Your First Season

You don't need to have played

The words in the book are the coaching. Say them the same way every time:

• "Glove down, top hand is the top jaw." (a rolled ball)
• "Point, step, follow through." (a throw)
• "Eyes on the ball."
• "Bat DOWN."
• "STEP on home."

One small thing a day

Pick one rung of the ladder: bedroom, basement, garage, backyard or field. Play for five minutes, or count the reps: a number today, a bigger number tomorrow. Stop while it's fun.

Count many wins, not just the score

A win is a TRY, a BRAVE moment, something LEARNED, a TEAM moment, or a COUNT that beats your child's own best. Give the loudest cheer to the kid who tried again.

When it goes wrong

It will, and that is part of it. The book's reset is three short sentences: "Big breath. Big smile. Try again." You can say it first. Let your child be the one who says it last.

What a league at this age is like

In common league play at this age, a coach pitches, the tee comes out after five pitches, and nobody strikes out. Tee ball, coach pitch or softball: every one of them runs the bases in the same order. Ask your own league what to bring and where grown-ups stand at practice.

Play safe

Soft sock or foam balls indoors, and never balloons (a choking risk under 8). No bats in bedrooms. A grown-up nearby. A helmet on every batter and every runner whenever a bat or a batted ball is in play (walking or jogging tape bases indoors needs none). Only the batter holds a bat, and it gets dropped, never thrown. At the tee, chalk two marks: a big safety circle two bat-lengths around the batter and tee, which nobody else enters while the bat is up, and a small bat-drop box by the back foot, outside the path to first. Grown-ups wait outside the big circle, off to the side and never behind the batter, and reset the ball only after the bat is down. Use flat rubber or chalk bases, never towels, pillows or paper plates. Catchers wear full gear, and softball batting helmets have a face cage. When thunder roars, go indoors.

Sign it

On the My Wins sheet, a grown-up signs as Coach. That's you.