Selecting players

Question
I manage a Little League major league team.  Every year we have try outs for ages 9-12.  Most of these kids have played on a minor league team for at least a year.  I have heard varying opinions on how to select kids for a major league team.  I have always picked kids whose skills I think are most advanced.  Others have said that all kids who have reached age 12 should be given a chance to play in the majors.  As you can imagine, if they have reached age 12 and not been selected before, they are kids who either don't have the aptitude for the game or whose attitudes keep them from improving.  How do you deal with this dilemma?  

Answer
Hi Doug,

I understand your situation perfectly.  Here's what happened in our league:

At the time, the league President was taking those players who were not selected and placing them in the lower category teams.  Tryouts were not co-ordinated properly and the timing was terrible.  A player who was practicing for a full month with a major team would find out just before season opener that he was being sent down or cut.

Lower category teams were already selected by then.  We coaches were carrying 11 players and the president would 'bump down' players causing a ripple effect or worse.  This made many kids and their parents upset.  Of course, the president was never around to face those angry parents - just the poor coaches!  More than once, I had to face a sobbing child or threatening father.  I'll leave my thoughts about that former president to your imagination.

When we assumed the league management, we stopped this practice.  If two teams could be created, they would be balanced.  If a coach was suspected of stacking his team, there would be a review and the teams would be re-evaluated.  Some coaches only wanted to win and would horde all the good players and not consider balancing the teams.  They faked evaluation sheets in order to mask their intent.  When parents began to call and complain, we took a closer look and discovered the scheme.  That summer, I saw the worst in coaching and the most base parents one could imagine.

Those kids who could not play at the major level, were given the opportunity to play at a lower category.  We encouraged our coaches to talk to each other and 'bring up' better players to the higher category AT LEAST ONCE.  This gave weaker players a chance to see what it was all about.  It would either encourage them to try harder or be content with their selected category.  It also helped cool down those angry parents because they were 'kept in the loop' of things.  Coaches who were not with the program were told to leave.

I tried to tell the parents that even though their child did not make the stronger team, we are not forgetting them.  I made a promise that those players would have at least one chance to play with the major team.  It was up to that child to work on his game and then he would be given a chance to 'go up'.  

As a league manager, you'll have to take a look at the bigger picture.  Organize your coaches and discuss the matter with them.  Once you have a concensus, let the parents know what you are doing.  

At one parent meeting, a woman spoke up and stated: "I don't want my child playing on a team that is weak".  I countered, "what if it is your child that is weak?".  She had nothing to say to that BECAUSE her child was on my team AND he was weak.  Darn those 'rose-coloured' glasses!

In the old days, the FORMER league president would not create a BB team, even if the numbers were there.  Instead, with profit as his motivation, passed the problem down to lower level coaches.  I was forced to either cut players I had orginally selected or carry an additional 'subs'.  

One summer, rather than have kids who succesfully made my team be suddenly cut, I spoke with my assistants and we agreed to carry 18 players that season.  The work was enormous.  My assistants were sometimes at wits end...but we managed to survive the season.  If I had not done this, those 6 kids would not be playing baseball today - 4 years later!  One of those kids went on to AAA.

You have your work cut out for you.  Take some time and do some planning.  If you can form more than one team in a category, give it a try.  Talk to the parents and see if they are willing to help (monetary or otherwise).  Keep them informed and let them know that you are working hard to find a solution for them.

Talk to the league and see if its possible to carry substitutes, how many are allowed and if its possible bend the rules a little.  Our league had a rule that only 3 subs were allowed. I argued that subs don't play a full season (50%) and thus the club should not be charged the full amount.  Furthermore, those subs will be 'feeding' the league in subsequent years.  "If you cut them, you'll loose them to soccer!".  The league agreed to overlook the subs restriction, lowered the contract fees for subs greater than 3 with the caveat that no sub could play more than 50% of the regular season.  Playoffs were open.

Best of luck,

JohnMc

NB:  One summer, with 18 players (10 regular, 8 backup) our team won the Regional Championships.  That year, two of my players were selected as league MVP finalists and a third was selected Player of the year. Our new President was awarded Volunteer of the Year for her part in re-organizing the local ball club.  That president was my wife! She worked endlessly that summer.