Softball humor
Here’s a little softball humor for you all.
Q. How do you get a girls fastpitch softball team to play .500 ball?
A. Find a team capable of playing .800 ball and make them feel bad about themselves.
Funny, because it’s true.
Why I like working with high school age and up players
This is the third part in my series about working with various ages of fastpitch softball players. Today we’re looking at high school age and up — generally speaking 16U-18U and college players.
As a private instructor, working with older players is a lot of fun — assuming they are there voluntarily and not being forced to come to me by their parents. 
Usually these players have experienced some form of failure, so they’re highly motivated to listen, learn and get better. They work hard on their own, and tend to make quick progress. They often have a broad enough experience base to understand certain concepts quickly, and want to know the “why” behind what we’re doing instead of just executing it because I say so.
At a team level it can be a little more challenging. If you have the right players they will also learn quickly. But you may find you have some who aren’t interested in learning anything new. They want to do what they’ve always done — especially if they’ve had some level of success. For them, the best thing you can do is expose them to players with better skills so they can see they’re not quite as all that as they thought.
What does make it fun with the right team is you can get into more complex concepts and plays. The game is faster, so execution becomes more important.
There’s nothing like the satisfaction of seeing your players recognize a situation and make an adjustment without you having to tell them what to do. It could be a defensive change — moving into slap defense against an obvious slapper — or something as simple as recognizing a changeup when it’s thrown and stealing a base.
Of course, at that age they can definitely have attitudes — some more than others. But if you take the time to get to know them as people you can often overcome that. In fact, you can build relationships that will last long after the last pitch is thrown. Just tonight I had a Facebook exchange with a girl who last played for me about 10 years ago.
Most importantly, with players this age you can really make a difference in their lives. Giving them confidence, helping them to overcome adversity or fear and teaching them to give everything they have to whatever they do. You can also help them build softball memories that will last them a lifetime.
With younger players coaches tend to need to exert a lot of control. With the older group, if you’ve trained them properly, you get to sit back more and watch all the hard work pay off. Which is a lot like parenting when you think about it.
Congratulations to Mary Chamberlain, pitcher of the week
Gotta love Facebook for keeping up with people. This week I saw that one of my long-time students, freshman Mary Chamberlain, was named Pitcher of the Week at Blackburn College. The honor came during their Spring trip to Myrtle Beach, SC.
Mary is a great player and a great person. Nice to see her getting this kind of accolade so early in her career. I’m sure it’s the first of many!
Incredible blog post on the value of losing
Saw a reference to this blog post show up in my Twitter feed today, courtesy of @jbmthinks, and just had to pass it along even though it’s not directly about fastpitch softball. It tells the tale of Olympic skiier Edie Thys Morgan and how she ultimately learned more from losing than winning — and how losing made her a champion.
Yes, no doubt as a parent it’s hard to watch your child lose, especially if it seems to be turning into a habit. I’ve certainly been there. We all want our own kids and our players to win and experience success. Yet if they’re constantly the big fish in the small pond, sooner or later there will be a day of reckoning when they run up against other big fish who are better-prepared.
We’ve certainly all seen those tales of woe. A kid who was always the big gun (and therefore didn’t have to work at it) gets passed by one who may not be as athletically gifted but has a better work ethic. It can be a real shocker for that player who is used to winning.
The same goes for teams that play in tournaments or leagues that don’t challenge them so they can brag about how many trophies they won. We’ve all known them as well. If you’re going to get better you have to challenge yourself, even if it means going home early on Sunday now and then. Because again, sooner or later you’ll have to face that level of competition and it could be a real shocker if you haven’t truly paid your dues.
In any case, check out the article. I think you’ll find it really strikes a chord.
Why I like working with 12U-14U fastpitch players
Sorry, this took a little longer than planned, but here is the second in my series of articles on what I like about working with different age levels of fastpitch softball players. The first installment covered the very young players, essentially up to 10U. Today we’re talking about the next level, which I’ve pegged as 12U-14U — which is basically the pre-high school group.
To me that’s the most critical age for instruction, the one where doing a good job means you can really make a huge long-term difference. While you’re also setting a good foundation when working with the younger group, they can still get away with weaker technique. At this age, however, the difference between well-trained and poorly trained (or untrained) players really begins to show up.
As a rule, girls in this age group are starting to get more command of their bodies. Yes, they are often changing, but they still tend to feel more comfortable with themselves which means they can cut loose a little more. Their coordination is also improving at this point, and they are getting stronger. All of those things contribute to achieving good results.
Often they are aware that other players are improving as well, so they are motivated to try new things in order to become better players. They usually have some rivalries or things to prove, which also helps keep them working hard.
At this age most have gotten past their initial shyness so as a coach you can talk with them a little more. They’re becoming interested in more adult things (TV shows, movies, books, music, etc.) so you can base your relationship with them on more than just softball.
If you treat them right, girls at this age level are more willing to run through a wall for you. (Of course if you don’t they’ll shut you out completely.) They don’t have the distractions of boyfriends, jobs, college plans and all the other things of high schoolers so you can get more of their attention on the field or in a lesson.
There are some downsides though, too. If they experienced success in the past, even if it was just being a big fish in a small pond, they may be reluctant to listen or change what they’re doing to improve. Their limited experience has shown them that they are the best player in the league, so they assume that translates across the board.
It doesn’t, as they will eventually find out. I’ve seen plenty of kids who loved being studs in their rec league only to find out they went to the bottom of the pile in high school when they had to compete against experienced travel ball players.
As anyone who has had or been a 12 to 14 year old girl knows, they can also get some real attitudes on them. If they don’t want to be somewhere or doing something it’s not too tough to tell. That can get frustrating as you can see the potential but know it will never be unlocked until they lose the attitude and start listening. For those with helicopter parents you often have to break down that inward focus so they can learn to be a real part of a team.
Still, I’ve found those are the minority. Most are sponges, eagerly learning, and they really appreciate you not just telling them what to do but showing or explaining why it needs to be done.
Again, for a softball player this is a critical time. You can give players at this age a huge advantage going forward, teaching them skills and strategies that their peers will have to learn much later. Instead of catching up, they’ll be the ones showing well. And that’s a beautiful thing to see.
Ok, now it’s your turn. Why do you like coaching this age group? What challenges have you found? Having done it would you do it again?
Why I like working with young players
I was thinking about this the other day. I have a mix of students ranging from the 9/10 year old range all the way up through HS seniors. So I thought it might be fun to look at what’s good (and not so good) about working with those different age groups. Starting with the youngest players today.
What I like about working with them is they tend to be open books. What I mean by that is they usually haven’t acquired the bad habits (or ingrained bad teaching) that some of the older players face.
Very young players are usually eager to learn. Most of the time they don’t resist new things but instead try their best to do whatever you ask of them. They don’t need a lot of background information on why you’re trying to get them to do something, although I have had a few who have that natural curiosity (which I like, by the way).
They also tend to be a lot of fun to work with. Some are shy, so if you can get a smile out of them you’re doing well. Others are chatty. They’ll tell you whatever is on their minds, from news of their new puppy to something that happened at school. When I’ve had a bad day at my day job, just being around them can pick me up. They really are the Fountain of Youth.
The downside is sometimes it’s tough for them to pick up on how to do what you want them to do. They haven’t mastered their bodies yet, and their bodies may have already started going through some changes. Also, the attention span can wander quickly. You’ll be rolling through a half hour lesson when suddenly you realize you’ve accomplished all you’re going to accomplish for that day, and you still have 10 minutes to go in the lesson.
As a result of all that the learning curve tends to be a bit slower. It can take a lot of repetition for them to get a skill down because they just aren’t capable of the deep practice older kids can achieve. And every now and then you get one with an attitude, but those are pretty rare. And I doubt it has much to do with their age.
Some don’t like working with young players because of all the heavy lifting you have to do. It isn’t easy, and it does require patience. But if you can get past that it really is fun, especially when they do get the hang of it. You really feel like you’ve accomplished something.
So those are my thoughts. What do all of you think? I know there are a lot of coaches who read this blog. Let’s get some dialog going on the upsides (and downsides) of working with young players. I’d love to learn from you too.
It’s fun to be impressed now and then
The other night I was doing a fastpitch softball pitching lesson with a girl named Kristi Gandy, a longtime student of mine and one of the pitching studettes in the area. Kristi is a high school senior who will be pitching at Lake Forest College next year, and will likely be spending lots of extra time playing in post-season tournaments with them.
For most of her lessons this year Kristi’s brother Jim has been enlisted to catch. (They have a reciprocity agreement, as she catches for his baseball pitching lessons too). But the other night, she had a new catcher, a girl named Amanda whom I’d met once before when she came out to observe one of our team practices.
Now, I have to admit that given what I do in my off-hours I tend to be pretty hyper-intensive about technique. I like things to be done a certain way, and while I don’t spend a lot of time with the catchers who come in to work with my pitching students I do notice what they do.
So it was a real pleasure to watch Amanda catch. Her stances were excellent, as was her glove work, her blocking, and just about anything else you’d care to observe. I was pleasantly impressed with her.
Afterwards I decided to let her know. I complimented her and asked her who her instructor was. She said it was Laura Matthews, one of the coaches at Lake Forest College, which is how she was hooked up with Kristi. Her hitting coach is Joe Kinsella, the head coach there, and one of his assistants works with her on catching.
I see a lot of bad technique taught by people who you think ought to know what they’re doing, so it’s nice to see excellent technique being taught now and then. What was most impressive was learning afterwards that Amanda is in 8th grade. Here she is, not even in high school, and doing a great job catching for one of the top pitchers in the area, and a senior to boot.
Can’t wait to see where she is as a player in four years!
Fastpitch softball hitting game — High Fives
One of the challenges of teaching fastpitch hitting, either in lessons or in a team setting, is getting some game-like pressure into practice. After all, just about anyone can look good in the cage when they’re relaxed. But when there’s something on the line it can be a whole different ballgame (so to speak).
Tonight I had that situation with a couple of hitters. I wanted to give them a little bit of skin in the game to see how they handled the pressure, and have a little fun while we were at it. So I came up with High Fives.
The rules are pretty basic. You can use a pitching machine, front toss or some other method of delivering the ball. You make the pitch, and if the hitter hits a line drive or strong fly ball she gets a point. If she swings and misses, fouls it off or hits a pop-up or weak grounder she loses a point. A strong ground ball is neutral — it doesn’t gain or lose her a point.
Score is kept in the same manner you use for basic card counting in Blackjack. (Originally I was going to make the game 21, but realized it could take forever to finish.) So if she hits a line drive with the first pitch, it’s +1. A fly ball on the next pitch is +2. A pop-up on the next pitch takes it back to +1 and so forth. You can also go into negative numbers, i,e, -1, -2.
Five is the magic number, which gives the game its name. If the hitter gets to -5 the game is over and she owes you five pushups. On the other hand, if she gets to +5, the game is over and you owe her five pushups. The hitters usually get pretty excited when they win and you have to drop and give them five.
Now, you don’t have to use the same exact scoring system I use. You can adjust it to the types of hits you’re trying to achieve.
If you’re looking for a way to spice up hitting practice give this game a try. Just be sure you’re ready to pay up!
Are you training Seal Team Six?
Let me start by saying there are a lot of wonderful fastpitch softball coaches out there in the world. They really do put their players first, and while they may be demanding they aren’t over the top.
Then there are the coaches who act like they’re training Navy Seal Team Six. They favor long practices, brutal conditioning (think about the scene in Norway in Miracle) and yelling/screaming constantly at their players to perform. Woe unto the youngster who makes a mistake and dares not to be perfect.
Why? What possible good could that do? The fact is you’re not planning to storm any beaches or hunt down any fugitives in the remote mountains of Central Asia. You’re going to play softball.
It’s important to have standards and to want your players to become all they can be. But making them miserable shouldn’t be part of the deal.
Keep things in perspective. It’s a game and games are supposed to be fun. Work hard, but keep it in perspective. Your teams will perform better and everyone will be a whole lot happier.
Sometimes they just miss the point
I was at a lesson tonight (as usual) and got to talking to the parents of one of my students. They have been excited to see the progress their daughter has made, especially since we started back up in late September, and then they told me an amusing story.
There are four pitchers on their daughter’s 12U team (including her). My student actually could be playing 10U but moved up.
Anyway, at a recent practice the pitchers were all warming up, and one of the coaches pointed out that my student was the only one not doing wrist snap drills. Her mom and dad said, “Yes, that’s right” and smiled. (For me, wrist snaps as warm ups are a total waste of time, as I’ve written in previous blog posts.)
Her parents told me the other pitchers go through this elaborate warm-up sequence before pitching. Their daughter is often pitching for 25 minutes (or at least seems like it) before the others get started.
So then I asked the big question: how is she doing compared to the others? Because if she’s not doing what they’re doing, you’d hope she’s doing better.
She is. And that’s the funny thing to me. Despite being younger and smaller than the others, apparently she throws harder and more accurately. If that’s the case, and she’s doing something different from the others, maybe it’s time to question what the others are doing instead?
Just sayin’.
Life in the Fastpitch Lane 