This is my first year coaching a Middle School Softball team. I am an assistant coach but would like to become a head coach sometime. We have had tryouts and we have three scrimmage games this Saturday. Do you have any good coaching videos or anything that could help me be a successful coach. I saw coach Marc's items and was thinking about going through him. Any comments? Thanks for your help.
New to Coaching Softball
- Thread starter Vance Lee Evans
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To be good at coaching softball, you have to *study* the game. (If you think playing HS baseball and watching pro-baseball is going to help you coach a bunch of 13 and 14 YOA girls, you are nuts.) You have to read books and watch videos. You aren't going to get it in a couple of weeks.
Marc's stuff is good. Howard Kubota does a pretty good in-depth look at softball defense. (softballskills.com).
Marc's stuff is good. Howard Kubota does a pretty good in-depth look at softball defense. (softballskills.com).
Absolutely yes, get the Howard Kobata 3 disc set. Its a very detailed softball specific defensive approach. If your a baseball player, some of his teaching will seem "Greek" to you, but after you watch it for the third time it will start to click. As far as batting, Coach Tchisda and Crystal Bustos videos are excellent. Also if your on a budget look up Sue Enquist or Mike Candrea videos on you tube. Always take the approach to teaching as an opportunity for them to be great, so make certain you are teaching them how the best in the world do it and NOT cater to their young age and low level. Like sluggers said above, you have to commit yourself to non stop studying from many different view points. And remember, the kids are snow flakes, no two are exactly alike. So find ways to teaching the same skill set in a hundred different ways!
- Jul 9, 2012
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One other comment, with females, there is a different psychology to leading and coaching. Cindy Bristow posts some good stuff here and at softballexcellence.com.
^^^^ good point by coach fastpitch ^^^^
As far as the mental approach to a major difference between coaching boys and girls is....
~~~Boys have to play good, in order to feel good about themselves.
~~~Girls must first feel good about themselves, in order to play good.
When you yell at a girl on the field for poor play its important to say something like "your so much better than that!" Instead of something negative. Always be happy to see her and positive even when she is less than her best. This approach to coaching girls will go so much further than the drill sergeant style.
As far as the mental approach to a major difference between coaching boys and girls is....
~~~Boys have to play good, in order to feel good about themselves.
~~~Girls must first feel good about themselves, in order to play good.
When you yell at a girl on the field for poor play its important to say something like "your so much better than that!" Instead of something negative. Always be happy to see her and positive even when she is less than her best. This approach to coaching girls will go so much further than the drill sergeant style.
Invest in yourself by spending the money to go to Clinics for COACHES. National Sports Clinic is a good one, but there are many others as well. Many D1 schools also offer clinics for coaches as well.
If you can go with your players to Player clinics, you can learn alot as well, not just material, but how to relate it to your players.
Welcome aboard! The MS experience is quite entertaining!
If you can go with your players to Player clinics, you can learn alot as well, not just material, but how to relate it to your players.
Welcome aboard! The MS experience is quite entertaining!
I don’t know what experience of the HC is but ask them a lot of questions. Don’t let them tell you go hit some fly balls. Ask them what they want you to accomplish when hitting fly balls and have them explain the drill to you. Sometimes I like confirming what was asked me to do when I get home from practice.
Keep track of all the drills, which ones you like, which ones you don’t.
Make an effort to never have anyone standing around for more then a couple minutes at a time, keep the playered engaged doing something.
Edit:
In a few weeks ask the coach if you can develop some of the team practice plans.
Keep track of all the drills, which ones you like, which ones you don’t.
Make an effort to never have anyone standing around for more then a couple minutes at a time, keep the playered engaged doing something.
Edit:
In a few weeks ask the coach if you can develop some of the team practice plans.
Last edited:
- Mar 29, 2012
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You are dealing with a group of hormonal teenage girls, go get a degree in abnormal psychology. 
The most helpful thing for me aside from the experience of doing it myself (trial and error) was conversations with other coaches and watching their practices and games.
But I'd be cautious not to be so in awe of them that you automatically believe the way they do things is right. Just hang out on this forum for a while and you'll see plenty of disagreement. That's one reason coaching is so hard. There are a lot of theories out there about how to hit, how to catch, how to run a practice, the purpose of softball, the purpose of life.
So my advice would be to soak up as much information as you can, learn by doing, second-guess things, be open-minded and develop your own style, imo.
But I'd be cautious not to be so in awe of them that you automatically believe the way they do things is right. Just hang out on this forum for a while and you'll see plenty of disagreement. That's one reason coaching is so hard. There are a lot of theories out there about how to hit, how to catch, how to run a practice, the purpose of softball, the purpose of life.
So my advice would be to soak up as much information as you can, learn by doing, second-guess things, be open-minded and develop your own style, imo.
