quote:
Originally posted by LionPop:
Monkeyboy,
I think there are tons to be learned as a freshman regardless of the quality of the freshman coach. I do believe they benefit from daily reps if the player chooses to take it seriously. When they take BP some of the kids will joke around in the field and get nothing out of it, while others will work on their game fielding balls live off the bat. (By the way these are the same kids that get moved up to varsity first in most cases) These freshman won’t have coaches and dad’s watching and coaching every move they make so they learn how to think and react on their own more. For example, in select ball my son would get on base and have loud vocal coaches on 1st and 3rd which takes some of the players decision making out of the game. The first few games as a freshman there was not the same loud vocal instruction from the base coaches and he was a step late taking that next bag or getting back on a pickoff move. I think this helped him as a base runner because he had to focus more and react to the game rather than react to a coaches voice.
Probably one of the most important things about that freshman year is they will be playing ball with kids they see in school every day and they start that bonding process with teammates they will be playing with for four years. Whether or not they admit it they will look up to the varsity players and will learn how to act and carry themselves as they move up to varsity, both positive and negative. I could go on all day about the things a freshman can learn, it may not be technical but it is important knowledge.
Excellent post.
Some off the cuff thoughts here...
The difference between high school ball and select ball is competition imho. Many select teams are hand-picked (by the Dad's running them), thus competition for playing time is often neglible. In our situation for example, my son had a graduating class of over 1100 and well over 100 kids tried out for the freshmen team. There were several travel and "select" teams that fed into that "one" freshmen team and it was a BIG deal to make that team let alone find your way on to the field and play.
In high school/freshmen ball, who makes the team and who plays is out of the player's and sometimes their parent's control for the first time. Some kids don't react well when the option is produce or sit which is what it is like in college ball. Select ball often does not offer that dynamic imho. The best training for college ball is learning how to beat someone else out and playing under pressure.
Select ball in general, offers better competition. In that arena, kids can compare themselves to the better players and hone their skills against them. Both high school ball and select ball are essential developmental tools for fairly different reasons imho.
