Feeder programs

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I may have asked this before, but I can?t find the thread. How do you keep quality coaching in rec ball, or how do you develop quality coaching? I help operate a rec organization and coach travel. My older 2 play travel, but my 5 year old is only throwing about 50 and her rise is knda shaky, so I am holding her back another year..?.Seriously though, I am trying to improve the t-ball, coach pitch and 10u age groups in the rec program. I know there are some 8U travel programs but from what I hear it?s hard to find other teams to play. . Some 9?s may not be ready for the travel, but by the time you get to the second year of 10u or into 12U travel ball is the only real option to improve your game because of competition and rec rules. It?s a catch 22, you need the knowledge of experienced coaches, and travel needs girls that know how to play the game as a base for learning and try-outs. There is a revolving door of coaches that come into the program with their daughters, move up, and leave when their daughter leaves the organization for whatever reason. I understand that is the nature of a rec program, but there has to be a way to keep the knowledge there New coaches have great intentions but have difficulty with the ?How?s and Why?s?. So?does anyone have suggestions to sustain a Tee Ball, 8u and 10u program that has quality coaching? What is the best way? Are there Rec organizations that work as feeder programs for travel? Any successful Rec programs that develop girls well at the younger age groups? Also keep in mind this is a self-funded program, no tax-payer money.

 

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5 years ago when I left our local rec program (Granville) to take my oldest DD to the Stingrays we had 2 8u teams (machine pitch), 3 10U teams, 2 12U and 1 14u. This year my son is playing rec baseball and they are down to 1 8U, 1 10U, 1 12U and no 14U. The commisioner of our league started trying to recruit some older coaches who no longer have DD's playing the game and some retired HS coaches. Suprisingly many who were approached were excited to get back in with the younger groups and give back to the game. I don't know if that is an option in your area but on Sunday's I practice next to the 10U coach who I believe may have coached at Reynoldsburg and he is doing a great job with them. I don't think this will stop some girls moving on to travel but hopefully it will help get the numbers up. Our HS hasn't had a JV team for 2 years now.

 

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I like that idea. I know girls are going to go to travel, in fact I encourage it to those who need more challenges. I am afraid of "killing the goose to get the golden eggs". Some girls need a big play or great season to "seed" there motivation, others need the confidence or base of skills to give them a chance to succeed. I will start looking...

 

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Any idea as how to start a feeder program in the Middletown area? I would love to do this.

 

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Well Middletown...I am working on that. Maybe I should have named this thread the dilemma of a rec program. As a director for a rec program I have given up on trying to fight the fact that we we lose girls to travel. In fact I have learned to embrace it. First don't over-commit or try to make it happen over night, I have learned that this year. Second and this may not go over well, but I think trying to become a feeder program for the schools, might be lost cause. IMO it will lead to too many daddy-ball/ politics issues. Give the girls a chance to learn and compete in tournaments and make the school coaches sort the talent. I don't think the minor differences between ASA/NSA/USSSA and OSHAA/NFHS should be hard to coach in school. (Sorry if I left our a sanction or two and sorry for trying to include everyone, I guess that is the rec ball half of me.)
Our tee ball program and coach pitch teams do well. We have 5 tee ball teams so we can keep them local and the coaches work well with each other because the the kids they are playing against this year may be on their team next year. I am working on a development program for the coach pitch, 10u and 12u. I held open gyms in the fall and winter months for the first time this year where we focused on some basic skills, like throwing glove work, batting and pitching mechanics. There was a small participation level this year but I expect it to grow.(Keep in mind I was the one instructing and I am far from being an expert in any of these areas. I love the fact I learn more every day.)
Here are the biggest issues. The league our rec program plays in now has too many jacked up rules. The 12u's can't steal until the ball crosses the plate, no dropped 3rd strike,and worst of all there is a softball comissioner but no requirement for a sanctioned umpire. So, half of the time there is a parent behind the plate that doesn't know how to call balls and strikes let alone enforce the important rules that the girls need to learn. Pitchers are rewarded for their hard work by watching batters get walked because the person behind the plate decides that the batter deserves to be on base. Some other lame rules are that all players must play 6 defensive outs, the entire roster must bat, and the league requires you to accept sign ups through the 2 weeks after the league games start. So the girls that practice at home every night are forced to share time with girls that play only because mom and dad say they have to. Talk about setting the girls up for failure in school ball. An option that I considered was the I-270 league. Both of my daughters that played for travel programs, played in the I-270 league last year. I thought about having our rec program participate in this league, but the problem is that games start too early for as much as you may have to travel for a game, and I think that trying to squeeze 2 games in one night is a bit too much. Plus there doesn't seem to be any separation of skill level. If these things were to change I believe it would be a great option for rec organizations, developing travel teams and tip teams that want to play more game with other good teams in central Ohio. Hint, Hint;&.
The other major issue is getting the quality coaches and getting some of the travel girls to play in the rec program to share their experience. Most don't want to because of the league rule, as stated above.
My plan, first change the league or get out. I would like to share some of my ideas so that other rec organizations can do the same or make similar plans. Being idealistic we could partner to form a better league or join one that would provide as a good option. Next I would like to continue to build the off season development program for the growth of the girls and new coaches. Again, idealistic. W considered partnering with a local travel program but we cant commit to a partnership with a single travel organization because it would ultimately lead to the demise of the rec program and IMO the best part of travel is the athlete can find a team that fits them Of course they make the team. IMO if it truly is a good fit they will. I hope to barter with travel coaches with their time in assisting the off season development for time using our fields for practice and games. As for keeping some of the talented girls playing in rec leagues during the week. The more girls the better the competition. I would only anticipate that they would only play on average half of the league games. It would be an opportunity to play more, and get some game time experience at the position they want to play, but maybe haven;t earned on their tournament/travel team.
Coaches, I would love to find the gems that stingrays99 mentioned, and if any of them are reading this I will leave my contact information at the end. I would also love to have some of the college and high school players that have reached the end of their playing career that still want to be a part of the game, share their experience and get some experience as a coach. For the parents that decide to coach their daughters, I would like to have them participate more in the off -season programs to either learn how to coach, learn the game or both. But what I have learned as most that took the time to read my long-winded rant, the best way to learn is to coach in tournaments and take the time to go to clinics put on by college coaches and pro's. I don't mean just pitching and hitting.
Sorry if I went on too long, I love this game. I am anxious to hear if OFCers think this would work or if I am just dreaming. Hopefully this sparks some thought for rec directors that might be reading. If so, please reach out to us to share ideas or league opportunities. I don't think seasonality is holding us back. Ohio may some day compete with the mythological west coach creatures.

Scioto Kids Association
(614)585-9752
sciotokids@gmail.com
or PM

 

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The first thing I'd say to this is the statement of "quality coaches" is where you go sideways. In today's busy hectic schedules of life, get what you can and work with them, teach them the game to teach to the kids. Our town has always had two sessions for the people who want to coach put on by the HS coaches. One for all the basics from how to throw and swing, then another on equipment pick up day. When we first moved her 17 years ago, I knew only baseball, after learning what was shown to me when I coached the girls from them I learned from them. Also getting the coaches and the league girls out to the school games is huge, so they can see how it's truly played, along with the parents as well.

Then we have two levels of travel ball as well, a beginning I270 type of step, then the other a full travel weekend tournament type of teams. Girls start in those and have and will continue to grow to the other travel higher level programs from those teams.

As far as umpiring, ours brought in Bretman, Dan, Jim Wharton and others to teach the HS girls who want to ump, the rules they need to succeed. For 35 bucks a game, not a bad gig.

We used to have 900 girls and I think it's down to 720 or so, but other sports have infiltrated as well Along with life itself...

Make it fun, teach them the tools, teach the parent coaches the tools and they will get a life's reward of giving back and enjoyment like no other......


Good luck with the process

 

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Old coaches can still teach. They simply need the younger generation of parents to respect their wisdom enough to open up and learn while teaching their children to pay attention, be polite, and absorb the knowledge being shared.

There's nothing worse than volunteering to show new coaches how to help the kids with the mechanics of throwing, catching, and hitting only to have a group of dads' disrespectfully walk away discrediting a quality with pedigree coach. It's even worse to have a greenhorn to fastpitch telling their kids to forget what they were shown and do it the way they showed them. Even the best players in the world are willing to try something new to see if it works better.

The key to your dilemma lies in the education of the volunteer coaches, the parents, and the kids. Get the coaches on board first, then win over the families.

I gave a 2.5-hour clinic in our small village not so many years ago after they finally decided to change from slowpitch to fastpitch softball. It included do's and don'ts in coaching kids as well as basic fundimental methods of teaching the mechanics and things to watch for that are common mistakes kids make. Also, was a short strategy session about fastpitch and a lesson on the basic rules umpires will use.

17 teams of different age groups were in the league. 12 teams had coaches and assistants show for the clinic. After the summer was over, a review with the league board revealed the only trouble that they had the entire season was from the 5 teams that coaches refused to attend. Of those 5, 3 were parents that had kids in travel ball although they had never coached fastpitch themselves, the other 2 just didn't care. Most of the issues were about the rules.