How does he change the coaches mind?

Nighthawks1110+ posts

My little brother is a standout athlete. I have to brag a little. As a freshman Jared was a varsity letterman in football, basketball and baseball. This year the same and he earned all-conference honors in football and basketball and is expected to in baseball as well. In fact, his coach(who is also his football coach) told my dad that he expects him to be all-state in baseball by his senior year. With all that said, his coach is also talking about moving my brother from his natural position (catcher) to shortstop and making him a pitcher. They are going to be losing a lot of talented arms after this season and they will have holes in the middle infield too. This is not abnormal for him to play these positions. He has pitched and played short on summer and fall teams in the past, but he has also been catching for seven years now, and is amazing behind the plate and with his arm. I know he wants to continue catching because we talked about it, but I don't know if the coach will listen to him. After all, coach knows best.

Coaches, is there anything he can say to change coaches mind?

Pictures:

J-ROD

Jared behind the plate

4/17/0711:54 PM

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StyleMismatch100+ posts

Seems to me that it depends on who else on the team can catch. If the coach has another kid that is a reasonable catcher but is desperate for a good shortstop then the move makes sense. Also, it sounds like the coach knows he's in need of some good arms on the mound, so it would make sense to NOT have a kid both catch and pitch too much to avoid arm injuries. On the other hand, if the new catcher is a poor receiver and can't block I'd expect your brother to be back behind the plate in short order.

I'd say that the best he can do is tell the coach something like "my preference is to catch, but of course I'll play wherever you need me to best help the team". The absolute worst thing to do would be to show displeasure at being moved to a certain position, that would be telling the coach that an individual thinks he's more important than the rest of the team.

4/18/078:36 AM

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Nighthawks1110+ posts

I agree. We talked a little about it this morning and I encouraged him to just do the best he can this season and see what happens next year. I know he is excited about pitching on a more regular basis. As it is he only gets to take the mound a couple times a season on his high school team. The other catcher on the team is not a good receiver and has a weaker arm, but perhaps he will get better. The bottom line is that Jared is the type of kid that would take the position change for the good of the team. The only problem is that I know what it's like to do that and I still regret it. I hope he won't. Either way, I'll support him no matter where he plays.

I just wish coaches didn't always think the best player on the team had to be a shortstop. Too many coaches think that way.

It would be nice to see him earn all-league at catcher and the same honors at another position as well. On the mound he has good, but unrefined stuff. Fastball (that's actually fast), changeup, knuckle-curve, slider.

4/19/0711:19 AM

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Coachric1,000+ posts

I am always an advocate for good catchers. However, the coach may think he's a good enough athlete to play short. Your SS is generally the best athlete and player on the team. He can certainly showcase his talents there. Pitching is also considered an honor and shows the coach has confidence in him. Believe me, if he has a future in this game, his position is long from being determined yet. All in good time.

4/19/074:55 PM

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