What were some of the good/bad tryouts you attended

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My DD went to a few try-outs this year for 16u (15u) (should have stopped at the first). At the end of the first try-out the girls were told that if they made the team they would get a phone call in a couple of days. They did not lie, she recieved a call 48 hours later offering her a spot. For a first year organization, they put everything on paper and we knew what to expect. They also didn't hand out any promises that they couldn't uphold.

However, to not put "her eggs in one basket" she went to another one on Sunday (well established organization). Bad mistake-she showed up, did paperwork, and received her number. Other girls went up to the coach (returning players) and asked if they had to wear a number and was disgusted at having to put it on. Right in front of my DD! The coaches had no idea what to do. While the girls were hitting off the machine the others were suppose to be shagging the balls. But, as I looked around I noticed that only the girls that were "trying out" were on the field. The returnig girls were rude and obnoxious to say the least. My DD looked at me and we left right at the end. She later told me that she could tell that there would be drama on the team and she wants no part of it. She gladly turned down that request. Why have them try-out if you are already going to return them? just makes for a longer try-out.

The best tip that I could give to parents is to listen to your DDs thoughts after the try-outs. It might be a well known organization, but she can see right through that. Remember THEY have to deal with the team more than you do.

And coaches--remember you are trying out for the girls as well. Maybe talk to them once in awhile at try-outs and not just your returning players.

 

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Just a few thoughts on tryouts I attended:
- Marion Merchants tryouts were well run and organized. It flowed nicely and instructions were clear.
- Central Ohio Ice tryouts were also excellent. Everything was well planned and no one was ever confused about what they had to do. It was definitely the most well run tryout I have been to.
- Heart of Ohio tryouts were not incredibly organized. For example, at the start they were simply hitting grounders and having us throw them and there were balls flying everywhere! Also, there were many times when we were not given instructions. Part of the problem was the large turnout.
- I expected to be impressed with Lasers tryouts, but I was not because they were too scattered and disorganized. When we were running, they told us not to step on the bases and to cut them short. Some people cut them slightly short, and some by 3-5 feet, so the times varied a lot based on things other than the runners' actual speed.
- Ohio Dragons tryouts were not amazing but were well planned. They had it all planned out, but there were many times during hitting when the coaches had no instructions for what to do next. They ran almost two hours past the published end time, which wasn't a big deal for me but might have been for people with other plans.

 

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My Dear hubby informed me that I misspoke waaayyy back on page 2. I said we had tried out for the Buckeye Heat last weekend, when DD actually had tried out for the Heart of Ohio. It went well and NOW she is looking forward to the Buckeye Heat tryouts this weekend! Just needed to clarify in case someone thought I was crazy since the Heat didn't even have tryouts last weekend!

 

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How many times do you see girls that can't slide??? Should be a part of a tryout as well. Costs way too many runs during a summer when they can't.

You would be surprised... at our 11u tryout at least 1 in 10 was bad, several came up short of the bag.

 

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Truth, that was more like wishful thinking on my part. Traditionally, our coaches have not extended an automatic invite to the team for returning players. All must earn the position. On the subject of being out of my mind, talk to my wife.

I think most teams either offer or don't offer spots to potential returning players. After a few years, I just ordered the coaches in our organization to either offer a returning girl a spot or don't. After at least a full year, the coach knows whether he wants a girl to return. Any equivocation is usually just trying to buy time to see if someone better comes along.

I had a few years in a row where my team was looking for 0 pitchers, 0 catchers, 0 infielders and one or two pure outfielders. We would simply advertise that in our tryout notice and that way girls didn't need to waste their time coming unless they were an outfielder. Yes, that meant a lot of good girls would not come to the try out, but we had already decided on most of our team and weren't going to change our mind, so why bother?

 

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Bugstattoo,

I totally agree with you. I put myself in a players/parents shoes coming to a tryout for the first time. It can be intimadating? to come to a tryout and you see several girls with that teams uniforms/shirts on and in most cases just goofing around and being part of the tryouts. I feel (opinion), if your returning players are going to make the team already maybe they should try out at all. But I strongly feel that after the season is over that you are no longer on that team and you(player) need to try out again for the following season. EARN YOUR POSITION and place on the team. Sure there is loyalty there, but don't hand it to them and aren't teams always looking to improve?? If you as a coach did a god job with the team the players will return and work hard to earn a spot with you; competition is a good thing.

 

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I think most teams either offer or don't offer spots to potential returning players. After a few years, I just ordered the coaches in our organization to either offer a returning girl a spot or don't. After at least a full year, the coach knows whether he wants a girl to return. Any equivocation is usually just trying to buy time to see if someone better comes along.

I had a few years in a row where my team was looking for 0 pitchers, 0 catchers, 0 infielders and one or two pure outfielders. We would simply advertise that in our tryout notice and that way girls didn't need to waste their time coming unless they were an outfielder. Yes, that meant a lot of good girls would not come to the try out, but we had already decided on most of our team and weren't going to change our mind, so why bother?

Joe
Thats the way everyone should do it.
Both tryouts we went to had returning players and you could tell.
Teams should advertise what they need.



Straightleg

 

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You would be surprised... at our 11u tryout at least 1 in 10 was bad, several came up short of the bag.

Isn't the point of having fall and winter practices to teach?

 

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At 9 or 10u I would agree but these girls are coming out of 10u into 12u - I expected them all to be able to slide - some better than others - but when they tumble into the base it is surprising...

 

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Just a few thoughts on tryouts I attended:
- Central Ohio Ice tryouts were also excellent. Everything was well planned and no one was ever confused about what they had to do. It was definitely the most well run tryout I have been to.

Sevensss,

Thanks for the kudos on last Saturday's Central Ohio Ice tryout. The 3-hr planning session we had the Wednesday prior was the key. At least 1 coach for each Ice team attended the meeting and that participation & planning definitely paid off.

Kirk

 

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At 9 or 10u I would agree but these girls are coming out of 10u into 12u - I expected them all to be able to slide - some better than others - but when they tumble into the base it is surprising...

Tumble or come up short? Not all are coming "up" from 10U, some are just starting from rec leagues etc. I would agree they should be able to slide - some better than others - Most won't have a perfect swing, stance, or throwing motion either. But if she has speed, strength and a good attitude those things can all be coached along with sliding.

 

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I agree with Real Estate. My dd came into travel from rec league at 10U. Although she was good at rec league, travel was a whole new ball game. She had to be taught alot of the "proper" techniques. The best form of swinging the bat...best form to catch, etc..
Should be alot of teaching at 10/11U.

 

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My Dear hubby informed me that I misspoke waaayyy back on page 2. I said we had tried out for the Buckeye Heat last weekend, when DD actually had tried out for the Heart of Ohio. It went well and NOW she is looking forward to the Buckeye Heat tryouts this weekend! Just needed to clarify in case someone thought I was crazy since the Heat didn't even have tryouts last weekend!

:lmao: That's okay, we won't hold it against you. Make sure you say hello, I'll be there all day Saturday and Sunday.:cap:

 

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A mom called me today to say "I told you so" about a certain new northeast Ohio fastpitch program. She had complained that it did not appear that anyone was actually watching or writing down anything when the girls were hitting, fielding, etc. She said there was a huge turnout but that there didn't seem to be much evaluation going on. She also said that her daughter was hands down the best (not one of the best-- the best) hitter and fielder there.

Today she got a phone call from a young "coach" who told her that her daughter had NOT been selected. She had spoken with a few other parents who are aware of this team and had come to the conclusion that the head of the program-- who is a local high school coach-- is simply trying to build her high school program through this travel team while making money at the same time.

"Check the 14U roster when it comes out," said the mother. "They'll all be kids who are eligible to play for her high school team."

Now THAT would be a BAD tryout.

 

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I agree with Real Estate. My dd came into travel from rec league at 10U. Although she was good at rec league, travel was a whole new ball game. She had to be taught alot of the "proper" techniques. The best form of swinging the bat...best form to catch, etc..
Should be alot of teaching at 10/11U.

10U should be nothing but teaching. If I was to coach a 10U team, I would have at least 4 other coaches. But that is for another thread.

 

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Sevensss, thank you for the nice comment and for attending our try out. Thanks to all the coaches for their help and most importantly to the girls who tried out across all age groups. All teams rosters have been set and girls contatcted either way. Very impressed with most of the girls, softball in Ohio is on the up swing. Thank You

Eric Shirk
Marion Merchants Softball

 

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There is a relationship between this issue of last season's players wearing uniforms or having to do all the stations and the question whether last season's players have already been told whether they are being invited back to the team. As Joe noted above, the Buckeye Heat's policy is to go into tryouts knowing which of the girls will be returning. We don't instruct our returning girls to come in uniform but we encourage some type of identifying spirit wear, we don't give them try-out numbers, we introduce them to the girls who are trying out and we explain they are there to work out and to allow the try-out girls to get a feel for the team they would be playing with. We also explain all of that to the parents of young ladies who are trying out.

The returning players always get really excited about the home to first and home to home time competitions, so we make sure they all do that, but otherwise they help make drills work in a way that gives the try-out candidate an opportunity to show her skills at her primary and secondary positions.

We can do this because we advertise very specifically for the number of girls and positions we need, so if there are ton of returning girls, no one arriving at the try out should be ticked off or disappointed that there are so many girls there who have already made the team.

 

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There is a relationship between this issue of last season's players wearing uniforms or having to do all the stations and the question whether last season's players have already been told whether they are being invited back to the team. As Joe noted above, the Buckeye Heat's policy is to go into tryouts knowing which of the girls will be returning. We don't instruct our returning girls to come in uniform but we encourage some type of identifying spirit wear, we don't give them try-out numbers, we introduce them to the girls who are trying out and we explain they are there to work out and to allow the try-out girls to get a feel for the team they would be playing with. We also explain all of that to the parents of young ladies who are trying out.

The returning players always get really excited about the home to first and home to home time competitions, so we make sure they all do that, but otherwise they help make drills work in a way that gives the try-out candidate an opportunity to show her skills at her primary and secondary positions.

We can do this because we advertise very specifically for the number of girls and positions we need, so if there are ton of returning girls, no one arriving at the try out should be ticked off or disappointed that there are so many girls there who have already made the team.

We do the opposite. Our returning players are specifically told not to wear any identifying gear. They are told not intermingle with fellow teammates. They are told not huddle in their "clicks". They run through the drills and complete the tryout just like all the others. Because I do reserve the right to change my mind. I am presenting a product on the field and if I show favoritsm from the get go, how will the girls and parents feel. There is no high fiving, or "hanging" around the coaches. The coaches dont shoot the breeze with the returning parents.
Just how we do it. Probably not the right way, but works for us.

 

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Akedema1:

Perhaps the difference is that we don't reserve the right to rescind our commitment, given to players three weeks before tryouts, that those we wanted to return had a spot on the team. The Buckeye Heat girls at the tryout also have given us their commitment to return to the team.

I can see how the balance would tip in the direction of your rules when the players from the previous season are still on the bubble with respect to their spot, and especially if you have advertised that every position is open. In our case, since we know we aren't going to cut any of the Buckeye Heat girls that we make a commitment to, and since we advertised the significant limitations on our search for additional players, we think it's better for the girls trying out to see how the returning players deal with each other and with potentially new players.

 

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You would be surprised... at our 11u tryout at least 1 in 10 was bad, several came up short of the bag.

I'm not surprised....