What percentage of coaches (Rec, HS, TB, College) are great, good, fair, bad, absolutely horrible

[daywalkerdad]

To be fair. (Especially in rec) Many of your DDs wouldn't have a spot to play if it wasn’t for an over worked and over scheduled “poor” coach who leaves work early and lines the field. He or she does it because no one else signed up.
Stays late to rake the fields.
And makes phone calls into the night making sure the team has a team, a field, an opponent, equipment… takes phone calls All day to solve parent drama…

Instead of taking the time to rate the coach. Spend a minute and rate yourself. Am I doing what I need to do to help my DD and her team. Pick up a rake, or better yet have your kid pick one up. Line a field, volunteer to make phone calls, spend some of your money to buy better practice balls and bownets…

Yes there are poor and fair coaches out there. Want better coaches. Be better parents until you are the coach. Then listen to some guy who shows up at the last minute before games and practices and leaves asap afterwords comment on the lousy job you do.

I do not think anyone was bashing rec coaches. If they show up and have a good attitude that is fine. Attitude of coaches/parents is often the issue.

The problem is moving from that to travel. Mainly with parents and coaches having an unrealistic evaluation of how good they are, and how good they should be. The reason you lost is the other team is better. Rather than a bad call.
Then parents/coaches do not understand what is needed for that level. Few have a realistic view. Blame umps, teammates rather than a proper evaluation of what they need to do. Maybe the coaches daughter is a 2nd baseman and a number 8 hitter at this level for example.

 

[chinamigarden]

I do not think anyone was bashing rec coaches. If they show up and have a good attitude that is fine. Attitude of coaches/parents is often the issue.

The problem is moving from that to travel. Mainly with parents and coaches having an unrealistic evaluation of how good they are, and how good they should be. The reason you lost is the other team is better. Rather than a bad call.
Then parents/coaches do not understand what is needed for that level. Few have a realistic view. Blame umps, teammates rather than a proper evaluation of what they need to do. Maybe the coaches daughter is a 2nd baseman and a number 8 hitter at this level for example.

No one in this thread was bashing rec coaches. However if you are going to rate coaches. You should look inward as well

 

[Rolling Hard]

With so much information online about how to coach, how to communicate, how to field, how to throw, how to hit, no coach should be horrible due to lack of experience. Antonella has enough free info alone to make a person pretty knowledgeable about a lot of stuff. One of the worse characteristics of a bad coach is the refusal to listen and learn.

 

[Lobster Birch]

With so much information online about how to coach, how to communicate, how to field, how to throw, how to hit, no coach should be horrible due to lack of experience. Antonella has enough free info alone to make a person pretty knowledgeable about a lot of stuff. One of the worse characteristics of a bad coach is the refusal to listen and learn.

I agree, for the most part, but having knowledge available doesn’t always mean being able to teach it.

 

[LEsoftballdad]

I was a rec and LL ball HC coach in 2017 and 2018, and a GM for a softball rec organization in 2018-2019. It was the hardest job I ever had. I would field calls all day long from unhappy parents and coaches, and that doesn't include the emails I'd get, too. My wife told me I worked more doing that than I did at my real job. Was I a good coach? Well, my team in rec ball stunk, but that was more about me allowing toxic families on the team than it was my coaching.

I think I did a good job as the GM, despite the fact I was learning on the fly.

Finding a truly great coach is a rarity.

 

[uncdrew]

My estimations:
Great (knowledgeable, communication skills and inspiring) 10%
Good 20%
Fair 30%
Bad 25%
Absolutely Horrible 15%

I'm with ya. My estimation wouldn't differ from this much at all. Pretty much a standard bell curve with about half of all coaches being in the "Good" and "Fair"

 

[uncdrew]

To be fair. (Especially in rec) Many of your DDs wouldn't have a spot to play if it wasn’t for an over worked and over scheduled “poor” coach who leaves work early and lines the field. He or she does it because no one else signed up.
Stays late to rake the fields.
And makes phone calls into the night making sure the team has a team, a field, an opponent, equipment… takes phone calls All day to solve parent drama…

Instead of taking the time to rate the coach. Spend a minute and rate yourself. Am I doing what I need to do to help my DD and her team. Pick up a rake, or better yet have your kid pick one up. Line a field, volunteer to make phone calls, spend some of your money to buy better practice balls and bownets…

Yes there are poor and fair coaches out there. Want better coaches. Be better parents until you are the coach. Then listen to some guy who shows up at the last minute before games and practices and leaves asap afterwords comment on the lousy job you do.

Good post.

I've been a bad parent, fair coach, good coach and now great parent. I'm done with my growth cycle for softball.

 

[Rolling Hard]

How do you assure or at least better your odds of your DD not playing for a bad or horrible coach?
When your DD is offered a spot on the team, ask questions. Lots of questions. What role do you see my DD having as a player on this team? Playing time? Schedule? Travel? If the Coach is standoffish or doesn't have clear answers that might be a bad sign. If a coach in unable to communicate with you, chances are he will not be a good communicator as a coach, either.

Standoffish
distant and cold in manner; unfriendly.
"he was an arrogant, standoffish prig"

Similar:
aloof


distant


remote


detached


impersonal


withdrawn


Yeah, run!

 

[Northball]

Good post.

I've been a bad parent, fair coach, good coach and now great parent. I'm done with my growth cycle for softball.

Hmmm...I didn't see umpire in there...

 

[cvsoftball]

The community I moved to has City leagues that players stay in until they're 16 years old and only recently has developed a few travel teams locally.

A couple of the city League's have contacted me regarding doing clinics for the players. In discussing this and learning the local community my feedback was this.
(This was to the league administrators. Their titles president, vice president, coaches manager and softball coordinator.)

me- While I can offer player clinics.
Ask you to evaluate the people you have stepping up to take on coaching responsibilities. Since the league offers a game schedule and fields they don't have to manage figuring out building schedule, but they do have to be able to run practices and develop players.
So I ask, do you think the coaches/ parents stepping up, do you think they would be willing to attend softball clinics?
Because I can host coaching and parent clinics that can help them learn how to then Coach teams on the field.
Each of the administrators I shared this approach with...Said that is a really good idea.
And then...
they each commented they do not know whether or not the adults would be willing to do so. A couple of them told me they know that some would and some would not.

Using the story as an example, Here is the dilemma,... that even with an opportunity provided for those in a league, not paid out of pocket by the people attending, something that would be provided for free for the coaches/ adults,
if you have people not willing to put in time to potentially learn then there will have to be some people that are called coaches that have a low rating score.

often those folks who have COACH on their shirts in large letters, eh?