Girls softball suggestions

[undeg01]

Long story short, I am scrambling to find a spring softball team in the Putnam City area for my 9 year old daughter to join.

Longer story, the team she was on last year and had already committed to this year joined a different league, then the coaches went out recruiting more team members. They ended up getting other girls that were bigger and more experienced, so they all but told us to leave the team. They cited the fact that these other girls were better players and their goal is to win, so they would give no guarantees that my daughter would ever even get to play in a game. However, it would be perfectly alright if we stayed with the team, paid all of the fees and attended the practices. My money is good enough for them, just not my daughter.

We have no idea how to explain this to our daughter. I'm hoping to find another team so it will soften the blow a little. This has been pretty difficult for me to swallow so I know it will be painful for her.

 

[SoonerP226]

They cited the fact that these other girls were better players and their goal is to win, so they would give no guarantees that my daughter would ever even get to play in a game.

You might see if there's a church league with a team in her age bracket; they tend to be more about the fellowship and having fun than about having a "win at all costs" mentality.

I don't agree with those "we're not going to keep score, and everybody gets a trophy because he or she can tie his or her shoes, even the kid with the velcro straps" leagues, but at her age, the goal is more about learning sportsmanship and how to be a team player than it is about winning. Hell, I think I learned more on losing teams than I did when I was on dominant teams; you certainly learn more about handling defeat and victory with grace.

I'm sorry I don't have a better suggestion for you, but it sounds like she'll be better off playing for another team. I certainly wouldn't want my nieces playing for a coach with that sort of loser's attitude.

 

[tntrex]

Maybe there is a city league up there?

 

[Devilsbcoach]

See if she could join any of the teams in the league she played in last year? Contact the city about little league programs? There should be plenty of "recreational team" opportunities in your area.

 

[stewartglock]

I would try calling around to the many hitting cage facilities in the area. They are bound to know of a team that needs players. Or try contacting the league itself, they might know of some teams. Not much help, sorry.

 

[XD-9Guy]

Are they not starting slow-pitch at her school right now?

 

[carlstretch]

My daughter has played competetive softball for about 6 years. Go to this website. It is Green Country Softball. It is great to to find teams, find pick up players, find tournaments, etc. It is geared more towards NE OK but I bet you'll find something for your daughter.

http://www.angelfire.com/ok5/gcsm/messageboard.html

Good luck

 

[Shootin 4 Fun]

If your daughter and you are serious about softball don't waste anymore time with you local league, get on the forum mentioned above and find a "c" team. If you just want to play for recreational purposes contact your local league office.

Your old team went competitive and the goal is to win and teams aren't required to play everyone, but if she has the skills she will develop into a much better player than you ever imagined.

 

[goldflinger]

Undeg01, sorry to hear that! That sucks for 9 year olds. My first suggestion would be to go to www.oklahomaball.com and check out the message boards about softball. You could post a message about "9 yr. old looking for a team" and perhaps have some luck. I have a son in high school who played competitive baseball for years and we got info. from that site.
Let me give some more unsolicited advise. I have a daughter who is now a freshman in high school. She played softball 1-year when she was 5. Then quit. When she got to 7th grade, she decided she wanted to play a sport in school and went out for softball. It was hard for her not playing for a number of years and I could tell it was not the sport for her. She got into Volleyball and it was the best decision we made. I was not aware of it at the time, but they have volleyball clubs in the OKC area that form teams and play competitively with good coaches. It is a sport that if you got her into it as young as you could, she would start on a level playing field with all others. I sure wish I would have known about it when my daughter was 10. We started when she was 12, and this is her third year playing. The tryouts for the clubs are in late October/Nov. and the season really kicks off around Jan. and runs thru May, so this is not the time of year, but I'd really advise giving it a look. It is kinda expensive, but not any more than traveling all over with my son playing baseball Tournaments and having to pony up for our share of those expenses. It is a great sport, fun to watch and your daughter is of a young enough age that she could start from the beginning. It would provide an opportunity to play in high school and in my personal belief, provide a better opportunity to play after high school than basketball or softball, as far as scholarships go. any way, just my two cents and PM me if you want more info.

 

[snipes]

unfortunately you'll find out this is pretty common in comp. softball but the Green Country forum is a good place to get started.
I don't know your daughter's skill set so I can't tell you if she should be playing C or rec ball but I can tell you this:
it's not a cheap sport, practice is much as you possibly can, take her to batting cages as often as you can, be patient.
kids come and go at that age all the time, get hurt, get sick etc so you just never know how teams are gonna shake out.
my daughter was cut from her first 10U comp team but she worked hard and now a few years later she has her pick of teams to play for.
so, go to Green Country, register and make a post about looking for a team and maybe you'll get some luck.