Line it up! ...for the last time.

[WB Coach]

DD played SB from 1st grade to 8th and yesterday was her last game, probably ever. A few weeks ago she decided to quit softball at the end of the summer season. I know the TB life was getting hard on her as she was missing out on a lot of the fun a 14 y/o should be having. I think the final nail in the coffin was having to miss Warped Tour with her non-SB friends this summer because of a tournament. Me and DW support her decision and it's good to know she's made the decision to put her happiness first. DD would like to join the drama club in HS which I'm thrilled over, having graced the stage many times, myself.

I've felt the sting before when LL season ended but I always knew she'd be coming back in the spring. This time it really hurts, but I suppose that's just me being selfish. I can't help but look back at how I've handled myself on both sides of the fence in the past and wonder if I should have done things differently. Ultimately, my heart was always in it 100%, but there were times I should have just sat back and enjoyed the game instead of getting wrapped up in petty BS.

DD was never "great," and I was always pretty realistic when assessing her skills, but she was good and sometimes made a "great" play or had some great at-bats. She's big and powerful which made her appear a little awkward at times but she had the potential to be a monster on the field and her instructor had high hopes for her. Like most SB parents, I had hoped to see her go yard just once but it never happened. There was a tournament recently where she crushed two hits over the CF's head and it would have went over the fence if one had been there.

So, I say to everyone who's helped me and DD in our SB journey on DFP, especially Cannonball, thank you so much for being there and listening to my over-passionate rants and BS. Thank you to the people who tried to give me good advice when I was sure my way was better, even though it wasn't. And to everyone else, and especially to those who are just starting this journey, take a deep breath and don't take a single minute watching your kid on the field for granted. And get involved, but don't get under the kid's skin. Volunteer. Help at LL functions. Coach a 6U team. You'll feel great, trust me. But don't become "that" parent.

So, unless DD decides to get back into it in the spring, play ball!

 

[Amy in AZ.]

Heck, WB. Go play slow pitch. It is a totally different animal. It can consume every free cent that you have.

Good luck to your DD. Yes, to drama club and staying busy.

 

[WB Coach]

Thanks, Amy. I've always enjoyed reading your posts and gained a lot of insight from them. I think what I'm going to miss the most is the time spent with my daughter. Watching her go from being one of the weaker players on the team to being one of the stronger ones, shopping for bats and mitts, and so on. Who knows, maybe we'll be running lines together in the near future for one of her plays.

 

[InsidePitch]

This time of year there are a lot of last games. Our seniors all cried a bit. Some cried more and their parents walked away to compose themselves. It's a heavy page to turn.

 

[Anthony Vertuccio]

Good luck pal to you and Allie

 

[RubberBiscuit]

missing out on a lot of the fun a 14 y/o should be having.

I don't mean to be a nag here in this thread but I still take offense at the implication that some folks take that somehow a dedicated life of SB is "missing" something. I confidently submit, having played it both ways with my kids, that the "missing" element is mostly with a kid that is not challenged (IF that is the case). I am sorry but the outcome of my kids makes me passionate about this feedback.

 

[WB Coach]

I don't mean to be a nag here in this thread but I still take offense at the implication that some folks take that somehow a dedicated life of SB is "missing" something. I confidently submit, having played it both ways with my kids, that the "missing" element is mostly with a kid that is not challenged (IF that is the case). I am sorry but the outcome of my kids makes me passionate about this feedback.

Your point is very valid and is not a nag. Dedicating to a life of SB can be very rewarding and fulfilling for a kid, but it is not for every kid. When it stops being fun for someone they need to step back and re-evaluate why they're putting so much time into it. Sometimes, the enthusiasm for the sport wanes, especially in the presence of an extremely busy schedule and negative, instead of positive, coaching experiences. I could p*ss and moan about the particulars but at the end of the day its about the kid's happiness.

 

[riseball]

I guess some prefer to be all in and highly successful at one thing than to be well rounded and do fairly well at several things. Back in the day it was called commitment.

 

[SCDad]

Unfortunately highly successful at softball is only a means to and end, of which for most of even the most committed, is getting half of your college paid for.

Eventually softball ends. Talk to Juniors and Seniors is college softball. I thoroughly respect the young ladies who make the extended commitment to play softball at the highest level.

I also respect the players who learn the many valuable lessons softball provides, yet leaves the game on her own terms.

the ones I feel sorry for the most are the ones who are totally committed, yet do not have enough talent, and the game forces them out.

Also, please do not blame the coaches. Many of the less talented who leave, inevitively blame the coaches. When the cold hard reality is the player simply was not good enough. Most all in this group will never admit she failed to make it because DD was not good enough. It is so much easier to blame the coach.

 

[RubberBiscuit]

Most all in this group will never admit she failed to make it because DD was not good enough.

I bow down to your apparent omniscience to the DFP collective.

Was this nature or nurture that established this super-power?