OK,
Here is my take on this. ?Being a "deaf" coach, other teams cheering does not bother me and even when I do hear them I am too focused on the game to even pay attention. ?My current team has never broached the topic of cheering and neither did I. ?They generally do two cheers, a team cheer before the game and the same cheer after the game. ?During the game, there is no cheering. Why not? Well, I guess it is because I ask them to do certain things during the game.
1. Support and offer encouragment to the batters when on offense and the team when on defense. ?These girls would rather hear "nice hit" , "good catch", "good play" from their teammates. ?This is more personal and show care and support for your teammates.
2. Your attention is better served by studying the opponents defense, i.e. who has the strong arm, how strong is the catchers throw, does she try to pick off runner? ?How does the ball rebound off of the backstop? ?How deep does the outfield play? ?
3. Shout out how many outs there are to help remind the runners when on offense and the runners when on defense. ?(Honestly, after the last tournament, we still need to work on this. Partly for the players and the "deaf" coach)
4.When coming back to the bench, inform the rest of the team what the pitcher is throwing and how the umpire is calling balls and strikes. ?
5. Watch how the defense plays the bunt and who covers the bases and even more important, who doesn't cover the bases-especially 3rd.
6. Watch for anything that will help your team, such as the opposing coaches signs or set plays they seem to call in certain situations.
I could go on, but you get the idea. ?Some coaches will say that the cheers motivates their teams. ?Me? ?I think the team that pays attention to the finer points of the game is more prepared to win. ?So far - it has worked well. ?So my feeling is if you want to cheer - be my guest. It does not bother me or my team at all. ? If you want to see a team studying the game - look across the field.