Well dad, you were a volunteer / candidate to coach your son’s baseball team. Are you excited but have no idea what youth sports training entails? Don’t worry, you are not alone. There is a lot to do, but with good planning and expectations, it should be fine. These are some of the things I’ve learned in my 20 years as a player and the other 20 years as a youth coach.
1. Remember first that they are children, not professional athletes. They play sports for fun! Although some may dream of turning professional, unfortunately most of them will leave the sport by the time they reach their teens. Your responsibility is to help them enjoy their youth now and learn enough to take them to another level of play.
2. Don’t forget your parents! Stay informed and participate. Let them know what they can expect from them and what they can expect from you. Punctuality is very important and difficult to play if children are not around to ask for their help in training, but make sure they understand that their help does not make them one of the coaches on the team. Children are well aware of their parents’ presence during the game, so it is a good idea to ask mom and dad to keep their temper and not to contact the officials. As adults, you and they should be a good role model. I had to remind the parents who are there to support their children, not to act like them.
3. When you meet parents and players, you are telling them that you will not be training to win or lose. Kids already understand these concepts, and frankly, they are not what they care about. Of course they want to win, but you will find that after five minutes of losing it will be the game of catching or catching the ball with the children on the team who will only defeat them 10-0 and have the ball!
4. Your main responsibility in youth and sports training is to prepare players to the next level. Most of their training will help them learn the proper mechanisms to develop the skills they need to play the game. It has been 14 years since I coached a baseball team at Al Ain University. Of the 40 youngsters who participated in the scams, less than nine learned to shoot well. If you don’t know the mechanics yourself, you can find several websites that will teach you what you need to know. Find sites that talk about the hitting and throwing power triangle. Avoid places where you learn to relax, unless you want a team of players with pain in the elbows. Also, some parents may be familiar with good basic skills. Don’t be afraid to ask for help.
5. Be fair with all players. It cannot be treated preferentially. Some children develop faster than others and do better, but you shouldn’t treat them better. Of course, I congratulate them on their performance, but any other player should also be congratulated for their efforts and achievements, as success is not good. Once upon a time I had a player who always hit him. One of the matches he made to second baseman congratulated him on calling the ball and recommended his parents that they deserve an ice cream cone.
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