Tired of the “Somebody is Going to Get Hurt” Excuse
Please allow me to preface this with, I in no way shape or form want to put kids in harm’s way. That said, I tired of people playing the “I don’t want anyone to get hurt” card when they know they are going to get their clocks cleaned by a more powerful team.
There are two ways to structure your program in the fall. You can use 2008 ages, or 2009 ages. Most programs around the world use the 2009 ages for the 2008 fall season. The reason for this is the fall is an instruction year where we are training kids to move up to the next level in the spring. Why any league would not do this is beyond me, but some do.
The problem this creates is that a team of kids moving up sometimes has to compete against a group of kids that stayed down. This happens in all leagues, not just Little League. I know of a travel program that keeps their kids down in the fall so they can win???? Why???? I guess the parent’s egos need to be stroked, I am open for anyone to provide a legitimate explanation for this, but I have no idea why a bunch of 10 year olds would want to go beat up on 9 year olds, or 12 year olds beat up on rising 11 year olds. Again, make an argument, I will listen.
My teams always lose in the fall. This is by design. Today we played a team that pitched their starting pitcher the whole game, played every girl in the same position all game long, and beat us on the last play of the bottom of the 6th inning. This while we developed three pitchers, had girls learning new positions and gaining an understanding of the game, and hit their star pitcher very well. Think we won’t easily take them in the spring? Maybe not, but I would not bet against us, we have been in our district championship game two years in a row.
But what really irks me the most is coaches and managers that play the “Somebody is going to get hurt” card because they don’t want to get 10 run ruled. Why do they do this? Why don’t they take this as a learning opportunity and say hey, look over there, they are 3 years older than us, but who knows, any team can beat any team at any time. After getting crushed, point out the good things the team did and point across the field. Tell them, that is something to strive for, in fact, if you tell them if they work hard they will actually be better than them in three years.
What to we teach kids by complaining and refusing to show up and play? We teach them to complain and blame others for their circumstances. If we teach them to accept what is, deal with it as best as they can, and then put forth their best effort, then emphasize that they are winners for doing this regardless of the score, then we have succeeded. Nobody’s going to get hurt.
Kids rarely have bad injuries in baseball. The Little League report I referenced in this article about injuries in Little League supports my position. Go out, take your beating, and move on. Don’t put kids that can’t catch in the infield for that game just as you wouldn’t put them at first base in a regular game. Especially from 90′, they have plenty of time to react.
How do you deal with teams when you know you are over matched? How do you motivate your kids? How do you keep them focused?
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The Little League Coach » 2009 Little League Rules and Regulation Changes posted on October 30, 2008:
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