Article Provided by: The National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA)
Article written by: Dick Smith
What is hustle?
Good question, eh? Is it trotting on and off the field of play, something else or a combination of things?
The dictionary defines hustle as a transitive verb meaning to make someone go quickly where you want them to go or to make them do what you want them to do.
As in, "The crook was hustled off to prison." or "He'd been hustled into selling the house too quickly."
COACHES WILL OFTEN yell out that the team should hustle when taking the field and often umpires will do the same. Often these directions go unheeded, as teams will often trot slowly to positions just as they did before.
These days watching teams go on and off the field, especially summer travel teams, even after the coach's or the umpire's commands for them to hustle, bears little resemblance to teams that really want to play. Usually it amounts to a fast trot, but that's about it.
It gets even slower as the game progresses, and is almost non-existent when it's hot. Even in cold weather, teams are so caught up in keeping warm that hustle is not part of their agenda.
SO AGAIN we ask, what is hustle? Well, it begins with a word called discipline. A team must understand that discipline is essential to a successful season. It starts with being on time to practices and games, listening to what coach says and trying hard to practice the essential fundamentals of the game.
When arriving at a practice or a game, a team needs to have a desire to be there. Although almost a novelty at first practice, it gets boring after a time and pregame workouts are in the same boat.
Boredom leads to errors and poor performance on the mound, in the field and at bat. Thus, a team needs to work hard in each case. This is part of hustle. True hustle requires that players demand of themselves and their teammates a strong desire to be there and to execute what is required.
NEXT COMES uniforms. They must be clean and worn properly. If hats are required, all players need to wear them as they were intended, with bill low to shield the eyes and not backwards or otherwise. A team that looks sharp usually plays that way, although not always, as we all know.
Hustle demands that players sprint, not jog to positions on the field and the same when returning to the dugout. They need to move as if someone was chasing them. Often, players will challenge themselves trying to beat each other to their positions. This shows players want to be there and it impresses umpires who sometimes don't want to be there. Opponents are also affected by this type of hustle.
UNLESS THE COACH demands otherwise, players need to get to the huddle quickly. Huddles are normally called before batting. The team gets together to hear what the coach has in mind, except, of course when the leadoff and second batter are due up, as they should be preparing for their job. This huddle should be very short so that the rest of the team can get ready for what follows.
When a team hustles, it makes for a grand day and gets us home at a reasonable time. If there is a game to follow, a game that is a bit shorter because of hustle allows us time to prepare for that game. Everybody is happy, except, of course, the team that gets beaten by a well-disciplined team.
Conversely, if we are beaten by a sloppy team, we are not real happy. We won't be happy being beaten by any team, but a sloppy team makes matters worse. How could we possibly lose to this bunch?
Fans and railbirds alike appreciate a team that hustles, as do college recruiters for those wanting to play beyond high school. A recruiter will often be highly impressed by a hustling team.
Hustle is a word that all teams need to learn. The meaning must be made clear and it is a coach's job to see that it is done.
