- Oct 25, 2009
- 3,335
- 48
What are some things that you have done (or do) in practice (or games) that are far fetched or unusual?
Thinking Outside the Box
- Thread starter softballphreak
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Ok, so the girls were not getting under the ball to catch flies. they were poking their arm out as far as they could reach.
Its actually a smart thing to do, as we are hard wired NOT TO run under things falling from the sky.
so, I attached a large plastic drinking cup, to the front of an old tee shirt.
I threw these small plastic balls, up in the air, and they had to catch them in the cup. The small balls were worth 25 cents for each one they caught.
the Money ball was a large wiffle ball, worth one dollar.
They loved this drill.
My wife said that it was a very Inappropriate drill, for the girls. So, I changed from a tee shirt, to a sweat shirt, she still was not pleased.
Its actually a smart thing to do, as we are hard wired NOT TO run under things falling from the sky.
so, I attached a large plastic drinking cup, to the front of an old tee shirt.
I threw these small plastic balls, up in the air, and they had to catch them in the cup. The small balls were worth 25 cents for each one they caught.
the Money ball was a large wiffle ball, worth one dollar.
They loved this drill.
My wife said that it was a very Inappropriate drill, for the girls. So, I changed from a tee shirt, to a sweat shirt, she still was not pleased.
JJsqueeze
Dad, Husband....legend
I've reversed my lineup by putting the best hitters at the bottom because I knew a coach always pitched #2. In the 2nd and 4th innings.
I put my best infielder in RF to guard against a home run against a big lefty hitter (she kept it to a triple to keep the tying run from scoring)
I put my best infielder in RF to guard against a home run against a big lefty hitter (she kept it to a triple to keep the tying run from scoring)
- Oct 25, 2009
- 3,335
- 48
mann, that reminds me of a thing the captain of one of the HS teams I helped with introduced. They would write their names with their butts. It was totally hilarious to everyone as the team did it.
However, it was nipped in the "butt" by another HS team I also worked with. The head coach deemed it inappropriate at that level. I should have had one of the girls introduce it and it would have been ok I guess.
Try it yourself, it's hilarious! Good team bonding activity. Maybe you can even get the coaches to try it.
However, it was nipped in the "butt" by another HS team I also worked with. The head coach deemed it inappropriate at that level. I should have had one of the girls introduce it and it would have been ok I guess.
Try it yourself, it's hilarious! Good team bonding activity. Maybe you can even get the coaches to try it.
My daughter's middle school coach did that a couple of times last spring. The first baseman, a good fielder and travel player, would be switched to center field whenever two particular batters came to the plate. It did result in a couple of outs, although can't be sure the original CF would not have caught it.
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In 10u, I occasionally would surprise the team with a game of wiffle ball in lieu of 'normal' practice. I would coach pitch, ensuring that it was very fast-paced. It would be 5 on 5 or 6 on 6.
Had three reasons for it --
1. - It was a fun change of pace, loosened them up, and helped them bond as a team. I hope that it reminded them of why they played the game in the first place - because of simple pleasure of throwing, catching and hitting a ball. It's fun to get people out, it's fun to be safe.
2 - It was good practice for base-running, which is hard to simulate in normal practices. It also was practice for fielders making decisions on where to throw the ball, which is similarly hard to simulate/teach in practice.
3 - It was good practice for the batter learning to wait for a good pitch. Wiffle ball levels the playing field in terms of power, hand-eye, because every TB player even at 10U can wack a wiffle ball pretty good. It often comes down to discipline and pitch selection, especially when I'm the coach/pitcher with that lesson in mind.
Had three reasons for it --
1. - It was a fun change of pace, loosened them up, and helped them bond as a team. I hope that it reminded them of why they played the game in the first place - because of simple pleasure of throwing, catching and hitting a ball. It's fun to get people out, it's fun to be safe.
2 - It was good practice for base-running, which is hard to simulate in normal practices. It also was practice for fielders making decisions on where to throw the ball, which is similarly hard to simulate/teach in practice.
3 - It was good practice for the batter learning to wait for a good pitch. Wiffle ball levels the playing field in terms of power, hand-eye, because every TB player even at 10U can wack a wiffle ball pretty good. It often comes down to discipline and pitch selection, especially when I'm the coach/pitcher with that lesson in mind.
