Caps Parent Meeting Handout

Scripps Ranch Softball Association

2017 1OU team

Contact Information:

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Jason Turfler, Head Coach

Cell – 858-254-2292

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Dear softball families,

Welcome to the 2017 spring softball season! We are looking forward to coaching our Scripps Ranch 10U team! Our hope is that this letter will communicate the expectations of the team; please let us know if you should have further questions.

10U rec. softball is for young girls to learn the skills and rules of the game, to learn good sportsmanship, and most importantly, to have a positive experience playing softball. At this age errors and mistakes will happen, and the girls will have numerous opportunities to play different positions (safety permitting).

As parents, we need to encourage our children to play their best and have fun. Additionally, we need to be careful at this age not to over-emphasize the competitive nature of softball. Please cheer for our team, encourage the girls, regardless of their success, and be good role models of sportsmanship by not speaking negatively of opposing teams or the umpires.

Practice Schedule and Location:

TEAM WEBSITE & all contact information (SHUTTERFLY)

This is a one stop shop for all roster information, calendar of practices, games, SRSA events, etc. It is also a great place to share photos that are taken at our games. I have already posted our roster & initial practice schedule and will continue to update with additional details as soon as I receive it. Please review this information and update any contact information ASAP including girl’s numbers for their jerseys. This is very important as we need to place the order for jerseys immediately in order to have them for the first games

Additionally, this is the best place to help me stay aware of any schedule conflicts. If your daughter is unavailable, please “uncheck” her on the “availability” tab.

We will also have a one-time team meeting on Monday, January 25 from 6-6:30 @ Pizza Rev. For the parents this will be an opportunity to ask me any questions they have about the upcoming season. For the girls I would like them to get to know one another’s names, pick team name, pick socks, and get Jersey selections finished (size,namenumber). This will allow us to get to know each other, but also take care of the administrative aspects of the team so that we can get to having some fun on the field!

Practices start withCages, Tuesday, January 26 from 6-7pm. I’m planning to continue to arrange for cages every Tuesdays 6-7pm, though this may change depending upon games.Our regular practice slots are everyThursday from 5:00-7:00 at Sycamore Canyon #1,andSaturdays from 9:00-11:00 at Sycamore Canyon #2. Players should arrive dressed and ready to practice. Practices will continue until games begin. Once games start, we will only have cages and games.

Playing time

I plan on rotating positions on a regular basis so we will all have opportunities to play many positions to maximize their learning and skills improvement (there may some instances where I limit this out of concerns for safety). Everyone will bat every game, and I will do my best to balance the number of at bats the girls get through the course of the season.

Once we get to the playoffs, this thinking will shift a bit as the double-elimination format makes it such that very soon every game becomes an elimination game. In these types of games we will play to win and put the best team on the field to provide us a chance to do so. We will still bat everyone, but positions will be much less rotational as the girls can’t have fun if they aren’t still playing, so winning becomes a focus while continuing to have “fun.”

Field closure:

The league evaluates field conditions whenever there is rain. Please go to Scripps Ranch Softball Association website and sign up for the Field Closure Email System “RainedOut”: () This takes less than 2 minutes, and will ensure you know when the fields are closed the same time as I do. I will try to send an email when I know, but I do not plan to call everyone. Please keep in mind the field condition may be updated as late as 3:30 on the day of practice, so please plan to check your email around 4:00.

Player Equipment

A shirt will be provided.Your child does not need to wear the uniform to practice; they should dress comfortably, wear cleats and bring their glove, bat, and helmet, but they do need to be prepared to slide (even at practice) as that is a mandatory part of the 10U game.

***REQUIRED EQUIPMENT***

NEW REQUIREMENT FOR 2017 - Face Mask:

In 2017 ASA/USA softball changed the ball that will be used for all 10U competition from a RIF-1 to a RIF-10 ball. This ball is much harder and will increase the speed of the ball off the bat.Thus, wth safetely in mind, SRSA has a rule REQUIRING ALL 10U INFIELDERS (including the pitcher) TO WEAR A FIELDER’s MASK. This means if your daughter refuses to wear one, she will still play the field, but will only be eligible to play in the outfield (there will be no exceptions to this rule). There are many to choose from and they fit slightly differently so please order one ASAP if your daughter does not have one to ensure a good fit prior to the season. See examples on Amazon.

Pants: Pants are not provided. We will wear WHITE pants this season.

Helmets: It goes without saying that all the girls need helmets (the league does not provide these) and having their own will avoid any concerns about lice. Note: all helmets must have a face mask. If you are going to buy a helmet, I would recommend the Worth Liberty Home Batter's Helmets w/ Faceguard in the color White/Navy (these are the same ones the SRSA all-star teams wear). If you can’t find this, the closest match is now the Rawlings Velo Junior Batting Helmet (Rawlings & Worth are now the same company & Worth discontinued their fastpitch items as they are now Rawlings branded).

Bats:Players will be using their own bats as the league has not provided these. If you choose to purchase one, please ensure it is small enough for your daughter to handle. The guideline to picking out a properly sized bat is to have your daughter stand with her arm hanging at her side, with the barrel of the bat on the floor the bat handle should come up to her wrist. Additionally, your daughter should be able to hold the bat horizontally in front of her with arm straight in her non-dominant hand. If she is unable to do this or the barrel of the bat dips the bat is too heavy and you should get a bat weighing fewer ounces. I have a lot of experience with this over the years so please ask me if you are unsure and keep the wrapper on the bat as you will not be able to return any you buy if you remove it.

Softball Glove: Each child must bring a leather glove to every practice and game. Please ensure your daughter can close the glove as some gloves may be difficult for young girls to close. Please write the player’s name on the glove with a permanent marker. You’d be surprised how many gloves get left behind! Also, please have your daughter put a softball inside her glove prior to placing in her bag, this ensure a better “pocket” for the ballwhen fielding (flat gloves are difficult to open fully and can cause more errors).

Cleats: Cleats are required playing equipment for practice and games. If you don’t have a pair already, I suggest buying soccer cleats instead of softball cleats. (Your child can use soccer cleats to play softball, but can’t use softball cleats to play soccer.)

***OPTIONALEQUIPMENT***

Sliding pad: You may want to purchase one for your daughter if she likes to slide. Some of our girls are ready to slide at this age, some are not. I am more than willing to teach those that do want to slide how to do this, but I will not require that all girls learn how.

Bat/helmet hanger. Pretty cool to have to keep helmets off the ground (buy Navy)

Catcher’s gear: The league will provide us with one set of gear. I have not seen it yet, but from past experience, these are usually not in the best of shape. If your daughter is serious about catching, you may want to consider getting a set of her own. Again, as with batting helmets, there is something to be said for not sharing stuff that the girls wear on their heads.

Parent Roles:

Relax and enjoy!

Please have your child at the practice field, ready to begin practice, by the scheduled practice start time. On game days, arrive at the field 1 hour before game time so your child can stretch, warm-up, and prepare for the game. It is very stressful to us coaches when the players are not there early.

One of the biggest challenges we have as coaches is preparing a lineup for the game. The difficulty of this task is multiplied when we don’t know who is going to show up for a game. PLEASE LET US KNOW IF YOUR CHILD WON’T BE AT A GAME. IT IS VERY DIFFICULT TO ADJUST A LINEUP AS THE GAME BEGINS.

If you are not staying for a practice or game, remember that we can’t take your child to the bathroom if they need to go(we’ve got to watch the other kids), and we won’t send them by themselves due to safety concerns. Have them use the bathroom prior to their arrival.

Watching the practices is gladly welcomed…encouraged even!Also, try to play and practice with them. An extra fifteen minutes of one-on-one catch and batting practice a couple of times a week can make a big difference to their development!

Parent Participation

Scripps Ranch Girls Softball is a volunteer organization your help would be greatly appreciated:

1. Parent volunteers: I encourage as many parents to assist as interested. Before games getting girls warmed up with swings and pitching is best if 4-5 parents are available to help. This provides the opportunity to break the team into smaller groups at practice, keep them engaged and accomplish more in the same time.

2. Field Set Up: Preparing the field for a game is time consuming. We as coaches will help out, but having an extra person assisting really makes things go more quickly. When we are playing at our home field, we are responsible for field set-up (bases, raking, watering, chalking) and field take down (remove and store bases, be sure that all equipment is put away properly, and lock the storage bin). I’d like two volunteers for this job.

3A. Social Coordinator: Your job is to organize the end of the season party.

3B. Social Coordinator #2: Your job is to think of fun things we can do during the season to keep on having fun. Anything fun and light that can enhance the season’s experience…

• Pizza night at the Swim & Racquet club?
• Ice cream at the field after a game/practice?
• Water balloon fight?
• Etc.

4. Team Photographer:As a coach I don’t have a chance to take any pictures of my daughter while coaching. If someone is willing to take pictures of the girls, post to Shutterfly or make a CD at the end of the season this is something as a parent I appreciate and cherish more than anything else.

All parents: Please note: In order to be refunded your $40 (part of the registration monies), you will need to work the snack bar (or be one of the first 20 to sign-up and participate at field day). You may also choose to skip working the snack bar and just contribute your $40 to paying someone else to cover the booth. The sign-up is located on the Scripps Ranch Softball Association website

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