advice please

Yankees...I think we will all agree there are no guarantees the player will be better when he gets older regardless of what or where he plays....

I think a lot depends on the player and what he wants to do....my son played Travel (AAU/USSSA) from the time he was 11 and progressed into Legion Ball and Showcase...thank goodness he never really experienced burn out. He was fortunate to play with a talented group of players all the way through that pushed him to perform and get better...players respond differently, some need to be pushed by good talent around them to make them work harder others will progress and get better on their own.

I'm more of the opinion that in the early ages....as long as they are having fun, developing their skills and enjoying their friends let the play where they want to. Things start getting REAL serious as they head into High School....:bananarena:

 

Dbacks20

I agree wholeheartedly.

 

I greatly appreciate everyone's reply. I don't think burnout will be an issue with him. He has a unique and very childlike love of the game. He asked if I could throw him some BP after school this week since the weather has warmed up. This is after our fall ball season was over for about 3 weeks and he has started basketball. When the girls have a tournament he will take a bat, ball and glove and try to find a pick up game with some of the other kids who are there with their sisters. Since he has a solid foundation of skills I dont think I am missing out on anything by not playing travel ball the next few years... just need to make sure he doesnt loose any of the skills he has learned in the interim.

 

I assumed he was older than that... I agree with Braves, enjoy the game!!

 

Sorta off topic...How is the high school coach also the local Legion coach? I thought that was against the rules.

 

Burnout

My son played travel ball from 12 years old on up and never once waivered in his commitment or love for the game. Unfortunately, a bunch of the talented kids he did start with did burn out and leave the game. It totally depends on the kid and only the parent is in a position to know how much is too much.

 

a question

for kids that do start out at a pre-teen age playing travel ball like AAU/USSSA, etc.......how does that idea get into a kid's head ; by that I mean does the kid come home and ask to play travel ball, or does the parent suggest it to the kid, or one kid in the group starts the idea then his buddies want to be a part of it???

 

just a couple of follow ups:

1) getting started in travel ball: in our instance my son was taking hitting lessons from a former pro player who had been asked to keep an eye out for kids with any talent in a certain age group.. that was how my son got started.

2) burn out: you know you hear a lot about trying to avoid that but I have often wondered (with how hard one has to work to be really good at this game) if there were going to burn out at 10 or 12 or 14 whats the difference between that and burn out at 16, 17 or 18 or older? Either the young man has an intense passion for the game or he does not.

 

Burn Out

Let the kid decide how much they play. If they want to play fine. If they dont fine. As long as the kid is the one that is pushing for more and not just the parent. The most important thing in my opinion at a young age is to make sure that they are getting good coaching. People get too focused on making sure lil Johnny is on the best team. Maybe the best team is not the team with the best players at this young age. Maybe the best team is the one where the focus is on teaching the fundementals of the game and having some fun.

 

It's ALL about the coaching as they're coming up.

P.S. Hope to see you and "Coach 27, Jr." down the 1st baseline this Spring, Coach 27!