Coached my first t-ball practice today

i will gladly accept any pointers on how to coach the little kids. most played last year, but where do you start?

we just had them hit around today to see what everyone can do.

they sure do like to chase that ball when its hit though.

 

Coaching T Ball rocks! It's especially good if you have parents on the team who take it too seriously, because you can coah them to lighten the up. Take a few minutes for the kids to pair off and play catch with each other. Then, have everybody spread out in the field, give each kid 10 or so balls to hit off the t, and have the kids in the field always try to throw to first base. On the 10th hit, the kid should run the bases, then when he's done, he plays first base and everyone rotates. I'm sure there's better ways to do it, but this worked for me and the kids seemed to stay interested.

 

MAKE THEM DRINK WATER.

 

1 parent brings snacks and drinks every practice. As soon as you identify that parent that has some hangup about giving kids sweets and brings tofu bars or something, kick their kid off the team.

 

this sounds like a good practice.

the kids were all pretty good. we've got one girl who's tough as nails. gets right in front of the ball and took a few bad hops. she rules.

we've got one bigger kid who can smack the ball. i've got to coach ty on the off-days to whack it like that kid.

i guess we should start at the beginning and tell them what the bases are and the point of everything, huh?

 

LarryD

I think this is a much friendlier forum to move this thread to .... where in the world did you start it?????

I remember those days. Primary thing is to make sure they all get a chance to be a part of something with their friends. 30 minutes after the game, most won't remember if they win or lose. Their parents might, but the kids won't.

You're going to see a phenomenon called "Herd Ball". The ball gets hit and the entire team runs to the ball. If you can get half of them to play their positions, you are ahead of the game. Don't try anything fancy. No plays.

At that age, everyone can hit, but nobody can catch .... it's all about fun. Go with the flow and never get up tight. Keep it light and fun.

 

herd ball -- that's a great term. perfect description.

today, i just tried to tell them that when they see that someone else is closer and running after it, that means they need to run back to their spot and get ready.

also let them know how importat it was to back each other up because the ball goes through our legs all the time.

made sure that their glove touches the dirt so there's no way the ball can get underneath it.

it's going to be fun, but i must admit that i don't feel as if i know enough to be coaching the kids -- it makes for a bit of anxiety. it'd be a lot easier if the parents would just drop off their kids and go away. guess i've got to realize that every parent is pretty much focused on his or her kid.

 

There is a great couple of CD's out by Bill Engval ... "Here's your Sign" is one of them. I think the second was "Dorkfish". He's a country comedian. In there, he discusses teaching his son how to play T-Ball....

It's the best commentary on kids sports you will ever hear and it sure puts it all in perspective. See if you can find them. Must listening for any aspiring coach.

It should be required of all parents too ... it does a great job of mocking how stupid all of us can be as parents.

Back to the serious part. Only technique I can think of for the young ones is the "gator". It's a quick description of keeping the glove on the ground and using the free hand over the top of the glove like the mouth of an alligator.

The purpose is two-fold. It allows them to bring the hand down and make sure the ball stays in the glove and it's in the way in case the ball pops up out of the glove so they don't get hit in the face.

Leave out the last part when you are talking with them ... they don't need to know the ball has teeth yet.

 

line them up about 4 feet apart at a distance you are comfortable with and throw to them. even if they do not catch it make them field and return it to you as fast as possible. sort of like hot potato. go down the line one at a time, mix up your throws:grounders straight line and high pops. have some partent behind you with a glove because the balls being returned to you will be wild as hell. make the parnet run and retrieve the ball.

 

Another great drill ... believe it or not, this one works even on the little kids.

Call it "Aim Small, Miss Small".....

Get a wall, Place a big target on it and have the kids throw at the target. Some will even miss the wall and most will miss the target. From the same distance, stick a playing card in the center of the target and have the kids throw just at the playing card. They won't hit it often, but they will start hitting the target with their throws consistently.