Problem!

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My girls who played baseball when 5 to 9 years old are the better players!

They try to emulate the boys without direction as they teach each other and the girls and boys look at and pay attention to who ever is doing it best!

We must explain how the flex in the front knee and landing on the ball of the foot works in the girls verses the boys work as related to the ACL and the glutes firing in the knee boy verses the female.

Coop it is nice to read you know the difference and have seen the difference yourself....and thank you.

I remember when we met at Otterbein and we were teaching throwing and you moved quickly! :lmao:

Thanks Howard

 

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Don't you also think that it has something to do with the fact that our girls don't watch baseball on TV (or in person) the way we did as kids and as a result don't have anyone to emulate?

You're absolutely correct and the funny thing is there is so much more baseball on TV now than there ever was when we were younger. I had to watch Reds away games, Monday Night Baseball, and Saturday Night Baseball. Another great show to watch was This Week in Baseball.

Len

 

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Heck I don't watch baseball after being around fastpitch as long as we have. If I go to a game I bring my drool towel for when I wake up.....

 

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Well,there's another post hiding within the original concerning why girls play lie,well,girls.

All of us can probably remember playing in the neighborhood (probably with a few tomboys as well) until late, playing ball all day, having fun, drinking from the water hose and riding our bikes through the neighborhood. Our kids, both girls and boys, really aren't raised the same way, unless you are blessed to have an active street or community and live in a place where there's people close by. When we first moved into our cul de sac, we lived next to 6 boys, and although i was half joking that they'd all be hitting on my DD, there was active play almost every day here of every sport. But it was close and monitored. Nowadays, parents dont allow their kids to drift too far. Is it less safe or are we more paranoid?
Second, our girls are being raised like girls. So, alot of them arent probably outside chucking a football with dad and beating the boys in every sport. I had a DD that played everything outside, it was just her nature, and all the while still holding on to her good looks and girly ways. I'm friends with countless numbers of softball players on FB. You should see how girly they can be during the wee and how all-out they are on the weekends!
Scott, great point about team defense and individual skills. Now matter how many hard liners i would hit to my DD in the outfield or infield, nothing beats situational practice with the team. A lot of her teammates have been playing together for many years, one thing I love about staying a Classic all this time instead of a new jersey for every season. I know this is not always the case. Pitchers can perfect their craft because they can work on hitting spots every day, probably the same for hitting practice, but overall fundamentals are lacking. Honestly, these supreme burrito teams are good because they hit very well and they don't have to play those tense filled games every game. If they did, their defense would get exposed eventually

 

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Merlion actually Tiger Woods started using a golf club when he was 18 months old. His father was retired and he was divorced and his first family was grown so Tiger got ALL of his attention.

When our son was younger when I got home from work he was throwing a hard rubber ball against the side of the house and running up hill to catch them until we could throw to each other.

I have kids that practice on their own and it shows when I work with them and when they play.

I view practice with a team as a way for the coach to evaluate their improvements since we last practiced as a team. I would expect the coaches to show the team what it is he or she wanted them to work on as to skills or improvements each individual should be working on.

I think this is where during try outs you weed out who has better talent or a kid that you feel you could improve.

When a kid does not work on their own or must be motivated by punishment YOU are in trouble in my opinion.

As Crystl explains at clinics that if you as the athlete do not work on your own to improve, at the end of the day you have no one to blame but yourself for what you did or did not do.

Howard

Howard, actually I knew the Tiger Woods story a long time ago. I'm not quite sure why I got the long dissertation on working on your own though.

I posted on the person needing to have the desire and motivation to do it themselves, and not have it forced upon them. You can't teach desire, or want it for them. It has to come from within.

 

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Howard, actually I knew the Tiger Woods story a long time ago. I'm not quite sure why I got the long dissertation on working on your own though.

I posted on the person needing to have the desire and motivation to do it themselves, and not have it forced upon them. You can't teach desire, or want it for them. It has to come from within.

Merlion

I read it as Howard agreeing and adding to your statement.

Len

 

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Yep, cause great minds think a like

 

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Merlion nothing directed at you. I was trying to point out that the desire to achieve must come from the athlete and the parents guide and encourage them. Tiger had all of dads attention from an early age. I have parents that are divorced, being raised by grand parents or are in jail etc.

While working with one girl you could see the only reason she was here was because of dad. I asked her point blank, you do not want to do this do you?

Her response was classic, "No I want to do competitive cheer leading!" She went on to say, "I do not enjoy getting dirty and sweaty and dad knows it!"

Dad looked at me and said, "Know any body that wants to buy a slightly used bat and glove?"

I read the book the Talent Code and research that has been conducted points out it takes about 10 years to become that "gifted" or "elite" player, musician, singer, dancer or band. They claim it takes about 10,000 hours of 3 to 5 hours a day to become that over night sensation.....then I look at the kid and ask how often do you practice on your own? How many hours have you accumulated towards the 10,000 hours?

The book gives some great examples of successful people from all different walks of life and I thought Tigers story was great as many do not understand and say wow what an over night sensation he has become at 16 years old. Many have no idea how he trained or for how long. He even pointed out the Beatles had been together 10 years before they were considered successful.

When my kids return home for Christmas in college the number one thing they talk about is time management. They suddenly found out mom was not washing the clothes and that softball was taking about 25 to 30 hours a week. Maybe we need to do a better job of teaching time management at a younger age especially with all the social media and electronics that we did not have in my day and I am 62.

Howard

 

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Okay, my misinterpretation.

I believe in working on your own, and also allowing some slack time to be a typical 10-18 year old. Sometimes they do need a push though, as the path of least resistance is an easy one to take. But, if they need to be forced it'll never work out in the long run.

The time management point is a good one too. I've read your comments in the past on this subject Howard, and from that point on I've been trying to get that message across to my kids, as it obviously will make them better prepared when they leave the nest.

As for Tiger, I'd say his desire paid off well in golf, but his other desire didn't work out so well for him.

 

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Agree on the Tiger thing for sure!

Sometimes knowing how far to push a child is a gift and can become a curse IF the child shuts down and shuts out the parent or parents from their life especially as they get older.

Crystl talks to the kids at the clinics and explains she missed birthdays, weddings and funerals as her grandfather passed during the 2000 Olympics.

She told the kids it is your choice as to how good you want to be and what you may have to sacrifice to get there.

I think many of the parents feel when they see another kid out play theirs that working harder will make it happen. They usually never consider how they practice actually makes a difference in their child's ability to compete at the next level. They also fail to comprehend they may not want to play at the next level as their friends are playing rec ball and that is what life is all about, making choices.

Thanks Howard