What to cover in pre-game conference with coaches?

[wadeintothem]

Flip for home (double flip) "You are heads (the team to my left, I show them the head side), and you are tales (The team to my right, I show them the tales side)." Flip, let the coin hit the ground, "It is a head. Please call it in the air. I heard tales ... it is a head. What do you want home or away? Take the field.

Ok.. so um..

WHAT??

[JEL]

Originally Posted by wadeintothem

Ok.. so um..

WHAT??

It' so easy a caveman can do it!

There is no need for a lot of conversation.

I will introduce myself, and crew, take line-ups, home team first ( this is baseball, but a habit I carry to the real game also), review line-ups, give back to coaches and ask "is this how you want to play?". Then cover ground rules, (allow home coach to do this if on his field). Ask both coaches if his players are "properly and legally equipped". I do ask if either has any questions, a few do and I will answer as needed. Then I will say, "put 'em on the field."

For HS play, because it is required by GHSA, I must ask the home coach to point out his "game manager". This is to be a school administrator not affiliated with the team. (I will already have this knowledge, but the visiting coach should know this also.) I ask also if a lightning detector is on site. I am also directed to stress good sportsmanship is expected. In HS only, I will ask the coaches to please have players remove all jewelry. This is NOT a warning, just a reminder that jewelry is not allowed in the hopes I don't have to issue any warnings during the game.

Anything more, and I feel you are just preaching to the choir.

[wadeintothem]

Originally Posted by IamMatt

This quote from another thread (about how much time to you allow before invoking the LBR) and a situation at a recent game raised this question: Do you have a standard list of things you go over with the coaches before the game? I expect it will depend some on the age and level of play, but is this something you would typically discuss? Anything else?

(Just tangential, but the game situation I refer to is an ASA 14U rec league game in which the visiting coach started Pitcher 1, went to Pitcher 2 in second inning, back to starting pitcher in third inning, and put Pitcher 2 back on the mound in the 4th inning. "Time, please, Blue!" At the ensuing discussion with the ump, she said that they did this all the time when playing other cities and that if we were not going to allow her to do it we should have discussed it at the pre-game conference. Our approach is that you would assume compliance with ASA rules unless otherwise aggreed upon before the game and there would have been no reason to discuss it unless she brought it up).

Just standard stuff.. nothing fancy.. ASA Tourney:

Name/Partner name.. intros ..
Line Ups
Equipment Confirm
Tourney Rules
Ground Rules
any questions?

Coin flip.. nothing fancy.. regular ole flip it in the air I'll repeat after you.. normally I pick a girl, whoever got there first, or who came farthest if both have girls out there to call it.

No:
-Rules Clinic
-Sportsmanship Review

Sometimes I will talk about how to come to the umps.. just depends and usually not.

Usually it is my expectation they know what they are doing.. if they dont, that is their problem, because they will be held accountable.


Few minutes and we are playing ball.