Information about Premier Fastpitch Girls Softball

[Gary Haning]

Wade/Umpire:

NO ONE said ASA was the boogie-man, no one said ASA has not done good for softball.

I have been very involved with ASA for a long time, I have coached National Teams, done clinics, written legislation, served on committees and represented ASA in many instances.

I was asked to form and chair a committee to develop a plan for a standing JO 18U National Team, I and the committee of 5 others flew to OKC a couple times, had numerous meetings there and elsewhere. We developed a comprehensive plan for both a standing 18U and 16U National Team. including the selection, how and where they would play, how the teams would be financed, WITHOUT using ASA funds. We were asked to come to Chula Vista in January a few years ago, we were then told quite curtly that there would be no JO National Team except for the years of the Junior World Championship and that all of our work was for nothing.

As previously stated I wrote the legislation that became the Sectors, head to toe, after every Gold coach on the planet screamed for years about how bad the old point system was designed.

[Gary Haning]

cont

Many of the other coaches/managers whose teams will come to our Premier event have also been involved with ASA other than with their teams.

We are hardly a bunch of disgruntled rebels just looking to hurt ASA

[wonderdog24]

Just a few questions

1. How many teams are you gonna allow in?
2. How many teams will be allowed from California?
3. Why does this tourney have to be the same weekend as Gold?
4. Are you gonna mandate which hotels the teams must stay in?
5. How much are you gonna charge?
6. Are you gonna protect the California teams in bracket/pool play?
7. What date are you looking at as a Commitment date for teams looking to attend?

[Iluvblue]

I like the overall idea, but I hate the invites.

Norcal shockers have qualified for Gold nationals 2 out of the past 3 years, and they are new. They will probably NOT get an invite. But some of the other bigger organizations up here have not qualified in the past 2 years, but they likely will get an invite. Im not lobbying for Shockers, but nobody up here, including myself would have punched their ticket for Gold nationals, yet they punched their own and got in.


This is exactly why I like to stay in 14u. In 14u the best teams will play each other on Sunday. not in the olders. Exposure tourneys are a good ol boy network in many ways. And I hate them. i understand in the first year or 2 thngs will be done one way and in a few years things could change, but I still hate anything to do with someone just assigning who is in.

i just hate seeing teams get in based upon who they are and not what they have done in the current year. Can you name some teams that will make it every year? Sure, but there are always those that surprise people, both those that do make it, and those that dont make it.

[wadeintothem]

Sorry, Gary. It MAY be a good tourney, but its a show case. The intent of this tournament is to show your HS players to colleges. thats the design. There is nothing to be a champion of. Big and glorious (ala Fireworks) does not make it a championship.

There is no organization or structure to even be champion of. Its just Gary and a few friends, and what, an office in your garage and a fax machine from Office Depot? Come on Gary! Your officials will come from another org who trained and prepared them. You and a few others will get together and make up some rules and put on a show case event displaying hs players to college coaches and their free passes. You've invited your friends and dismissed others, the list goes on and on. I'm know its in your interest to sell it as more than it is, but it still is what it is. Shamrocks didnt even qualify gold and others who did qualify are not getting an invite? What formula did you use for that. This is a buddy league gary.

This is a so cal tourney with so cal officials filled with so cal teams and some other teams coming in with the intent to display before colleges.
A la .. a show case.

You say you'll have good umps, but how do you know?

You have no mechanism for evaluating, training, and placing umpires. You have no criteria. Will you be counting on your local ASA assinger who does your showcases?


I dont see why you are offended by this term, anyway. You'll have some darn fine teams - but I doubt you will have the best team. The best team will win in OKC. I can even lay odds on which returning 2010 college freshman player will be leading that team, likely to a title... (presuming college players are allowed there).

Whats to keep a team from going to a Gary's Qualification tournies with "their A team" and qualifying and sending the B team to your tournament for displaying before the colleges? You have no structure, code, roster control, board, team control, or anything else- let alone a national structure to enforce it coast to coast. How can you prove/disprove homeschooling? To be claiming a national championship is frankly, almost arrogant Gary.

I actually like this tourney more today! Now knowing the orgs are preparing a team to make a run at the championship in OKC and another to come to your showcase display before the colleges. maybe thats beneficial. there are many teams looking for something to do late july/early august.

I think its even good. Especially if they send unsigned HS players there, that could be very beneficial for those players and I hope it helps some of them get the scholarships they deserve!


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All that said, I STILL agree changes are needed. I'm on the fence personally about the college players, I've heard the real intent of so cal is to be able to qualify even more teams and flood the market more by squeezing out more east coach teems - I do agree about the time / length of stay issue. The fence issues and other talking points are carry little weight IMO, but i do agree in general - for example, with shortening the fences.

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[Gary Haning]

You continue to spout the same rhetoric without anything to support it other than your opinion.

If we rent an office and buy a bunch of equipment does that somehow make it legitimate to you. I guess you think you are being cute but sarcasm is not intelligence.

So by your logic if ASA does eliminate college players, their Championship is then a showcase?

I know the teams will bring their best teams, you believe otherwise, as I said before, time will tell who is correct.

All of the things you ask about will be built as time goes on. Our officials will likely be people trained by many organizations not only ASA.

We may not be able to perfectly prove or disprove home school but we will know a girl did not play above HS.

It is obvious that nothing will change your mind and so I will leave you to your opinion.

[wadeintothem]

Gary, lets not argue. I will call it a show case because its a show case. I am not a sheep and you should never expect everyone to line up on a message board.

If one day you have an actual national organization, system, and structure, I will concede you are offering a legit National Championship.

Right now you have nothing of a system or structure. No officiating, no code, no by laws, no board - you have a good ole boy method of inviting teams, some borrowed officials of repute you will not know, and a few fields in HB.

Thats not a national championship,Gary. Its just not.

You know, you can take an 84 Toyota to Earl Shives, but that doesnt make it a 09 Lexus.

[tommy]

People Keep trying to say thing to pursuade people that this is a not a good thing. ASA had many years of listening to what we wanted and every year they keep adding something else that we dont want. The bottom line is that We as coaches needed to do this and it will happen with the best teams coming to the PFGS. They may send others to Oklahoma but just about every team that has ever won a gold National Title will be at PFGS. So since the best org.. are in one tournament anyone and everyone who knows softball will no who the best team is. Also girls being seen by college coaches is a plus but it should not be hindered by the organization that says "they are for the girls". Now we all Know that ASA is a great thing. Done way more good than anything. Maybe they just lost touch with gold fastpitch. But until they find their way this is the best way to go. Sure they say they are trying to do things but we as coaches have heard it for quite some time. So until action is taken and things are changed this is the way to go. They had more than there chance as there have been talks of this for many many years so this is not all of a sudden. It was a long time coming. And when it comes to wether it is a championship or not i feel the teams decide which tournaments are better not the tournament. I believe that we all want the same thing. Some of us are no longer going to sit around and hope it happens. It has now happened one way or another...

P.S. Officiating is not an Issue. Many are good but i have not been impressed with officials at gold nationals. Because they think they are the best they come in with chips on their shoulders trying to show people who the boss is. On my game that was streamlined take a look at an umpire that came all the way out to the mound during my confrence to show me he was the boss. hahaa great officiating wouldnt you say. And the worst part is It is a shame when I who do not get paid at all know the rule book better than officials that are at gold nationals who do get paid. I know I know its not allot but its 100% more than me. So with all the good comes the bad in any tourn. and we teams have learned to deal with it.

[Mike Lednovich]

Gary, lets not argue. I will call it a show case because its a show case. I am not a sheep and you should never expect everyone to line up on a message board.

If one day you have an actual national organization, system, and structure, I will concede you are offering a legit National Championship.

Right now you have nothing of a system or structure. No officiating, no code, no by laws, no board - you have a good ole boy method of inviting teams, some borrowed officials of repute you will not know, and a few fields in HB.

Thats not a national championship,Gary. Its just not.

You know, you can take an 84 Toyota to Earl Shives, but that doesnt make it a 09 Lexus.

And thus afterwards, when in the company where people engaged themselves in what are commonly thought the liberal and elegant amusements, he was obliged to defend himself against the observations of those who considered themselves highly accomplished, he said: "I cannot fiddle, but I can make a great state from a little city." -- from the Life of Themistocles

All great and wonderful things began as a small idea nurtured by a maverick who opposed the forces and will of the popular masses.

[anonlooker]

Gary, lets not argue. I will call it a show case because its a show case. I am not a sheep and you should never expect everyone to line up on a message board.

If one day you have an actual national organization, system, and structure, I will concede you are offering a legit National Championship.

Right now you have nothing of a system or structure. No officiating, no code, no by laws, no board - you have a good ole boy method of inviting teams, some borrowed officials of repute you will not know, and a few fields in HB.

Thats not a national championship,Gary. Its just not.

You know, you can take an 84 Toyota to Earl Shives, but that doesnt make it a 09 Lexus.

You may not be a sheep, Wade, and I respect your input here as an umpire, but nor are you a shepherd, a leader, or a visionary. You are, speaking in this matter, an ASA functionary. Not quite a sheep, but blind to possibilities. And more significantly, opportunities.

The teams attending Premier are the top teams from throughout the country - that's National. The organization is in place, albeit loose knit, but it's there. All the items you speak of that Premier does not yet have are in the works. All great journeys begin with a first step.

Because it's Gary's organization, he can call his tournament anything he wants. If Gary, Dan, Tony, Phil, Tommy, Mike, et al call it a National Championship, it's a National Championship.You can call it anything you want as well, but until you have walked in the shoes of the men who have been there done that, what you call it doesn't mean squat. You're an umpire. Woop. We could put lipstick on you and you'd still be an umpire. (okay, a damn good umpire! )

But your efforts to downplay the significance of this tournament make you come across like some whipping boy for ASA. While you are demeaning the tournament, ASA is suddenly scrambling to respond to the same complaints from coaches that they've been ignoring for years. You may not think much of the Premier tournament, but it's pretty clear that ASA does.

You also got the car analogy wrong: ASA is your '84 Toyota, and Premier is the shiny new Lexus. The good news is the Cash for Clunkers plan is still in effect. Maybe you should think about trading up.