Meet Marc Dagenais: Our Softball Authority Featured Coach

Meet Coach Marc Dagenais

This is the fifth featured coach in our new series for 2008 called "Softball Authority." The premise of Softball Authority is to showcase softball coaches who have have demonstrated an exceptional ability and devotion to transfer their knowledge and expertise of fastpitch softball in order to help female softball athletes reach their maximum potential and take their game to the next level.


As a kid, Coach Marc practiced many sports but baseball was his favorite. In 1989, at age 13, his parents decided to sign-up his younger sister for softball and Marc thought that coaching softball could be fun so he offered to help out. That day, Marc's life changed forever.

Marc immediately felt in love with coaching. He felt in love with "helping others" and found extreme self-satisfaction in helping young athletes get better, develop their skills and improve their game. That's the day he quit baseball because he found something more fulfilling and that he enjoyed even more. He never looked back and he's been coaching softball ever since.

During his teen years, Marc became obsessed with the game. He read just about every softball books he could find. He watched all the tapes his dad would allow him to buy. He took all the coaching courses available. As a result, he rapidly became a skilled coach and experienced tremendous success winning a ton of tournaments and championships in addition to receiving numerous "Coach of the Year" awards.

At 19 years old, he also became the youngest softball coach in Canada to receive a full level III coaching certification.

In early 1999, Marc became a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) and decided to "experience life a little" by moving out of province. He first spent a few months in Nova Scotia coaching softball and personal training before moving to Vancouver, BC, to become an assistant softball coach at Simon Fraser University.

During his three years at SFU (2000-2002), they never finished lower than 3rd at the NAIA National Championship in addition to playing several top D-1 schools like Arizona (facing Jennie Finch), Arizona State, Washington, Nebraska, Oregon and Long Beach.
At the end of 2002, Marc moved back to Montreal to pursue doctoral studies in sports psychology and spent 2 years studying self-confidence, talent development and coaching expertise.
He also continuated to coach with the Canadian Women's Softball National Team Program participating in numerous international competitions like the Canada Cup, the US World Cup, the Olympic Qualifier and the World Championship.

During the same period, Marc also got involved with the Quebec Provincial Team Program and earned another "Coach of the Year" award along the way by leading the Quebec 23U Team to a silver medal at the 2004 Nationals. He also obtained his level IV certification and his designation as a Chartered Professional Coach (ChPC).

Over the years, Marc has worked with numerous elite amateur, college and professional athletes including hundreds of softball players. He has also been coaching women's competitive fastpitch softball for almost 20 years and has coached at every level of the game from grassroots to the college and the international level.

Today, Marc uses his exceptional combination of softball coaching expertise and sports sciences knowledge - which a very rare combo in the world of softball - to help softball players turn their athletic talent into extraordinary performances and help coaches get more out of their players, turn their struggling team around or get an edge over their opponents.

Marc currently works with the Canadian Women's Softball Olympic Team, the Canadian Men's National Team, several Canada Games Teams, numerous college, high school and travel ball programs as well as many elite male and female players all over the world helping them become dominant and perform at their best.

Coach Marc publishes a FREE daily email newsletter, which includes free training tips, and his very informative website is Softball Performance.

Meet Duane Ford: Softball Authority Guest Coach

Setting Measurable Standards of Performance: The 20 Feet Per Second Rule

by Coach Duane Ford - Softball Authority Guest Coach

Here is the fourth featured coach in our new series for 2008 called "Softball Authority." The premise of Softball Authority is to showcase articles and/or training videos by coaches who have have demonstrated an exceptional ability and devotion to transfer their knowledge and expertise of fastpitch softball in order to help female softball athletes reach their maximum potential and take their game to the next level.

.

As Hall of Fame catcher, Yogi Berra, once observed in his own uniquely profound logic during a commencement address, “If you don’t know where you’re going, you’ll end up somewhere else.” Legendary UCLA basketball coach, John Wooden, put it another way: “if you fail to prepare, prepare to fail.”

Whatever way you phrase it, the message is clear. This game has become two competitive to allow players to stand still in their development and rest on past accomplishments. If you wish to move onward and upward, you must improve your level of performance and bridge that gap between desire and achievement with a genuine and effective plan to accomplish your goals.

Unfortunately, the inability to recognize and meet sound standards of performance often interferes with your capacity to determine whether or not the goals of such a plan are being met. Despite all your effort and hard work, how do you know if you are really getting any better and whether some changes in technique are necessary to do so?

I don’t propose a definite answer to these questions, but we do employ a standard here that may give you a good start. We call it our “20 Feet Per Second Rule”, and you need only a stop watch and some simple math to gauge progress in several critical areas on both defense and offense.

Essentially, this rule is based on the statistical guidelines that most colleges use in recruiting players. “Rabbits” aside, most recruits are expected to run from home to first in three seconds. With 60 foot bases that breaks down to 20 feet per second, and it is roughly the same when advancing from any base to another or covering several bases. What you gain in momentum is offset somewhat by taking you terms around bases or sliding, so the time is still very close to this 20 feet per second benchmark.

From there you can project with some simple math that a player can also cover ten feet in ½ a second and five feet in ¼ of a second.

For a player working on defensive skills, measuring improvement is now possible by timing how long it takes to make the same play, from the same point, on the field. when she began the process and when the practice sessions are completed. Several trials should be used in the beginning to establish an average baseline and, again, at the end of the sessions.

Maybe you are working on footwork, throwing technique or gauging arm strength after a weight training program, but you now have a standard to judge results.
To a casual observer, consistently cutting a ¼ second off the time an outfielder throws from the same spot to home plate may seem inconsequential. However, with the “20 feet per second rule,” the player involved may now visualize that close play at home as an out rather than a slide under a late tag.

Obviously, none of this, whether from shortstop or center field, has any bearing on accuracy, but that is easily measured visually and doesn’t need any help in comprehending.
For catchers throwing to second base, the benchmark for most college recruiters is two seconds from touch at home to catch at second, but the variables are reduced. The catcher is always in the same place and always throws to the same target. Since many steal attempts are decided on “bang-bang” type plays, cutting even 1/10 of a second off the time may make a difference. All other factors regarding receiving ability being equal, a catcher who can consistently throw with accuracy and shave ¼ second off that two second standard, is a highly prized prospect at any college division.

This same approach is also useful on offense in measuring improvement in such areas as getting out of the batters box and running to first, rounding bases with proper technique, and sliding styles. It may also help you to determine whether or not to use metal cleats, which are now legal in high school.

In this case the situation is reversed, but the rule is the same. Every fraction of a second you can cut off your winning time puts you that much closer to the desired base. If you’re wasting a second with a wide turn around first base, you’re also giving away 20 feet in your attempt to search second base. Turn the stop watch on and off, mark the time and do the math. Whether you’re changing shoes or technique, the results will be very clear after a number of trials.

If you’re a coach trying to convince players to change their techniques, this is a far less confrontational approach and gives you sound objective data to justify your decisions when it comes to making out your line up rather than relying on mere subjective opinions to defend your choices.

I’ve been coaching high school softball during five different decades at the same school, and there was a time when players, parents and fans simply accepted coaching decisions in such matters. That is no longer the case, however. We have also entered an era where there seems to be a national societal dissatisfaction with people making judgments about us and our children. High school and college administrators often reflect this trend by moving toward quantitative rather than qualification criteria for evaluating coaching performances. Unable, or unwilling, to simply judge that a team is “improving” or “better” under a particular coach in terms of performance on the field, they sometimes look to unrelated or peripheral criteria (improvements in times for distance running, increased lifting capacity in the weight room ,etc.)

The “20 Feet Per Second Rule” not only gives you relevant criteria for judging genuine improvement but also provides justifiable data to compare performances and determine line ups.
For players, it provides that most crucial and important avenue to success—genuine feedback regarding performance levels necessary to take their game to the next level.

Coach Ford with Daughter Abbey, a three-time league MVP!

About Coach Ford
Entering 39th season as Haed Softball Coach at Central Columbia High School(Bloomsburg,PA) with a record of 635 Wins and 136 loses,including a 28-0 State Championship season in 1994. Also won 266 games as Head Girls Basketball Coach and 318 games as Head Boys Basketbakk Coach,including a 1981 State Championship(only coach in PA history to win a state title in two different ports).1219 total wins here at Central.

.

Have a question? Contact >> Coach Ford directly.

Meet Ken Krause - Softball Authority Guest Coach

Meet Coach Ken Krause

Here is the third featured coach in our new series for 2008 called "Softball Authority." The premise of Softball Authority is to showcase articles and/or training videos by coaches who have have demonstrated an exceptional ability and devotion to transfer their knowledge and expertise of fastpitch softball in order to help female softball athletes reach their maximum potential and take their game to the next level.

.

About Coach Ken Krause
Ken Krause has been coaching girls fastpitch softball for 12 years. Some may know him as a contributing columnist to Softball Magazine, where he writes Krause's Korner -- a regular column sponsored by Louisville Slugger. Ken is also the editor of Marc Dagenais' "No BS Softball Performance Newsletter." He is currently a One Star Master Coach with the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA), and is certified by both the Amateur Softball Association (ASA) and American Sports Education Program (ASEP). Ken coaches the Mundelein Thunder 16U team and is a private instructor specializing in pitchers, hitters, and catchers. He teaches out of Grand Slam USA in Spring Grove, IL and is Head Softball Pitching Instructor at North Shore Baseball Academy in Libertyville, IL.

.

.

..

It’s Your Career
By Ken Krause

One of the toughest choices a player has to make is what to do when the skills she’s been working so hard to acquire in the off-season conflict with the way her current coach wants her to do things. For example, she’s worked hard to develop the type of power swing being advocated at the top levels of the game, but her game coach (who’s stuck in 1985) wants her to throw her hands at the ball and "just make contact."

In a perfect world, the game coach would take a look at the results she’s getting, such as hitting doubles and triples on a regular basis, but this is rarely a perfect world. (If it was perfect, lettuce would taste like chocolate and oil companies would decide they’ve made enough profits and drop the price of gasoline back to a dollar again.)

Instead, what often happens is that the coach takes one look at what she’s doing and insists that she change what she’s doing to what he wants her to do, even if it sets her back three steps. Then when she does it and her production falls off, he decides to bench her for non-performance and put someone else in her place. Now she not only doesn’t get to play, she’s lost the skills that could help her play for another team.

A long time ago, I used to think the answer to the dilemma was to go along with what the coach says in practice, but then do it the way you know how in a game. I came to find out that’s a bad idea. What is most likely to happen is you will lose your way completely, stuck in a kind of no-man’s-land between the skills you worked on during the off-season and the ones the coach is trying to get you to move toward. In other words, you’ll be totally confused and ultimately frustrated.

So do you stand your ground and risk the coach being unhappy with you? Or do you abandon those skills under the mandate of "go along to get along?"
To me, what it comes down to is that it’s your career. You have to decide what is best for you, based on your goals and what you want out of this particular team.

If your ultimate goal is to play on this team – for example a high school varsity team – the answer becomes pretty obvious. The coach has absolute power, so unless your family is prepared to move to another school district with a coach whose philosophy is more in keeping with what you’re doing you will need to do what he/she says. Even if it’s not the best way to go.

If your ultimate goal is to play in college, however, things change. On your skills tape, and in your summer tournament games, you’re going to need to demonstrate the skills for which college coaches are looking. You won’t be able to do it if the skills you’re being asked to perform aren’t the same as the ones the college coaches want. In that case, you will need to "respectfully decline" to make the required changes and trust that your level of performance in games overcomes any objections to the way that performance is achieved.

How do you "respectfully decline?" You don’t do it outright. No sense in generating confrontation and animosity so directly. That’s a quick ticket to the bench. It’s also the wrong way for a player to act toward a coach, no matter what you make think privately. A better strategy is to meet those suggestions with an "Ok" or "I’m trying," then continue to work the skills you know. Most coaches have many things to do during practice, and will usually move on when they don’t see progress being made. As long as they believe you’re making the attempt, most will be satisfied.
.
Practice is the place these situations tend to crop up most. During games, everyone is usually too excited and focused on the overall play to see how skills are being executed. If you’re asked to lay down a bunt and you lay it down, odds are no one will notice whether the technique you used was the "approved" one or not. If you drive in the winning run with a two-out double, no one will notice whether you turned your hips on the ball or just threw your hands at it. If you pitch a three-hit shutout against a major rival team, it’s likely no one will really notice whether you "closed the door" with your hips or stayed open and drove straight in (as you should). In fact, it’s likely that the coach will tell the whole team about how well you did because you listened to him/her; you can just smile, knowing the truth.
.
All that being said, one thing you want to be careful of is automatically dismissing a coach’s comments out of hand because they’re different from what you do. Again, this is part of taking responsibility for your career. What you really should do is listen to every bit of input you can get, and then sort out what makes sense. See what the elite-level players are doing, and compare that to what you’re being told. Watch the Women’s College World Series – better yet record it on your DVR or VCR so you can play it back and analyze it later – to see how they’re executing the skills. Buy, borrow or rent instructional videos from people you know to be credible and see what they have to say. Then compare all of it to what you’re being told.

If it lines up with what the coach is telling you, you probably ought to listen, even if it’s different from what a private instructor told you. Private instruction varies greatly in quality like everything else. If what you see is different than what you’re being told, however, you then have to make the decision on whether to comply with the coach’s wishes or stick to your guns and take the heat.

Again, doing the latter isn’t easy. It’s like that old saying: Doing what’s right isn’t always popular, and doing what’s popular isn’t always right. Only you can decide what’s right for you.
.
Remember, it’s your career. If the coach ultimately screws you up big time, he/she will find another player to fill your spot. Meantime, it could take you a year or more to get back to where you need to be. Learn the game, know your goals, and take ownership of your skills. No matter what the immediate outcome, you’ll be happy you did in the long run.


Coach Ken has a very cool blog called >> Life in the Fastpitch Lane, where you will find numerous training articles, drills and tips.
.
You can contact the coach directly at >> Coach Ken Krause.
.

To receive notice of our next featured coach, submit your name to receive an email alert (use the subscribe button on the left sidebar of this blog). If you want to nominate your coach to be featured on Softball Authority, please a email the Softball Authority Guest Coach Program.

Softball Defense - The Greatest Myth by Jim Moyer

with Coach Jim Moyer


Here is the first of a new series in 2008 called "Softball Authority." The premise of Softball Authority is to showcase articles and/or training videos by coaches who have have demonstrated an exceptional ability and devotion to transfer their knowledge and expertise of fastpitch softball in order to help female softball athletes reach their maximum potential and take their game to the next level.

About Coach Jim Moyer
"My philosophy on coaching is to remain positive and encouraging. Have you ever seen a player getting absolutely dressed down by their coach while she is still on the field? I DESPISE that! Are coaches allowed to yell instruction to their players on the field? Absolutely. Are coaches allowed to yell things like, "What were you thinking?" Absolutely NOT! Public humiliation of any player at any age is not acceptable. If your style of coaching is to intimidate players, you need to step down and let a real coach take over. A real coach doesn't feel the need to bully or mentally abuse girls.

It's my view that girls tend to be "pleasers". They want to perform at a level that pleases their parents and their coaches. The minute they believe they aren't pleasing those people, they really don't want to play. So the best method to get the most from your players is to let them know you see how hard they are trying and that your really appreciate their effort. I would bet not many of you have tried this approach. Try it for just one season and see how the entire atmosphere of the team changes for the positive.

When it's time to coach a player, do it with a real coaches heart and with the right intentions. Talk to her in a very calm voice and go over what she did and what you would like to see her do next time. Explain to her how and why it is better to do it another way. You might be surprised at how quickly she accepts the new way.

Now, this isn't to say that there is never a time for discipline or a time for running laps. We have generally explained to our players what is acceptable and what is not acceptable. They know if they do something that is not acceptable what the consequences will be. For example, if a player drops a fly ball but was using the proper technique, it's okay. However, if she wasn't using two hands and she drops it, then she is going to run.

Coaching and discipline are expected from coach. Verbal abuse has no place in dealing with children and it will NOT give you the long term results that you are looking for. It may work short term, but the long term affect may be that you just ended a girl's softball career."

- Coach Jim Moyer

Softball Defense — The Greatest Myth
The biggest myth in Fastpitch Softball has to be "Let’s get the lead runner out". When should you attempt this play? ALMOST NEVER, with a few exceptions. The winning strategy on defense is to make high percentage plays, don’t give away any runs, and avoid giving up the big inning. In almost all situations, it’s better to make the easy out at first base rather than try to get an out at any other base. Trying to get the lead runner out is a perilous situation and can lead to disaster for your team. I know you have serious doubts about this strategy so let me give you a couple of very recent experiences.

Softball Defense — Dispelling the Myth
We took our team to watch the Baylor Bears play a double-header. This is college Fastpitch Softball, and if you follow Baylor you know it’s at a very high level. In two games, 14 innings total, the combined number of times that either team tried to get the lead runner out was two. One play they were successful and the other play lead to an overthrow at second base and the runner scored. As I recall, the scores in these games were 7-6 and 5-3. So there were plenty of runners on base and plenty of opportunities to try and get the lead runner. So why didn’t they try? How could college teams only attempt it twice in 14 innings? What have they figured out that you don’t know? And do you really think you are a smarter or better coach than two Division 1 NCAA college coaches? Or maybe they have figured out the keys to building a winning fastpitch softball defense.

Softball Defense — Dispelling the Myth #2
My next example strikes home much closer. We have had our softball defense practicing getting the lead runner out this year. Not that this is the play we want to make all of the time, but we are trying to educate our girls on when they can make this play, when they can’t make it, and what to look for in making their decision. So here was the situation: A preseason game, top of the first inning, no outs, runner at third, and a slow roller hit to the pitcher. The pitcher fields the ball and throws chest high to the catcher which allows the runner to slide underneath the tag and score, and the batter ends up at second base in all of the commotion. The batter ends up scoring later in the inning to give our opponents a 2-0 lead. The final score in the game was 2-1. If we had made the play at first base the game would have been tied 1-1 and we would have gone to extra innings. Since this was a preseason game we are encouraging our players to attempt that play, and from this experience our pitcher learned just how close that play was, and what it will take to make that play later on. She also learned that if it is that close, take the out at first base.

So when do you get the lead runner? Obviously if the winning run is on third, less than two outs, and the last inning or very late in the game, you have to prevent the runner from scoring. However, I would suggest, if you know you are going to get to bat again, I might let her score and go down by one run, but make the out at first and avoid the big inning and avoid going down by two or more runs. It’s a lot easier to score one run than it is two score two or three.

The next obvious time to get the lead runner is when the bases are loaded and the ball is hit to the pitcher, catcher, or third base. However, the girls need to know that if they don’t field the ball cleanly, or if there is any hesitation or doubt, immediately make the play at first. Depending on the stage of the game and the score, you may well want to move the first baseman closer to home to be able to make the play at home. Unless it is very late in the game and the score is tied or I am behind, I would NOT have my shortstop or second baseman throw home. The odds are way against making this play and you risk the big inning. Remember, you are building a solid fastpitch softball defense, not a risky defense.

The other lead runner situation is with a runner on second and the ball is hit to pitcher, shortstop or third base. Obviously, if it is a force at third this is a much easier play. If it’s not a force, and the ball is hit to third, typically the runner will stay put. However, I’m always surprised at how often the runner will bolt when the ball is hit to shortstop. The third baseman has to make this call because she can see the play. As soon as the ball is hit, the third baseman moves to the base, she now has a perfect view of the runner and the shortstop fielding the ball. It’s now her responsibility to make the call to the shortstop to go to third or first. By the way, this was the lead runner play that Baylor made successfully in their game. The shortstop should not have to assess this situation at all. If she does not hear the call from third, then it is an automatic that she goes to first. Great on-the-field communication is essential to building a great fastpitch softball defense.

The hardest lead runner play is getting the force out at second base. There are four times when this MIGHT be attempted. You must remember that the runner on first generally gets a pretty good jump off of first base, so much so that generally the second baseman has a hard time beating her to the bag.

So the four times you might attempt this are:
the ball is hit up the middle to the shortstop who only has to step on the base,
the ball is hit sharply to the pitcher (the shortstop must make the call to the pitcher),
the ball is hit sharply to the second baseman (the shortstop must make this call)
a line drive hit to center field and the runner has indecision if the ball will be caught.

On any slow ground balls the play should be to first base. Getting the force out at second base is easily the worst executed play in Fastpitch Softball. Be mindful of the consequences of your decision. Which would you rather have? A runner at second base with one out, or runners at first and second and no outs. How much pressure do you want to put on your defensive unit? Continually putting undo pressure on your own softball defense will lead to errors and indecision.
Some of the keys to your rock solid softball defense are:

Make a very high percentage of easy outs
Don’t take unnecessary risks
Don’t put undo pressure on your defense
Don’t give up the big inning
Don’t make your players indecisive

By dispelling the lead runner myth, your softball defense will have a much easier time on the field and will play the game with greater confidence. You will notice a substantial decrease in errors, unearned runs, runs allowed, and big innings and GAMES WON!

Go through a game in your mind and think about getting the out at first base 95% of the time or trying to get the lead runner and only being successful about 50% of the time (as were the colleges). If you follow the guidelines above, and practice these situations hopefully your team will eliminate attempting the very low percentage plays, and maximize the higher percentage plays. Now you have a solid and smart fastpitch softball defense that will keep you in the games, and more importantly, NOT LOSE GAMES.

You can read Coach Jim's entire collection of articles at: My Softball Coach

To receive notice of our next featured coach, submit your name to receive an email alert (use the subscribe button on the left sidebar of this blog). If you want to nominate your coach to be featured on Softball Authority, please a email the Softball Authority Guest Coach Program.

Softball Authority Guest Coach Program

Softball Authority Guest Coach Program

There are over 4,000 members of the National Fastpitch Coaches Association. And many more who are not. They coach at the college level, head a high school program, serve as head coach of a travelling team, and volunteer their time to a league team in your neighborhood.

The vast majority of them are good coaches, some are excellent, and a few really excel at what they do. The coaches who excel are of a very special breed. They have an uncanny ability to inspire and mentor players.

Through their personal interaction with athletes, the videos they produce, or articles they write, these coaches offer something extra special - a formula for success - that helps the fastpitch softball athlete improve her performance. Whether it is batting instruction, fielding drills, player/team motivation, strength training, nutrition, pitching, catching, slap hitting or bunting, their coaching and training techniques have been critically acclaimed.

With that level of excellence in mind, in 2008, the National Forum on Girls' Fastpitch Softball will begin a new series called "Softball Authority". Softball Authority will showcase articles and/or training videos by coaches who have have demonstrated an exceptional ability and devotion to transfer their knowledge and expertise of fastpitch softball in order to help female softball athletes reach their maximum potential and take their game to the next level.

The series will begin on Monday January 7, 2008. Mark you calendar or submit your name to receive an email alert (use the subscribe button on the left sidebar of this blog).

If you want to nominate your coach to be featured on Softball Authority, please a email the Softball Authority Guest Coach Program.

Softball Institute, home of the finer points of the game of softball, publishes National Forum on Girls' Fastpitch Softball, National Senior Softball Forum, Library of Softball, and Softball Broadcast Network.