THE MENTAL GAME...

It is so very very important yet some of us tend to think of it in a way that isn't what it's really all about. The mental game to some may mean "win at all cost" or " think positive" but it is so much more important then that.
Training physically is used for every athlete, for our daughters it has become more and more intensive over the years. We now have speed and agility coaches, weight training all of these for some girls under 14 in fact most.

Yet we fail our daughters for the most part, the most important part. Her self esteem,self confidence and mental strength, not just in the game but in her life. Most of us have heard of life coaches by now,for every aspect of your life,they are basically cheerleaders for you in whatever life area you may need that extra push/boost. They help you set goals and help you get back in touch with your self worth. This is what needs to be applied to our young girls, our athletes. They are not just robots they are young ladies after all and besides positive reinforcement they do need a mental cheerleader in their own mind. Something inside of them that helps them get to that next level.

Smart coaches are already using this,some organizations are applying it at all age levels. I think it is amazing and our girls need it, we need to find a way to help them emotionally and mentally to be an all around athlete and self-assured young lady.

Sports should not just teach our young women about winning and losing but also how to grow into a positive,confident and successful young woman who will make a difference in this world! We already know how great they are, let's help teach them how to believe it 100% themselves!


Click below for a site you may want to check out to get you started....

But her instructors say....

If you read comment boards or forums you are likely to hear parents droning on and on about this and that. Some topics are how they weren't happy at this tournament, how it was ran, the umpires, the competition etc. Parents complain about coaches especially coaches who have daughters on the team. Daddy ball they will call it this is one thing I see so much about. Let's explore this for a second shall we?

On a team coached by the father of a player the biggest complaint is that his daughter is either
a) a pitcher
b) IF'er (see last post about OF'ers)
c) always on the field..never on the bench
Mostly all of the above if I think about it.

But I ask you this parents who complain of this. Really be honest take off your rose colored glasses for a moment. What is your daughter doing to change her play time, position in the line up? Or are you just whining about it on the sidelines with the other parents planting little time bombs that will explode and the casualty will be your daughters team or her spot on it. Either way I suggest this.
Instead of complaining and whining and telling everyone how your private trainer for lil Betty said she should be the # 4 batter or playing an IF starting position. Please reread that! Seriously moms and dads you are paying this coach the private coach who is helping her to hit or pitch or whatever. Do you really think he is going to say "well your daughter is just about average but keep paying me 50-60 bucks an hour and she will get better not because of me but because of repetition and practice". ABSOLUTELY NOT!

 I have a thought, how about you let your daughter talk to her coach and ask him/her if she could try out for that spot she wants (not you her). Ask her to ask the coach if she could challenge for the position at the practice before the next tournament. If he/she says no then you have an argument for the daddy ball thing. But if they allow it you may be surprised that the player who has the position deserves it because she is better, if not then your daughter has her chance to shine at the next game. And she better work hard to keep it.

The point I think I am trying to get at is this. Just because you have invested a lot of $$ in private training for your daughter doesn't give her the golden ticket to a position. A good coach will put a player with real game time talent in the position instead of a girl who does well with private instruction. The question you should ask yourself before blaming Daddy ball is this. Can your daughter apply the private instruction it to real game time? Can she make quick decisions in the IF or OF with a defensive play? Does she know how to adjust to live pitching not a ball machine or the tee your daughters instructor uses? If she does and she does so honestly not through mommy and daddy's eyes then find another team and stop spreading venom on the sidelines of a team you want to leave or will probably end up leaving anyway!

Neglected or just poor coaching?!?

In fast-pitch softball practices vary by the coach right? Well should they? Let's assume the head coach has a daughter on the team (rare I know lol) and his daughter is a pitcher (even more rare). Let's also assume that his or her assistants also have daughters on the team and their positions are....you guessed it somewhere in the infield. Now lets give an age group to our made up team...12u maybe 1st year 14u.

What does the practice consist of defensively? Warm up, stretching and Infield drills,infield drills,infield drills! How to field a ball, run down drills,box drills etc.
What is missing here? What positions are lacking true practice time? You may think of 2 positions while infield drills are being done that really are not getting the attention they deserve the Pitcher and the Catcher. Yes they may take turns in rotational drills but really is this productive for them? A pitcher normally has a private instructor for her position so she needs to learn to be defensive after the ball is pitched. Nothing is worse than a Pitcher who thinks her only job is to pitch. I call this pitcher the princess pitcher she looks at the ball go to her left or right she doesn't move out of the circle etc. So yes she should be a part of infield defensive drills.

 As for the catcher for bunting or a run down drill she should be part of infield drills but realistically how much time is dedicated to the bunt and 3rd base rundown while working with the infield. I recently read an article from The New England Catching Camp LLC called the most wasted 20 minutes in a catchers life. Here is the link if you are a coach I highly recommend you read it click here Most wasted 20 minutes in a catchers life basically one of the best coaches and teachers of the catching position the late Dave Weaver explains what I have seen over and over. And after you read it you will agree or you should agree. Times are starting to change and in some states we are seeing more private catching coaches but compared to pitching coaches and hitting coaches they are so so behind and this position is such an important position. I know you Pitcher moms and Dads feel like it's your daughters who make or break a game and it's true but put a incompetent catcher behind the plate receiving your pitching princess's drops,rise-balls and change-ups and it just isn't the same. Any pitcher will tell you how important it is to have a great catcher and having good relationship with their catcher is.Most pitchers prefer one catcher over another because the fit is right. It makes no sense at all for a catcher to be handing the coach balls while the team does their infield drills! You cannot just expect a catcher to put on her equipment and go on the field and not make any mistakes, or know how to frame a ball properly or throw down quickly and efficiently or call the game for her pitcher. And by the way pitchers dad you may think you know what your little princess throws the best but it is her catcher who can tell you what the umpire is giving her or after the first time through the lineup if that pitch is going to work on the 4 batter. Better yet your daughters catcher can tell you whether you want to hear it or not if little princess's rise ball is rising to the occasion during the game. Listen to her ask her questions just because you catch for your daughter at the pitching class does not mean you can call real time games. But that is a whole other blog my friends times for bucket pitching dads after 10 to step back and let your daughter develop a relationship with her catcher!

Now what about our OF's when they were younger in town ball or little league most coaches would put the not so skilled girls in the OF wrong yes but true HELL yes. What a horrible mistake! Now we have 12/14/16 sometimes even 18 yr old girls who don't know the meaning of drop step or where their cut off is. Is it these young ladies fault absolutely not! They are not given the proper instruction or attention. Here is something interesting go onto you-tube and type in youth fast-pitch outfield drills you will find maybe 5to 10! The rest are for baseball which we could use but it is laughable people.
As these girls get older the pitching gets faster,the hitting gets harder and the outfielders if not coached properly are set up for failure. Our outfielders are so important and yet so forgotten what is wrong with some of these coaches?

Iin 12 years in the fast pitch arena and seeing countless coaches I have only seen one assistant coach dedicate sufficient amount of time for just the outfielders. Taking them separately and working with them on drop steps cut offs etc. Guess what that year my daughter was on the team we were one of the best defensive teams in the state and won the state championship. Did we have stud pitching well our pitchers were good, did we have ringer hitters no the team could hit from top to bottom not homeruns all the time but contact hits, sacrifices when needed. IT WAS A TRUE TEAM FROM THE OUTFIELD TO THE CATCHER! Since then I have yet to see a team so evenly coached sad really!

We have forgotten such key players, they have gotten lost to the "pretty positions" of the IF and the P
when mistakes key mistakes game changing mistakes are made by under coached Catchers and OF's and we hear the crowd sigh or worse "how could she drop that?", "how did that ball get past her uggh!". Look to your coaches parents and if you are the parent of a catcher or OF who has a coach who thinks that he can just throw anyone in the OF or behind the plate because they can stop a ball or they have a strong arm, and doesn't take the time to spend with them or have his asst coaches spend the time with them then stand up and say something or find a coach (and they are out there) just look at the successful teams, who know the game isn't won by great hitting,great pitching and showy IF's This is why it is a team sport TEAM!.

Don't forget these young ladies our OF'S our Catchers!! We are not in Townball or Little League anymore gives these positions the time and respect they deserve. I promise you your team will improve by leaps and bounds!!!

As a side not if you know of a coach who does it the right way who drills these key positions with the time they deserve and doesn't lump them into IF drills and BS ball hitting to the OF drill what is that anyway if the outfielder cannot drop step or properly run to (full speed) without giving up why are you repeating the drill with the whole team no less?!? Give these proper coaches a shout out here because they deserve it! And if you disagree with me let me know if I deserve it!

Happy Fastpitch!!

EAST VS WEST

But where does that leave the rest. We all have heard at one time or another the superiority that west coast softball players have when comparing them to the rest of the country. Is it because of the weather, the coaching methods,the style they use in hitting the ball? I am curious what everyone thinks. When it comes to youth softball opinions are like ...... for our purposes we will say noses everyone has one. What is your opinion? Do you believe the coaching is better and if so why? or is it the ability to play almost year round.
If you took a player at the age of 14 from lets say New York and matched her position for position, bat against bat against a 14yr old from So Cal would the California girls skills blow her away?
If this is the case how can we in the midwest,eastcoast adopt these skills for our girls? I know of some places in New England that have unbelievable indoor facilities. Can we simulate year round awesome weather? Is that the answer training year round?
Weigh in on this for me because I am curious. I have heard fastpitch parents at games saying the worst player on the west coast can be compared to the best player in any other part of the country.
Or is it that the sport is more popular in the warm weather states?
Can't wait to hear your thoughts!

Happy fastpitch!

As an after thought I am looking for ideas on my next post according to what you all are discussing in your neck of the woods. What seems to be the topic on fire? And for another post I would love for you to send me your top teams from all over the country 10/12/14/16 name of team and coach how long they have been together, accomplishments etc I will be showcasing teams from each age group. Probably 3. Pictures of team (the cooler the better)! :)

You can send these to queensofthediamond@gmail.com

THANK YOU ALL

Elite,Select etc etc

After years in the arena of this close knit community watching,listening and reading numerous posts on web sites. The thing that puzzles me the most is what the labels mean for these teams. 

 What makes these young lady athletes Elite or Select or Gold? Is it because they enter tournaments beyond their age groups or abilities? Is it because they have kept a core group together for years since 10u maybe 8u in some states?

I would love to get a discussion going about what you all think. Is your daughter playing (under 18u) on such a team? If so why do you think they deserve the Elite,Select or Gold label. If you are a coach of one of these types of teams what is the motivation/explanation of this?

Looking forward to hearing your comments!