To the parents of all the girls trying out for HS softball. . .

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If your DD did NOT make a team, be supportive and guide her through this learning opportunity. Be sure SHE is the one who wants to put the time into developing her skills to prepare for "next time".

If your DD DID make a team, but not the one she wanted, be her biggest fan, let the coach do the coaching, and be sure SHE is the one who wants to put the time into developing her skills to prepare for her next challenge.

If your DD DID make THE team she wanted, have a party, be her biggest fan, and be supportive behind the scenes. Allow her the experience of advocating for herself and enjoying her dream.

Of note: our DD is a freshman who will be a JV/V swing pitcher so she has a wild spring ahead of her. Her first challenge: going with Varsity for scrimmages next week.

 

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Best of luck to your daughter...

 

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Nice touch, travelinmom.

 

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As a parent, the whole process stinks and is hard on all involved.

If you have a freshman boy going out for varsity football, is he expected to make THE team? Same goes with basketball. so why is there so much pressure on a young girl making the varsity as a freshman in this sport? Especially when you see so many girls playing travel ball and taking personal lessons, etc....

 

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I'd say it's because not many of those girls (travel, lessons) are in the same program. Typically. At least up this way. There usually isn't enough solid players to keep the Freshman out of the mix if they are a good player. That's why. With what I see on our program I know of a few girls coming up that I expect to be contending for varsity. The first five positions are solid and then it drops off the table pretty quick.

 

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If your DD did NOT make a team, be supportive and guide her through this learning opportunity. Be sure SHE is the one who wants to put the time into developing her skills to prepare for "next time".

If your DD DID make a team, but not the one she wanted, be her biggest fan, let the coach do the coaching, and be sure SHE is the one who wants to put the time into developing her skills to prepare for her next challenge.

If your DD DID make THE team she wanted, have a party, be her biggest fan, and be supportive behind the scenes. Allow her the experience of advocating for herself and enjoying her dream.

Of note: our DD is a freshman who will be a JV/V swing pitcher so she has a wild spring ahead of her. Her first challenge: going with Varsity for scrimmages next week.

Being the father of twins that are now sophomores, I can offer you a little advice too.
Last year one of them made varsity and started at SS as a frosh, and the other started out the season as a swing player.
My advice to the swing daughter was to take advantage of opportunities when they would arise. She did just that, and played only two games of JV and ended up the year as the starting left fielder for the varsity.
My swing daughter could have sulked and pouted, but didn't, and went on to have an outstanding freshman season.
Swinging can sometimes be a pain in the butt because it doubles the work load and sometimes reduces playing time for both JV and varsity, but they obviously see something if she is swinging as a freshman. Good luck to you this season.

 

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Or just go play Lac rosse like my DD's did!!

 

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Oh my, I don't think my dd would do that -- especially since there are no lacross teams in our area.

 

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As a parent, the whole process stinks and is hard on all involved.

If you have a freshman boy going out for varsity football, is he expected to make THE team? Same goes with basketball. so why is there so much pressure on a young girl making the varsity as a freshman in this sport? Especially when you see so many girls playing travel ball and taking personal lessons, etc....

Apples and oranges - there is a big difference in physical development between freshman boys and seniors. It is far more common for a freshman girl to make the varsity softball team than for a boy to make varsity baseball.

Nobody should be putting pressure on the girls to make varsity. Unfortunately, it happens because of egos.

 

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So right SoCal Dad. It's a worry of mine that dd will stop having fun playing. But every time she comes off the field for a game or a practice, or time spent in the gym she's got a smile on her face because she had a great time.

 

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As a parent, the whole process stinks and is hard on all involved.

If you have a freshman boy going out for varsity football, is he expected to make THE team? Same goes with basketball. so why is there so much pressure on a young girl making the varsity as a freshman in this sport? Especially when you see so many girls playing travel ball and taking personal lessons, etc....

I don't quite understand your post. Why is it hard and why does the whole process stink for everyone involved? It's farily simple: Your child tries out for a sport, and if he or she makes a team that's great, otherwise work on the skills needed and try again next year.

We as parents do not have control over the choices coaches make for their teams. The smart coaches will choose those players that give the coach and the team the best chance to win. The other coaches will play upper-classmen over the younger players without regard for talent. It's just the way it is. Parents just need to sit back and let the chips fall where they may in school ball.

Len

 

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I whole-heartedly agree with the representative from Eastgate...

 

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Lenski is right. I have seen high school coaches play it both ways. I have coached for 10+ yrs and have always played the players who give our program the best chance @ winning (freshman or senior)

 

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As a parent, the whole process stinks and is hard on all involved.

If you have a freshman boy going out for varsity football, is he expected to make THE team? Same goes with basketball. so why is there so much pressure on a young girl making the varsity as a freshman in this sport? Especially when you see so many girls playing travel ball and taking personal lessons, etc....

Well as a HS coach I try nicely to tell a parent that they need to be realistic about how talented their DD is. A lot of parents have a problem with this. The process should not stink at all for a parent.....Last time I checked, parents dont take the field for a HS Program and it amazes me how much parents think they know about all the kids in the program. Are parents just going by what their dd says?....are they keeping tabs on what all the other girls are doing in the off season?....are they attending every open gym?...attending practices?....(practices are closed to parents in our program)....and the last thing is...Playing Travel ball does not give you any entitlement to being a varsity starter. Got 6 or 7 travel players in our program, only 3 of them will be starting. Travel ball is not all golden. I wish everyone great luck with their HS season, and lets pray for some good weather.

 

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Well as a HS coach I try nicely to tell a parent that they need to be realistic about how talented their DD is. A lot of parents have a problem with this. The process should not stink at all for a parent.....Last time I checked, parents dont take the field for a HS Program and it amazes me how much parents think they know about all the kids in the program. Are parents just going by what their dd says?....are they keeping tabs on what all the other girls are doing in the off season?....are they attending every open gym?...attending practices?....(practices are closed to parents in our program)....and the last thing is...Playing Travel ball does not give you any entitlement to being a varsity starter. Got 6 or 7 travel players in our program, only 3 of them will be starting. Travel ball is not all golden. I wish everyone great luck with their HS season, and lets pray for some good weather.

lol..awesome post fpitchdad.

 

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and lets pray for some good weather.

Oooh, I hope you're at a private school. We're not allowed to do that in public schools.....

 

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I told my dd if she didn't make the team try again next year. I also told her, "Welcome to the first stages of adulthood. I won't always be there to pick you up. You have to learn to pick yourself up and dust yourself off. If you don't make the team, I won't be there if the coach picks a less talented player over you. The reason, it's not my life and this doesn't involve me, just you."

She hated the advise, but she knew I was right.

 

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Oooh, I hope you're at a private school. We're not allowed to do that in public schools.....

:lmao:

 

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Oooh, I hope you're at a private school. We're not allowed to do that in public schools.....

Lol

 

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All great posts on the subject and nice insight by fpitchdad. Those points made are worth repeating. Travel ball is not the "ruby slippers" of softball. While any training, conditioning, practice, and education on the sport will be beneficial regardless of the skill level, there's still going to be factors that separate players. Remember, high school coaches do not recruit players for specific positions and sometimes will need to make team decisions based on how they evaluate the talent that came out for the team. I refer to it as a culture shock as the girls no longer are broken down by age group but pooled together in a larger age spread for the first time in many years. For some, it may be their first experience to play with girls that could be as much as 4 years older----comparable to playing up in travel ball. The best can handle it.

Over the years, I have always felt the girls, as a gender; put more emphasis in making varsity as a freshman. It appears to be a high level of urgency on a social scale as well as a competitive scale. The stress to make the cut can really be difficult and it's very important for parents to be supportive without overplaying things. Be realistic and supportive of the new team experience and assure your daughter that being on reserve or freshman squads can lead to better things. You seldom have a chance to be moved up during the season if you spend your time complaining and fail to grow/improve.

An old softball dad once told me "freshmen are in it to make the team, sophomores are in it to make the starting line up, Juniors are in it to win them all, and seniors are in it for the awards." While this doesn't always ring true, many times it appears to be more the normal for many school teams.