When you have a relly good parent

[wild man]

Lots of folks rave about lousy moms and dads. but I have one parent of one player that is over the top good. He is a single dad that played College BB he comes and watches practice and never says a word, The only time he talks is to give encouragement to ALL the girls.
He shows up at away games with powerade for everyone including the umpires. His dd is not a top player and only plays about half the time But he thanks me for Coaching Every single day. And she has gotten more and more play time through hard work during the season.

Oh and guess what his DD has the same attitude She wants to learn to pitch this summer and work on being a 2nd baseman. She wants to get better and I think her dads great positive attitude has leaked over to her.

I wish all parents would realize that the way they act has a huge affect on their children.

 

[sluggers]

Great story...it is a good reminder that you have 12 or 14 kids on a team, and you will have 20 or more great parents. Most of them are really good people and have their priorities straight. It is just those few that make for entertainment if you are older and frustration if you are younger.

 

[rowdy]

When you build your team focus on good parents. Good kids are everywhere but bad parents effect the whole team. This parent sounds great and I would thank him for his example he sets for the kids.

 

[jacketsfan]

I wouldn't go so far as parent interviews, unless they are informal, like as you are getting ready for tryouts. Usually, the problem parents will show themselves then anyways. If you don't know them, and their daughters have played before, they will probably want to interview you, and see how you interact with the kids before making a decision. That's what those phone calls prior to tryouts, and conversations while setting up do for both of you.

One thing that is probably important for you to realize, and it is a tough lesson: if you you coach long enough, there will be people who don't like you. And, you don't have to coach for long to get there. No one wants to be unliked, but it happens.

You can get sideways with people for 100 different reasons, but all you can do is your best, and the right thing. My DD and I have made some really good friends, many friends, and there are a few folks who I don't say hello to, nor they to me.

In the end, when everyone else has left the park, you have to be secure in the knowledge that you did your best, and the right thing.

In that vein, I will tell you, there are players and parents that I have apologized to on Monday for things I did over the weekend, when I knew I was not at my best during a tourney, and said or did something that was wrong upon reflection. No one is too big to apologize, and it goes along ways towards everyone getting along.

Anyways, it is rewarding, and a lot of fun. Unfortunately, everyone thinks their kid will get signed to a D1 scholarship when they're 12, and that sometimes causes them to do strange things.

 

[shockcoach]

In that vein, I will tell you, there are players and parents that I have apologized to on Monday for things I did over the weekend, when I knew I was not at my best during a tourney, and said or did something that was wrong upon reflection. No one is too big to apologize, and it goes along ways towards everyone getting along.

I have done this on more than one occasion. I explain my thought process to the parent at the time I made the decision and then tell them where I messed up and apologize to the child. I try not to apologize to the parent, since they don't play for me, but I will tell them if I messed up. Communication is key and goes a long way with parents and players. I also tell the parents at the parent meeting that I will mess up during the year and will most likely upset most of the people in this room at one point or another.

 

[Wellphyt]

Lots of folks rave about lousy moms and dads. but I have one parent of one player that is over the top good. He is a single dad that played College BB he comes and watches practice and never says a word, The only time he talks is to give encouragement to ALL the girls.
He shows up at away games with powerade for everyone including the umpires. His dd is not a top player and only plays about half the time But he thanks me for Coaching Every single day. And she has gotten more and more play time through hard work during the season.

Oh and guess what his DD has the same attitude She wants to learn to pitch this summer and work on being a 2nd baseman. She wants to get better and I think her dads great positive attitude has leaked over to her.

I wish all parents would realize that the way they act has a huge affect on their children.

He's the type parent that I typically get to help me at practice and or prior to games. I love this type of parent.

 

[Kevin Merryman]

I had a parent like that last year on my travel ball team. It was awesome. He would cheer the same amount for all the girls as much as he did for his DD. I approached him to tell him how great it was for him to be part of this organization and how if found his encouragement of all the girls and his attitude at games to be inspiration to me. It proved to me that not all is lost in the world. If a player on another team made a good play he encouraged them. Need more people like that in the world.