Expert: Rick Bundy - 5/12/2009

Question
My 13 yr old son plays on an aau team. They have a double header every Sat. and Sun. He gets 3 at bats on Sat. and 3 on Sun. He plays 4 innings in the first game and 3 innings the second. Four of the 14 kids on the team play 14 innings a day and never sit. One kid is exceptionally good and I get why he never sits, but the other 3 are not. They get 10 at bats a day. Why can't they alternate these players fairly.

Answer
Laura:

You may want to speak with the coach and see what his philosophy, as well as what the league philosophy is, in regards to playing time, if you haven't already done so.  He can best explain how and why his rotation is set up the way it is.

There can be several criteria involved in this decision, such as:
a.  Practice attendance
b.  Being on time
c.  Ability to play a certain position, most notably catcher and pitcher, which require some extra skill sets
d.  Practice work ethic
e.  Coachability

He should be willing to explain them to you upon request.  It may help clarify the situation for you, or you may find you don't agree with his reasoning for the rotation.

In either event, after the conversation, you should at least have a clear understanding of whether this is a situation you will be happy in, or not, and whether this league structure is what you were wanting for your son.

How does your son feel with the way the rotation works?

Good luck as you go forward.

Yours in baseball,

Rick