What Do Baseball Coaches Look Out for at Tryouts?

If you’ve ever wondered what do baseball coaches look out for at tryouts? Then this article is for you.

Trying out for baseball can be very intimidating for kids, and not to mention very stressful for the parents too.

Although each coach has their own Do’s and Don’ts that need to be looked out for when judging kids at a tryout, here are a few things all baseball coaches will look out for in a tryout.

Warm Up

Coaches can tell if the player can be drafted before the actual try out begins simply by observing their warm-up routine.

A child is a big no if he is warming up lazily or is distracted. Even having the wrong warming up technique can lead to negative consequences. Coaches are looking at kids who are fit, are warming up actively and actually seem to know what they’re doing.

So make sure your child has a solid warm-up routine and has ample practice and is familiar with the correct positioning and posture of the body, this will surely make your child stand out and become more draftable.

Equipment and Appearance

They say not to judge a book by its cover, but looks do matter here.

If children show up to tryouts in jeans and -shirts instead of a proper baseball jersey and shorts it doesn’t look professional or like the child is taking the tryout seriously.

You need the proper attire and the proper equipment in good condition if you want to be taken seriously. For example, if your child wishes to be tried out for catcher, he will be judged poorly if he doesn’t have his gloves and other equipment or even if he has to borrow from someone.

This doesn’t, however, mean that kids feel degraded, they don’t need to have the most expensive kit out there, but just a proper complete one if baseball is important to them.

Parents

Being a parent, you want the best for your child, but being obnoxious isn’t going to cut it.

It might in fact diminish the chances of your child being selected. Parents who are loud and overbearing are a big turn off for coaches. It is much harder dealing with loud parents and they usually also end up offending other parents.

If the decision comes to two similar players and one has a bad sports parent, you can assure that the coach is selecting the other child.

Instead of being pushy, it is best to give you’re the space he needs. Wish them best of luck and maybe hug before sending him off and maintaining distance.

Sure, you can cheer and clap when your boy hits the home run hut it’s no use being intolerably loud. Behave during tryouts and the coaches will know you’ll be good in the audience on the actual game.

Candidate Seriousness

Kids will be kids, but a certain sense of seriousness about the sport is expected of them.

Coaches look for kids who are well behaved and know how to follow orders, this ensures they will be a good team player when the time comes.

Coaches will notice if your child was being loud and boisterous while others were dutifully hitting balls as instructed, and is more likely to cut him off in order to lessen the stress of coaching poorly behaved kids.

Spirit of Sportsmanship

A bad sport is never tolerated by coaches. If your child is found mocking, jeering, bad-mouthing or even laughing and pointing at someone who isn’t doing so well, then they’ve already been removed from consideration.

Having a bad attitude just makes the coach’s job a little tougher and badly behaved kids out themselves.

Show Offs

Baseball is a team game. There is a fine line between being confident and overconfident.

A coach will look for confidence only if it’s accompanied by real talent and skill. There is no use of a 9-year-old hitting from both sides of the plate, so it’s useless trying to bully them into it.

Sure, that makes your child an amazing hitter, but at this point, there is really no need to show off.

More often than not you’re hurting your child’s chances since they haven’t perfected their basics yet.

Punctuality

It might not sound fair, but it is important that you show up on time and leave on time, not before.

This rule applies to everyone, including the coaches themselves. Being on time is respectful and shows your level of sincerity to the game.

Final thoughts

So, if you are wondering What Do Baseball Coaches Look Out for at Tryouts?  Coaches are looking for sportsmanship, determination and enthusiasm.