How many positions.....

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What is a good number, or the most common number of positions girs are taught on the field? DD is not a pitcher or catcher and has only 1 position whether she is at practice, pool play or on Sundays. It is the same for all of the girls who neither pitch nor catch and even those girls are given only 1 other position. I have an older daughter who has played for a while but have never seen this from her team or any opposing teams.

 

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Its good for her to know all the positions, IQ wise. However, she may athletically only be "good" at one position. Where ever she plays, tell her to play it well ALL of the time.

 

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It is never a good idea to have a roster of "specialists". As a coach, what would happen if a player got injured?

Typically, instead of a first baseman, left fielder, shortstop, etc... you need middle infielders, corners, and outfielders. And a place where the catcher can go to give her knees a break...

 

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I want the kids to experience all the positions when they are younger including pitching. As they get older I believe the focus turns more towards 2-3 positions. That normally opens the door for more physically while they may not know everything mentally for the spot. By high school most have it shaved to a primary and secondary position. Utility players are a plus and a few can remember what to do in game situations while ground and fly balls are still just that.

 

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All kids should play two positions well- and know enough about the others to fill in if needed. I'm a fan of having pitchers play a secondary position as well- either 1st base or OF (not saying they can't play other positions well but too much of an injury risk as other positions). Most catchers make great 3rd basemen or short stops (vice versa). Middle infielders are often great out fielders as well.....you never know where you will play in college

 

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My dd is neither a pitcher nor catcher. She plays infield or outfield depending on who’s pitching and catching. Of course she plays better at some positions than others. Her team is taught infield and outfield...

 

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My daughter plays multiple position really well. And I try to teach any player that plays for my team a second position. I always tell them that if they can play another position it may be the difference of making a certain team or not. They become more valuable to a coach. And a good coach will give them there chances at there primary position.

 

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This can turn into a very long topic. As always, it will depend on the players' abilities to a great extent and to some extent, their age. However, I like to do at least two fielding positions in addition to pitching/catching. Keeping in mind that practices are only so long and if you break up into groups to work on position specific skills, you will have a difficult time getting them all in regularly for quality instruction and practice. I try not to look at players and which positions she can play; instead, I approach each position independently and find AT LEAST two players that can play that position. Right or wrong, I start with SS and CF (where I feel we need our most athletic players). I then move to 1B then LF, then 3B, then 2B, and finally RF.

Of course, you will end up with some players that can "fill in" at many of the positions just because they "get it". Also, you may find that you have to put a weaker player in the #2 for any position because the preferred one has to be a #1 at a different position and #2 at yet another. For example, Little Katie may be a better 1B than Little Brittney but Little Katie is already the #1 SS and the #2 CF. IF I need to pull the #1 CF and the #1 1B, Little Brittney will need to play 1B. That is why I start with what I consider "key" positions then move forward from there.

"Release the [OFC] hounds!"

 

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I don't mind where her position is at all, but I do think thatall of the girls should know a couple of different places to play. She is bummed not because of what her position is, but because she hasn't been given a chance to show what she can do in other places and she is anxious to learn all that she can (her goal is to be as good as or better than her big sister.) She has done a great job where she is and we would never allow her to think that she was above any assignment the coach gave her. This is a 10u team and I am surprised, and somewhat disappointed, that the players aren't being developed to be more versitile. That being said, should I raise my concerns to the coach?

 

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I find this discussion always interesting.

And a couple things I would like to point out:
- the most need position in college is competent outfielders
- most parents view outfielder is where the crappy girls play

With that out of the way I agree with the above. Middle infield, corners, outfield. And then the specialist of Pitcher and Catcher.

My oldest plays corners and outfield. She is a marginal outfielder due to speed but is very good at taking angles and has a strong arm. My 12U plays catcher, 3rd, 2nd routinely each a game (she is used as a utility) and can play OF. I will say that my 12U DD can play on any team because she is so versatile while the older one is only really effective at 3rd and 1st so she is harder to get on teams.

And further, I have said it a million times. But Amanda Chidester from UM and an All American and also made the USA team. Played: C, 3rd, 2nd, and 1st in her college career. And she was a SS in travel I believe before college. So my advice is to make sure your DD can play anywhere she can physically. If she is athletic enough to play SS then my advice is to work her in the OF often and make her and you realize that being a good OF will make her invaluable.

 

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Couldn't agree more with sparansd. Competent outfielders are crucial. So... from a player development standpoint, work work work on being a great outfielder as well as any other position(s) you regularly play. From a TEAM perspective, it is outstanding to have 10-12 players who are great outfielders and I suggest all players perform outfield drills and practice regularly. However, on Sunday it is going to come down to the #1s in each of the positions on the field. At 12U, for a team that I am involved with, we have two sets of "#1s": one is our best defense generally speaking, the other is "strong outfield" and we envoke the second when we feel we need it based on our pitching and the other team's hitting.

 

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DD had 2 strong positions and 2 capable positions,,, once she started high school, catching is the only spot out of question... she helps the team and play where she is needed...pdad7

 

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Versitility is very important. It helps develop the players, increases game knowledge and reinforces the strength of the team.

 

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On any travel team I've coached, everyone gets practice time in the outfield and, at some time in the season, they are going to play there at least a couple of times. And everyone is going to have at least one "infield" position and is also going to play there at least a couple of times as well. Most pitchers and catchers probably have another infield position as well, though it's conceivable they might only play that position plus the outfield. I can't imagine a player only practicing and playing at only one position, though admittedly some players (often catchers or shortstops) may play 80%+ of the time at that one position. It's not only good for their development, but it's good for the team if a coach has some flexibility to move players to other positions. You're not a very good coach if a player gets sick or hurt, and you're scratching your head trying to figure out who the heck is going to play where because players have only played people at one position all year.

 

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I don't mind where her position is at all, but I do think thatall of the girls should know a couple of different places to play. She is bummed not because of what her position is, but because she hasn't been given a chance to show what she can do in other places and she is anxious to learn all that she can (her goal is to be as good as or better than her big sister.) She has done a great job where she is and we would never allow her to think that she was above any assignment the coach gave her. This is a 10u team and I am surprised, and somewhat disappointed, that the players aren't being developed to be more versitile. That being said, should I raise my concerns to the coach?

10U is way too young to be so specialized and raises a red flag about your coaches. What kind of a team is it - rec or travel?

Players should learn how to play at least 2 of the position groups - corners, middle IF and OF. Our rec ball teams are forced to do it due to participation rules and are able to do it well. Our travel teams do it to develop depth by playing lots of friendlies at the pre-HS age groups.

 

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Speaking of depth, my approach is using grades instead of rankings. This allows me to assign more meaningful relative values and also identifies any positions where we're weak.

I set up a spread sheet with a row for each player and a column for each position. After entering a grade for each player/position, I can easily see our options for each position and also see the possibilities for each player. I used color coding to identify the starting line-up and the primary back-ups at each position. Any position relying on a player with a weak(er) grade there needs development.

 

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10U is way too young to be so specialized and raises a red flag about your coaches. What kind of a team is it - rec or travel?

Players should learn how to play at least 2 of the position groups - corners, middle IF and OF. Our rec ball teams are forced to do it due to participation rules and are able to do it well. Our travel teams do it to develop depth by playing lots of friendlies at the pre-HS age groups.

It's travel, a new manager with an established and reputable organization. That's what is so disappointing. We were excited when she made the team back at August tryouts (new manager was not yet part of the organization) - we figured that she would learn a whole lot. We have kept it as positive as possible, and we have told her that she would just have to play her position the best way she can and learn as much as possible, and she has. But when she is in the exact same position at practices and all games (as are all of the girls except pitchers and catchers with their second positions) it is extremely frustrating. I'm just not sure what to do, if anything.

 

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Speaking of depth, my approach is using grades instead of rankings. This allows me to assign more meaningful relative values and also identifies any positions where we're weak.

I set up a spread sheet with a row for each player and a column for each position. After entering a grade for each player/position, I can easily see our options for each position and also see the possibilities for each player. I used color coding to identify the starting line-up and the primary back-ups at each position. Any position relying on a player with a weak(er) grade there needs development.

Me too! I just didn't want to let those that don't know me very well think I'm that nerdy.

 

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I think the problem with many coaches is that they get too attached to winning. And so they want the team to perform well as soon as possible. When in fact teaching using the "whole game" approach will hurt you slightly in the short run but in the long run it will make the girls and the team much better. The sooner the players are running the show the better your team will be.

I realized that during a game a few weeks ago my 11U catcher called the last 2 innings of a game. The coach who was calling pitches left and I did not realize until the next day that she had just taken over. 2 scoreless innings. She catches on fast. I actually may let her start calling more and more innings. We spend a lot of time on catchers and it is really starting to show in their decision making.

 

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I think the problem with many coaches is that they get too attached to winning. And so they want the team to perform well as soon as possible. When in fact teaching using the "whole game" approach will hurt you slightly in the short run but in the long run it will make the girls and the team much better. The sooner the players are running the show the better your team will be.

It might be a different story if we were winning, or if the girls were where they were best suited for. There were over 20 errors (per coaches report) at a recent game with everyone in their only positions. The next game, everyone stayed in same positions. And the next. I just don't get it. It's an awful expensive investment for such limited development.