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Posted

So, it's time. We have LL evaluations this Saturday. Opening day is April 19th. Time to go. 

My kid aged out last year because his mom and I fucked about 45 days too early. 

But he's playing jr's this year (13-15u) after taking a break after all stars last year because his coach was a fucking cunt. And he made a lot of kids not want to play baseball again. 

So...I joined the board so that would never happen to another kid again. Was voted to be umpire in charge. I take care of the fields and now I'm coaching jr's because no one else would.  So basically I should park a 5th wheel at the fields and just live there until July. 

Let's go! 

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Posted

Good luck. That sounds exhausting.

I am coaching a 10u team and assistant on a 13u travel team. Last weekend we had 4 games Saturday and 3 games on Sunday. By the end of it I was running on 4 hours sleep and really questioning my poor decisions in life. Thankfully we don't double up again for a couple months. 

I really miss the slow burn of rec ball, but we don't have anything past 12u in my area and my 10u kid is pushing to be a majors level player so I am pretty much stuck. 

I have 2 weekends off between now and mid June.

Buy the ticket, take the ride.

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Posted

Re Tee ball:

1) don’t take seriously 

2) work on basic fielding drills: alligator arms, the triangle where glove is tip of triangle, not running forward on pop flies (hit any OF tennis balls for practice for pop flies)

3) work on basics of where to move as a base runner, how to pick up base coaches etc

4) see point 1

Tee ball is ultimate KISS exercise. Don’t film kids hitting, don’t stress over throwing mechanics etc. just chill out and have fun

Posted

Coaching a kinder SBMSA team and Im an assistant on my oldest kids LL team. 

LL season already started, we are on a competitive squad and having fun.

SBMSA team is going to be lucky to win a game. This grade didnt win a single sbmsa flag fball game between two teams. My son is gonna get a ton of reps though. 

Posted
On 2/28/2025 at 4:43 AM, HOOKEM4 said:

Good luck. That sounds exhausting.

I am coaching a 10u team and assistant on a 13u travel team. Last weekend we had 4 games Saturday and 3 games on Sunday. By the end of it I was running on 4 hours sleep and really questioning my poor decisions in life. Thankfully we don't double up again for a couple months. 

I really miss the slow burn of rec ball, but we don't have anything past 12u in my area and my 10u kid is pushing to be a majors level player so I am pretty much stuck. 

I have 2 weekends off between now and mid June.

Buy the ticket, take the ride.

It will be fine. I'm just glad my kid is excited to play baseball again. This is the first year since I've been here (6 years) that we are actually having kids transfer into our league. That's never happened in the past. And our 12u team looks like it could be really good.  I never thought in a million years I could care this much about little league but here I am. 

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Posted
On 3/1/2025 at 1:22 PM, Hammerin Hank said:

Anyone have any tips for coaching tee ball? I’m struggling with getting the kids to do what they’re supposed to do? Even my returning kids from last season 

Adding to Brazil's suggestions:

  • I did base running as the warmup almost every practice. Getting them to run through 1B and listen to base coaches will save you a lot of dumb outs as the season goes.
  • Teach them to get the glove down in the grass with the "alligator" hand on top.
  • I found having beginners point their glove hand at the target got them to square up and throw straighter.
  • Most t-ball kids don't absorb anything you teach them about swing form. If you can get them to set their feet correct with strong legs while keeping their head on the ball, you are way ahead of the game.
  • If you don't have enough kids that can catch at 1B, you can teach them bounce throw it from farther distances towards the base where it two or three hops to the first baseman and they can stop the ball.
  • Keep the catcher engaged to grab the 3 foot dinker hits for the force out at home.
Posted

Advice from a 3-time t-ball champion coach/parent.

Have the 1st base coach about 5 feet past the bag.  Get the kids used to having to high five the coach before they can stop running.

Set your lineup relative to who could be on base at any one time.  If you know a player is slow, you don’t want him/her on a certain base when you know a kid is likely to ground out a certain way, etc.

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Posted (edited)
On 3/2/2025 at 9:54 PM, BlackCat said:

Coaching a kinder SBMSA team and Im an assistant on my oldest kids LL team. 

LL season already started, we are on a competitive squad and having fun.

SBMSA team is going to be lucky to win a game. This grade didnt win a single sbmsa flag fball game between two teams. My son is gonna get a ton of reps though. 

This is my 11th year on the SBMSA Baseball Board. It's a blast at that age. 

Edited by jkates
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Posted (edited)

When you have a parent that refuses to follow team rules, how many strikes? I really don't agree with the 3 strikes rule AND he is an aggy.

He flipped out at practice on his kid and when I intervened and told him to relax and let us work with the boys, he started after me. I didn't engage and just went back to coaching. I told him to call me today so I could make it clear with the expectations. He hasnt called. I want to give him 1 chance. Then he is banned from attending some functions. If it keeps up, kid is out as well. I have zero patience for shitty parents. This is 13u mind you and the kid isn't particularly good. 

How would you handle shit parents? 

Edit: he is also the loud bitchy parent always goad9ng umps and coaching the kids from the stands during the games as well. His advice is always wrong as well.

Edited by HOOKEM4
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Posted

When I coached I had a list of expectations from players and parents. Nobody was off limits. I benched my own kid. Kicked kids out of practice for disrespect and goofing off. There was some bumps in the road but by mid season it was smooth sailing

Posted
3 hours ago, HOOKEM4 said:

When you have a parent that refuses to follow team rules, how many strikes? I really don't agree with the 3 strikes rule AND he is an aggy.

He flipped out at practice on his kid and when I intervened and told him to relax and let us work with the boys, he started after me. I didn't engage and just went back to coaching. I told him to call me today so I could make it clear with the expectations. He hasnt called. I want to give him 1 chance. Then he is banned from attending some functions. If it keeps up, kid is out as well. I have zero patience for shitty parents. This is 13u mind you and the kid isn't particularly good. 

How would you handle shit parents? 

Edit: he is also the loud bitchy parent always goad9ng umps and coaching the kids from the stands during the games as well. His advice is always wrong as well.

13u parents shouldn't be at practice. I don't think 11u parents should be at practice... Maybe even 10u. That is time for the coach and the kids with no outside pressure. 

I haven't had to ever make a rule about closed practices, but maybe you should?  That isn't healthy for the kid, his teammates, you, anyone. And don't punish the kid if his dad is a dick. If the kid is a dick, sure. But sins of the father and all that. 

Posted

Good luck to all of you all.   Baseball seems like such a grind. But I loved the process for my kids. I made sure my kids could throw a baseball when they were little.  They actually did well with the bat. But throwing was the most important thing with regard to other sports.  As a High School and Club coach, I'm amazed at how poorly some young athletes(mostly boys) can throw. It's sadly obvious when I see kids whos dads didnt got out to throw balls with them.

It's all about water polo for my kids now, and they both have arms.  I have to credit to getting out in the back yard to just throw. 

Posted
13u parents shouldn't be at practice. I don't think 11u parents should be at practice... Maybe even 10u. That is time for the coach and the kids with no outside pressure. 
I haven't had to ever make a rule about closed practices, but maybe you should?  That isn't healthy for the kid, his teammates, you, anyone. And don't punish the kid if his dad is a dick. If the kid is a dick, sure. But sins of the father and all that. 

Mine plays 12 AA/AAA. I watch from afar if I’m even there. Some practices are Friday nights. I might sneak a cold beer to two in my truck while watching from past the outfield fence.
Let the coaches coach and I’ll throw BP and drill work to him on off days.
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Posted
14 hours ago, Jshep34 said:

When I coached I had a list of expectations from players and parents. Nobody was off limits. I benched my own kid. Kicked kids out of practice for disrespect and goofing off. There was some bumps in the road but by mid season it was smooth sailing

Started the wave at practice didn't he 

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Posted

Ok so today kid is playing 12u travel ball. As our boys were exiting the dugout and meeting with coach behind dugout. The team playing after us was warming up( grounders, pop ups) apparently they weren't perfect. Thier coach gathered them up and lit into him. Swearing up and down. Nothing was motivation. Kids came in dugout crying. Honestly one of the worst I've seen.

Posted (edited)

Saw that on several occasions.  What is really happening is the coach is pissed that this team has been “selected” with supposedly great players and the kids just aren’t “turning it on.”  

My guess is they rarely, if ever, practice and the coach rolls the ball out there on Gameday and expects them to perform.  Teams at that age should be practicing at a minimum as much as they play.  But VERY few teams have the patience or knowledge to do that.

Edited by Nigel Tufnel
Posted
13 hours ago, Jshep34 said:

Ok so today kid is playing 12u travel ball. As our boys were exiting the dugout and meeting with coach behind dugout. The team playing after us was warming up( grounders, pop ups) apparently they weren't perfect. Thier coach gathered them up and lit into him. Swearing up and down. Nothing was motivation. Kids came in dugout crying. Honestly one of the worst I've seen.

There are a lot of shitty coaches in select baseball for sure. Never understood parents that would leave their kid in a program like that. One thing to give kid a “course correction “ but just to wholesale break them down/bully them is a bridge too far. 

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Posted

Getting the team bags ready to go today. It's still too effing cold for baseball up here.

But we are going to have 6 tee ball, 6 coach pitch, 5 AAA and 5 majors teams. Plus a juniors team to boot. Most kids we've ever had league wide. 

LFG

IMG_1163.thumb.jpeg.b9611d79de23c49653fb1a6fc363ac00.jpeg

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Posted
On 3/1/2025 at 1:22 PM, Hammerin Hank said:

Anyone have any tips for coaching tee ball? I’m struggling with getting the kids to do what they’re supposed to do? Even my returning kids from last season 

Beat them

Posted
23 hours ago, T’Boo Ted Marshall said:

Made it to the finals of championship bracket, only to have the bats go cold.

Are you on our team? Lol. 

Same thing happened to us, Chuy had a great day though (6-7, two walks in 3 games)but came up short in waller as a team. Better than last tourney overall as a team. 

Progress not perfection, especially at this age. 

Posted (edited)

Got a kid who is in his Sr year winding down his baseball career.  Enjoy it while it lasts guys and don't sweat any of the stuff before HS age....it DOES NOT MATTER.  Grow in the game, compete, have fun.  That's it.

Edited by Surly Bevo
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Posted
28 minutes ago, Mez2 said:

Are you on our team? Lol. 

Same thing happened to us, Chuy had a great day though (6-7, two walks in 3 games)but came up short in waller as a team. Better than last tourney overall as a team. 

Progress not perfection, especially at this age. 

We went 2-0 Saturday. Showed up Sunday and had 1 hit in a 10-0 loss. My kid hit a triple and was (seemingly) plunked on purpose his next time up. He pitched well and gave us a chance until he hit pitch count for the weekend. Crazy how up and down kids can be. We will win 20-2 then look like we never have swung a bat against a kid looping in pitches at 40mph. Wild stuff.

We are very level headed coaches. Firm but very much on the supportive end of the spectrum.  Never once will we yell at the kids. The head coach is an old school baseball pitcher and an amazing coach. It is fun when he starts to get after the boys some and then checks himself and falls back to, yeah they are only 10. He is a great dude. 

This weekend we go coach the 13u kids. They are just as up and down as the 10u kids. 

Posted (edited)

Took my boys and some friends to the DS game tonight to watch their cousin pitch. My youngest got Taylor Tracey to do the griddy in the on deck circle. He was over the moon about it. Attach0_20250317_213140.thumb.jpg.6af71774becf27574f7c636c40051598.jpgCoop did well. Fun night.

 

Edited by HOOKEM4
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