What Bothers Me About High School Coaches 1. Lack of knowledge of the game of fastpitch softball. 2. Not playing their "best" because there is an "older" girl at that position. 3. Not having enough knowledge about how the human body works: Coaches who make assumptions about body type, height, weight, etc. Not all pitchers and first basepersons are 6 feet tall (Jenni Finch!) and not all catchers are built like tanks! 4. Coaches that make their pitchers throw batting practice for hours at a time. 5. Coaches that make their pitchers throw batting practice AT ALL! That's why pitching machines were invented. Pitchers should not be conditioned to slow their pitching motion down and just throw strikes over and over. 6. Lack of knowledge of the college recruiting process: Coaches who don't take an interest in their students' future in college ball and don't know how to get them scholarships. Your job is to prepare these kids for college!! 7. Coaches who don't know their place: Recently a coach was talking to his high school team at one of the first practices of the year and said, "OK, your silly summer softball is over with; it's time to focus on some serious softball now." Most of the girls at the practice laughed, rolled their eyes and lost respect for him on the spot. Competition in High School softball is so inferior to summer ball it's not even funny. The best athletes in these high school programs play around 100 games every summer against the best athletes in the entire country. I would like just one of these idiots to spend some time out at the ballpark watching what these kids do during the summer. It would make them better coaches. 8. Coaches who "mess with" their players' batting stance and pitching motions: The majority of these girls' parents have spent lots of money over the years sending their daughters to professional instructors who KNOW WHAT THEY'RE DOING! 9. Coaches who take offense or don't accept suggestions from their players: Most of these coaches don't know as much as their players do and would benefit from their advice. 10. Coaches who don't know the fundamentals and tactics needed to win a close game and are totally offended when someone suggests a possible way to push a run across. *As you can see I am NOT a fan of High School softball coaches!