team captains...

[quincy]

Nothing to do with being a leader but one of my pet peeves …

DD is at a pitching clinic and does not know any of the other players, we help getting the equipment and both of us help cleanup. A couple of the parents, if they say anything, say grab your plate and dump it 40’ so the PC can put it away. DD needs to make sure that everything gets back to where it belongs; I help, before we leave. Nothing to be with being a leader, has to do with being a parent.

We are there for a reason, we respect them and want their help. We will try to make their job as easy as possible. The setting up and cleaning up seems to be a bad use of their time.

 

[jay]

some great questions guys.

the girls is not my dd. it's really just what she's been doing just adding a title to it. based on the insight you've provided it doesn't appear to be a good move.

just curious if anyone had any real experience with it.

i can't say it would add any real value to the team, especially since there are no clear expectations or guidelines for the girl other than 'keep doing what you're doing'.

thanks guys.

 

[Greenmonsters]

The kids can vote for their captains. They (or the captains) can also vote on a captain (or honorary captain) every week for performance, if that is the process.

If the adults really need to control this, then nominate the captains. But the girls know who is the leader.

Yes and yes. And in a parallel universe, all the girls would vote for the leaders. However, unless you have a team where every single player lives, dies, and trains with the one objective of making the TEAM the best that it can be, from age ??? to ???, you run a good chance of conducting a popularity contest which is more likely to further cliques than promote unity.

Picking a captain can be a slippery slope. I wouldn't go down that road in travel ball unless I had to.

 

[doublesteal]

We allow the girls to pick one and we pick one for each tournament. It allows for girls who may not be as popular but give an outstanding effort the opportunity to be rewarded.

 

[Sparky Guy]

Here is what I do with the younger teams that I coach. Every player must be the captain for a day multiple times during the season. A "day" can be a team practice, hitting practice, practice game or a day at a tournament. They are in charge for the duration of whatever activity the team is doing that day when it is their turn.

What I do is I give the girls a list of responsibilities for the "Day Captain" to every player on the team and I make sure they perform their duties when it is their turn. The end result is two-fold. It forces the shy kid to be in charge giving them ownership of a level place on the team with all their other teammates and it puts the brakes on the overbearing dominant personalities on the team. It also cuts down on the silly nonsense during warmups and other activities. If someone is screwing around the day captain gets the brunt of reprimand. This way they ALL know that if they goof around on a day captain that person can do the same to them. It works well as a self-policing tool.

The way I keep track of it is, I don't, the kids do. It goes by uniform number. So, whomever was the last day captain the person with the next highest number is the next one until the number rolls over. If the next jersey number is not there or they are late they are skipped until it comes around to them again.

I've been using this for years and the kids love it. It is something consistent and they seem to look forward to it.

 

[Greenmonsters]

Here is what I do with the younger teams that I coach. Every player must be the captain for a day multiple times during the season. A "day" can be a team practice, hitting practice, practice game or a day at a tournament. They are in charge for the duration of whatever activity the team is doing that day when it is their turn.

What I do is I give the girls a list of responsibilities for the "Day Captain" to every player on the team and I make sure they perform their duties when it is their turn. The end result is two-fold. It forces the shy kid to be in charge giving them ownership of a level place on the team with all their other teammates and it puts the brakes on the overbearing dominant personalities on the team. It also cuts down on the silly nonsense during warmups and other activities. If someone is screwing around the day captain gets the brunt of reprimand. This way they ALL know that if they goof around on a day captain that person can do the same to them. It works well as a self-policing tool.

The way I keep track of it is, I don't, the kids do. It goes by uniform number. So, whomever was the last day captain the person with the next highest number is the next one until the number rolls over. If the next jersey number is not there or they are late they are skipped until it comes around to them again.

I've been using this for years and the kids love it. It is something consistent and they seem to look forward to it.

Very interesting. I can see this working, particularly with younger players. Can it work for older players too?

 

[Lozza]

I've seen girls fall apart at being named captain. I've watched coaches pick the best player to be captain when these girls are woefully not capable to lead.

I don't believe in captains.

 

[Sparky Guy]

Very interesting. I can see this working, particularly with younger players. Can it work for older players too?

Honestly, I can't say for sure. Usually by 16U you have serious players and most of them know what is expected and take care of business.

 

[Sparky Guy]

I don't believe in captains.

Neither do I. That is why I don't have permanent captains. The idea behind rotating them is to teach them how to bond through a shared experience, not so much how to be in charge. It also helps them feel comfortable when game situations dictate they must act and do so without hesitating.