r/BaseballCoaching

For whatever reason, my team this year seems to be allergic to 10 run leads. We have had 5-6 games already this season in which a 10 run lead becomes a 1 run lead in just one half inning. This normally happens at the end of the game and ends up taking a great game into a heart attack game. The boys usually make one error and then it seems to snowball from there. Does anyone have any tips or words of wisdom for what I can do from a coach’s standpoint? Once that one error happens, there is this feeling you can immediately feel of the impending tidal wave that is going to hit and we just haven’t been able to weather the storm once to get through it. Any and all help is greatly appreciated!

I know, this ain't a new topic. But our All Star lineups just came out and wow, Daddyball won big.

Has anyone's league found a fair way to deal with this?

Edit: I'm a coach. I have nothing but love for our league, and the issue is not the kids who have the skills.

Okay, I've been in the little league/travel ball league for a few years now helping as a coach. Currently 13u. I can think of two teams we've encountered where everyone just seemed to know how to hit. And let me be clear - I'm talking about teams of "average players", not a stacked team of athletes. They just all seem to be making contact. I can think of one rec team where the coach seem to crack the code which I actually thought was most impressive, given most players were your typical rec player.

Most teams I encounter have the top 4-7 players who seem to know how to mash, maybe a few middle line up kids who do okay, and then a few players that you just hope somehow walk or don't cause an auto out.

I need these coaches to give the secrete sauce! How do you take average kids and turn them into contact hitters? Is it a deep focus on plate approach? Do you focus a lot on timing and less on mechanics? Our approach has been a focus on good mechanics, but that truthfully seems minimally effective.

I'm beginning to think of focusing nearly all on plate approach (pitch selection) and good timing, and give much less attention to mechanics so long as they are not egregious.

What I am asking, is what are the most effective ways you've seem full teams improve their contract hitting?

Had a game tonight in a 10U league that uses USSSA rules. Bottom of the last inning in a 1 run game with runners on 2nd and 3rd and 2 outs. Count is 2-1. Pitcher throws a strike and the visiting goes nuts celebrating with all of their coaches running onto the field high fiving and hugging the players. Obviously they thought it was strike 3 and game over. It fooled the home team for a second but then their runner on 3rd ran home. What should be the call in this situation?

Coaching a 11u team and this year and players can now run on drop 3rd strikes. Is there a good way to teach running on drop 3rd strikes or a good way to make the batters aware when they have 2 strikes on them? Do not want to say "remember to run if it's strike 3 and the catchers drops it".

Edited to add: I played competitive softball in my youth (travel ball, including national tournaments) and high school. I have never experienced the level of emotion I’m currently witnessing in 10u boys baseball.

My son has played soccer since he was 4, and it’s always been his primary sport. We’ve been part of a really positive club culture with a mix of hired coaches and parent volunteers. One thing I’ve noticed over the years is that even during really tough losses or lopsided games, I never see kids cry. It just doesn’t seem to be part of the culture of youth soccer around us.

This year he’s also playing Little League and now AAA baseball (9/10U), and I’ve been surprised by how emotional the environment seems at times. At least 2–3 kids are crying almost every game — after strikeouts, rough pitching innings, bad losses, etc. Sometimes it even seems contagious once one child gets upset.

I want to be clear that I’m not criticizing the kids at all. Youth sports are emotional and every child is different. I’m honestly just trying to understand whether this is pretty normal in baseball culture at this age? Is it because baseball can feel so individually exposing compared to soccer? Or is our experience unusual?

My son has stayed pretty upbeat so far, but as a parent it’s been interesting to observe because it feels very different from what we’ve experienced in soccer.

Recently had tryouts for our teams, a few kids were cut and the parents are not please.
How do you go about handling their complaints ?

Their child may have scored close to make it, but they shower a lack of hustle, throwing their hands up when they didn’t catch it , did not make a positive impact with the other kids(picking on them/slight name calling other kids during tryouts) which ultimately dropped them down the list.

Looking to toss the ball, long toss, catch, maybe a little hitting. Located in toronto near the dufferin mall area.

Let me know if anyone is interested. Finding it challenging to find anyone interested in weekday/weekend throwing

I've got a player who constantly wants to step out of the box. In practice we've put an object behind his heels to help him not, shown him videos of what he's doing wrong but it's nothing is working.

He does so well in the batting cages but once it comes to the game he steps out.

Does anyone have any tips to help him stop?

Yesterday, my daughter was cut on the last day of a team tryout. The scenario I am about to describe has happened to 2 of my 3 kids. She tried out in 6th and 7th. Didn’t make team. Made it to last cut though! Joined a club/travel team. The coach she was trying out for also works for this org. My daughter mentioned being satisfied with club ball and didn’t want to go through the agony/peer torment of being cut again. (Girls are mean)Coach flipped out and was like you better try out I know for a fact you’ll make it bc the coach and I already discussed you and the work you’ve put in. She went and had what she rated herself as a good showing of her skills. Got cut by the coach that insisted she try out. Why set her up for that? This also happened to my son once. Got cut and the coach said you’re on the bubble, if you do this one thing next you you’re on my team. Did that one thing. Guess what happened? It’s Almost like they enjoy making them come to get cut? It’s not sour grapes. I want the best kids to make it, it just is weird that now twice the coaches tell my kids (who are in my estimation on the borderline of being on the team) to come out and next time a spot is yours. Again to clarify we don’t ask or push, the coaches approach us to get them to tryout? What is going on? What do they do this?

This is rec ball, not travel. 4-6 year olds.

I know it's almost impossible. But what do you all do during the two-hour breaks between games to help them refocus for your game?

Our league adopted a crazy playoff format: we play three games in one day and six games over three days.

Thanks for the advice.

My son is small for his age, only about 4'4" at 11 years old. He is a young 6th grader, and they had the 6th grade boys play on the middle school baseball team this year (small school, usually it's 7th and 8th but they didnt have enough players this year). My son loves playing baseball. My son has a bat he really likes and he can hit well with it. Nothing fancy but it works for him for now; he has a nicer bat he is working on swinging to get used to it, but he isn't quite comfortable with it yet. Anyways, his favorite bat is an easton speed swing, usa, 2 3/4 barrell drop 10 28" bat. The coach made a comment to him that his bat is a TBall bat, and now my son is embarrassed to use it. Was this appropriate? Is that bat really that bad it is considered a tball bat? I understand it's not top of line $350 bat, but he can use it well, and I figured he could finish the season. Now he is trying to swing a bigger bat he isn't used to yet and only hitting grounders 10% of the time and missing the rest...hurting his confidence. His coach seems alright, but him saying that to m kid is bothering me. I dont know much about bats, never played myself and he is my first kid in baseball so its a learning curve.

This is my first year coaching and I'm managing my son's 12u rec team. We're a handful of games into the season and we desperately need to shore up our defense. If the other team can hit, we get hammered. Grounders get missed on a regular basis. Balls get past the outfielders on the regular. I've scheduled some extra practices over the next two weeks but I don't even know where to start. Anyone have a direction to point me?

I don't know if anyone will find this helpful, but I hope someone does.

When my HS sophomore was a 6th grader, he had two coaches: a middle school coach and a rec coach.

The middle school coach would shout and swear. He once sacrificed my son's at bat to expedite the inning ending to avoid a strange scoring rule that would have turned our win into a tie - which is fine, except he never bothered to tell my kid who found himself alone at the plate, confused and embarrassed, while everyone else left the field.

He wanted to quit the sport.

I called his rec coach, who was a knowledgeable baseball guy and ran an academy. He got in the phone with my kid and made him laugh, then invited him to practice with the academy.

We moved at the end of the season, unrelated to baseball. I still talk routinely to the rec coach, 4 years later. Yet I often wish that school coach could see my son today - varsity roster, raking, starting pitcher in PG finals - but not so he could be proud, but rather out of spite.

And that's my problem. I should spend all of that emotional energy instead thanking the rec coach one more time.

The coach picks the kid before the season, but we have the power to pick the coach we remember after it.

I have to remind myself of this. Maybe some of you do too?