Question on positions

[nikkilugi]

DD is very fast and able to track down a lot of balls that slower girls would not have a chance at.

I think this is our main issue. DD is slow. She takes after me - slow. She is in speed and agility and I think she is getting faster and more importantly she thinks she is getting faster (mental). So maybe she has gone from slowest to 2nd slowest on her team. However, she has super quick reflexes and, in practices and scrimmages, consistently fields everything hit her way. This may be because we have taken her to infielding lessons every week during the winter months. Regardless - her speed is what hinders her in the outfield.

 

[grcsftbll]

I also think some of the "outfield is where you put your worst players" mentality is still with the girls at 12U when in fact outfield starts to become very exciting at 12U - so many more plays are made out there. The stands go crazy when girls make those amazing diving catches or impossible throws home from CF. 10U for the most part is boring in the outfield. But the game shifts so much as they age up. I know last year when DD's team moved up there were alot of girls who didn't want to play outfield - and now only want to play outfield.

I think another thing that coaches want at this age (and correct me if I'm wrong) is a girl with the "put me where you need me" mentality. It shows what a true team player they are and how coachable they are. .

I love watching a strong outfield. It really is where you see many of the really impressive plays.

 

[FP26]

I love watching a strong outfield. It really is where you see many of the really impressive plays.

As the dad of a pitcher, I really appreciate the benefits of having a strong outfield

 

[grcsftbll]

As the dad of a pitcher, I really appreciate the benefits of having a strong outfield

Yep. Right now our pitching is good but our poor pitchers are often having to get 4, 5, 6 outs an inning. Definitely frustrating.

 

[Rambler34]

We had pretty much set things by 10U with our team for big games such as at ASA nationals. During the year we would bounce around some. One thing we did was every girl ran through drills in both the IF and OF during practice. We could plug them anywhere and they could manage with the only hold back being speed and quickness for some.

My DD was primarily and outfielder due to being a lefty but she made the push to catch to change things up. We get to school ball and the coach has already told her she will be his CF in the future because of her speed but she caught and played SS for the JV. I guess all of the reps at practice in the infield helped her.

 

[wheresmycar]

I certainly wouldn't allow a 12u coach to pigeon hole my DD at a single position... Winning is nice, but TB at that age should be about player development first... winning second.

 

[quincy]

Good for OP moving on.

I know the you play this trapped a few players in school ball.

(I would like DD to avoid 1st but she like it, that becomes a hitting contest pretty quikly)

 

[Seattlecoach]

The amount of college players who end up playing a different position than their primary one is just too high to pigeonhole at 12u. In college we had a great returning middle infield and three incoming shortstops who ended up at 1st, 3rd, and CF. You never know.