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One of my favorite things about the offseason is impacting the culture of youth player development. These players have been incredible to work with and show a level of focus on motor patterns that will help them perform better and improve arm health.
Watching their commitment to improving the way they move and perform has been really impressive. This has quickly become an important group for me to help develop but just as important has become important for them to help me. For I have a confession to make...
I assumed because I am male & coach pitchers that I wouldn’t be a good fit to teach female softball players. The barrier was not the gender, the players or their coach but simply...me. I was the barrier to helping them because of my preconceived idea about gender, ball size, etc.
I couldn’t have been more wrong. I assumed my Y chromosome was holding me back and a reason I couldn’t make that impact. In reality the best thing that I could do was jump, admit my insecurities and model the behavior of “I’m here to help and your gender is irrelevant.”
The ability to step up and help break down gender barriers is something I’ve spoken a big game about by advocating with my voice but never my actions. It isn’t just “women should be paid as much as men” but about being a part of authentic integration by modeling it first hand.
I’m learning just as much as these athletes are and most of it has nothing to do with throwing a ball. We are actively modeling and encouraging a more gender equitable environment. The male athletes in the facility are watching me train female athletes just as I train the males.
I have no idea what I will learn from them tomorrow but I am grateful for all they are teaching me. Some of the biggest moments of growth in my life have occurred in the first week with this group. I’m excited for what tomorrow will bring as I become a better coach and person.
Thank you to people like @justinebaseball, @_rachelbalkovec and @FoldenFastpitch who have modeled this long before I realized the impact I can help have. You are changing the world through your daily actions and your ripple continues to growth through people like myself.
