Catch1721 posted:I hope my kids do well in baseball but I have figured out that I cannot:
- Make them run faster
- Make them throw harder
- Make them hit the ball harder
- Make them love the game
- Make them grow taller and stronger
- Influence recruiters or scouts
I actually think you can make them run faster, throw harder, hit harder. I work with my son weekly to improve exactly those facets of his game. I agree you parents certainly can ruin the game for their kids by putting expectations on them. Best thing I ever read about supporting my player came from the book "The Mental Keys of Hitting: a Handbook of Strategies for Performance Enhancement" in which the author stated putting a performance requirement, like "You need to hit .350 or better this year" is a recipe for disaster because they player will subconsciously (or consciously) walk up to the plate putting pressure on themselves, therefore losing focus on what they really need to be doing (seeing the ball and making good contact).
I went to Tony Gwynn's memorial service at Petco shortly after he passed away and his manager spoke about Tony and his approach to hitting. He shared a story in which he saw Tony after a game in which he went 4-4 and Tony was not happy with his hitting performance, yet after going 0-3 one day Tony was stoked because even though he didn't get a base knock he stroked the ball well. Hit the ball well and the rest will fall into place, that is what I tell my son. We can work on hitting the ball well.