I’m Afraid of the Ball
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I’m afraid of the ball…Did I just say that? Well, not terrified of the ball like some people are, but I admit, I am more afraid of getting hit by a ground ball than I used to be. Why? Mostly because I know that I’m not as quick as I used to be. My reaction time is slower than it used to be. Let’s face it, I’m no longer training to actively compete as a softball player. I do not practice fielding ground balls on a daily basis and therefore, I know that my skills are a little rustier than they were 13+ years ago when I was training to be the best infielder I could be.
I’m not, however afraid of balls that are thrown at me. I’m still quite confident in my ability to catch a thrown ball and do that quite often, so it’s not something that worries me. But lack of that confidence is a common reason why young athletes are afraid of the ball. Not only is it a relatively hard object traveling toward them, but they lack the confidence in their ability to handle it. They do not believe they possess the adequate capability to safely deal with this hard moving ball that
is coming at them.
I know that if I were to practice and train to actively play softball again, my fear of the ball would all but disappear as I regained confidence in my skills. The same is true for young players. If they gain confidence in their own ability to adequately deal with and protect themselves from this ball that’s coming at them, they won’t be as terrified of the ball anymore.
Of course, that’s more easily said than done in some cases and there are specific things you can do to help them along the way. I’ll talk about that in another post, but first I wanted to know if you’ve ever personally dealt with this situation before (players being afraid of the ball).
- What triggered it in their case?
- What did you do to help them?
- How old are the players you work with?
- Is there anything in particular you’d like to know about helping players get over their fear of the ball?
This seems to be a topic that I get e-mailed about a lot lately, so I just wanted some of your thoughts on it in case you were also dealing with the same issue.
Leave me a comment and let me know.
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This is a great topic and one that I would love to see discussed further. Currently I am working with a 10U Fall Rec. team. We all know that rec. teams bring a certain number of unique traits to the game based solely on rules. For example, a player who is “scared of the ball” would normally be cut on a travel team or an AllStar team and certainly at a school team level, but in rec. ball there are no try-outs or cuts. (Personally, this is a great thing. If I do my job as a coach then these girls will learn to enjoy the game and their skill sets will increase. After a while they may not have to fear being cut. What a tremendous challenge/reward opportunity!)
On my 10U rec. team I have a young lady who SHOULD be a tremendous softball player. She is slightly taller than average for her age, in great shape athletically, has taken several years of dance so her footwork comes naturally, yet fielding practice terrifies her. She has admitted to being struck in the upper left temple as an 8u player and has not recovered mentally from the pain and swollen eye.
Together we are working on proper catching techniques and gaining confindence in our footwork (something she is very confident in). I have been slow to mention the defensive face masks that are currently on the market, until we determine if softball is the right sport for her. I have put her in the infield during a version of soft toss drills so that she can get used to the ball coming off the bat and learn that she does indeed have the ability to get in position and make the stop without the ball hitting her.
I would like to read any other tips and suggestions that might be out there. Youth fastpitch in my area, outside of middle and high school, is fledgling at best. I measure my success by how many girls like the game enough to pursue it for another year or at another level. This young ladies potential and pedigree are phenomenal, I would hate to fail her.