Coaching, How'd you know?

Im not smart enough to keep up. I am just a baseball coach. You know.

Sure. But do you win?

CoachB25-
Interesting question. I think the key to being a good coach is REALIZING that you don't know everything and being willing to accept advice and help from others. Not sure there ever is a "moment" when you realize that you can coach - I DO know that it isn't tied to wins and losses, though.
As far as "knowing what you know", I think most coaches take pieces from all of their influences in the profession over the years. My coaching style is a combination of many coaches I've had....and NOT just baseball coaches.

Well said Coach Knight. I guess I knew when I realized I had a hunger for knowledge and information that I could not satisfy no matter how much I explored , read, or discussed. I knew it when I stepped into the role and felt like God had brought me home. Next to being with my family there is no place I would rather be than on the ball field helping kids improve. I don't know if others are this way, but for me at least I have a picture in my head of the perfect game and everything played perfectly, I work to try to get us there. I hope he loves it as much as many of us do, CoachB25!

I remember as a little kid I looked up to the guy who ran the morning baseball program in our small city. It was a great program, kids would ride their bikes to the diamonds and Coach Williams would split them up... he'd show us some skills, but mostly we would just play baseball. No parents in sight, whoever made the last out was the next umpire from behind the mound. Everybody played every postion and there was no scorekeeper but you always knew if you were ahead or behind... Then that evening you'd play for your Little League teeam... it was fun and since i looked up to Coach Williams I think when i started thinking about a career a lot of that respect I had for him filtered into my soul and made me want to be Coach... I'm that guy now for our community, the only difference is the parents are way involved... we don't have too many problems, but everyonce in a while I find myself wishing it was 1970-something and it was just kids, bats, and balls.

I wanted to come back to this after members had a chance to respond. I think that there are people out ther coaching that shouldn't be. There are people not coaching that should. There are people that have that gift. It can't be explained. In a million years, it can't be defined or duplicated. People might try to copy it but they are doomed to failure. I've done this for a long time now. There are days when I'm on the top of the world and I know that as a team we clicked. There are times when I feel like the world's biggest failure. Why couldn't I get it right? I know that the sand in my hour glass is running low. I know I still have something to give. Is that enough? I get more sore each year and it takes longer to recover each day from batting practice. I know my strength has always been to challenge the boys to keep up with me. The one thing I know more than anything else, that coaching isn't about wins and losses. If thats your goal, I feel sorry for you. You're missing out on something very special. When I started out, it was because I loved the game. Now, I love the kids. I know that's what keeps me coaching.

Sure. But do you win?

That is not a rhetorical question, I really want to know. Your players want to know, the fans want to know, the press wants to know, and the Athletic Director desperately wants to know.

Even grandpa wants to know.

Sorry, CoachB25, you cannot separate winning and losing from the game of baseball. Aside from teaching young men respect for the game and working with team effort, winning is their ultimate goal, and it is a big part of why those young men chose to play the game of baseball. No one wants to lose. Since they were 5 years old, they dreamed of hitting the winning homerun in the championship game..

..and they want the pride that goes with it. The accolades, the spirit, the press writeups, even the twinkle in eye of the young sophomore girl watching..

Everything you teach should be fodder toward that end. And if you make it, it surely will be sweet. If you do not, it is not failure so long as you gave it your utmost effort. Young men want dreams, they want to achieve, and they want their coaches to be the role models that show them the path to accomplishment.

You know?

quote:

Originally posted by Bum:
Sure. But do you win?

Bum, you are right about the community, administration parents, etc. wanting to know if we win.

We win in all kinds of ways. We win by the impact we make on kids. We win by helping them mature, enabling them to do values clarification and yes, we win by teaching the game. Having sat in on a coaching staff meeting or two where it was clearly layed out for us that in our sport there were "high expectations," then naturally I agree with your assessment.

Personally, I haven't done as well as I'd like as a head coach if you're talking strickly on the field. In all, as a head coach and an assistant coach, I've participated in over 500 wins and less than 150 losses. Here's how we've done as a head coach playing one of the toughest scedules in our area:

http://www.ihsa.org/school/records/sum1904.htm

Hey, coach. That's a pretty impressive record if you ask me! Good luck this season, and keep up the good work.

The girls s****r coach is kicking your butt! hahaha I am kidding, Darrell.

Keep up the good work.

quote:

Originally posted by redbird5:
The girls s****r coach is kicking your butt! hahaha I am kidding, Darrell.

Keep up the good work.

Yes, he has quite a dynasty. His name is Mike Villa. He is also a great baseball person and throws BP for the St. Louis Cardinals. He has won 7 National Championships in boys s****r as well along with numerous state titles in another state. Most recently he was awarded National High School Coach of the year. We have a great coaching staff for a small school. Self excluded!