today's rubber game with the bulldogs

[flippinhogmana]

A agree with all the comments.  However, I also feel that we are missing a part of the game - playing small ball.  We are relying too much on home runs and not stealing, slapping and bunting to get runs across the plate when the opportunity presents itself.  That is on the coach.

No doubt the umps played a part in this but as lady back pointed out we missed multiple other opportunities because we were unable to bunt, and put the ball in play effectively to move runners around.

The baserunning definitely left something to be desired. However, we aren't making those kind of aggressive mistakes if we're not behind --- which we shouldn't have been.

But yeah, I think these are growing pains of a team that's trying really hard to improve.

I have rebuilt programs before.  I agree its on the coach.  But when I was in city management (or in coaching for that matter)  I always reviewed the actions of my predecessors to see how we got to the the point I inherited the mess, but I tended to not rendered railing indictments of them (even if in some cases I felt it might be warranted).  It just gets a little close to home.  It can be accurate, but it can also be self-serving.  Sometimes its best to just look at what you have (and not at what you dont have) and use the players strength while at the same time trying to develop them in areas of their deficiencies.

Coach D, has done that from looking at the product last year as opposed to this year and looking at her recruiting.  It is apparent (and was before she took the job) that the team was deficient in defense, pitching and hitting.  The defense is better this year, the pitching is better and so is the hitting.  Is it a complete product yet?  Nope, but it seems to be headed that direction in mho.

[psycHOGlogist]

In complete agreement. We need to be better at small ball.