Pocket Radar Dad and Cowbell Mom..PetPeeves part 2

So now that I am totally famous and people know my blogs I am starting to get tons and tons of requests.......Ok maybe I am not "totally" famous and by tons I mean this is my second request.. LOL

I was at a High School Playoff baseball game yesterday and had the extreme pleasure or should I say mental exhaustion of listening to this mom ring her bell and scream cheers through a mini cheer megaphone. I was so annoyed and my child was not playing nor was it our High School. It was extremely obnoxious as I couldn't believe no one from her own team just asked her to knock it off. She was fairly positive with her cheers for her son's team and that is all good but as a pitcher's dad the "ball in the dirt" type of chants already annoy me. To hear it through a megaphone and followed by the rattle of the bell was another level. Ready for the kicker? She was seated directly behind home plate. Right behind the umpire and the catcher.

The sad part was that right behind her was two scouts attempting to clock various players and gain intel for the dudes they wanted intel on. They looked at each other on multiple pitches after this noise and just left. I am sure they have dealt with it before but for the last time folks.....Keep that area clear for people who may be there for next level purposes and for the love of god don't be obnoxious.

Here we get to the good stuff. I got a text from a long time friend who asked if she was being overly dramatic if she felt annoyed that dad's sit behind home plate and pocket radar the pitches and scream out the number and what not. I have always loved this one..... I told her NO! I think it is absolutely hilarious when softball or baseball dads pull out our handy dandy $400 pocket radar and attempt to clock the pitcher. What are you doing? I know what you think you are doing but what are you really doing? Ok so the girl is now throwing 60 mph... Cool. What is your daughter or son going to do with that info? Do you know if she is throwing a fastball on each pitch? Do you think your kid will have a different swing or approach if it's 57 or 60?

The truth is that in High School the only reason a parent sits behind the plate and does this is that they can't release the control to their child. Yes I said it. Hate me. That's fine but you know it's true. If your child isn't training for every pitch at every level they may encounter then they have already failed. If they need their dad to tell them the speed then they are late to the game. Also why are parents coaching their child during a game? Now you know why I sit in the outfield. The truth is I am the dad who can't let go. I speak from experience. If I am anywhere near the plate I am usually heard cheering some sort of mental tip to my child. They don't need it. Truth is they probably don't even hear it. The hardest thing I do time and time again is watch my kids fail.

The problem is that we have picked sports for our children that fail at a greater rate than success. Batting averages. Shooting percentages. You name it and if you are anywhere near 50% you are killing it. My problem with the pocket radar dad or cowbell mom is that it typically feels to me like they're trying to bully the opposing kid by adding in your "adult terms" "Has not thrown a strike yet" "Step up in the box". Used to happen alot in basketball when parents were too close to the court. Yelling things like "they can't take you/ they cant stop you." Stuff like that would get under my skin.

Here is the deal. If you want to pocket radar a player. Do it 3-5 pitches during the warm up or beginning of an inning and put that damn thing away. You are not Brad Pitt in moneyball and you don't really need that info. If you bring a cowbell to a game then just know you and I are probably different types of parents but we can still have a beer after the game so I can get you drunk and throw that thing out without you noticing. As for cheering behind the dish just remember that positive is positive. Remind yourself that if your kid was the one on the mound or in the circle you may feel a little different.