Parents barking and yelling instructions at their kids from the stands; approve/ disapprove? Thoughts greatly appreciated. Both players and parents are encouraged to project thoughts.

Thanks.

For parents who are not the coach, the yelling of instructions should be reserved for when they are practicing with their kids at home or in the batting cage. At the game, all instructions should be coming from the coach.

The only thing that the parents should be yelling at the games are words of encouragement.

Barking should be reserved for those lousy stinkin' umps...

This past weekend, my daughter's team won a huge tournament. However, I had to go into the stands to tell one parent not to coach her kid during the game. The Wife is still angry at me.

Im all for it as long as its something helpful to the player . Doesnt always have to be perceived as something negative . Whats wrong with it ?

Sull,
When has a parent ever hollered something at his son that he thought would be detrimental? Your statement allows anything.

I'll give a basketball analogy since that's what I'm most familiar coaching.

A parent hollering to their kid, "Shoot", would be an example of what not to say.

A parent hollering to their kid, "backdoor that kid when he overplays", would be something that isn't detrimental.

Parents should cheer, coaches should coach, umpires should umpire and players should play - that way, everyone has a job to do and no one will step on anyone's toes! Lots more fun if you stay out of each other's way.

Sulltiger are you and Ballyall the same person? Just wondering after that last post!!! I heard that Ballyall calls the pitches from the stands.

Things would be pretty darn boring if we all acted and behaved like robots in the same manner . As long as the parent doesnt go overboard i dont see what the big deal is. Some of us are a little more emotional and intense than others. We are who we are .

Sull,

I understand where you are coming from, but it's the player's business to focus on the game and not from an outside source. Players love to hear words of encouragement, not tips or pointers. Players live inside their own little world on the field; when that world is disrupted, the term of "too much thinking" clouds that world. Once you are on that field, it's just the players, the coaches, and the game itself. For instance, if a player is standing in the on-deck circle warming up getting ready for his next at bat, that should be the only thing he is focused on; not a fan/father/mother/etc. telling him stuff from the other side of the fence. Understand what I mean?

Sull - I agree with you completely. HOWEVER - when I see the parent standing behind the backstop while his or her child is in the on deck circle, shouting instructions to a kid who's obviously trying to teleport themselves to another place and time, I feel bad for that kid. Game time is the time for individuals to make adjustments, not to hear "elbow up, hands back, extend" blah, blah, blah. Too late for that stuff at that point. Save it for the batting cage.

We had a dad who's son played right field - every single inning, dad would get up and "wander" down the right field line to stand as close to his boy as he could so he could tell him where to play, how to stand, where the ball was, etc. He would have gone on the field if he could have, I'm sure. Coach would motion for the boy to play more to his right and the poor kid would frantically shake his head "NO". He didn't want to get closer to his dad! Then when the boy was on deck, guess who needed to "wander" again? And the funny part was, he thought none of us knew what he was doing. Sad. It's no surprise the boy finally quit playing altogether.

Parents should be themselves, cheer as little or much as they want, for their kid or everyone's kid or no one's kid. Be encouraging, be positive, be intense. Just try not to make an idiot of yourself and in the process embarrass your child. Everyone will enjoy the game a lot more.

I agree with the dads who are quiet and leave theri kids alone. Unfortunately, I am not one of them.

When my son has taken private lessons over the years, coaches have called my over to show me "keys" so that I know when he is doing something right or wrong. I do remind him of keys. He tells me after games that those things don't help, and I should shut up and just cheer. But, he still loves me and lets me go to the games. I try to behave, it just doesn't always work.

Interesting discussion. bballdad1954, we all have those "keys" regardless of whether we've had them identified by some instructor or ourselves. At least we feel that they work. Yes, it is very hard not to repeat them. My child just had the greatest offensive weekend/tournament I've ever witnessed in any player and as you all know, I've coached some very talented players and have coached for a long time. I'm very proud of her. I'm also proud of myself. Not once did I say anything. In the end, she did what she practices without any input from me. I think that is what made it so special is that she was on her own and stepped up to the challenge. I think that is a part of growth for both player and parent. You have to let them stand or fall on their own. JMHO!

Something else that I've wondered in this thread, are those parents seeking to instruct during the game duplicating their behaviors from HS season? Do you act the same during both seasons?

When it comes to yelling instructions to your son while he is playing, I'd say it isn't the right thing to do. While competing their focus should be completely on the game and if they are hearing any voices other than the coach, it isn't a good thing.

I think most kids would hear their dad's voice which in my opinion is not a good thing. Let them play and talk about it later.

Cheering is good and usually to a player is just noise.....makes it exciting but doesn't call for your attention.

JMHO

quote:

Originally posted by bballdad1954:
I do remind him of keys. He tells me after games that those things don't help, and I should shut up and just cheer.

This spring my son had two popouts in a row. As he walked past me I said that he was dropping his back shoulder and getting under the ball.

His response: "Gee, you think?"

Unfortunately as many parents have done, and still do, I was one of those "instructional" parents and coach as well in little league. Instruction for specific things can happen during a game, but should be reviewed and worked on at the team practice(s). Let them play and learn from their mistakes. There are to many things going-on during the game for them to possibly remember what needed to be corrected. Remember, these players are bonding/socializing with their teammates, and those could blossom into a lifelong relationship.

Not until I became a United States S****r Federation Referee did I realize through my certification process that the game is played on the field, by the players!!!! Not the coach, parents, or other outside influences. It's the players game during that time element, period. As a game official we were trained to let the players play the game and not interfere except when rules infractions took place, then we were there to explain the rule if needed.

Again, the game belongs to the player and to his team. It took me awhile to learn this as none of us wants to see our child fail, lose, or be left out of anything. Its a hard thing to do, but we need to set the example of letting our kids growup learning about failure and disappointment.

P.S.

Once in awhile a parent needs to 'thank' an umpire for the time spent umpiring. They are not perfect, just trying to be consistent.