- Jun 8, 2016
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I am sure this happens but not quite as often as everybody seems to make it out to be in particular if that "best" player wasn't just the "best" because she was bigger than everybody else.
Playing Time and Player Growth
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In my opinion the answer depends on two things; roster size and difference in talent between your top players and your bottom players.
At 12u/14u, we did not keep more than 12 players on our team. We always carried a minimum of 3 pitchers and never had more than 2 on the field at one time (one pitching and one playing a different position), so there was always one pitcher not playing, but remaining loose in case we needed her. That only left 2 other players on the bench at any one time. If our team was eliminated in game 1, it is possible that these players didn't play or just played sparingly. If we played multiple games, we never had an issue getting each player some time. Most weekends every player got a start on Sunday for our team.
When we selected our roster each year, we never had a huge disparity in talent. Yes, we had 3 or 4 players that were clearly above the rest. And we had 3 or 4 that were a little less talented. But we trusted all of them to be valuable and productive members of the team at any point in time. So by altering our starters each game, we never felt like we were making a huge impact on our chances. We never really had a huge difference in ability on the team, so I'm not completely sure how we would have handled that.
At 12u/14u, we did not keep more than 12 players on our team. We always carried a minimum of 3 pitchers and never had more than 2 on the field at one time (one pitching and one playing a different position), so there was always one pitcher not playing, but remaining loose in case we needed her. That only left 2 other players on the bench at any one time. If our team was eliminated in game 1, it is possible that these players didn't play or just played sparingly. If we played multiple games, we never had an issue getting each player some time. Most weekends every player got a start on Sunday for our team.
When we selected our roster each year, we never had a huge disparity in talent. Yes, we had 3 or 4 players that were clearly above the rest. And we had 3 or 4 that were a little less talented. But we trusted all of them to be valuable and productive members of the team at any point in time. So by altering our starters each game, we never felt like we were making a huge impact on our chances. We never really had a huge difference in ability on the team, so I'm not completely sure how we would have handled that.
- Jun 8, 2016
- 16,118
- 113
For clarity, my DD's 10U high B (probably could be A..who cares 
) team carries 11 girls and each one hits every game. Every kid probably plays at least 1/2 the games in bracket although positions are pretty well set, especially in bracket play.
) team carries 11 girls and each one hits every game. Every kid probably plays at least 1/2 the games in bracket although positions are pretty well set, especially in bracket play.
The top 9 isn't written in stone, and can/does change weekend to weekend based on Saturday or League play. 6-7 of the girls probably are always in, but might not be based on a number of factors. We practice a lot, and most of our girls take lessons, and practice outside of organized team events. Some girls are excelling, and some are getting better, but at a slower rate.
I understand the need to get girls involved, but at what point do you put individual growth in front of the team growth?
Based on team selection in August last year, and currently, our team disparity gap has widened. This could be attributed to many factors including growth, talent, hard work, injury, etc. Our top 7 are clear, our next 3 are a level down, but get in based on positional needs against certain teams, and the bottom 2 are clearly not developing as quickly (they are the youngest and are playing up).
Part of the issue is that parents don't want too have the hard conversation with their kids about what is holding them back - lesser talent, physical ability, not working hard enough, etc.
When we coached a 14U team we had 5 or so players who could play A ball. The rest of the team was pretty good. Our philosophy was to not have any players sit back to back games even on Sunday. They might be a DP or a Flex. We would have them run. Our top 5 almost never were out of the lineup although we tried to give them some time off the field on Saturday to rest a little. Maybe it wasn't the best approach, but we had a lot of kids who wanted to play for us. Unless you are playing nationals or a qualifier I don't think it's that hard to get all the players some time even on Sundays. Pinch run, sub in a blowout,etc.
For the most part this is a good way to go about it... however most coacches don't do the following:
With the sub and DP/FLEX rules in softball there is no excuse not to get all your players into most bracket games on Sunday.
Use the DP/FLEX rule ALWAYS. Understand it in depth and how to use it. Even at it the most basic level it allows you to play your best 10 in every game.
Always courtesy run (even for the same speed girl - or sometimes even slightly slower). Pinch run - and do it early in games. If you have a chance to pinch hit, pinch hit Everyone gets one reentry - use them up. One of your subs should be ready to warm up the pitcher between innings or warm up the relief pitcher whenever needed.
Even in close games you can probably get everyone in every game in some role. The problem is always when coaches have girls on the bench who just sit there all game knowing they are not going to get into the game. That quickly leads to parent issues as well.
Not saying it will work every game - but it will work most of the time. While not ideal to have rosters of 15-16 players on younger teams - we have been able to keep teams this size happy in 12U & 14U.
Perhaps you're missing the correlation between your students' attitudes and which ones played sports. I'm sure you know it's proven that athletes do better in school, are better at time management, etc. etc. on average than non-athletes. Perhaps the students you have who haven't figured it out didn't play sports.
The lesson you are mentioning is being taught in sports without any extra needed from the coach. The girls all see which positions they play, and they know what it means. They know why they bat 10th in the lineup. Just in warm-ups they see the girls who are better and know they're not as good. And then the lineup and positions prove it out to them, over and over.
And parents tend to pound that into their kids plenty enough already. You hear it at every game, as they ride their kids and ask them to do better.
As a coach you absolutely do not need to hammer that point home any more than what naturally happens. The lesson is intrinsic in the game.
Fine question. I tend to put team growth first and as a coach it's much more my focus than any one girl's growth. As you know, we just have so little time with the girls. So lots of the individual growth will come working at home and in lessons.
Our coaching staff made a conscious decision and told the parents up-front that this team was about developing, not winning. But we win plenty, which is what you hope for if you work hard as a team. I tell my daughter all the time we practice and work hard for her highschool years, not for next weekend's tournament.
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