Travel Ball versus High School Ball

[coachjwb]

Always a favorite topic of discussion on here ... I won't address all of the benefits of playing high school ball here (and I think there's a ton), but just a few of the points ...

1) As mentioned above, high schools are allowed to play 27 games a year plus the state tournament. An average team gets in about 25 games and regular players get in about 80-90 plate appearances
2) Technically, there are only about 4 weeks of practice involved before the season starts ... keep in mind that this is in late February and March when the weather stinks, so many teams may not even get in one outdoor practice before games start. Additionally, they are often competing for gym time with basketball, baseball, lacrosse, etc. AND also keep in mind that practices may include JV and freshmen teams as well, so a coach often has to come up with a good practice for 20-40 girls. You just can't do much.
3) I think the most intelligent approach by a high school coach is to let the girls who play serious travel ball and/or who have pitching or hitting instructors to do what they do and pretty much leave them alone, and to focus on the "bottom half" of the roster and the players who aren't getting this outside instruction. Does that mean all coaches take this approach ... no, and therein lies a problem.

 

[joboo1drew]

Jeff,
I will point out one of the advantages of school ball....... NO TIME LIMITS...... This changes the game drastically. It gets the girl ready for what she might see in college if she chooses to play beyond HS. There is no stalling tactics involved. My dd has only had 1 year of playing middle school ball, but it was fun to watch (for the most part).

 

[daboss]

My DD has been playing TB for 3 years and is in the 10th grade. Is it just me or does there seem to be a difference in teaching methods between the two? Why would a High School Coach want to teach/change a girls hitting method if it is successful and the girl is hitting homers and making great contact hitting the ball hard? The High School Coach seem to think their method is the best and if you want to play for me, you will hit the way I want you to is the attitude they seem to have. They may try to change other skills as well. If it "Ain't Broke" why would you want to "Fix" it? I am puzzzled by this coaching method as a parent. Am I missing something?? My DD hit 8 hr as an 8th grader and 11 including 2 Grand Slams as a freshman in TB. She hit 2 as a Freshman playing for the High School this year due to only 12 AB.

Oh the question that has eluded many of us for so many years. I haven't read any responses yet but to be so many reputable OFC members contributing I'm sure your question will be answered as tactfully as possible. As for my reason to post? Just trying to build back up my membership status.

 

[Lester]

Oh the question that has eluded many of us for so many years. I haven't read any responses yet but to be so many reputable OFC members contributing I'm sure your question will be answered as tactfully as possible. As for my reason to post? Just trying to build back up my membership status.

I hear ya... I was at like 5600 posts... no way I'll get back to it. C'mon Bear... hook me up!

 

[bigdaddyo1972]

My DD has been playing TB for 3 years and is in the 10th grade. Is it just me or does there seem to be a difference in teaching methods between the two? Why would a High School Coach want to teach/change a girls hitting method if it is successful and the girl is hitting homers and making great contact hitting the ball hard? The High School Coach seem to think their method is the best and if you want to play for me, you will hit the way I want you to is the attitude they seem to have. They may try to change other skills as well. If it "Ain't Broke" why would you want to "Fix" it? I am puzzzled by this coaching method as a parent. Am I missing something?? My DD hit 8 hr as an 8th grader and 11 including 2 Grand Slams as a freshman in TB. She hit 2 as a Freshman playing for the High School this year due to only 12 AB.

I just had a conversation with my DD's pitching coach who is also the pitching coach for Ross high school about this and she told me if a girls hitting is successful they wont " Fix" anything. But if it's not then they will start tweeking things.

 

[mike_dyer]

I just had a conversation with my DD's pitching coach who is also the pitching coach for Ross high school about this and she told me if a girls hitting is successful they wont " Fix" anything. But if it's not then they will start tweeking things.

My son has used the same takedown almost exclusively since he was about 9 years old. Everyone knows what's coming from that lanky kid with big ears and the goofy hair cut, it's not very easy to do anything about it though. I agree that it looks sloppy and I would be furious if I was coaching someone who walked into it 8 or 10 times in 6 minutes. It works though, even on the best of them.

As a freshman his coaches did everything they could possibly do to "fix" it or get him to do something else. It was a few weeks into the season when they finally gave up and just let him score lots of points with it. Sometimes you just have to show them.

 

[Lester]

Many schools despise hitting techniques not of their own bug squishing tendencies... I'll leave it at that.

 

[Fairman]

I am a HS Coach and see this thread once a season. (I have also been a TB Coach)

The summer we take off to allow the TB teams full access but pick open practices again in September through December about once a week. During the run up from January we go to twice a week, then every day 2-weeks before the season and then every day for the 8 weeks of the season. If a kid never misses a practice she would have over 200 contact hours in our High School year. If all she got was another 10,000 swings that would be worth the time. You may play more games in travel ball but few TB teams can match the practice time that any decent HS program can provide.

My coaches and I have been in this game an average of 20 years each, maybe we might know something that will help your precious dd hit better, field better, pitch better or just be a better teammate. If your dd blows us off just because we are just HS coaches and her TB Coach or specialized instructor knows everything how do you think she will interact with her College Coach?

 

[BouldersDad]

Many schools despise hitting techniques not of their own bug squishing tendencies... I'll leave it at that.

Go thru that every spring Les. It dosent matter how well they hit. If its something the HS coach dosent understand then there is an issue. Same old crap year in and year out

 

[Frosty Softballs]

Many schools despise hitting techniques not of their own bug squishing tendencies... I'll leave it at that.

I'm not promoting bug squishing but I have seen a particular coach teach "swing down and thru the ball", and "squish the bug". Granted I cringed hearing this constantly but it makes me wonder if his techniques work just as well considering he has had tons of success as a coach and as a player.

 

[Lester]

I'm not promoting bug squishing but I have seen a particular coach teach "swing down and thru the ball", and "squish the bug". Granted I cringed hearing this constantly but it makes me wonder if his techniques work just as well considering he has had tons of success as a coach and as a player.

I hear ya... I know of a very similar situation. I'll say this, if you play in a weaker Division or Region or the like, it's all relative. The game is evolving and has been for about the past 5-10 years and I slowly watch this particular situation stay stagnant while others that never competed in the past begin to 'switch' over the past few years and now all of a sudden the scores are closer and to the point the leagues are balanced and much more equal.

Don't get me wrong, I know state championships have been won many times with varying styles and that's pretty darn cool! Not accepting the fact that others have abilities from other training techniques is all about short sighted discussions/edicts/mandates/egos. I'll end it like this, how often does the coaching staff "black list" a pitcher who gets instruction outside of the normal local ranks or less than preferred pitching instructor technique? How often does the staff adjust every pitcher in the first 3-5 throws or bring it up at the parent/player meeting or in the first player's only meeting? Very very rare. Unless the staff has significant 'real quality' experience you generally don't hear of those stories wide spread. It happens, but everyone is an expert when it comes to hitting. Shoot, if a player has an insturctor.... guess what, they own the results and playing time is a function of results.