Trickeration

[heynow]

How often do you use trick plays and how often do you practice these trick plays? Do you also involve the parents, i.e. have them scream “RUN”? My DD team was involved in one this weekend and the team using it executed it perfectly.

[Izzy's Dad]

heynow:

What was the trick play?

[Tucson]

I don't use them. You can really look like an idiot, when they don't work.

My sons' HS used them to perfection all the way to the state championship in IL., though. But, when the stakes are high, you have to be able to compete, also.

Some of them are easier on 90 foot bases, though. And yes, they practiced them.

What one got used against you?

[heynow]

Runners on 2nd and 1st, pitcher fakes throw to 2nd and ss and 2b dive while cf turns and sprints toward the fence. Crowd is screaming "run" and the poor blonde girl at 2nd starts to run to 3rd base. Pitcher just jogs over and tags her out. She then throws to 2nd and almost gets the blonde girl out coming from 1st base.

[BonezMom]

I'm gonna have to write that one down

[hotwheels]

Runners on 2nd and 1st, pitcher fakes throw to 2nd and ss and 2b dive while cf turns and sprints toward the fence. Crowd is screaming "run" and the poor blonde girl at 2nd starts to run to 3rd base. Pitcher just jogs over and tags her out. She then throws to 2nd and almost gets the blonde girl out coming from 1st base.

Las Vegas Stingers 14U 2 years ago in Park City, Utah ran this play exactly to perfection....Luckily for me, I was watching them play another team right before we played them and I SAW the play and them when they tried it on us.....NO GOOD!

It is kind of corny to see but when it worked against the other team it was really entertaining to see.....Once you've seen it though....

[GIMNEPIWO]

Runners on 2nd and 1st, pitcher fakes throw to 2nd and ss and 2b dive while cf turns and sprints toward the fence. Crowd is screaming "run" and the poor blonde girl at 2nd starts to run to 3rd base. Pitcher just jogs over and tags her out. She then throws to 2nd and almost gets the blonde girl out coming from 1st base.

Yeah ... And A-Rod yells "I got it" as he sprints passed F5 parked under a ball ... Class act ... Now don't get your panties in a bunch ... the fake throw is one thing and involving the parents is a Horses A*s of a different color ... I'm just sayin' ...

[jofus]

Eh, I'm not necessarily judging, and I'm not a high level coach or anything, but it seems a little bush league to me, especially having the parents/crowd participate.

[al-e-do]

Say this run by a 12U team out of West, TX.

runners on 2nd and 3rd
1st pitch to batter
girl on 3rd steps off of bag about 2 steps toward home
girl on 2nd runs toward third and stops 3 feet from third base, all the time the coach on 3rd is yelling go back to 2nd
girl turns and runs to 2nd catcher throws to 2nd
girl on 3rd runs home and draws throw from 2nd to home
run scores and runner is at 2nd or 3rd depending on throw
saw this done 3 times in one weeekend

[SnocatzDad]

Say this run by a 12U team out of West, TX.

runners on 2nd and 3rd
1st pitch to batter
girl on 3rd steps off of bag about 2 steps toward home
girl on 2nd runs toward third and stops 3 feet from third base, all the time the coach on 3rd is yelling go back to 2nd
girl turns and runs to 2nd catcher throws to 2nd
girl on 3rd runs home and draws throw from 2nd to home
run scores and runner is at 2nd or 3rd depending on throw
saw this done 3 times in one weeekend

I've seen the above as well so that's a pretty standard one.

another standard is

Runners on 1st and 3rd (less than 2 outs)
first pitch runner from first goes for second and does a pratt fall halfway.
Even if the coach has told the fielders to concede 2nd base and hold the other runner at 3B it's too tempting to not try to get the out on the girl that falls down.

The other I've heard of is running past 1B and returning slowly so that the other team has assumed you will touch first and be locked by the look back rule. If the other team is out of position sprinting towards 2nd base.

Our team runs the pratt fall play on 1st and 3rd situations because the girls think it's hilarious. Most of the time teams just concede the base. I coach 1st base and the girls will beg to let them run the play when they get there in that situation. I think it's good to coach these plays and use them in moderation for entertainment value. There is no better way to get your team ready to properly defend these plays than to teach them to execute them on offense.