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Who is your daughter’s ________ coach?

by Nicelag » Thu Dec 22, 2016 6:04 am

My DD's team practices and or plays on the weekends. They also do fielding, pitching and hitting at their facility during the week, but it is not required for players to attend. That being said it is recommended that the girls take lessons etc on their own, but it is not required. Their philosophy is if you play, hit or pitch well you will get plenty of playing time. If not then not so much.

So, it is up to the kids to do what is needed to compete. If they can go to the park with dad or mom and can get the job done that's fine. If they need lessons then that's the way they need to go, but either way it's their choice. It's very similar to school. If your parents can help with homework and such when needed that's great, but if you need a tutor to keep the grades up then that's what you do. The bottom line is if your kid wants to compete at a certain level you do what you can to give them the tools.
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by bigclemdawg » Sat May 13, 2017 4:55 pm

I agree with all posting here... yes there is alot of people who hype up their kid and the so called badass hitting coach who may get them one ground ball a tournament.. but they are beast at soft toss... in the end everyone has to put in their work... from the kid to the parent to the instructor... but mostly the kid if they want to be that 1%


ih8ddyball wrote:Why are softball parents so eager to spend money on private lessons for their kid? My daughter plays for an organization that only practices on the weekend so their kids can go to their private lessons during the week days.

My kid just turned 10 but she required to have a hitting coach, fielding coach, pitching coach, catching coach, outfield coach…. Whatever happened to a parent playing catch with their kid? Back in my day, the only time a kid had specialized coaching is when they got paid to play. Now that I think about it, maybe that is the reason I never got the call up to the majors. Maybe if I had a hitting coach at 4 yrs. old I would have been able play beyond Double A…. Or maybe I just didn’t have the goods….

If you can afford private lessons then great but make sure the person you are paying knows what they are talking about and that your kid is receptive of what is being taught.

My daughter’s hitting coach is youtube… She has a tee in the backyard and a big blue jugs hitting net that belonged to her brother. When the weather is right, I’ll take her to the park and she can hit some balls into the backstop because I’m too lazy to shag balls. If she’s lucky, I’ll hit her some grounders….

Let your kids be kids. There’s no college scouts at 10u games. If you are wondering why your kid is not hitting the ball then look into the mirror. Most the time it is us as parents, that is putting too much pressure on kids to do what we can’t do or couldn’t do.
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by C77fastpitch » Mon May 22, 2017 11:55 am

Don't rock the business boat of fast-pitch softball, or the phony coaches will start the name calling! Don't you know 10y old players need expensive lessons by the boatload. It doesn't matter how well she plays, there's needy phony coaches trying to make a living.
Last edited by C77fastpitch on Mon May 22, 2017 12:10 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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by 4xAllAmer2xNatChamp » Wed Sep 13, 2017 4:49 pm

I have 4 children. My two eldest took lessons for many years. Hitting, fielding and conditioning. Albeit, they were athletically blessed they needed the repetition and I was personally to hard on them and would easily get frustrated. For us, lessons worked out better.

My two youngest - 13 year son has hitting lessons for baseball, no fielding lessons, practices with his team 2 times a week and conditions with myself. He is by far my best athlete and everything comes natural.

On the other hand my 12 year old daughter just started playing travel ball. I didn't want her to start to early like my two eldest (and she didn't want to miss traveling to Ann Arbor, Oklahoma and all the baseball travel for my son) , but I can see a significant difference in agility and softball IQ. Although playing catch up is fun and she has the tools far greater than her sisters, in retrospect I wish I had started her earlier. She will start fielding and conditioning and is already with a hitting coach. Not to mention I have matured as a sports father so it's actually somewhat fun, but the expectations for her are unfair and I am fault for that.

My recommendation is if your playing travel you're taking the sport serious enough to go "all in". Get them with the best (subjective) you can and based on what you can afford.
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by Sam » Thu Sep 14, 2017 7:45 am

It's a self-feeding industry that relies on the feeble minds of ignorant parents. There is no need for 10U travel ball. You are committing your kid to a full time job along with her schooling. She will miss birthday parties, family vacations, Saturdays at the beach, etc.

If she asks you for lessons, consider it. Don't put her in lessons because the coach told you to or because you think she needs them.

Let her have fun. Its a GAME SHE is PLAYING. Nothing more, nothing less.
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by Hinky » Thu Jan 11, 2018 9:01 am

SAM it's not feeble-minded to want to get educated and grow!
To your point C77...
just like in any industry or business there are people that are willing to take your money regardless of the outcome of what you're paying for.
however there are also instructors whose goal is for the athletes to grow. and can be excellent positive motivators who provide knowledge and tools. especially to help those that do not know how or what to do on their own. technical skills for pitching and catching and learning a good foundation on hitting. even to learn to throw correctly can start you in the right direction.
most important for the young athlete is to work and train on their own time.
Aka: apply your lessons!
some young people are really excited about sports some other types of things. For those that enjoy the sport and you want them to develop, finding a great instructor can help stay on top of things, grow further and have an excellent Foundation for all
your goals in softball.
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by Sam » Fri Jan 12, 2018 12:21 pm

Hinky wrote:SAM it's not feeble-minded to want to get educated and grow!
.


Its not about getting educated and growing. Its about parents forcing their kids to attend lessons, practices and 120 games per year when they are still playing with Barbie dolls. This is about nothing but parental ego and bleacher bragging. I know.....I did it, too.
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by Hinky » Fri Jan 12, 2018 1:01 pm

some young people want to play and are not forced. There are young people who would rather play softball some hours during the week, then play with Barbies all the time. Balance time!
*option continue playing recball there are City leagues that people can make a commitment to a few months at a time.
* the fact is there are young people 8, 9, 10 years old and up who absolutely thoroughly enjoy training, doing lessons, practices and playing softball on weekends. they continue growing and loving softball.
* Balance that's the parental responsibility especially at that age. make a smart softball decision on what commitment works for your family.
plenty of teams with different goals and schedules to pick from.
#### Agree softball should be fun, working out hard at what you enjoy doing can be fun!
Its okay Sam your opinion does apply.
You have learned a hard lesson told here on HB about parents who force their kids to play and it applies to a percentage of others, it just doesn't apply to everybody. some young people want to play and are not forced.
have a great day
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by Sam » Fri Jan 12, 2018 4:07 pm

Hinky,

I think one of the central issues is that these kids will do ANYTHING to please their parents and they aren't stupid. When mom and dad ask the kid if they want to play travel.....they say "yes" because they know it will please them. Lots of kids that start out at 10U end up hurt later on or burnt out. I coached a number of them and spoke to them about their love for the game. They almost universally tell you that they played 10U because they wanted to please their parents. None of them ever asked for lessons. They labored through them to please mom and dad.

There may be kids out there that are as you state, but I've just never met one during my 30 years of coaching. That doesn't mean you're not right.
Run your mouth when I'm not around
Its easy to achieve
You cry to weak friends that sympathize
- Pantera, Walk
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by Chin Music » Fri Jan 12, 2018 5:41 pm

Sam, back in the day the norm was to start your kid in travel after 10u. Both of mine started travel in 12u. I’d imagine in the early 90’s kids started even later. If your kid shows some talent, plays some all stars and enjoyed playing in rec the transition these days to travel is earlier.
Games, practice, conditioning, lessons (if it benefits them) are part of the deal.
When both of my daughters are thru playing I’m positive in saying they will tell me they enjoyed the ride and it was worth missing some functions because of softball and appreciated me pushing them to get the degrees they will have.
BY the way mine are both near the finish line.
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