Post by Homer Hawks Site Administrator on Dec 18, 2009 18:36:04 GMT -5
This is taken from the heybucket softball site - I did not write it but certainly agree with most everything stated in it ...
This article was written by a gentleman named Jake Patterson.
He wrote it for baseball andit was modified it to apply to softball and have posted it here for parents to read. I am disturbed by this trend I am seeing in select softball where players are being marginalized in their skill sets because of the reason Jake points out in this article. You all wonder why there are so many softball teams and organizations in the area? Parents is this your child?
Token Play Time
A Player’s Worst Moment, A Coach’s Worst Excuse
Youth coaches, both experienced and inexperienced, sometimes defend and justify their starting and playtime decisions by using token playtime. Token playtime is the process of playing a bench player when there is no hope of winning the game, there is no way to lose it, or potential damage can be easily mitigated. It typically occurs in the last moments of a game. The coach scans the bench and without warning yells, “Suzie, get in there and hit!” The startled player grabs a helmet and bat and runs to the plate unprepared for the next few seconds of her life.
More times than not, the nervous player performs poorly. In many cases the coach uses this to reinforce his or her decision not to play the player often or start the player. When the player inevitably fails, I have witnessed coaches turning to parents, other coaches, players or the fans and give them a, “See that’s why I don’t play her,” look. The end result of the whole process is the player learns nothing and the coach misses the opportunity to build and teach both the player and the team.
Two things usually happen from a player’s perspective. First, the player feels embarrassed and angry because she was unprepared for her only moment in the sun and was not given a fair opportunity to succeed. The second thing that happens is the player and her parents see token playtime for what it is; an after thought for the untalented. Whether this is true or not from the coach’s perspective is irrelevant in the eyes of the player and parents. They typically go home feeling bad about the game and their opportunity to contribute.
We all know stories of young players wanting to quit a team because they were not playing. I can remember my youngest daughter wanting to quit her middle school basketball team because the only time the coach would play her was when the team was winning by a lot or losing by a lot. The coach even had her token playtime players sit at the far end of the bench so they wouldn’t interfere with the “real” basketball players.
It resulted in destroying her love for the game. She wasn’t the best, the tallest, or the most talented player, but she worked hard and was reliable, important athletic traits some coaches fail to recognize in their players. her coach looked at basketball as a five person game supported by random substitutes. This left the bench feeling isolated and the starters feeling overwhelmed. Few lessons were learned and no one had fun.
WHAT IS THE REASON FOR TOKEN PLAYTIME?
The reason for token playtime is simple: The coach wants to win! They play their best players in hopes of winning every game. While winning in itself is not a bad thing, it must be balanced with teaching and developing. Determining how much emphasis is placed on each is determined by the age of the players and the league in which you play.
The age of the players.
The younger the player, the more emphasis there is on development and teaching. Emphasis on winning must be age appropriate. Stump Merrill, a great Major League Baseball coach, helped me with this concept several years ago during a coaches’ clinic. After listening to Stump talk about youth athletics, several of us developed a matrix that shows appropriate levels of teaching, developing, winning, fun, work the athletes must dedicate to the sport and time needed to play and practice, based on the type of league and age of the player. The results were eye opening. Each athletic level had varying amounts of emphasis in every category. The point is, that every level requires different coaching techniques and winning emphasis.
WHO ARE THE TOKEN TIME PLAYERS
Players who are usually subjected to token time are your least talented players. We all have coached players who struggle with basic skills no matter how hard they try. The important thing to remember as a coach is the reason they struggle can be either genetic or developmental. Some young players have the physical ability and attributes to play well, but they require time to develop. Others will never be good athletes, but should be afforded the same opportunities to contribute to the team.
Other reasons for token playtime include:
Inexperienced coaches.
Few youth coaches come to coaching with any background or training in coaching. They are learning and simply miss things. They get wrapped up in the moment and forget about the player at the end of the bench.
Poor coaching.
Some coaches are just bad coaches. They want to win and care little about the player sitting the bench.
Favoritism.
Unfortunately, some coaches have players they like more than the other players. They overplay the favored players at the expense of the less favored players. This is difficult to hide and is usually detrimental to the team as well as the players involved.
Players who deserve little time.
Playtime is earned during practices. There are those that deserve little playtime because of poor practice habits. Establishing rules at the beginning of the season and reviewing them with players and parents help prevent misunderstandings here. Poor conduct in practice deserves less playtime in a game.
What can you do as a coach to prevent token playing time?
Come to games prepared.
Take a few minutes to establish a game plan. Going to a game prepared can eliminate oversights made during a game.
Recognize your job is to teach and develop.
Many youth coaches live their own athletic dreams through their players. They lose sight that the game is about the athlete. An old coach once told me, “Stop worrying about winning, you can’t control it. The only thing you can control is how well you prepare your team and how well you prepare yourself.”
Accept that a team is only a team when all members feel they are part of the team.
Every player should have a role. Examples include back-up infielder, reliever and pinch runner. To be successful everyone needs to know where he or she fits. Make the game about the kids, all the kids. Yes it is more fun to win, but you must balance that with a sense of fairness to all players.
Balance short-term goals with the long-term development of the team.
Win/loss records are important, but so is teaching and developing. A coach should be looking for every opportunity to play the younger players. This should be viewed as an investment in the team’s future. Every game, every practice should be viewed as a teaching and development opportunity.
When presented the opportunity, try something VERY different.
When losing big or winning big try new things. It’s fun and it gives you an opportunity to teach and to discover new talents. I had a young woman who struggled the entire season. She worked hard but just never seemed to catch on to what we were trying to teach. During a hopeless game I told all the players on the bench, “Ok, everyone’s in! Where do you want to play?” Everyone went to a position other than the one they played.
Providing the athletes a fair opportunity to succeed rather than an opportunity to fail is your most important job as a coach. Don’t look to justify your playing and starting decisions with a few moments of unexpected time for your bench players. Keep everyone involved and develop roles for all players. Remember the game is for the players. The future athletic memories of our children are being made today. Go and make good memories!
This article was written by a gentleman named Jake Patterson.
He wrote it for baseball andit was modified it to apply to softball and have posted it here for parents to read. I am disturbed by this trend I am seeing in select softball where players are being marginalized in their skill sets because of the reason Jake points out in this article. You all wonder why there are so many softball teams and organizations in the area? Parents is this your child?
Token Play Time
A Player’s Worst Moment, A Coach’s Worst Excuse
Youth coaches, both experienced and inexperienced, sometimes defend and justify their starting and playtime decisions by using token playtime. Token playtime is the process of playing a bench player when there is no hope of winning the game, there is no way to lose it, or potential damage can be easily mitigated. It typically occurs in the last moments of a game. The coach scans the bench and without warning yells, “Suzie, get in there and hit!” The startled player grabs a helmet and bat and runs to the plate unprepared for the next few seconds of her life.
More times than not, the nervous player performs poorly. In many cases the coach uses this to reinforce his or her decision not to play the player often or start the player. When the player inevitably fails, I have witnessed coaches turning to parents, other coaches, players or the fans and give them a, “See that’s why I don’t play her,” look. The end result of the whole process is the player learns nothing and the coach misses the opportunity to build and teach both the player and the team.
Two things usually happen from a player’s perspective. First, the player feels embarrassed and angry because she was unprepared for her only moment in the sun and was not given a fair opportunity to succeed. The second thing that happens is the player and her parents see token playtime for what it is; an after thought for the untalented. Whether this is true or not from the coach’s perspective is irrelevant in the eyes of the player and parents. They typically go home feeling bad about the game and their opportunity to contribute.
We all know stories of young players wanting to quit a team because they were not playing. I can remember my youngest daughter wanting to quit her middle school basketball team because the only time the coach would play her was when the team was winning by a lot or losing by a lot. The coach even had her token playtime players sit at the far end of the bench so they wouldn’t interfere with the “real” basketball players.
It resulted in destroying her love for the game. She wasn’t the best, the tallest, or the most talented player, but she worked hard and was reliable, important athletic traits some coaches fail to recognize in their players. her coach looked at basketball as a five person game supported by random substitutes. This left the bench feeling isolated and the starters feeling overwhelmed. Few lessons were learned and no one had fun.
WHAT IS THE REASON FOR TOKEN PLAYTIME?
The reason for token playtime is simple: The coach wants to win! They play their best players in hopes of winning every game. While winning in itself is not a bad thing, it must be balanced with teaching and developing. Determining how much emphasis is placed on each is determined by the age of the players and the league in which you play.
The age of the players.
The younger the player, the more emphasis there is on development and teaching. Emphasis on winning must be age appropriate. Stump Merrill, a great Major League Baseball coach, helped me with this concept several years ago during a coaches’ clinic. After listening to Stump talk about youth athletics, several of us developed a matrix that shows appropriate levels of teaching, developing, winning, fun, work the athletes must dedicate to the sport and time needed to play and practice, based on the type of league and age of the player. The results were eye opening. Each athletic level had varying amounts of emphasis in every category. The point is, that every level requires different coaching techniques and winning emphasis.
WHO ARE THE TOKEN TIME PLAYERS
Players who are usually subjected to token time are your least talented players. We all have coached players who struggle with basic skills no matter how hard they try. The important thing to remember as a coach is the reason they struggle can be either genetic or developmental. Some young players have the physical ability and attributes to play well, but they require time to develop. Others will never be good athletes, but should be afforded the same opportunities to contribute to the team.
Other reasons for token playtime include:
Inexperienced coaches.
Few youth coaches come to coaching with any background or training in coaching. They are learning and simply miss things. They get wrapped up in the moment and forget about the player at the end of the bench.
Poor coaching.
Some coaches are just bad coaches. They want to win and care little about the player sitting the bench.
Favoritism.
Unfortunately, some coaches have players they like more than the other players. They overplay the favored players at the expense of the less favored players. This is difficult to hide and is usually detrimental to the team as well as the players involved.
Players who deserve little time.
Playtime is earned during practices. There are those that deserve little playtime because of poor practice habits. Establishing rules at the beginning of the season and reviewing them with players and parents help prevent misunderstandings here. Poor conduct in practice deserves less playtime in a game.
What can you do as a coach to prevent token playing time?
Come to games prepared.
Take a few minutes to establish a game plan. Going to a game prepared can eliminate oversights made during a game.
Recognize your job is to teach and develop.
Many youth coaches live their own athletic dreams through their players. They lose sight that the game is about the athlete. An old coach once told me, “Stop worrying about winning, you can’t control it. The only thing you can control is how well you prepare your team and how well you prepare yourself.”
Accept that a team is only a team when all members feel they are part of the team.
Every player should have a role. Examples include back-up infielder, reliever and pinch runner. To be successful everyone needs to know where he or she fits. Make the game about the kids, all the kids. Yes it is more fun to win, but you must balance that with a sense of fairness to all players.
Balance short-term goals with the long-term development of the team.
Win/loss records are important, but so is teaching and developing. A coach should be looking for every opportunity to play the younger players. This should be viewed as an investment in the team’s future. Every game, every practice should be viewed as a teaching and development opportunity.
When presented the opportunity, try something VERY different.
When losing big or winning big try new things. It’s fun and it gives you an opportunity to teach and to discover new talents. I had a young woman who struggled the entire season. She worked hard but just never seemed to catch on to what we were trying to teach. During a hopeless game I told all the players on the bench, “Ok, everyone’s in! Where do you want to play?” Everyone went to a position other than the one they played.
Providing the athletes a fair opportunity to succeed rather than an opportunity to fail is your most important job as a coach. Don’t look to justify your playing and starting decisions with a few moments of unexpected time for your bench players. Keep everyone involved and develop roles for all players. Remember the game is for the players. The future athletic memories of our children are being made today. Go and make good memories!