Posted on 05/02/2012 4:35:14 PM PDT by MacMattico
Hi, with all those I chatted with about sports in the last few days or others I have a question, and as the mom of the girl involved I don't want to go off half crazy.
My daughter was put in to play second base, starting. She's in jr high and plays at the JV level. She's normally a Pitcher but was obviously not Pitching. That's no excuse but here's what happened : (note: they ended up winning the game so that was good.).
The score was 2-1 and the coach yelled out to check the runner back and go to first. The girl hit a hard line drive toward second, and immediately the girl on third took off. My daughter charged the ball. There was no looking her back. So my daughter fields it and throws a perfect throw to the catcher, and she would have gotten her out, had the catcher not dropped the ball.
End of inning the Coach unloads on my daughter and takes her out. "If your going to make mistakes, your not going to play...etc." for everyone to see.
This coach brought up four girls from 8th because he didn't understand (his words to me one on one) why most of his team last year didn't even come out for try outs this year. It's becoming apparent why. My daughter plays on a club team this year and LL in past years where "look the runner back" meant look them back and then take the lead force out, unless the girl they were looking back takes off running, which this girl did. My daughter was so upset, she usually doesn't make mistakes. She has the first or second highest batting average on the team. And if the catcher could of held on, the out would have been made at home. Thoughts? My daughter has played softball and loved it since she was 5, and couldn't wait to get to high school ball, and now half the team wants to quit!
Life lesson??
Coach is an idiot. The point of girls junior high softball is to have fun and get some exercise. Nobody on the team is going to ever win a multi-million-dollar pro contract. What is he so high-strung about?
So the runner scored, and the batter (the sure out) was safe at first ?
My understanding of “check the runner” is the same as yours. If the runner on third breaks for the plate, that’s where the throw goes!
I would encourage your daughter have a conversation with the coach to explain her interpretation of “look the runner back”, and suggest the coach reinforce “his” interpretation with the rest of the team. A great learning experience for her & the coach.......
When I was growing up, I was super-sensitive to criticism and injustice. Then I enlisted in the Marine Corps and four years later, I had a thick skin that would serve me well for the rest of my life.
I have a daughter that plays on High School varsity for 3 sports and she has had to learn that even the best coaches can sometimes make a bad call. Since you saw the play and thought she did the right thing I would simply tell her the play was good and that is just part of the game. Team sports like softball are tough because you usually have several players involved in each play. Personally I always look forward to individual sports like track where the stopwatch makes it clear who performed well.
Yes, but it was 2-1 with the other team leading late in the game and when my daughter had charged the ball she was closer to home plate and made a perfect throw to get her out if not dropped. The girl took off from third at the pitch so there was no “looking her back” which was the instruction.
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She made the right play and did well playing a new position, She deserves a pat on the back. The catcher dropped the ball and errors are part of the game. Your daughter did not make a mental error on the play and should realize she did the right thing. A good learning experience in more ways than one.
Welcome to youth sports with morons coaching. It won’t be the last time. Just the way things go. She should just put her head down and focus on the goals she has.
Your girl did the right thing. I played softball for 25 years in various orgs. and your daughter’s momentum was clearly carrying her toward home. It would be more difficult to twist and turn to First and because the runner wasn’t stopping, there was no “checking” to be done. I’m sorry the catcher dropped the ball.
That’s funny. No. He’s a big guy who’s coached Varsity football to about 10 losing seasons in a row.
"Checking the runner on third" only works as long as the runner holds. Since the runner broke for home, your daughter did the absolute right thing in throwing to home and she should have been praised by the coach in doing so.
Judging by the coach's reaction to your daughter's decision, he would have likely admonished her if she had thrown to first too.......
My personal advice, if she were my daughter, I'd pull her off the team and find another one for her, one where the coach encourages fun over win at all costs. A young girl her age should not have to put up with such ignorance from an obviously clueless coach.
I've been playing softball all my life and coached girls fast pitch for a number of years too. I've encountered many coaches such as your daughter's and all they accomplish is to intimidate and chase away the talented but timid players who are unable to deal with their idiotic attitudes.
Do your daughter a favor, find her another team.............
A good coach would have done the same..........
I would say that this can be a very important lesson for your daughter. Not so much about softball as about maturity and developing a thick skin to real and imagined slights.
Daughter: right
Coach: wrong
Result: Coach wins
Daughter: wrong
Coach: right
Result: Coach wins
All other permutations: Coach wins
Your daughter will live. And she should know that she did the right thing. And that in the end, that doesn’t matter if the coach is an idiot.
And pray tell what would the coach have said if the runner was cut down at the plate?
Runner was not looking at 2nd baseman so there was no “looking the runner back”. If your daughter just threw to first base she would have been chewed out for not getting the lead runner at the plate. If the throw was good to the plate then the play should be scored E-2 and the runner at first safe by fielders choice and not awarded a hit. Sounds like the catcher is the goat on that play.
The coach is a sharp shooting hind-sighter and there will be no satisfaction to be had. Just tell your daughter to suck it up and explain to her that she did the right thing but her coach will not accept that since it is more important for the coach to always be right even when the opposing team does not cooperate with his/her plan for the current situation. Oh, and by the way it’s a game but good preparation for high school, college and life where even if you do the right thing you can still get punished. If she wants to play high school ball then she needs to put up with this until she makes the varsity. Best of luck to you and your daughter.
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