A Crushing Blow

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If any players out there are feeling dejected about a roster decision, a bad performance, or a lack of confidence, just know that nobody ever said you couldn't be the greatest to play. You must ask yourself each and every day "Why not me? Why these guys? What can I do today to make myself better than them?"

Maybe a better way of looking at it is "What can I do to make my team better?"

Your post may have hit me the wrong way this morning. It seems it is all about you and your needs but I may have misunderstood. Maybe your coaches picked up on that vibe and decided it would be better for the team to leave you off of it It is something to consider nonetheless.

Rather than worrying about yourself, learn to be the leader - the one who spends most of his efforts looking after everyone else. The leader always eats last. He always worries about the welfare of the team before he worries about himself.

Be the guy who is the first to show up and the last to leave. The guy with the most positive attitude on the team. The guy willing to do all the team dirty-work with a smile on his face like carrying the water coolers, performing field maintenance, picking up equipment, and shagging balls for your teammates. Making their lives easier.

More importantly, being the first guy to pick someone up who may need the support after failing to execute properly. Be the guy who cares the most. Be the most likable guy but be genuine about it. Don't do it for recogniton but do it because that is who you are.

Do all these things and more and it won't matter what your batting average is. Every coach and player will insist that you are on the team. You will have become a vital ingredient to them. That is what leaders do and you have it in you to do that.

xbaseballkid, I understand what you're going through. Maybe it's the difference between a mom and a dad.

It's a big deal to get called up at the end of the season, and I'm sorry you didn't get the call.

CD is right, too, but I know that doesn't make it hurt any less. Looks to me like you've come to grips with it and know what to do next. Hang in there.

Hang in there. Appreciate your honesty. My son did not get called up at the end of the season at his sophomore year and ended up doing really well the rest of his HS years. Keep at it.

CD- Huh, I hadnt really given that perspective much thought in the last few days. Thanks

2B Mom- Thank you for the words of support.

You seem to have responded to it well. Just remember, being a life long fan of the Chicago Cubs will make you particularly adept at dealing with bitter disappointment.

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Suddenly they moved me from 4th to 7th in the lineup and something went wrong in my head.

My confidence was gone, and I went on to about 2 or 3 0-3 games.

Work on what you can change, let the rest go. Get yourself right, and don't worry about decisions beyond your control. Focus on getting better.

I know you termed this a "crushing blow" in your title but you are at that age where many things are devastating or crushing that you will look back on later as an adult and realize were not quite as bad as you thought or were actually a learning experience. If you learn not to lose confidence every time you have a minor slump or the coach changes your spot in the lineup and you show new hunger or passion for earning your spot in the lineup, it will have been worth it not to have been chosen as opposed to getting to sit and watch the playoffs from the varsity bench. USE this to ignite a new fire in your approach. APPRECIATE being 15 or 16 and being able to smell the grass and play a game you love. Believe me, it all ends too soon. This hurt some but it was a minor setback. Try some of the things ClevelandDad suggested but most of all come in with a new fire and dependability next year and the coaches will notice. Good Luck!

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I came home and lost it. Upon talking to my parents I realized, I have to suck it up. Who cares if I didn't make it, and I need to prove them wrong.

I applaud your outlook and your parents for helping you arrive at your outlook.

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Originally posted by ClevelandDad:

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If any players out there are feeling dejected about a roster decision, a bad performance, or a lack of confidence, just know that nobody ever said you couldn't be the greatest to play. You must ask yourself each and every day "Why not me? Why these guys? What can I do today to make myself better than them?"

Maybe a better way of looking at it is "What can I do to make my team better?"

Your post may have hit me the wrong way this morning. It seems it is all about you and your needs but I may have misunderstood. Maybe your coaches picked up on that vibe and decided it would be better for the team to leave you off of it It is something to consider nonetheless.

Rather than worrying about yourself, learn to be the leader - the one who spends most of his efforts looking after everyone else. The leader always eats last. He always worries about the welfare of the team before he worries about himself.

Be the guy who is the first to show up and the last to leave. The guy with the most positive attitude on the team. The guy willing to do all the team dirty-work with a smile on his face like carrying the water coolers, performing field maintenance, picking up equipment, and shagging balls for your teammates. Making their lives easier.

More importantly, being the first guy to pick someone up who may need the support after failing to execute properly. Be the guy who cares the most. Be the most likable guy but be genuine about it. Don't do it for recogniton but do it because that is who you are.

Do all these things and more and it won't matter what your batting average is. Every coach and player will insist that you are on the team. You will have become a vital ingredient to them. That is what leaders do and you have it in you to do that.

CD that all sounds good and would agree that it could not hurt to be that guy but just about every team I have seen have the roster spots taken by those that are impact hitters or pitchers. This young man stated that when he was moved down in the lineup it sent him into a tailspin. Maybe the coach figured he was not mentally ready.

Xbaseball;

what is your RBI ratio when you hit 4th?
One RBI in each 6 AB is good.

Actually the #6 position in the line up will have the most runners on base.

Question: what is your role as a hitter?

Bob

Two or three ofer games usually don't change the mind of coaches who know who their strong hitters are. Sure there could be some politics mixed in there but I'd bet there's more to it than deciding over a couple of hitless games. You gotta look at the body of work and if a couple of players did get hot, was it against strong pitching or was it from a weaker pitcher or maybe a lesser-sed or non pitcher filling in innings. Too many variables.

I remember my son going something like 0-12 (4-5 game stretch)late season in his senior year and his batting average toppled from among the conference leaders to very pedestrian. While ofer a few games is not that much, I do get it that in a short HS baseball season, it feels like a long slump. However, he wasn't moved from the 3-hole probably because his mental approach at the plate changed little if at all and was still hitting the ball well. He was probably pressing a litte but continued to do what he normally did when the hits were falling. Come first game in the conference tournament, his first AB he dribbles a ground ball to the pitcher he beat out for a base hit. He wound up with four hits on the day, 3 rbi including a two-run triple, 3SB and 4 runs scored. He wound up batting .500 in the playoffs tournament.

If you're only a freshman or sophompore, then you really got nothing to complain about. Try going thru your junior year wondering why you weren't on varsity from opening day when you knew you belonged there or if the varsity HC is going to give you a shot. My son had to get thru a lot of OF depth to win a starting job on the varsity and he only really had one preseason to do it in and a couple of games on the varsity his junior year. He just kept plugging along, doing good things on the baseball field to the point where the varsity HC could no longer ignore his production as a ballplayer. Consistently hitting the ball well against the top pitchers in the conference didn't hurt either. They don't necessarily have to be base hits. More important was how hard the ball was hit and his approach to facing tough pitchers.

All you can do is hang in there and continue to improve as a ballplayer and try and make the most out of it when you do get your shot.

A player can go 0-4 and have good at bats. He can go ofer over a 3 game stretch and the coach will not even notice if the player does not bring negative attention to himself by the way he handles the stretch. Sometimes the way the player handles failure will bring negative attention to him. And sometimes the way a player handles failure will bring confidence from the coaching staff to him as well.

When a player shows frustration at failure he brings attention to himself. The people that matter will notice how the player is dealing with it. If he continues to show confidence in himself even when he is not having success the coach will continue to have confidence in the player. When a player starts to show frustration and a lack of confidence in himself the coaches will lose confidence in the player.

You can not expect others to have confidence in you when you don't have confidence in yourself. You have to mature in the game. No one should be able to tell if your 3-3 or 0-3 by the way you approach your next at bat. And by the result of your next at bat. Thats growing up in the game. Understanding that confidence in yourself and how you handle failure is being watched and will impact others opinion on your ability to handle situations.

This is not a crushing blow in reality but a learning experience for you. Learn from it and grow from it. Continue to work hard and be the best player you can be.

Loved your post, Coach May! Printed it out for my son to read and put with his clippings.

Mr. Williams- I'm not really sure of my RBI ratio to be honest. I would say that my biggest role was probably that I was our best hitter for Avg. and I could usually find a way on base.

Please read the Joe DiMaggio book "56".

What motivated Joe to stay focused each day.

Can you imagine Joe had only 5 strikeouts in the 56 games. Players who desire to have a high "on base" average will normally bat #1, #2 #8 or #9.

Bob

What would drive a coach to place somebody lower in the order if they are a great OBP hitter?

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What would drive a coach to place somebody lower in the order if they are a great OBP hitter?

Seriously, the only way to get the answer is to go right to the horse's mouth and ask the coach himself. He's the only one who could explain why.

Coach May beat me to it.

Slumps happen, even to the best hitters. By letting yourself get wrapped up in the slump, and the consequences you made things worse for yourself. It is natural to be frustrated, especially when you are having a good year and think you might be called up to a higher level but remember this: You earned a spot on JV and if you get no higher than that this year be happy that you got to play. Sometimes it is a hard pill to swallow, we all want to be 'The Man' but it doesn't always happen.

Like Coach May said (more eloquently) how you react to a slump or any crisis will show more about you as a ballplayer and as a person in general than anything else. Anyone can be a team player when they play well. When you are raking it looks great knocking in all those RBIs but are you doing the right things when the contact isn't there?

Go up and get quality at bats. Make that opposing pitcher burn up pitches just to get you out. Coaches notice that. They notice when a struggling guy moves a runner over, even when he just isn't hitting that well. He knows when a player is up agianst the edge of the dugout yelling and cheering on his teammates. He also knows when a player is sulking and hiding in the back, acting like his slump is his own and not part of the team.

Maybe what kept you off of the Varsity this year wasn't your slump, although you think that may have done it. Yes, maybe you would have made the varsity squad if you kept raking the ball but your reaction and your actions when you are not are seen just as much as any four game hitting streak.

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Originally posted by xbaseballkidx11:
What would drive a coach to place somebody lower in the order if they are a great OBP hitter?

When my son made varsity his soph year he batted ninth. His attitude was he's in the lineup and can take care of the rest by hitting. He's hit third junior and senior year.

It doesn't matter where you hit in the lineup. You're IN the lineup. You can prove a lot more batting 7th than on the bench.

Maybe he wants some guys on base so they can be driven in? Maybe you need to quit worrying about how to coach the team and simply play the game?

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Originally posted by Coach_May:
Maybe he wants some guys on base so they can be driven in? Maybe you need to quit worrying about how to coach the team and simply play the game?

I will give you my sons story from last year. He was a freshman on JV. He played Varsity early in the season and was put on JV when the JV season started to get more reps. He went on to lead the JV in batting average, HR's, RBI's, runs scored, slugging and just about every offensive category except walks. This doesn't include his pitching. It was really good. Hit 85-86.

Playoffs arrive and he isn't called up. He was devasted.

Now we have this year, with a new coach. He started at SS and he just played in his first playoff victory. What I am trying to say is that it doesn't matter if you are called up to sit the bench on the varsity playoff run. What matters is that you still have time ahead of you and a great oppurtunity to succeed next year. Use it to drive you to work harder. It will be OK.