What Makes a Good Coach Part II

[Huskerdu]

This is a great topic for me. I coached at the rec level for a few years then my DD wanted to move up to comp with a few other friends on the team, so I combined my girls with the best of another rec team in the area. I played baseball from the age of 8 into the Atlanta Braves organization.

We are having a good time, but I am finding my knowledge and teaching skill is being challenged because I know what it is going to take for these girls to be able to compete at a higher level yet, I am not sure these girls have the skill or the ability to grasp some of the principals we are teaching them. Sadly it is having an effect on my confidence that I can actually coach these girls to play at that higher level. I am not an A type dictator, I believe that life lessons go along with coaching the sport, so I want them to love the game yet challenge themselves beyond the rec mentality

We have the approach of doing drills and repitition yet they still backpeddle on pop flies, they still lunge when they swing, and they are doubled off their base when the other team catches our pop fly.

I know they have the skills and the desire to be better, it is just hard breaking bad habits and what would come natural to them...backpeddling on fly balls after taking three steps forward when the ball is hit.

I want to know what makes a good coach.

 

[Huskerdu]

The team is first year 12U btw

 

[quincy]

For the examples you are describing patience.

Games are a lot different than practice. You can introduce stress into practice but you can never duplicate a game environment. Prepare them to the best of your ability and they will start figuring it out.

Let me know if you figure out how to stop a player from getting doubled off on those little loppers, my DD has been doubled off a few times. She knows she is doing it wrong but cannot stop herself during games. She comes back to the dugout mad at herself.

 

[CoachScott]

Let me know if you figure out how to stop a player from getting doubled off on those little loppers, my DD has been doubled off a few times. She knows she is doing it wrong but cannot stop herself during games. She comes back to the dugout mad at herself.

Not to shift blame but are your base coaches tell her to stay or get back at all. They should notice the little "loppers" before your DD does and getting instruction to her before she commits. That usually was the main problem with some of my girls not listening to base coach. Just a quick thought and what I have seen before.

 

[Huskerdu]

That made me laugh, I started another thread which I was asking about the approach to get the girls to train themselves to lead and freeze in place to see what happens at the plate, it takes a while but it works...my DD does the same as yours...all of them do on occasion. Good comments regarding games and practice.

 

[Sparky Guy]

I am not sure these girls have the skill or the ability to grasp some of the principals we are teaching them.

I have been working with 10's & 12's the last 7 years. What I've found is it takes 12-16 months to knock the rec ball out of a kid. It takes not doubting yourself as a coach and your knowledge. You have to be firm and consistent. Never accept an OK effort. They need to learn how to give a 110% effort in practice so it happens naturally in the games. ALWAYS tell what they did wrong and most importantly HOW to fix it. It often takes many, many repetitions for it to sink in. Some days you fell like a broken record. Always make sure they know what they are trying to accomplish.

Make sure if they don't understand EXACTLY what you're trying to teach them to tell you so. NEVER assume they know something. Even the most obvious of things.

What I do with a new group is start them off with individual skills such as drop steps, cross steps, charging the ball and other skills like that. I have about 80 of them I sat down and wrote out one night. What I do is pick three of them to work on at a practice. I work on them in order of importance. That order is your call. Now work the drills for the skill over and over and over and over....... If one of them does something wrong point it out to the whole team in a manner to use it a teaching moment, not to embarrass the player. This way you're not repeating the same instruction a dozen times. Conversely, if one does something right show it to the whole team.

Work on the skill till they get it right. Just because you have X amount of things planned it does them no good until they have grasped the skill fully. Giving them too much at once just confuses them. I've had practices where we've only worked on one skill because they were having trouble learning it.

I NEVER work hitting with regular team practices. I set up specific hitting practices to work on it. Now you can work on specific things and give the lungers and other problem girls your full attention. They are concentrating on just one thing.

One of the things I ask every group of kids I work with is "What does practice make?" Invariably I always get "Perfect!" as the answer. Then I get a bunch of blank stares when I tell them they are WRONG! I tell them practice make permanent. If they are practicing a mistake now they have a perfect, permanent mistake. When the light bulb goes on you know you have their attention. Then you reenforce the idea of practicing correctly with them.

One more thing that I found helps in the maturation process. Treat them like an 18U team. Make them responsible for everything in their bags. Their parents do not use their equipment, they do. Te excuse my mom/dad forgot to put it in my bag is not acceptable. It gets them in the correct mindset BEFORE they get to the game or practice. They carry their own bags and all the team equipment. I only carry my coaches bag and cooler. They bring everything else. If they are there waiting for me when I get to practice there better be some of them running to meet me to grab equipment.

There's a bunch more, but this should help you get your head straight. Unless yours is, nothing good will happen with the team. You said you've been in the minors. Use that knowledge to believe in yourself.

 

[Sparky Guy]

Let me know if you figure out how to stop a player from getting doubled off on those little loppers, my DD has been doubled off a few times.

Here is a great drill to give them some experience in handling pop ups and other situations. You can work four girls at a time. You can have two or three groups going at the same time.

First, make sure you go over basic base running rules and situations. Be sure they understand the infield fly rule. It takes a while for them to understand it.

Get 4 bases and set them about 25 feet apart. Put a girl on each base. Stand in the middle of the bases. Give them the game situation. Throw a ball in the air like a pop up. Make sure they get their lead offs. Now you can catch the ball or let it drop. They have to make the right base running decision depending on what happens to the ball. Catch the ball several times. Let the ball drop untouched. Have the ball hit your hands and drop out. Call out infield fly and catch the ball. Drop it the next. Then let it drop untouched. Then throw in infield fly if fair. Anything you can think up that they may be confused by. You can also work tagging up on fly balls with the same drill. It also helps with lead off as well.

You can easily work 50-100 situations in 30 minutes depending on how fast they learn. Now they know if they have to advance or hold their base in similar situations in a game. They WILL still make mistakes, but it will be fewer.