My son has been playing local "tourney ball" for the last few years over the summer. This is the first year our team scheduled a "Big Name Organized" tourney out of town. Thank goodness we were there more for the vacation and social time than the baseball. The competition was no different than any local tourney we play in.
My expectations of play were much higher than what actually showed up. Many of the teams were considered high ranked teams with some sporting national championship titles. The reality is they are just 10yr olds playing baseball. The same errors, the same mental mistakes, the same quality of pitching, etc... that you get from any good group of athletic 10's. The quality of baseball was just like every other tourney. Some really good, some OK, and some not so good teams.
This tourney was considered a qualifier for entry to a National Championship tourney, what a joke that is! Let's just say qualifying to play in one of these "National Tourneys" is not tough. Also one of the teams I follow, actually won a National Tourney last year and they have been sporting it like it was the World Series. Not to take anything form that team, it's not easy to win any tourney, but this was not the best of the best from the Nation coming together to find out who's the best.
It was fun. We went 2-2 for the weekend with a consolation trophy and a qualifying birth to the national tourney coming in the fall. 4 teams of 12 qualified! The organizers were good at making the kids and some parents feel like they were the best of the best. If they wanted to truly test their skills they had to play this invitational national tourney coming up.
My expectations of play were much higher than what actually showed up. Many of the teams were considered high ranked teams with some sporting national championship titles. The reality is they are just 10yr olds playing baseball. The same errors, the same mental mistakes, the same quality of pitching, etc... that you get from any good group of athletic 10's. The quality of baseball was just like every other tourney. Some really good, some OK, and some not so good teams.
This tourney was considered a qualifier for entry to a National Championship tourney, what a joke that is! Let's just say qualifying to play in one of these "National Tourneys" is not tough. Also one of the teams I follow, actually won a National Tourney last year and they have been sporting it like it was the World Series. Not to take anything form that team, it's not easy to win any tourney, but this was not the best of the best from the Nation coming together to find out who's the best.
It was fun. We went 2-2 for the weekend with a consolation trophy and a qualifying birth to the national tourney coming in the fall. 4 teams of 12 qualified! The organizers were good at making the kids and some parents feel like they were the best of the best. If they wanted to truly test their skills they had to play this invitational national tourney coming up.
Comment