CTbballDad posted:PABaseball posted:The word abusive needs to stop being thrown around. Too many coaches lose their jobs because players don't like the way they make them feel. Just because a coach is mean, or cold, or intimidating does not mean he abuses his players. For every coach labeled "abusive" by a player there is probably a line of teammates, former players, and coaches ready stand behind him and defend him. Being rude, not watching bullpens, and speaking to a player in a unpleasant tone is nowhere near abusive.
1/2 the players and parents on my son's HS team strongly dislike the coach, he does this, doesn't do that, so on. Those are the kids who don't get a lot of PT.
The other 1/2, who play, speak highly of him.
I can say he reached out to my son many times this summer, asking how recruiting was going and what he could do to help. I'm sure the coaches who came to watch our HS games were also there because of him. One offer my son received was a direct result of his feedback.
People are going to play the victim card when they don't get what they want. Unfortunately, this is the direction our culture has been moving towards for several years.
Your son's HS coach may be great and criticisms of him may be sour grapes--I have no idea. But plenty of bad managers play favorites--the fact a manager treats some employees well doesn't prove that he isn't abusive to others. (Again, I know nothing at all about the particular coach you're referring to.) And if a coach is abusive but also supportive in other respects, that doesn't make the abuse ok.
I'm serious: Does anyone know of any research that indicates screaming, etc. is effective as a management strategy? Do you work at a company that would tolerate a manager who routinely yelled or threw things?
Maybe sports is different. But if so, why? I don't expect to be treated at my job the way some routinely expect coaches to treat athletes. But my job pays me to be there--if anything, don't they have a greater right to expect me to tolerate whatever they throw at me? Or is the difference that I am an adult and can easily choose to work elsewhere?