Interesting changes in IL ASA

[Bishop]

The Illinois ASA has made a change this year to the State tournament format for 10u and 12u. A and B classification will no longer be determined by registration status, but determined by team performance during pool play at the State Tournament.

Copied from the IL ASA State Tournament registration page:
All U12 teams will participate in a four (4) game guarantee tournament to determine the Illinois ASA Class A and Class B State Champions.
All teams will play two pool games prior to being slotted into either the Class A double elimination bracket or the Class B elimination bracket.
Only those teams that finish 0-2 in pool play will be eligible to participate in the Class B bracket.

Not a surpising change after the champaigning that the IL ASA administrators have done to try and get more teams registering as A instead of B for the last several years. It doesn't really register on my radar other than being happy there will be more than 10 teams at the state tournament this year.

I'd be interested in any opinions on this change.

 

[mkral]

I like the idea. It will help some if the teams will still play up to their ability and not sandbag. That, I am sure will still happen. There is no way to keep teams that really don't belong in "B" out of "B" if they want to be there. There will always be a way for them to get in there.
Again I like the fact they are trying to do something though.

 

[alexander58]

I like it. They have struggled with the A versus B thing for a few years. I believe they would like to force more teams to play A, but don't want to alienate them.

 

[Bishop]

Yeah, trophy hunters will still lurk in the B class tournaments. How do you convince the parents of the kids you coach that you are doing right by the kids by finishing in the bottom 25% of the state tournament? I'm wondering if this change might be a deal breaker for some coaches and drive a decision to go Utrip or NSA.

 

[mkral]

I'm not sure....UTRIP at least still shows records against like classed teams. It is not hard for them to figure out if a team has beaten every team they have played in "B" by 18 points that they are not a "B" team either. I think it is kind of the same all over in all sanctioning bodies but I have no experience with NSA at all. I agree with what you are saying about doing right by the kids but if you should be an "A" team then play "A". If not then don't. Are you doing the kids justice by beating the crap out of other teams and telling your kids they are awesome when they really should not even be there?? I guess it all comes down to the coaches not the kids. But man are you right.....there will always be trophy hunters out there. We played "A" all year with a legit "B" team this year. State will be tough but the kids will fight hard and keep their heads high all the way through.

 

[Bishop]

In my book doing right by the kids is playing the best competition you can find. Not playing the best teams that you are sure to beat. Playing teams below your competitive level sure isn't going to encourage the kids to work hard to get better if they already think they are awesome because they just had a 76 - 5 season.

NSA is self declared classification like ASA has been in the past. It looks like ASA will still be self declared for the season but let the performance at the tournament seed teams into classes. ASA will still have trophy hunters at the B tournaments.

 

[BrianMonk]

This is a great change. Too many teams should have been thoroughly embarrassed to play B the last few years, yet, they took great pride in pounding teams they had no business playing.

NSA can be just as bad. Heard a coach last year at B world series in East Peoria brag about intentionally losing games so he could stay in B.

It was getting to the point where there wasn't much left to do but combine them in some fashion as 80% plus teams would just register B anyway.

 

[mkral]

Bishop you and I are on the same page for sure!! I cannot figure out why anyone would not want to really see what their team can do. Furthermore as a team if you continue to play down in competition your team will never get better. As a coach I always see our team play up to our competition but that can work in reverse to an extent as well. Play mediocre competition when your team is a good sound team and the next game you play a real good sound team your team will struggle to catch back up. Are they good enough to, sure, but you made them slow down to play in their last game. It is not good for the kids. Sure they love winning but again as coaches we need to explain to our kids that we will win some and we will lose some but every team we play will know they were in a game. Sandbagging sucks but it is all over in all sanctioning bodies obviously.
Again it is the coaches who needs to feel that they are superior not the kids. I for one would not want my DD to play for someone like that.
OK I will get off my soapbox now.....sorry.
Mike

 

[MTR]

NSA is self declared classification like ASA has been in the past. It looks like ASA will still be self declared for the season but let the performance at the tournament seed teams into classes. ASA will still have trophy hunters at the B tournaments.

Actually, ASA is not "self-declared" as code provides for specific standards to be met by "B" teams. And before anyone says something about it, I acknowledge that ASA, from the top down, somewhat ignore this portion of the code, which allows sandbagging teams to thrive. OTOH, if they followed the code strictly as written, participation in championship play would probably severely decline.

 

[Quake Softball]

I am glad to hear the ASA in Illinois is making an attempt to make things competitive at the state tournament. I wish they would do the same in Iowa. It is even worse in Iowa, which has A, B and C tournaments. I never understood why have three different tournaments if you weren't going to regulate who could participate in them. If you are going to let A teams play in a C tournament, then just have one state tournament and then no one could complain. We were at the C tournament at 10U a couple of years back and the team that won was clearly an A team but were allowed to enter. That same team went on in the fall and won every 12U tournament they played in. Absolutely ridiculous.

The USSSA has a fairly decent job of "ranking" teams through the year and place them in the correct class. I don't understand why the ASA can't develope the same program.