Everything Fastpitch - The Podcast

This weeks lineup:

• The shoutout segment
• Paige's Power Play
• Listener question - the pros and cons of knee savers
• How to handle discontent on a team and a mutiny is not the way to go.
• Know the differences between cut-offs and relays.

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Coaches, in a game, we get in the habit of watching the ball instead of watching the whole field. It is like watching the game on TV. The camera follows the ball. In the game, every player has a role on every play and pitch. If we are surprised that a player did not back up a certain play, do you know if that was just one incident or have they not been moving all game. If you can't answer that question, you have probably been following the ball instead of watching the entire field and the movement of everyone.

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This weeks lineup:

• Listener Question: Is it okay to let my catcher practice with a pitching machine?
• More games are lost than won. Be the team that wins by paying attention to the little things.
• Pitchers: Attack the Zone
• Don't let the inequities of who does the work to support the team cause friction on the team. Think of all of the tasks that have to be done like cleaning up the dugout, carrying equipment to the warm-up area, etc. Assign duties and spread the work out over the whole team.

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Playing softball successfully requires mastering certain skills. It is a game of skills. An athletic player can be successful by relying on their athleticism up to a certain point. Sooner or later the speed of the game catches up with their athleticism. Each player has a ceiling as to what they can achieve and we should be requiring all of them to acquire the skills to take them as far as possible. It is possible for a less athletic player to surpass an athletic player if they work on their skills harder. Coaches have to have the same expectations for every player.

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This weeks lineup:

• Shout our segment.
• Discussion of catchers backing up first base. This is prompted by comments from a post on the same topic. The coaches are pretty adamant that a catcher's job is to back up first.
• 15 skills that are learned by playing on a team that are important and are carried over to real life.
• Unwritten rules that are being carried over from baseball to softball. There are not good reasons for some of these and we shouldn't feel bad by doing what's best for the team and players.
• Discussion  of coaches taking it personally when a player leave a team. There are a lot of times that it is a good decision by the player and a coach should see it as a positive and not feel bad. 

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Some players have the opportunity to play for a team, such as a school team, that has lessor skilled players than their travel ball team and is not near as competitive. This is especially true with middle school teams. We hear complaints all the time about I can't hit slow pitching, they make more mistakes, etc. This is not something to complain about, but a great opportunity to grow as a player.

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This weeks lineup:

• Listener question on developing competitiveness in a team. A team should always be performing at their best no matter what the score or circumstances.
• Interview with InnerPro Sports. They offer an app that allows an athlete to train wherever they are. It generates an individualized program for strength and conditioning, mental performance and nutrition.
• Fall recruiting in these strange times. 
• Signals and offensive strategy. For instance, you call a steal. What do you expect the batter to do. And does the batter know what you expect.

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Everyone does not learn the same way and most learn better with a mix of methods. When you are coaching a team there is going to be a mixture of learning types. You can't go out there and teach just one way and impact all of your players. You have to understand how they learn and how to teach so that they all understand. In this podcast we discuss how people learn and how to apply that to teaching softball skills.

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This weeks lineup:

• Shout out segment
• Listener question: Moving up in bat size? Length and weight, length only or weight only.
• Many COVID changes this week in the college world. Any player that is looking at being recruited needs to understand that the recruiting process has changed. They and their parents have to adapt and they will have to do more to advance their chances.
• Listener question: What type of shoes? We discuss the pros and cons of Turf Shoes, Molded Cleats and Spikes.
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These week we discuss that there has to be some fun built into practices, especially for the younger ages. We want our players to want to come to practice not have to. We can make it fun and enjoyable and accomplish what we are trying to achieve by adding some new twists to our drills. It takes working on your practice plan and modifying it to add competitiveness and enjoyable aspects. Listen for some ideas.

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