Top 10 14U and 13U teams in the country

[Matt789]

Featured on Youth1.com in a new segment called the 5th Inning Stretch: http://www.youth1.com/baseball-headl...-5-season.html

[tg643]

Featured on Youth1.com in a new segment called the 5th Inning Stretch: http://www.youth1.com/baseball-headl...-5-season.html

Whoopdie freak'n dooo! Four of the players from a nationally ranked 13U team in our area (when my son was thirteen) went on to play college baseball. It was a team of physical early bloomers. The kid throwing 80 didn't make varsity until senior year. Reason: He threw 82 in high school. Also the formula for ranking teams is absurd. My 13U and 14U teams were ranked in the top 100. I'm sure there were plenty of teams not ranked just as good or better.

[The Uncoach]

OP is part of the problem with youth sports. Awful.

[real green]

Whoopdie freak'n dooo! Four of the players from a nationally ranked 13U team in our area (when my son was thirteen) went on to play college baseball. It was a team of physical early bloomers. The kid throwing 80 didn't make varsity until senior year. Reason: He threw 82 in high school. Also the formula for ranking teams is absurd. My 13U and 14U teams were ranked in the top 100. I'm sure there were plenty of teams not ranked just as good or better.

4 of 12 players from a ranked 13u team played college ball. Obsurd!!! 25% go on to play elite ball 5 years later. They must of just been early bloomers.

[Jake Patterson]

He graduated from HS in 2004 and college 2010 - How can he be an expert in anything??? I have no problem with anyone writing about youth sports, but I agree this only adds to the already huge problem we have in youth sports.

[real green]

Please remind what the problem is in youth sports?

[Swing Coach]

Please remind what the problem is in youth sports?

Since you asked....read the following:
http://www.macnseitz.com/index.php?o...ams&Itemid=322

Has to be one of the best articles I have seen in years ....definitely a MUST read imo.

SC

[Jake Patterson]

Worth repeating!!

FIVE SIGNS OF A NIGHTMARE SPORTS PARENT

Nearly 75 percent of kids who play organized sports quit by age 13. Some find that their skill level hits a plateau and the game is no longer fun. Others simply discover other interests. But too many promising young athletes turn away from sports because their parents become insufferable.

Even professional athletes can behave inappropriately when it comes to their children. David Beckham was recently ejected from a youth soccer field for questioning an official. New Orleans radio host Bobby Hebert, a former NFL quarterback, publicly dressed down LSU football coach Les Miles after Alabama defeated LSU in the BCS title game last month. Hebert was hardly unbiased: His son had recently lost his starting position at LSU.

Mom or dad, so loving and rational at home, can transform into an ogre at a game. A lot of kids internally reach the conclusion that if they quit the sport, maybe they'll get their dad or mom back.

As a sports parent, this is what you don't want to become. This is what you want to avoid:

• Overemphasizing sports at the expense of sportsmanship: The best athletes keep their emotions in check and perform at an even keel, win or lose. Parents demonstrative in showing displeasure during a contest are sending the wrong message. Encouragement is crucial -- especially when things aren’t going well on the field.

• Having different goals than your child: Brown and Miller suggest jotting down a list of what you want for your child during their sport season. Your son or daughter can do the same. Vastly different lists are a red flag. Kids generally want to have fun, enjoy time with their friends, improve their skills and win. Parents who write down “getting a scholarship” or “making the All-Star team” probably need to adjust their goals. “Athletes say their parents believe their role on the team is larger than what the athlete knows it to be,” Miller says.

•Treating your child differently after a loss than a win: Almost all parents love their children the same regardless of the outcome of a game. Yet often their behavior conveys something else. "Many young athletes indicate that conversations with their parents after a game somehow make them feel as if their value as a person was tied to playing time or winning,” Brown says.

• Undermining the coach: Young athletes need a single instructional voice during games. That voice has to be the coach. Kids who listen to their parents yelling instruction from the stands or even glancing at their parents for approval from the field are distracted and can't perform at a peak level. Second-guessing the coach on the ride home is just as insidious.

• Living your own athletic dream through your child: A sure sign is the parent taking credit when the child has done well. “We worked on that shot for weeks in the driveway,” or “You did it just like I showed you” Another symptom is when the outcome of a game means more to a parent than to the child. If you as a parent are still depressed by a loss when the child is already off playing with friends, remind yourself that it’s not your career and you have zero control over the outcome.

Originally published on ThePostGame.com, February 15, 2012. Written by Steven Henson

[songtitle]

What do any of the above comments have to do with those top 10 teams? Do any of you know these teams or their parents?

[Baseball gLove]

Everything is absolute...Typical response of haters and jealous people. I have no jealousy and always wish the best to all. Same when I take my kids to the National championships. When I go to these I always hope I get to see the next Pujols or Nolan Ryan or ??? Stop hating.

[Jake Patterson]

What do any of the above comments have to do with those top 10 teams? Do any of you know these teams or their parents?

Song, it has nothing at all to do with the teams listed in this guy's top ten... It has everything to do with the problem of adults taking youth athletics too serious...
gLove, if you have been around these "National Championships" then you will absolutely see the parents listed above.

We've been down this road a number of times and I still stick to what I've always said.... The people who promote such nonsense are typically parents of those involved or people trying to make a living off the dillusion.

Also gLove - Not a hater... Just a parent and long-time coach who's taken the journey and has the opportunity of looking back.

[Swing Coach]

Agreed ...no haters here - just commenting on one of dumbest articles I have ever seen written. A top 10 USA list with 9 teams from Cali or Florida. Who cares? I guess each to his own, but I can assure you that Getting caught up in this frenzy decreases your odds of playing at a high level down the road.

SC

[tg643]

Everything is absolute...Typical response of haters and jealous people. I have no jealousy and always wish the best to all. Same when I take my kids to the National championships. When I go to these I always hope I get to see the next Pujols or Nolan Ryan or ??? Stop hating.

If you want to studs at national championships go to East Cobb or Jupiter for the 17/18U PG/WWBA championships. There's a reason why the college and pro scouts are at these games and not 13U and 14U.

[tg643]

I just noticed the link talks about the Banditos organization. I don't care how much they win. Watch the coach's behavior at tournaments. They are the epitome of lack of class. I've also heard stories they will take the family's 5K and toss the kid under the bus after the season starts if a better player comes along. I would rather been known for helping kids get to the next level whether it's high school or college than throwing kids under the bus because a better talent came along. It's easy to accumlate early bloomers and win.

[Baseball gLove]

@ TG643 That sounds like Body Armor's team and another called PlayHard, they pulled that garbage too and their teams were not very good.

I know a more than a few that were consdered studs at 14 and they did pan out. Watched one playing against the Angels this evening. 7 of the kids on his U14 either played D-1 college ball or were drafted. 2 are millionares and a 3rd could have been if he didn't do pot. He still had a decent payday but it looks like his baseball career is going up in smoke.

Another kid that started as 14 year old on his varsity squad, and made all conference as a 14, is projected to go in the 1st round in this year's draft.

[The Uncoach]

Agreed ...no haters here - just commenting on one of dumbest articles I have ever seen written. A top 10 USA list with 9 team from Cali or Florida.....

Exactly. There's no such thing as a "Top 10" at that age, except the small circle within which one operates.

[songtitle]

gLove, if you have been around these "National Championships" then you will absolutely see the parents listed above.

I see these parents in rec league. They're everywhere. There has always been one on every one of my kid's teams no matter the sport, no matter the level.

[Jake Patterson]

Exactly. There's no such thing as a "Top 10" at that age, except the small circle within which one operates.

We can't even do that with high school with any accuracy and they have state-wide organizations that control every school... how the hell can it happen with 10/u's. It's a load...

When looking back at the thread I guess I have to admit I am a hater.... I hate the narcisisstic dillusional parents who make the athletic (or any child experience, to include music, dance, etc.) experience less than it could be.... I hate the parisitic morons who line up drooling to take money on false promises... I hate the opportunistic "clinicians" who convince a parent their only shot for their child is $6,000 a year and 100 games travelling all over God's creation... I hate "expert" who come out of the woodwork (in this case with NO experience) writing about the absolute best in the game when he's not even close.... I hate the parents who just can't let their sons and daughters just be kids.... So in that respect I do hate..... Well not hate - dislike.

[Jake Patterson]

I see these parents in rec league. They're everywhere. There has always been one on every one of my kid's teams no matter the sport, no matter the level.

I agree... more so here .

[michhood622]

I just noticed the link talks about the Banditos organization. I don't care how much they win. Watch the coach's behavior at tournaments. They are the epitome of lack of class. I've also heard stories they will take the family's 5K and toss the kid under the bus after the season starts if a better player comes along. I would rather been known for helping kids get to the next level whether it's high school or college than throwing kids under the bus because a better talent came along. It's easy to accumlate early bloomers and win.

tg643,

I live right here in Tomball about 5 minutes from the Banditos. While some of the rumors seem to be true, there are a lot that aren't. Now my boy plays 13U right here in Houston and I would never play for the banditos. Not because I think they would take my money and then chunck my kid to the side. Mainly because I do not like the example the coaches and managers set for the kids. It always seems that it is about the coaches than the kids. Just my opinion here. Plus I do not think that they coach, I think that they recruit very well.

Plus I doubt they would give my kid a 2nd look, he has not hit a growth spurt yet and does not shave. LOL

[songtitle]

If you want to studs at national championships go to East Cobb or Jupiter for the 17/18U PG/WWBA championships. There's a reason why the college and pro scouts are at these games and not 13U and 14U.

Who said anything about scouts? Are you saying you can't join a team unless scouts will see your 13U kid? I'm not following you.

[songtitle]

I hate the parisitic morons who line up drooling to take money on false promises

Here, here. I was just talking to some HS Dads that spent thousands last summer traveling around with no real benefit.

[tg643]

Who said anything about scouts? Are you saying you can't join a team unless scouts will see your 13U kid? I'm not following you.

The dad I referenced wanted his 13U kid on a team the scouts follow. I told him scouts follow 17/18U teams at prospect showcases. He then pursued the 17/18U teams. He felt his early bloomer kid was on the way to Cooperstown. He also wanted an under the table bonus from the team he selected for his son. The kid become a laughing stock because of the dad. As the kid started failing as a freshman and sophomore in high school I reminded parents to back off. The kid was a very nice kid. It was the father that was a putz. He would come over the the opposing crowd and tell them their sons had no chance against "my boy."

[songtitle]

He would come over the the opposing crowd and tell them their sons had no chance against "my boy."

Yikes................

[Jake Patterson]

Here, here. I was just talking to some HS Dads that spent thousands last summer traveling around with no real benefit.

We have a player in our program who's going to another program that will play over 50 games in the summer after HS ball. That'll be over 75 games for the months of April - August (5 months) on the promise he'll get better looks.... Cost about $3,000.00 + expenses, trainer is a pitching clinician trying to build a business and is promising the world, travel all over the State, double headers, etc.... We had three scouts look at the player last year, but this pitching coach convinced him if he wants to play in college he needs to be playing 100 games a year... What a moron...

Am I being too harsh?