varsity preseason baseball

Depends on how solid of a returning team there may be...if a lot of returning starters where the projected lineup / rotation is pretty much set, then getting those players time is not a bad idea.....if that is not the case and the lineup / rotation is up in the air, then seeing as many / much as possible early on is best.

I like how our coach does it but it does mean about a 15 inning scrimmage which seems to be the norm around here.

Hitting:

Projected first five in lineup get 4-5 ABs first.  Get to #5 and flip back to #1.  Next four get in lineup get 4-5 AB in same fashion.

Top reserves get 2-3 ABs and others try to get them one.

Pitchers:

#1 and #2 get 3 innings first one, 4 innings second scrimmage, 4-5 for the last scrimmage.  All this assumes reasonable pitch counts.  #3 guy get one less than that each scrimmage.  Sprinkle an inning or two for the other guys.

Seems to get the guys you are going to lean on ready to go.  Our coach carries 18-20 but with top 3 pitchers usually two way guys barring injury he seems to only play 11-12 guys all year (to me odd to have roster that size to do that but this is his preference)

Here is how I run things.  If I have 2 players battling for a position I will always make sure they get equal playing time and put them in a spot in the liineup that I perceive they are going to hit in.  If I have an established starter he will get the bulk of the out bats and may or may not be replaced towards the back end of the game by a back up. Pitching wise I rotate my pitchers.  For example we have 6 pitchers on staff and we play 9 inning games so that means 3 pitchers get 2 innings.  We stagger the innings as follow 2,1,2,1,2,1.  If you throw first one weekend you will throw last the next weekend.  We do this so that everyone, in the fall, gets the feeling of starting and coming out of the bullpen.  We also do this so that every other week you are throwing multiple innings.

IEBSBL,

That seems like a pretty fair & equitable arrangement for both established players and challengers.  Everybody shares time on the field and at the plate.

As a coach, how do you handle a situation where you feel one of the challengers is clearly separating himself from an established player during preseason and tryouts?   Do you extend the competition into the regular season.  I know that is not an easy question to answer, so please generalize.

Fenway,

I can answer that pretty easy. I will give a returner every last chance to lose a job. In Southern California we have the unique capability to play baseball year around.  Our off season, game wise, runs from October through February and consists of about 25 games.  During that time I break that in half October - December being the first half and January and February being the 2nd half.  During this time we keep our full stats and break everything down to the players just like in the regular season.  During the first half of the off season if I have a challenger flat out, out performing a returner I will sit down at the end of December with the returner and explain the situation.  I will let them know that going into January their playing time will be diminished and tell them what they need to focus on to keep their job.

If I have a challenger out performing a returner but not hands down out playing them the returner will get an extended period of time.  During our regular season we open up with a 5 game tournament, a single non league game and then league.  During league we will play our first 5 games of league prior to going into our spring break tournament.  I will give the returner through those 11 games prior to going on Spring Break an opportunity to keep their job.

Those that are challenging for a position are also made aware through separate conversations where they stand and the time lines they are dealing with in order to get them on the field.

All parents and players are aware of this policy, I believe that it is a good measuring stick, and I have yet to have it cause me any problems.  I have had people ask me if I think it could hurt me winning league giving a player those 5 games.  I have said NO.  We have a 15 league game schedule and there is no way if a competition is close that those 5 games will hurt us and it hasn't yet.

IEBSBL,

Thanks.  It always great to hear how other programs operate. 

Your program has the luxury of year round baseball.  Things are slightly different in my neck of the woods (VA).  There is only one high school season in the Spring.  Most baseball players play travel or Legion in the summer and Fall.  None the less, competition and depth is always a good thing for a high school coach and players.  I've seen it first hand.  My two oldest sons went to a high school where all players weren't challenged or pushed by competition at every position.  My youngest son's high school team is 180 degrees different.  Everybody is pushed in a positive way, and it shows.  Returners always know they have a challenger on their heels at every position.

My son's high school team had two preseason games. Kids vying for varsity roster spots or starting positions played more than half the game. Established starters came out after one or two at bats. Over the two games six or seven kids would pitch a couple of innings. The lineup didn't really get established until a few games into the season. Someone always played their way out of the opening day lineup?