I came across THIS ARTICLE a few months ago and it's something I've been thinking about and would love the input of more seasoned baseball dads than myself. Our kid finished his first season of coach pitch (6U) and had a great time. He's young, so we played him up so he could play with friends from kindergarten rather than the 5U tee ball he was aged for. He did fine, but had a blast and says he wants to play again.
Based on the article linked above, I'm worried that the travel ball system that exists now will snuff out any sort of development he might experience talent-wise coming up through the park system and the intensity and cost of the travel ball circuit will take away any joy there is in just being a kid and playing ball with his friends. He ain't gonna get a scholarship playing baseball, but I want him to have the opportunity to play as long as he wants to put in the work.
That said, two things that I've been considering:
1. There's a sense that if you don't do these elite travel leagues, your ball career is going to be capped at age 10 or so. Middle and HS coaches, people say, are already watching those teams so by the time tryouts for school come around, they already have an idea of who's in and out. So if you even want to have a chance at playing past 10-12, you have to pony up the cash and travel.
BUT
2. I've known a couple of college coaches in different sports in my time and every single one of them has said the same thing: PLAY. EVERY. SPORT. Not a single one thinks the advent of the elite, year-round sports industrial complex has been a good thing. Heck, I even know some college track coaches and they just shake their heads when recruits tell them they've been coached at cross country by their dad since they were 6 and that's just RUNNING.
So if the consensus among coaches is that playing more sports is better, playing a single sport 10 months out of the year and paying thousands of dollars is bad, and the travel ball industry has not provided the access and development that leads to more scholarships and opportunity, how is the cycle broken?
Based on the article linked above, I'm worried that the travel ball system that exists now will snuff out any sort of development he might experience talent-wise coming up through the park system and the intensity and cost of the travel ball circuit will take away any joy there is in just being a kid and playing ball with his friends. He ain't gonna get a scholarship playing baseball, but I want him to have the opportunity to play as long as he wants to put in the work.
That said, two things that I've been considering:
1. There's a sense that if you don't do these elite travel leagues, your ball career is going to be capped at age 10 or so. Middle and HS coaches, people say, are already watching those teams so by the time tryouts for school come around, they already have an idea of who's in and out. So if you even want to have a chance at playing past 10-12, you have to pony up the cash and travel.
BUT
2. I've known a couple of college coaches in different sports in my time and every single one of them has said the same thing: PLAY. EVERY. SPORT. Not a single one thinks the advent of the elite, year-round sports industrial complex has been a good thing. Heck, I even know some college track coaches and they just shake their heads when recruits tell them they've been coached at cross country by their dad since they were 6 and that's just RUNNING.
So if the consensus among coaches is that playing more sports is better, playing a single sport 10 months out of the year and paying thousands of dollars is bad, and the travel ball industry has not provided the access and development that leads to more scholarships and opportunity, how is the cycle broken?
