Doe's this just bother me?????

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I have to agree with the Lenster on this one. I've seen some Slow-pitch men's leagues where you couldn't pay me a million dollars to get on that infield when they were hitting. The majority of the teams and leagues are for old, beer-sogged men who can barely make it to 1st base, let alone bend down to catch a grounder. But there are leagues with guys who know the game, can play the game, and will take your head off in the process of kicking your a$$!!!

Yes - they can really smash a ball that's LOBBED to them. Most at the "commercial" level are also in very good physical shape. But if they are truly as "high level" as described, why are they not playing adult baseball??? Or world class men's fastpitch??? I stand by my claim of "adult bumper bowling"... Training to hit a lobbed pitch IS NOT a "high level sport" by any standard, and especially not even in the same classification as fastpitch. It's still glorified homerun derby. It obviously takes a LOT of strength training and modified swing practice, but that doesn't qualify it as a "high level sport" any more than a "bumper bowling" contest would be.

Honestly, with the advantage of testosterone and advanced strength training, these men SHOULD be able to hit a soft-toss pitch with a $400 high tech bat (illegal for some odd reason in real fastpitch ;&) into the next county!

Slow-pitch is "slow pitch" for a reason! Sorry, but the game was designed for less skilled individuals to have success because... EVERYONE CAN HIT! Now, let's add in a hard core ball and a triple wall trampoline bat, and you've got a whole lot of "feel good" goin' on!

Now, if you want to put the likes of Hillhouse out there in the circle, and these guys can STILL crush those long bombs (with legal balls/bats) then I'll have a sip of that Cool-Aid!

Yes, for me it's about the pitching. Why is it S-L-O-W when in real softball (and baseball) the batters are actually challenged? Why the slow pitching??

 

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Holy Canoli!!! Really?! Is this what we have been reduced to? I can hardly believe my eyes.lol...this is great,thanks for the laughs...

 

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If curling is considered a sport then slo-pitch undoubtedly is. My rule of thumb is - if it requires running then it's a sport. If it doesn't, then it may be questionable.

When I was in the Air Force we didn't have a baseball or fastpitch option (Montana). Had a lot of fun playing slo pitch though. Try playing outfield with a white ball during a snowstorm and tell me it's not a sport!

 

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Yes - they can really smash a ball that's LOBBED to them. Most at the "commercial" level are also in very good physical shape. But if they are truly as "high level" as described, why are they not playing adult baseball??? Or world class men's fastpitch??? I stand by my claim of "adult bumper bowling"... Training to hit a lobbed pitch IS NOT a "high level sport" by any standard, and especially not even in the same classification as fastpitch. It's still glorified homerun derby. It obviously takes a LOT of strength training and modified swing practice, but that doesn't qualify it as a "high level sport" any more than a "bumper bowling" contest would be.

Honestly, with the advantage of testosterone and advanced strength training, these men SHOULD be able to hit a soft-toss pitch with a $400 high tech bat (illegal for some odd reason in real fastpitch ;&) into the next county!

Slow-pitch is "slow pitch" for a reason! Sorry, but the game was designed for less skilled individuals to have success because... EVERYONE CAN HIT! Now, let's add in a hard core ball and a triple wall trampoline bat, and you've got a whole lot of "feel good" goin' on!

Now, if you want to put the likes of Hillhouse out there in the circle, and these guys can STILL crush those long bombs (with legal balls/bats) then I'll have a sip of that Cool-Aid!

Yes, for me it's about the pitching. Why is it S-L-O-W when in real softball (and baseball) the batters are actually challenged? Why the slow pitching??

Sammy, slow pitch softball is not a game dominated by the pitcher, it is dominated by the hitters and fielders. Just because it is not pitcher dominated doesn't mean it cannot be played at a high-level. Many A level slow pitch players were MLB players at one time or were in the minors and never made the big show so they were let go for the younger guys coming up. The main reason these guys didn't make it was primarily because they couldn't hit an off-speed pitch, if they were a pitcher their arm gave out, or there was another flaw in their game that scouts noticed.

Bat technology is a problem in all forms of ball, even your beloved FP.

Since you believe slow pitch cannot be high level, why don't you get the best players you know, put a team together, and play a major slow pitch team and see if you can actually score a run, then come back on here and post the results.

Len

 

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Its been about five years since I have played (at least five years) and I played for many years; I agree with Lenski its a game of hitting and fielding. The league I was in one rule was after five home runs in a game the following were outs. And it wasn't the easiest to hit one out of the park. I was a pitcher and I took one right in the "Christmas bulbs". This guy must have been 6'7' 250 lbs. All I remember was letting go of the pitch and I never seen it come back to me. I couldn't get the words out to say call an ambulance; man did that stink. I also played third base; but after that i was not the same. We weren't a "beer drinking" team; but just like my dd softball we made may life long friendships.

 

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Scott, maybe as a service to OFC you should set up a website where dads can submit a pic of what they plan on wearing to a camp? That would be awesome!
I'm at a camp today with my dd. When I got out of the car I realized I had a Watterson (yes I know we are div 3 state champs in football) shirt on. I thought of you right away. Honestly I was paralyzed. Immediately I thought, WWSD what would Scott do? I have no idea??!! Please PM me cause I'm in my car confused. Oh, and where can I get one of those WWSD tattoos?

 

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Funny thing is I can actually see Buckeye MCS sitting in the car confused

 

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Since you believe slow pitch cannot be high level, why don't you get the best players you know, put a team together, and play a major slow pitch team and see if you can actually score a run, then come back on here and post the results.

Len

My goodness Len, don't take it so peersonal....lol....but heck, go ahead and have your little game as you suggest, then who ever wins that game, you bring them to my field and play my college team and see if they can score a run....or better yet, even have a base runner against us....and we will probably hit 25 home runs off your pitcher......:lmao::lmao:

 

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My goodness Len, don't take it so peersonal....lol....but heck, go ahead and have your little game as you suggest, then who ever wins that game, you bring them to my field and play my college team and see if they can score a run....or better yet, even have a base runner against us....and we will probably hit 25 home runs off your pitcher......:lmao::lmao:

I think I would pay to see this game....

 

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I think I would pay to see this game....

I would too......

 

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I remember when we were waitng for a game to finish at a tournament, the pitcher (whom I knew and had played with in the past) took a shot to his face, it drove his jaw bone back behind his ear, shattered his cheek bone and orbital bone. Later that summer, he was back out there wearing a batters helmet while pitching (it was the only way they would let him play), this was 12-15 yrs ago so masks weren't available to my knowledge. The upper levels of softball are extremely competitive with very good athletes involved. We use to play in the top two leagues in Columbus (which involved all travel teams) and the level of play was very good. Lots of ex-baseball guys (minor leaguers, college guys, etc.). The truth is 99% of the teams out there are not very good, but at the highest levels there are some very good teams.

 

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I remember when we were waitng for a game to finish at a tournament, the pitcher (whom I knew and had played with in the past) took a shot to his face, it drove his jaw bone back behind his ear, shattered his cheek bone and orbital bone. Later that summer, he was back out there wearing a batters helmet while pitching (it was the only way they would let him play), this was 12-15 yrs ago so masks weren't available to my knowledge. The upper levels of softball are extremely competitive with very good athletes involved. We use to play in the top two leagues in Columbus (which involved all travel teams) and the level of play was very good. Lots of ex-baseball guys (minor leaguers, college guys, etc.). The truth is 99% of the teams out there are not very good, but at the highest levels there are some very good teams.

Exactly bambam.

I think most pitchers now use the hockey style catchers masks and wear either sokker shin guards or catcher leg guards.

Len

 

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it's funny we keep using the phrase "high level" and "men's slowpitch"

that's like some of our daughter's softball schedules!

 

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I've been following this thread since it started, and I think there is a point that everyone is missing...It's all relative. If you are proud of your kid, at whatever level, wear her team colors. She doesn't have to be on the top team in the State. One thing I've learned over the years is that no matter how great you think you are, there is always somebody who is better. But that doesn't mean you don't have a right to be proud. I still play competetive sport at the club level. Even though I am old enough to play at the seniors level, I still compete with current college players, and sometimes I get a win. Is that "high level" sport? I like to think so, although some might disagree. Am I proud of that? Sure. Do I wear my State Club Champion t-shirt around? You bet. Does that make me all that and a Bag of Chips? Heck no! But just because I might not be the best in the world, I still have a right to be proud of my/my DD's accomplishments, be they ever so humble. It doesn't matter whether it's a "high level" accomplishment or not.

 

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I've been following this thread since it started, and I think there is a point that everyone is missing...It's all relative. If you are proud of your kid, at whatever level, wear her team colors. She doesn't have to be on the top team in the State. One thing I've learned over the years is that no matter how great you think you are, there is always somebody who is better. But that doesn't mean you don't have a right to be proud. I still play competetive sport at the club level. Even though I am old enough to play at the seniors level, I still compete with current college players, and sometimes I get a win. Is that "high level" sport? I like to think so, although some might disagree. Am I proud of that? Sure. Do I wear my State Club Champion t-shirt around? You bet. Does that make me all that and a Bag of Chips? Heck no! But just because I might not be the best in the world, I still have a right to be proud of my/my DD's accomplishments, be they ever so humble. It doesn't matter whether it's a "high level" accomplishment or not.

Good points. From what I gather many of the girls who play D-I aren't able to get as much of an education due to the demands of the sport.

Check out this discussion: http://www.discussfastpitch.com/softball-discussions/4444-college-softballs-dirty-little-secret.html Some fascinating insights.

"OldGuy" - I love that moniker!

 

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As many posts as there are here, I think we are for the most part in "violent disagreement" in that we are all proud of our kids when they accomplish a goal like making a top-tier travel team, knocking in the winning run, or playing in college. For those who aren't aware, Scott likes to stir up things here in OFC, but as he clarified in the 70th post here, he mainly thinks it's funny when some dads go over a little overboard with the spirit gear ... and I will admit that I will probably be noticing that a little more in the future and snickering when I think of this thread. The thing that a lot of people have issue with is the notion that we should somehow be less proud of our DD's if their accomplishment isn't huge (i.e., DI), and that's just plain silly. I know my DD couldn't be more happy playing DIII and making a major contribution to her team, while successfully balancing her academics and social life ... and I couldn't be more proud of her for having accomplished that goal of hers. And sometimes I even wear a hat or shirt from her college when I'm not even at one of her games to show that pride ... and ain't no one who is going to be successful embarrassing me about doing that!

 

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and I will admit that I will probably be noticing that a little more in the future and snickering when I think of this thread.

That's funny. Was at a clinic this weekend and saw a D-B dad in full matching sweatsuit with hat and (get this) matching gloves! Me and another dad were cracking up and he really though he was da-****. Of course he wasn't a coach or in any way helping with the clinic.

 

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If I own any gloves, I don't think they match.

 

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Good points. From what I gather many of the girls who play D-I aren't able to get as much of an education due to the demands of the sport.

Check out this discussion: http://www.discussfastpitch.com/softball-discussions/4444-college-softballs-dirty-little-secret.html Some fascinating insights.

"OldGuy" - I love that moniker!

It depends on how you define "as much of an education". By the way, the thread you linked to has some very good discussion from several viewpoints. It is a common fact (NCAA rules define this) that DI athletics allow much more use of the student's time, and it depends on how much the coach chooses to use. But I guarantee you that every single DI college softball coach WILL use the maximum time allowed. Is that a "bad" thing? Either you accept that going in, or you opt for something else. Certainly the DI time constraints will prevent many kids from pursuing certain time-intensive degrees they would have more time for at a DIII school. But consider that the DI student-athlete is forced to learn ways of dealing with a whopping time load, which in itself is a HUGE bonus when it comes to "real world" work habits. And also, don't forget that quite a few kids work part-time during college for extra spending money. So, if your DD is going DI, she BETTER have EXTREME organizational skills developed beforehand - regardless of major - or failure is eminent.

DD is an education major, and her roommate is in her 6th year of PT, closing in on her Doctorate. DD is in her 5th year after changing majors after freshman year. In my mind, I think they both have achieved the goals that they set for themselves - playing 4 years of DI ball and getting a very "employable" college education/degree in the process. Will either of them "get rich" in those professions? Somehow, I don't think that was the goal going in. However, I think both of those professions are very much in demand.

As in most things, only after your DD gets into college and starts that journey will things become clear how it all works. Maybe I'll have a discussion with my daughter over Christmas break about how she feels about the college decisions she's made, and if she has any regrets.