Why would a coach do this?

[chinamigarden]

If you remember I am an assistant coach on a 14u team this year. The HC and I do not see eye to eye on how things should run, but he is the HC so I try to let him run his team his way. There is something he does that I just don't understand.

When a girl makes a play, and gets an out. He will often tell her how she could have, and should do it better in the future. For instance, the pitcher covering on a bunt. She rakes the ball into her glove with both hands and makes the throw getting the runner by 2 steps. He will tell her nice play but next time use the bare hand. Third base makes a great stop, scramble to her feet and throws a rocket to first, and he will say. Nice play but get the throw a little lower so firstbase doesn't have to reach. But if a routine pop fly that the second baseman is camped under pops out of her mitt, he says Nice try. He does this all the time, tells the girls who made an error nice try but corrects those who make outs.

Again, I am not realy looking for why he thinks the way he does. I just need to say it out loud to see if anyone has seen this before

 

[softballphreak]

Yep, among all my mistakes that is one of the things I used to do. My thought was I was teaching. Maybe, sometimes. In cases like those most of the time the attagirl should be all that's said. Sometimes there may be a good reason, like fielding the ball with the bare hand or using the outside of the glove to brace the ball between the hand and the glove, for example.

One way you could get the coach to do a little self-evaluation (all good coaches do that) is to lightheartedly refer to him as "Coach But". Let him know that most all of his attagirls come with a "but". Or some other diplomatic, but light, way to make him aware of it.

None of us should ever stop learning and teaching. I'm not near as ignorant as I used to be; at least until next time, anyway.

 

[CoogansBluff]

I don't know if I've seen exactly the pattern you're talking about, but I tend not to say anything to a player who makes a mistake for which the cause is obvious. Ex: Player swings at ball two feet over her head. Nothing to say that she wouldn't know for herself. And if a girl fields a non-rolling ball w/ her glove and gets the out, I'm going to tell her how to do it better next time. I don't nit-pick, though. And I don't assume that a player intentionally threw a ball high to a first baseman.

But the real issue is your lack of control. You are probably like I am -- Anytime I watch another coach up close - it doesn't even have to be softball - I find things that I would do differently, or things that I think are just wrong. We're always critiquing. Even with coaches that I think are better than I am, I still find things that I disagree about.

What you said here sums it up -- The HC and I do not see eye to eye on how things should run, but he is the HC so I try to let him run his team his way.

I think this is a very common unless it's a just situation where the head coach is far more experienced than the assistant. And even that doesn't prevent the thoughts of, "That's not quite the way I'd do it.''

 

[quincy]

We have a coach like that and I have learned to ask him what he thought of the play and he will explain in detail how it could have better and leaves the players alone. Just wants to get it off their chest.

 

[Richards]

I see the pattern all the time usually in younger inexperienced coaches that have yet to learn the patience and understanding that comes with coaching during practice and coaching during a game. A good quality coach rarely ever coaches players during a game. He/she may instruct on the situations practiced in practice but when it comes game time its up to the players to play and the coaches to provide them every opportunity to be as successful as possible during the game. Hopefully the HC can get enough feedback from other coaches on how and when to instruct the players, and during game time being the least successful way to get any point across.

 

[Amy in AZ.]

I don't think it is too bad to explain a play to a girl. Maybe your coach is going overboard. I don't know.

But, sometimes I only get a chance to reinforce a play during a game and I can say "Oh, that is that play that I want you to use your bare hand."

What gripes me, is if (for example) a 1st baseman moves under an easy pop up and then, makes a basket catch. The parents are always going "good play!" (No, that is not. It is not proper and is lazy and gives you a really good chance to drop the ball.) Also, depending on the abilities of the girl I might praise an easy play or tell the girl to step it up and get that second out.

 

[Momo'sDad]

It's unlikely that I'll ever coach a 14u or even 12u team, but even in 10u, I don't try to coach the mistakes away during a game. I do call for defensive shifts based on who's batting, but the only instruction I might give during a game pertains to the baserunners. Many are still getting used to the idea of being aggressive at this age.

I track the entire game on my clipboard, and make notes on spectacular plays as well as on mistakes we made. If CF makes a great catch, of course I'm proud of her, but RF still has to move from her position to back up that play. There's no shortage of examples. Some coaches prefer to handle these items after a game or during the next practice session, while other coaches want to make a quick mention while it's fresh on the players' minds. It also may serve in some small way to help keep the girls grounded, a little reminder that 'we're good, but not perfect, meaning we've still got work to do'.

Your HC does what many of us do, only at a different time.

 

[RichK]

I'm surprised by this thread...when else would you teach a specific point (and specifics are all that matter when you are focused on getting your players better) than when it happens? I realize you have to spend a lot of time motivating and supporting during games, but not to coach/instruct at all? I don't get it --but I'm willing to hear what others think.

I actually have a problem in the other direction, our head coach during games will tell girls GREAT JOB when clearly they haven't performed in a way we'd like or would teach. And I'm not talking about the result, but the way it's done. So what if you get an out if, as Amy describes with the basket catch, they aren't doing it the way they should or that will be repeatable in the future. Attaboys for poor form or bad decisions will make a team stagnate with a just-good-enough playing style.

My two cents. TKS.

 

[Amy in AZ.]

Here is another example of when I would have corrected a player during a game. Say that we are on defense and we have a runner hung up between 2nd and 3rd. Our 3rd baseman has the ball. She is supposed to chase the runner back towards 2nd and then toss the ball to the 2nd baseman for the tag. But instead, she throws the ball to the second baseman immediately and then the runner starts heading to 3rd - and the ball is thrown about 6 times, eventually getting the out.

The crowd is going to think that was a good play. I am going to think and say that it was awful and not what we practiced.

 

[CycloneSoftball22]

Here is another example of when I would have corrected a player during a game. Say that we are on defense and we have a runner hung up between 2nd and 3rd. Our 3rd baseman has the ball. She is supposed to chase the runner back towards 2nd and then toss the ball to the 2nd baseman for the tag. But instead, she throws the ball to the second baseman immediately and then the runner starts heading to 3rd - and the ball is thrown about 6 times, eventually getting the out.

The crowd is going to think that was a good play. I am going to think and say that it was awful and not what we practiced.

Yes. This sort of thing drives me crazy. I then ultimately hear from parents that I am being "too hard" on the girls. I always tell my girls that they are never as good as their parents and grandparents tell them they are