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Rema
27 Posts |
 Posted - 03/18/2012 : 23:12:49
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| What is the underlying ingredient of the tops baseball teams at 11U? If you look at the final 4 of the recent Super NIT or other top teams how much of this is great coaching vs. attracting top notch kids that are very talented to begin with? Is there are directly correlation between $$$ available to invest (pitching and hitting lessons, etc.) in a player and how good that player is? Let the debates begin.. :-) |
Edited by - Rema on 03/18/2012 23:14:21 |
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Hoyadad
2 Posts |
Posted - 03/19/2012 : 11:46:04
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| It takes both to have one of the top major teams. An excellent coach can take a group of AA players and make them competitive with all the teams in their classification and many of the AAA teams. But to have a top MAJOR team you must have the athletes to work with. Today's team shuffle their line-ups on a yearly basis trying to upgrade...and many do. Are there any coaches/teams who pick a group of boys at 9 or 10 and keep them together for 3-4 years to see how good they can get? That is how to find out how good the coaches are. |
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Rema
27 Posts |
Posted - 03/19/2012 : 12:52:58
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| Very good Point Hoyadad. I think if you replace the coach of some of these MAJOR teams with a good AA coach, the team results will not change much in the short term. I think longer term you will start to see the difference if they are not coached up to put in the work to become better ball players and to understand the mental aspects of the game. The bottom line is that it takes both to be successful, top talent and the right coaching to build and improve on this talent. |
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ramman999
241 Posts |
Posted - 03/20/2012 : 15:36:53
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2 points,
#1 - I think you will find that there is some player consistency at the core of the top major teams, probably a minimum of 5-7 players.. Typically the turnover is attributed to either "top grading", players moving away, or parent involvement (ego, playing time, grass is greener elsewhere, etc.) Top teams are not turning over 8 kids a season and staying consistently on top.
#2 - I still think there has to be something there at the coaching level for a team to be successful - talent alone will get it so far, but the coaching/managing/massaging the ego's has to be there as well. AA or Major level has nothing to do with it - a good coach will pull the best out of his team.. Perfect example of this is an all star coach - when he gets the talent, can he get everyone on the same page, then recognize AND utilize the talent correctly.. |
Edited by - ramman999 on 03/20/2012 15:51:45 |
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rippit
667 Posts |
Posted - 03/23/2012 : 09:34:25
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It's both! We've seen everything from coaches who only do it so their kid makes and plays on a team (you know, the 5 guys all lined up outside the dugout during the game...) to guys getting an allstar team because of park politics, to guys who volunteer their time for the love of the game and know when the kids have passed his coaching abilities to paid coaching and now a team affiliated with pro coaching PLUS a paid coach PLUS one who just volunteers PLUS a dad who helps with practices.
Some kids have a ton of ability but not the resources to massage that potential. Some are complacent with dad paving their way. I know 11 kids currently with parents who will tell you that harmony on the team AND in the stands is worth every penny.
If it's worth doing, it's worth doing right and to the very BEST of your ability. Will any of these kids play pro ball? No. Will any go to college and play ball. Maybe. But I can tell you that at the end of the day, they will realize that they and their parents gave it everything even if just for a little while.
This same group of kids wouldn't be nearly where they are if they hadn't found the opportunity they are in now. Think outside the box just a bit. With the right attitudes, some God given talent, great instruction and a good field coach, and some time to gel as a team, they can be as good as they want to be.
It needs to stop raining...I need to get out of the office and off this computer! |
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11UFAN
149 Posts |
Posted - 03/25/2012 : 08:56:59
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Coaching to improve the kids is a more important ingredient at the lower levels and coaching to win and recruit is more important at the major/elite level.
Don't get me wrong, one of every coaches goal is for every kid to be better than they were at the end of the season than they were at the beginning of the season, its just how you get there. Most if not all major/elite players work outside of practice to improve their talents.
But the biggest difference is that coaches of the real top teams seek out and play the best competition every weekend whether they make it to the finals or not and this is the only way to really improve the "best" kids and measure where the team is.
Different philosophies for different teams, just be realisitic and do your research to pick the right team for your kid and its all good.
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baseballnutz
427 Posts |
Posted - 04/09/2012 : 14:54:16
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Another factor not mentioned above is loyality. Loyality on both sides, by the parents and by the coaches. Year after year talented teams crumble because a coach or a parent is not loyal to their current players or team. This impacts every part of the team and causes more rift then any other reason I've seen IMO. You can have plenty of talent and great coaching but if the kid or parents feel like they could be moved out for a better player at anytime or you have players leaving for greener pastures there will be unrest.
Many of these issues seem to occur when a team is "hand picked" or the family has "no skin in the game" not always but both of these seem to be the root cause for the issues mentioned above. |
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