As a coach it is important to always have a sense of confidence to always give the impression that the competition is in control and we as team will be successful even when the pressure mounts and the game is tight. As coaches we want to coach, I mean thats what we are here to do right? Well sort of but baseball is a microcosm of life and so we need to be able to help guide the kids through the tough times. Players need to be able to apply what they know and give them a chance to succeed in a manner that they can grow from. As coaches we need to maintain a sense of calm, a sense that we will get through the situation successfully.
Players have a tendency to press when the situation gets tough. This is happening because players loose perspective and think they have to do it all. John Wooden talks about his players feeding off his body language and behavior and so he felt ity was extra important for him to show composure and calm no matter the situation My experience is if they see me calm and smiling they will follow suit and often times are able to get through the jam relatively unscathed. I always smile, I try to portray composure and having fun because I want my players to not feel stress, let them play loose and have fun.
The best example of this is pitchers working out of a jam, when pitchers get outs and work out of a jam, I see them exhibiting more success because they know they not only have "the stuff" to do it but also they have the mental capacity to beat their opponent. As a coach, we are trying to develop skills and win ball games but we are also developing young adults. These experiences are crucial because players can take these experiences into their lives as life will deliver blows or tough situations and so if I can help give them an extra bit of confidence then they will be a stronger person when they head out and "leave the nest."
As an assistant our former head coach in the middle of a game asked me for a joke, a joke that teenagers would laugh at. I was a little surprised by the request as this was something I would have never thought to do. I gave him one, (has to be a one-liner) at the next opportunity, he took a trip to the mound to talk to the pitcher who had a tendency to press. His reaction to the joke and it was a mix of humor and unexpected because because of the nature of the visit. Sure enough he got out of the jam and left runners at 2nd and 3rd. We ended up loosing the game however we were in the game right 'till the end.
Just this past week, another example, my team is fighting for a playoff spot, I felt the need to explain the situation as a motivator to play sharper. Well this totally flopped as we were totally flat and we lost. Going into the second game of the twin bill, the message was totally different, I took the approach of being totally relaxed in an effort to get my guys back to the roots of the game, this game is supposed to be fun. We played as though a major weight had been lifted and we could just play. Well low and behold we dominated, winning by ten.
So while we are able to keep players loose and trying to get them to perform at the highest level, as Derek Jeter says, "we are playing a kids game" players have to remember that and smile. It is up to us as coaches to show that and to impress that upon our players. Too often this gets lost by players, parents and coaches in competition and in the urgency to win. I agree, winning carries the most amount of weight and importance however that is the end result and it is important to understand while this is the result the process of how we get there needs to be fun.
Players have a tendency to press when the situation gets tough. This is happening because players loose perspective and think they have to do it all. John Wooden talks about his players feeding off his body language and behavior and so he felt ity was extra important for him to show composure and calm no matter the situation My experience is if they see me calm and smiling they will follow suit and often times are able to get through the jam relatively unscathed. I always smile, I try to portray composure and having fun because I want my players to not feel stress, let them play loose and have fun.
The best example of this is pitchers working out of a jam, when pitchers get outs and work out of a jam, I see them exhibiting more success because they know they not only have "the stuff" to do it but also they have the mental capacity to beat their opponent. As a coach, we are trying to develop skills and win ball games but we are also developing young adults. These experiences are crucial because players can take these experiences into their lives as life will deliver blows or tough situations and so if I can help give them an extra bit of confidence then they will be a stronger person when they head out and "leave the nest."
As an assistant our former head coach in the middle of a game asked me for a joke, a joke that teenagers would laugh at. I was a little surprised by the request as this was something I would have never thought to do. I gave him one, (has to be a one-liner) at the next opportunity, he took a trip to the mound to talk to the pitcher who had a tendency to press. His reaction to the joke and it was a mix of humor and unexpected because because of the nature of the visit. Sure enough he got out of the jam and left runners at 2nd and 3rd. We ended up loosing the game however we were in the game right 'till the end.
Just this past week, another example, my team is fighting for a playoff spot, I felt the need to explain the situation as a motivator to play sharper. Well this totally flopped as we were totally flat and we lost. Going into the second game of the twin bill, the message was totally different, I took the approach of being totally relaxed in an effort to get my guys back to the roots of the game, this game is supposed to be fun. We played as though a major weight had been lifted and we could just play. Well low and behold we dominated, winning by ten.
So while we are able to keep players loose and trying to get them to perform at the highest level, as Derek Jeter says, "we are playing a kids game" players have to remember that and smile. It is up to us as coaches to show that and to impress that upon our players. Too often this gets lost by players, parents and coaches in competition and in the urgency to win. I agree, winning carries the most amount of weight and importance however that is the end result and it is important to understand while this is the result the process of how we get there needs to be fun.