Collectively, A Thread To Celebrate Our Kids Athletic Accomplishments (3 Viewers)

[El Floppo]

We have a loose rule for softball about freshman  and varsity.  It depends on the numbers to start but typically freshman won't play varsity unless they are absolutely head and shoulders above everyone.   Typically the good freshman will get moved up about half-3/4 of the way through the season 

This sounds similar to what my daughter was explaining to me. It was a numbers game and she could be moved up only if absolutely needed. 

On the flip side, my son thinks part of why he was cut from JV tennis is because there were a bunch of sophomores trying out too (all about the same level as him... according to him). A couple freshman made it, but he felt they were legitimately better than him.

 

[Gally]

On the flip side, my son thinks part of why he was cut from JV tennis is because there were a bunch of sophomores trying out too (all about the same level as him... according to him). A couple freshman made it, but he felt they were legitimately better than him.

What year is your son?  Many times if there are a group of kids all about the same level the coach will usually keep the younger kids because there is more time to develop them.  It's not necessarily the right answer but is an answer that happens.  

I am not familiar with tennis team numbers (how many kids can be on a team) but when I was coaching JV baseball (we didn't have enough kids for a freshman team) I tried to keep as many kids as I could handle because you never know how young kids will develop/grow/etc.......plus it's always good to keep kids busy if you can.  Plus I hate having to cut kids.......unless they had terrible attitudes.  

 

[Drunken knight]

Interesting year so far.  Daughter wants to play more defense. Coach is still using her on attack.  There is an exceptionally talented girl who only likes to pass to 3 people.  Daughter sets great picks, good cuts, good rides (defense against clears), aggressive on ground balls, but rarely gets scoring opportunities.  

 

[belljr]

What year is your son?  Many times if there are a group of kids all about the same level the coach will usually keep the younger kids because there is more time to develop them.  It's not necessarily the right answer but is an answer that happens.  

I am not familiar with tennis team numbers (how many kids can be on a team) but when I was coaching JV baseball (we didn't have enough kids for a freshman team) I tried to keep as many kids as I could handle because you never know how young kids will develop/grow/etc.......plus it's always good to keep kids busy if you can.  Plus I hate having to cut kids.......unless they had terrible attitudes.  

Our coach is the opposite. Which is dumb. 2 same skill older kid will play varsity

 

[El Floppo]

What year is your son?  Many times if there are a group of kids all about the same level the coach will usually keep the younger kids because there is more time to develop them.  It's not necessarily the right answer but is an answer that happens.  

I am not familiar with tennis team numbers (how many kids can be on a team) but when I was coaching JV baseball (we didn't have enough kids for a freshman team) I tried to keep as many kids as I could handle because you never know how young kids will develop/grow/etc.......plus it's always good to keep kids busy if you can.  Plus I hate having to cut kids.......unless they had terrible attitudes.  

Freshman.

Tennis is rough for NYC schools due to lack of court space. 

 

[Gally]

Our coach is the opposite. Which is dumb. 2 same skill older kid will play varsity

For the overall program success playing the older kid over the younger kid (if they are equal talents) is likely dumb.  But there are many other factors that can go into it like loyalty, attitude, maturity, etc that may make playing the older kid the better choice.   Sport is also a factor.  Something like baseball/softball where the starters pretty much play the entire game it's hard to share time.  Something like basketball where you can free substitute you can appease both as they both get play time. 

Now if you are talking about placement on Varsity vs JV then play time also becomes a factor.  If you have two kids of equal ability and you can place the younger kid on JV so they play every game that is better for their development then putting them on Varsity to play half the time.  I would rather have the older kid on Varsity as a depth piece (they likely have a bit more experience for spot duty) and the younger on JV to play every day.  

Oh the wonders of coaching...hahahaha

 

[Gally]

Freshman.

Tennis is rough for NYC schools due to lack of court space. 

Getting cut is tough for sure as it is likely the first time the freshman has had to deal with that kind of situation.  It can go one of two ways (as I am sure you know).  Take that as a challenge to get better to not make it a doubt next year or give it up and move on.  There is no right or wrong answer.  It just matters what is important to the kid.  

ETA:   Last year my son (a freshman then) had to play varsity baseball because with covid there were not enough kids to have a JV team.  Because of that he didn't play much and it was the first time he every had to deal with not playing.  Up to that point he was always one of the top couple players on every team he had played on and never really sat out.  He took it well attitude wise understanding his limitations as a freshman vs Varsity players so that wasn't a problem.  However, we had quite a few talks about what he wanted out of his career in high school.  Was he ok with status quo and being part of the team and doing what he can or did he want to be a starter and play every day.  We talked about what kind of commitment each side of that equation would require.  I told him we could hit (we have a batting cage in our back yard), throw, ground balls, etc whenever he wanted but he would have to initiate and put in the effort.  I told him I would help with whatever he wanted but I wasn't going to prompt him.  He was at the age he needed to figure out what he wanted and then go from there.  I also said, I was fine with either path and would support him either way.   It turns out he kind of took the middle path as he grew 5 inches from Sept to Dec and stopped having knee and ankle pains so he could actually move more athletically.   Because of this his "skills" came back and he actually overtook his competition for the most part.  So although he did put it some work his body cooperated more to make it so he didn't have to work as hard and now he is their #1 pitcher and starting 1B when he doesn't pitch.  It has worked out but it helped that his team doesn't have a lot of talent.  If there was more talent he would have to work harder for the same opportunity.  

 

[El Floppo]

Getting cut is tough for sure as it is likely the first time the freshman has had to deal with that kind of situation.  It can go one of two ways (as I am sure you know).  Take that as a challenge to get better to not make it a doubt next year or give it up and move on.  There is no right or wrong answer.  It just matters what is important to the kid.  

I mentioned it, but he jumped to the track team the next day and is loving it. Runs with all his friends there (didn't have any friends trying out for tennis). Also, no cuts.

 

[Gally]

I mentioned it, but he jumped to the track team the next day and is loving it. Runs with all his friends there (didn't have any friends trying out for tennis). Also, no cuts.

Awesome.  Does he want to try tennis next year or is he done with that?

 

[El Floppo]

Awesome.  Does he want to try tennis next year or is he done with that?

Just asked him..."We'll see".

He's only taken temnis classes, never competed...so not terribly invested. He's a performing arts kid- got cast as the lead in the HS musical as a freshman and was accepted and is playing percussion at Juilliard (pre college). He's got athletic physical ability, but zero interest or physical competitive drive to win in sports...never has. Sports in HS for him will just be a way of being social, having fun and learning some skills/fitness...won't ever be about winning or resume building, at least individually...and at this point. But who knows..."we'll see".

 

[Gally]

My kid faced a TCU recruit that throws 90-95 last Friday.  Went 1-1 with a solid line drive single off him.  Barreled up a fast ball.  There were 8-10 MLB scouts there to watch this kid throw.  The TCU kid only went 3 innings because our team isn't very good.  Tough game as we lost 6-0 (my kid was pitching and threw 4 IP.   Overall a decent outing but the luck hasn't been with him.  Made good pitches and they did enough to get some weak hits.    That's how it goes some days).  

 

[belljr]

Little belljr is a junior. Opening day today. She got moved to right field. She's upset but happy she's starting.   She finished last summer hammering the ball. Started the fall hot then went to ####.  Worked hard this winter as she always does.  The preseason she hit for ####.

Did get moved to leadoff. ####ty ground out. Awful K. Then yard ball. Walk. 

So on paper 1-3 but that was her first hard hit. 

Hopefully that's a spring board lol 

 

[nirad3]

My 11-year old girl had "tryouts" for a City volleyball league on Saturday.  She was definitely one of the better players out there.  She controls the ball well on bumps.  Still needs work on setting.  But she's gone from not being able to serve well to getting the ball over every time (underhand, still can't overhand worth a damn).  She'll be placed on a team for Saturday games.  Looking forward to weekend competition again.  For a few years there we had soccer on the weekends.

The 9-year old boy is doing City-led basketball drills on Tuesday nights. It's a small class, and I like seeing him active rather than plopped down on the couch watching YouTube.  I don't know if it'll lead to anything, but he's way stronger than when we did this class a year ago.  

All-in-all I'm glad to see things "opening up" a bit, sports-wise.  It'll be a fun Spring and Summer for my offspring.    And me.

 

[zoobird]

My daughter (high school freshman) has first day of flag football practice today and is super-excited about it.  She plays soccer and is fast, but just wasn't feeling excited about track.  The school announced that they'd be starting a girl's flag football team and she signed up.  She's fast, somewhat tall, and definitely does not throw "like a girl", so I'm interested to see how this goes.

 

[Gally]

Kid picked up his first pitching win.  Team fell behind 6-0 after two innings (he wasn't pitching) and he came in to pitch in the 4th.  Team battled back to tie it in the 5th.  He started the comeback off with a single and an RBI in the 3rd then came back up in the bottom of the 6th with bases loaded and one out.  He hit a sac fly to score the go ahead run (which ended up being the game winner).  They tacked on two more insurance runs thanks to an OF error.  He closed it out in the 7th striking out the last two batters with two runners on.

Probably one of his best outings on the mound.  Great movement and was pounding the strike zone.  He ended up pitching 4 innings, gave up 4 hits (none hit hard), 0 Runs, 0 BB, and 4 K's.   He also went 1-3 at the plate with 2 RBI's including the game winner.  All around good game.  

He is now hitting .335-ish (leading the team) and has the most innings pitched at around 30.  Not bad for his sophomore season on varsity thus far.  Still has about 10 games left on the season.  

 

[El Floppo]

My daughter (high school freshman) has first day of flag football practice today and is super-excited about it.  She plays soccer and is fast, but just wasn't feeling excited about track.  The school announced that they'd be starting a girl's flag football team and she signed up.  She's fast, somewhat tall, and definitely does not throw "like a girl", so I'm interested to see how this goes.

Looking forward to hearing about this!

my 10yo daughter is really interested in it... her new middle school for next year has a team (boys- but allows girls) that she's really eager to join. she and I throw a football around pretty regularly (small version) and she's got a better spiral than I do and catches the ball well. she'd have to learn the rest of it- but I think it'll be fun for her.

in the meantime...

She had her first Tennis tournament (10u green ball) in a while the previous weekend. I have a thread about all of this, so won't go too far into details- tldr- we don't have a private coach or even a court near us- she's taking a weekly class and we hit against a wall once a week or so. I wasn't sure how this one would go- she made the semis of her last tournament in the fall while having a couple classes and semi-regular coaching.

she crushed it. swept her group, including a giant and very athletic girl who we could tell was used to winning (she assumed, in spite of losing to floppinha, that she had won the group and was advancing to the semis)... this girl would've beaten Floppinha handily last fall. she's gotten a lot more consistent and is going for her shots (not always working- I don't care). 

in the semis, she ran into a buzz-saw and only took a game in defeat. turns out the kid she lost to is the daughter of a guy who owns a giant tennis center in NJ and who plays constantly. the kid was the first opponent I"ve seen who was legitimately waaaay better than floppinha or anybody else I've seen out there in the few tournaments she's played in... just another level. and she's 8! also turns out floppinha took the only game off this kid the entire tournament. Really proud of how Floppinha went about things- went for her shots, was consistent and kept fighting... even in defeat. and she enjoyed herself, and only felt bad that she was drawn into the side of the touranment with the buzz-saw and not the other semi-finalists, who she said "she could beat". Proud of that attitude too.

 

[El Floppo]

14yo Floppinho was cut from JV Tennis and joined the track team. He's got his first meet tomorrow... he's not even sure what he'll be running (the longer distances at a guess)

Best part of it so far- his first time on a team and doing any kind of regular athletics, and he's really liking it (he's got some buddies on the team, which helps). looking forward to him getting faster than me!

 

[belljr]

Mini rant..... Little belljr laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt. 3b boots it and she reaches first on the error.   The online scoring gave her an AB when it still should be a sac. Cost her some avg points

 

[Gally]

Mini rant..... Little belljr laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt. 3b boots it and she reaches first on the error.   The online scoring gave her an AB when it still should be a sac. Cost her some avg points

There are so many high school  score keepers that screw up official scoring.   Especially when it comes to sacrifices, RBI's and earned runs.  I feel your pain.

 

[ex-ghost]

Son is a junior. Ran a 4:24 1600 and 1:58 800 recently. Running his first real 3200 on Saturday. Crazy that a Junior is running their first kind of distance race - covid sure did a number for kids his age.

 

[El Floppo]

Son is a junior. Ran a 4:24 1600 and 1:58 800 recently. Running his first real 3200 on Saturday. Crazy that a Junior is running their first kind of distance race - covid sure did a number for kids his age.

Whoa!!

To provide context to the others in here: I mentioned freshman floppinho above joining the track team- ran in his first ever meet on Tues, 4 schools total...6:10 1600 and 2:45 800. (I'm really proud of him for his times and mid-pack finish- and he had a blast and is excited to go sub 6). Winner ran the 1600 in the high 4:50s.

I assume your son is winning or at least at consistently scoring with those kind of times?

What kind of background does he have with running? Does he do XC too?

What's his goal for the 3200? (And good luck!)

 

[PIK95]

Son might be trying out for some MLS Next team this weekend.  Apparently, you can't play high school if you play that.  My son will be a senior and starting at the nine or the ten. He is also the heavy favorite for captain.  How can he give that up?  Grr.  

 

[zoobird]

Son is a junior. Ran a 4:24 1600 and 1:58 800 recently. Running his first real 3200 on Saturday. Crazy that a Junior is running their first kind of distance race - covid sure did a number for kids his age.

That's really impressive!

On a barely related note...anybody else following the Newbury Park cross-country/track team this year?  Already easily the best high school cross-country team in history.  Before they came along, the best 4X1 mile relay in high school history was 17:02.  Later this month they're running in a meet against professional teams that should give them a really fast pace to chase, and they may have an outside shot at breaking 16:00.  I can't really think of another record in any event that's been broken by 5%+ other than Bob Beamon's long jump record.

 

[El Floppo]

Son might be trying out for some MLS Next team this weekend.  Apparently, you can't play high school if you play that.  My son will be a senior and starting at the nine or the ten. He is also the heavy favorite for captain.  How can he give that up?  Grr.  

I guess it depends on what he wants from the sport.

back in my day (and I've heard similar things about current conditions), HS was far lower level than club play. I have a feeling if you guys are looking at teh sport to help with college, MLS Next won't hurt that at all. If it's about big man on campus stuff (and I'm not underselling that) more than overall club/sport improvement, you stick with HS and whatever other club he does.

 

[PIK95]

I guess it depends on what he wants from the sport.

back in my day (and I've heard similar things about current conditions), HS was far lower level than club play. I have a feeling if you guys are looking at teh sport to help with college, MLS Next won't hurt that at all. If it's about big man on campus stuff (and I'm not underselling that) more than overall club/sport improvement, you stick with HS and whatever other club he does.

It would be the same club, just a different level.  I really don't know on this.  

 

[acarey50]

Son might be trying out for some MLS Next team this weekend.  Apparently, you can't play high school if you play that.  My son will be a senior and starting at the nine or the ten. He is also the heavy favorite for captain.  How can he give that up?  Grr.  

Good luck with whichever route he ends up going.

For the club my son is at, he is training with the EAL and MLS Next teams, with a decent likelihood of moving up to the EAL team once our NPL season is complete. Not putting the cart before the horse and nothing is a given, but they asked him to start working with the team, the current keeper (for EAL) is leaving after the season, and while I fully expect they will try out other keepers, the keeper coach and other coaches have been advocating for him to get the opportunity. Right now he is doing two trainings with his NPL team (his head coach is a former professional keeper), one practice with the EAL/MLS Next team and 1 club goalie training per week.

He has said he does not want to go to MLS Next because he wants to keep playing in high school. A good percentage of the MLS Next kids are home schooled and they have some training sessions during the day that you couldn't make if doing traditional school. From what I have heard, for the MLS kids, the only way they will "allow" you to play high school is if it is for one of the more elite programs in our area where they will get high college exposure - for our area that is the Mater Dei and Servite's and other high level private schools where they often play some cross state and college showcase type games - though those schools are more known for their football and basketball programs.

 

[Charlie Steiner]

Feels like longer than it's been since I've posted an update here. My boy's been in what has been for him a slump, going from multiple-hit games to 1 for 4/1 for 5 to a couple of hitless games, but he went 2-4 tonight in a win against last season's conference champion and home of the other best player in the league. He laid down a perfect bunt his first at-bat to reach first (he bats 2nd and the leadoff guy got out, so the only reason he would bunt here was to try and catch them off-guard, which he did), and the #3 hitter promptly drove him in with a HR. He also had a single up the middle later in the game, but thanks to a brain fart, he was thrown out trying to turn it into a double when the center fielder didn't pick up the ball on the first try but had plenty of time to recover and get him by a mile.

During his slump, I got a dose of perspective when they hosted the #7 ranked team in D3 and their preseason 3rd team All-American outfielder. I watched it online so I didn't get the full sense of it until I texted with my son after the game.  The kid is 6'7" and also pitches occasionally with a fastball that hits 93. What I did notice was when he hit the ball, it exploded off the bat like I've never seen in all my years watching my son's games. When I saw that and thought about he was 3rd team All-American at the D3 level, I realized why no one's been looking at my boy even though he's been putting up good numbers. There's no shame to it, since it's clear that my son doesn't have what this kid has. If nothing else, my son has gone toe-to-toe with some great talent among his peers and lived to tell the tale. I don't know if this kid will eventually get drafted, but it boggles my mind that in the bigger picture, he's a smaller fish.

My son also let my wife know that one of his former teammates is going to be on The Bachelorette that's currently filming. Personally, I find that hilarious and am looking forward to when it airs just to see if he works his collegiate escapades into it.

Finally, I need to confess here that these last few weeks/games have been difficult for me. Between seeing him struggle and realizing this we're getting closer and closer to the end (they're currently 2-2 in the conference and need to finish in the top 4 if they want a chance to get to the DIII College World Series), I'm reverting back to living and dying with every pitch like when he was little. Today, for example, I couldn't sit still. Every few pitches, I got up and walked around, staying in one place for maybe a pitch or two before moving somewhere else. I even let the other side's fans and players' chirping get in my head. I know I should be soaking up and cherishing every moment, but it's not happening. I'm trying to keep the bigger picture in mind; he has built a body of work for himself on and off the field over these last 5 seasons that he will be proud off as he gets older, and no one can take it away from him; I just need to be ready to accept that it's not going to end the way I want it to, and I don't just can't do that yet...

 

[Harry Frogfish]

How many kids in this thread have made it?  Not being a ####, the last post is the only one I read.  And no offense Charlie, but that kind of dream is which goes on for way too long is all too common.  And I know it, I've seen it, all too much.

The sad part isn't the end of the dream, necessarily.  The sad part is what happens with these kids when all that hope and time and work (and identity) ends for good.  Talk about a whole new ballgame.  I saw way too many not end up well.  It's not an adjustment many kids -- especially those that have made the sport their life growing up -- can deal with well.

I hope you help him with that transition, as much as you helped with his (and yours?) dreams.  Super important.

 

[Charlie Steiner]

How many kids in this thread have made it?  Not being a ####, the last post is the only one I read.  And no offense Charlie, but that kind of dream is which goes on for way too long is all too common.  And I know it, I've seen it, all too much.

The sad part isn't the end of the dream, necessarily.  The sad part is what happens with these kids when all that hope and time and work (and identity) ends for good.  Talk about a whole new ballgame.  I saw way too many not end up well.  It's not an adjustment many kids -- especially those that have made the sport their life growing up -- can deal with well.

I hope you help him with that transition, as much as you helped with his (and yours?) dreams.  Super important.

No offense taken, and no offense meant here, you're not getting nearly the right picture from reading just that one post.

I've made it clear throughout this thread that my son is a hard worker on and off the field, and for a 22-year-old, he has a pretty healthy outlook on life away from the game. He's self-motivated and has an almost supernatural ability to be in the right place at the right time. He has multiple job opportunities waiting for him after he graduates next month. Knowing his personality, once his college career ends, if baseball doesn't offer him any more opportunities to play at a level where he has to push himself, he'll move on to the next thing. See, I've never pushed him to do any of this, it was always his choice, and that doesn't mean there weren't times that I tried to get him into situations that I thought were better for his baseball career; I know someone who worked in the athletic department of a local private HS that was a baseball powerhouse and tried to get my son interested in going there, but he chose our public HS so that he could go to school and play ball with his friends. When he was 12, he told me that he didn't want to pitch any more (he's a lefty, so there was always interest in left-handed pitching), and I told him that I supported that decision, but he was limiting himself by doing that. Considering all the accolades he would go on to achieve after that--1st team all-county as a senior, conference rookie of the year as a freshman in college, all-conference every year since and conference co-player of the year last year-I'd say he made the right call.

Another reason I don't worry much about my son suffering too much of a let-down after his playing days end is that he has accumulated a lot of friends over the years and if anything, his off the field activities have always kept him grounded and helped him live a balanced life even while giving so much to baseball.

I hope you get the time to go back and read the entire thread, there's a lot of great stories and reasons to be hopeful about the younger generation.

 

[Harry Frogfish]

Again, I'm not going to go back and forth on this, we won't agree.  American parents go way too far too often in shoving a sport down their kid's throats.  It's plain as day, go to any Little League game, club game for any sport, football, tennis, golf, you name it.

The odds of any of those kids making it are astronomical.  And while that's great that your kid could very well be an exception, the way that post reads (with you sitting on pins and needles for every last ball and strike), it took me back to what I've seen for decades.  I mean are you serious, letting other kid's parents' "chirping" got inside YOUR head?  Come on dude.

The sad part is I'm old enough to see the results of all the kids that didn't make it, even those that got full-rides to D-1 schools, etc.  In almost all cases, it would've been better to bow out earlier for most of them for a TON of reasons.  I mean so many, never were able to adjust well once the dream (whosever's it was) was done.

Again, not talking about you specifically, I'm talking about delusional, controlling parents who push way too hard.  Often, deep down, it's really their dreams they are chasing, not the child.  Does not end well.

 

[El Floppo]

Again, I'm not going to go back and forth on this, we won't agree.  American parents go way too far too often in shoving a sport down their kid's throats.  It's plain as day, go to any Little League game, club game for any sport, football, tennis, golf, you name it.

The odds of any of those kids making it are astronomical.  And while that's great that your kid could very well be an exception, the way that post reads (with you sitting on pins and needles for every last ball and strike), it took me back to what I've seen for decades.  I mean are you serious, letting other kid's parents' "chirping" got inside YOUR head?  Come on dude.

The sad part is I'm old enough to see the results of all the kids that didn't make it, even those that got full-rides to D-1 schools, etc.  In almost all cases, it would've been better to bow out earlier for most of them for a TON of reasons.  I mean so many, never were able to adjust well once the dream (whosever's it was) was done.

Again, not talking about you specifically, I'm talking about delusional, controlling parents who push way too hard.  Often, deep down, it's really their dreams they are chasing, not the child.  Does not end well.

Take it to the "my kids gonna make it!" thread and not the "celebrate my kids accomplishments" thread. Because honestly, it just sounds like you're crapping on people in here...people who aren't saying or doing any of things you're warning them against, and are just dads proudly crowing about their kids.

 

[Charlie Steiner]

Take it to the "my kids gonna make it!" thread and not the "celebrate my kids accomplishments" thread. Because honestly, it just sounds like you're crapping on people in here...people who aren't saying or doing any of things you're warning them against, and are just dads proudly crowing about their kids.

And on that note, I'm proud to post that my son just completed a very successful 3-game set against last year's conference champion, going 5 for 8 for the series, with a double and 4 walks, plus he closed out the series on the mound, earning his first save of the season, throwing 3 hitless innings with no walks and 3 k's. He came in to pitch protecting a 1-run lead, and the first batter he faced was the kid who shared the conference's co-player of the year honors with him last season. As an outfielder who pitches occasionally, he was mainly just pumping in fastballs (clocked at 87 last year but maybe gets another mph when the adrenaline's pumping, like in big-game situations such as today) and whatever breaking ball and change up he can muster. I don't remember if the kid worked the count to full, but I do remember the duel was decided by a sky-high pop-up in the infield, that the second baseman had to make a basket catch at the last second. 

 

[Harry Frogfish]

Take it to the "my kids gonna make it!" thread and not the "celebrate my kids accomplishments" thread. Because honestly, it just sounds like you're crapping on people in here...people who aren't saying or doing any of things you're warning them against, and are just dads proudly crowing about their kids.

Maybe I'll take it to the watch my kid's going to be a tennis star thread!

 

[Nigel]

Maybe I'll take it to the watch, my kid's going to be a tennis star thread!

You’re awful

 

[Harry Frogfish]

You’re awful

Really, that aghast?  It's just a little ribbing.  If he felt so compelled to tell me where to go, he can also be able to take it.  

Opinions are allowed here last I checked.  If you read mine again, I made it VERY clear more than once I wasn't speaking to Charlie directly.  It was a take on over-zealous sports parents in general.

I said specifically "American parents go too far..."  I also reiterated that point by saying "AGAIN, NOT TALKING ABOUT YOU SPECIFICALLY."

It was El Floppo who decided to misinterpret my point as a personal attack and interject himself into the conversation.

 

[El Floppo]

Maybe I'll take it to the watch my kid's going to be a tennis star thread!

Wow. What a #### response.

You obviously didn't read that thread either...but you have some kind of problem with parents and kids who do sports that you feel a need to dump into these threads with your own issues.. Instead of doing that...read the threads...and then see if there's any reason to do it. So far, there hasn't been. 

 

[scorchy]

There's maybe a dozen threads in the last 5 years of the the FFA that have stayed uniformly positive and drama free.  I just can't fathom what would make an adult read a single post and decide crap all over things.  

 

[El Floppo]

Really, that aghast?  It's just a little ribbing.  If he felt so compelled to tell me where to go, he can also be able to take it.  

Opinions are allowed here last I checked.  If you read mine again, I made it VERY clear more than once I wasn't speaking to Charlie directly.  It was a take on over-zealous sports parents in general.

I said specifically "American parents go too far..."  I also reiterated that point by saying "AGAIN, NOT TALKING ABOUT YOU SPECIFICALLY."

It was El Floppo who decided to misinterpret my point as a personal attack and interject himself into the conversation.

sure... we're being sensitive. it's not you.

listen- I wasn't feeling personally attacked in here. I thought you were off-base and called you on it. start your own thread about parents and kids and sports. sounds like it's your bugaboo... and worthwhile to discus.

but not every thread about kids and sports warrants the inclusion of your issue... certainly not in a thread specifically called a place to celebrate our kids athletic accomplishments. a thread you didn't bother reading before posting.

and "ribbing" me about my thread about my advice/diary about my kids in tennis. wow. your last post there critiqued my parenting- didn't provide tennis advice... in some obtuse way that I didn't even take personally at that point. in another thread you didn't bother to read. I even said as much and asked you a question to clarify it- that you couldn't be bothered to answer. So I then asked somebody else offline in that thread who I respect if there was something they saw in what I'd been posting in there to give them concern in a similar way... based on what I'd posted in there, they had no idea what you were talking about.  

so at this point, as far as I can tell your M.O. is to post crap in threads about kids in sports- that you don't bother reading- with your own personal issues. 

 

[El Floppo]

There's maybe a dozen threads in the last 5 years of the the FFA that have stayed uniformly positive and drama free.  I just can't fathom what would make an adult read a single post and decide crap all over things.  

why are you feeling so personally attacked?

 

[scorchy]

why are you feeling so personally attacked?

It's Sunday morning.  Shouldn't you be outside forcing your daughter to hit slice serves until her arms fall off, Mr. Marinovich?  

ETA: I'm mixing sports here b/c Marinovich always seemed way worse than Richard Williams.

 

[El Floppo]

It's Sunday morning.  Shouldn't you be outside forcing your daughter to hit slice serves until her arms fall off, Mr. Marinovich?  

ETA: I'm mixing sports here b/c Marinovich always seemed way worse than Richard Williams.

I'm posting from the courts, natch. been here since 5am. all of my hopes and dreams and college scholarships and pro contracts are riding on it, gb.

eta... DAMMIT FLOPPINHA. YOU"RE RUNNING 10 SUICIDES FOR MI####TING THAT JUMP DROP SHOT.

 

[Charlie Steiner]

There's maybe a dozen threads in the last 5 years of the the FFA that have stayed uniformly positive and drama free.  I just can't fathom what would make an adult read a single post and decide crap all over things.  

I will almost guarantee that in every other youth sports-related thread we've had over the years,  someone has dropped in and made posts taking parents to task. It just comes with the territory, and I guess 'providing a reality check' is often the motivation behind it. OTOH, it's also low-hanging fruit and an easy enough issue to jump on because of how many examples of over the top parents there are.

Many of us who have been contributing here are far enough along in the going with our kids to understand the bad side of youth sports in this country and thankfully that's not what's going on here. There are also parents who are just at the start of the youth sports experience who have been following along, and I think those of us who have already been down that road are providing a good perspective to help them navigate what's coming, especially since what goes on isn't all on the parents; there's folks who make a living off youth sports, and sometimes use predatory tactics that play on parents' fears and anxieties. We've been here as part sounding board and part knowledge base for those coming after us. In Harry's defense, what he's saying about the state of youth sports parents in this country isn't wrong, it's just that we already know that around here, and in this thread, we're gently guiding younger parents away from falling into that trap.

 

[Charlie Steiner]

Oh, and at some point there's also going to be someone who's going to drop with a 'circle jerk' comment. 

I like to stay ahead of the curve whenever I can.

 

[El Floppo]

Oh, and at some point there's also going to be someone who's going to drop with a 'circle jerk' comment. 

I like to stay ahead of the curve whenever I can.

go on...

 

[Charlie Steiner]

go on...

Had to put that out there on Palm Sunday.

 

[El Floppo]

I will almost guarantee that in every other youth sports-related thread we've had over the years,  someone has dropped in and made posts taking parents to task. It just comes with the territory, and I guess 'providing a reality check' is often the motivation behind it. OTOH, it's also low-hanging fruit and an easy enough issue to jump on because of how many examples of over the top parents there are.

Many of us who have been contributing here are far enough along in the going with our kids to understand the bad side of youth sports in this country and thankfully that's not what's going on here. There are also parents who are just at the start of the youth sports experience who have been following along, and I think those of us who have already been down that road are providing a good perspective to help them navigate what's coming, especially since what goes on isn't all on the parents; there's folks who make a living off youth sports, and sometimes use predatory tactics that play on parents' fears and anxieties. We've been here as part sounding board and part knowledge base for those coming after us. In Harry's defense, what he's saying about the state of youth sports parents in this country isn't wrong, it's just that we already know that around here, and in this thread, we're gently guiding younger parents away from falling into that trap.

the parent/kids-sports thing is a legitimate discussion to be had. 

but not in a thread specifically where parents can crow about their kids. 

I'm a new parent with sports. But I was a high level baseball player when younger, and then highly recruited soccer player and played top 20 Div 1 college ball (after being just off the national team youth ball) followed up with semi-pro for a few years. I personally get how this all works, even if that particular game has gotten worse in the years since my playing days. 

I started a thread asking for advice about kids in tennis. I never played, so am clueless about how to play... even if the general ideas about parenting, training and what it might take to get to higher levels likely translates from my experiences. a lot of the posts from well-meaning people were about cautioning me away from expectations about college scholarships, etc. I never mentioned those expectations as goals of mine for my kids, and responded as such with appreciation. 

harry came into that thread and his first and only post was to comment that I was overdoing it and to tone it down... followed by comments that were directed towards this issue of his and not my actions laid out in the thread, which suggest to me he hadn't read any of the thread outside of the single post he was quoting. 

I appreciate getting advice in my thread asking for advice.. so I said as much, even though I said he was venturing into parenting and not tennis territory.. I asked him to be more specific about what I was doing that made him think that. He couldn't bother to answer.

so that's two threads where he's brought this issue (a worthwhile issue to discuss in the right setting) into threads where there wasn't cause and where he hadn't bothered reading anything. my thread- fine- I'm asking for advice and its advice. here? it's a happy place to high five our kids hitting homers, winning their track meet or even just doing better than they did yesterday. sucks that people feel the need to suck the happy out of happy places with their own things.

which I'm doing right now, by continuing to post about it. my own bugaboo, I suppose.

 

[El Floppo]

Had to put that out there on Palm Sunday.

so it's not Circle Jerk Sunday?

 

[Charlie Steiner]

so it's not Circle Jerk Sunday?

Depending on who one is, every Sunday may be Circle Jerk Sunday.

 

[Charlie Steiner]

the parent/kids-sports thing is a legitimate discussion to be had. 

but not in a thread specifically where parents can crow about their kids. 

I'm a new parent with sports. But I was a high level baseball player when younger, and then highly recruited soccer player and played top 20 Div 1 college ball (after being just off the national team youth ball) followed up with semi-pro for a few years. I personally get how this all works, even if that particular game has gotten worse in the years since my playing days. 

I started a thread asking for advice about kids in tennis. I never played, so am clueless about how to play... even if the general ideas about parenting, training and what it might take to get to higher levels likely translates from my experiences. a lot of the posts from well-meaning people were about cautioning me away from expectations about college scholarships, etc. I never mentioned those expectations as goals of mine for my kids, and responded as such with appreciation. 

harry came into that thread and his first and only post was to comment that I was overdoing it and to tone it down... followed by comments that were directed towards this issue of his and not my actions laid out in the thread, which suggest to me he hadn't read any of the thread outside of the single post he was quoting. 

I appreciate getting advice in my thread asking for advice.. so I said as much, even though I said he was venturing into parenting and not tennis territory.. I asked him to be more specific about what I was doing that made him think that. He couldn't bother to answer.

so that's two threads where he's brought this issue (a worthwhile issue to discuss in the right setting) into threads where there wasn't cause and where he hadn't bothered reading anything. my thread- fine- I'm asking for advice and its advice. here? it's a happy place to high five our kids hitting homers, winning their track meet or even just doing better than they did yesterday. sucks that people feel the need to suck the happy out of happy places with their own things.

which I'm doing right now, by continuing to post about it. my own bugaboo, I suppose.

Sorry I missed your other thread. Not that I would have had anything useful to add...

Just think of this little detour as getting hit by a pitch. Wear it and take your base.

 

[Charlie Steiner]

Don't think I've posted this here yet. It's the 'hype' video my son's school made for the baseball team right after their trip to Myrtle Beach. For the good stuff, skip to just before the 3:00 minute mark. Even though it was just a meaningless game in the big picture, it provided the most electric moment in the program's history, and fortunately it was my son who provided the jolt. For context, it happened in the 11th inning in a hotly contested game in which both teams had worked themselves into a fever like it was game 7 of the World Series.