Lefty Issue

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Oct 11, 2010
8,337
113
Chicago, IL
I was AC so I did not have clean hands but DD and me got to practice early and practiced OF. Put cones on field and yelled at her were to throw it when ball was in the air.

She always played IF. 1 game coach told her she is playing SS, she said she wanted to play OF. She worked really hard to earn that spot.

Everyone knew it which was kind of strange.
 
Apr 26, 2019
222
43
Great advice here. She may not get a lot of fly balls, but even in our low level 10U league, plenty of balls go to the outfield (base hits, errors, bad throws), and many times those turn into "home runs." If you have someone out there who's alert, knows what to do, and knows where to go to back up plays, she's really going to help the team.

She might not be getting outs by catching a ton of fly balls, but if she gets to a ball quickly, keeps a runner from scoring, and then the pitcher gets out of the inning? That's valuable. But it's up to you to remind her of that. The biggest thing is selling her on how it's important (and fun). So any time she makes a play that keeps a runner from advancing, point out how that helped prevent a run.

Of course, fly balls are still the most fun part of playing outfield, so give her plenty of those in practice. Then give her some more. The biggest thing that keeps outfielders from getting better is the lack of reps. If you're not skilled enough to hit them, throw them. Get a pitching machine and shoot them into the air. But make sure she's getting plenty of reps.

We have a second story balcony. My DD stands in the backyard and my wife, or I throw her fly balls from the balcony. It has done wonders for helping her track and catch high fly balls.
 
Jul 15, 2020
48
8
Great advice here. She may not get a lot of fly balls, but even in our low level 10U league, plenty of balls go to the outfield (base hits, errors, bad throws), and many times those turn into "home runs." If you have someone out there who's alert, knows what to do, and knows where to go to back up plays, she's really going to help the team.

She might not be getting outs by catching a ton of fly balls, but if she gets to a ball quickly, keeps a runner from scoring, and then the pitcher gets out of the inning? That's valuable. But it's up to you to remind her of that. The biggest thing is selling her on how it's important (and fun). So any time she makes a play that keeps a runner from advancing, point out how that helped prevent a run.

Of course, fly balls are still the most fun part of playing outfield, so give her plenty of those in practice. Then give her some more. The biggest thing that keeps outfielders from getting better is the lack of reps. If you're not skilled enough to hit them, throw them. Get a pitching machine and shoot them into the air. But make sure she's getting plenty of reps.
Thanks -- good advice. I'm a big fan of the outfield and outfielders so I'm always telling her how important it is. I will say after four games in the hot sun where even the infielders weren't seeing any action (lots and lots of walks), it's a tough sell. But we'll get there. Thanks for the advice.
 
Jul 15, 2020
48
8
The 12u team my daughter just left was full of outfielders who only want to be infielders. No matter how hard we worked with them they just didn't care and almost every loss was on the outfield. Even at 12u an outfielder is make or break for a winning team.
I was watching a 16u game a few weeks ago and the CF on one of the teams was a freaking acrobat in the. She was all over the outfield, laying out super girl flying catches in the air. The most amazing plays I have ever seen. I really wish rec coaches would stop using outfield as a punishment so more girls would develop the love of the position that girl had.
Anyway that's my long winded way of saying maybe take her to watch some older girls play so she can see how amazing being an OF can be.
Good idea to watch the older girls. I agree that outfielders can make or break a team. When I Rec coached, everyone played infield and outfield and I always always reiterated that outfielders are just as important as infielders and worked hard on them backing up all the bases (RF became a desired position). My DD just needs to adjust her thinking a little bit. Honestly, she'll be fine in the outfield. She just wants to play!
 
Oct 4, 2018
4,611
113
Your DD wants to play a lot, being a P or C is the way to go.

She is not too old to start either, and she's already started pitching.

I've watched two lefty catchers make teams simply because they were catchers. Catchers are in high demand. Talk to her about the position. If she loves softball it's a great position. Get to touch the ball a ton. And it's fun.

My thoughts on 1B might be unique, but I played 1B. It's just not a very hard position to play. Less responsibilities than other infield positions, usually less balls hit your way. You get to first base and catch the ball. It's really not that hard. And because it's not that hard, the position often is reserved for slower girls, power hitters, pitchers when they're not pitching, etc. Being a lefty certainly helps a tad, but isn't critical. I almost always see athletic lefties play outfield over 1B.


Pitching, as you know or will soon learn, takes hundreds/thousands of hours to get good at. So get started getting good. Pitchers will always find a team, will always be needed. And good pitchers? You'll have people begging you to be on their teams.
 

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