What parents are really saying...

[dadonachair]

I thought I would start a thread along the lines of the dumbest thing you ever heard.

Coaching rec ball over the years I have heard many parents say some dumb things and so for fun I try to tell the players what they really mean.

Just throw strikes!!! I tell the pitcher every time her dad/mom says this it means to hit her spots.

Throw it easy, let her hit it... I tell her to blow it by.

Watch the ball/keep your eye on the ball... My saying is point your nose at the ball.

I also tell my players that if they are not up on the fence cheering for the teammates then I am going to come in the dugout and play my music off of my iPod. You can't belive how good this works.

What are some of the things that you tell your players?

 

[James Smith]

If you include coaches because DW and I only have cheered the last couple years, I will play.

 

[02Crush]

I like the music from my player bit....Will try that and see how it works. I just tell them their parents mean well and then let the kid make their own conclusions.

 

[cmustangsfp]

I like the music from my player bit....Will try that and see how it works. I just tell them their parents mean well and then let the kid make their own conclusions.

I threaten to dance in front of them, but that only mortifies my DD's, the rest think I'm funny.

 

[cmustangsfp]

I also use a pre-emptive strike against the parents. I tell them before the first game of a tournament that "Psychology has found that the mind does not process the word 'Don't', so when they say "Don't swing at the high ones" what the girls really hear is "Swing at the high ones". That works on cutting down on the "Don't do XXXXX" comments. Then I follow it up with a reminder to cheer positively. I set the example by not hollering at the girls (unless it is purposely to -over holler- the parent).

 

[GatorGirl]

I totally get the point of this thread, but many of us on here ARE parents and well, I hope this doesn't get negative like the "dumb things parents say thread." Coaches say dumb things too since they are parents as well. I see a couch lose his mind and his tongue on his own dear daughter to the point of tears weekly--she is a struggling pitcher and he can't get past the fact that she is only 9 and his machismo.

Also, too many times, coaches and parents alike tell kids what they are doing wrong, but don't ever tell them how to fix it. I like that you want to translate all and explain how to teach kids how to fix what is being said.

My biggest irritation is "quick hands." That means nothing to a kid. You don't hit the ball with your hands. They are VERY literal. grrrr

GG

 

[dadonachair]

GatorGirl I don't think you understand what the meaning of the post is.

As a parent and a coach I hear all kinds of things that parents say that have good meaning but do not get the point through to the kids. Like cmustangsfp said the human mind does not process DON"T. I tell the girls any time they hear "don't swing at a high one" what they should be thinking is "look for one that they can drive." I try to put a positive thought process into the girls heads so they are not thinking negative. If I tell my SS not to throw it over the first basemans head, where do you think she is going to throw it? I tell her to throw it to her chest. In football you hear someone say he hit him right in the numbers and you kow it was a good pass. I was wondering if any other coaches had any sayings that they use to flip-flop what the girls hear from the fans in the stands.

 

[GatorGirl]

No. I understand perfectly.

 

[JJsqueeze]

some of my gems...

"I am going to have an aneurism if you don't swing at a pitch"
"you are the most awesome thing since spongebob squarepants"
"what part of RUN! is so confusing"
"here is how this works, I tell you what to do, you do it. Want to be a coach? then age 30 years, go bald and get a big belly"
"how does the opposing teams dugout look 3rd base? everything look ok in there? good, let's watch our game now"
"I could not be more proud of you if you were my own daughter!"
"we are raising women not sissys"
"I don't care if you make 1000 mistakes, but if you draw in the dirt one more time I am going to rip your leg off and beat you with it (to my own DD)"
"I will take the entire team to Disneyland if you hit a grand slam right now!"
"you don't like to bat? are you a communist?"

All true things said in games....wife can confirm that I am truly this crazy.

 

[Eric F]

My biggest irritation is "quick hands." That means nothing to a kid. You don't hit the ball with your hands. They are VERY literal. grrrr

GG

You would hate me, then. I tell my DD "fast hands" frequently, but she knows exactly what this means when I say it because it's a phrase we've used over and over in our hitting practice. To her, it means turning the barrel of the bat quickly and immediately at "go".

You'd also hate listening to me help some of our players with their swing and teaching them how to release the barrel through the ball instead of just waving at it with their arms and no hand involvement. Hands ARE a big part of hitting the ball, and having fast/quick hands is an important part of the complex movement involved in a good swing.

some of my gems...

"I am going to have an aneurism if you don't swing at a pitch"
"you are the most awesome thing since spongebob squarepants"
"what part of RUN! is so confusing"
"here is how this works, I tell you what to do, you do it. Want to be a coach? then age 30 years, go bald and get a big belly"
"how does the opposing teams dugout look 3rd base? everything look ok in there? good, let's watch our game now"
"I could not be more proud of you if you were my own daughter!"
"we are raising women not sissys"
"I don't care if you make 1000 mistakes, but if you draw in the dirt one more time I am going to rip your leg off and beat you with it (to my own DD)"
"I will take the entire team to Disneyland if you hit a grand slam right now!"
"you don't like to bat? are you a communist?"

All true things said in games....wife can confirm that I am truly this crazy.

I'm saving the highlighted ones for my DD. They all apply.

My favorite for kids who repeatedly play with the infield dirt..."This is not a sandbox!"