Let The Baseball Coach - Coach

							Title:
Let The Baseball Coach - Coach

Word Count:
640

Summary:
At the on set of any Baseball seaso
n, parents have the high expectatio
n that their child is key to the te
ams_ success. This to a degree is t
rue. The success of the team depend
s on each and every player. Problem
s arise between the perspectives of
 the Parents, Players and the Coach.

We each have our own self image whi
ch is likely quite different to how
 the rest of the world sees us. Thi
s also applies to our vision of our
 children. Crushing the ball for Da
d in the back yard i...
Keywords:
Baseball Softball,coach,parenting,ti
ps

Article Body:
At the on set of any Baseball seaso
n, parents have the high expectatio
n that their child is key to the te
ams_ success. This to a degree is t
rue. The success of the team depend
s on each and every player. Problem
s arise between the perspectives of
 the Parents, Players and the Coach.

We each have our own self image whi
ch is likely quite different to how
 the rest of the world sees us. Thi
s also applies to our vision of our
 children. Crushing the ball for Da
d in the back yard is great, but it
 does not always transfer to the di
amond. By no means should any paren
t expect backyard confidence to com
pare with on field performance. It
is a bar that will likely get knock
ed off the stands each time.

Coach's of all experience levels ar
e the most qualified to position an
d play the players. Coach has a 'vi
sion' of how all the parts will wor
k in tandem. As a parent, we have t
o respect that in all levels of pla
y. This person stood up to take the
 responsibility of being Baseball C
oach when no one else did.
Its a responsibility that takes a s
ubstantial amount of abuse. I have
witnessed parents and grand-parents
 rip down a coach during a game in
an effort to take out the weaker pl
ayers and restructure the vision. H
is solution was quite enlightening.
 Every 5 to 10 minutes, he rotated
all the players to different positi
ons, pitchers, catchers as well as
on and off the bench. They lost hor
ribly, but from that moment on he w
as allowed to Coach the rest of the
 season without bleacher badger. It
 worked because as the 'key' player
s were rotated into the 'right' pos
ition, they all made errors from si
mple catching mistakes to 'why did
you through to first when the runne
r was stealing third'. He essential
ly had the loss (over 30 to 0) a co
mplete community effort. As everyon
e was responsible for the loss, tho
se who were coaching from the bleac
hers got a taste they could not spit out

Will this tactic work for everyone?
  I truly have no idea, but it_s a s
olution that I will not soon forget
.
Parent participation is wonderful.
Get involved, get in the game. Here
 are some things to keep in mind as
 a parent

1- Don't arrive at the field when p
ractice is supposed to start. If th
e scheduled time is 5:30, be there
by 5:15. It cuts down the stress of
 rush driving and the hour or so of
 scheduled practice time is not los
t on greetings and jibber jabber.

2- Be helpful, Time lost setting up
 the field or exercise is just that
 lost. If it_s not written, ask the
 Coach what the plan is for the day
 and what you can do to help things
 along. Players want to do just tha
t, play. Idle time lost while setti
ng up the next skill drill looses t
he focus gained from the previous o
ne.

3- Never correct, yell, discipline
or otherwise diminish the authority
 of the Coach in front of the Playe
rs or Other Parents. If you have co
ncerns or comments, set aside time
in your day to speak with the coach
 in private. It may be your perspec
tive that needs the correction.

4- Respect everyone. Coach_s', pare
nts, umpires, players, opposing tea
ms, it does not matter who or what
they are in relation to your team.
Everyone deserves respect that does
 not have to be earned. Respecting
others will result in others respec
ting you.

Ponder what it is to play baseball.
  What do you want your children to
take away with them when their play
ing days are relegated to church le
ague. For myself I hope for, respec
t for themselves, confidence in the
ir abilities, recognition of their
limits, work ethic of practicing an
d the concept of working together w
ith a team and the lifelong friends
hips it can bring.