Organizational Allegiance

My 2 cents worth

I totally believe in committment. Whoever my DD has played for she has never missed a practice or game (knock on wood). To many times you see young ladies miss practice and coaches let it slide or even miss some games and still they are right back on the field when they come back. Believe me the other ladies that heart to this. There are a few that sometimes show favorites to some. As far as I'm concern if you pay all this money for your DD to play on a TB (Showcase) team then everyone should get equal playing time. If your good enough to make one of these team then you should be playing just as much as the next player. As a parent you have to help make the right decision for your DD so sometimes that means moving on. So Guru I think we are on the same page. Anyway thats my 2 cents worth and want to say good luck to everyone in 2008.

 

How about Teams folding or disolving????

I too agree with a lot of what has been said so far. My DD has had some bad luck the last 2 yrs with travel ball and have had some low points in desire to move on. In 05 she played for a great team/organization#1 that was close by and mostly local girls the same age. The team split up becuase we had three coaches who couldn't agree and broke up the team at the World Series while the girls were playing. All summer she had another coach wanting her to play for his team, so after the "big" disagreement we tried out for team #2 thinking the grass was greener. Actually it was! By far the best team she has been a part of. Then came the fall of 05 and at the Christmas banquet the coaches announced the team was changing organizations/names and we would play up early. All was well until around World Series time and you guessed it, team #2 also folds. I tried to keep it together and even played three more tournaments with fill-ins, but it didn't work. We searched all fall and into the spring of 07 for team #3 to settle down with and found a great situation. Nice practice facilities, coaches, players, parents, the whole package was there. We truly were happy and in a rare moment my wife and I agreed that this was where we wanted to be and WITHOUT me coaching. I thought it was me that was the problem so I quit coaching. Well after the State tournament and before the World Series, this team folded due to girls moving into "better situations". I agree with gas prices and moving closer and also accept all of their moves. But, so many teams folding because of players/ parents moving around really hurt our playing time. We have now found a team this past fall and hopefully for the next four years to settle down with. It took a lot of coaxing my DD to play again after this last fold. I think if it wasn't for JFagala helping me find this team, she would have quit for good because she was tired of trying out for teams and then they fold.

What can I/we do to keep teams from folding????? I am driving right at 112 miles one way to get her to this team and want our team to have the same commitment as far as practice and tournaments. Nice post by the way, very interesting.

 

it is funny to read about how it is so important to have fun, be with your friends, have a great social life but the first post on Monday is the score and who won the tournament. We have a lot of people that talk out of both sides of the mouth. They want to be a winner and very proud that their team is winning four of the last five tournaments. Then in the next post they want equal play for equal pay. It does not work like that. Just because a parent changes jobs does not mean you will be changing travel teams. It is a family decision. Some people love the allegiance, will defend the organization to no ends, others see it as a means to the end. As you get older it will get worse. Some teams don't practice, they show up at the tournaments and play. Other teams are on better fields due to hard work and contacts. There is no formula but there is one dd. A person will do what they think is in her best interest. Right, wrong or indifferent.
My dd is 18 and she has switched four times. All big organizations. Each program was outstanding in her development. She is now at a D1 School and I feel we made the correct moves. We left a lot of friends when we moved but obtained more. The biggest lesson I will tell you is to Never Burn a bridge. Don't leave upset and communicate why you are doing it to leave the door open if you need to come back.

 

My take

I really hesitate to even make a comment on this subject given the rumor mill, the back stabbing and other items that have taken place over the past year!

Communication is the key, open and honest communication between the coaches, players, parents is the only way U can have a good lasting relationship. Sometimes we as coaches think we have been clear in what we have said and find out the player and or parent had a totally different understanding but made no attempt to clarify. I am sure it has been the other way at times where the parent or kid felt they were perfectly clear and we as coaches missed the boat. Comment, pay the money picked for team should give equal playing time is absurd! Do U get that at the HS level, do U get that in a job? U must earn the time by doing the things to get better away from practice as well as at practice and on the field. Now if U do those things, I agree U should play. Winning is important in softball, baseball, basketball, life, family, etc. Self-esteeem comes with being successful with whatever U are doing in life from church involvement to playing sports, to advancement in business. U are kidding yourself if U say winning does not matter to U! I like the comment about changing jobs and comparing to softball, makes sense. Everybody wants loyality for them, everybody wants things to be geared to them, a part of that drive to succeed or at least feel successful in life. In a "ME" society that is big!

Most Coaches doing travel ball do not get paid! Most get their reward by seeing the kids improve, enjoy, and finally signing to play college ball like we have seen the past couple weeks. Just seeing kids improve , enjoy, and move on to higher levels is also rewarding. They are truly trying to do what is right for the kids and have no other benefit from their efforts. Be thankful for those people, talk openly with them, make sure your loyality is where it should be as well, and if U don't like something, let them know in a professional manner and don't just move on to what appears to be a greener pasture. Get your facts straight, do your homework and allow your coach to give his side and I bet a great deal of potential problems will cease.

As always just my opinion and I hope all teams and parents can learn to communicate so what is best for the young ladies and kids that play the game can be accomplished. I have learned my lesson and hope I will be better at what I do because of that knowledge.

 

Communication is the key!

Honoring a commitment is at best difficult without communication. Coaches and parents need to have a realistic perception of the player from the start. Most coaches will recruit a player based upon what the see and hear about the player in a short try-out session. Reality sometimes sets in with a coach who thought their recruit was capable and later found to be lacking. At this point the player starts riding the pine and the coach starts looking again. Good coaches and parents can avoid this situation by communication. If your kid is not playing ask why and what you can do to improve their abilities. Implement the changes necessary, monitor results, and communicate your actions back to the coach. The coach should also initiate these actions by communicating to the player and parents. By simply communicating at least everyone knows where they stand.

A lot of players make a team, then ride on the fact that they have made it. I have seen good players become complacent after making a team, work ethic slow or stop and next thing you know, someone has their spot. As coaches and parents we need to understand the importance of continued improvement, to be the best we can be.

If players, coaches and parents can be realistic, dedicated and communicate I think there would be more commitment on everyone's part.

 

two way street

Commitment is a two way street.

 

Need online waiver wire...

Great topic.....

There will always be reasons to leave, and some of them are actually legit...

I believe that if you make a commitment for a particular season, you should play it out. If it is not all what you thought it was gonna be, shame on you for not doing your homework and asking hard questions to the coach before you commit to play.
Obviously, there can be issues that come up, that dictate a change. These issues are rarely related to the sport specific, and could not have been forseen.

From a personal viewpoint, I have established long relationships with
many travel ball coaches. One common attribute of most successful travel ball coaches is longevity. They have been there and done that...

When I see kids jump from these teams over issues relating to perceived lack of playing time or defensive positioning, I wonder if the kid is putting personal goals above the team...especially if the travel ball coach is one that I know to be fair.

Playing for 3 different travel ball teams in one year makes me wonder who the problem really is.

It is also very hard to keep up with where you are.

Having a clear understanding of what your role will be on a particular travel ball team will eliminate issues down the road.
Ask hard questions to the travel ball coach before you commit to them, so they know what your expectations are.

Ask open ended questions that will require a specific response.
examples

1. What is your expectations of this team and how do I fit into these goals?

2. What strong attributes do I possess that will help this team be successful?

3. What do you see as my weaknesses?

Now you have specific answers to all the questions you were afraid to ask.

This is good practice for when you start your recruiting visits...
College rosters are gonna be alott bigger than travel ball,
which means more competition for the 9 spaces on that line up card.

Jumping from team to team in travel ball is an easy. For the most part,
your commitment is week to week. Just remember, your actions are gonna effect 10-11 other families.
Make sure the reason for leaving is not staring back at you in the mirror.


IMO

 

Amen

Charlie, well said, U always seem to have the right words. I keep telling my kids to get use to some pine time as it will happen in college given the expanded rosters.

NC softball is getting better and better and with that the competition for the great players is fierce at all levels. However sometimes U get a good mix of players that may not be superstars but get along, are supportive of teammates, and on the field play well as a unit. When U get that mix, it is so much fun!

 

Lots of good points

But alot of you parents haven't gotten to the drivers license, jobs, & boyfriend stage yet.