OT: Youth Travel Baseball

[dgsmith15]

Any of you 17ers got kiddos that are on a Travel baseball team? If so, how's the experience been for them and the entire fam?

My oldest (9) is absolute up my *** about trying out for a couple of different travel teams. The kid loves baseball, and I honestly love nothing more than watching him play and enjoying himself. But I feel like 9-10 is a fairly young age for this level of commitment for an entire year. He likes playing other sports (soccer, basketball, flag football) and I don't want take away the chance for him to partake in those as well. Baseball, however, is his #1 and he's really turned a corner this year in terms of athletic ability. The wife and I are committed to setting him up for success as he continues to grow, but we certainly don't wanna risk early burnout/injury.

Just curious what you other heathens gotta say.

 

[HomeBoyDawg]

 

[Tractorman]

The first things you have to do is decide how much you want to play (travel), how much do you want to commit - both money and time. Do you want to play every weekend and practice 4-5 days a week? Are you willing to spend several thousand dollars or a few hundred dollars per season? If you play for an organization that has several teams and age groups under the same umbrella, you will be expected to practice a lot and travel further. The other option is finding an individual team that normally just plays regionally with one state tourny at the end of the season and possibly a trip to the coast for vacation/national tourny.

I coached my son's travel team from 8u through 12u. The reason I did it is because our local park and rec was down to 3 teams where we used to have 9 teams when I was playing. I just created a local team. All of our boys were from our county. We practiced 1 to 2 times a week and played approximately 6 or 7 tournys in the Spring and 4 or 5 in the Fall with the Summer off. I tried to pick Saturday only tournys but sometimes had to do the Fri-Sat, I avoided the Fri Sat Sun unless it was the state tourny. We had the equivalent of my version of the All Star team of what should have been our park players. We played within 2 hours of home our entire time on regular tournaments. We were terrible our first season and pretty damn solid at the end. We were still able to win several tournaments without playing for the big outfits and wasting a bunch of money and time. It was a blast and I miss it. But, I had to do this way or I would have been burned out as a parent early on.

 

[8dog]

Any of you 17ers got kiddos that are on a Travel baseball team? If so, how's the experience been for them and the entire fam?

My oldest (9) is absolute up my *** about trying out for a couple of different travel teams. The kid loves baseball, and I honestly love nothing more than watching him play and enjoying himself. But I feel like 9-10 is a fairly young age for this level of commitment for an entire year. He likes playing other sports (soccer, basketball, flag football) and I don't want take away the chance for him to partake in those as well. Baseball, however, is his #1 and he's really turned a corner this year in terms of athletic ability. The wife and I are committed to setting him up for success as he continues to grow, but we certainly don't wanna risk early burnout/injury.

Just curious what you other heathens gotta say.

If he likes it that much you have to do it. 9-10 isn’t young at all anymore for it. It’s a terrible horrible necessary evil for those that like baseball and want to get better. Dont let John Smoltz try to tell you differently.

 

[horshack.sixpack]

Any of you 17ers got kiddos that are on a Travel baseball team? If so, how's the experience been for them and the entire fam?

My oldest (9) is absolute up my *** about trying out for a couple of different travel teams. The kid loves baseball, and I honestly love nothing more than watching him play and enjoying himself. But I feel like 9-10 is a fairly young age for this level of commitment for an entire year. He likes playing other sports (soccer, basketball, flag football) and I don't want take away the chance for him to partake in those as well. Baseball, however, is his #1 and he's really turned a corner this year in terms of athletic ability. The wife and I are committed to setting him up for success as he continues to grow, but we certainly don't wanna risk early burnout/injury.

Just curious what you other heathens gotta say.

I was glad when it was over. First year of kid pitch was the longest decade of my life.

 

[The Peeper]

Mine did soccer from age 11-15, that was too young in my opinion to be as serious as a commitment as it required. Happiest day of my fatherhood was the day she told me she didn't want to play any more and that was due to burnout. She was good, really good but it was 9 months a year of 2 or 3 weekly practices, either tournaments or friendlies on weekends. Friendlies meant parents splittng cost of paying refs. Our club hosted only 1 tourney a year and the rest were out of towners meaning usually minimum 2 tanks of gas, 2 nights in a hotel, 6 meals eating out, splitting coaches expenses (hotel, meals, gas, etc,), splitting tournament entry fees, parking fees, the obligatory tournament T-shirts (cause you know you've to to have that), concessions, not to even mention uniforms, cleats, practice gear, backpacks, etc etc. I wish I had that 5 years of $5,000+ per year back, it would have been a nice down payment on that MSU degree..........

 

[peewee.sixpack]

Be prepared to never have a true family vacation again, accept that all other sports will take a backseat quickly and within a couple years wont be played at all, and finally extend your balance on your credit card for hotels and such. My experience was similar to Peeper's but it included my daughter on 3 soccer teams (HS, Club, ODP) and 1 volleyball and my son on a travel soccer team. My daughter was very good and quit everything by her senior year due to burnout.

 

[Shane of Pisgah]

One of my pet peeves about travel ball discussions is people like to lump all "travel ball" togeth as if it's all the same. Are there teams that play year-round, travel all over the place, and spend thousands of dollars? Yes. Are there teams that play a very limited schedule, no private coaches, no affiliation with an organization, and encourage the players to play other sports? Yes. There are teams with A-hole coaches who overuse their pitchers, and teams with great coaches who truly care and would rather lose than risk a kid's health, etc.

So I think the answer depends on what types of teams are available in your area and whether they're a good fit for what you're looking for. From my experience, "fit" is everything. If you have the opportunity to get on a team that's a good fit, 9 or 10 isn't too young, but I wouldn't reach to play on a team if it's a bad fit.

 

[Bulldog Bruce]

I assume by watching College Baseball as much as I do that most of these kids are raised through this current system. I don't see a bunch of well coached fundamentals from most of these players. I see way too many kids have the same approach at the plate. I have no real life experience about the current system but have heard many stories about the politics of it all. That to make high school teams you are forced to go through this ridiculous process.

I really like the idea by Tractorman. I think at 10 you gain more by practicing and have fun games mixed in, is better for development. I think you really need to get feedback from your kid on how he wants to commit. I wish there was a simple answer.

Cream rises to the top. So if he becomes really good I assume there will be coaches that will want him. Good Luck.

 

[greenbean.sixpack]

The first things you have to do is decide how much you want to play (travel), how much do you want to commit - both money and time. Do you want to play every weekend and practice 4-5 days a week? Are you willing to spend several thousand dollars or a few hundred dollars per season? If you play for an organization that has several teams and age groups under the same umbrella, you will be expected to practice a lot and travel further. The other option is finding an individual team that normally just plays regionally with one state tourny at the end of the season and possibly a trip to the coast for vacation/national tourny.

I coached my son's travel team from 8u through 12u. The reason I did it is because our local park and rec was down to 3 teams where we used to have 9 teams when I was playing. I just created a local team. All of our boys were from our county. We practiced 1 to 2 times a week and played approximately 6 or 7 tournys in the Spring and 4 or 5 in the Fall with the Summer off. I tried to pick Saturday only tournys but sometimes had to do the Fri-Sat, I avoided the Fri Sat Sun unless it was the state tourny. We had the equivalent of my version of the All Star team of what should have been our park players. We played within 2 hours of home our entire time on regular tournaments. We were terrible our first season and pretty damn solid at the end. We were still able to win several tournaments without playing for the big outfits and wasting a bunch of money and time. It was a blast and I miss it. But, I had to do this way or I would have been burned out as a parent early on.

nice to see a common sense approach. Don't forget, you as the parent are in charge. If your kid is good, there's a decent chance of burnout before he even gets to HS, if you commit too much.

 

[Bulldog45]

The first things you have to do is decide how much you want to play (travel), how much do you want to commit - both money and time. Do you want to play every weekend and practice 4-5 days a week? Are you willing to spend several thousand dollars or a few hundred dollars per season? If you play for an organization that has several teams and age groups under the same umbrella, you will be expected to practice a lot and travel further. The other option is finding an individual team that normally just plays regionally with one state tourny at the end of the season and possibly a trip to the coast for vacation/national tourny.

I coached my son's travel team from 8u through 12u. The reason I did it is because our local park and rec was down to 3 teams where we used to have 9 teams when I was playing. I just created a local team. All of our boys were from our county. We practiced 1 to 2 times a week and played approximately 6 or 7 tournys in the Spring and 4 or 5 in the Fall with the Summer off. I tried to pick Saturday only tournys but sometimes had to do the Fri-Sat, I avoided the Fri Sat Sun unless it was the state tourny. We had the equivalent of my version of the All Star team of what should have been our park players. We played within 2 hours of home our entire time on regular tournaments. We were terrible our first season and pretty damn solid at the end. We were still able to win several tournaments without playing for the big outfits and wasting a bunch of money and time. It was a blast and I miss it. But, I had to do this way or I would have been burned out as a parent early on.

This. Get involved if you can and help set schedules. Also, if you do tryouts, just understand if your kid does a tryout with an organization they’ll be offered a spot and you will be pressured to “sign” quickly. They’ll fill as many teams and sell as many jerseys, batting helmets, bags etc. as they can. My advice is look for an independent team to be a part of.

 

[SirBarksalot]

My Daughter tried out for travel volleyball, but just isn’t talented enough for the limited spots. (Thankfully )
Depending on the level, it can costs thousands of dollars just to be on a team, and that’s not including travel expenses. In my op, by the time they are in middle school, if they aren’t aiming for a scholarship, why do it? I know one girl in my kids class who is good, and she actually scaled back the level of travel she did.

As far as baseball. I worked with a nurse in Jackson for years. Her little boy started travel ball pretty early on. That is all they did. It was all consuming (or so it seemed to me), and they were all in. Never heard her complain at all that I can remember. Anyway, I moved in 2006, and obviously lost touch with her.

Flash forward 5 or 6 years, I’m watching State on TV, and I see the kid on the field for the Bulldogs. I was like, “Hell yeah, it all paid off”…

The kid was Hunter Renfroe. It eventually, really paid off.
Not a lot of Hunter Renfroes out there…

 

[BulldogBlitz]

 

[OG Goat Holder]

One of my pet peeves about travel ball discussions is people like to lump all "travel ball" togeth as if it's all the same. Are there teams that play year-round, travel all over the place, and spend thousands of dollars? Yes. Are there teams that play a very limited schedule, no private coaches, no affiliation with an organization, and encourage the players to play other sports? Yes. There are teams with A-hole coaches who overuse their pitchers, and teams with great coaches who truly care and would rather lose than risk a kid's health, etc.

So I think the answer depends on what types of teams are available in your area and whether they're a good fit for what you're looking for. From my experience, "fit" is everything. If you have the opportunity to get on a team that's a good fit, 9 or 10 isn't too young, but I wouldn't reach to play on a team if it's a bad fit.

That's because, as a whole, GENERALLY, over the whole system, everybody eventually gravitates to the same place. It's like traffic - one individual car acts pretty independently, but get 2,000 cars on the road, and 'traffic' itself is very predictable.

The 20% hardcores are the just that, hardcores, they get in early, and do their thing. They end up with the best teams, and generally are the ones who take it all the way up. These teams are your AAA/Major teams by 11U and 12U, and end up traveling all over. 80% of the rest of the people are either skeptical or poor. The skeptical ones ask the same questions the OP did, but eventually, once they get a whiff, they get sucked in too. Parents LOVE this shlt, let's be real, it can be addictive. The skeptical coaches try to do the right thing, but quickly figure out they are shooting a BB gun at a freight train, then they start making the bad decisions too. The pressure to win is there whether you like it or not, if you fight against that, you'll lose the parents and ultimately the team. And then the poors/problem kids, they provide the talent at the A/AA level, some of them end up being pretty good. And another thing, these teams usually constantly turn over, as the addicted parents try and find the best situation for middling johnny, but it's a futile effort. Scams abound at this level. Some may take an end of year trip to a World Series somewhere, and coaches are always looking for easy tournaments to get a quick win and keep parents happy. Lot of Facebook posts and "Didn't end the way we wanted, but we sure had fun !!!1111 Work hard play hard!!!111" nonsense.

At 13U/14U, I do think it starts to sort itself out, as the field weeds kids out, it's no longer a 'kid's game' (i.e. it gets more serious), and you usually consolidate about 80% of a AAA/Major kids and 20% of the others, who may be a problem kid with talent or a late developer.

And that's how it goes down, man. Tournament directors laugh their way to the bank, and it's not changing. Cat is outta that bag, mane.

Back to the OP @dgsmith15, do you have any connections to anybody on a good team? At 9, you're a little late to the party, might be tough to break in. Any friends out there coaching that you trust? Also - may as well be prepared, it's a huge jump from rec ball to travel. I've seen MANY a overconfident parents get humbled real quick because johnny made all-stars in 10U, after all the talent had left, and expected travel ball to accommodate their demands.

 

[Beretta.sixpack]

That's because, as a whole, GENERALLY, over the whole system, everybody eventually gravitates to the same place. It's like traffic - one individual care acts pretty independently, but get 2,000 cars on the road, and 'traffic' itself is very predictable.

The 20% hardcores are the just that, hardcores, they get in early, and do their thing. They end up with the best teams, and generally are the ones who take it all the way up. These teams are your AAA/Major teams by 11U and 12U, and end up traveling all over. 80% of the rest of the people are either skeptical or poor. The skeptical ones ask the same questions the OP did, but eventually, once they get a whiff, they get sucked in too. Parents LOVE this shlt, let's be real, it can be addictive. The skeptical coaches try to do the right thing, but quickly figure out they are shooting a BB gun at a freight train, then they start making the bad decisions too. The pressure to win is there whether you like it or not, if you fight against that, you'll lose the parents and ultimately the team. And then the poors/problem kids, they provide the talent at the A/AA level, some of them end up being pretty good. And another thing, these teams usually constantly turn over, as the addicted parents try and find the best situation for middling johnny, but it's a futile effort. Scams abound at this level. Some may take an end of year trip to a World Series somewhere, and coaches are always looking for easy tournaments to get a quick win and keep parents happy. Lot of Facebook posts and "Didn't end the way we wanted, but we sure had fun !!!1111 Work hard play hard!!!111" nonsense.

At 13U/14U, I do think it starts to sort itself out, as the field weeds kids out, it's no longer a 'kid's game' (i.e. it gets more serious), and you usually consolidate about 80% of a AAA/Major kids and 20% of the others, who may be a problem kid with talent or a late developer.

And that's how it goes down, man. Tournament directors laugh their way to the bank, and it's not changing. Cat is outta that bag, mane.

Back to the OP @dgsmith15, do you have any connections to anybody on a good team? At 9, you're a little late to the party, might be tough to break in. Any friends out there coaching that you trust?

to the original poster.....this is spot on....school ball and 15U for us now....started travel ball at 7U.....finding the right fit is difficult....we have been really lucky, but its not the norm...and the tournament directors can all go eat a bag of D i X

 

[ChatGPT]

Find or form an independent team if at all possible. Preferably with other parents you know.

All we did was pay the fee to get our 10u rec all star team sanctioned with some organizations. All the kids knew each other well and all the parents got along and were having fun with it. All tourneys are within a 30 minute drive and the kids get more practice with kids in the same general skill level.

And we don't get guest players. Ever. Still can't believe that's a thing.

 

[The Cooterpoot]

These threads are always a hoot

 

[Bowdawg]

My kid will be starting coach pitch this year. We live around Baton Rouge. If you aren’t playing some kind of tournament ball you are SOL. We tried out for 4 teams. He made all 3/4 teams. 2 teams were Mandatory Sunday practices in the fall and 3 tournaments. Then 3 days a week practice in the spring and 10 tournaments. For me that was way to much for my coach pitch 7 year old. I don’t want him to hate it. We ended up going with a team that will play in Traction league in Baton Rouge in the spring and 4 tournaments all within 30 miles of BR. That was way more manageable for us with him playing tackle football and basketball. He is a very large kid compared to classmates and has potential so I don’t want to ruin sports for him.

 

[Pilgrimdawg]

My son coaches a travel baseball team. The whole experience depends on the coaches philosophy on how to do things. This is coach pitch at this point. He tries to schedule tournaments every other weekend and is pretty laid back in his approach so that the kids don’t get burned out. They had a good team and won 5 or 6 rings this summer. Most of the coaches are good guys and are in it for the right reasons but some schedule games every weekend and are total a$$ holes. It’s coach pitch and they act like they are coaching the Atlanta Braves or something. They are the ones that give travel ball a bad name. At least around here, if your child wants to play at a higher level, you don’t have much choice. Rec ball leagues are horrible at best. They aren’t going to learn much if anything, and it’s hard to play ball wearing a bulletproof vest. Back in the 80’s and 90’s I coached rec league ball for 13 years and it was a great experiences. However, the world has changed a great deal since then. My granddaughter plays travel soccer at a pretty high level now. The local rec soccer leagues are better than the baseball leagues, but not by much. Local basketball leagues are not an option. We tried that at the local YMCA until there was a big fight requiring law enforcement after a 9 year old girls game that we were part of. That was the end of that. We have enjoyed the travel ball, but we love going to the games. Most of the baseball is scheduled so that there are very few hotel nights required. Soccer was that way but now they have games scheduled in Atlanta, Nashville, etc. that’s a whole different deal. Overall it’s been a good experience for us.

 

[dgsmith15]

Lots of great info - thanks for everyone's feedback. I've been putting out fires over here because of CrowdStrike's royal bed shat, so I'll try and get a real response later.

 

[Shane of Pisgah]

That's because, as a whole, GENERALLY, over the whole system, everybody eventually gravitates to the same place. It's like traffic - one individual car acts pretty independently, but get 2,000 cars on the road, and 'traffic' itself is very predictable.

The 20% hardcores are the just that, hardcores, they get in early, and do their thing. They end up with the best teams, and generally are the ones who take it all the way up. These teams are your AAA/Major teams by 11U and 12U, and end up traveling all over. 80% of the rest of the people are either skeptical or poor. The skeptical ones ask the same questions the OP did, but eventually, once they get a whiff, they get sucked in too. Parents LOVE this shlt, let's be real, it can be addictive. The skeptical coaches try to do the right thing, but quickly figure out they are shooting a BB gun at a freight train, then they start making the bad decisions too. The pressure to win is there whether you like it or not, if you fight against that, you'll lose the parents and ultimately the team. And then the poors/problem kids, they provide the talent at the A/AA level, some of them end up being pretty good. And another thing, these teams usually constantly turn over, as the addicted parents try and find the best situation for middling johnny, but it's a futile effort. Scams abound at this level. Some may take an end of year trip to a World Series somewhere, and coaches are always looking for easy tournaments to get a quick win and keep parents happy. Lot of Facebook posts and "Didn't end the way we wanted, but we sure had fun !!!1111 Work hard play hard!!!111" nonsense.

At 13U/14U, I do think it starts to sort itself out, as the field weeds kids out, it's no longer a 'kid's game' (i.e. it gets more serious), and you usually consolidate about 80% of a AAA/Major kids and 20% of the others, who may be a problem kid with talent or a late developer.

And that's how it goes down, man. Tournament directors laugh their way to the bank, and it's not changing. Cat is outta that bag, mane.

Back to the OP @dgsmith15, do you have any connections to anybody on a good team? At 9, you're a little late to the party, might be tough to break in. Any friends out there coaching that you trust? Also - may as well be prepared, it's a huge jump from rec ball to travel. I've seen MANY a overconfident parents get humbled real quick because johnny made all-stars in 10U, after all the talent had left, and expected travel ball to accommodate their demands.

I have 3 boys playing travel ball (2 on AAA teams, all independent), and that hasn't been our experience at all. We don't travel. We don't play year-round. We don't pay private coaches. We don't burn out pitchers. Our rosters haven't turned over. And we're far from alone. I'm not saying it's easy to find those teams (depending on where one lives), but they're out there, and I think they're becoming more prevalent as parents realize what a scam the organizations are.

I think folks spend too much time bemoaning the destruction of rec ball (that ship has sailed) instead of recognizing that it's entirely possible to field good teams that play a reasonable schedule and don't pay $250/mo. to an organization and play year-round.

 

[OG Goat Holder]

I have 3 boys playing travel ball (2 on AAA teams, all independent), and that hasn't been our experience at all. We don't travel. We don't play year-round. We don't pay private coaches. We don't burn out pitchers. Our rosters haven't turned over. And we're far from alone. I'm not saying it's easy to find those teams (depending on where one lives), but they're out there, and I think they're becoming more prevalent as parents realize what a scam the organizations are.

I think folks spend too much time bemoaning the destruction of rec ball (that ship has sailed) instead of recognizing that it's entirely possible to field good teams that play a reasonable schedule and don't pay $250/mo. to an organization and play year-round.

How much do you pay per year? Bare bones, about 2-3 fall tournaments and 8-10 spring tournaments with nothing but local travel is about minimum $600-$700. That’s field rental, insurance, uniforms and tournament fees.

 

[Shane of Pisgah]

How much do you pay per year? Bare bones, about 2-3 fall tournaments and 8-10 spring tournaments with nothing but local travel is about minimum $600-$700. That’s field rental, insurance, uniforms and tournament fees.

That's probably about right, per kid. You've also got to pay for uniforms and practice field rental. We typically pay once in the spring and once in the fall, and that's probably pretty close to the yearly total. Still a fraction of what folks are paying to organizations.

 

[Bulldog45]

How much do you pay per year? Bare bones, about 2-3 fall tournaments and 8-10 spring tournaments with nothing but local travel is about minimum $600-$700. That’s field rental, insurance, uniforms and tournament fees.

Can do it for $500 on up. And that’s on par with rec fall and spring season cost combined, when you consider the tournament version will yield 2X or more the number of games over the fall and spring. Then if you do rec all stars you add in additional cost.

 

[SirBarksalot]

These threads are always a poot

Fify

 

[OG Goat Holder]

Can do it for $500 on up. And that’s on par with rec fall and spring season cost combined, when you consider the tournament version will yield 2X or more the number of games over the fall and spring. Then if you do rec all stars you add in additional cost.

Whoa now. Even the most expensive rec leagues are about $150, and if you're in those areas, the travel fees are likely a lot higher than $500. And if you make All-Stars through a league, you may have to pay for certain things, and may not. But usually would play 3 tournaments, $300/pop, divided by 10 or so kids, $30 extra. So even the most expense possible way of doing rec/all-stars is half the price of the cheapest travel ball team, and as you know it skyrockets from there, and the food/travel/etc. is on top of that.

There's no way to justify the expense travel ball vs. rec, once you average it out. But you're right - you're paying for more games and better competition. The question is, are those extra games needed, and is the travel needed to get the competition. MLB is on record saying they wish we'd do more of a 2-1 split, practice per game. Travel ball is about 1-4 practice per game. Adults love the games for the entertainment, therefore they pay for it. Practice is work, nobody likes that.

 

[Bulldog45]

You said

“Bare bones, about 2-3 fall tournaments and 8-10 spring tournaments with nothing but local travel is about minimum $600-$700. That’s field rental, insurance, uniforms and tournament fees.”

and I addressed what you said to cover those expenses. The answer to your question didn’t fit your narrative so you moved the goalposts as usual.

 

[ronpolk]

This thread is depressing to me. I have a 4 year old that right now is nuts about baseball. He’s played one year of t ball and I’ve already had travel ball coaches ask my plans for him in a couple years. I knew travel ball was popular but I didn’t realize rec ball was essentially dead. I have great memories as a kid playing in competitive rec leagues for football, baseball, basketball and soccer. I guess those days are over. Seems like if you show a little baseball talent as a young kid then you just play baseball all the time.

As a parent, I’d imagine you probably feel a little guilty if you don’t let your son play travel ball, especially if they show a little talent. From what I can gather, rec ball is just not going to help a kid progress at all. So, if you got any talent and hope to get better, seems travel ball is the only option.

 

[jethreauxdawg]

Here’s what we’ve been through. Played rec the last two years. Everyone we knew who wanted to play baseball, played on some level of travel ball. The rec teams absolutely sucked. Seemed like there were about 4 true rec teams, each had about 3-5 good players and the others sucked. The other 4 teams were travel ball teams that lost all the weekend tournaments so they came to the rec league to get some wins.

 

[OG Goat Holder]

I have great memories as a kid playing in competitive rec leagues for football, baseball, basketball and soccer. I guess those days are over.

Not so much in football and basketball. Baseball and soccer, you’re right on. When my kid was coming up 3-4 years ago, you could play baseball/soccer in rec through about 7U, maybe 8U. Now, it’s 6U.

Funny too, bc football/basketball are the money sports. But now with NIL, I expect parents to go even crazier in baseball with them thinking their kid might snag an elusive SEC spot (which we all know ain’t happening for 99.99%). It’s a real thing. Soccer, who knows. But basically those two sports are where middle class parents think their kid can ‘make it’.

There are a few travel football/basketball leagues out there, but they aren’t necessary, at this time, like the other sports.

I say play tennis or golf.

 

[85Bears]

This thread is depressing to me. I have a 4 year old that right now is nuts about baseball. He’s played one year of t ball and I’ve already had travel ball coaches ask my plans for him in a couple years. I knew travel ball was popular but I didn’t realize rec ball was essentially dead. I have great memories as a kid playing in competitive rec leagues for football, baseball, basketball and soccer. I guess those days are over. Seems like if you show a little baseball talent as a young kid then you just play baseball all the time.

As a parent, I’d imagine you probably feel a little guilty if you don’t let your son play travel ball, especially if they show a little talent. From what I can gather, rec ball is just not going to help a kid progress at all. So, if you got any talent and hope to get better, seems travel ball is the only option.

My experience if I had it to do over again would be let your son play with his friends in league ball and have fun, then when he’s a bit older put him in tourney ball. The burnout rate is very high in travel ball. Some really talented kids have the game ruined for them because it’s more work than fun.

 

[lanceharbor7]

If he likes it that much you have to do it. 9-10 isn’t young at all anymore for it. It’s a terrible horrible necessary evil for those that like baseball and want to get better. Dont let John Smoltz try to tell you differently.

This is terrible advice. Life is way too rich to revolve around any sport at that age. "Terrible, horrible, necessary evil." 3 outta 4 ain't bad.

 

[Herbert Nenninger]

Our 44 lb six year old got asked to try out this year. We shot that down, as did his best friend. There seems to be enough rec teams in Tupelo to at least have fun with that for a few more levels. I can coach him well enough that I don’t have that fear of him falling much behind. I’ll report back in a few years as to whether we held strong to avoid travel ball.
One vivid memory I have from little league was how I just couldn’t wait to start practice when the season started each year. Like a kid with a new toy. Since it had been months since I had played. Kids that play year round never get to experience that freshness, and I have to think that contributes to some of the burnout.

 

[PooPopsBaldHead]

Any of you 17ers got kiddos that are on a Travel baseball team? If so, how's the experience been for them and the entire fam?

My oldest (9) is absolute up my *** about trying out for a couple of different travel teams. The kid loves baseball, and I honestly love nothing more than watching him play and enjoying himself. But I feel like 9-10 is a fairly young age for this level of commitment for an entire year. He likes playing other sports (soccer, basketball, flag football) and I don't want take away the chance for him to partake in those as well. Baseball, however, is his #1 and he's really turned a corner this year in terms of athletic ability. The wife and I are committed to setting him up for success as he continues to grow, but we certainly don't wanna risk early burnout/injury.

Just curious what you other heathens gotta say.

Oh buddy. Let me tell you... Travel Ball is a 17ing cult. If you think playing 7 games in 2 days and wasting your entire weekend is what fun baseball is, then go for it.

 

[The Cooterpoot]

If you believe your kid can play college ball and wants to, I much prefer kids play for a big time organization that doesn't play every weekend. The every weekend stuff is pointless and you play the same damn teams so much you might as well schedule a tournament with them. Big time programs play in big time showcases and not these piddling little money makers. It's expensive due to the travel etc but it's better. Now if little Jimmy wants to just play with a group of friends and maybe make the HS team play local. Neither option is wrong, just a decision.

 

[jethreauxdawg]

Most importantly, if you want to see your kid have all the glory you never had on the diamond, you need to pony up that money so little Johnny can be on Easly’s #4 team in the age group. It’s the only way y’all can share the spotlight and wear the cool sweatshirt with the “EB” on it. He’ll have fun playing baseball and you can impress other parents by showing them the credentials on your chest. Hopefully they won’t ask what Easly team your kid is on.

**For those of you not hip to travel ball in the Memphis area, Ed Easly runs the show. His organization is the top in the area. Pretty sure he has at least 5 teams in each age division. Ed is making more money in baseball than probably any State grad that didn’t have a long run in the MLB. Good for Ed. I think several former State players are coaches in the organization. I’m just poking fun at the parents.

 

[8dog]

This is terrible advice. Life is way too rich to revolve around any sport at that age. "Terrible, horrible, necessary evil." 3 outta 4 ain't bad.

You are absolutely right life is too rich to revolve around it. But I’m just telling you how it is. If you think a kid can play rec and then jump into travel ball at 12-13 they are going to struggle.

So it’s not so much that it’s terrible advice. It’s that it sucks that this has to be the advice

 

[PhiDawg]

If anyone in central MS wants their kid to give club lacrosse a try (5th grade through varsity), shoot me a message. Practice Sunday evenings at Madison Central in the fall with season prep in January (Sun, Mon and Wed nights) followed by Feb thru Apr season. $300 registration fee plus equipment rental. Most games in Jackson, Hattiesburg, Oxford. Some in Red Stick/North Shore area.

If your kid has burned out on soccer/baseball, give this a try.

 

[PooPopsBaldHead]

This thread is depressing to me. I have a 4 year old that right now is nuts about baseball. He’s played one year of t ball and I’ve already had travel ball coaches ask my plans for him in a couple years. I knew travel ball was popular but I didn’t realize rec ball was essentially dead. I have great memories as a kid playing in competitive rec leagues for football, baseball, basketball and soccer. I guess those days are over. Seems like if you show a little baseball talent as a young kid then you just play baseball all the time.

As a parent, I’d imagine you probably feel a little guilty if you don’t let your son play travel ball, especially if they show a little talent. From what I can gather, rec ball is just not going to help a kid progress at all. So, if you got any talent and hope to get better, seems travel ball is the only option.

It's not dead everywhere. A few years ago my kid played in a local little league for coach pitch. It was awesome. There was a bunch of practices, a season with a couple games a week and at least one practice between games to work on mistakes etc. Everyone got some playing time and the better players were scattered around the league to make it fair... I believe having good players on a team with some lesser players actually can help lift the whole teams abilities.


Well fast forward 3-4 years, that local little league (we don't live there anymore) takes those coach pitch kids at 9-10 and 11-12 years old and still offers a regular league with end of season all stars that can play in tournaments at the district, estate, regional, national, and world level... But for the more committed baseball only kids they also have a tryout for a select team at the beginning of the season for each age group. These are their "select" teams that go play in all the regional tournaments spring through fall and get 50+ games in a year.

What I find awesome, is that the all star teams from the rec league are just as good if not better than the select teams. It turns out the most athletic kids end up playing rec/all stars so they can play football in the fall instead of just baseball year around.

I really like that model better than what's available most places. Where I am at now travel/club ball tournaments is the only real option. Our "rec" league is so bad that my 6 year old played all the way up with 8-10 year olds and was probably the best player on the field most games. So our 8-12 year olds that actually want to play baseball have to play in tournaments and it's 17ing horrible. All day at the trying to figure when you play next... Stupid áss walk up music for a 9 year old... Mom's screaming "way to wear it" when a 52# kid gets hit in the ribs... It's a travesty.

 

[greenbean.sixpack]

If anyone in central MS wants their kid to give club lacrosse a try (5th grade through varsity), shoot me a message. Practice Sunday evenings at Madison Central in the fall with season prep in January (Sun, Mon and Wed nights) followed by Feb thru Apr season. $300 registration fee plus equipment rental. Most games in Jackson, Hattiesburg, Oxford. Some in Red Stick/North Shore area.

If your kid has burned out on soccer/baseball, give this a try.

Hey, I have some lacrosse gear to sell if anyone is interested.