Intentional walk neear end of showcase game....to preserve the win ?? What the?

[cz fastpitch fan]

Coaches,
If you are in a showcase tournament that is designed to allow the girls to put on a show of their talents, then you should NOT intentionally walk batters as the drop dead time limit is drawing near, JUST so you can preserve that "win". In my opinion, the only thing you did was show any college coaches in attendance that you don't have any confidence in your pitcher. You might have just cost HER a chance to be recruited.
I'm not angry about this because the other team "won" the game....I'm angry because a batter was deprived of an excellent opportunity to deliver a clutch hit, because the opposing coach was intentionally walking batters so they can kill the clock. (The situation is this....2 outs, runner on 2B, defense is up by 1 run. I totally understand intentionally walking the next batter, because that creates a force at all bases-excellent coaching....but to intentionally walk the batter AFTER that , Again...that just shows me that you have no confidence in your pitcher.) Well, I guess I could look at this situation and walk away thinking that the coach has so much respect for our hitters that he felt he couldn't risk throwing a strike.
I still think this is bush league though. In a tourney when you are in elimination games, I could understand the desire to "win", but to do that in a showcase.......

I will not name the team, so don't ask.

All coaches-let the girls "showcase" their talents in a showcase tourney. If you don't have enough talent to compete, then maybe that isn't the right place for your team that weekend.

 

[coachjwb]

Wow ... as per the other recent thread re: showcases, if this was a true showcase, then this is pretty bad (or ignorant?) behavior on the part of a coach ...

To be honest, I wouldn't even do this in a non-showcase tournament ...

 

[manitoudan]

How about the location of the showcase ? Stingrays ? I wasnt aware there was another showcase this past weekend ?

 

[cz fastpitch fan]

It wasn't in Ohio.
It was at the PGF Top 100 in Indiana.

 

[SOFTBALLS14]

Yup theirs and the one in Carmel, Indiana ....Top 100 Showcae at Grand Park.
Always lots of college coaches ....If you email Them!
Great weekend for it too!

Sorry to hear you had a coach that thought it was a WINcase and not a SHOWcase ...

That coach missed out on a great opportunity to show the coaches and the players that they can come though in the tough situation and handle the pressure!!
Just took all the air out of that tire!!
I get the first walk .....BUT after that the coach just took away an opportunity for his ladies to show college coaches what they got!! .
Like......a deep play in the hole to throw them out .... a diving stop to make the play ....or the best a strike out to end it all!!

Maybe it was their first showcase and the coach was learning too!
But hopefully next time they play to SHOW and not play to WIN!

You win when the Ladies are given the chance to produce in high pressure situations!
IN COLLEGE YOU PLAY ALL 7INNS.......BETTER GET THEM READY NOW !!
Good luck ! Hey maybe they'll be at the next showcase in Columbus this next weekend and get a chance to do it right!

 

[cz fastpitch fan]

I was really looking forward to that opportunity for the pitcher to show that she could get the job done under pressure and also the batter to show that she can get the job done under that pressure.
This was an excellent opportunity for college coach to see performance under pressure.
But we will never know.
Arrrghh....

 

[coachjwb]

I'd like to say that if I was a college coach watching the game that I would walk away and make the best use of my time by going to another field where I could actually see some softball action ... and that if I was a parent of a talented player, that I would cross that team off the list of future teams I'd be interested in ...

 

[wvanalmsick]

Ok TD's, when we have the "Free Substitution" Rule, we also need to put the "No Intentional Walks" rule so that those bone-headed, win-at-all costs coaches get with the program.

 

[cz fastpitch fan]

And the choir sings "AMEN".

Is that the law about every action having an equal and opposite reaction? (Newton's 3rd law of motion)?

 

[achs33]

yes, happened to my DD at the top 100 in Indiana this past weekend. 2-2 tie runners on 1st & 2nd 2 outs. She had 2 balls 2 strikes and the umpire's clock goes off and he tells everyone this is the last batter. She had a liner to right field with a runner on earlier in the game that went past the outfielder and she made it to third and the throw home was up the line and she scored and we took a 2-0 lead. Next pitch was high and outside to make it 3-2 and the fans in the stands were all telling her she had to swing at the next pitch and try and put it in play or the game would end in a tie. Coach on the other team heard the fans and the next pitch bounced 3x before it crossed home. After the game I told her she should have golfed it somewhere and that she is allowed to hit it off the turf.

 

[BouldersDad]

This has been happening for years happened to mine at best of best years ago.

 

[Tidedreams]

I also witnessed a team starting to come back in the last minutes and the opposing coach called a time out to talk to his pitcher. It was a young team vs. an older team the younger team was fighting all game to keep up, so there they were with the bases loaded with 30 seconds left and the opposing coach called a time out to talk to his pitcher and that was the end of the game. I don't understand let them play!!!!

 

[wvanalmsick]

And the choir sings "AMEN".

Is that the law about every action having an equal and opposite reaction? (Newton's 3rd law of motion)?

Yep. If we all think about that before acting, then we just might be better off.

 

[JoeA1010]

Many travel coaches simply don't know better. It never occurs to them that there is any difference between a regular tournament and a showcase. As a result, they are playing these games solely to win the game and college recruiting never enters their minds, despite college coaches sitting right there behind home plate. Coaches wasting time with trips to the circle, sac bunting, not letting catchers throw through on 1st-3rd plays, etc., just costs girls opportunities to show off their skills.

Worse yet is not having a roster (let alone an updated roster) available on the fence. Stingrays and most decent tournaments provide a booklet, but I was at a tournament in Michigan on Sunday that didn't provide a booklet. And then about half of the teams have no roster available and many of the players are in sweatshirts that often have no number, so where does that leave a college coach? Searching for a different game to watch.

I could count on one hand the number of times a travel coach or liaison came to me this weekend to ask what I wanted to see. It happened maybe twice at Stingrays on Saturday and once at the Michigan tourney on Sunday. The reason for a showcase tournament seems to be entirely lost on the majority of travel coaches in Ohio, and almost all of them in Michigan.

 

[dannyboy]

We were Indiana the weekend before, drop dead format, and the game could not end in a walk.
In Atlanta Legacy, if you get four balls, then you can request a new 0-0 count. There are solutions to all off this.

 

[cz fastpitch fan]

Many travel coaches simply don't know better. It never occurs to them that there is any difference between a regular tournament and a showcase. As a result, they are playing these games solely to win the game and college recruiting never enters their minds, despite college coaches sitting right there behind home plate. Coaches wasting time with trips to the circle, sac bunting, not letting catchers throw through on 1st-3rd plays, etc., just costs girls opportunities to show off their skills.

Worse yet is not having a roster (let alone an updated roster) available on the fence. Stingrays and most decent tournaments provide a booklet, but I was at a tournament in Michigan on Sunday that didn't provide a booklet. And then about half of the teams have no roster available and many of the players are in sweatshirts that often have no number, so where does that leave a college coach? Searching for a different game to watch.

I could count on one hand the number of times a travel coach or liaison came to me this weekend to ask what I wanted to see. It happened maybe twice at Stingrays on Saturday and once at the Michigan tourney on Sunday. The reason for a showcase tournament seems to be entirely lost on the majority of travel coaches in Ohio, and almost all of them in Michigan.

Excellent stuff, Joe!!

 

[longball00]

I agree about the showcasing, and not WINcasing, but here is a wrench for you. We are heading to Tenn for the ASA Eastern Elite Showcase in 2 weeks. The format is a 4 game showcase with the top 2 from each pool playing single elimination come Sunday. As a coach, how do you play that one out?

 

[cz fastpitch fan]

That is a totally different situation. You are playing in a tournament which has coaches in attendance.
You play ball like any other tourney in which you desire to play late on Sunday. Period.

 

[longball00]

That is a totally different situation. You are playing in a tournament which has coaches in attendance.
You play ball like any other tourney in which you desire to play late on Sunday. Period.

That's my thought as well. Just wanted to throw it out there to see what others thought. Thanks!

 

[coachjwb]

Yes, definitely different in that you at least need to advance to Sunday to increase the opportunity for your players to get the maximum exposure. Me personally, I am still not going to intentionally walk someone to run out the time to do that though ...