How to best manage a recreational softball team

Once you've decided to start a team. The first step is getting players. Identify what kind of team you want to create (on the spectrum from purely recreational to super competitive) and recruit people that fit that goal. If you put together a team that's part easy-going recreational and part hyper-competitive, no one is going to be happy.

With that list of interested players, poll them about what schedule limitations they might have. Contact your city league's office about the available options and costs. Share that information with your players, and see how many still are committed. The first year, your team also will need new uniforms and balls and a scorebook and a lineup board. So add up all of the potential costs, when quoting the number that each player will be responsibly for paying. Otherwise, you'll end up with the bill. You should have a dozen committed players at this point or you need to do more recruiting.

Get the money from your players as you have them sign the roster. That way, no one gets on the team without paying their way.

Order the uniforms. The best your group can afford. The better you look, the better you will play, and the more the players will respect the team. Let players pick their numbers and work out those potential conflicts early. Also, always order a few extra. Someone is sure to lose one, or disappear with it. Make sure the players know that the uniforms belong to the team, not the individual, and that they just are borrowing them each season for as long as the team exists.

Have a party to start the season. Invite all of the players and their spouses together to get to know each other. Host it at your house, or a pizza parlor. Doesn't matter where. That kind of bonding will help the team play better together. Go over the team rules, about attendance, etiquette, respect for each other. This is where you set the tone for how the players will represent the team and coexist with each other, especially when times get tough.

Provide the players with the full schedule as well as a list of team rules and a roster, which includes full names and contact information. That way everyone knows when to be at each game (you don't have to call each week) and how to reach people in the case of an emergency.

Practice. It's not about turning your players into major leaguers. It's about getting off the rust, getting comfortable with the other players and building teamwork, when the stakes aren't high and a game isn't going on. This is also when the manager can evaluate the talent and start figuring out where to put people in the lineup and on the field to give them the best chance of success.

Ask your players to show up early to each game, giving them time to stretch and warm-up and mentally transfer from whatever they were doing to focus on the game at hand.

Do what's best for the team. The best managers sacrifice personal interests. They don't play shortstop and bat clean-up, unless they truly are the clear-cut best for those spots. Give people opportunities to play in different places. You might be surprised to discover who is capable of what, when you give them a chance. Particularly, when the game is either in hand or out of control, move people around to see what other combinations bring.

Keep statistics. Some people scoff at that idea in softball. But knowing how people are hitting and scoring and driving in runs will help you put them in better spots to succeed. Plus, the players get a thrill out of seeing what they have done.

After each game, send an e-mail to the group that includes words of encouragement (nothing negative, ever), updated statistics and a reminder of when the next game is.

At the end of the season, have another party to celebrate the year. Make up awards for each player. Have the team vote on a couple of them, such as MVP. Present the awards at the banquet, and relive the best (or most comical) moments of the season. Collect the uniforms at the end of the party. That way you won't have to go all over town, picking them up.

Start planning for next year. You always will need to be replenishing the roster and making adjustments. Give yourself an evaluation. What do you want to do better next time?