Coach a Team, Not a Star

When you begin holding practices for a new season, it’s tempting, as a coach, to identify and the strongest players and really work with them and move at their pace.

However, focusing in on just a handful of talented individuals sends a clear message to the rest of the team. It says that you care most about the win and the rest of them are largely immaterial to your plans.


By Stacie Mahoe

These kids end up arriving at practice everyday feeling like practice dummies set up just to support the all-stars of the team. Feeling like practice was not made for them - they just can’t keep up.

Make practice easier on you and use a “cookie cutter” approach to each player. Or, do what’s best for each person on your team and take the time to help them all progress as much as possible. Every player on the field needs to benefit from equal amounts of training from day one. Each player must feel like they personally benefit from every practice and bring something to the team that is valued by the coaching staff. No matter the skill level each player has a role. Each player can contribute. It’s your job to bring that out of them.

If Hollywood has taught us anything about sports, in movies like 'Remember the Titans' and 'Friday Night Lights' it's that putting all of your eggs into one basket is bad strategy. Your success as a coach should rise and fall on your team, not on one or two superstars.

How can you avoid making this classic coaching mistake? Start with your words.

Sit down with your coaching staff ahead of time and lay out your expectations for the season. Let them know that you will identify strengths in each player but, as a staff, you will not verbally or otherwise classify players in a way that causes any one player to stand out above the rest or causes another player to stand out for lack of ability.

And, this is important: the “gag rule” applies on the field and off.

By presenting a united front and lifting up the value of the team as a whole, you send a message to players, parents, and spectators alike.

As a coach, you will provide positive feed back and do have to offer criticism when it’s due. But hear the difference between these comments:

“You picked that up very well, good job!” or “Yes! You’re the best player we’ve ever had!”

“That was a little slow; let’s be a little quicker next time” or “What’s the matter with you? Do you have molasses in your blood?”

The first examples are straight forward and to the point, giving credit where it’s due and acknowledging a short fall when necessary. The second examples are inappropriate and extreme. You may feel that an exceptional player deserves a few extra strokes but if she is especially skilled, you can be sure that she knows it already. Players that struggle are equally aware of how they fall short. You don’t need to embarrass them in front of an audience.

You’ll be amazed at how changing how you speak about your team affects how the team responds to you, to your staff, and to each other. I know as a coach it feels so good to just rail into players when they play horribly. But I’ve personally played under both types of coaches. The type that let’s you hear it every time you mess up and rarely gives you more than a lift of the head of you do what you’re supposed to; and the type that doesn’t yell, uses constructive criticism, and acknowledges good plays and a job well done. I never learned or grew more as a player than I did under that non-yelling coach. Remember, a player that feels respected and valued works harder than a practice dummy any day of the week.

by Stacie Mahoe
Owner of All About Fastpitch
Pick up Stacie’s Free "Special Report" on Coaching

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Stacie_Mahoe

High School Baseball Coaches Note Fewer Athletes in School to Pick From

By Lance Winslow

Many high school coaches are now noting that there are fewer athletes coming out for teams, and they speculate that this is for a number of reasons. One reason recently is the cost to play sports is very expensive, and some families cannot afford it during the recession.

But there are many more reasons why the fewer and fewer kids are playing baseball. For one it's very hard work and it takes a lot of training, exercise and conditioning. Kids these days are overweight and it is a lot harder for them to run and work out.

Then there are the all the old reasons, to compound the issue such as; teenage boys learn about girls and cars at that age, and they are very busy text messaging, socializing and getting local jobs to help pay for their social life, and there is no time for sports. This is unfortunate because with fewer athletes playing sports in high school that kids are becoming overweight and that is unhealthy and sports teach kids how to win, work hard towards a goal, and work together as a team.

These are valuable lessons for teenagers and if they're not learning this on the field, some of the coaches wonder if they will learn these skills at all. Many baseball coaches that we talked to seem to think that things are much different now than they ever have been in the past. Of course one thing is also true, and that is the problem is fairly universal at all high schools and therefore the competition is also a little easier. Please consider this.

Lance Winslow enjoys community philanthropy - Lance Winslow likes small business. Lance Winslow has also been involved in the Oil Industry; http://www.oilchangeguys.com/aboutus.shtml/.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Lance_Winslow

Slap Hitting And Why Its Important

www.SoftballrUs.com
By J Cox

What is Slap Hitting

Slap hitting is often used by batters who are fast runners. Often times this batter is a lefty, which can give her an even better chance of getting on base. This technique is often used against pitchers who are difficult to get hits against, it gives you a chance to get the ball in play.

The ability to be a slap hitter, isn't just something you can do without practice. Just like any other softball skill, the more you practice, the better you can do it.

Sometimes slap hitting is used to advance base runners. When this is the primary goal, the ball is often hit away from the base runner, down the first base line for example, to get a runner from second to third base. If the goal is to get yourself on first, then the goal might be to bounce the ball, or slap it to an area of the field least defended.

In general terms, slap hitting is basically hitting the ball, at the same time getting a jump towards running to first base. The end result is the ball is usually hit with a half swing, or a running swing.

The runner must remain in the batters box throughout the entire swing, so timing becomes very important. But if you can master this skill it can be quite helpful in getting a good jump to first base.

If a player becomes a good slap hitter it can become a great weapon for the team. You will be valuable as a player who can advance runner, and get on base yourself.

J Cox runs http://www.fastpitchsoftballbat.net The site tries to find bargains for the fastpitch fan. The site also has several other Fastpitch Softball Articles, an example is located at http://www.fastpitchsoftballbat.net/fastpitchbaserunning

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=J_Cox

Rec Softball Players Need to Train Like the Pros To Prevent Injuries

www.SOFTBALLrUS.COM

This article discusses how the intramural softball athlete needs to prepare for his/her season so as to prevent as many injuries as possible.

The summer intramural season has ended and for many it is a time of having some fun, re-living their days of athletic grandeur, and partaking in many after-game activities involving the recovery drink for many…beer. For some though, it means rehabbing the injuries that occurred during the season. Knowing each season that you aren’t getting any younger, what can you do to make sure a lot of those nagging injuries don’t occur for next season?Since summer is usually the softball season, let’s talk about how to prepare for the next softball season. Here is how your normal individual gets ready for the season. All winter, you lie around doing nothing, except maybe putting on a few pounds. March rolls around and your team captain calls to see if you are ready for another great season. Getting excited, you go to the batting cage and hit the snot out of the ball for 10-20 swings until you get tired. Next day, your side is a little tender. Throw in a couple practices here or there and you’re ready.
First game rolls around, so you take every precaution to prevent injury by warming up properly. This entails running to the portable toilet and back, then sit there doing stretches while you shoot the breeze with your teammates. It is your turn to bat. You’ve taken two or three good warm-up swings and done the side bend twisty things to get your back ready. You smack the ball to third, oh shoot you mutter, and you run as hard as you can down the line. Then it happens. A sudden pain in your hamstring and just like that you have pulled a muscle. You’re stunned that this is happened, especially with all the preventive training you have done.

Okay, so I exaggerated a little bit here, but this is a typical scenario I see in the softball season each year. One game I saw three of our teammates pull their hamstring running to first. Even I did it and boy, it ticked me off. So next season, I came in prepared and this is what I did.

You have to understand that even though you aren’t a professional athlete, in some ways you do have to train like an athlete. Not because you’re going to get sponsored to play in your over 30 softball league. But, you need to prepare your body for the activity you are doing to prevent injuries and be able to still have fun. Pulling a muscle is a minor injury, but I’ve seen a lot worse. And for some people, if they get injured there is no income coming in for the family. Rather than live in a bubble all your life, let’s try to prevent a lot of those injuries that can be prevented.

So in your off-season, I would recommend working out with weights 2-3 times a week, with a total body routine. You especially want to include exercises that will target your obliques, abdominals, shoulder area, and hamstrings because those are the muscles that seem to get injured a lot. This will help keep those muscles strong in the off-season and not get weak due to inactivity.

Now here is the important part of the equation. You must find time 4-5 weeks prior to the season beginning, to implement a speed program. Basically, if you do nothing for 6 months, haven’t sprinted or anything, you are demanding that your body go from “0 to 60” and have absolutely no problem doing that. As we get older, that is a much greater demand for the body to accomplish, so you must start sprint work that can be done twice a week.

The first week you want to jog around for 5 minutes to get warmed up. Then do a couple active warm-up movements (i.e. jumping jacks, jumping rope, some high knee drills) for another 5 minutes. After this, you will do 7-10 sprints for 20-40 yards. Each sprint is a buildup. Basically, you start at half speed and by the end you are doing 75%-80%. Rest 45-60 seconds and do it again. You don’t want to do full speed this week. Here is how you will progress for the remaining weeks:

• Keep the jog and active warm-up the same each week• The second week you want to build up to full speed• The third week do build-ups for 5 sprints, then full speed sprints for 5• The fourth and fifth week, I would do 2 or three build-ups in your active warm-up and then do all full speed sprintsI know that seems like a lot to ask, but this program eliminated any hamstrings problems I had the year before. Besides, if you want to have fun and not worry about any nagging injuries, this is what you should do or you’ll be gettting plenty of icepacks ready. This obviously won’t prevent the broken bones that could happen, but it will eliminate the minor stuff. You will be amazed about how much better you feel before, during, and after the games.

Article Tags: Prevent Injuries, Active Warm-up, Full Speed

Source: Free Articles from ArticlesFactory.com


ABOUT THE AUTHOR


Adam Kessler, is president of Fitness Planning Consultants, Inc., and his company operates Sports Conditioning Specialists, which is located in Gahanna, OH. You can read more great training tips by accessing their free report, Training Right for Baseball, at http://fitnessplanning.com/free_reports.htm

Tips for the New Softball Coach, Dad

Finally, Spring is here and with it comes the beginning of Fastpitch Softball season for hundreds of thousands of little girls. Along with the start of Softball season also comes the recruitment of parents to become volunteer coaches. The FEAR, the anxiety, the hope that you don't lead your daughter's team to a winless season. Here’s the good news, like just about anything else, if the new coach will find a successful mentor the coach can quickly learn what skills and strategies need to be utilized to win. However, the large majority of new fastpitch coaches are dads that think since they played baseball 20 years ago they can easily transfer that knowledge to their team and be successful. After all, it's just a bunch of 7 & 8 year old girls, right? Wrong. To be successful the new coach not only has to coach his team, he must also out coach all of the other dad-coaches.

If you think coaching doesn’t make that big of a difference, then please explain how a coach went 93-4-2 over a 5 year period in 8U fastpitch softball while coaching his daughters. That’s a very impressive record no matter what age you are coaching. And don’t think for a moment that it was talent that led to that record. I’m talking about a team that every year lost half of it’s players to promotion to the older age group and had to pick up 6 or 7 brand new players…typically girls that had never played the game. So how could this one coach pile up 5 straight 1st place finishes and compile a winning percentage of .960%?

It boils down to knowing what strategies and skills are most effective at different ages. That’s the only possible answer. For example, the three most important positions in 8U Softball are First Base, Pitcher and Second Base. As players get older it’s certainly true that talent can make a difference. But talent still has to be coached. An athletic player under a poor coach will never achieve her full potential. However, average talent can achieve superior levels under the guidance of a great coach.

Regarding offense, most new coaches tend to build a batting order similar to how professional baseball teams put together a batting order. That's a sure way to lose games in 8U softball. The best advice is to stagger the strong hitters with weaker hitters mixed in. That way your team is able to bat further into the lineup, allowing for a couple of outs, yet scoring the maximum number of runs allowed. Many new coaches also forget to teach the girls how to bunt the ball. The younger the team is the more important it is teach girls to bunt as it helps to build hand-eye coordination while allowing the player to contribute to the success of the team.

Finally, most new coaches don't know what training tools would be of greatest benefit to their team. Typically the league will issue a sack of softball gear that might include a couple of bats, a dozen balls, a few batting helmets, and some catcher's gear and the new coach never gives it a second thought. However, regardless of age every coach needs to have a sack of plastic poly balls and a hitting tee just to name a couple of training aides. In the younger age groups a coach might want to have two or more hitting tees so his team gets plenty of practice time swinging a bat. As for the poly balls, not only are they perfect for batting practice, but they are also perfect for learning how to catch pop flys in order to prevent injuries.

Good Luck to all of the new softball coaches. Don't assume you know it all, find a mentor, do some research, teach skills that are age appropriate, and have fun. It's going to be a great season of softball and one that your daughter will never forget since her dad was the coach.

Jim Moyer is the author of http://www.mysoftballcoach.com . After coaching over 500 youth fastpitch softball games, Jim decided to put his unique experience and knowledge online for all new coaches to learn the strategies, tips, and drills that are most effective for the various age groups of youth softball.


Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/baseball-articles/dos-and-donts-of-softball-pitching-938409.html

Coaching Your Daughter's Softball Team for the First Time

www.FastpitchSoftballSupply.com

By Jim Moyer

Finally, Spring is here and with it comes the beginning of Fastpitch Softball season for hundreds of thousands of little girls. Along with the start of Softball season also comes the recruitment of parents to become volunteer coaches. The FEAR, the anxiety, the hope that you don't lead your daughter's team to a winless season. Here’s the good news, like just about anything else, if the new coach will find a successful mentor the coach can quickly learn what skills and strategies need to be utilized to win. However, the large majority of new fastpitch coaches are dads that think since they played baseball 20 years ago they can easily transfer that knowledge to their team and be successful. After all, it's just a bunch of 7 & 8 year old girls, right? Wrong. To be successful the new coach not only has to coach his team, he must also out coach all of the other dad-coaches.

If you think coaching doesn’t make that big of a difference, then please explain how a coach went 93-4-2 over a 5 year period in 8U fastpitch softball while coaching his daughters. That’s a very impressive record no matter what age you are coaching. And don’t think for a moment that it was talent that led to that record. I’m talking about a team that every year lost half of it’s players to promotion to the older age group and had to pick up 6 or 7 brand new players…typically girls that had never played the game. So how could this one coach pile up 5 straight 1st place finishes and compile a winning percentage of .960%?

It boils down to great coaching and knowing what strategies work at different ages. That’s the only possible answer. For example, the three most important positions in 8U Softball are First Base, Pitcher and Second Base. As players get older it’s certainly true that talent can make a difference. But talent still has to be coached. An athletic player under a poor coach will never achieve her full potential. However, average talent can achieve superior levels under the guidance of a great coach.

Regarding offense, most new coaches tend to build a batting order similar to how professional baseball teams put together a batting order. That's a sure way to lose games in 8U softball. The best advice is to stagger the strong hitters with weaker hitters mixed in. That way your team is able to bat further into the lineup, allowing for a couple of outs, yet scoring the maximum number of runs allowed. Many new coaches also forget to teach the girls how to bunt the ball. The younger the team is the more important it is teach girls to bunt as it helps to build hand-eye coordination while allowing the player to contribute to the success of the team.

Finally, most new coaches don't know what training tools would be of greatest benefit to their team. Typically the league will issue a sack of softball gear that might include a couple of bats, a dozen balls, a few batting helmets, and some catcher's gear and the new coach never gives it a second thought. However, regardless of age every coach needs to have a sack of plastic poly balls and a hitting tee just to name a couple of training aides. In the younger age groups a coach might want to have two or more hitting tees so his team gets plenty of practice time swinging a bat. As for the poly balls, not only are they perfect for batting practice, but they are also perfect for learning how to catch pop flys in order to prevent injuries.

Good Luck to all of the new softball coaches. Don't assume you know it all, find a mentor, do some research, teach skills that are age appropriate, and have fun. It's going to be a great season of softball and one that your daughter will never forget since her dad was the coach.

Jim Moyer is the author of http://www.mysoftballcoach.com Having coached over 500 youth fastpitch softball games, Jim decided to put the information online to allow parent/coaches to draw on his unique experience.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jim_Moyer

You are the heart and soul, coach!

Building a team of champions in the field of softball needs lots of factors in order to reach that certain goal. One of which is keeping your players fit and agile. And in order to keep them hale and hearty, you should arm them with different types of softball drills.


From a simple calisthenics drill up to a rigorous training just to improve the individual skills of players is already a milestone for every player. Every player has its function in the softball team-from catcher, pitcher and hitter.You must discover where each player excels and where they lack. Softball drills will help them enhance their amazing skills and will help them improve where they are lacking. These drills can develop further their skills and abilities and also give them endurance to perfectly have the dream 7 innings! So, there is no better way than keeping your champions fit and competitive during a crucial inning.


There are a lot of softball drills that will vary on a certain player's position. Pitching exercises will help boost the power of the arms. Arms are the sword of every pitcher so there must be exercises to strengthen it. There are also softball drills that will improve the accuracy of pitching, drills that will make them more active and alert. As I have said, the fact that a pitcher's arm is his or her best weapon during game plays, we don't want that throwing arm get injured or stressed out. You must do everything that you can to take care of it.


There are certain softball drills that include flexibility of catchers while chasing the ball in the field. It involves agility and presence of mind in order to catch a grounder. We don't want to have players that are too slow to react. This will just be a reason for your team to lose. Some drills also require the sturdiness of the arms while catching those 60 mph balls soaring through the field. Continuous softball drills will make catching just a simple and easy task.


It is really important that in every game there will be a preparation, there is a certain module of scheduled softball drills. We need to be prepared and keep those athletes fit and strong. Doing so will give you a very competitive standing to the other team and a high possibility to grab that win.


Softball drills require a few hours of your player's time and energy before a practice game. Even though it may be an exhausting task, the players still get a lot of benefits from it. This will improve their skills and talents, and this will be a way for them to discover and reach their potential. Your team will have the edge if your champions are always fit and physically prepared.


Nothing can be accomplished without hard work, but in the long run you will know that you have done a great job. Have a team of champions! Always remember you are the heart and soul of the team, coach! Do it for them!

Article Source: http://www.ArticleBlast.com

About The Author:

Marc Dagenais, MHK, CSCS, is a softball peak performance coach that helps players and teams hit with more power, run faster, throw harder, become mentally tougher, and be more dominant on the softball field. Visit us to get tons of great FREE softball drills to boost your game!