How'd the weekend go???

[bucketboy]

The point you make is understandable, and there are showcase events that do offer a single elim or pool winners playing extra games format as well.

Stingrays is changing their format this year from a double elim bracket and going to single and adding the extra game to the exposure part. Compuware has always been pool plus double. The Tennessee tournament that was cancelled this past weekend is playing a 6 game guarantee format and then the 4 pool winners will play a single elim round at the end and that is rescheduled for the 14th and 15th so if bragging rights are what you desire then they are out there if you go to specific events.

I will say though I am not going to sac bunt just to win a pool in TN at the risk of taking exposure away from a kid that has a college coach back there wanting to see her swing the bat.

DD was asked to come fill in last minute in St. Louis last weekend since our event was cancelled and the exposure opportunities for the players in this event were great as always. The shortened time limits were only getting kids one or two at bats per game so that did make it tough on the college coaches to recruit so expect those camp brouchures in the mail soon.

I saw plenty of kids diving for balls, sprinting on and off the field and doing the little things to catch the eye of coaches and they didn't need a $5 piece of plastic to motivate them to do so.

[gunshy]

Playing true exposure events IS different, if you are really trying to get your players exposed. St Louis offered great competition, but it seemed to lack a real team-competitive feel by playing just four pool games 55 minutes in length. We rotated pitchers on the clock and rotated players by script so that everyone had virtually equal time to show their stuff to watching coaches. Playing this way does does affect the players and coaches approach, without a doubt, as evidenced by the fact that the Arizona Hotshots coach was on his cell phone while coaching 3rd base. Players and coaches alike cannot help but notice the different feel; no one wants to lose EVER, but wins and losses are irrelevant in an event like this with true drop dead time limit, 300 ft fences, no bracket, everyone wanting to bat first, etc. I personally like the format of the Colorado Independence tournament the best; 6 pool games and a single elimination meat-grinder at the end. The coaches flocked to the pool games during the week, where they could see everyone play. The amount of coaches watching drastically dropped off for bracket play, but having the bracket kept the competitive feel for the participants and made it feel less like a showcase and more like a National preview.

[coolstuff]

I saw plenty of kids diving for balls, sprinting on and off the field and doing the little things to catch the eye of coaches and they didn't need a $5 piece of plastic to motivate them to do so.

Me too. Seemed everyone was playing hard and playing to "win". Our coaches are always aware if a college coach is watching a specific player, so I doubt they would have had that player sac bunt at that moment. It is about exposure but everyone played hard. Nice weekend once things got started. Everyone complained about the shortened games, but DD is lead-off batter so she got at least 2 at-bats in every game.

[coolstuff]

I want to add that I wish some parents had realized the unimportance of winning or losing.

[looking in]

Coolstuff,
Good point!! Some of the fans acted like it was a National Tournament! You want them to play well, but come on!! It's oct/nov!!! peep,peep!!

[Stratos]

I agree with what was said earlier, the 55 minute game was tough for the girls to get the quality at bats needed. But that is what we can expect from a city owned complex. If it was privately owned, games would have started on Saturday morning, with crews working through the night to get the fields ready. The complex is very nice, with new fields being added, which hopefully means they do away with Ellisville. With that being said, we went there to play and the girls got some new looks. At the end of the day, that is what it is about. I will lobby again for Indiana Softball and the quality of pitching and players that the state is turning out. We didnt face a pitcher of the caliber of Thomas, Brooke, Chambers, Lewis, or Flak.

Good luck to the girls and hopefully hear about some new signings soon.

[Blind Squirrel]

I have to admit that I'm really surprised by many of the posts in this thread. There seems to be a lot of concern about field locations, tournament formats, game lengths, whether or not a trophy is at stake, etc. And yet the one thing that every parent can exert control over, which would very, very likely have a direct impact on their kid's recruitment by college coaches, is routinely ignored. In fact, in some cases it seems to be considered and the related near worst case behavior by their kids is not only accepted but supported.

Because a coach at a showcase is more concerned about all of the kids on his/her team getting seen by college coaches than he is concerned about winning a game, then it is appropriate for the kids on that team to not try as hard as they can? Uh, the coach is doing what he can to get all of the kids seen. Aren't most (all?) of the parents paying for their kid to have the opportunity to show college coaches how well they can play the game? Kids aren't trying their hardest at these tournaments they attend for the express purpose of being evaluated by college coaches and it is okay? Do you folks go to job interviews and not try and give the impression that you can do the job better than others who are interviewing for the same position?

There has to be something I'm missing here. I would really appreciate it if someone would tell me what it is.

I must be Blind (not to mention Ignorant/Dumb) Squirrel

[gunshy]

Squirrel, I don't remember seeing anything on these posts where players were seen as not working hard, trying hard or generally not doing the things that THEY needed to do to be viewed favorably by college coaches. I did see issues brought up about length of games, location of games, times of games, etc. A 55 minute game gave half of my team 1 at-bat per game, which is simply not enough for the player or the coach evaluating that player. We warmed up for an hour and actually played about 45 minutes; that is what posts on this thread are less that pleased with. In addition to the short games, some played games that started at 11pm and 7am, game times that were not friendly for college coaches. Trust me, there were drastically fewer coaches at the field at 11:45pm and 7:15 am than the rest of the weekend.
There were some that were unhappy playing at the Ellisville location, some 20 minutes away from the main complex. Again, players were playing hard and doing their thing, but these fields were not in a bunch, rather strung out in a single file line that made it impossible to see more than 1 field (game) at a time from any given location. Some Coaches were there, but they didn't stay long and it wasn't user friendly for them. They maximized their viewing time at Chesterfield, where they could see 4 games time from one standing position.
As a coach, it is never OK with me for a kid to give less than total effort on any field. As a dad, it is a little concerning seeing the one thing a parent can control, as you mention, only be displayed for 3 innings, displayed at midnight or displayed in timbuktu. THAT is what I see in most of the post on this thread. Again, poor weather and poor field work timing caused 90% of the issues with this otherwise great showcase.

[Blind Squirrel]

Squirrel, I don't remember seeing anything on these posts where players were seen as not working hard, trying hard or generally not doing the things that THEY needed to do to be viewed favorably by college coaches. ....

After reading through this thread again I have to say you're largely right. My mistake. I was so taken aback by the Jag post that I think that compromised any reading comprehension skills that I still have. It still looks to me that the Jag post describes reduced effort at showcases when phrases like the following are used: "higher level of play", and "they don't focus as much....as if they're playing in some friendly somewhere".

I'm also not sure I understand the meaning of "Playing this way does does affect the players and coaches approach." I get how it affects the coaches approach. Duh. But why would it affect the players approach? Don't college coaches want to assess how well a kid will likely perform in the context of college games. What change in the players approach is appropriate/desirable/acceptable given what college coaches are typically interested in seeing?

Anyway, my apologies to all for my mistake.

Bonehead Squirrel

[hsballer]

Squirrel, grab your #^*@ and head back to your tree. Take your boy too!