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1/414u is a really tough age to coach. The players are all in the middle of or have gone through puberty at this point. They wanna hit the ball hard and far. When they do absolutely smoke a ball it’s a 320 foot out. When they hit a 5/6 hole grounder it’s a hit.
2/4 So mentally they’re put in a tough situation. If I hit it hard in the air it’ll get caught a lot. If I hit it down and hard I have a decent shot of getting on. As a coach I could bunt a lot and preach down and hard? Sure! The win is just not that important at 14.
3/4 as a coach it’s very easy for me to say when you’re 16 and 175Lbs that’s a homer or at least an extra base hit. In their mind they wanna contribute to the teams and their own success, which I totally respect. That’s the hard thing about it.
I preach hard barrels all day. Optimally could they just hit line drives? Yeah good luck doing that every at bat. Keeping them mentally “up” at the plate is my job this year. Lotta praise on hard or long outs. Just keep smoking balls. The challenge is fun for. Maybe not for them
