16's & 18's...does anyone care in NorCal?

[rbi]

A lot of teams have a similar rotation. Yes people are playing to win, but winning isn't the goal. Exposure is the goal. The two objectives are not complimentary for most teams and it affects play.

This is the problem with the mindset of , coachs/kids/parents!.You are ruining the kids competitive nature and by the time (if and when) she gets to college she will have no idea of what it means to COMPETE, have that grit, have that fire to not let anyone beat you. It has NOTHING to do with "showcasing", that is a given, its "im gonna beat you!" I know almost EVERY pitcher my kid faces in TB, they have that "fire", look in their eye, as in you are not going to beat me, and its "mono e mono", me against you, that competitive nature you MUST have. Once you lose sight of this it makes it real difficult to make the transition from TB to college. Very important stuff to have that desire to compete and not JUST showcase....

let me just say this, if you are more concerned about "showcasing" than "competing", you will have far less positive results, than if you were concerned with just competing!

[ICMTM]

We agree

[ICMTM]

Not at all a fan of bumping old threads but discussing 16u teams used to happen

viewtopic.php?f=616&t=18402

[mr.flamboyant]

At the older ages I think we just relax and encourage rather than being all a&&ed up over every at bat and error our little babies make.

Oh No, they still do (at least some of them). Now their just not as loud, instead they vent to their friends on the team or their friends on the field behind them!

[ICMTM]

My point of this thread was I was curious to know why people don't talk about older age groups. The truth is by the time you're in 16's (or 18's even) you're one degree of separation from knowing someone. Although you have a screen name you're not really anonymous. That's why people don't talk about the older age groups...fear. The biggest contributors seem to be those either of younger ages, parents that have been through the process, or coaches/tournament directors.

Since I have a kid in 16U, and that isn't discussed. I'll be less active I suppose?

[Iluvblue]

At this time of the year, you have nothing to talk about because they arent playing. Then, when they start playing 65% of their tourneys are "Exposure" so those dont count... remember. We dont really try to win, our pitcher was in rt field... blah blah blah. Who wants to talk about exposure games. They arent fun to play in, why would they be fun to talk about.

That leaves you 3 weekends out of the Summer to have real games. Not much time.

Fall starts, and we are back to what??? EXPOSURE tourneys and more non games, drop dead time limits, and a flat 5 game schedule where you play 3 teams that look like the Jr High team. Not much to talk about.

[rbi]

Today, 16's and Gold are like the minor leagues, your fighting for your future, and not for a trophy. It can be very difficult for some to find that drive within themselves, to compete knowing their is no winner, to play hard knowing five minutes after the game everyone forgot the score, to take every at bat and every pitch serious knowing if you strike out with winning run on base 30 minutes later your in middle of next game and all is forgotten.

Here is the thing people have to realize, when your playing 16's and Gold, it can and will be the most IMPORTANT time of your softball career, as it determines if you will play at next level, where you will be living for next 4/5 years, and what type of money you will get. If you are a burned out and dont have that drive by the time you hit 16's and Gold, your future in Softball can and will be in jeopardy, as it is all about what is burning inside you.



Its not about wins and losses anymore just like in minor leagues, your competing with yourself for a meal ticket, it is what it is!

Sidenote, if your not getting it done in the classroom, all this goes out the window!

Now for a coach who can get all/most of his girls to compete, the wins are a by product, and when it comes crunch times it will show.

SOCal's A's, i will be the first to say are very talented year in year out, are they most talented team in Gold, NO, but I will assure you they compete like no other,and that is why they are back to back national champs, and that is a testament to the coachs and the players for competing with themselves, as think about it, if they lose those kids are still going to get a great education and play at a great school but, they STILL compete.


Now as parents/players, there is not much discussion on boards about Gold, as you cant brag about some silly ranking, you cant brag on facebook about winning some tournament, and most are just trying to navigate through this process without really understanding

[ICMTM]

The majority of the softball people I talk to are 16 and 18u parents and they are all always on the bucket. They just read more than they post

@RBI & @ ILB this is what I mean. They're here. They read. They don't talk. There are 10,001 aspects of the game that can be discussed and it appears people would rather just read. These kids are playing this week (with their high schools) so play is happening.

[skoufax]

Everybody playing at the 18 Gold level cares and cares a bunch.... about the players playing the game. That caring however doesn't translate to fanatical, obsessive Heybucket posts about the ranking of the teams or the idiot coach that can't elevate the ranking of his/her team at the 12 or 14U age.

By the time my kid was playing 16 and then 18, it became all about her and everything mentioned above - grades, letters to coaches, behavior etc... I can tell you that without a doubt every game we play at a showcase is played to win and the intensity is just as great as it ever was. The difference though as a parent is that we are watching and appreciating our kids for who they are and what they are working for. I have never seen a team mail it in or not play to win at this level. Even when girls are being trotted in and out so that they can be seen, the game is always played to win and I am really grateful that we haven't been involved with the situations described earlier in this thread. And to say that a high level only exists in SoCal is ridiculous - dozens of highly competetive and well run NorCal teams play and play hard and are extremely fun to watch.

I think that to look at the lack of posts on Heybucket and think that nobody cares about the older ages is laughable. The truth is that by the time the girls have reached that age, as a parent you have realized that to talk about your kids and coaches and rankings and all of that is only for your benefit and has nothing to do with your kid. It is REALLY nice to enjoy the game and my daughter for her and only her at this level.

In addition, at this age the college coaches are watching the parents just as closely as the kids and if you are a constant HB poster, complainer, evaluator and critic of girls softball, chances are you are doing the same thing at the games and the scouts can spot that kind of parent in an instant. So, most of us have learned to keep a low profile and appreciate the last couple of years watching our daughters play the game they love.

Okay, my once a year bucket post is over....

[ICMTM]

Noted, and I see that to post on Heybucket there has to be a fanatical bias, ranking, or otherwise some skewed reason to talk softball other than the game itself.

I guess just talking about what your kids are up to with like people/parents is just not the business. I get it.