An Issue with Posting friendly Scores

[Sam]

[quote="SSdad"]As a "crazy internet junkie" I can see both sides of the story. As a proud parent, I would like the world to know when we win all 3, or upset a better team. But as someone who deals in reality and facts, we all know that it is just a friendly and who knows if the "better" team we beat was playing their best 9 or pitching their number 1.

As coolstuff said, friendly scores should be taken with a grain of salt. Now tourney scores......thats a whole different ballgame there.[/quote]


What about pool games, when some teams bat all their players? Do we count those?

How about tournament bracket games for TCS (you could also use NSA, USSSA, FAST, PONY, or another lower level org) qualifiers? They don't really mean anything....so do we count them?

They all count and you better not take them with a grain of salt. Why? Because we all talk about teaching in friendlies, but few of us really teach during friendlies. We use them to get kids playing time...keep our pitchers fresh...keep our hitting at a high level. Managers don't work on stuff....they try to win.

Personally, I don't care if I ever win a game in a non-tournament setting. I have the team work on weaknesses and try to have them improve. We work on pickoffs, 1st and 3rd plays, H&R, squeezes....stuff that can win games. Thats why I love to work on ITB...in ANY friendly. When we had one field to work with, we would invite two teams to come in a play a DH. The games would be 7 innings long + 1 inning of ITB, no time limit. Each team got to play 16 innings on a Sunday...likely more innings than most teams get in a 3-gamer with an hour twenty drop dead. You pay the umpires a little more per game, but you end up ahead on that deal also.

[Demonboy]

For the record the better teams usually still win when it's "just a friendly".

[Skarp]

For the record the better teams usually still win when it's "just a friendly".

I think that's right, but in particular I think a very clear picture of relative skill emerges over time. So while today's results might not mean a whole lot, 2 months worth of results do.

[daddyball1]

It's like teams posting their own records

[SSdad]

Sam, i would have to agree with you on that aspect of it. But what I was talking about were elimination games. Most teams that carry 12 or 13 players use pool play to play all their kids. Some might even bat round robin, and put other position players in. But elimination time, when win or go home is on the line, those are the scores, that in theory, should hold the most weight.

Seriuosly though, the only scores that need to be focused on, are your own. If you know that the team you are playing just beat the team you lost to last week, that does give you an edge? Or does it put something in your mind that they must be better, and you try to over prepare? Either way, you are already worrying about something else, and not focused on the task at hand.

Great idea on the ITB. Makes sense. Why not practice it, it could prepare you for that must win game.

[ssarge]

Great idea on the ITB. Makes sense. Why not practice it, it could prepare you for that must win game.

It is a good idea, and in a friendly, it doesn't even need to be limited to that.

Play a game where EVERY inning is an ITB situation. Or every other. 7 ITB situations to practice is about half a career's worth. Great opportunity.

Start the 3rd inning w/ bases loaded. Or runners on 1st and 3rd. Obviously, it needs to be the same for both teams, but other than that, whatever is valuable.

Regards,

Scott

[turn2]

Friendly-Pool Play- tournament- Yes you may play each different with Sue at 3rd instead of LF and work on the short game or different plays that you might not do in a regular game. I also agree that scores have little reflection on a friendly or pool play game. But I think many are making excuses while they might lose on the scoreboard. If a team has 12 players then those 12 players are expected to do what it takes to help the team. If the coaches lineup is so messed up that the girls have no clue what to do then that coach is doing a disserves to the other team that wants to work on things.
Common excuse: (For Losing any game)
1. We did not pitch our #1!
a. She can not pitch every game.
b. What are you saying about your other pitchers.
2. We did not play our best players.
a. Will your top 9 play every game in a tournament.
b. Are the other players really that bad. If so why did they make your team.
3. Coach had girls play different spots.
a. most likely the girls have practiced other spots so they should have an idea what to do.
(if they have no clue what to do then why are you waisting the time of another team)
4. Coach tried different things with the batters.
a. Again the time to try things is after the girls have atleast practiced it. Friendlies are a time to try things for the first time in a game but not the time to try many things for the first time.

We play a 18u Gold friendly this weekend. Our #2,3 and 4 pitcher will pitch and everyone will bat each game and players will move around. We will try things that we have been working on. (some will back fire Just like a real game) We might lose every game but not because we did not play our best 9 but because on this day the other teams players played better.