Question?

The only reason I could see talking to the coach about this is if the coach had called you earlier and had asked you what you thought about your son being red-shirted. The player has to assume that any member of the coaching staff has the same authority as the head coach therefore I wouldn’t make any distinction between a head coach and an assistant coach when it comes to determining the validity of a message.
Fungo

hesitant to disagree with fungo, but here goes

regarding staff having "same authority as HC" ... NOT in this world.
when is the last time you saw the strength coach "give the umpires the line-up" ...
"stroll to the mound" to pull a pitcher...give a call to the bull pen...or, coach 3B?





very few programs have a dedicated "baseball only" strength coach.
of those that have that dedicated strength coach, his baseball knowledge or input into actual baseball program decisions would be on par with the trainer, or compliance officer.

ie: input/responibility

compliance - "report on player's ncaa eligibility or NOT"
trainer - "report on player's health or NOT"
strenght coach - "report on player's conditioning progress or NOT"

I've NEVER seen one in a baseball uniform

even if the player "wanted" the RS, I'd suggest my player politely sit with the head coach
and clarify the structure of his chain of command

it sounds like, there are more problems than bad communication & command chain there

jmo

Head Coach is the one who decides who gets the scholarship, so IMO it should be he who sits with the player to tell him why he is not playing and how they will work with him to get the opportunity to play next year.
I would be leary of any HC who doesn't have the guts to do his job, and this is part of his job. Don't care how big or small the program is. It's obvious he didn't want to be the one to do it. The strength and conditioning coach is just what he is, the strength and conditioning coach, his job is to see that the player properly develops physically so that he remains free from injury.
And obviously, the die is already cast but I would suggest your son go back to the coach he directly reports to (hitting coach, pitching coach) if he has any questions, not you.

Chairman, you should disagree with me. I even disagree with myself sometimes! I re-worded that a couple of times looking for the right words to describe the way I think a player should view this situation. The player has to look at assistants as being the coach’s spokesman and understand that baseball is a dictatorship not a democracy. I don’t agree with the way this particular situation happened but that wasn’t the question. The question was --- should the parent go to the head coach and I still say NO.

I agree that few programs have a dedicated strength coach but felt this might be just some internal labeling and might not be an accurate depiction of his position. i.e. an assistant coach that is also the strength coach. If an assistant coach tells a player to do something the player has to has to assume he has been directed to do so by the head coach. That’s the way the coaching hierarchy works. I don’t think there are any programs so dysfunctional that a part time strength coach has the authority to randomly redshirt players on his own. If that is happening the player needs to transfer today. Should the “strength coach” or any assistant coach be the one to tell a player he is redshirted? Not in my opinion. I agree with TPM this should come from the head coach but does it warrant going to the head coach? I say NO in this case because scbaseball said:

quote:

no big deal and probably in his best interest.

So, there is no problem and we shouldn’t create one if one doesn’t exist.

So there is not any confusion, I believe this was just a case of miscommunication. I believe the strength coach was told about the redshirt by the head coach and just assumed that he had spoken with my son. The strength coach was just trying to let my son know what would be expected of him from a strength and conditioning standpoint this season and was very positive. The coach of my son's team is very respected and does not shun responsibilities, so the issue of who told him is not that big of a deal. I was just wondering if a discussion with the coach about "what now" should take place? The head coach really likes my son and has told him on several occasions that he will be big part of the program in the future.

This is a great place to gain information and I appreciate the advice that is provided.

Scbaseball, Your son is in the transition from being a "dependent" kid to becoming an "independent" man. If you approach HIS coach about HIS situation you are interfering with HIS independence. We all go through the same process and we all tend to go too far before we realize it and have to retreat out of their sandbox. I think baseball brings this out more than anything else because we have been part of their baseball since they were in diapers. I’m not suggesting we turn our back on them or not be involved in their baseball future, just do it in a manner that allows them to grow. Instead of asking the coach myself, I have learned to start many conversations with my son with: …. “Why don’t you ask the coach”--- and: “What did the coach say about ---- The end result will be the same, your son will be in control of his future, and you will just as informed. Plus, I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised at how much your son has grown.
Fungo

Geez, Fungo, thanks for the clarification, you had me worried there for a moment.

Coaches know by holiday break who will play and who will not and I do think by telling them right before the first game is teh right thing to do, the player who knows he is playing wil get lazy, the player who knows they have to sit gets discourged.
But I still stand by my original post, even though I knew you were asking for opinions as to whether you should call, it is the COACHES (head, assisstant) responsibility to make sure he has discussed the situation with player before anyone else does. JMO.

For what it's worth I regret having taken a hands off policy about talking with the coaches to get their "true calibration."

Though I will say talking with the coach is not a parents place -- that is true only to the extent the coach will be candid and honest with your son - not all will be.

My advice, make sure you counsel your son on whatever it is you think he should know, then have him talk to the coach. If it were me I'd want to know

1. Does this mean, assuming he is wanted through his senior year they'll pick that 5th year up - if he's a scholly kid?
2. Does this mean they can't determine whether he's the player they'd hoped, i.e., might they "encourage him to take his baseball elsewhere?

Certain programs rosters (mostly ACC,SEC) I've watched over the years and alot of "red shirt" kids never actually make it to the roster. Without asking the tough questions you leave yourself little recourse when some tough decisions later fall your way and you weren't prepared.

I know if my younger son plays I'll want the coaches assurance that if my son does not really fit in his plans - no problem but let us know so we can have enough time to make plans to go elsewhere.

You don't want to get the "bad news" and be left not able to find another school. Some kids may want to transfer to play ball -others may want to give up ball for the Academics. Most of those that want to play ball need a few months to make it happen usually.

GET PEACE OF MIND...either way!

mrmom:

This is a great post. I think I will put this in "my personal" golden threads folder...And keep my fingers crossed that I will never have to read it again. Thanks.