Went 1-2 this weekend. We allowed 20 runs in 3 games with a 6 & 7 spot in the games we lost. We like to make our errors in bunches, which doesn't work against Major teams. Errors happen, but it's frustrating watching them get down after 1 E and it snowballs.

Hitting was pretty rough all weekend. We were in defensive mode all weekend at the plate. 2 strike swinging no matter the count or situation. We didn't strike out much, just way too much weak contact and giving AB's away. I preach attacking early in the count. I would rather them swing and fall down with less than 2 strikes, than just sticking the bat out there trying to make contact. Mentally, I think they were just trying not to strike out against the better pitching.

Overall, we aren't that far away. 1 big inning, giving away AB's etc. Most is mental against Major competition. I just have to figure out how to fix it.

Quote:

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I just have to figure out how to fix it.

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Just tell your kids those Major players are mommies' boys who wet the bed.

We won our 9u tournament in Forney this weekend, there were 15 teams total in our age division. My son has had a hot bat all spring but absolutely struggled this weekend. I was pretty hard on him Saturday about it and I'm sure that didn't help him any on Sunday. Poor kid

Man-child stayed hot at the plate this weekend: hit .667 with a 1.750 OPS with a triple and 3 doubles. He is really seeing the ball well and keeps crushing the ball- his triple and one of his doubles hit the OF fence in the air, one fence was 300 and the other 320. I damn sure didn't have that kind of power at 12 or 13. Struggled with his control at the plate with 3 walks but he gave up 2 hits, had 3 K's and most importantly gave up zero runs in 3 innings pitched - did a great job of keeping the ball low, inducing soft contact, and getting a double-play to get out of an inning.

He helped the team he picked up with win their tournament going 4-0-1 with 3 come-from-behind wins on the weekend.

The younger one's team went 3-1 losing in the semifinals to the eventual champ (who they beat on Saturday) but really the coach ran out of gas in the last game. Coach-pitch so they get 6 pitches no matter what and the poor guy was bouncing pitches left & right and throwing stuff over the boys' heads. And we really don't have another person who can pitch to the boys. But 3-1 is a really good weekend in my book.

Only bad thing really is that the boy came home from the last game with a 102-fever and is home sick today. Kiddo refused to take off his uniform and at one point was laying on the bathroom floor crying with his pants around his ankles because he felt so bad that he couldn't pull his pants back up.

Reply to PhatMack's - "Went 1-2 this weekend. We allowed 20 runs in 3 games with a 6 & 7 spot in the games we lost. We like to make our errors in bunches, which doesn't work against Major teams. Errors happen, but it's frustrating watching them get down after 1 E and it snowballs."

Good high school teams also commit errors and walk batters. The kids just need to move on to the next pitch and not let the last play affect the next one. Look for an opportunity to make a big play later in the game.

We played a 17-6A rivalry game on Friday in front of an SRO crowd- a high energy, tense atmosphere. Each team had a critical error and there were too many walks. And that from two teams that will be heading to the playoffs. But there were also big hits and outstanding plays. Including a great relay throw from shallow centerfield after a double to the center field fence to throw out a runner at the plate. The play resulted in a collision with the catcher that cleared the benches. But things got back to order quickly, and after some discussion no one was ejected.

Just the kind of high stakes game you want to play in, but like most high school games it had the good, the bad and a bit of the ugly.

TAM85 said:

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Good high school teams also commit errors and walk batters. The kids just need to move on to the next pitch and not let the last play affect the next one. Look for an opportunity to make a big play later in the game.

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So much this. Every kid is going to make a mistake. It's inevitable. It's how you deal with it that separates you.

Like yesterday when my kid was pitching. Has the leadoff kid 0-2, instead of his change-up dying in the dirt he leaves it where the kid could drive a solid base hit in the 5-hole. Is a little aggravated with himself and walks the next two so he's got bases loaded with no outs. He gets a weak comebacker to the mound that he flips home for the first out, K's a kid, then get's another soft contact comebacker that he flips to first to end the inning without giving up a run.

Quote ::: Only bad thing really is that the boy came home from the last game with a 102-fever and is home sick today. Kiddo refused to take off his uniform and at one point was laying on the bathroom floor crying with his pants around his ankles because he felt so bad that he couldn't pull his pants back up.

Lol. Lol. Lol.

Last year I caught Covid. Bad. Had spent the weekend in a hotel room in CS at a tournament with my son. The next night he had a league game and came home from school assuring me he felt 100%. Went out and pitched. I watched from the OF so not to spread my germs and could tell he was a little off. But he threw his 50 pitches and they beat his best friend that night.

He came home and had 102 fever. Admitted that had felt awful all day but wanted to strike his friends out that night. League was so much fun.

agsalaska said:

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Quote ::: Only bad thing really is that the boy came home from the last game with a 102-fever and is home sick today. Kiddo refused to take off his uniform and at one point was laying on the bathroom floor crying with his pants around his ankles because he felt so bad that he couldn't pull his pants back up.

Lol. Lol. Lol.

Last year I caught Covid. Bad. Had spent the weekend in a hotel room in CS at a tournament with my son. The next night he had a league game and came home from school assuring me he felt 100%. Went out and pitched. I watched from the OF so not to spread my germs and could tell he was a little off. But he threw his 50 pitches and they beat his best friend that night.

He came home and had 102 fever. Admitted that had felt awful all day but wanted to strike his friends out that night. League was so much fun.

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It was so pitiful. Poor little guy was just laying there whimpering. He still refused to take off his baseball uniform and crashed out on the couch in the living room.

Here he is before, jumping in the middle there to congratulate a teammate who hit a homer:


Passed smooth out with that fever:


Went to the doc today and tested positive for strep. On antibiotics now and on the mend.

Good times!!

Man-child has been on a tear. His team went 4-0 this past weekend to win the 13AAA championship in their tournament. Being the #1 seed they got a bye in bracket play. His team is 11-1-1 in their last 3 tournaments.

In the last 28 games he's slashing .417/.558/.833 for a 1.391 OPS with 17 RBIs.

On the bump this past weekend he was hit or miss though. He closed out the last inning of their first pool game with 0 hits and a K on 14 pitches. Then he started the second game 30 minutes later and lost it- he drilled 3 kids and only recorded one out before being pulled. One kid, it's a good thing he was wearing a c-flap or he'd have lost some teeth because the fast ball hit him square on it and snapped it off his helmet.

Ump came and talked to him after the game and told him to keep working- he noticed something we just recently noticed and are working to fix. For whatever reason he's started to drop his arm-slot from a high-3/4 position to almost sidearm with his elbow dropping below his shoulder (which ain't good). Coach has him doing some drills to fix it and we're focusing on that. Ump said when he was in the high-3/4 slot he was dominant but when he dropped down he totally lost command. It's a process and he's working on it- not the least because I've shown him a bunch of studies that show that low arm-slot is at a much greater risk of elbow injury.

I was driving my kid and another kid back home from practice tonight and they were talking about Lou Gehrig in the backseat. Him and Ruth and Bonds..... Just heard on the news that today is the anniversary of the day Gehrig broke his games streak and sat out. Funny they must have heard that earlier in the day than I did.

redline248 said:

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My daughter plays 6U and her team won the mid season tournament today. She had a couple key RBI in the champ game

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My older daughter plays soccer and is a great player, but I could have gone for some softball. She never played a single inning. You are lucky.

I saw Apple TV is going to be doing a series based off author Jonathan Eig's book, Luckiest Man: The Life and Death of Lou Gehrig.

Ill check it out.

Bi-District Playoffs this week. It will be exciting.

I'd like your opinions

9u, umpire had a super tight zone and the pitcher was struggling already. My best hitter is coming up but he will chase bad pitches in an effort to hit leading to weak contact. This game we had already had three batted batted balls right at fielders.

So as he came up I pulled him aside and said do not swing until you get a strike called on you. I know you want to swing and I know you're capable but for right now I need you to do as your told and hold off until you get a called strike. After that you have your chance to drive the ball.

10 seconds later his mom yells swing and his swings at a ball at his eyes. I yell and say come on X you have to be coachable and do what your told. I then follow it up with, well we have a strike now so you need to drive one into the outfield.

He fouled off two more that were both at his eyes and then hit a questionable strike into the outfield to drive in two runs and win.

After the game I explained the situation to the whole team and said that's exactly how you respond. If you make a mistake and don't follow directions, don't hang your head for getting yelled at, come back and answer. My opinion it ended on a good note

Well sure enough 11pm mom texts that how dare I tell her son to be coachable. I'd never say that to my own kid, I said yes I would and I have. She then follows up with "well you will never talk to my son like that again"

Thoughts…?

Different options, I think.

1) ask if she talked to her son about why you told him that, and try to go down the diplomatic route.

If she's unwilling to discuss it
2) tell her she can find a new team for him. If she can't work with you and the kid together, it'll only get worse

Lonestar_Ag09 said:

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I'd like your opinions

9u, umpire had a super tight zone and the pitcher was struggling already. My best hitter is coming up but he will chase bad pitches in an effort to hit leading to weak contact. This game we had already had three batted batted balls right at fielders.

So as he came up I pulled him aside and said do not swing until you get a strike called on you. I know you want to swing and I know you're capable but for right now I need you to do as your told and hold off until you get a called strike. After that you have your chance to drive the ball.

10 seconds later his mom yells swing and his swings at a ball at his eyes. I yell and say come on X you have to be coachable and do what your told. I then follow it up with, well we have a strike now so you need to drive one into the outfield.

He fouled off two more that were both at his eyes and then hit a questionable strike into the outfield to drive in two runs and win.

After the game I explained the situation to the whole team and said that's exactly how you respond. If you make a mistake and don't follow directions, don't hang your head for getting yelled at, come back and answer. My opinion it ended on a good note

Well sure enough 11pm mom texts that how dare I tell her son to be coachable. I'd never say that to my own kid, I said yes I would and I have. She then follows up with "well you will never talk to my son like that again"

Thoughts…?

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Is this league or select? If it's select, tell the mom that she can either shut up and let you coach or leave the team, her choice.

If it's league, well the season's probably close to done and you don't have to draft the kid next season.

And I'm deadly serious. You cannot have parents like that. They're completely toxic to a team.

Pretty much everything Tarpon and the others said.

If its Select tell her to F off or find another team. I run my sons 11u AAA team and the only reason we are AAA and not majors is we don't have tryouts. And we don't have tryouts because of mothers like that. We have always recruited parents first. But we still have had one or two like that and they didn't hang around long after the F off was given.

Rec is a little tougher. Depends on how much support you have from the folks that run it. One thing I wouldn't do is try to explain anything to her. I am not that diplomatic. But I would probably be a lot more polite about it.

Glad to hear that most on here seem to see my point. It's Rec, We're allowed to keep up to 9 going into a season but no try outs. He's a good kid and she had been an asset to the team early this year she helped coach at practice etc because she knows the game better than most parents.

But she's nearly bi-polar when it comes to teaching points she agrees or disagrees with. I told my assistant that she has made the last half of the season miserable for me.

We seem to have reached a tipping point with many of the kids this year. I've had most of the same group for about 4 years but I'm looking at options as the season ends of what's best for my son next year. I'd like to keep coaching but I think I'm going to talk to another coach about my son joining their team and if they have space maybe another 1-2 from my team.

If I keep 4-5 kids and have to go pot luck for the remainder we would get absolutely destroyed

But is she a man child?

PhatMack19 said:

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My 10 yr old hit the furthest ball he's ever hit in his life yesterday. An absolute no doubter for his 1st HR.

I've coached for a long time at some pretty high levels. Started over with him at 6U. I don't treat him any differently. I'm not very emotional. Yesterday watching him round the bases got me good. All the work we've done over the years was worth it that very second.

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That's awesome man. Congrats.

Hats off to you still playing Rec at 12u. We made it through 10u before all the Select kids left it. Somewhat against my will but it happened.

agsalaska said:

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Leaving in a couple of hours for College Station. 11u AAA with a couple of our friends teams coming too. Same hotel. A&M vs Florida tonight, two pool games in the morning, and the earliest game on Saturday is at 11:10. And playing at Travis which are awesome fields.

Probably going to need someone to remind us moms and dads tomorrow night that we are in fact NOT in College anymore.

Going to be a fun weekend. And for all you travel ball haters that are watching this thread, you don't get to do things like this in Rec ball.

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What a badass time.

Went to the A&M game Friday night and had a blast. Played two Saturday morning, went to Juanitas, took a nap, then went to Wings N More at 7:30 Saturday night with a party of 40. Finally made it to my room at 1:!5am after realizing that half of the 11 year olds were still up playing pool at the bar.

Edit to add- My son and two other 11 year olds ate 50 wings at Wings & More. Impressive.

Slightly hungover got to tour the Rec center with my 11 and 14 year olds. They were beyond impressed. My boy(11) who wants nothing more in life than to play at A&M was blown away by it.

Then went and played two more and got back to Belton at 10pm. Awesome.

And our boys went 4-0 and won the tournament. Which was also awesome. They were like 0-4-1 since 9u against the team they beat in the final 4-3. Other team had runners at 2nd and 3rd with one out in the bottom of the 6th and went strikeout popout. It was stressful. My son played his ass off all weekend and I let him skip school today.



Travis Park is such a great location for tournaments.

I saw the same thing happen in soccer with his older brother. We had a kid in the club who was on the 3rd team one year, the second team the next year, then one year with the DA (top team, traveling nationally). The year after that he made the U14 men's national team.

Getting elite coaching early may help you reach your potential faster- but IMO it doesn't change your potential. And it may help you enjoy the sport more, which can help you stick with it long enough to reach your potential - but I've seen that work the other way too.

Fun thread to follow fellas!!!! I hope in 15/20 years yall can find a thread like this and follow along and remember the high and lows of pre high school baseball with your kiddos.

It absolutely works in the opposite. Tons of kids burn out when they get to college because mom and dad aren't there to force anything anymore, they don't actually have the drive and it just isn't fun anymore because it has been constant for 12-14 years