Everything Fastpitch - The Podcast

This weeks lineup:Warmup Segment:Listener Response: Umpires perspective of longer games (@16:37)Paige's Power Play (@21:41)Tory has added a 15th commandment to his 14 Commandments of Recruiting (@25:36)Coaches setting  high standards. Usually the winners will love it, but the other players will quit. Sometimes we have to build up to the high standards. (@50:17)Every player should have a secondary position that they are totally comfortable playing. (@57:03)Support the show

At the end of a season or year we usually give our players an exit interview to let them know what things they need to work on. Give yourself a review and see what things went well and things that need improvement. This lets you know what you need to do to improve your skills.Support the show

This weeks lineup:Warmup SegmentListener Question: My daughter's coach says my daughter is a singles hitter. She leads the team in batting average, but is pulled out in critical situations for what he says are power hitters. What do you think? (@9:16)Paige's Power Play (@14:35)It is becoming obvious that we need more catchers. The coaches discuss how we can start developing them. (@19:02)Small rosters have reduced competition for positions. Competing for positions is a good thing and helps develop better players and prepares them for playing at a higher level. (@30:23)Some coaches have a pressure cooker style of coaching.  Repeatedly stressing things like the best hitter gets to play. Younger players don't process this information correctly and put pressure on themselves which results in them not performing well. (@41:38)Support the show

Gloves are the tools of the trade, but they are often neglected. Teach your players how to take care of them and also be prepared to make repairs when needed.Support the show

This weeks lineup:Warmup SegmentListener Question:  My daughter is an outstanding pitcher and is an integral part of her team. After the season has ended the team has added more pitchers. Should we be worried? (@12:07)Paige's Power Play (@19:47)How important is a player's potential? We have to balance performance against a player's potential. Success is not measured by potential. (@24:26)Time Limits. Pros, cons and dislike of time limit games. When looking at tournaments look at how many innings you will get to play not the number of games. Longer time limits will usually result in more innings. (@36:50)Another discussion on coaches trying to make mechanical changes to a player on every pitch. (@46:46)Support the show

Sometimes we encounter a player who just doesn't want to be there. The parents or someone has decided that they should play ball. Maybe its for exercise, being part of a team or they honestly think the player will like it if they give it a try. We have to handle the situation so that it isn't a distraction.Support the show

This weeks LineupWarmup SegmentListener Question: What will happen if they change the transfer rule to allow unlimited transfers? (@08:12)Paige's Power Play (@12:38)The rich keep getting richer in college softball. The transfer portal and NIL is allowing players to migrate to the great teams. (@16:17)How do you distinguish between all the different "Final Tournaments". With so many nationals, world series, etc tournaments, we don't have a true national champion. (@30:33)Illegal pitches. Players from the very young to the older ages are getting by with illegal pitches. They don't want to change, but what is going to happen when the encounter a game where it is being called. (@37:43)Support the show

If we graph performance of a player or a team it is not a straight line showing improvement each day. Skills are developed over time and while the skill level will increase over time it will ebb and flow on the way. Also it will depend upon what we measure to show improvement. As we progress through the age groups the skills of the opposing players and teams improve. And as the opponent improves it is harder to use the typical measuring sticks, like batting average, era, on-base percentage, etc.Support the show

This weeks lineup:Warmup Segment:Listener Question: Why do people think that having coaches with no players on the team is the greatest thing ever? (@10:32)Paige's Power Play (@20:29)What to do when a player outgrows her team. (@24:36)How can we help the player that is all-american in practice but fails in a game. Its like she has stage freight. (@34:23)We see it all the time where a team complains about the facilities after they get home from a tournament. Can be fences, field maintenance, concessions and on and on. Almost everybody has been to a tournament and know what they like and dislike. Ask the questions BEFORE you make a commitment. Don't assume that because it is a big tournament or showcase that everything will be first class. (@48:10)Support the show

The coaches discuss this time of year where teams are finishing this season but are planning for next season. We are finishing up with probably our biggest tournaments of the year. But, many are trying to get a jump on preparing for next year. It is hard to stay focused on the task at hand for the players and coaches if we are distracted by working in tryouts at the same time.Support the show

This weeks lineup:Warmup SegmentListener Question: What do we do when the coach plays a guest player and several of the team members are given limited playing time? (@8:51)Paige's Power Play (@15:52)Etiquette for showcases. The coaches discuss some dos and don'ts for parents and coaches regarding the college coaches that are in attendance. (@21:32)Organization Jumping. Is the grass always greener on the other side? (@35:05)The coaches discuss picking the right showcase for the level of talent on your team. (@42:35)Support the show

We can increase the softball IQ of our players by teaching them the basics of scorekeeping. They will better understand how their batting and fielding average is computed. Also they could look at an online or offline scorebook and reconstruct what had occurred. Every little bits helps in the education process.Support the show

This weeks lineup:Warmup SegmentListener Question: Is there any place where I can find clips of great plays to share with my team? (@10:32)Paige's Power Play (14:04)Ramifications of UCLA and USC going to the Big 10 (@17:13)Based upon some listener responses we talk some more about loyalty and other topics.(@30:43)Great advice based upon a quote by Matt Lisle. (@44:37)Support the show

We have all seen it. A runner is sliding into a base or homeplate and the fielder reaches and tags the runner high and the runner is safe. Remind your players that the runner has to come to the base, so we should get in a position to tag the runner at field level on whatever body part is going to be the first to hit the base.Support the show

This weeks lineup:Warmup Segment:Listener Question: How quickly should a player be able the change a bad habit? (@12:11)Paige's Power Play (@18:23)We had some good responses to our topic on loyalty. There are some more things to consider. (@24:03)How do we make the pro-leagues work? (@36:54)We have to teach sliding better. Let's eliminate the collisions. (@50:55)Support the show

Players need to advance their skills by practicing skills that are out of their comfort zone but not into their panic zone. The middle ground is the stretch zone. Learn to push them, but not to far.Support the show

This week's lineup:Warmup SegmentListener Question: Can you give me some ideas on how to make practice fun for younger players? (@14:24)Paige's Power Play (@26:16)Is there any loyalty in our game and how do we deal with it? (@28:59)A lot of the country is experiencing a heat wave. How do we deal with the heat and make the call that it is too hot? (@48:08)Get our players onboard to make practices more efficient. (@54:04)Support the show

Today we discuss enthusiasm. There is a line that you can cross where enthusiasm becomes obnoxious. It is our job as coaches to keep our team on the right side of that line.Support the show

This Weeks Lineup:Warmup SegmentListener Question: My daughter is a pitcher and a shortstop. How can she be ready if going straight from shortstop to pitching? (@10:21)Paige's Power Play (@17:24)Interview with the ROWVA/Williamsfield Varsity Cougar softball team. A smaller school in Illinois. The players decided to do something to raise awareness of mental health and suicide this year. Listen to the interview to hear the things that they are involved in. @21:41)Is having a dominant team in college softball a good thing or a bad thing? (@37:56)Sometimes when we do the right thing it doesn't always turn out good. Keep playing the right way and don't be afraid of the time in can go wrong. (@51:36)Support the show

You are going to a big out of town tournament. It's costing the parents and players a lot of money. When you factor in travel, living expenses and missed work the investment is significant. Don't let "we have to get our money's worth" alter your coaching style. Your team will play better if you stay consistent. If you display a lot more pressure, it will carry over to the team. Support the show