Are Games substitute for Coaching and Gaining new Skills on the field of playing ?

I have no real hope that my recommendations would be followed by more than a small fraction of my readership but the single most important action a team can do to enhance its performance is through preparation.  In view of the fact that I respect other people's opinion the most I can offer is some guidance for those who may disagree with my views since I do not believe that Games are substitute for coaching and gaining new skills on the field of playing. Unreservedly, I would like to stress that no one on the subject of competition in sport could rationally nourish such a thought and please, please and please again don't allow anybody to convince you otherwise, since players need to learn what to do in different baseball situations, baserunning, catching, throwing, pitching and all that jazz. Indeed, baseball is a complex sport, easier to understand when you grow up with it, however, there are many variables and factors that could change on a minutes notice. For instance, the weather is a very important factor in baseball, especially, in the United Kingdom. If it rains before a match and the field gets covered with water it could stop a good player from making a play that he would, in most cases, make owing to the field getting wet and all that jazz. Unquestionably, baseball is one of the top sports played in the U.S.A., Japan, Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Venezuela and it attracts millions of fans to ball parks every year. Aye, aye, practically, million thousand thousands of proud parents everywhere in the world enjoy watching their children learn and play the game. What a great feeling when one sees one's child hit the ball over the fence (Alexis Rodriguez comes to mind), steals a base or scores a run! Still, when it comes to sports, coaching, professional and amateur, baseball is ranked right up there at the top of my priorities. Nevertheless,I was one of those kids that enjoyed the benefit of my parents watching me playing my favourite sport and I thank them for doing so since their support was a source of inspiration to nurture an understanding for social skills and respect for other kid's values, and sense of who I was and who I wanted to be when I had reached maturity.  Wouldn't it be nice to reintroduce that way of life in which children were allowed to mix with people in the community and discover the value and idiosyncracy of other people in it through a game of baseball. I would like to invite everyone in the world to join us and support the work we are doing at Figueras Baseball Academy for the good of the community in general. Truly enough, there is wisdom in taking an interest in what is going on in the world, and learning about its characteristic features and be aware of its vulnerability ought to be of paramount importance to eveyone  since this wisdom offer a breath of fresh air to the world and its social issues by opening a window of learning to everyone. Absolutely, I care for the world and its social issues and I think that it would be selfish if I said that it had nothing to do with me just simply because it does not affect me; on the contrary, I think we should always help when there is a problem in the world and give its misery a well-needed touch of guidance. Unquestionably, and certainly not, the world is not perfect, it has never been and it will never be so; nevertheless, it is human to have imperfections, and therefore, it is plain wrong to ignore social issues in the community since tensions on the social front would not resolve themselves without the need for changes. As good as things seem to be, certain obstacles remain that will need to be tackled head on sooner or later since the biggest cause of antisocial behaviour, in my opinion, is the lack of quality time among parents and children which prevents the developing of important social skills which are essential to the basic nature of society. Nonetheless, many parents are poorly-equipped to deal with these issues discernibly and tolerantly since they themselves do not have the motivation to do so or perhaps it is due to their poor education background, lack of time and all that jazz. I am merely speculating for I do not know the real reasons for it. However, there is no point in sitting around kicking one's heels not knowing what do since experience has taught us that when people are at a loose end and don't know what to do, they sometimes cause annoyance, to put it mildly, and, as it is often the case, it gives rise to vandelism and hooliganism in areas where there are inadequate recreational facilities.   Yeah! I am a believer in applying real focus on something constructive, like building bridges in the community through co-operation, using the power of sport to help tackle issues such as improving health and fitness, developing education for young people, and by working together in partnership or as part of a team in order to make a visible difference to people's lives. My only wish is that this article would give parents, the focus and encouragement needed to rope themselves into shouldering a responsibility that is clearly theirs to deal with. 

Pedro Figueras

Head Coach