Better or Worse?

I would love to have you guys opinion.... My dd has played multiple sports on multiple teams over the years and I have always enjoyed seeing the team get better as the season progressed. Especially the girls who start out weak but finish up really strong. But this year, on the HS softball team there was no improvement as a matter of fact they got worse!! It was really frustrating to see girls with alot of potential not reach that potential. Why? What can we as parents do differently?

 

As a parent you can work with your kid one on one. If she is struggling hitting then you could buy some hitting lessons from a good hitting coach. If she is pitching you will have to spend some money on lessons. Help the high school coach if she/he will let you. Play travel ball...it may not make you better as the high school season progresses, but it will make you better overall. Most travel teams at least do a little practicing during the high school season and those practices should help.

 

Maybe This or This !!!!

First of all did you lose alot of your strong starters last year due to graduating, I know for a fact a few teams not mentioning any names is not as strong this year due to the loss of pitching ,and the offense not as strong at the plate...coaching changes, has this occurred ??? Chemistry can sometimes change due to lack of exposure to each other team mates playing together...take a freshman team play them together for 4 years and you have a team....if not you might want to talk to the A.D. about a coaching change !!!


Guru

 

First question, how old is your DD, has she turned sixteen and started driving....

 

Disagree

You can do all that and work her two hours longer every night after HS practice but the results will be the same or worse. At this age she has lots of homework and prefers to have somewhat of a social life. So the extra two hours after a long day of school, practice, and homework will become a pain instead of a gain to her.

You are only as good as those you play with everyday. And I've seen players work hard in the off season only to regress back to their teammates level (haven't picked a ball up since last HS game year before)once school ball begins. After all she leads the team in all statistics because and isn't being pushed to get better.

I've searched for the answer only to be disappointed each time. Time heals everything and travel ball will soon be here. Hopefully they will return to travel ball form by July.

 

Better or Worse

PTP you nailed it!! Except, my dd is only a sophomore. Can we take 2 more years of torture? No! not if there is something that can make a difference. Not back to TB form until July?? June is going to be a long month on the road.

 

I am not talking about working with them before or after high school practice. I am talking more about weekends and other days where they may have some time. It doesn't take long and an extra 2 hours a week of quality instruction/time is all it would take to see some improvement...not 2 hours a day above and beyond high school practice. Again, 2 hours per week of working on a part of your game that you may be struggling with should work. This is just my opinion, but I have seen it work for many kids.