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| Nov. 21, 2014 JRthree | Topic: General and miscellaneous Discussion: Suggestions for 2015 There's so many good points you guys make and I truly hope some of them are taken into consideration. Coming from someone who coaches high school baseball, referees city & YMCA basketball, and organizes local youth tourneys for both, I bring in a point of view that sees all sides of your points. Because I flip flop many times a year from director, offical, coach, & player, l have good insight to competitive decisions. This year was my first playing senior ball. (50 M+) My first impression was this is awesome, guys just wanting to have fun and it's great & good to be out here. After a few tourneys the newness wore off and I started noticing massive complaining. Some justified, some of it just tired grumpy old men wanting their way. Just my own oberservation. Now let's get to the tough part of telling you what you may or may not want to hear. 1. General Rules Rules are made for the masses. We may not like some of them, but the vast majority make sense. Rules decisions, and amending rules is a thankless job. Where one agrees, many disagree. If you're that upset, get involved in the committee's or at least attend. Life 101, you're never gonna change certain rules to suit your every need so stop being grumpy. (unless of course your a Congressman or Senator, which you can make most rules to benefit yourself) 2. 1-1 Count If any of you really think the 1-1 count WILL NOT speed the game then your either too set in your ways, you can't use the entire field, or you cant take the pressue of being a consistent hitter with 2 strikes. It's a hitters game, let's hit! 3. Starting the Game Clock When we go through the gates and enter the dugout we know we're about to play. When we see there's a pre-game Umpire / Coaches conference going on at the plate that should be our cue to preparie to play offense or defense. We're there to play guys, if we're not ready after the conferance and the clock has started, the blame shouldn't fall on the umpire for doing his job. 4. Courtesy Runners The amount of courtesy runners is out of control. I fully understand the need and have no problem with them because we all need a runner from time to time. The way they're currently being utilized can create a constant competitive advantage by eating up game time. I see a need for controlling the number of runners per inning (which would force coaches to use more strategy) and a point of disallowing a courtesy runner, after the next pitch is delivered. (This of course would exclude the removal of an injured player from the game and entering a sub.) 5. Home Runs The level of the athletes ability will determine his actions. Some can master hitting to all fields, others hit home runs, and some athletes can do both, while a percentage of athletes just cant control their bat and put the ball in specific area's. We've all played with guys who have one swing whether he's a backside hitter, an up the middle guy, or the dreaded teammate who can only swing for the fence, and is a liabilty when the HRs are gone and you need a hit. When it comes to the HR - THE #1 priority of the rules commitee should be to use common sense in their rulings of HRs to protect the pitcher as much as possible. (No, I'm not a pitcher) These bats are out of control and like it or not guys, they're here to stay simply because the majority of us like to feel that pop again. It's sad, but true, and proof the proof is in our bat bags. My HR suggestions: A. Arc limits should be max 10ft. The higher the arc, the more players utilize the middle. B. Going to a 1-1 count forces hitters be less selective. On average this would create less SOLID contact per game, and lower the amount of rocket shots compared to the regular count. It's definitely safer for the pitcher. C.( K.I.S.S) HR beyond the limit should be Dead Ball Walks in all divisions & ages and there's never a question. These are my observations guys and in closing I'll leave you with a thought. When my HS baseball players think Im working them too hard I remind them of this. I ask you to do the following ---work hard, use common sense, be safe, and above all, have fun! But when workouts get tough, or you don't like what's going or what your doing, it' simple. Quit whining OR just Quit, because your whining is cutting down on our fun factor! |
| Dec. 1, 2013 JRthree | Topic: General and miscellaneous Discussion: SSUSA AND SPA MEETINGS This is my first year getting registered with SSUSA & SPA. It took me 20 min to electronically send all the required info to SSUSA and pay my registration fee. The next day I received an email of confirmation. I tried the same with SPA and the listen to ths process. I was told by the SPA office I could send my two forms of ID electronically, but I must mail in my my registration form and my payment. The SPA office said its Ridge's requirement for first year players to send in the form & fee via snail mail. It seemd very outdated to me so I requested Ridge to give me a call. Ridge called a week later and I couldn't get a word in edgewise. When I finally got Ridge to listen I told him this is my first year signing up for senior softball ball but this ISNT my first rodeo signing up on line because I coach HIgh School Baseball and youth travel baseball where signing up players or teams on line is business 101 and simp,e for the organization and the customer. The registration process should be as easy & painless as possible saving both of us time & money. The present SPA registration process is lacking compared to SSUSA, NFHS, USSSA, AAU, Top Gun, or Nations. In fact, simply comparing the SPA website to those organizations reveals an outdated SPA website. Come on SPA - get with the times and make it easy for players to sign up & pay electronically. Think progressive! View better, & more efficient ways to conduct your business by looking at how others do it. Embrace change. |
