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1 May 2008
This manual is a package of information and advice
for the special persons who have volunteered to coach The Beavercreek Youth Softball Program is a slow
pitch softball recreational activity for grades K - 12 boys and girls
residing in the But whatever hard work has gone into the program so
far, the greatest impact on its ultimate client, This program is designed so that the players will
have fun. The players will
naturally learn many things as stated below. But this paragraph is the Main
Rule and anything conflicting with the Main Rule will be minimized. The players will have positive
interaction with adults. Any
program of this type will offer challenges for children and adults to set
moderate goals, organize, improve, succeed and fail together. Youth use experience to guide
themselves. Competition will not get in the way of fun,
friendship or skill improvement.
Practice should be work and not drudgery. Winning will be a nice reward for
hard work but losing is no cause for
humiliation. On questionable weather days, the BYSA maintenance
crew will make the "go or no-go" decision at 4:45 p.m., based on its
estimate of how many diamonds can be ready to play by the 6 p.m. start
time. The options are:
1. Cancel all games 2. Cancel first games (6 p.m.) but play second
games (7:20 p.m.) 3. Cancel certain fields, but play on others
Coaches may call 426-4610 or 307-0485 after 4:45
p.m. to find out status of the diamonds. DO NOT give this number to
parents. The system works best when coaches call. If every team member
were to call, imagine the jam that would
cause. Coaches should then contact their players. Consider
setting up a calling chain, so each coach may only have to call 1 or 2
players, and then they call 1 or 2 players. Be very careful with initial player contact. The last names, for example of
parent and child may not be the same. Some parents are justifiably wary of
male voices wishing to chat with their children. Call and say, "I am Coach
. . . of the Beavercreek Youth Softball Program. (Player's
name) is on the team that I coach and I am calling to set up our first
practice." Please make your first call within 48 hours after you
receive the team list. The sooner we know about any problems, the sooner
we can address them. Stay in touch with your team. Make a roster showing
names, addresses, email addresses, phone numbers and parents' names. It's
nice to make phone calls and have some idea of the name of the person who
answers. Distribute it to the players. They and their families can quickly
begin coordinating car pools. You may want to add the game schedule at the
bottom of the roster and assign parents to be responsible for treats on
game days. Coaches should meet as soon as possible with their
teams and their parents to go over some of the important rules and playing
times, and length of practices and games. Use constructive criticism in private, praise in
public. Hold criticism until after the game. Win or lose, they're not
listening. Talk about problems at the next practice or at the beginning of
the next game where there is the prospect of instant
redemption. Uniform policies are intended to enhance the
children's enjoyment as much as possible with some accommodation for
sponsors and general appearance. Each player will be issued a shirt, which
is theirs to keep (and in the Minor, Rookie, and Junior league, a cap,
also theirs to keep). It's a pretty good value for the parents' hard
earned money. The sponsor also benefits when the players wear the shirt in
the community. Each Coach and one assistant will be given a
coach’s shirt. Other assistant coaches will have to pay $10 to the BYSA
for their own shirt. Each team will be issued an equipment bag (comes
with practice balls, catcher’s helmet and mask, bats, and chest protector
for the Minor, Rookie, Junior, Preteen teams, and teen teams). The
equipment is the property of the BYSA, and must be returned after your
last game. Batting helmets are provided at the diamonds on game night.
Each coach is responsible for gathering helmets for their team’s use. Scorebooks are provided to the
coaches during the preseason coaches’ meeting along with other information
(e.g., player rosters) regarding the season,
etc. Make sure each player has their name on their
glove/equipment. Stray equipment should be turned in to any BYSA
Commissioner or to the Concession Stand operators. The BYSA maintains a
"lost and found" box that it places outside the concession stand every
night. The most important factor in a team's performance
and enjoyment is its practice experience. Many of the players in the BYSA
are young beginners, and a mighty challenge for anyone intending to hold
their attention, nurture their enthusiasm and, not the least, teach them
softball. Because of the large number of teams and limited practice
facilities, the BYSA assigns practice times and locations during the 2
week long preseason. Coaches
are encouraged to also set times for other practices but it is up to them
to find a location. Try places like your church’s facility or other
Practice fields are in short supply. For those who
can, fields are nearly always available before 5:00 P.M. everyday. Rotary
(youth fields, diamonds 5-8 and 11 and 12, and Tee ball diamonds 3 and 4)
are reserved for BYSA use and practice times are assigned: Virgalitto,
Grangeview Acres, Saville Estates,
Never leave a practice until all players have
safely departed, and don't let the players wander away from the practice
area. Frankly, it's best to keep them right out in the open. Forfeits due
to poison ivy epidemics are frustrating. Dehydration can be a problem, especially on hot,
muggy days, and you are encouraged to have your players drink a lot of
water before, during and after practices and games. Repetition is the key to learning skills. Show
players the correct way to do something and create the opportunity for
them to repeat the action time and time again. That's the whole concept of
practice. Each single opportunity to perform in a game should be backed up
by hundreds of previous executions in practice. One of the basic
challenges of coaching is to anticipate the things to be done in good
conditions and engineer simulation drills that can be repeated again and
again at practice. Good assistant(s) permit(s) the coach to work the
players in several groups thus increasing the opportunities for
repetition. Remember that you are not limited to having just one
assistant. ** Players should be made to thoroughly LOOSEN UP
before practice and games. Hard throwing should be limited to only those
drills that demand it. Good hard throws are the key to defensive success
but some of these young arms are not ready for heavy demands. Moderation
is the key. ** Good stretching exercises should be included in
the warm-up. The whole body is subject to the same injury possibilities,
as the throwing arm. Softball is a game of quickness, agility,
coordination and timing. Pushups, kneebends and pumping iron aren't
recommended. The game will start promptly at the scheduled
times. Do your best to get the players there on time. This often requires
more than a minimum of communication with the parents. Try to learn ahead
of time if there will be late arrivals or no shows. Parking is a premium and there is
heavy traffic in and out of Coaches should attempt to maintain an environment
conductive to learning the game. In the instructional divisions this means
taking it easy with the runners. It might be possible to clear the bases
on any struck ball BUT SHOW SOME RESPECT FOR A BALL RELAYED BACK TO THE
INFIELD AND HOLD UP THE RUNNERS. The game should not degenerate to the
point that the only defensive maneuver in the book is to throw the ball to
the pitcher. Read the league rules and comply with them.
Remember that you are setting the example for your players, so act
accordingly. Scorekeeping, as far as the BYSA is concerned, is
to determine the game’s score, keep track of the innings and keep the
batting order straight. There will be games where this will be a
challenge. Coaches should keep a separate sheet with the players' names
and the amount of innings played. The sheet could be kept for the entire
season. It basically serves as a guide to you how well paying time has
been dispersed throughout the year. Some Coaches find a detailed scorebook useful. In
the younger divisions, for example, it's possible to see if a team is
beginning to get more outs due to improved fielding or due to bad opponent
hitting (many strikeouts). In the older divisions player tendencies can be
identified from a good record. We recommend asking one of the parents to
be the scorekeeper for the entire season, so that the scorebook is
maintained consistently. The BYSA does not keep track of individual
statistics on any kind. We recommend that you ask one of the parents to
take on this reporting duty. decide who will do it, no matter if it is
done electronically or hand-written on the form provided by the
BYSA.
10.
SPECIAL EMPHASIS ITEM- -BAT
THROWING
One item we ask coaches to pay particular attention
to is unintentional bat throwing, for it is bat throwing which offers a
great potential for injury. The catcher, on deck batter, umpire, and the
batter are all at risk. To make matters worse for the batter, the
penalties escalate for each time he/she throws the bat during the game. It
always seems the batter is called out when they made a hit and the tying
or winning run scored. Take the time to put your players in a game
situation and see how they react- - just watching them at batting practice
will not tell you who has this problem. The umpires have been instructed
to warn the batter and coach on the first bat throwing. The results of the
at bat stand as called by the umpire for that particular play. If the player throws the bat the
next time, the batter is out and dead ball ruled, i.e., the at bat is
nullified. If the player throws the bat a 3rd time during the
game, the umpires call the batter out, the play is nullified and the
batter is not allowed to bat any more for that
game. On site emergency facilities are extremely limited.
The Beavercreek Fire Department is a quarter mile east of the park
entrance on In the event of an injury requiring emergency
technicians/transportation appoint someone to get help and make sure they
do it. Be sure the Emergency Medical forms for each player are kept up to
date and you keep them with you. It is highly recommended that each coach maintain
their own First Aid Kit; this should include chemical ice bags. Note, do
not put chemical ice bags directly on area. Place some type of barrier in
between skin and the ice pack. (There is also ice available from the
concession stand). Coaches should make an effort to learn if any team
parents/relatives/regular followers have medical training to limit the
time it takes to locate good help in the event of
injury. Don't let a crowd gather around an injured player
and be wary of letting anyone get too helpful. It's best to identify some
knowledgeable people at the beginning of the season, ask them to deal with
the problem and keep everyone else out of it. The Lefty McFadden Youth Softball Fields are
located behind and adjacent to the Adult fields at Parking is provided in the Youth field area..
Parking by the outfield fence for field #7 and #8 is at your own risk.
There are signs posted to indicate this. The
BYS operates a concession stand in the center of the Youth Complex to
provide service to participants at a reasonable price.
The Beavercreek Youth Softball Program is
sanctioned by the United States Specialty Sports Association
(USSSA). As a BYSA Coach, I recognize that coaches are role
models for their team members and all participants involved in the
activity, and that sports help to develop a sense of teamwork, self-worth
and sportsmanship. As such, I agree to abide by the
following:
1.
Place
the emotional and physical well being of my players ahead of a personal
desire or external pressure to win.
2.
Do
my best to provide a safe playing environment for all
participants.
3.
Lead
by example by demonstrating fair play and sportsmanship to all
involved.
4.
Provide
a sports environment for my team that is free of drugs, tobacco, alcohol,
and abusive language and refrain from their use at all sporting
events.
5.
Respect
the game and league officials and communicate with them in an appropriate
manner.
6.
Be knowledgeable of the league rules and regulations, and teach these
rules to all players on my team.
7.
Encourage
my team members to play by the league rules and respect the rights of
other players, coaches, fans, and
officials.
8.
Be
responsible for my own behavior and also the behavior of my team members,
their parents, and fans.
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