Coaching Help

[mrluchini]

This past Thursday we played against the other undefeated team in our league. Everything started well. The boys (11U) got to the filed early and went through soft-toss and fielding drills. They all seemed ready and excited to play. Once the game started, we were totally flat. The boys were just not into the game. They were not cheering each other on as in previous games. Up until this game we had hit the ball very well, but Thursday we could not seem to get anything going until the final inning, but by then we had to big a hole to dig out of.

This is my first year coaching my son's team since t-ball. I feel very responsible for not having my team ready to play mentally. Those of you with more experience, what have you done to avoid coming out flat? Also, have you ever had success pulling your team out of the funk once the game starts?

[Coach G]

There is a fine line between fired up and tense. I don't know how serious your team takes the game. Just from experience it sounds like a little nervousness or too much added pressure due to the opponent. Its really hard to get them fired up and at the same time still play relaxed and loose. When you achieve that you have got the coaching thing down.

[skipper5]

"Coming out flat" is normal. Baseball isn't like other sports. The pre-game psyche is different. In football, you get them in a red-meat-eating frenzy, and you've done your job. In baseball, avoiding flatness is more difficult.

Pre-game rituals are important, but there are no guarantees, no matter how good a coach you are.

Do everything you can to prepare your team mentally, and to try to win the game, etc., but you will be a better coach if you come to the game expecting to lose. That allows you to keep your equanimity throughout the game and the season, which provides a better playing environment for the kids, with a side benefit that it means you will win more games.

None of you know me, so I can brag: my teams come ready-to-play more often than the teams I've faced over the years. It's because I am firm, but extremely up-beat, with rituals and structure. When the players come into the dug-out, I want them to feel an instant transformation, the same way I used to feel when I slipped my time-card into the time-clock and heard the loud thunk: it's show-time, until I punch-out.

Ebbs and flows during the game are normal. You'll burn these boys out if you expect them to be at the fence cheering all the time. You can't always make it happen in baseball. Set up the structure and the rituals, and then let it happen.

[shake-n-bake]

Don't force it. Your players' personalities give the team it's identity. Do your best to maximize their skills and set some level of expectation that's high, but not so high as to be unrealistic. Good play cures a lot of this naturally.

Skipper is right. Don't micromanage their emotions. My son plays 12U. They're 2 games into the season and have already come up with strategies to avoid the bench coach/gastapo. It's so bad that it has already become annoying to some of the parents hearing him get on the kids for 6 innings every time a couple kids say one word about anything but baseball.

[skipper5]

I missed a clue in the OP. The team had been previously undefeated.

Going undefeated in baseball is bad. It's a monkey on the back. Consider your loss a blessing in disguise.

[Ursa Major]

Skipper5 said: Going undefeated in baseball is bad. It's a monkey on the back. Consider your loss a blessing in disguise.Good point. And it makes for better league chemistry, so everyone else isn't backbiting against you.

Our 11u division has a manager who I have to say is one of the nicest, most upbeat managers I've ever seen. His teams have usually been middle of the pack, but his kids learn and are happy, and everyone plays. This year, he moved up to 11u and inherited a defending champion team with a lot of returning studs, and 3 of the other 4 teams in the division are not well managed. So, his team won its first six games and you could tell he was not comfortable with the dynamic it projected. After they lost to the second place team, you could hear his sigh of relief, as the team could get back to just playing ball without worrying about 'breaking the streak".

As for getting the kids up for a game:

1. Do not try to predict or overly control (or get upset about your inability to do either) the minds of 11 and 12 year old boys, either singly or collectively. It there's a new XBox 360 game coming out that week, that may well dominate their thoughts. Get over it.

2. Find examples of better dynamics. Our 13u team has a bunch of unfocused kids who are a chore come game time. One of the best things we do is to share our field with the local high school team, and often have to delay practice by a half hour or 45 minutes while we watch their games. That team and its opponents are always in the game and off the bench, crowding the dugout railing to cheer their teammates on. Sure, the high school teams will have their own ebbs and flows, but their 'floor' is a pretty high caliber of focus and energy. Kids should realize that even seasoned pros pay attention and can get excited about good things happening on the field. Watch the dugout after a walk-off home run, even if the team is in last place in the standings.

3. You should have a couple of team leaders -- good players who at least understand what good energy and team dynamics are about. Talk to them before the next game and let them know that -- if this situation arises again -- you'll signal them to stomp around the dugout to roust the lollygaggers. To be sure, only about half your team leaders will be up for doing this. But, it's one way to go.

[stejay]

get music playing before the game...also, this may sound strange, but let them have a little bit of fun before the game. I do this, in High School level. I have them do warmups, then some minor drills, and then give them 10 minutes to joke around with their friends. It gets rid of tenseness.