Mental preparation for each play -- need help teaching this

[DunninLA]

Hey,

This is my second season assisting in coaching our league's 12U allstar team. We've made great progress in developping the fundamental skills of these players, including situational drills.

However, there is a huge breakdown between the quality of play in practice reps and game performance. We have not dealt overtly so far in the mental preparation between pitches, or at the plate. Nothing about

- what to do/think about right after the out is made
- what to do/think about while the pitcher has the ball in the circle, but is not yet on the plate
- what to think about while the pitch is on the way to the plate

With my own daughter, I have over the last couple of years taught her to think about the # of outs, where she will go if she fields the ball, relax for a few seconds, then try to bring her focus into hyper attentiveness while the pitcher is in the windup and releasing the ball. Part of this for her in the infield is to creep in during windup-release.

I'm not really sure how to better teach this to my own DD, how to communicate to the other coaches how critical I observe this to be, or how I would, if asked, give a talk or introduce drillls designed to make a hyper-aware state a regular thing for the girls in the 2-3 seconds prior to the ball approaching the plate.

Are there books? I only know what I have experienced from playing competitive tennis and 2-man beach volleyball. There is a mental focus I reach in the second before the serve is hit, so that I can instantly react left/right/forward, etc. in less than half a second. It became an unconscious habit over time. Even now, at practice, if I'm standing around and I see a ball come my way out of the corner of my eye, I instantly drop and push toward the ball, sort of like those dogs who will chase anything they see moving!

Any material you can direct me to will be appreciated.

[Demonboy]

12U All-Stars? Considering the way you talk down to College coaches and parents of All Americans on UCS, I would have expected a little more credentials.

[DunninLA]

Thanks for your support, beelzebub! Unlike some, I use the identical moniker here, at eteamz, at UCS, at baseball-fever, on Englishbey, and anywhere else on the internet. I take it you were not much on eteamz or you would have known my other daughter and my coaching journey. my participation at UCS is mostly because of a friendship with a certain father of an All-American

As regards your post, I'm not sure what you mean by "talking down". I am not even 6' tall. I'm a stats guy. I mostly write or comment about what the stats say about players. I've met quite a few of the parents of All Americans in person and we have great conversations. From time to time they even ask me to run some numbers for them . By talking down, if you mean that I communicate with proper spelling and grammar, organize my thoughts into coherent sentences and paragraphs in support of a central idea, and use facts, data and logic in communicating, well, I confess! I'm guilty! I'll admit many of the intellectually challenged members of the FP community have difficulty following me at times, or recognizing ten cent words.

I admire your posts as well.

Now, as long as you appear to have read my post, can you point me to the best material on mental preparation during a game?

How do you implement this with your team? Do you coach?

[artomatic]

I feel that the more situational stuff you do in practice, with live runners, the more you can recreate the game like conditions in real time. the girls get used to making plays with runners, and in the speed that it happens in a game.
and that also works your girls in baserunning.
to me the teams that work on situations in practice with runners seem to get the lead runner more, because they have a better idea when to try and when to just get the out. and the teams that get that lost frozen look when certain situaitons come up in a game probably dont work on those parts of their game in practice...
JMHO...

[Skarp]

I've met quite a few of the parents of All Americans in person and we have great conversations.

Inevitably a perspective-contingent conclusion, I'm afraid.

[DunninLA]

funny, and true, skarp.

Now, if the chop busting is over, (jeez, was this site creating for 8 year olds?) do you have any resources to point me to?

[Skarp]

funny, and true, skarp.

Now, if the chop busting is over, (jeez, was this site creating for 8 year olds?) do you have any resources to point me to?

Sure.

Ommmmmmmm.jpg (119.27 KiB) Viewed 5769 times

[weekend4trvl]

. and the teams that get that lost frozen look when certain situaitons come up in a game probably dont work on those parts of their game in practice...
JMHO...[/quote]
Hey...have you been spying on my teams practices ?

[Skarp]

Hey...have you been spying on my teams practices ?

lol...don't feel bad....he's basically implying that my dd's team never practices at all.

[Demonboy]

By talking down, if you mean that I communicate with proper spelling and grammar, organize my thoughts into coherent sentences and paragraphs in support of a central idea, and use facts, data and logic in communicating, well, I confess! I'm guilty! I'll admit many of the intellectually challenged members of the FP community have difficulty following me at times, or recognizing ten cent words.

Weak.