The Trails of A Youth Baseball B team

[giantheart]

Wow...I've been lurking on this forum for a while without ever really posting. I'm kind of surprised with the reactions here.

I coach my son's 11U travel team. He's been playing travel ball since 9U and I've been coaching since 10U. We are the B team for our organization. There is a vast difference between rec ball and travel ball. I live in Orange County NY, not far from this area of NJ. Rec/little league usually plays 12 games a year. That's it. If my son didn't play travel ball for the last 2 years he would have been left WAY behind. He's at a point now where he is as good as a few of the kids on the A team, but if he was on it he probably wouldn't play as much. For the time being I am content for him to be on the B team where he is one of the better players on the team.

Playing travel ball, even on a B team, has been a tremendous benefit for him. It has given him a chance to play extra games in the spring, and play through the summer and fall. It has given him exposure to playing at a higher level and allowed him to face better pitching. I don't see anything negative about this. Within travel baseball there are many different levels. We play some teams that we beat easily and sometimes we get our butts kicked. Even our A team, which is very good, gets crushed at some of the tournaments they play in. I still don't see anything wrong with it...the kids are playing baseball, learning the game, getting better, and...most importantly...having fun! What is wrong with that?

In the two years I've been doing this I've watched some of the kids who were "stars" at 9U start to slip, and some who struggled at 9U coming into their own now...and they are only 11. Who knows what these kids will be capable of in a few years when they've hit puberty. But if they just stopped playing from mid June until the following April there is no way they would have progressed this far. I know...I know...their dads can have catch with them everyday...that's not the same to a 9, 10, or 11 year old as actually playing. Kids that age need to actually PLAY in order to stay motivated and see their hard work pay off!

In our area most of the travel leagues have at least 2 levels...some have 3 or 4. You can pick a level that is appropriate for your team. Some of the best teams skip the league play and just do tournaments. I don't see anything wrong with any of it. Find a level that works for your team...challenging them without getting them in over their head... and play ball!

Do any of you REALLY believe that their should be no level of baseball in between rec/little league and elite travel?

again...this is not about the value of having a B team,

and fwiw, most little league/rec leagues have summer and fall leagues...at least they do in NY/NJ/Conn area.

[Standballdad]

Travel ball for kids under 13 I just don't get. Let these kids play other sports in the off season. If the kid has talent it will become more apparent as he gets older. He is better off at an earlier age to get good one on one lessons.

[Jake Patterson]

It just supports that the whole youth baseball thing is getting worse...

[jbolt_2000]

I don't have a problem with them starting a B squad, but the author certainly counters several points she makes in the article and is just flat out wrong or exaggerating in others:

To have your dreams dashed is devastating for anyone, at any age. But to be told when you are in fourth grade that you are basically finished with serious baseball? That's a lot for a 9-year-old to take.

- Who said the kids were finished? They just got cut from the team!

my husband and I, oblivious to the arms race in youth sports, thought it was ridiculous to schedule our lives around out-of-town baseball games and triweekly practices.

but two paragraphs later:

We all agreed that it was good for them to understand the demands of high-level competition,

When my husband played Little League in the 1970s, every kid, no matter how inept or uncoordinated, got a chance to play and to dream of becoming the next Willie Mays. The object wasn't winning but learning the game and developing skills. It wasn't until eighth or ninth grade that coaches started cutting players and focusing on winning.

- Little League still is this way!

I didn't want our sons to get swept up in the competitive maelstrom, but I couldn't bear to stand by passively while their baseball dreams were crushed.

- Then join Rec League!

So she didn't want ultra-competitive games, with tri-weekly practices, a ridiculous schedule and out of town games, but...

But the parents didn't think that rec was going to train their kids to be serious ballplayers.

If they didn't get the same training as the travel team now, they would never catch up.

- This is flat out wrong. I've seen plenty of kids wait until 12-13 y.o. to do travel and did fine catching up.

The new team played in a league separate from the A team's but just as competitive.

- I thought she didn't want ultra-competitive like the A team's league???

Our mission wasn't to win but to provide enough training to give the boys a rewarding experience and a chance of competing in high school.

- What they do at 9y.o. will have no impact on how they do in High School.

Our outfielders missed flies, bungled grounders, fumbled line drives. The boys would stand at home plate immobile, afraid to swing at the fast pitches.

- Sounds to me that Rec ball would have been perfect for these kids. Where they could have still learned and grown with the game, but had fun at the same time.

that if you practice something every single day, you will get better

- I thought this was one of the things her and her husband didn't want???

For all my reluctance to embrace travel baseball, no one was more thrilled than I.

- It sounds like she embraced travel ball the second she formed the B team. This sentence makes no sense.

[Kevin7273]

again...this is not about the value of having a B team,

and fwiw, most little league/rec leagues have summer and fall leagues...at least they do in NY/NJ/Conn area.

Here in Orange County NY, I am not aware of any summer LL, other than all stars. Only a few have fall leagues...and they are a joke. Our LL started fall ball last year. There were 10 and 11 year olds who had never played baseball before and a lot of games were cancelled due to not enough players.

I think the issue with this NJ team was they weren't playing at the right level. I still think its ridiculous that anyone thinks there should be nothing in between rec ball and elite travel ball.

[Jake Patterson]

Here in Orange County NY, I am not aware of any summer LL, other than all stars. Only a few have fall leagues...and they are a joke. Our LL started fall ball last year. There were 10 and 11 year olds who had never played baseball before and a lot of games were cancelled due to not enough players.

I think the issue with this NJ team was they weren't playing at the right level. I still think its ridiculous that anyone thinks there should be nothing in between rec ball and elite travel ball.

What do you think the "right level" is for a nine year old??

[CircleChange11]

It just supports that the whole youth baseball thing is getting worse...

I think youth baseball, on average, is suffering. Like I have mentioned earlier, I don't blame travel baseball ... I "blame" absentee dads, other dads that are choosing to spend time working with their own boys rather than taking on a team, and of course video games and internet, combined with changes in society where kids just don;t play outside like they used to. We've all talked about how we would play as kids, and the younger kids would learn from their dads and even older kids at the diamonds. If someone was on your pick-up team that couldn't field or throw well, you taught them how to and got the hang of it emulating the other kids. That part was pretty much awesome. The kid with an older brother and older friends that were good players was an incredibly valuable resource.

Anyway, we're in the middle of LL All-Stars (District Tourney) and we've played 3 games: 17-0 (1 inning), 11-3, and 26-1. We're essentially playing "put the ball in play and automatically get on base" games. We, as I have described in the past, were hardly travel ball juggernauts during the travel games/tourneys we played along with LL games. It has been stunning to me.

I know I've said this before, but when I was a kid we went to the diamonds every day with my dad. Our conversation on the way to the field was about who else was going to be there and what kind of game/practice we'd come up with so everyone could be involved. Now, when I take my son to the diamonds our discussion is about what field we're going to hit on because we almost always have all 4 fields to ourselves.

Society has changed, and the discussion is the same whether you're talking about being outside playing tag, climbing trees, pickup basketball or anything else. Parental attention has also been divided among various areas of life, as well ... and kids have seemingly limitless options of things to do. Things like the X games, online gaming, etc draw the attention of quite a few kids that might have played baseball otherwise just to be around other kids. Now they can get together with "birds of their own feather" and do what they do.

[Kevin7273]

What do you think the "right level" is for a nine year old??

Depends on the team...any level where you can be competitive. My team played in a league this past spring that had numerous levels within each age group. First you picked whether to play 46/60 or 50/70. From there you picked A (rec teams), AA (club teams/town all star teams), or AAA (elite travel teams). We played 50/70 AA...our A team played AAA. We both finished around .500. You just need to have a realistic understanding of your teams ability and find a league that is right for you.

[TXDAD]

Too many people worry about 7-8-9 year old baseball. Baseball is a marathon, not a sprint.

Hit the nail on the head. Worrying about the potential of prepubescent baseball players is silly, yet so many people do it. Not sure why it really matters all that before the age of 13.

[tg643]

But to be told when you are in fourth grade that you are basically finished with serious baseball?

The only message is right now they are not among the twelve best in their grade. Work harder.

By the time they are 9, many are already on elite teams, often with private coaches, practicing every day and training year round.

This is getting sucked into keeping up with the Jones and drinking the Kool Aid

Two years ago, my husband and I, oblivious to the arms race in youth sports, thought it was ridiculous to schedule our lives around out-of-town baseball games and triweekly practices.

And they are right.

Basically, if you weren't picked for the team when you were 7, you were out.

This is just more of the Kool Aid. Even in the teen years making a travel team one year didn't guarantee making it the next year. High school and prospect showcase teams only care about what a player can do NOW, not where they played last year much less at seven.

When my husband played Little League in the 1970s, every kid, no matter how inept or uncoordinated, got a chance to play and to dream of becoming the next Willie Mays.

When I played LL in the 60's only sixty 10-12 year olds made it. All the rest played LL Farms with was very unorganized. We didn't have MPT. I got ten plate appearances when I was nine. I only played in half the games (best 9's could be counted as 10's ... 4 made the entire league).

Those decisions are now made in the second and third grade. Today's athletic tracking squeezes out not only average players but those who might excel later, after they hit adolescence. Is it right to deny this American rite of passage to so many kids?

Wrong! This is drinking the Kool Aid.

But the parents didn't think that rec was going to train their kids to be serious ballplayers.

Kids don't train to be serious players in the preteen years. They play to learn the basics and develop a passion for playing.

If they didn't get the same training as the travel team now, they would never catch up.

Bull squat!

Our mission wasn't to win but to provide enough training to give the boys a rewarding experience and a chance of competing in high school.

The training concept is good. Training for high school as a preteen is delusional.

Still, it wasn't a pretty season. We didn't win a single game and came in dead last in the league.

The team was in over it's head, probably with well intentioned but inferior coaching.

[tg643]

My daughter started playing rec basketball at age seven. She was awful. She worked her way up to mediocre by the time she was in 8th grade. She never tried out for travel or middle school basketball because she knew she wouldn't make it. But she was the hardest worker and most studious player on the court. She knew what to do. She lacked the skills to execute. Then the late bloomer started to grow. She made the freshman team. She kept growing. She made varsity soph year. She was in the playing rotation.

This all happened because she had a passion for the game and hung in there until her skills caught up with the passion. She never let playing rec ball be a humilation. I never started a B travel team for her. Chances are she wouldn't have made the B team if I was honest about cuts. Now I see the "can't lose" attitude in her as a young professional adult. Many parents don't see youth sports for the life lessons they provide.

[Baseball gLove]

Hit the nail on the head. Worrying about the potential of prepubescent baseball players is silly, yet so many people do it. Not sure why it really matters all that before the age of 13.

Why does it matter? Well my son will be playing on the freshman team at his high school squad as a 13. All the t-work and BP in the world are no substitute for live game at bats vs. live game pitching. There are a lot of great batting practice and intersquad hitters that look completely different come game time.

The 2nd baseman for UCLA played on a left over "B" squad as a 10u.

[Jake Patterson]

Depends on the team...any level where you can be competitive. My team played in a league this past spring that had numerous levels within each age group. First you picked whether to play 46/60 or 50/70. From there you picked A (rec teams), AA (club teams/town all star teams), or AAA (elite travel teams). We played 50/70 AA...our A team played AAA. We both finished around .500. You just need to have a realistic understanding of your teams ability and find a league that is right for you.

Kevin, parents who put this much thought into deciding what team their child should play on is putting way too much effort into this and they are doing the children a diservice. Leagues who offer more than one choice do little to help all youngsters. There is no way anyone has a "realistic understanding" of what a childs potential is going to be - so why limit those with undiscovered talent and promote those with limited talent??? At this age it's about making it fun and any combination of talent can have fun with good coaching.


All this garbage about TB, A, AA, AAA, teams and the importance of finding the "right team" makes it about the adult and not the child. The kids at the lowest level having the most fun are the ones learning the most.

[giantheart]

Now I see the "can't lose" attitude in her as a young professional adult. Many parents don't see youth sports for the life lessons they provide.

TG: that is the whole point!!! thank you for saying this

Why does it matter? Well my son will be playing on the freshman team at his high school squad as a 13. All the t-work and BP in the world are no substitute for live game at bats vs. live game pitching. There are a lot of great batting practice and intersquad hitters that look completely different come game time.

The 2nd baseman for UCLA played on a left over "B" squad as a 10u.

Glove

Do the math, how many at-bats did your son get as part of a travel team in both practice and live game exposure and how many at-bats would he have gotten if you just worked out with him and gave him individual attention during the time devoted to travel team activities. I am not saying he should not play ball and only practice, but is there that much a difference, at that age, in at-bats from travel vs. rec league vs. dad throwing. You want your kid to play in games..absolutely..thats where all the fun is.....but if your kid is not ready for the elite team...do you really need to go create a new team for his benefit?


again, I am not against B teams....but if as a parent you are going to tgo to tthe trouble to form your own B- team to get your son exposure to better play...why not just take that time and effort and practice with him every night. He will get more at-bats, more fielding opp, etc.

I don't think this article is really about wanting your kids to get better... this is about the social perception and status symbols and entitlement expectation that parents give their kids.

[tg643]

I don't know what happened to my detailed post from last night. I'll go with a short version. These parents are a combination of helicopter and delusional. The race to the top in sports starts with puberty. Until then it's about learning fundamentals and building a passion for the game. It is not a shame to not make a travel team at a young age (see previous post about my daughter). Not making a team should not be an opportunity to coddle a kid and feel sorry for them. It's an opportunity to ask the kid how badly they want to improve to make the team next year. In the mean time play anywhere (rec) due to love of the game.

I made a friend when his son cheap shotted my son turning two in 13U travel. We've been friends since. His son started in the most elite travel organization in NJ at 13U. By 17U college prospect showcase ball only four the sixteen 13U players still made the team. The best player on that 13U team was a mediocre high school player. He threw 80 in 13U. He threw 82 in high school. Because he overwhelmed hitters through 14U when he was bigger and stronger he never developed any finesse and command on the mound. He was meat in high school.

[tg643]

What a lot of parents don't realize is you can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear. You can't buy talent. You can only nurture and develop potential. At the preteen level I've seen athletically average kids pass others in ability based on expensive baseball training. But once puberty and raw potential took over these kids were left in the dust. Other parents don't understand the early bloomer will stop growing and be passed by. When I was told a 5'8" LL stud would get a full college ride because he never lost a game I only responded, "That's nice" and smiled. His 5'5" father was the one who told me. The kid washed out of baseball at the JV level. He was 5'9" throwing 2 mph faster (80), still down main street.

If dad is 5'7" and mom is 5'2" chances are the kid isn't going to develop into a college prospect. It's not impossible. There are exceptions. It's just unlikely. On my son's college prospect showcase team every kid had a parent who was at least a D2 college athlete. A few of the kids had two parents who played college sports.

But the reality is any high school player can play college ball somewhere if they don't care about the quality of play and the academics. My son's high school team would bludgeon the local community college. Check out Coppin State and their archives at the D1 level. They're desperate to fill out the roster. Do you mind losing by 10+ every game?

[Kevin7273]

Kevin, parents who put this much thought into deciding what team their child should play on is putting way too much effort into this and they are doing the children a diservice. Leagues who offer more than one choice do little to help all youngsters. There is no way anyone has a "realistic understanding" of what a childs potential is going to be - so why limit those with undiscovered talent and promote those with limited talent??? At this age it's about making it fun and any combination of talent can have fun with good coaching.


All this garbage about TB, A, AA, AAA, teams and the importance of finding the "right team" makes it about the adult and not the child. The kids at the lowest level having the most fun are the ones learning the most.

Jake...I think you may be misunderstanding what I am saying...just to clarify...in my situation parents didn't decide anything. This isn't a situation where parents register their kids and the league organizes them into various levels like LL. EXISTING travel teams were given the opportunity to register their team for a level of play that the coach thought was appropriate. In my case our organization (we are run by a baseball training center with numerous teams at every age level) decided to put 1 11U team into the AAA level and the other into the AA. It has nothing to do with having any "understanding" of what an individual child's potential is going to be. Teams are free to move up or down to any division on a season to season basis.

When I said "you just need to have a realistic understanding of your teams ability and find a league that is right for you" I meant the COACH. A coach should be able to make this determination if he has been coaching a team for any length of time. He can then put his team in an appropriate division that should give them solid competition. In our AA division their was a team that didn't win a single game in the spring season. I would assume that coach may have overestimated his teams ability level, so I would assume he dropped them down to the A level for the summer where I am sure they could be very competitive.

The way my organization structures it's teams does exactly what you suggest....it doesn't limit those with undiscovered talent or promote those with limited talent. Those with "undiscovered" talent generally get the chance to play on the B team and receive excellent instruction. The "studs" go to the A team and face higher competition. The teams get shuffled up each season and any player that excels can get moved up to the A team.

Playing travel ball, even at the B team level, has helped my son tremendously. I can't believe the transformation he has made in the 2 years he has been doing it. And yes, I play plenty of catch and spend plenty of time soft tossing and hitting him fly balls. But again, we're not talking about HS kids here...a kid that age needs to play games to stay motivated and continuing having fun. Had I just left my son in LL I don't believe he would have come as far as he has...for several reason. First, in our area, LL is very limited in number of games. Second...coaching selection is very political and many of the coaches don't really know what they are doing. My son's travel team receives all of it's training from professional baseball instructors, and the father's who coach receive a lot of training from the organization and are also monitored to make sure no one is playing "daddy ball". I can only speak for myself when I say that this system has worked very well for us and for many of our other players.

[tg643]

All this garbage about TB, A, AA, AAA, teams and the importance of finding the "right team" makes it about the adult and not the child.

I've seen lots of parents wear their kids playing travel sports like a badge of honor. What's most important for a kid is getting the best coaching regardless of the level of competition. There are plenty of travel coaches who accumulate early bloomer physical talent and teach them nothing. They rely on outmuscling teams. These coaches disappear at 14U. Talented player don't want to play for them.

[tg643]

Where did it all go awry? I never played ball to develop for the next level. LL was playing for the moment. Babe Ruth ball wasn't development for high school. It was playing for the moment. I figure as long as I was in school I would play ball. But there wasn't a plan. I figured I would play college ball at the college where I would be a 7th generation legacy. I was surprised in high school when my coach told me coached and scouts were watching. I never thought baseball would have any bearing on where I went to college, even though it happened.

Now preteen parents are manic about their kids need to get on the early track. Early teen kids and their parents talk about playing college ball. How about proving you can play high school varsity at an all-conference level before thinking about college ball? I never looked at my kids development in any sport further than 1) What is needed to succeed this year? 2) What do they need to be prepared for next year? When my kids made high school varsity we starting thinking about college sports. I always figured they would have the potential to play college sports given the athletic family tree. But it wasn't discussed before high school. When my son discussed playing a college sport as a little kid I let it be a fantasy like when I was a kid.

[Kevin7273]

Where did it all go awry? I never played ball to develop for the next level. LL was playing for the moment. Babe Ruth ball wasn't development for high school. It was playing for the moment. I figure as long as I was in school I would play ball. But there wasn't a plan. I figured I would play college ball at the college where I would be a 7th generation legacy. I was surprised in high school when my coach told me coached and scouts were watching. I never thought baseball would have any bearing on where I went to college, even though it happened.

Now preteen parents are manic about their kids need to get on the early track. Early teen kids and their parents talk about playing college ball. How about proving you can play high school varsity at an all-conference level before thinking about college ball? I never looked at my kids development in any sport further than 1) What is needed to succeed this year? 2) What do they need to be prepared for next year? When my kids made high school varsity we starting thinking about college sports. I always figured they would have the potential to play college sports given the athletic family tree. But it wasn't discussed before high school. When my son discussed playing a college sport as a little kid I let it be a fantasy like when I was a kid.

tg643...you're 100% right about that. Youth sports is CRAZY! Some people really believe they are developing their kid for pro sports. It is like this in every sport these days.

My only goal for my son is for him to be able to play baseball for as long as he wants. He loves baseball...little league and travel. If he is still passionate about it by HS I want him to be able to make the team and not get cut. I really don't see him playing past HS...but who knows? Right now, he just loves playing...nothing makes him happier...and that's what baseball should be at 11 years old!

[Baseball gLove]

TG: that is the whole point!!! thank you for saying this


Glove

Do the math, how many at-bats did your son get as part of a travel team in both practice and live game exposure and how many at-bats would he have gotten if you just worked out with him and gave him individual attention during the time devoted to travel team activities. I am not saying he should not play ball and only practice, but is there that much a difference, at that age, in at-bats from travel vs. rec league vs. dad throwing. You want your kid to play in games..absolutely..thats where all the fun is.....but if your kid is not ready for the elite team...do you really need to go create a new team for his benefit?


again, I am not against B teams....but if as a parent you are going to tgo to tthe trouble to form your own B- team to get your son exposure to better play...why not just take that time and effort and practice with him every night. He will get more at-bats, more fielding opp, etc.

I don't think this article is really about wanting your kids to get better... this is about the social perception and status symbols and entitlement expectation that parents give their kids.

Last year my son was able to hit everything off of an adult pitcher that threw harder in BP than any 12U pitcher in any league any where. The coach threw hard, threw changes ups, sliders, curves, what ever. Come game time my son was not swinging the bat and was way too successful drawing walks and k'ing from time to time. The only cure was at bats against as many different age appropriate kids as possible and the instructions that he has power, use it. And he has since fall club ball. One of his teammates has the greatest BP swings; hits bombs all the time. He went 1 for 20 during allstars. I have seen this in high school and college ball too.

I hope lots of parents think like you.

[CircleChange11]

tg643...you're 100% right about that. Youth sports is CRAZY! Some people really believe they are developing their kid for pro sports. It is like this in every sport these days.

Based on my experience as a youth star player, i can safely say that 25 years ago LL dads were "developing kids for pro sports" as well. Not everything was "aw shucks, just for fun". There was draft manipulation, no limits on practices, no limits on pitchers/pitches, etc and some teams focused on winning, winning, winning, and by any means necessary.

Sometimes Little League gets to hide under the umbrella of "We're just the fun league where every kid gets to play", when their history hasn't always been exactly like that.

You combine kids, competition, and adults, and you'll get the same kind of crap ... regardless of activity and/or governing organization.

We could very well be talking about robotics, cheerleading, band, etc.

I don't remember LL being "all about fun". I remember plenty of dads yelling at players, and I remember a big emphasis on winning. I also remember the fun being the uniforms (back in days when you got real uniforms, my favorite one were all green with white pinstripes & yellow belt/scoks ... they were pimp, literally), the friends (baseball: all day, every day), doing well, and playing on our own.

My goal as a dad/coach is to provide a good combination of fun and challenge for my kid, to aid his development as a player and a person. It's "fun" for him to throw 15K no-hitters all the time against kids that are well beneath his ability level. IMO, he'd still have fun pitcing in challenging games with players he enjoys playing with and coaches that do the right things.

The problems have ALWAYS been dads that think they are literally training future major leaguers and guys that want to coach college teams, but can't ... so they make their LL as collegelike as possible to show everyone else what a great coaching mind they really are.

I'm not so quick to just let LL off the hook on this one, because these coaches have been around forever ... only now they can break off and do something else.

LL started an international tournament where kids from all over the nation and the world play in a mega tournament on television. Other organizations simply followed their lead. Does LL make money off of the LLWS? Seriously, the LLWS (taking place after the school year starts) can't be awesome and every other tournament be the devil. Personally, I have NEVER been in favor of putting a 12U tourney on TV to have a kid's mistakes and emotions be viewd/judged by everyone. That's flat out [cuss words] for profit.

Part of the fun of LL is playing on the dreams of kids to be major leaguers. That's the fun of being a kid in general, reality hasn't slapped you around enough to accept it, yet. Has youth sports EVER been totyally about the kids and having fun? (Serious question).

[AdamInNY]

This and the "My son got tossed off a travel team" thread have both devolved into the same sort of: "TB/LL is great" vs. "TT/LL is ruining the earth" type of threads.

Jake, just curious in any situation do you think TB (with age appropriate play, however you define this) is a better option for a player (8-12) than LL?

I have 2 kids, one in LL and plays LL All Stars which also plays tournaments. So I guess some would call them an TB team. I think most saw the photos I posted from last season, these kids have a blast together.

My other younger son was asked to come down to play up for a TB team (non-profit, all fees are for leagues and tournaments). In his case most of his classmates play soccer, he didn't have a lot of friends in LL so this seemed appropriate. He'll probably play there until majors and then come back to LL because I really like who his majors coach would be.

I guess my point is, I'm not sure how people can be so dead set for or against either option.

[Baseball gLove]

It just supports that the whole youth baseball thing is getting worse...

It's not just baseball. A 14U girls soccer team just took an annual 4 week break. One of the girls on the team is running cross country during the break .

[JJA]

I guess my point is, I'm not sure how people can be so dead set for or against either option.

I'm not dead set against travel ball. My son did it, had a fantastic experience with a great coach that was far better than any youth coach or his high school coach by a long shot. His best memories of baseball are from travel ball, hands down.

That said, I don't think travel ball has been good for the sport. That's my main objection. It's great I was able to afford the about $2K a year the program cost. I could afford to send my son to Palm Springs and San Diego for out of town tournaments. What about all of those kids that can't? Travel ball has made baseball an exclusive, elitist sport rather than a sport that all boys can play (and girls in fastpitch have a similar issue). If Babe Ruth were alive today, the orphanage wouldn't have a travel team for the Babe to play in. Throwing out the folks who can't afford to play travel ball can't be good overall for baseball.

But for those who can, it absolutely can be a wonderful experience.

-JJA