What do you experienced coaches do for keeping track of your subs -

standard lineup card in your pocket with scribbles?

just have a good memory?

another coach with a scorebook in the dugout helping you?

I'm coaching a team of 13-14 year olds and finding myself struggling to stay on top of it! Trying to get a team of 13 players at least 2 innings and a plate appearance every game in a rec league. Playing with either 9 or an extra hitter.

In a rec league I love the use of an extra hitter especially with 13 players. Take turns being the EH and then 6 play the full game and the other 6 split the game 3 innings each, very easy to keep track of and still allows you to be compete.

Good luck, Coach Curt

If this is a Rec league then I would just suggest batting the whole lineup. I am assuming you have somewhere around 1 hour 50 min time limit.

In that time even with a 9 player batting order batters 7 through 9 will only get 2 at bats most likely on avg. 1-6 will get 3 at bats.

By hitting 4 extra players above 9 this most likely worksout to be batters 1-4 get 3 at bats and 5 - 13 get 2 at bats. Time limits are killers in Rec ball not many games get to the 6th inning.

Also if you bat your whole lineup it makes it easier for you to use free substitution to get your other players their required innings without messing your batting order up.

Can't bat the whole lineup - league rules are 9 or EH.

Just looking for a better way than staring at my scribbles on the line up card!

I am a HS coach who has to keep track of subs. We can re enter starters after subbing for them. Once a sub is subbed for, he is done for the rest of the game.

i will circle my starters number next to his name in the lineup when i take them out. I will also write the subs name on the line under the starter (or on line next to starter if there is not another line) I will also cross out the sub at the bottom of the card. If I re-enter my starter, I will then put a line through his circled number and cross him out at the bottom of my card.

Hit it hard - that's exactly the kind of tips I am looking for!

That would work a lot better than what I've been doing - staring at the crumpled lineup card and trying to remember what I did.

I created an excel spreadsheet listing the line-up in the proper batting order, and showing the position for each inning (one column per inning). Then I hang it on a clipboard and keep a copy in my pocket. The kids read it each inning so they know who is going where. A few tips:
1. Use the sort options whenever you need to change the batting order.
2. If you sum the column, positions 1-9 will total to 45...if not, you have messed up.
3. For guys on the bench, use a "b" or similar value and you can use a counter to verify that you have the right number of guys.
4. Once the line-up is accurate, with a little excel magic you can track every position each player has played. It eliminates a lot of "flack" when a parent questions playing time and you can say "little Johnny has played xx% of his innings in the infield, what's the problem?"
5. Knowing the percentages of playing time by person, it is easy to keep things balanced.

schwammi - I do the same thing to map out what I am planning to do.

But if a pitcher is getting rocked and needs to come out early things change! Or if he has got all the batters fooled he may need to stay in longer. Or if there is an injury, or an arm starts hurting, etc, etc.

Or if the least-skilled player already got his 2 innings and 1 at-bat and needs to come out sooner than I mapped out.

All of those things have happened to me in the first 2 games of the season which made me realize I can't do it the old way (when I had free subs) and could map it out easily.

bballdad175...I don't know what I would do without my excel spreadsheet. It forces me to plan although you are right...things change. That's why I always bring 4 copies (one for the other team, one for my pocket, and two on the clipboard). And a sharpie allows you to make changes. Just remember to record those changes in the original spreadsheet so your stats on playing time remain accurate.

It's not perfect, but I have never been charged with batting out of order and rarely have I ever had two guys in the same position. And I love it when a parent challenges me on playing time.....ask them if they want it to 2 decimal places or just round it off?!!