Everything Fastpitch - The Podcast

This weeks lineup:Warmup SegmentListener Question: What can we do when a hitter is lunging at the plate? (@13:11)Paige's Power Play (@23:58)September 1st is an important date in recruiting.  But it doesn't mean that if you don't get a call on that date you don't have a chance.(@27:40)A listener want to know how to effectively communicate with a college coach. (@39:25)Another drill from a listener that add pressure during practice. (@46:35)Support the show

When we first start teaching players the fundamentals, we have to begin with the simple plays. Ball hit to infield, throw to first. Hit to outfield throw to second. As players advance the need to be able to recognize secondary plays. Sometimes known as the "what if" play. The key word here is recognize. They can't think through the process, but they have to recognize that there is another play. Might be in addition to the basic play or it might be instead of the basic play.Support the show

This weeks lineup:Warmup SegmentListener Question: Do you have suggestions for a fitness test for my team? (@16:07)Paige's Power Play (@22:33)Softball is not in the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. Why it is important that it should be. (@25:38)Twist on team joining big organizations. Tale of a coach's experience. (@32:50)Adding Players to your roster. Some suggestions that coaches need to think about. (@41:41)Support the show

Outfield is not a position! There is Left Field, Center Field and Right Field. Don't categorize all of the outfield positions as playing outfield. The responsibilities and reading the ball is different in each of the positions. Teach your players how to play one position and then move them and teach them the next outfield position. Support the show

This weeks lineup:Warmup SegmentListener Question: Setting up cutoffs and relays. Do I use the Short Stop and Second baseman? (@13:10)Paige's Power Play (@21:54)Speed of the Game. Use some math to help your players understand how fast the game really is. For every mile an hour, the ball travels 1.47 feet. Round that up to 1.5 feet per second to make the math easy and have them see how quick they need to be. (@26:10)Players are heading off to college. Some for the first time. Here are some tips. (@39:46)Create some pressure in practice, especially for younger players. Teach them not to be distracted in games. (@50:14)Support the show

Coaches state all the time that the best players will get to play. Almost every coach has a different definition of "best". Make sure that everyone that you use that term with knows exactly how you define "best".Support the show

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