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WestCoastGuru
148 Posts |
 Posted - 03/24/2010 : 14:00:04
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Over the past two seasons......I have observed certain teams that show a complete lack of CLASS when it comes to displaying sportsmanship on the field, how tournament officials turn a blind eye to the actions of these teams and the lack of the ability of the umpires to control the game on the field. Since when did it become acceptable for the home plate umpire not to grant timeout to an 8 year old batter getting into the box, and to allow the pitcher to purposely quick pitch the batter??? I find it absolutely ridiculous for umpires in a Super NIT of all places, to not know how to interpret basic baseball rules, such as......not honoring timeout request from a batter(and I am not talking about getting in out of the box 2 or 3 times between pitches, its a safety issue as well....guess inexperienced umpires wouldn't understand that aspect of the game either) visits to the mound per game and per inning, to attempt to call the end of a game in the bottom half an inning with the home team down...just because his little timer went off, or having the field umpire chasing down a stray baseball in the outfield while the game is in play.... Furthermore when did an association that promotes sportsmanship to the highest regard, allow for coaches to teach their kids to high step the bases when a kid hits a homerun in a blatant BUSH league attempt to show up the opposition, or to instruct on their base runners on the field to throw elbows in the face of the opposing players. When did this behavior become acceptable in youth sports???? I have played/coached baseball for over 25 years, from little league to high school and college......yet I find it inconceivable that PARENTS of these kids condone this type of behavior.
These very same coaches want to idolize such great players of the past to their kids, Hall of Fame players that revolutionized and broke down barriers to provide opportunities for future generations to play this great game....but all they seem to promote is the complete disrespect of the game and the ONE AND ONLY example I have ever seen of sportsmanship is the ONE young man that goes over to a player and shakes his hand and apologizes for hitting him with a pitch.....surely had to be something that his Father instilled in him!!!
When will one of these tournament officials step up and restore respect back to the baseball that is being played in their tournaments???
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PCMudcats
68 Posts |
Posted - 03/24/2010 : 21:24:42
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| Tell us who WCG....we are getting ready to play Kid Pitch & I would like to avoid the carnival teams....we try & teach the kids the right way & will play teams & tournaments of high integrity. Coach Pitch has reared it's ugly head as well with kids on defensive teams shouting & yelling at the opposing batters (us) as well as the parents of certain teams doing the same thing (barking & yelling "swing") behind the backstop...it is almost an orchestrated attempt to throw a batter off...perplexing at what adults will do to win at all cost. Can anybody tell me why teams are starting to do the "Yep" cricket-chirp repetitive chant, similar to the "heyyyyyy batter swing"? It's so annoying! |
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michaelp
20 Posts |
Posted - 03/25/2010 : 11:37:07
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| It is the MAIN job of umpires to maintain good sportsmanship. A high school game can't begin until both coaches are reminded sportsmanship is to be expected at all times. The issue with 8yr old's is that in most cases that is where umpires that are new will start. It can be difficult for a young umpire to step up and tell an adult what is appropriate and what is not. If the ump is not doing that it is up to the parents to get the TD involved. Any parent yelling swing from the stands needs to have a foot put up their butt. Usually the better the baseball the better the sportsmanship. |
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mrbama31
252 Posts |
Posted - 03/25/2010 : 12:51:32
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| What is the umpires responsibility in regard to monitoring the fans? Is it his job to make sure parents are behaving or should this be the job of the tournament director and or some type of tournament official? Sometimes..especially with 2 very rough groups it seems too much to ask of the umpire to try and concentrate on what is going on on the field and in the stands. |
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michaelp
20 Posts |
Posted - 03/25/2010 : 14:22:39
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| It is up to the coach to control their fans. Once an umpire starts any type of interaction with the fans he is going to lose. If the coach can't/won't deal with his parents the ump needs to get the TD involved. |
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YellowBlack
5 Posts |
Posted - 03/29/2010 : 10:02:10
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I agree, it is up to the coaches to control their fans, but when the coaches behavior is inappropriate, then it's up to the sanctioning body such as USSSA to set some standards as to what is and is not acceptable. Many complaints have been submitted regarding these 'carnival teams' and it appears that nothing has been done to curb the behavior as the behavior continues from last year to this year.
I watched a game video the other day and could hear parents on one team yelling 'he ain't going to go, no, no, he ain't going to go' about a player on second who did not steal 3rd on a pass ball. Seriously? Regardless of the bad grammar, restore the respect in the game and realize these are KIDS you are yelling about. Never will you hear a parent on my child's team yell anything derogatory about a player on an opposing team. It will never happen. Frankly, we pay more attention to our kids playing and playing well then what the other team is doing.
WCG, I've also seen the quick pitching and was appalled by it. It is clearly a tactic of team who can not rely on their talent and instead try to get an upper hand by doing something that is completely BUSH league. I watched a pitcher from one of these teams throw a ball when a right handed batter had his right hand up and his left foot out of the box. He was not even in the box and a pitch was thrown. Had it been a wild pitch, the batter could have been seriously injured. This was only one of many examples of pitches thrown when the batters were attempting to get in the box.
Most legitimate coaches know that in this day and age, you can be personally liable for being irresponsible, which is what this is! If my child is the one who gets hit in the face by a pitch because of some BUSH league tactics, I will personally sue each and every coach on the opposing team. I guess it would be unreasonable to appeal to these such coaches integrity when it's obvious, they have none. Perhaps it is going to take one of their kids taking one to the face on a quick pitch for them to realize the seriousness of a situation like this in 8 & Under baseball.
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PumknHead
81 Posts |
Posted - 04/06/2010 : 21:56:20
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| Most umpires at this age group are new and do not know how to handle this! I think it's up to the tournament director to back the umpires on this matter. I've seen terrible behavior at this age group from both coach pitch and kid pitch. |
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CoachDad
52 Posts |
Posted - 04/13/2010 : 11:14:21
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| Most of that stuff is just sad. The blue should have been better trained and hopefully have had some years of baseball playing experience and should know better. The coaches should be held responsible, especially for the fans of the teams. Throw the bums out of the dugout if they can't control their little players and their fans. I don't, however, agree with a pitcher shaking a hit batsman's hand during the game. After the game, it would be okay. Baseball is 90 percent half mental and the pitcher should concentrate on the next pitch, not little Johnny's sore place. |
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SPTitans
13 Posts |
Posted - 04/13/2010 : 15:18:00
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| I could not agree more with the comments provided by WestCoastGuru… My 8 year old son started playing travel/tournament ball last year. We came from a rec ball environment. I was quite shocked the first time we showed up for a 7 year old tournament. The actions/sportsmanship of the parents/coaches was deplorable at best. Chanting/screaming at the kids, calling/shouting ball and strikes before the balls cross home plate, I could keep going… I was also shocked at the quality of umpires as these tournaments. They seem to have gotten a little better this season compared to last year. The parents in the bleachers and coaches would yell and scream and intimidate the umpires to change calls. It is frustrating when me as a father try and teach my son sportsmanship with this kind of garbage going on. |
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baldy87
118 Posts |
Posted - 05/05/2010 : 14:03:12
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| I have to say that, so far, I haven't seen anything bad from an 8 year old player. I have seen what I consider to be some bad behavior by coaches and parents, but we've been pretty limited in the teams that we've played. The worst I've seen is a coach yelling to an umpire that an 8 year old should be called out for high-fiving the first base coach as they came to first base after drawing a walk in one of their first kid pitch games ever. And then, instead of warning the coach not to touch a player, the umpire listened to the other coach and called the player out. So, we had an 8 year old crying in the dugout who was called out for high-fiving his coach. Live and learn, I guess. |
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Gold Glove
129 Posts |
Posted - 05/09/2010 : 21:56:36
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quote:
Originally posted by baldy87
I have to say that, so far, I haven't seen anything bad from an 8 year old player. I have seen what I consider to be some bad behavior by coaches and parents, but we've been pretty limited in the teams that we've played. The worst I've seen is a coach yelling to an umpire that an 8 year old should be called out for high-fiving the first base coach as they came to first base after drawing a walk in one of their first kid pitch games ever. And then, instead of warning the coach not to touch a player, the umpire listened to the other coach and called the player out. So, we had an 8 year old crying in the dugout who was called out for high-fiving his coach. Live and learn, I guess.
Please tell me what team this is. First either the coach does not know the rules or he is a cheater and has no integrity. A coach can touch a player as long as he is not assisting him. |
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WestCoastGuru
148 Posts |
Posted - 06/04/2010 : 13:09:12
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| Another BIG tournament this weekend for the 8 year old age group, should be some outstanding talent and compettition with the kids on the field.....lets see if some teams have cleaned up there act from just a few months ago! |
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michaelp
20 Posts |
Posted - 06/05/2010 : 00:55:46
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| I can't wait to hear if the teams have cleaned up their act,I hope they have. My son is playing summer ball right now 8u as well as a 7yr old and so far so good. Now if I can convince our coach to have our boys quit chattering it will a better summer. |
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Skipper
20 Posts |
Posted - 06/16/2010 : 10:07:41
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| Never in all my days of coaching have I ever seen a group use tactics such as this team from east cobb used to win a game. Complaining about a small piece of tape on a pitchers finger that had been on their since fri, and no other team had complained about it. Leaving my kids in the 95 degree heat for 10 min complaining about it. Calling time when my kids are on the field and 4 coaches come out of the dugout and begin to pick up rocks in front of my ss after a bad hop. Yelling at his batter to back out of the box, and telling his batter to load just as my pitcher is beginning to release his pitch. Fixing 3rd base over and over!! Just stalling and keeping kids in the heat... I have always herd great thing about the programs in east cobb, but this beats all i've ever seen. As we took the field on of the coaches from the other team said watch the complaining and loud peanut gallery from this group. Needless to say it started in the very first inning. Its pretty bad when the tournament director who is a high school coach says he has never seen a group act like this for such a young age group. They really wanted the Big trophy and would do what ever it took to win. I'm sure we will meet again!!! |
Edited by - Skipper on 06/17/2010 10:14:48 |
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misfit33
77 Posts |
Posted - 06/17/2010 : 21:13:40
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I echo the statements made by Skipper. We played 7 games at Nations State and I can honestly say that the WEST FORSYTH DIAMOND DAWGS were the only team there that had class. We have played them 4 times and never had a problem, their parents are a class act too.
Some of these coaches act like they go from 8U to sign their letters of intent.
Skipper you did a great job with the Select this year. |
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Skipper
20 Posts |
Posted - 06/18/2010 : 11:01:24
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| Thanks misfit33 I would say WE did an awesome job with those boys. You are correct about WFB they are truly a class act. |
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BTO
97 Posts |
Posted - 06/18/2010 : 13:59:57
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| Skipper - Do you have boys on the 11U and 8U Ga. Select teams. I have boys on the 11U Midway DD and 8U WFB DD. |
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Skipper
20 Posts |
Posted - 06/18/2010 : 14:37:48
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BTO I do.. My oldest playes for Georgia Select 11U RED and my youngest for the 8U team which I coach. My son pitched 5 innings against u guys the championship last weekend in 11U tourney. Your two teams are a pleasure to play. Everytime we square up in both age groups its always a pleasent game. quote:
Originally posted by BTO
Skipper - Do you have boys on the 11U and 8U Ga. Select teams. I have boys on the 11U Midway DD and 8U WFB DD.
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Skipper
20 Posts |
Posted - 06/18/2010 : 22:23:14
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| BTO.. Great to meet you tonight! Good luck in the tournament this weekend! |
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BTO
97 Posts |
Posted - 06/20/2010 : 09:47:26
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| Skipper - Same to you. Good Luck today. Hope you guys run the table. |
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superdawg
1 Posts |
Posted - 06/25/2010 : 08:56:48
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The carnival teams are still out there! I'm not sure in this forum (since I'm a dad new to it) if I'm allowed to mention the worst team about it by team name or not. I've seen them quick pitch when they are behind, and the other team's coaches and fans were begging the umpires to do something about it and they wouldn't. Thankfully, no kids got hurt with this cheap tactic. The umpires should have taken control of that game, but they didn't. I'm not talking about two young kids just out of ump school. I'm talking two umps with a little gray hair around the temples.
This team's coaches force their kids to high step the bases on a HR. I don't mind a kid celebrating hitting a dinger, but to have the first and third base coaches telling him he'd better high step it while they are high stepping themselves up and down the line in the middle of a game? That's not even low class--that's NO class.
And don't even get me started on their fans. I saw one of their games where one of their kids hit a missle and the ball hit a player on the opposing team and laid him out. While the kid's coaches were tending to him a mom--yes, MOM--from the carnival team yells out, "Hey, that's how we play." I can't tell you how many times I've seen coaches from opposing teams both go check on kids who got hurt--regardless of which team the kid was on. I've seen players take a knee when one of their teammates or a kid from the opposing team is injured. But this team's coaches didn't bother checking on the injured player and a MOM yells something like that out when a player is injured and time called? What if that had been YOUR son MOM? How would you have liked the other team yelling something out like that?
In last weekend's state tournament they pitched a kid 5+ innings on Saturday and then turned around and pitched him on Sunday. The opposing coach didn't catch it, and his team ended up losing. Pitching a kid more innings than you should have is NOT an "honest" mistake from a team that has played a long list of tournament this season. It's down right cheating. Coaches who have been at this for any length of time know how important keeping up with your own pitching is, and a coach who has the kids at heart know how important protecting a player's arm is. Winning a trophy is NOT worth ruining a kid's arm. If you play this team in the World Series DEMAND an innings pitched report from the tournament director before your game. Hopefully you will get umpires who take control of the game.
If these types of teams are allowed to continue their antics I think all of you coaches should stick together and tell the tournament directors you will NOT play in their tournaments if the carnival teams are entered. Your kids are 8 year old kids that are out there to play a game they love, and they don't need to be subjected to this type of behavior. The carnival teams have to resort to these antics because they don't have faith in their kids to work through a game to try to win it on their own talent. Things get a little shaky and the gimics come out. Let the KIDS win or lose the baseball game! |
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YellowBlack
5 Posts |
Posted - 06/25/2010 : 14:50:40
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Has anyone ever noticed before the high stepping coaches ever congratulate their players for a win, they are hooting and hollering, gitty' uping and high stepping with each other? I see that having absolutely nothing to do with the players, rather 'wanna be' daddy's living vicariously through their child. The silliness that is USSSA 8 & Under baseball 2010 is embarrassing. When was the last time anyone ever saw a college or MLB player high step the bases? We aren't making this up, people... the video is online!
Yes, it takes only one team to turn what should be fun, competitive baseball into a full blown circus. I was also at the State tournament this past weekend and we had a situation due to a player being hit on the wrist by a ball while on defense. Non Carnival Parent response- take the kid to the ER to have the injury examined. Carnival Parent- call Henry Co 911 as a high priority call, have your child examined by responding paramedics and firemen, then let him play for the remainder of the day. Just let the kid rub it, no one is going to judge. I guess it makes for a better story to sensationalize when the paramedics come running.
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