When is enough enough?

[grcsftbll]

That's sad, Terror. I think learning to lose gracefully is one of the great lessons of softball. My daughter learned that a LOT last year. lol This year we joined a 1st year 10U team in an A org and they told us before we committed, get ready to lose a lot. We'll be playing the best teams out there and probably get creamed a lot. We're only 2 tournaments in and actually, we're not getting creamed. But it's coming this weekend I am pretty sure. Next year, when all these killer 05 teams move to 12U, and it's our second year, and we've faced all these really tough teams all year, we'll be ready to finally win some. Then they can learn how to do that gracefully too.

 

[NVfishing]

I empathize with you and your coach. Your coach is doing the right thing for player development with the batting. He is not doing the right thing for pitcher development. I don't like the 0-2 change up but would want to throw somewhere else after throwing the same pitch 4 times. A skilled hitter wrecks that 0-2 change up because they know it's coming. At 0-2 you've got 4 more pitches to work with. Id throw off plate or high and out of the zone. Nothing the batter can hit. See if they are disciplined.

 

[JAD]

I am a BIG fan of coaches/managers who set parents expectations before the season. My mindset is there are three type of games/tournaments - showcases (16U/18U), ones you play to get better and ones you play to win. In the fall, unless you are playing a qualifier, I would play to get better. And the best way to get better is to bat everyone and cross train players in multiple positions. Who cares what your record is? Play the best competition you can find and take your lumps. It will pay dividends next spring/summer when you are playing tournaments to win.

On the issue with the change ups, I would recommend commenting to the coach that you and your DD are working hard on her change up in practice and you would really like to see how it works in game situations. If the coach is good that is all it will take. It they ignore your subtle request then you can change teams between fall and spring.

 

[Strike2]

Let me start out by saying I like my Daughter's manager on a personal level he just can't manage a team. It is his first time managing a travel team 10u. He bat's his entire lineup on Sunday's and does not see anything wrong with it even though we are the only team batting 11 on Sunday. He start's pitchers on Sunday that didn't practie all week or pitch on Saturday usually his daughter's friend's. He does not seem to know how to call a changeup my daughter was pitching she was up 0-2 on the batter he started calling fastball away batter fouled off three times daughter shook off the catchers sign of another fastball away still calling fastball away the batter crushed it my daughter told me she knew the girl was gonna hit if she threw the same pitch again but did what she was told. In a game when my daughter pitched 5 innings she threw 1 changup. How should I approach the manager or should I? I will also say there is a really good coach on the team who agrees with me but he has no desire to manage he told me to tread softly with the manager?

Take it from someone who made the mistake of overthinking the batting lineup; for 10U, and really most any age in the Fall, you SHOULD be batting 11. The only possible caveat to that is that kid who is completely lost at the plate and will strike out no matter what the pitcher throws. Even then, you don't know when she might wake up, but it won't happen on the bench. That kid aside, the "best 9" is often hard to find with any certainty. In the end, the team will be better off in the Spring with everyone getting ABs in the Fall. It might cost a win, but more often, I've seen the bottom of the lineup rise up and smack somebody.

As for pitch selection, opinions vary, and there's no one right way. If the batter fouled everything off to their side, it might be a good call. If they were late, it would be just what they want. Pitching is something that delusional coaches THINK they control, but until you get into older age groups with highly skilled pitchers (relatively rare), you can call a particular pitch, but you don't really know where it's going. I've seen coaches get too fancy with the bottom of the order on an 0-2 count, and walk them. For most, throw it over the plate (keep it down), make them hit it, and let the defense work.

 

[CMMom1740]

Take it from someone who made the mistake of overthinking the batting lineup; for 10U, and really most any age in the Fall, you SHOULD be batting 11. The only possible caveat to that is that kid who is completely lost at the plate and will strike out no matter what the pitcher throws. Even then, you don't know when she might wake up, but it won't happen on the bench. That kid aside, the "best 9" is often hard to find with any certainty. In the end, the team will be better off in the Spring with everyone getting ABs in the Fall. It might cost a win, but more often, I've seen the bottom of the lineup rise up and smack somebody.

Honest question: Why would such a kid even be on a TB team? Is TB at 10U that much less selective than at 12U? We were still in rec at 10U, so I'm just curious.

 

[MNDad]

Honest question: Why would such a kid even be on a TB team? Is TB at 10U that much less selective than at 12U? We were still in rec at 10U, so I'm just curious.

"Travel" is a pretty loose term. The vast majority of TB teams only travel to neighboring cities. Minnesota doesn't have organized rec ball so everything is called travel. I would assume that other states are similiar.

 

[CoogansBluff]

Is TB at 10U that much less selective than at 12U?

It's much more difficult for the lower-end players to hit at 10U than at 12U, and it's not uncommon to have some real strugglers.

At 10U, they are less experienced, less coordinated, and the pitcher is only 35 feet away. The 10U pitcher is also less experienced and more likely to hit batters, making some 10U batters timid. Got to have some courage just to stand in there sometimes. All sorts of peril and challenge that conspire to bedevil the 10U hitter.

Oh, and forgot to mention the ball is smaller at 10U.

 

[Terror Coach]

We have both rec and travel in this area but they are not the same game. 10u travel is played under the same rules as the older girls. It is coached by coaches who know the game. Rec ball is played with modified rules and coached by who ever is willing. Like Coogansbluff said above hitting at the 10u travel level is very tough. 10u rec girls sit and wait for the coach to come out and groove them a pitch. Travel players are stuck trying to hit mid 40 bb's. Hitting gets a lot easier when they get backed up 5 feet and they have to throw a bigger ball.

 

[MNDad]

My dd has had a bit of success. But when she was 10 she was the worst hitter on her travel ball team (first year of travel ball). THE worst. Probably struck out half of her at bats... at least for the first half of the season. But by the end of the season she was actually a starter. Steady improvement. Glad she played for a coach who valued development over wins at 10U.

Understatement of the year!

 

[Frenchy101010]

At 10U, most girls are lucky to get the ball in the strike zone, let alone hit their spot.

I disagree with this statement. My DD is in her 2nd year of 10u and pitchers around her are amazing. She played this past weekend and in the three games her team played there were maybe 10 walks combined both teams. It has been very similar in every tournament she has played. Maybe the 10u girls in Ohio are better pitchers than the 10u pitchers in Wisconsin, LOL.