Commitment

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dolara, I didn't say they should commit to a single sport at 14U. I said that's the age at which most do make a decision on what year-round commitments to make. There's a fit out there for any schedule, but merely ignoring the off season practices of one team (I'm not addressing this to dolara, just in general) is not fair.

I know of a girl who played on a highly competitive travel team, and played AAU basketball, which also has a high level of commitment. She was one of the better players on the travel team, and had a good relationship with the coach. Up to 14U, the coach allowed her to even miss tournaments for basketball commitments. Everything was fine - until the other parents expressed their feelings that it wasn't fair, and they threatened to leave, and the coach had to make a decision. As much as I know the girl and her family are great people, doing the best they could, I agree it wasn't fair to the rest of team.

And I see plenty of athletes who letter in multiple sports (they don't all commit to a year-round team out of school for every sport), but I'm dismayed at the level at which high school coaches discourage multiple sport play, and "unofficially" ask for a near year-round commitment. I'm guessing that will get worse (but not for me as we're nearly out).

 

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What is the right age ????????????
My daughter plays softball,volleyball,basketball, and did track last year, but just went to her mom the other day and said she wants to give up some of the other sports and focus on 1 maybe 2 she is in 8th grade. just turned 14??????

 

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This is a very interesting and popular thread that pop's up every winter when us diehards are bored to death...lol. I have to disagree when someone above stated that the days of 2 or 3 sport stars are forever gone. I remember just 2 or 3 years ago when Cat Osterman was a Sr. I was watching one the NCAA tournament games and the announcers were stating that the Texas CF was "All State" in 3 sports, (Texas is a fairly large state) and that by playing several sports brought out all the strength, speed and agility that she might not have had if she only focused on 1 sport. This player was a definate a stud hitter/fielder.

One of my own DD's is a 2 sport star and even though she is only a sophmore, she refuses to give either one up because she truely loves both sports. She seldom misses any events in either sport and works on both throughout the year, and as long as she is willing to give 100% to both sports, I will give a 100% effort in getting her to all practice's, games ect.

JMHO...it can be done with hard work

Lee Pyles

 

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"I think once you start making concessions for big hitters who aren't acting responsibly, you're asking for trouble."

You're right, A.S.M., concessions should only be made for top pitchers!

Seriously, though, it's a lot easier for one-sport coaches and one-sport players to commit to a year-round softball schedule than it is for multi-sport coaches and players. Personally, I say leave the kids alone in the winter. Provide opportunities for them to work on things if they want to, but don't make a kid or her parents feel guilty for dedicating full attention to school (remember school?) and the sport that is IN-SEASON. You guys sound like premier ****** coaches. Their season NEVER ENDS either!

At the recent Heisman Trophy presentation show, the winner, Sam Bradford (Oklahoma QB, Sophomore), made a point of saying that playing a lot of sports is ABSOLUTELY the way to go. He said that he was a senior in high school before he decided that he'd go on to play football in college.

If you want a one-sport committment from MY daughter, then show me a full-ride guarantee for softball to a Division I school with a curriculum that will meet her educational needs. Either that, or just be glad she's willing to play for your team when the SEASON STARTS.

14 is NOT the age at which an athlete should commit to a single sport-- unless that athlete is very average at every sport but one. An athlete with potential to earn a scholarship in multiple sports should keep her options open. After all, with the exception of tennis and golf, there isn't a lot of money to be made in women's sports -- so the free education is the thing. That being the case, as a parent I find it extremely selfish of a softball coach to make off season demands on a player that would tend to compromise her ability to do her best in the IN season sport. In the end, I'm afraid, it's NOT about the TEAM. It's about the INDIVIDUAL'S goal to get help paying for an expensive education. In late Spring and Summer, the club team softball coach has every right to make demands on players. In Fall and Winter? No way. If you don't want multiple-sport players on your team, then don't pick any. It's not brain surgery.

I don't think anyone on here is advocating that girls only play one sport. If a girl wants to play multiple sports, they should. Every coach on here understands that part of it. Your posts have nothing to do with the original post, which is, this guy has 3 girls who don't understand the word committment. They come when they please, and think that they can just miss workouts because it's the offseason. If you don't want to do some sort of workout year round then you should be playing rec. Period. There's nothing wrong with playing rec. It's for fun and the girls can hang out with their friends. If you want to play competitive travel ball, you need to be doing something, whether it be working out on your own or with your team, pretty much year round. Most orgs give the girls most of August and Sept. off. There's your break. If you play multi sports, then get some swings in a couple of times a week in front of a mirror, but do something. If you're not playing multi sports, then be at practice or expect to be kicked off the team. Period. There is no room on a travel team for prima donnas who think that they are bigger than the team. I don't care how good you are, if you don't show, and don't call, you should be gone.

Your attitude alarms me, and I thank the good Lord that you and your kid are not on my kid's team!

 

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My husband took on the manager's position for my younger DDs team this year. He printed out a welcome letter with expectations/rules/attendance policy/payment plans, etc. He has two players (and face it at 14 under its parents too) that are out of compliance. One of the girls does play basketball but she doesn't come when she doesn't have basketball either and that is a problem. If you play another sport it's understood that you will miss for practices/games for the winter season but come when you can. So, what he is doing is giving the parents written notice that they are not in compliance and they have until January 31st to show that they are committed (through compliance with attendance, etc.) or they are no longer welcome on the team. Tough call but it isn't fair to the rest of the team that works hard and wants to improve.

 

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I've never understood the animosity towards the multi-sport player. Why does everything have to be about college scholarships? I don't think it is wrong at all for a talented athlete to want to play at a level above rec in more than one sport. They are supposedly still kids.

Looking at this thread and some other ones, I'm starting to get a little confused. Do the best players start or the ones who have the best attendance at off-season workouts? Everybody wants to preach that the best should play, it is all about winning and that everything has to be earned. If a player is better with less effort given to off-season softball than another player, hasn't she still earned her position? She has developed those skills (even if it was partially in other sports or on her own) and if she is 100% committed in-season and produces better results on Sundays, what is really the problem? I think it is very unfair to have negative consequences or to think negatively of a girl who has basketball 6 days a week and would like a day off on Sunday. Or would prefer to work on volleyball on Sundays in the winter during the softball off-season.

 

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Coming to practice isn't just about honing your skills, it's about building team rapport and showing a level of commitment to the team.

If off-season practices are clearly optional by the team's rules, fine. But if you join a team and you know attendance is expected, you should be there or have a reasonable excuse. There are plenty of teams out there - certainly there's one with practice rules that fit your schedule.

This is not about limiting players to one sport - it's about complying with a team's rules, whether you're the best player or not, and being an equal - not favored - player along with your teammates.

 

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You can build all the team rapport you need in the spring and summer.

What is a reasonable excuse? I get the impression that if you have absolutely nothing else scheduled in your life at that time, you are expected at softball. The team rule of mandatory year round attendance at softball is the problem. My personal opinion is that is a little unfair. And a little presumptuous to expect softball to be the most important thing in your players' lives. What about family, homework, friends, downtime, etc.? Just time to be kids and in most cases, the fact that it is off-season should be a reasonable enough excuse. I just don't agree with kids going non-stop 7 days a week, 52 weeks a year.

I would rather see coaches step up the schedule in-season when EVERYONE is focused on softball than worry about how far behind girls are getting because they are missing some hitting instruction and winter softball conditioning for whatever hours through the winter. Are they really missing an insurmountable amount of time by missing some or most of these practices? Also keep in mind that they are getting all the conditioning they need if they are playing basketball.

If a girl is not ready to perform in the spring, her playing time should reflect that and she has only herself to blame. But if she shows up ready to perform, with a great attitude, 110% committed to softball and can help the team win on Sundays, has she not honored her commitment to the team?

 

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Let's try a hypothetical. A team is put together in the fall and begins practicing and playing in a double-header league on Sundays. Two players are playing other sports (one in school and one in a rec league) and have each had some practice conflicts but both have made all the games.

Assume that 100 is the top of a scale that you believe your absolute best player can reach by the end of summer.

Player A has a lot of natural ability but does not have the work ethic to match. To start, she is a 70 on your scale. She also will be missing some winter practices.

Player B has less natural ability but a great work ethic outside of practice and a passion for the game. However, she is a 40 to start. She will not be missing any winter practices.

Both players improve thru the fall and winter and you are ready to play your first real (i.e. outdoor) tournament in the spring.

Both players want to play shortstop and that is what the team needs - one at shortstop and one playing less somewhere else. Player A has improved 10 points and is now at 80. Player B has worked harder and improved much more and is now at 70, an increase of 30 points.

At the time of the first tournament, who is starting at shortstop?

 

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Interesting thread. My two cents are that you teach commitment as a parent through your own actions and then hope your dd follows your lead. As they get older, they just have to love the game enough to make it a priority in their lives. I got the nicest Christmas present this week when after coming home from a charity tournament my dd says to me..."Dad, I love softball." If they don't love the game then it's highly doubtful you'll ever get the kind of commitment that will take you to levels beyond rec or local travel teams. JMO

 

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I think that setting expectations is important and it must be done early. With older teams (14U and up) I would communicate this many to the players. At the younger ages parents must be involved.

As for multiple sports I have never told a player that they had to make a choice one way or another. I do my best to motivate them to work hard on their softball skills if thats what they are willing to do. We make everything available to all of the players equally and some take more advantage of it then others. I personally think that players who participate in multiple sports have a well rounded edge to them. Of course nothing comes without sacrifice. Being at the top level of multiple sports is possible, but very difficult.

Last year we had a pitcher who also played basketball (and was a very good player), and even during her basketball season she worked very hard on her pitching. It took a little bit of a toll on her physically but she really improved her pitching skills and had a great season. What she was not able to work on as much was her batting. To some extent it suffered a little bit during the season. This year she decided (along with her family) to concentrate on pitching and hitting equally, and she has not missed one of our practices. I have no doubt that she will be a major factor offensively this coming season but like I mentioned earlier, it comes at a price. She decided not to play basketball this season. I am sure that on some level she misses it. In this case the player and her family made this decision, I would have never pushed her to do that. Instead she looked at where she stacked up vs the rest of the hitters on the team and decided that she needed to do some more work in that area to be where she wanted to be. In the end I think that this is what you want your players to do. Set a goal, commit to it, and then execute it. It is fun to watch when it all comes together.

I learned long ago that if you push players too far (with regards to what sports they play) then you run the risk of pushing them away. This is just something we have to work with and work around in small town midwest.

 

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The team rule of mandatory year round attendance at softball is the problem.

Only if you join a team with a rule of mandatory year round practice. If you don't like a team's rules, join another team. If you join a team, you agree to the team's rules, and I think that's a very important lesson. You don't agree by joining, then ignore the rules - is that a good lesson to teach?

If you want to encourage a new wave of teams having less off-season practice, I'd be with you. After 14U, I personally don't think it's as important, and players can do a lot on their own. I don't think 2-3 practices a week off-season is necessary, but when my daughter was on a team that did that, she went to practice unless she had a good excuse (sick, school activities including other sports, family commitment, etc.).

 

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The original post didn't specify exactly what the agreements put in place were although I don't doubt that something was put in place. I am assuming that it was vague enough to cause conflict on what to do; otherwise, it's an easy decision for the coach if the agreement was attend or else. Of course, that assumes that he can get new players to take their place that will play at or above the absentee player's level. You could actually be doing more harm to the team in-season worrying about off-season practices.

On a personal note, I don't disagree with you ASM. My family has not taken a family vacation in 7 years. Why? My oldest daughter started 7th grade playing 3 sports and our kids are not allowed to miss even an open gym so they have either had practices over school breaks or open gyms and softball in the summer.

I actually believe the 'new wave' is all teams feeling like they have to practice all year to be considered serious. Every time I see a post asking what girls should be doing in the winter, I always want to answer it by saying 'play basketball', which is what our players were encouraged to do.

Several years ago when there were far less teams, we didn't embarrass ourselves on the field and we took November and December completely off and practiced only on Sundays starting in January with the kids that could make it. Of course, when the weather broke and the traditional 'softball season' arrived, we expected everyone to be focused and dedicated to softball and we worked our tails off. It's been 5 years since I was involved in 12U ball, but the majority of teams I've seen so far are not anywhere near as good as most of the teams were back then.

My opinion is that you can only effectively work indoors one day a week on individual skills, not team skills. You collectively teach them how to field the same way, etc. but it is still individual skills. Is what is being accomplished in the small amount time that you are working in the winter worth all the aggravation over a line in the sand that in my opinion, doesn't make sense anyway?

The pursuit of a college scholarship is an individual pursuit. It certainly helps if your team is good enough to play in the exposure tournaments, but it is still an individual pursuit. Players seeking that goal will work hard individually and gravitate towards teams that promote that goal. Those are the teams who should be having year round mandatory skills practices. Or they can leave their already dedicated players on their own. All other teams should, as someone else posted, make opportunities available to those players who do want to train in the winter. To have mandatory (or else) winter practices for a team not seeking college scholarships seems silly to me. How many hours are we really talking about here?

 

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Our team doesn't have multiple practices. We practice on Sundays and have voluntary conditioning on Tuesdays and Thursdays for girls that are interested. Our team's problem isn't with girls that occassionally miss or play other sports (we have 6 or 7 girls playing more than softball) but with girls who rarely if ever show up, do not participate in team building activities or fundraisers or practice and who seem disinterested when they do come. It is a lack of commitment issue - not a scheduling issue.

My daughters played travel basketball rec basketball and school basketball for years and did off-season softball as often as they could possibly be there - because they wanted to. Nobody would ever have doubted their commitment regardless of their "attendance".

 

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Our team doesn't have multiple practices. We practice on Sundays and have voluntary conditioning on Tuesdays and Thursdays for girls that are interested. Our team's problem isn't with girls that occassionally miss or play other sports (we have 6 or 7 girls playing more than softball) but with girls who rarely if ever show up, do not participate in team building activities or fundraisers or practice and who seem disinterested when they do come. It is a lack of commitment issue - not a scheduling issue.

Bingo!!

 

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MAN!!!! I did'nt mean to cause such a uproar, and am not willing to go into tremendous detail on who I am and which team I am affiliated with. I will tell you facts, fact1: We all were told of mandatory practices, in offseason we would continue practices. we have 1 practice a week usually for 2 hrs also winter ball was optional at batters box which is 1 hour on sundays. I know that stinks because its sunday and church should be the mainstay. However the games are for 6 weeks to keep in touch with the game. Fact 2: Not all the girls have played winterball due to basketball, volleyball, which coaches including me have no problem with them as long as they are active. Fact 3: We have 1 who missed to go shopping and one who is not playing any other sport but is re***ing at home. Also we have 1 who just wanted the whole winter off. So I guess the point I am making is you play this game by CHOICE! If you are not there on working with what our team concepts and expectations are then you get behind the teaching, and I read a comment earlier that we could practice in spring. THAT IS FALSE, once school ball starts coaches have to have no communication with school ball, this is why these practices are necassary and important! I personally wanted my daughter to find a team who did practice all winter, one to keep working in offseason with no pressure, and two to get to know her teamates, last year we played and only new the girls the last 3 weeks of the year!! And we were suppose to be a team, anamosity runs rampid with girls trying to prove they are better than the other girls. Thats not being a team. I respect any girl who wants to play 1,2,or even 3 sports. If you make a commitment to our team though give me 2 hours a week! I dont think its to much to ask for!

 

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some of these posts think were asking these girls to practice 3 and 4 days a week! sorry if it sounds mean

 

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Go BIG DADDY. 2 hours is not a big deal.

Your thread sparked lots of debate like one I had before. Similar in some ways but a different topic.
http://www.game-ex.com/vb3/showthread.php?t=13254

 

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she should be there when she can be but also remember as coaches we are recruiting these great athletes and not to often do they just play softball. if a girl has any other reason then i guess the three strike rule is probably not bad.then you run into a die hard girl who s parents arent in to it but she is .i had a girl last year great great athlete good friends with my daughter who i took to everything now her parents are splitting up and i cant get ahold of them and even that i have to draw the line somewhere its hard enough getting my daughter to 6 months of ****** 3months of basketball 11 months of softball and between all those missed one practice this year

 

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--- Won't this problem solve itself come spring when the fruits of winter practices become apparent? Certainly, do what you can to get as many players together as possible in the winter. When spring comes, those who are ready to play... will play. Players may be working out individually. It will show...and they will play. If they have not worked, it will show... and they will not play. If a player can sit on their duff all winter and perform better than the girls who have practiced, what does that say for your practices?

You can't control everything, all the time. The trick is to figure out what is in your control and what isn't, and act accordingly. You will save yourself a lot of grief in the long run.

JMO