Its more of a character gauge than actual softball skill, I guess it all boils down to what a team chooses to prioritize, Great players with no chemistry struggle. Mizzou comes to mind. PS every Time I get to watch you DD she gets more and more Dominant in the circle.Getting playoff ready!!

If your college future in some way hinges on playing HS ball, you did not have much t\of a future. There are many reasons why to play or not play HS ball, none of which matter beyond the current HS season. I have yet to find a college coach that put much stock in HS or TB accomplishments. Your demonstrated skills and game acumen are what is important. You should never make the most of a situation. Rather make the most of the time you have to invest. If HS ball is not a good investment of your time, then you should not waste a minute of your time.

 

[riseball]

HS ball is much like college ball in that you play for your school and community. Is the player committed and passionate about their school and it's team? Is the player committed and passionate about the community? There are more correlations between HS ball and College ball versus TB and College ball, and some coaches frown upon a player not playing HS softball unless they are playing another school sport instead in the same season. True, they don't appear worried about HS accolades (except maybe scholar athlete). When my dd went through the recruiting process she was asked on more than one occasion about HS ball......did she like playing for the school, was she a captain, what she thought of the coaches, etc. Not every college coach mind you, but some.........

This statement is often taken out of context, just like how they prefer multi-sport athletes. Often the conversation it is nothing more than idle curiosity. As long as you are doing something productive, they could care less if you play HS ball. It is certainly not a deal breaker.

 

[riseball]

I get your point but for me Its more of a character gauge than actual softball skill, I guess it all boils down to what a team chooses to prioritize, Great players with no chemistry struggle. Mizzou comes to mind. PS every Time I get to watch you DD she gets more and more Dominant in the circle.Getting playoff ready!!

Thanks. They finally got a little love in the NFCA poll. They are a young team and to your point the chemistry is coming around. Having just come from a National Championship program Jake can see what is missing and what needs to happen. Now that she has earned some street cred with the team maybe she can step up and do what she did at Chipola.

I try to be neutral with respect to HS ball. If it works for you, then great. Some kids get lucky and play for a HS coach like Cannonball, others not so much. HS ball should not be an obligation just because you happen to have some useful skills. It needs to be a win-win, not charity work. If HS ball does not work for you then get your sense of community by volunteering at a soup kitchen and get your athletic reps elsewhere. But aside from truly an extraordinary situation you need to finish what you start.

 

[GunnerShotgun]

Interesting.

There are other things a girl could do. DD 1 was a fast enough runner, at one point she was considering running track at HS and just playing on her TB team. That didn't happen. She quit her TB team, so she played softball her freshman year instead. Then she quit both sports. We thought that she would run track after she quit softball, but she didn't.

Just sayin', if the girl is fast, she could run track for HS, and play TB. Then, when the recruiter asks about HS ball, just say she wanted to work on her speed, so she went out for the track team instead of SB, since she was playing a great TB team anyway.

Or just focus on academics. I can't believe a college coach would care what travel/HS/middle school team your DD played for. Now getting your dd noticed, that's where travel plays a part.

 

[BobInMadison]

At some point, it matters how the kid feels.

We were all teenagers once. How we are treated can matter a lot. If the girl isn't happy playing HS ball, and she isn't getting anything out of playing HS ball, why should she continue to play HS ball? If she feels she is being mistreated, she will probably be very unhappy. Are you going to say she should stay in a miserable situation because it might look better to college coaches? What if she is so unhappy she quits softball altogether?

I *have* noticed a lot of threads where someone complains about HS ball, and then later the situation improves and everyone is happy. I hope this is one of those cases. I hope the girl can make lemonade out of the lemons. If not, leaving a bad situation is not the end of the world.

 

[Doug Romrell]

The kids are generally better at reading coaches than some coaches realize. When you do run across a situation where it's all about the coach under the guise of it being about the team..... Players quickly realize it and that often ends up being the main issue.