Spring Already?
I just spent the last four hours planning for our spring season and compiling an email to all the parents in the league. Amazing that I actually had one whole week off before we had to start working on the spring again! This truly is a full time job. That means I have exactly 4 1/2 jobs and not a second to spare in any day! Life is good!
What are you doing to make your league better next year? We would love to hear about it!
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If You Can’t Stand the Heat, Get out of the Majors
Little League is comprised of three specific seasons and four divisions of play for kids 12 and under. The seasons consist of fall, an instructional program, spring, a competitive program, and All-Stars a hyper-competitive program. There are many lessons to be learned in each season. The divisions begin at T-ball, then rookie or coach pitch, then minors, then majors. This hierarchy is by design as well and has come about through years of research and feedback.
The division we all see on TV is the major’s division consisting of 9-12 year old kids. The major’s division is intentionally competitive. You must earn your spot, play hard, and contribute 150% to the team. The major’s division is not an extension of the minors, it is a separate division where those that have the talent and mental fortitude compete.
The fall season allows kids to try the majors to see if they are “cut out” for it. Many of the kids fail. This is unfortunate, but it is a fact of life and a fantastic learning experience for all. Major league coaches are looking for much more than talent. Major’s coaches can teach kids how to play, that isn’t the issue, they simply need a reasonably coordinated kid with a will to learn, give me 12 of them and get out of the way, we will be successful.
But give me 12 super talented kids with poor attitudes and there is nothing I can do. I can’t change attitudes, I can try, but it is difficult. It is especially difficult if the parents support these actions. Every mother or father hurts when their little girl or boy is obviously distraught or struggling emotionally, but perpetuating this action does their child no good. Everyone has heard a coach or parent tell a kid to “suck it up”, in the majors you need have thick skin, and while I am not a big fan of that saying, I do believe a major’s kid should be encouraged to fail and learn how to deal with it during the fall season.
If they are not mentally preparing themselves at this time, they will be left behind. The fact is, they have to be tough, physically and mentally, and more so mentally than physically. Again, anyone can play the game, anyone can be taught and work hard to improve, but not everyone has the mental capacity to succeed.
What does it take to succeed? The ability to not care if you fail. If you don’t concern yourself with failure, then success is the only option. A player that is mentally prepared succeeds even when they fail. A player that fails and then is not properly channeled towards success is let down. The coach or the parent can be guilty of this.
Finally, when a player does not put forth the maximum effort they are capable of they have failed themselves. Catering to their actions or their manipulation of our emotions as adults does them no justice. If we baby them, they will be left in the minors in the spring, if we work together to make them stronger, they will succeed and move up in the spring. The great thing about the majors is, if you don’t want to be here, there is always another player waiting in the wings happy to have your spot.
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