I coached in a league in Florida like this when I first started out with T-Ball. I tried
to get the league to change. They wouldn't. We ended up leaving the park for a
more competitive league where we have stayed for the last 4 years. Competition
is a very basic part of human nature. Being to PC is actually more harmful
to kids than letting them see how well they are doing at the risk of hurting
someone's feelings.

Oh, I so agree....so, it's basically up to that league, huh?

I have not heard of a league taking that position on stats. Does this league keep score? If so, the coach has all stats at his disposal if the scorekeeper is keeping adequate records. I do know of some individual coaches who do not wish to make stats general info even to the team so as not to discourage players who may not be performing up to par. You can quietly keep a simple chart of plate appearances and results for your own use if the league prohibits formal recordkeeping.

Thats the dumbest thing i ever heard!I would ask the coach if you can look at the
game book , and set up you a account on slugger stats for free and and your stats
you have to know how you are doing in all areas how would you know what to
improve on?www.sluggerstats.com

I actually can see that in t-ball.
In fact, I prefer it.

The art of learning fundamentals is getting lost, and if we don't focus that AT LEAST at the t-ball level then they will be in trouble once they get to coach pitch and especially kid pitch.

All you need to care about as far as score goes at that age is not going past 5 runs and inning.

It's the 6-7-8 year old division. And, it's the league. The coaches want to keep track of stats. Not necessarily score, they respect that at this age (I don't...but that's another story). But, I feel it's important and wanted to get some feedback before I approach the league about it. Thank you!!

Some leagues have a score book class that you can get into, have a parent go with you and learn all the terms and other infation and keep your own stats, I have been doing this a long time and the awards are given with the stats on them. The other thing is if you keep stats for your team and one of them gets lucky enough to be selected for college it could become very valuble information

Get your kid out of little league ASAP Of course they don't want to keep stats. If these "D Bags" could get away with it they wouldn't keep score either. (Like in T-Ball). Little League is to Baseball what Cub Scouts is to the Marines.
find J.B.O.or some tounament team for your kid to play on and stop wasting your time.

Our league doesn't start keeping stats until the kids are in about 9 or 10.

Little League should be about having fun, building confidence and learning skills. Focusing on scores and stats can conflict with these goals.

Hmmm.....I disagree. I think a coach keeping stats helps that coach see where the kids need work and need to improve. A good coach can ensure that kids have fun while learning. The more you learn and the better you get at your skills, the more confidence you have. Thanks everyone for your feedback. I was just wondering if it was normal - guess it's 50/50 depending on your league. And, I was wondering if you don't keep stats, how the heck, as a coach, you really know what each player is doing and how to work with them. Thanks!

A few things.

One, keeping stats at a certain age is appropriate, no arguing that.

But at 4-5-6-7 or possibly 8, it's not that important.

Here is a point.
How, if it's COACH pitch, would a stat be important when the COACH is actually TRYING to let you hit the ball?
Most kids at that age make a TON of errors, and most coaches can't keep stats and coach a team anyway.
I have been coaching (and playing...I played in college and semi-pro...got injured and that was has high as I could go with a busted arm) for over 15 years and at all age groups (including select girls fastpitch) and I have no doubt that stats can be overrated.

I will take a guy/girl who I know may be CRUSHING the ball but getting out (right at people, but very hard, hard line drives) but may be 0-2 over a player that got two seeing eye bloop singles and was 2-2 in the game.

A coach better know his players well enough to know who can do what, regardless of stats.

Don't get me wrong, stats do help, but at the younger age, its really not important.

If you are ANY kind of a good coach, you should not need stats to know how to improve each player on your team.

Stats are only a tool for planning and game managenent
Stats can be manipulated and stats can be used to motivate
But stats for a short time are not much help.
As another responder wrote best hitter crushes ball but right to people
Less skilled hitter hits safely the whole game-
Speed may be saving the less skilled hitter or he may have benefited from poor defensive execution.The crushing hitter will end up with the better stats over the course of a season (unless he just cannot run).

Last year one of my 2-best hitters went 0 for 12 in a stretch. Anyone who watched him play wouldn't have believed it. By season end he had moved back to 3rd in hitting percentage but was the team's leader in slugging percentage and a very hard out. Then at the end of all star play he was probably #2 in hitting percentage. The early stats were meaningless while the late season stats gave a truer picture of what the kid could do.
Things the hitter has no control over like Sacrifice flys, other players who did not run or run hard when they should have can reduce a players hitting percentage. A manager/coach needs to know when and how to use stats and must know much more that just what the stats indicate..

A coach doesn't need stats to keep track of errors in execution.
He just needs to make notes of what the errors were and incorporate drills and instructions in practices to cover those situations. Of course when most people think of stats they are only thinking offense. There is a whole bunch of defensive stats that can be tracked but it is extremely rare that a Little League coach will have the time (or help) to compute all the stats, create game plans for the team's games, plan and run practices, deal with parents, keep egos in check, work on some players self esteem, and still have time to earn a living to provide food, clothing, and shelter for his family!
Stats do become a bigger deal as kids move up into more competitive levels of baseball but coaching staffs get bigger and hopefully better so the manager has either more time or more help in keeping up with STATS.

No truer words have been spoken.

Nicely done and I agree (obviously) 100%.

Another thought---league baseball is competitive. Ever hear of the Little League World Series? Then in most states there is a state level tournament for 11U and 10U ages. Anyone who has thouroughly read and understands the minimum playing requirements and substitution rules will know Little League is competitive baseball but also trys to make sure everone gets to play. A sub cannot re-enter once removed. A starter can re-enter once. But everyone gets 6-defensive outs and a time at bat. Six outs and an at bat is not equal playing time. Even in travel ball you are not going to have kids on a team and not play them. If you do that then the team may be OK for a while but it will peak and then eventually fold due to conflicts. The league season is supposed to develope all the players and the top players theoretically get chosen for "All Stars". As mentioned before there are minimum play requirements but not equal play requirements. In Little League All Stars the playing time reduces to 3-outs and an at bat.
The biggest difference between travel ball and league ball is in Travel ball you get to be more selective. You only take players you want on your team.
In league ball you have to "take what you can get" which in some cases means players who don't want to be there but LL is a cheap childcare service 2 to 4-days (evenings per week) and you have to make do with what you could get in the draft! This is harder coaching and leagues usually have some standard of behavior. Travel team coaches can more aloof but they still have to play their players or they won't continue for long with the team.
Besides when parents are paying for tournament entry fees, uniforms, motels, restuarants, and doing fundraisors not to mention the time commitment famillies make then really they are paying to play. And that does not mean equal playing time but it has to be enough that the kids all feel like they are contributing or soon the "game is no-longer fun" and why play a sport if if isn't fun!! Would we want our kids to grow up and find a job to hate for the rest of their lives or a rewarding fulfilling career. Think about it!!!
Thanks for reading but now I'm done.

If I need to look at game statistics to tell if a player is improving in that age group, I shouldn't be coaching. I can tell more about a player by running a few drills in practice then I could from game play.

Ditto.
Notes from game play help the coaches determine what drills are needed.
Also-physical skills, due to mental breakdowns, don't always carry over from practice to games. However, with good practice drills players learn to think ahead and react more quickly while still playing within themselves and playing under control. Remember the Rock Star song? Goes something like your head gets smart but your brain gets dumb. Over time mental preparation and physical practice make the smart bigger and the dumb smaller.

If you look at it from the Positive Coaching Alliance perspective, there is a double goal. Winning and teaching life lessons. John Wooden never talked about winning. He talked about peak performance. The debate should start there... how to you help kids reach peak performance? Are stats important at that age? Maybe.