Little league Baseball

[SLCIRISH]

Hey, just wondering, who out there coaches or has a kid involved with cal ripken/babe ruth baseball? Any stories?

I coach the major Yankees at Murray Liberty League,(my son is on the team) it is Cal Ripken, and we play on 70 foot bases, with full MLB rules. Before that I was the VP of Baseball at Kearns Babe Ruth.
I love coaching and teaching kids, this season, we have a really good team with 4 first time players, and some really good 12 year old leaders. Cant wait for the season to start on April 5.

 

[davidtro99]

I coach Cal Ripkin Baseball in South Bend. I live in Elkhart. It is my passion. I am heading into my 11th season. i coach major level. 60' game. we have won our league 2 of the last 3 years and i think we are the favorite this season. we are having out tryouts and draft this weekend and my practices will start on the 28th. our season doesnt begin until may
7th. i am coachinh our 9U all star team this season. in 2009 i finished an all star team and i had them from the time they were 10 until they were 12. that team only lost 3 games over 3 seasons. the last game was the Ohio valley regional championship. the winner went to the cal ripkin world series. so far i have coached or managed 6 all star teams and all 6 have qualified for the state tournament with 3 teams winning and another team placing runner up. i am so excited to start working with my team again.

if you want to chat about anything baseball email me.. davidtbaseball@yahoo.com

 

[Mr. McGibblets]

I coach Cal Ripkin Baseball in South Bend. I live in Elkhart. It is my passion. I am heading into my 11th season. i coach major level. 60' game. we have won our league 2 of the last 3 years and i think we are the favorite this season. we are having out tryouts and draft this weekend and my practices will start on the 28th. our season doesnt begin until may
7th. i am coachinh our 9U all star team this season. in 2009 i finished an all star team and i had them from the time they were 10 until they were 12. that team only lost 3 games over 3 seasons. the last game was the Ohio valley regional championship. the winner went to the cal ripkin world series. so far i have coached or managed 6 all star teams and all 6 have qualified for the state tournament with 3 teams winning and another team placing runner up. i am so excited to start working with my team again.

if you want to chat about anything baseball email me.. davidtbaseball@yahoo.com

You're like the Joe Torre of Little League.

Good stories, I was unaware of this Cal Ripken format. I assume these teams are ineligible for the Little Lague World Series?

 

[A Pac]

I am an Ohio High School Athletic Association certified official for baseball but my roots are with little and travel league ball. I love doing it and can't wait for it to start up soon. From my own personal experiences, little league parents/coaches can be more insane than their high school counterparts at times. You should all be ashamed of yourselves

 

[davidtro99]

there is a 60' and a 70' cal ripkin world series. if you are a cal ripkin chartered league then you are not eligible for "little league" world series. you have to charter in one or the other. unless you are indipendend. but if you are independent you can not be eligle for cal ripken or little league tournaments.


i dont think i would say i am that good. i would say that i have been very fortunate to have very dedicated players.

 

[ACamp1900]

I coach the daugther in little league softball...

Growing up my father was President of the local little league... it was a nightmare... being his son and making the All Star team every year was a bad recipe... I had parents saying they were going to kick my a$$ (seriously)... their kids were told to throw at me whenever possible... I had to have lead the league in hit by a pitch every single year and never once did I try to get hit... Every game I was one of the best players yet every game I was only this and that because of daddy and the one at bat I didn't get a hit was always highlighted on my walk to the car... and God forbid I ever made an error, which wasn't very often thankfully, but if I did... parents, kids, random people... all over me for it... I have pretty bad feelings about youth sports parents...

but, I enjoy working with my daugther.

Little side note, I never even heard of Cal Riken and Babe Ruth growing up... there was just Little League...

 

[SLCIRISH]

well our season has started, we are 2-2. but have had 4 rain outs.

we have fun, I dont allow parents/politics to interfer with the way our team is ran. Im sorry to hear of peoples bad experience, but I have had only good.

Also we put our kids in accelerated leagues, to help combat the super leagues and to keep kids in our little league. I coach a 9U team and we were playing about 40 miles away in Tooele last Saturday, it was the bottom of the last inning and what had been a 7-1 lead, turnd into a 13-7 defict, I called my team together before our at bat, and asked them if we should leave, we tried hard but 6 runs was too much, it was a long drive home.....well they played, and we had 2 outs, 2 strikes, nobody on base, and a kid gets a base hit, followed by another, another, a walk, a triple... and next thing you know we are down 13-12, runners on 2nd and 3rd, 0-2 count once again, and Dallan steps out of the batters box, takes a deep breath, steps back in and lines a single up the middle for the game winning hit. 11, 9 year olds, greet Dallan at first base, and I remembered why I love little league baseball so much.

 

[youngblood24]

I coach AAU near Boston, MA. 14 year olds. I was their coach about 3 years ago but took a couple years off before getting back into it. It's unreal how much better a few of them got - and they're learning even more this year.

Obviously at this age - adjusting to the curveball is basically the biggest issue - along with still getting used to 60'6'' and 90 ft bases.

We played in a tournament in Connecticut last weekend - went 3-0 before the finals were rained out. Won every game by an average of 10 runs. We mostly play around Massachusetts, RI, and NH (takes a toll on my truck), but it's a lot of fun.

Not that it matters, but one of our coaches was Kevin Stevens, a former all-star w/the Devils and Penguins in the NHL. Man was he intense.

 

[phork]

I coach my two boys in Tball.

 

[SLCIRISH]

Shawn Bradley, has a son in our league, you should see all the young kids, look up to 7 foot 7 inches. WE also have Dave Schramms (Utah rb coach, formerly oc), twin sons playing in our league.

 

[Veritate Duce Progredi]

Apologies for the thread necromancy....

This baseball world is wild for a parent who didn't grow up playing. We have 3 kids, 10 yo, 8 yo, 6 yo. We've kept them all in rec ball to this point but every year the talent is drained more and more. Players jump ship to their travel ball teams to the point this past year was brutal with a number of kids signing up who appeared to have never swung a bat before.

My 10 yo insists he wants better competition and a better team so he tells me about a team some of his school friends play on. We go to the tryout and these kids are 10 steps above where we just came from. Kids are diving in the outfield for fly balls, reactive, live arms. Found out it was a AAA travel team, which apparently means they are really damn good.

Signed up for DBAT a few weeks back because I realized that just going outside and throwing pitches was not enough. We've been going to the cages a couple times/week, attended a couple lessons so my oldest could work on some mechanical issues with his swing/pitching. The instructor who happens to coach some older travel teams advised us to attend multiple tryouts to get the reps and see the different teams. So now we have 2 more tryouts before vacation and one when we get back.

Also, apparently every travel ball player has at least one $400+ bat, some of them have two. USA bats are apparently "dogshit" and we need to get a USSSA bat that has more "pop".

Any of you baseball guys, please chime in with thoughts/recommendations. My son is driven, he's asked to start working out (don't worry, primarily bodyweight) and he wants to go to the cages often. He plays other sports but he LOVES baseball. I didn't get to play because my parents were busy with their occupation so my head is spinning.

How much hitting and pitching should he be doing in a week? A month? A year?

 

[NDRock]

Enjoy this moment because your life as you know it, is over. You’re about to enter the world of travel sports. Good luck, you’re gonna need it (and perhaps a 2nd job).

 

[IRISHDODGER]

For your 10 y/o who is driven & loves baseball there's nothing wrong w/ getting more reps or trying to get better. But remember D-Bat, instructors & even some travel programs (not all) are driven by profit motive so don’t buy into everything they’re selling you. Tee work is just as vital as BP & it’s much more affordable to get a good tee (I recommend Tanner Tees) & a net where he can work in your garage or the back yard. If you decide on lessons find out what the hitting instructor’s philosophy is. Every kid is different so their swings will be different as well. Hitting a round ball w/ a round bat squarely is the hardest thing to do in any sport. It’s physics so get an instructor who understands the mechanics of hitting in that regard. I was blessed to find a guy who had a pro background (never made it to Majors) but completely understood the mechanics of properly hitting a baseball & how to relay that to my son. He also was disgusted by all the profit motive, the HS coaches who insisted on practicing before during & after school & the parents who are convinced their kid is “the one” and get sucked in to spending too much money & time on baseball. Stay away from coaches who are obsessed w/ a kid’s size, his exit velocity, his launch angle & if he pitches, his velo. Aaron Judge & Shohei Ohtani are not the norm. You know that but some of these idiot coaches do not. Where my kid played, there was AA, AAA & Major. After playing on a AAA team for awhile, my son got disenfranchised b/c they just wanted to be a Major team & they weren’t consistent enough. So me & some other like minded guys put together a AA team and got back to basics. We recruited parents…not kids. It was the most fun my son had and he thrived before moving up to HS.

Lastly, don’t be a sucker for the latest $400 bat. Once your son finds one that he likes to swing, go to places like JustBats.com and look for last year’s (or even older) model. They’re still brand new bats w/ zero mileage. Same w/ gloves. If you get him the right glove, it’ll last forever. Of course, at 10; he’ll likely still have room to grow into his final glove but you get the picture. Take him to Academy or Dick’s to try on the glove he thinks he wants. Then once you have the brand & model, scour the web for a deal (there’s a justgloves.com too) b/c there’s plenty of websites that sell discounted elite gloves.

I think it’s great your son(s) love the game. To ensure they maintain that love over their lifetime, remind yourself that baseball is not a year round sport & that they will lose zero ground to their peers by playing other sports or just taking a break. Nothing wrong w/ taking practice reps in the offseason but I’ve seen talented HS kids who opted not to play college b/c it had become a “job” and they were just tired of the grind. Best of luck. And don’t think you not playing as a kid is detrimental. If anything, it may be a blessing that keeps you all grounded.

 

[ACamp1900]

Let him push if he wants but if he gets good I would highly suggest forcing a season off here or there. The year round thing will only lead to burnout right when things get serious

 

[Veritate Duce Progredi]

Let him push if he wants but if he gets good I would highly suggest forcing a season off here or there. The year round thing will only lead to burnout right when things get serious

You guys might be misunderstanding me but I appreciate the input. I told him I'm willing to help him reach his goals but playing a sport year round right now isn't in his best long term interest. I've read enough to understand that LTAD is considered the best approach for long term success and athletic development and that means allowing kids to be in different sports and express different movement patterns.

Only for the past month has he been committed to doing some fun workouts: hops, skips, jumps, single and bilateral, sprints, etc. Then we do some basic bodyweight exercises, etc. Some timed isometric holds, so light med ball stuff. Just things for him to learn how to move.

I'm scrutinizing what kind of commitment these travel teams are looking for because he will be playing other sports, specifically soccer and basketball. I've not pushed him toward this because I don't want him burning out from an overzealous father. I ask him what his goals are and what he's willing to do to achieve them. I told him if he wants to be an excellent athlete, his workouts should be his "other" sport year round.

He's driving this but I need assistance to help him develop. He's never been super interested in practicing at home until this year, now he's doing drills and practicing off the tee with some dad-pitch thrown in. It seems like some kids have been going to a private coach for years and piling up work in the cage and in front of the net and we haven't been at that stage until now. I don't think he's "the one". He's a decent player who wants to get better.

All input is appreciated.

 

[ACamp1900]

You guys might be misunderstanding me but I appreciate the input. I told him I'm willing to help him reach his goals but playing a sport year round right now isn't in his best long term interest. I've read enough to understand that LTAD is considered the best approach for long term success and athletic development and that means allowing kids to be in different sports and express different movement patterns.

Only for the past month has he been committed to doing some fun workouts: hops, skips, jumps, single and bilateral, sprints, etc. Then we do some basic bodyweight exercises, etc. Some timed isometric holds, so light med ball stuff. Just things for him to learn how to move.

I'm scrutinizing what kind of commitment these travel teams are looking for because he will be playing other sports, specifically soccer and basketball. I've not pushed him toward this because I don't want him burning out from an overzealous father. I ask him what his goals are and what he's willing to do to achieve them. I told him if he wants to be an excellent athlete, his workouts should be his "other" sport year round.

He's driving this but I need assistance to help him develop. He's never been super interested in practicing at home until this year, now he's doing drills and practicing off the tee with some dad-pitch thrown in. It seems like some kids have been going to a private coach for years and piling up work in the cage and in front of the net and we haven't been at that stage until now. I don't think he's "the one". He's a decent player who wants to get better.

All input is appreciated.

No I get it,… it was more general advice from my experience

 

[NDFAN2008]

The best kids don’t even play little league anymore they either play travel ball year round or babe Ruth

 

[pumpdog20]

Run, don't walk, away from travel sports.

 

[IRISHDODGER]

Run, don't walk, away from travel sports.

That’s too much of a generalization. As VDP pointed out, his local baseball association (in our days it was Optimist Club) is watered down w/ kids who don’t even want to be there. He can go hand pick what kind of “travel ball” team his son plays for. The ones you’re likely referring to are pyramid schemes where they offer all age groups but the highest level at the highest age is what drives the train. It also requires them to recruit regionally so one of their selling points is they waive the fees. Why? Because all the lower level teams in that organization are paying the freight. They’ll take a check from anyone dumb enough stroke one. The key is finding like-minded parents who want a competitive but not crazy scenario where they can learn & improve their fundamentals. You also don’t have to travel far as that’s a misnomer as well. It’s all relative in each person’s area. There’s no absolutes. Do what’s best for your kid (and your budget)

 

[IRISHDODGER]

The best kids don’t even play little league anymore they either play travel ball year round or babe Ruth

Babe Ruth is typically for 14-15 year olds. Little League is typically for 11-12 year olds.

 

[Irish#1]

One of my boys played travel ball. it was the summer before his freshman year. They played over 100 games that summer! I was fine when he said he didn’t want to play anymore. Lol

I can’t imagine the costs these days. Just remember, Kids don’t need the best to compete.

I may be wrong , but your post made it sound like you’re a little excited. Not trying to offend you, Just make sure you’re not living through him.

 

[Irish2155]

Apologies for the thread necromancy....

This baseball world is wild for a parent who didn't grow up playing. We have 3 kids, 10 yo, 8 yo, 6 yo. We've kept them all in rec ball to this point but every year the talent is drained more and more. Players jump ship to their travel ball teams to the point this past year was brutal with a number of kids signing up who appeared to have never swung a bat before.

My 10 yo insists he wants better competition and a better team so he tells me about a team some of his school friends play on. We go to the tryout and these kids are 10 steps above where we just came from. Kids are diving in the outfield for fly balls, reactive, live arms. Found out it was a AAA travel team, which apparently means they are really damn good.

Signed up for DBAT a few weeks back because I realized that just going outside and throwing pitches was not enough. We've been going to the cages a couple times/week, attended a couple lessons so my oldest could work on some mechanical issues with his swing/pitching. The instructor who happens to coach some older travel teams advised us to attend multiple tryouts to get the reps and see the different teams. So now we have 2 more tryouts before vacation and one when we get back.

Also, apparently every travel ball player has at least one $400+ bat, some of them have two. USA bats are apparently "dogshit" and we need to get a USSSA bat that has more "pop".

Any of you baseball guys, please chime in with thoughts/recommendations. My son is driven, he's asked to start working out (don't worry, primarily bodyweight) and he wants to go to the cages often. He plays other sports but he LOVES baseball. I didn't get to play because my parents were busy with their occupation so my head is spinning.

How much hitting and pitching should he be doing in a week? A month? A year?

100 swings a day. My T station was my childhood swing set and my old man eventually concreted a T in a 2 gallon bucket because I was breaking so many.

Don’t over think it, just swing. And then swing some more. Don’t give a fuck about any other kids either. Take care of your own game…

Hit them lefty if it’s not too late.

 

[NDFAN2008]

Babe Ruth is typically for 14-15 year olds. Little League is typically for 11-12 year olds.

I meant cal Ripken most towns around me don’t have little league anymore

 

[Irish2155]

For your 10 y/o who is driven & loves baseball there's nothing wrong w/ getting more reps or trying to get better. But remember D-Bat, instructors & even some travel programs (not all) are driven by profit motive so don’t buy into everything they’re selling you. Tee work is just as vital as BP & it’s much more affordable to get a good tee (I recommend Tanner Tees) & a net where he can work in your garage or the back yard. If you decide on lessons find out what the hitting instructor’s philosophy is. Every kid is different so their swings will be different as well. Hitting a round ball w/ a round bat squarely is the hardest thing to do in any sport. It’s physics so get an instructor who understands the mechanics of hitting in that regard. I was blessed to find a guy who had a pro background (never made it to Majors) but completely understood the mechanics of properly hitting a baseball & how to relay that to my son. He also was disgusted by all the profit motive, the HS coaches who insisted on practicing before during & after school & the parents who are convinced their kid is “the one” and get sucked in to spending too much money & time on baseball. Stay away from coaches who are obsessed w/ a kid’s size, his exit velocity, his launch angle & if he pitches, his velo. Aaron Judge & Shohei Ohtani are not the norm. You know that but some of these idiot coaches do not. Where my kid played, there was AA, AAA & Major. After playing on a AAA team for awhile, my son got disenfranchised b/c they just wanted to be a Major team & they weren’t consistent enough. So me & some other like minded guys put together a AA team and got back to basics. We recruited parents…not kids. It was the most fun my son had and he thrived before moving up to HS.

Lastly, don’t be a sucker for the latest $400 bat. Once your son finds one that he likes to swing, go to places like JustBats.com and look for last year’s (or even older) model. They’re still brand new bats w/ zero mileage. Same w/ gloves. If you get him the right glove, it’ll last forever. Of course, at 10; he’ll likely still have room to grow into his final glove but you get the picture. Take him to Academy or Dick’s to try on the glove he thinks he wants. Then once you have the brand & model, scour the web for a deal (there’s a justgloves.com too) b/c there’s plenty of websites that sell discounted elite gloves.

I think it’s great your son(s) love the game. To ensure they maintain that love over their lifetime, remind yourself that baseball is not a year round sport & that they will lose zero ground to their peers by playing other sports or just taking a break. Nothing wrong w/ taking practice reps in the offseason but I’ve seen talented HS kids who opted not to play college b/c it had become a “job” and they were just tired of the grind. Best of luck. And don’t think you not playing as a kid is detrimental. If anything, it may be a blessing that keeps you all grounded.

Razor Shines is an Indy legend but the worse hitting coach I’ve ever met. He’s an idiot. Teaches that slow/keep the barrel in the zone forever style. Naw, not me…let’s snap those wrist and launch type swing here. Bat speed/whip.

Coach Malone however Ball State/Michigan could teach hitting. He taught/teaches that A to B knockout. Mike Tyson shortest point. Nob to the ball, not barrel.

 

[ab2cmiller]

Apologies for the thread necromancy....

This baseball world is wild for a parent who didn't grow up playing. We have 3 kids, 10 yo, 8 yo, 6 yo. We've kept them all in rec ball to this point but every year the talent is drained more and more. Players jump ship to their travel ball teams to the point this past year was brutal with a number of kids signing up who appeared to have never swung a bat before.

My 10 yo insists he wants better competition and a better team so he tells me about a team some of his school friends play on. We go to the tryout and these kids are 10 steps above where we just came from. Kids are diving in the outfield for fly balls, reactive, live arms. Found out it was a AAA travel team, which apparently means they are really damn good.

Signed up for DBAT a few weeks back because I realized that just going outside and throwing pitches was not enough. We've been going to the cages a couple times/week, attended a couple lessons so my oldest could work on some mechanical issues with his swing/pitching. The instructor who happens to coach some older travel teams advised us to attend multiple tryouts to get the reps and see the different teams. So now we have 2 more tryouts before vacation and one when we get back.

Also, apparently every travel ball player has at least one $400+ bat, some of them have two. USA bats are apparently "dogshit" and we need to get a USSSA bat that has more "pop".

Any of you baseball guys, please chime in with thoughts/recommendations. My son is driven, he's asked to start working out (don't worry, primarily bodyweight) and he wants to go to the cages often. He plays other sports but he LOVES baseball. I didn't get to play because my parents were busy with their occupation so my head is spinning.

How much hitting and pitching should he be doing in a week? A month? A year?

I can tell you are a good Dad and you are taking the right approach. Where you go from here just depends on your son's desire to put in the work and what kind of budget you are willing to put towards baseball.

Top of the list item is to get him on some kind of team (travel or otherwise) where he is playing against better competition. It looks like you are all over this one. Doing well against crappy teams will only keep you motivated for a short time.

Pick a team where you know they care about skill development of the boys as their primary focus. Too many teams the only focus is winning and development is an afterthought.

Pick a team that fits his current skill level. In all reality, you probably don't want him on AAA travel team (even if it gives him an ego boost to say he made that team) if he would be the last guy off the bench. Probably don't want him on a team where he is far and away the best player either. He needs to be challenged and kept motivated. Being the best kid on a team or the worst kid on the team will likely not keep him motivated.

If you got the money and are willing to spend on continual lessons, I don't see anything wrong with that. At that age we just did a few lessons to make sure our son was on the right path and didn't have any significant mechanical issues. I certainly didn't have the funds to pump into lessons like some families did.

Hitting some every day (BP or off the tee) would be awesome for him and his development, but I would let him lead the way. If he wants you to throw BP every day, I would throw BP until my arm fell off.

Throwing some every day is awesome. "Pitching" however is a whole other deal. Managing pitching workload during travel ball is a monumental task. This is why you need to pick a travel team that cares more about developing him then winning games. Otherwise they are throwing waaaaayyyyy too much during a short time span because winning becomes more important than protecting a kids arm. Your kid ends up battling arm soreness all summer and nobody is happy. Playing baseball with a sore arm is not fun in any way.

I second the recommendation from IRISHDODGER about buying "last years bat model" off of Justbats. We did that countless times and saved a bunch of money.

I'm about 4 years removed from the travel ball scene, but willing to help in any way I can.

 

[Veritate Duce Progredi]

That’s too much of a generalization. As VDP pointed out, his local baseball association (in our days it was Optimist Club) is watered down w/ kids who don’t even want to be there. He can go hand pick what kind of “travel ball” team his son plays for. The ones you’re likely referring to are pyramid schemes where they offer all age groups but the highest level at the highest age is what drives the train. It also requires them to recruit regionally so one of their selling points is they waive the fees. Why? Because all the lower level teams in that organization are paying the freight. They’ll take a check from anyone dumb enough stroke one. The key is finding like-minded parents who want a competitive but not crazy scenario where they can learn & improve their fundamentals. You also don’t have to travel far as that’s a misnomer as well. It’s all relative in each person’s area. There’s no absolutes. Do what’s best for your kid (and your budget)

This is exactly it. The "travel" can be misleading. We're talking about local area tournaments with the farthest travel being 45-60 mins away. The rec league where we're playing is actually working against my son's excitement for the sport. It's so diluted and so many kids are only there because their parents want them to be. Last game of the year, my son left in tears after going 2 for 3 and scoring their only runs. He was dejected because they lost 7-2. He's not an amazing player, he just really loves the game and needs to find appropriate competition.

One of my boys played travel ball. it was the summer before his freshman year. They played over 100 games that summer! I was fine when he said he didn’t want to play anymore. Lol

I can’t imagine the costs these days. Just remember, Kids don’t need the best to compete.

I may be wrong , but your post made it sound like you’re a little excited. Not trying to offend you, Just make sure you’re not living through him.

This isn't what we're after either. The team we tried out for last night said they have 7 tournaments between spring-late summer. 2 practices/week during the season. 2 fall tournaments and 1-2 practices/month over the winter. This feels appropriate to me.

I'm more than a little excited but not for the reasons you think. Everyone wants their kids to have goals, drive and work ethic. I want my kids to find things they are passionate about and go towards them. This is the first time my oldest has really shown initiative like this and it really fills me with pride. We tried chess from 1st-3rd grade and he really enjoyed it until he promoted up to playing 5th-8th graders. Then his little tricks and opening traps didn't work anymore and he needed to study the game to move forward and he quickly lost interest. I try to let my kids find something they are passionate about. He likes music so he's signed up for an instrument this next year.

Basically, I want my kids to find their way in this life. If they are driven, I'll be there in full support.

100 swings a day. My T station was my childhood swing set and my old man eventually concreted a T in a 2 gallon bucket because I was breaking so many.

Don’t over think it, just swing. And then swing some more. Don’t give a fuck about any other kids either. Take care of your own game…

Hit them lefty if it’s not too late.

Thanks for this. 100 swings a day might be too many or too few, depending on the day. I'll relay your thoughts, just swing. Hitting lefty might be difficult at this point but it's certainly worth a try. I'll ask him to switch it up and take a few swings. If someone is attempting to make that switch late, is there any advice besides flip sides and swing away?

I can tell you are a good Dad and you are taking the right approach. Where you go from here just depends on your son's desire to put in the work and what kind of budget you are willing to put towards baseball.

Top of the list item is to get him on some kind of team (travel or otherwise) where he is playing against better competition. It looks like you are all over this one. Doing well against crappy teams will only keep you motivated for a short time.

Pick a team where you know they care about skill development of the boys as their primary focus. Too many teams the only focus is winning and development is an afterthought.

Pick a team that fits his current skill level. In all reality, you probably don't want him on AAA travel team (even if it gives him an ego boost to say he made that team) if he would be the last guy off the bench. Probably don't want him on a team where he is far and away the best player either. He needs to be challenged and kept motivated. Being the best kid on a team or the worst kid on the team will likely not keep him motivated.

If you got the money and are willing to spend on continual lessons, I don't see anything wrong with that. At that age we just did a few lessons to make sure our son was on the right path and didn't have any significant mechanical issues. I certainly didn't have the funds to pump into lessons like some families did.

Hitting some every day (BP or off the tee) would be awesome for him and his development, but I would let him lead the way. If he wants you to throw BP every day, I would throw BP until my arm fell off.

Throwing some every day is awesome. "Pitching" however is a whole other deal. Managing pitching workload during travel ball is a monumental task. This is why you need to pick a travel team that cares more about developing him then winning games. Otherwise they are throwing waaaaayyyyy too much during a short time span because winning becomes more important than protecting a kids arm. Your kid ends up battling arm soreness all summer and nobody is happy. Playing baseball with a sore arm is not fun in any way.

I second the recommendation from IRISHDODGER about buying "last years bat model" off of Justbats. We did that countless times and saved a bunch of money.

I'm about 4 years removed from the travel ball scene, but willing to help in any way I can.

Really appreciate this lengthy input. We had another tryout last night and I thought he showed himself well. We both left feeling like he put his best foot forward and if that isn't enough for them, then it just means he needs to keep working. He left feeling very positive (as did I) so it was a good evening.

As to the team skill level comment, you hit the nail on the head. I was worried he might get selected for a AAA team and I didn't want him to carry that mental burden of being the worst or fringe player. In my uneducated mind, I want him middle of the pack or slightly above so he can see better players routinely and he can feel like he's contributing but still hungry to develop.

I do appreciate the equipment advice as well. I found a bat last night that was reduced to just above 50% of it's MSRP from this past season. It looks like a great bat and my son was excited about it so we'll probably pull the trigger on that if he makes one of these teams. He wants to swing a slightly heavier bat so this seems like a good step from -10 to -8.

Thanks again guys, I'm all ears on this stuff so if you have other suggestions, I'd be happy to hear them.

 

[NDRock]

I think you’re on the right path. Both my kids got very into their respective sports. One thing you learn as a parent is, you can’t make them love something. Expose them to as much as possible and then support them in their pursuits. Which is what you’re doing. I personally had a blast writing checks, driving them all over the country, and watching them succeed and fail. Wish I was back where you are. Enjoy.

 

[Irish#1]

This isn't what we're after either. The team we tried out for last night said they have 7 tournaments between spring-late summer. 2 practices/week during the season. 2 fall tournaments and 1-2 practices/month over the winter. This feels appropriate to me.

I'm more than a little excited but not for the reasons you think. Everyone wants their kids to have goals, drive and work ethic. I want my kids to find things they are passionate about and go towards them. This is the first time my oldest has really shown initiative like this and it really fills me with pride. We tried chess from 1st-3rd grade and he really enjoyed it until he promoted up to playing 5th-8th graders. Then his little tricks and opening traps didn't work anymore and he needed to study the game to move forward and he quickly lost interest. I try to let my kids find something they are passionate about. He likes music so he's signed up for an instrument this next year.

I wasn't trying to be disrespectful. Having raised four boys that went through similar situations, I've seen a lot of parents who fail to recognize that. One of our sons was a very good wrestler and was ranked #1 in state. We took a few trips to colleges that wanted him to wrestle. I was disappointed when he said he didn't want to wrestle in college, but I told him it was his decision and I supported whatever he wanted to do.

Sounds like you have this dialed.

 

[Wild Bill]

I get the criticism around travel ball, but if your kid loves the game, you’ve got to make the move sooner rather than later or risk falling behind. My son is only 8, and I can already see the gap widening between him and other kids he’s played with over the past couple of years, especially at the plate.

I agree with the advice to attend as many tryouts as possible - it's a great way to make connections. Even if he doesn’t make the team this year, he might get a shot next year or be asked to sub in for a tournament if the team is short players. I’ve already had a couple coaches reach out to see if my son could fill in as a sub.

The best advice I can offer when it comes to picking his team is that you’re playing for the name on the back of the jersey, not the front. That wasn’t my mindset last year, and it’s not something I share with my kid, but it’s the perspective I adopted about halfway through the season, and it’s how I’ll approach every decision going forward about where he plays and who he plays for.

Signing up for dbats is a good move adn relatively affordable if you can use it often and you're willing to throw to him. I take my son there 2-5 days a week depending on the time of year, he sees a hitting coach once or twice a month and he does tee work on his own - about a 1000 swings a week. We work on fielding, throwing, and pitching a couple days a week for about 30 minutes. I try to make this as fun as possible, keep him moving aroudn and catching the ball at different angles, long toss, etc, and limit the fielding "drills" to a five minutes or so which is usually grounders and working on catcher's shit.

He also plays football and soccer, which gives him a nice change of pace, but we still stick to the routine above even when he's playing other sports. The fear of burnout is understandable, but he's been doing it for almost two years and he still waits at the door with his glove and bat when I get home from work, so it’s clearly working.

 

[NorthDakota]

Baseball is baffling to me. Im 33. Played travel ball age 12-14. We practiced on weekdays we didnt have games. That was about it. Start late May and end in early August maybe?

Now I walk by our baseball/softball complex and there are <10 year old boys and girls ripping BP with their parents after practice. Like dozens of them.

We barely had a dozen kids on our team