Freshman Coaches

Welcome to the wonderful world of high school baseball.

There are some great coaches and some not so great coaches.

Agree with Texan on this one. Keep in mind that a high school may or may not have 1 good experienced coach. But when you get down to the jv and frosh levels, many coaches are teachers with limited experience making a small stipend. If they weren't there, the school probably couldn't field a frosh team. This does not excuse bad coaching, just a fact.
Many schools that want quality coaches are going outside the schools and hiring qualified coaches that do not teach.

It happens, as Texan and Coachric said

Also, there's usually always politics. Some players get to play because someone's parent is the head of certain things. That's just how it goes..

How does this effect the players that are not playing next year? I have spoken to a few parents of some of these players and they were told not to say a word to the coaches about playing time so now they want to transfer to other schools in the area to get playing time for their kids. I think this hurts a baseball program. what do you guys think?

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now they want to transfer to other schools in the area to get playing time for their kids.

How can these people just transfer from school to school. The state we live in the students just can't transfer. They have to open enroll to a different school and have a legitamate reason.

Ametsman,

Trust me it is easy, at my district each High School has specific programs like Future Farmers of America or a tech program that maybe another school does not have, so all a parent needs to do is say that their child wants to enroll in that program and nine out of ten it is granted.

Now you might wonder why a parent might go through all this trouble to get there kid some playing time. One kid that my son has played with for about four years really does not like school but since baseball season started he has not missed a day and his grades are up. Why because you have to have good grades to play in the baseball program and this kid lives and breaths baseball. So his Mom told me the other day at a game that if it was not for baseball he would really be in danger of dropping out of school. So if this poor kid sits on the bench and slowly loses his love for the game because of a coach that will not play him because he is not one of his favorites or his Mom did not donate a score board or is not the booster president then she feels that she will transfer him to one of the schools were he will play and keep him motivated and going to school.

After all that I have seen and heard I am glad that my son is one of the lucky one that gets to play without me having to be involved with the program, you know like donating monies or doing field work or working the snack bar, but then again there is always next year were he could end up like one of these poor kids sitting on the bench. Scary!

Last year on my son's frosh team the starting 2nd baseman and usually leadoff hitter, who was slow and a weak fielder, didn't get a hit until 2/3 of the way through the season and finished the season with 2 hits. Friend of the family of the freshman coach.

The other kids drove him off the team during the off season as he was also a troublemaker. One of the 2 kids who deserved to start ahead of him last season is the starter this season on JV. The other one is getting only limited playing time. Both good kids, roughly equal in ability, different styles of play. No impropriety this year, just the coach's preferences.

It happens and the best thing the kids can do is keep working hard. The JV coach is different from the Freshman coach and the Varsity coach in the long run is the only one that counts.

As far as pitchers having to work out of jams caused by poor defense it happens at every level in HS ball, but especially at the freshman and JV levels. Best thing in the world for your son to learn how to deal with it without getting an attitude.

CaDad,

So maybe there is light at the end of the tunnel for these kids.

As far as my son, he does ok, he has been taught never to blame his teammates or to be disrespectful with the coach, even when the coach chews him out for not having 1,2,3 inning which has happened in the past. In one game I was sitting in the stands and it was one of those innings. First batter ground ball to second, ball gets booted. Second batter popups up ball caught. Third batter ground ball hit to second base, 2B throws over to the S.S to start the double play but throws it wide, runners are safe. Next batter strikes out. Next batter hits a fly ball to right ball is caught. I see my son go over to the second baseman and give him a high five and to say its ok but the kid pushes him aside. The coach pulls my son aside and balls him out. Later I asked my son why the coach was balling him out. My son said that the coach was upset that the inning went on so long and that he needed to pick it up a notch. Which my son replied “yes sir”. I had to give him a “that a boy” for that response. Funny thing the coach never said a word to the second baseman. But I guess that is why I started this post. We just have a poor coach, coaching this team and we can only hope that the JV coaches are better qualified then this coach.

I saw a freshman pitch 5 innings and then go in to catch at the jv level. Another kid threw 90-100 pitches in a freshman afternoon game, came back at noon the next day to catch a full game. Question, if these were your sons would this bother you and would you speak to the coach?

I would make sure these things were taken care of before the season began or if things went awry during the season my son would have taken care of it on his own


Parents don't get into it once the season has begun---only puts the son between a rock and a hard place

IB, if the player isn't comfortable talking to the coach, then the parent should. It isn't worth ruining an arm.

I heard some terrible things about players being over used so much so that I went and bought a pitch counter. So far though while it has been borderline around 90 pitches, my son has been feeling fine. As far as the coaching at this level and speaking to other parents at different schools. It all seems to be the same, very little or no coaching, no bullpens, a teacher who is just there to help out or a football coach. You just have to work through it unfortunately. Hopefully it will get better. We can also open enroll but how do you know it would be any better?

I also feel if there is a problem my son needs to speak to the coach. Never, during or immeadiately after a game. Take some time and think about what you are feeling. Usually a days cooling off helps for everyone involved. As a parent I can understand you wanting to speak to a coach but really don't believe it would be beneficial to anyone. Better before or after the season.

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Originally posted by 951dad:
After all that I have seen and heard I am glad that my son is one of the lucky one that gets to play without me having to be involved with the program, you know like donating monies or doing field work or working the snack bar, but then again there is always next year were he could end up like one of these poor kids sitting on the bench. Scary!

Who performs these money saving and / or fundraising activities ? Is it only the kids parents you think don't deserve to play ? Does your team have nice equipment, facilities, etc... If every parent kept their involvement to opening up their own folding chair on game day, many HS programs would suffer. Believe it or not, many people just love the game and recognize baseball usually isn't on the top of the list when it comes time to allocate athletic dollars. While a few are looking to get something in return, most simply love the game and provide their assistance with no strings attached.
Are you really a "lucky one" or does your son do the things expected of him on and off the field therby earning a spot ? I'd be careful judging a coach unless I had all the information he did. BTW, many times a coach will "ride" a player he sees greater potential in. Hope all goes well for your son, and it wouldn't hurt if you picked up a rake now and then either

We just have a poor coach, coaching this team and we can only hope that the JV coaches are better qualified then this coach.

The coach is always poor because somehow your son is affected.

My son is one of those kids riding the bench while the same 9 play every game. We have the same problems, kids daydreaming in the outfield, missing grounders, striking out 3-4 times a game, sometimes at balls 6" over their head. What can you do? That's the way it is, and the only way to change it is for a kid to just get to the point where he is so much better than the kid in front of him that the coach has no choice but to put him in.

I just hoping that lack of play on the freshman team doesn't kill his chances of getting on the JV.

Yankeelvr,

To answer your question it is the booster club that collects all of the money for the program and yes some of the players with bad attitudes, and that commit error after error are the sons of booster members.

In our program every parent is asked to do something for the program, like donate time for the snack bar, field maintenance and supplies for the snack bar which we all do.

Should I judge the coach, maybe not but I have been around baseball for a long time as a player and parent. I rode the bench in high school all four years, why because I was not as talented as most of the starters and I knew it, but I worked hard in every practice and gave it a hundred and ten percent when I was able to play in a game. My coach was great he played the most talented players and if they showed attitude then they joined my on the bench.

Yes my son was given some god given talent for the game and has really earned his spot with the same hard work as the other boys who do not get a chance to earn a spot. And that is what really bothers me and that is what I blame the coach for. Kids should not be allowed to throw their bats and helmets after they strike out and have nothing said to them then get to go back into the game, while the kids that work hard and have great attitudes and have the same talent or ever better talent sit on the bench.

Yes I do not have all the information that the coach has, but I do know that what he is doing is wrong. These are still young men, who are learning that hard work and showing good sportsmanship does not earn you anything. And that is wrong and that I blame the coach and parents who buy there son’s playing time for.

To answer Will’s comment a poor coach does not only effect my son it effects the team and the future of the program. And it is showing on the varsity level as we are losing players and games to other programs.

There are definitely some no so hot coaches out there, particularly as you go down in levels. Hopefully the head coach sees this and the kids are ALL getting quality reps in practice.

While it is obviously nice to get playing time in game situations at all ages, I think most of the improvement at that level comes from quality work in practice. Now if they don't get any good out of practice it could be a problem.

My son is in the top nine and gets a lot of the playing time he deserves. It is not because I am on the board or donate money. Which I know has happened. It is because he has talent and hustles and is the first one to practice and the last to leave. That being said I don't believe he is one of the coaches favorites. It is just he wants it more and is better than most that he plays. If he was average on the team he would sit. They are carrying 20 kids. That's another issue. The other night we had a discussion about the coaches. What I told him is that they will not make you better if you want to improve and stay ahead of the curve you need to work hard on your own. That week they were off from school and had only one freshman practice. He ran four other days with a weighted vest on and hit off a tee and threw with a neighbor and dragged me outside to play catch. That is what every kid whether they are playing or not needs to do especially when the coaches are not up to par and even if they are.

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Originally posted by bb1:
The other night we had a discussion about the coaches. What I told him is that they will not make you better...

Of course parents running down coaches to their kids NEVER helps the situation. It often becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.

If it sounded like I was running down the coaches that is not what is meant. It is that it is up to him to work hard and improve. Nobody else. DON'T BLAME THE COACHES. Which it seems everyone wants to do. It is not the coaches fault. Take responsibility for yourself.

951,
Agree 100% regarding sportsmanship, no place in baseball for those who can't control their emotions.
A coach who allows that type of conduct is punching his own ticket, that isn't the type of team conduct that gets overlooked. Sometimes we parents don't give the kids enough credit, they usually know who should and shouldn't be playing by the time they are in middle school as most compete in other leagues as well. If in fact the coach is as big a joker as you make him sound, the real players recognize this and will simply bide the time and possibly even work harder to overcome this obstacle. Even in good coaching situations no one is ever 100% with the lineup.

I agree, but the players do not fill in the lineup card, so the blame still falls on the coach for playing these players. Thanks you all for the input. Hopefully all of the players who sit on the bench can ride it out and get stronger and follow there dreams and not let the coaches knock them down.