Absence from games, practices: what's acceptable?

the otherside of the fence

i'm gonna play devil's advocate here....now let me first say that as a hs coach i'd probably close to flip out if a kid said they were going to miss for a "fun trip."

however, when i first started teaching i got a nice little nugget of wisdom from our then assistant principal. she was in charge of attendence and all that stuff. so she got sick notes, etc.

anyway, i mentioned one time how stupid i thought it was that parents would take a kid on a ski trip in the middle of jan after we had just finished christmas break and were in the crunch run to exams. her reply was this. "why deny that kid that opportunity?" in this world that moves and changes so fast why deny that kid that time with their family doing something they don't get to do everyday. you never know when something will happen and not allow that kid to ski, or go to disney world, etc. i try to remember that when church ski trips come up.

 

I hear ya, LP46...but....and this is a big but....sports teaches a young man about commitment, sacrifice, dedication and team (what's best for the team, not the player); and above all else...loyalty. Loyalty to your teammates, loyalty to your coach and loyalty to your school. There is a price to pay to play HS sports. You may not to get to go to the beach. You may not get to go to the mountains. You may not get to go out with your girlfriend on a Wednesday night with all of your other friends. It's a sacrifice a young man should understand when committing to his HS team. But hopefully they will think its worth it.

Playing HS sports is a choice...and a priviledge.

Again, I'm only speaking of HS sports.

 

braves i'm with you or as vincent antonelli says i'm wit choo.

 

Hey, if your players want a fun trip, schedule a game with a mountain school and you can have a nice pre-game meal in quaint local establishment, enjoy some breathtaking scenery, perhaps take in some shopping at a local mall or outlet center and then freeze your tails off playing/watching some awesome high school baseball!

 

i'd play if

i'd play up there if and only if those mountain boys promised to hit the big part of our bats. its pretty cold down here on the beach, but nothing to what you guys have. i can't phathom a ball off the handle up there...oye vez

 

my 2 cents as a relative outsider:

We're talking kids here. Kids pretty much have to do what their parents say. When I was in HS, I would MUCH rather stay in town and go to my ballgame than go to Aunt Suzie's 85th Birthday party, but that wasn't my call.

I'm guessing a lot of these coaches who say "no excuses" are also the ones that tell their kids "when you're living in my house, you'll live by my rules". What's a kid supposed to say when a coach tells him "if you go on this trip you're off the team" and the parent's saying "you're going on this trip and that's that".

I think a season long punishment is pretty harsh.

 

To be honest Big Mark. You will find the large majority of parents are pretty savvy about these type things. Remember, all of the rules are discussed at the parent/coach meeting prior to the season, so there are no surprises.

In my 6 years connected to a HS team, I never heard of one incident in any sport where a player begged out of practice or a game due to a "fun trip". I believe that nearly every single player is pretty sophisticated about those type things and they understand their priorities.

Hey, it's great having you visit the Prep forum. I hope you get involved more often.

 

Braves, mark this day down on your calendar. I totally AGREE with you on that one. I couldn't imagine a "starter" even posing the question to the coach.

 

missed practice time

if one of our kids miss practice they do not get to start in a game unless like you said due to sick or death.our rule is if a kid has academics then that comes first and then the kid can come late.

 

just curious you guys thought if this player isn't a starter - just one of those kids that shows up at practice day in and day out just hoping to see a chance to pinch hit, run or maybe get an inning out in the field late in a game.

While these guys aren't going to lose any starts to take a day off - would you as a coach meet out any consequences or hold it against one of those players?

I understand that team comes first and rules for one are rules for all - just wondering if it would cause the kid to go from "might get in the game" to "you're the last player on my lineup card"