Interesting article: Senior week or State playoffs?

[efastball]

If you think about this as just some random beach trip, you would think the girls abandoned their team, and they are dogs.

On the other hand, the senior week schedule would have been known by the coach weeks or months or even a year ahead of time. So this was not a surprise to him, and it must be something to plan around annually. So, at the start of the season you would find out who's going and plan on that so you have backups for the week.

Then, you would never say anything about them to the local newspaper. So the coach is a dog.

Of course the local newspaper wanted some controversy to generate some clicks. So, he's a dog.

 

[MNDad]

It's just school ball, nobody cares about the school team. It's a break from travel ball from Feb-May, a time for the kids to play on a team with their school friends who they haven't played on the same teams with since they were 6-8 yo and hadn't started travel ball yet.
The colleges scout their travel teams, nobody pats attention to high school ball, most the kids are playing the wrong position because embodies mom can work BINGO nights more often or another kid's dad is a big booster and donated some PA speakers or usually because the science teacher who is coaching the team doesn't know that so and so, who is only a 9th grader, is already verbaled as a SS but this 12th grader who, may go play at some JC, has put in their time and helps the science teacher grade papers so the freshman plays outfield or is just used as a pinch runner.

Unless it's Norco or some other D1 powerhouse coached by travel ball coaches....its just school ball

Somebody’s freshman didn’t make varsity?

 

[Trojanettes]

Somebody’s freshman didn’t make varsity?

Don’t know where you live buddy but school ball here in Oklahoma is taken very seriously. OU and OSU had coaches at the state tournament. They made the CWS and if you don’t think they don’t talk to the coach that is with them 12 months out of the year instead of a coach in travel ball that has them half the time you are sadly mistaken

 

[MadBandit22]

I have a very strong opinion on this topic, but I wanted to see what others on DFP thought about it...

http://papreplive.com/softball/2019...d-vikings-title-run-shortchanged-from-within/

Wow!!! Co Captains and supposedly leaders of the team opted to take a beach day instead of making a final push towards a State Title.
So much for leading by example!!! Playing for a State Title is a once in a life time thing for most players. You can go to the beach anytime. Really have to question the leadership of the senior co captains in this one.
Honestly I would want my kids to play the game and socialize later. Not sure they would agree but I like to think they would.

 

[_MIA_]

On the other hand, the senior week schedule would have been known by the coach weeks or months or even a year ahead of time. So this was not a surprise to him, and it must be something to plan around annually. So, at the start of the season you would find out who's going and plan on that so you have backups for the week.

I agree that the coach would have known ahead of time but this isn't TB, he cannot just replace these kids with equal or nearly equal pick up players.

I also agree that the paper probably shouldn't have run with this story. I am not sure that the coach was the one who brought it to the attention of the paper and he certainly didn't name any names in the article as far as I can see so I don't put any fault on him.

 

[Rick M]

This is a tough one. I really love Cannonball's perspective about the permanence of high school achievements. Our HS is full of the same sort of trophy cases that he describes, and there are parents of current students who come to the school and see their own pictures on the wall from their school days. Sure, travel ball means more to recruiting, but there's that community aspect that makes HS ball special.

As for this specific case, there was no mention of these girls being committed to play in college. If this was the end of the line for them, they could very well have decided that one last trip with the kids in their class (that they've probably known for 10+ years) meant more to them than a big game with teammates that span four years of classes, some of whom they probably barely know. As others have pointed out, they're close enough to the shore that they probably could have made the game and still participated in the class trip. They chose not to.

I would guess that an experienced HS coach would know that his seniors are going to be spotty as the year winds down. Maybe it's an opportunity to stress to the juniors: "This is your team now."?

 

[ang2bmd]

Hmm the comments about it just being school ball are interesting and I know a lot of people feel that way but my answer to that would be that if you value it so little then don't play. My perspective may be somewhat different because I come from a very strong HS program that just won its 3rd back to back state title, but I think if it's so unimportant that the playoffs don't matter to these players then I would rather play my whole season with the kids that do matter.

Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk

 

[BobInMadison]

There are benefits to being careful about judging people without all the facts.

Many years ago, when I was a grad student teaching assistant, I was interviewed by The NY Times about a very young student of mine. A child prodigy of the age of 12 who graduated college shortly before his 14th birthday and later graduated from med school before he turned 18, which set he world record.

The NY Times reporter had an agenda. She hated child prodigies and felt they should stay with their own age group. So the article was slanted. She turned my words around to make it seem like I was attacking the poor kid. His mentor set up a lunch among the 3 of us to smooth things over, so I could explain to the future Dr. Ambati what really happened.

The lesson:
Reporters often have an agenda. They will often twist the “facts “ to fit their agenda.

Did the girls do the wrong thing, or was that just the reporter’s agenda. Or both?

Did the coach throw the girls under the bus, or was that the reporter choosing quotes to make the girls look bad? Or both?

Maybe I am too skeptical of reporters. Some deserve skepticism more than others. I will say, there is nothing like being horribly misquoted on the front page of the New York Times to make one skeptical of reporters.

 

[MNDad]

Don’t know where you live buddy but school ball here in Oklahoma is taken very seriously. OU and OSU had coaches at the state tournament. They made the CWS and if you don’t think they don’t talk to the coach that is with them 12 months out of the year instead of a coach in travel ball that has them half the time you are sadly mistaken

Yes, I'm very familiar with where OU an OSU finish every year. Pretty sure you meant to comment on the guy I responded to that was complaining about HS ball. I know how valuable it is.

I will say though the D1's who show up at HS state tourneys do an overwhelming majority their recruiting from travel teams.

Edit to add: It shouldn't be hard to figure out where I live lol

 

[lancergriffin]

Don’t know where you live buddy but school ball here in Oklahoma is taken very seriously. OU and OSU had coaches at the state tournament. They made the CWS and if you don’t think they don’t talk to the coach that is with them 12 months out of the year instead of a coach in travel ball that has them half the time you are sadly mistaken

Which states HS tournament games are the sooners watching? Their starting lineup only had a catcher and a second baseman from Oklahoma. The starting lineup had 4 girls from California, who doesn't have a state tournament, Maybe they're watching Arizona's state HS tournament since the pitcher and short stop are from there.