Coaching and Training a 16U Softball Team

I’m probably working too hard, I have a cold that  just doesn’t want to go away. You can picture me walking around with my box of  white tissues. It’s actually pretty funny!

People have been laughing and sympathizing with me.

Outside of being a little sick, It’s been very busy over here.

We’ve been filming several new DVDs over the last few days and working on many new projects. You’ll the see the results of these efforts in a couple of weeks.

Also, I’ve also been coaching quite a bit lately.  We’ve had more and slightly longer practices.

I am taking my 16U team to a tournament in 3 weeks and want them to “feel ready and confident” to compete.

You know that a high percentage of confidence comes from the feeling of being prepared to perform at our best.

I am actually quite happy with the progresses lately.

Several players have improved significantly on various aspects of the game and they’re also working harder and developing the work ethic I’m been trying to instill over the past few months.

You know, things are not always easy With a bunch of  15-year-old athletes who weren’t used to push themselves and work hard.

Basically, they’ve had to learn to push themselves out of their comfort zone and develop the habit of working hard.

That’s certainly a challenge when you are dealing with young ladies that were not used to this!

For that to happen, you have to set your expectations  early and not let them off the hook if they slow down or don’t meet minimum standards in terms of effort AND focus.

It’s getting there. I’m very happy about that.

Most of the work we do is still around fundamentals at this time of the year.

We work a lot on our hitting and short game doing hitting circuits and video analysis.

We spent also quite a bit of time on fielding and throwing mostly on the transition to throw, quick exchange, footwork and so on.

The athletes have been doing strength training consistently a 2-3 times per week over the last few months and the results are started to show.  They are getting stronger, faster, and more powerful. I am looking forward to seeing them in a couple of months.

We’ve also spent a lot of time this fall working on speed and agility focusing mostly their ability to accelerate quickly and multi-directional quickness – both very important
in softball.

Basically, it’s at this time of the year that you need to spend a lot of time refining your game and getting ready to compete next season.

Along the way, you may have a question or need advice on various aspects of the game.

Don’t hesitate to visit our discussion forum where you can participate in interesting discussions about the various aspects of the game or ask for advice in a pleasant and
respectful environment.

Softball Discussion Forum

Leave a Comment