chromo wrote:I have no respect from the rest of you in softball so I can say what I want. When I was young we had "three flys up" which was everyone out in the grass field trying to catch fly balls from the hitter. If you caught 3 flies, you got to go hit them. This is about as basic an early baseball training in outfield as it can get. It teaches aggressive attack of the ball, learning how to deal with players near you trying to get the same ball. Smaller younger players learned how to compete with older bigger ones, by being good and aggressive. I don't ever remember anyone getting their teeth knocked out by a ball, although there were a few collisions. This was, for a century, how young boys learned and played and had fun. At that time there were no girls in the field. None at all. So, in the 2nd half of the 20th century and now into the first part of the 21st century, girls get the chance to do what the boys have been doing since baseball was started.
I, in your opinion, use the lamest drills in softball. I observe that the girls have so much fun doing it that they often fall down laughing. They also run in front of each other, spear flyballs they usually never catch, and more often than not the less aggressive fielders improve their game skills. They learn a whole lot about communication, trust of where their teammates are, they forget their inhibitions and just go after the balls. Usually they have to catch 3, 4 or 5 to come in, which adds an element of competitiveness.
The most beneficial thing, however, is that they have FUN. It is a great playful thing to do. It makes them better. and, it takes almost all of the adult coaching out of the realm of the reality that these are kids playing. Something the adults mostly don't get. Just a drill of kids at play.
Now I know I am a crappy coach compared to the rest of you. I throw potatoes at the kids and have them swing away and blow them apart, and they line up to do it and won't quit and laugh and squeal. I buy them tacos and let them eat them during practice. I let them slide with the eggs. I let them play over-the-line at the end of practice with making them pick two teams and make up stupid names like the Grownup Apples vs the Goat Milk Coaches. I buy them two dollar party store plastic sunglasses and let them all wear them at practice. When the parents start yelling at me during a game to go out and get them focused, I bring them into the picther circle and tell them " your parents are flipping out. This is a kid's game, go have more fun, its just a game, its your game."
Very few of my players are going to play in college. They want to enjoy playing softball. PLAY. So the lame drill you don't like, in my experience, is very positive, useful, and fun. Try it sometime, its good to see children laugh and have fun. (Here comes Hot Carl...)
Chromo, I still think you are awesome!
