When a coach cost a kid their entire season.

[CoachDS]

At our tournament this weekend out DDs team played a very good team. Anyone with a brain watching this game knew who was going to win. With the run limit reached (I believe score was 12-0). The coach from the other team is still playing like its the finals of the College world series. With 2 outs and a runner on 3rd this coach sends her player on a past ball, catcher grabs it blocks the plate and snaps the girls ankle. I thought the coaches first responsibility is players safety. We find out today this player may have to have pins put in her ankle and will miss the rest of the year.I know injuries are a part of softball. BUT what if they can be prevented like in this case. If your team is up by 12 do you want your DDs coach sending your daughter to steal home? Thoughts from coaches and parents?

 

[snoman76]

As a coach, I tell my girls they go all out unless I tell them otherwise. In that situation I would be telling them otherwise. You don't steal and you stop taking extra bases on hits. If we are in that situation we play to the run limit +2 or 3. Once we hit the run limit we throttle back a notch until we get that cushion. I'm not going to take an at bat away from a kid so I will let them swing away. They know the situation so they are free to do whatever they want with that at bat. If they get on I have them leave early.

 

[brownsfan]

Depends on the age group, the kid you are sending, and the teams you're facing.

 

[coachjwb]

Ugh, terrible to get an injury like this, and even worse that it was in a meaningless situation. CoachDS ... are you sure that the coach "sent her", or was it one of those situations where she just reacted when the ball got past the catcher and went on her own?

 

[Louuuuu]

Excellent counterpoint. As a coach, you try to make this type of situation "natural instinct". (Be glad they remembered something you said...)

 

[CoachTEA]

At our tournament this weekend out DDs team played a very good team. Anyone with a brain watching this game knew who was going to win. With the run limit reached (I believe score was 12-0). The coach from the other team is still playing like its the finals of the College world series. With 2 outs and a runner on 3rd this coach sends her player on a past ball, catcher grabs it blocks the plate and snaps the girls ankle. I thought the coaches first responsibility is players safety. We find out today this player may have to have pins put in her ankle and will miss the rest of the year.I know injuries are a part of softball. BUT what if they can be prevented like in this case. If your team is up by 12 do you want your DDs coach sending your daughter to steal home? Thoughts from coaches and parents?

Like you, I hate to see a kid get hurt in a meaningless game but there are some valid points raised in the responses. I tell my players "you cannot wait for me to tell you to go on a passed ball at 3B", so unless I specially tell my players to "dial it back" I expect them to run like the devil himself is chasing you. I also like to determine when enough "cushion" is enough; I have seen some big comebacks in my coaching experience. Like the other comment if I have enough runs, I like for players to "leave early" to get called out, limit the carnage, and move on. Injuries are part of the game; I am down a catcher because a girl didn't slide this past week. I hope and pray this young lady makes a full and speedy recovery.

 

[daytonfp]

A week or so ago, my daughter's school team was playing a "cross town" rival. The other team had been talking smack on social media all week prior. I get it, a little smack talk always makes a game a little more intense especially when its the rival. [We beat them 15-1 the first time we played them though.] Anyway, in this particular game my DD's coach was fired up and eager to prove a point. It was 15-0 when he gave my DD a delayed steal into home. She was safe. I just kinda shook my head. That's just not how I coach. The final score was 33-2. I was embarrassed to be on the winning team. In the other team's last at bat, a routine ground ball to third, the throw to first and the runner purposely stomps on the our first baseman's ankle. She screamed and grabbed her ankle, but fortunately she was OK. She is our lead-off hitter and one of the hottest bats in the lineup this year. I would have put some of the blame on her coach if she would have gotten seriously injured. I just can't think of any good reason to run up the score like that on anyone...rival or not.

 

[softballsam10]

Here is my question. During my DDs jr. high season we were told that you had to slide if there was a play being made at the plate and also that you are not allowed to block the plate as a catcher to avoid the collisions/injuries. Are these the same rules at the high school level or were we given bad information?

 

[Louuuuu]

Bad information. You never have to slide.*

* This does not mean that you are entitled to knock the catcher @$$-over-tin-cups. It means you never Have to slide.

 

[softballsam10]

I was curious because we had a play in one of our games where the runner was called out at home because she didn't slide.

 

[Louuuuu]

While we're in the Rules Mode,

Umpires have no problem if the base coaches descreetly let them know that the runner will be leaving early to hasten the final out. We have to watch many aspects of the game, and - 'hard to imagine, I know - might not see it otherwise...

 

[Louuuuu]

I was curious because we had a play in one of our games where the runner was called out at home because she didn't slide.

1.) Local league rule?
2.) Did the runner make contact with the catcher? If so, how?

 

[FastBat]

Most sports injuries to children seem pointless in hindsight, but this one does seem extreme. Not only will this child be missing the season, the parent will miss work, child will miss school, the medical bills, transportation to physician and PT, etc. It certainly doesn't seem worth it!

 

[softballsam10]

There was actually very little contact made. More of a glancing blow as she touched the plate.

 

[Louuuuu]

There was actually very little contact made. More of a glancing blow as she touched the plate.

Rule 8-6.13 ... Runners are never required to slide but, if the runner elects to slide, the slide shall be legal.

and Rule 8-6.14 (Runner is out if) She remains on her feet and maliciously crashes into a defensive player. Malicious contact supersedes obstruction.


(In a nutshell - The defensive player can't block a base while waiting for a throw, but may receive a throw then block the path.)

 

[Supertech]

Which brings up a question that came up in a middle school game this year. When a girls hits a home run and comes in to home and slides taking out the catcher, does the umpire do anything? Should the umpire do anything? He just shook his head and said nothing. Just thought this was interesting. I am thinking that the catcher should not have been that close to the plate on a home run ball.

 

[wvanalmsick]

Rule 8-6.13 ... Runners are never required to slide but, if the runner elects to slide, the slide shall be legal.

and Rule 8-6.14 (Runner is out if) She remains on her feet and maliciously crashes into a defensive player. Malicious contact supersedes obstruction.


(In a nutshell - The defensive player can't block a base while waiting for a throw, but may receive a throw then block the path.)

Louuuuu, Good point. This point could, and has in the past, have a whole thread about what is considered "Blocking" the plate.

A catcher can influence whether the runner is going to have to slide or whether she can come in standing-up. If a catcher is awaiting the throw (The throw has been released by a fielder heading to the catcher) the catcher can be straddling the plate. The plate is not blocked, but the situation dictates that the runner is going to have to slide in order to get to the plate (hopefully before getting tagged). The catcher has to know that by taking this defensive position, there is a risk of an obstruction call and the high chance of a collision. The runner also has to understand that by coming in standing-up, there is a hope of getting an obstruction call on the catcher or the risk of getting a Malicious Contact call. So, the catcher has influenced the decision of the runner as to how she will try to get to the plate. Since DD was a catcher, I would always talk to different umpires during tournaments and HS games and get their interpretation of Obstruction at the plate. All of the umpires that I talked to had the same interpretation as I did but you never know when you will have a new umpire still learning the position (and by talking with them about Obstruction, it kept it fresh in their minds in case there was a situation that came up in the game, happened a lot over the years).

Back to the OP, True, up by that many runs, why in the world are you sending your runner home?

 

[wow]

Rule 8-6.13 ... Runners are never required to slide but, if the runner elects to slide, the slide shall be legal.

and Rule 8-6.14 (Runner is out if) She remains on her feet and maliciously crashes into a defensive player. Malicious contact supersedes obstruction.


(In a nutshell - The defensive player can't block a base while waiting for a throw, but may receive a throw then block the path.)

This when to slide or not to slide nonsense just puts kids in a position to get hurt. I know its a bit away from the OP however revenant to the thread. Rules above stated you dont have to slide..Then states malicious contact is bad and would be grounds for being called out. How do you NOT slide, come in a full speed and avoid, what is assumed to be a play at the plate? Seems if a runner chooses NOT to slide they increase the likelihood of malicious contact and since its all subjective wouldn't sliding avoid, or reduce the contact?

 

[Valley-Force01]

Let me just respond to this question, and shed a little more light on what happened since it doesn't seem to be quite what occurred on Saturday. We were, in fact, beating the team 12-0. The injured player was not sent home by her coach. It was a reaction made by the player because we are an aggressive running team. The girls are told to steal on passed balls, and that is exactly what happened. She reacted. There was more than just "blow by" contact at the plate. The injured player suffered a buckle fracture from being stopped by the catcher. The catcher did absolutely nothing wrong. She was just making the play and the runner slid into her knee. We, too, lead off early to get out outs because we are not there to humiliate anyone. The injured player is NOT out the entire season and is expected to make FULL recovery. Fortunately, in this situation, the injured player's mother is a stay at home mom, and will not be missing any work. I have beaten myself up over this player's injury for the last couple days now. This team, we happened to be playing, had coaches yelling across the field to throw elbows at the runners due to the fact that there was contact made at first base because there was no safety bag and a throw pulled their first baseman into the middle of the bag. I certainly hope that man isn't the one starting this blog. Our team overcame a 7-0 deficit in the top of the 7th inning last year at state, scoring 12 runs and winning state, so they don't ever assume a game is over. They are travel ball players!! They are designed to be aggressive. How do you ask players to be aggressive one week then not the next? The injury was a freak accident. I actually visited with the player today and her spirits are good and she is starting back to her hitting lessons Monday. Lesson learned for me, but to imply the injury has ruined a girl is a bit much. Just my thoughts...

 

[FastBat]

That's good to hear! I'm glad she is doing well and able to make a FULL recovery. These kids are learning, sometimes they get hurt, that's why they call them accidents.

Nice to know your team wasn't beating up on the other team, but make sure you don't beat yourself up either! I have found the hardest games to play are when there are uneven match-ups, for both teams, but that's part of the game too.