brown bomber wrote:I haven’t been to games but have seen photos and videos and would agree, social distancing is pretty much non-existent, at least from what I’ve seen. So what is the answer to getting girls back on the field, other than blaming the politicians?
I know TCS set up a scenario at a field & I believe invited state & local officials to show how it could be done; fans along the outfield, a few girls in the dugout & the rest separated while sitting in the stands, no high fives and wearing masks. I’m sure other things I’m missing. Would this work?
At the risk of being called condescending, I've pretty much laid out how if has to be. Some of you don't know your daughters as well as you think you do. They all have secret lives that they don't share with you, just like you did with your parents when you were their age. Maybe there are a few incorrigible assholes out there, but for the most part, girls between the ages of 12 and 18 will listen to an authority figure they respect and trust, and unfortunately dad, that might not include you.
It doesn't matter the sport, be it volleyball, football, soccer, or softball, there is a certain "je ne sais quoi" with travel ball parents that sets them a part from normal people. More specifically, the ones that expect their daughters to get full ride offers from multiple D1 schools. These folks are in a league all by themselves. My point being, if you remove travel ball parents from the equation, and you have a competent coach running the team, one that is not a self-absorbed A-hole, I'm about 85% certain that softball tournaments could be pulled off with relative safety.
Base coaches would have to stay in the box or be ejected from the game. No around-the-horn with every out, no visits to the mound or deliberate stalling to run out the clock, and other common sense stuff like that would have to apply. If the coach catches even a whiff of one of his players deliberately violating the mask or social distancing rules, he sends her to the bleachers for the rest of that game. There has to be a penalty that stings for non-conformity.
These may not be conditions that are acceptable for some coaches, but I know my daughter's coach could pull it off, because he commands the respect of every family and player on his team. Children emulate what they see, not what you tell them. This CAN be done, but the will has to start with the parents and more importantly the coaches.