Hey Youth Coaches! Pay Attention!

The following is a fable...or is it...

Hi, I'm Fred, and I'm a T-ball coach.  I've found little kids hard to work with, but there is one great player.  Little Alexander shows great promise.  Mom and Dad have given him all the best t-ball equipment, but unlike a lot of kids, he can actually use it.  He throws from third base to first base on the fly, uses two hands on ground balls, and can catch a ball thrown to him, even a little high and low, and off to the side.  He runs hard and knows exactly what to do when he gets the ball.  He even catches a fly ball if it is hit to him or within a couple of steps.  He can hit the ball over the infield off the tee, and can hit a moving ball even better.

In a group where we are always teaching, it is a pleasure to have someone advanced.  The only problem I have with him is that he doesn't get along with other teammates.  I have Julie, a shy girl, on my team and he treats her poorly, but it's the usual dugout stuff.  A couple of boys laugh with him at her, but boys will be boys. She's willing and learning, but I see her crying and hear Alexander laughing.

Phillip is another quiet boy, who doesn't seem much interested in baseball, but won't say much of anything.  Alexander is mean to him, but it's the usual dugout stuff: dirt in the hat, bubble gum in the hair.  Boys will be boys.

A couple of years later...

I'm Carl and I'm Alexander's 12U travel coach.  He is a five tool player, easily the best I've ever seen.  He's got great equipment, and knows how to use it.  His footwork is solid, he is always in the right place and gets the ball where it needs to go.  He isn't very forgiving of his teammates, and I wonder, if he weren't so good, would anyone talk to him?  He went yard the other day and not one teammate went out to congratulate him.  It put us ahead in a tight game, and I wonder why they weren't excited.

We have this defensive catcher, Fred, who is a little quiet, but always seems to be the butt of Alexander's jokes.  Fred stops everything our other pitchers throw, but seems to have a hard time with Alexander.  He throws upper 70's with a good curve, so I can see where something in the dirt can be tough to stop.  Sometimes, when I call for a curve, Alexander throws a fastball that hits Fred right in the mask.  Probably missed the sign.

Our best centerfielder, Mack, doesn't seem to see eye to eye with Alexander either.  Alexander was pretty tough on him for a while until a shouting match at the June tournament and Mack decked him.  Alexander won't talk to Mack now, even though Mack is about his equal as a player.  Mack's impressive because he's half the size!  Not sure why we didn't do better than .500, and we're breaking up.  A lot of the kids, including Mack and Fred, are going to the Missiles, a new team started by Mack's dad.  They didn't even invite Alexander.  Darn politics.

Further down the road...

I'm Ted, Alexander's high school coach.  College scouts showed up to see Alexander when he was a freshman, the pros started showing up when he was a sophomore.  He throws upper 90's, great change, sick curve ball.  Mom and Dad are around all the time, now, and are taking him off to private lessons and sending him to all the top prospect camps.  He'll probably go pro out of high school, the kid's that good.  I love having a kid that can ice a game before it even starts.

Problems?  He's got a couple of teammates that don't seem to like him, but on the whole, he gets along.  I've got a great centerfielder, Mack, who won't talk to him and a catcher, Fred, who is the only guy who can handle him.  Alexander doesn't like either one and leaves them alone.  I'll bet it's something political because Mack and Fred started a travel team a few years ago that was wildly successful, and they did it without Alexander.  Alexander has been playing for a second rate program since then and won't talk to them.

We have been successful, but because of overwhelming talent.  We don't have a lot of team chemistry, and lost at the local level of the state tournament.  I'm getting some heat for having great regular seasons and limited success in the tournament.  I know Alexander is a future major leaguer, Mack could get there, and Fred could be a useful catcher.  Not sure why we can't do better.

We had nasty things to deal with in school this year.  A girl, Julie, was beaten by Phillip, to the point where she went into a coma.  Phillip committed suicide to stay out of jail.  Phillip lived next door to Alexander.  Guess you get what you get for hanging out in the wrong crowd.

The road ends here...

I'm Chad, manager of a major league team.  I'm losing my job at the end of the season and it's because I lost the clubhouse a long time ago.  My best player, Alexander, has been running wild in the clubhouse.  I tried fining him, suspending him, sitting him.  Nothing gets the message through to Alexander.  It was horrible what he did to his wife at home that got him arrested.  She might lose the baby, and that could make a felony charge.  We built this team around Alexander's talent, and now it is in jail.  And I'm looking for work.  Wish I could have taken control.

Youth coaches: Nip it before it gets out of hand.  The signs are there, pay attention to ALL the kids entrusted to your care.  Don't sacrifice kids to win games. Make the talented kid comply.  Inspire the less talented.  The games are to teach what is need in life, not the reason for living.