Coached my first t-ball practice today

making out the line up is not that hard. top load your batting order with your best hitters. make sure that they know the difference between first and third.

you'll need your best fielders at the pitchers mound and at first base. the pitcher will make lots of plays and put a kid on first that can catch. if the rules allow, have your pitcher cover the plate on plays at home. this simple strategy will get you a few more outs and a few more wins (i know, i know, its not about wins and losses). if keeping score is not a part of your league, you can rest assured that the kids will want to know who won anyway. the rest is a huge debacle, better than any scripted comedy going. enjoy this time. it will pass quickly.

 

Larry, I commend you for taking on the task of helping mold these kid into future athletes. A couple of important things to remember:

1) For the most part, forget about baseball and make sure the kids just have fun. After a few practices you'll be able to pick out the ones with the most ability.
2) Forget the parents. In the words of Abraham Lincoln, " You can please some of the people some of the time and some of the people all the time, but you can't please all the people all the time". This was never more true than with LL parents. Just remember you're there for the kids, if you do right by them you'll be able to live with it no matter what the parents think.
3) Maybe most important. Once you figure out which ones have the most ability, don't stand too close to them when they are hitting. Take my word on it.....it can really hurt.

Coaching kids has been one of the most rewarding things I've ever done. I hope your experiences will prove likewise. Good luck.....have fun.

 

Many good ideas posted. This topic reminds me of a phone call I received many years ago. I had started one of the first T-ball programs at a rec center in my home town and the program was very successful. I got a call one day from a representative of one of the local little league programs that they were going to offer T-ball as well. After a few basic questions his concern was if the coach was in charge of placing the ball on the tee how was the catcher suppose to throw out the runners stealing second and third? He hung up on me after I had been laughing for a few seconds. Make sure it is the kids who are laughing and smiling at the end of the day and you will do great. :applause:

 

Here are a couple of things that have worked for me over the years.

For staying down on ground balls, try this- You know the little button on top of the ball cap, tell the kids they should point it at the ball as it rolls toward them. This will help to keep their heads down. Sounds kinds goofy, but it works.

For throwing, try this. Go to Walmart and buy some hand towels, one for every 2 players. Be sure to just get the smaller towels that cost between $1-2.

Fold the towels in half long ways and use some electrical tape and tape the 2 loose ends together.

Now here's the drill- pair the kids up and give one of them a towel. Have the kids stand 3-5 feet apart facing each other. Have the kid without the towel hold his ball glove in front of his body about waist high. The kid with the towel should take the towel, act like he/she is throwing and slap the other kids glove, just so the end of the towel reaches the glove. Just make sure the kid with the towel turns with his/her shoulder facing the glove and have the kid hit the glove with the towel. This drill really helps to teach to keep the elbow up, coming over the top and also teaches extension and proper follow through. Also make sure the kids take a small stride and then bring the back leg forward as they hit the glove.

Give each kid at least 25 reps before each practice and game and you will be amazed at how quickly they will develop the proper throwing motion.

The kids have fun with this and really does work. :xyzthumbs
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The more I practice, the luckier I get!

 

What a maroon .... great story. :xyzthumbs :xyzthumbs

 

patience....patience.....patience!!

My goal with the kids was to have a good time and make them want to come back. You can't teach them alot because I'm not sure they can absorb alot of complexity. Keep it simple and focus on the simplest of basics (like which way to run and not to throw the bat!). Try not to rely too much on that stud player (spend your time equally with all the kids).

Teach them both sides of the game.....how be a good winner and a good loser.

Keep the parents involved. Don't let them stand on the side and just watch! You may spark an interest in one of them as a future coach.

I assigned a ''bench-monster" each game (a parent to monitor the bench and keep the chaos to a mimimum. This is very helpful!!!!

And remember....patience, patience and more patience!!!

 

Larry:

Here is a site with some drills specifically for T-Ball coaches to use. Don't try to use every drill in every practice. Keep them light and keep them fun. What the kids want to do most in T-ball is to smack the ball, so include lots of that every practice.

Check out the link. It will give you a few more organized techniques to use.

I wish I was out there with you.... T-Ballers are a blast. Chasing butterflys in the OF instead of baseballs...... the motivations are completely different for the kids as compared to mom/dad in the stands.

T-Ball coaching site

We normally figure it takes about 3 years to turn a dad into a coach. About the time you get to "Kid Pitch", you'll be ready for anything they throw at you!!!! (But learn to duck).

Kids are great at this age. Congrats on taking on the challenge. :cheers:

 

T Ballers

:applause: I have to admit that in my 35 years of coaching, I never coached a T Ball Team. I have however watched some. I have seen players sleeping in the outfield, runners running to any base they chose and yes, even a young man relieving himself in the outfield. I was totally amazed at how the coaches handled these situations and I applaud them wholeheartedly. I had tears in my eyes when the ball was hit to the outfield and a "SCRUM" took place with a pile up NASCAR fans would have been proud of. There's a country western song out now by Billy Dean called "Let Them Be Little", if your a T Ball Coach you'll understand. If your a parent who expects perfection at T Ball level, listen to the words. :xyzthumbs

 

Rewarding

I played baseball up until I was thirty,coached my son from t-ball thru High School, and I find the most memorable moments were those T-ball & coach pitch days when the players were innocent and energetic. To this day, parents from those teams still talk about those memories. It was the best of times.

A parent once asked" What is that position located about 25 feet in front of home plate (in that circle)?

Assistant coach replied- " TARGET"


Do not assume that parents know anything about the game. One mother spent fifteen minutes trying to put her sons glove on the wrong hand.

Between the Scrum, the sand castles, and the baseball... It is the Best of times.

Good luck!

 

We were playing a game one day .... there was a time out for some reason ... I think it was an overly energetic coach trying to determine something about the rules, etc....

Anyway, during the timeout, our second baseman went over to the bag and started playing with it.... he buried under about 3-4 inches of sand. They started the game, the next batter hit the ball, the runner at first started for 2nd and couldn't find it.... just kept running in circles out there looking for it...

... they truely are the best of times.