That’s pretty much it sota. To each his own on their standards I would do it differently, both my kids played at a high level in my area. I would go more mid-level next time and make sure we had more time for other family events. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Good, bad or great does not matter when your with your kids in whatever they are doing. I just know looking back I wish we would have spent some more quality time in the woods. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I'm man enough to admit I only lashed out due to the respect level (or lack there of) of the poster. Does it impact effort levels of a hobby when you devote time to your children, of course, but as I view the concept of good different than that of the effort that I would otherwise devote given the chance. But the same can be said about, watching TV, drinking, or even household chores. Sent from my Pixel 6 using Tapatalk
Chances are, if you did that, you'd look back and wish you had spent more time letting them play sports when they could. Fortunately, my kids are about as eaten up with hunting as they are with sports (the boys, anyway). So when we're not throwing or catching balls, we're either out fishing or doing something hunting-related. And as much as I sacrifice to be there for my kids, that doesn't mean I don't miss a game here and there because I'm gone hunting. Sorry, not sorry, kids. Thanks to Game Changer I can watch you from my treestand now.
Absolutely, parents need to find activities that meet their kids' interests, that doesn't have to be sports. It will be better for everyone if this approach was taken.
He turned out pretty good, he's into drones and making content now. Enjoy the time with your kids, I know we all say enjoy it because it's one in a lifetime. Do I miss going everywhere on weekends and running around, no I do not. The main fact is besides wishing we hunted a bit more I never missed an event for my kids, I was there and involved, much like a lot of the members here and you Justin. So I do not miss the sports side, because we did what we could and had fun. https://www.instagram.com/reel/C6CV...pJXZV1kv-SrT0UjYV31lJSFDx9w7jn6CzL9-0Px-4WLc3
Glad I stopped in for my monthly check on the forums. This is definitely something that hits close to home. I grew up playing baseball. It was my life, my passion. If I wasn't playing officially, I was in my yard fielding grounders with a tennis ball off the wall of our house...literally for hours. I hate to sound cocky, but I was good. Very good. Unfortunately, I grew up in an era when travel ball didn't exist. I would have been a perfect candidate for it. I didn't NEED pushing or encouragement to play. I WANTED to play. Often, rec league didn't give enough time to play, and I always wanted more. I remember my mom driving me home from our annual two week vacation in Canada a week early, dropping me off with a family for a week to start All-Stars, and she drove back to finish their vacation! I was the player that would have loved to play travel ball. It may be different in different parts of the country, but I'm now a rec league coach for my oldest (he's 8), and my youngest (5) is playing tee ball this year. My oldest has ZERO interest in playing past rec league schedules. In fact, I think he might be done after this season. I'm okay with that. I don't need to live vicariously through him as many parents do. He's extremely intelligent and has a strong interest in music, so we might pursue something there. My youngest definitely has the attitude and skill set to do well in baseball (of course, not saying he will be amazing, but he could definitely be above average). He also has a ton of interests that are not sports (mainly antiques, treasure hunting, metal detecting, tractors, etc.). I think travel ball, under the right circumstances (sort of like what Justin's son's league is) can be GREAT for the kids who want to do it. It opens up more competitive play, they play MORE, and often learn more. The problem with travel sports, like all things in our society, it has become a social expectation to keep up with the Joneses. Parents identify as travel ball parents, there are countless reels, memes, etc., focused on the "lifestyle" of travel sports. If you have your kids in travel sports for you, it's wrong. If you have your kid in travel sports for a path to the MLB, hate to break it to you, most likely your kid isn't making it. Odds have always been against you on that one. Travel sports for the kids who WANT it and they ASK for it. Those are the kids that travel ball is for. Just my two cents.
There is definitely an "identity" that comes along with being a travel sports player and parent, and it annoys the crap out of me. My wife and all of the other "baseball moms" with their stupid shirts and Instagram posts make me crawl out of my skin. Some of the memes and reels do crack me up because they're a great parody of what it's actually like, but they also highlight some of the ridiculousness that goes on out there. My older son sounds a lot like you, Matt. He would play or practice every single day if he could. I often come home from work to find him hitting balls off the tee in the back yard, or having my younger son throw him grounders in the street. He can't get enough of it, so travel ball has been a blessing for him. Do I have dreams of him making the MLB? Absolutely not. Do I hope he makes his HS team and earns a starting spot on the roster? Absolutely. If he still enjoys it and that works it's way into continuing to college, so be it. He certainly has both the talent and drive to make that happen if he wants to. If he decides that he doesn't want to play anymore at some point, I'm fine with that, too. Within reason, we try to let him dictate the level of involvement he wants to have with the sports he plays. One of the most important pieces of travel sports that doesn't get talked about enough is the culture of the team and program that you play for. Without question, I would sacrifice being on a "winning" team with better players but a bad culture, bad parents, or bad coaching for a team that doesn't win as much but has a great group of kids, good parents, and coaches who aren't insane. We have been very fortunate so far to have all of those things. The biggest decision we're facing as we look at next year is what age group my son will be playing in. Long story short, he's always played "up" until this year. He has a June birthday, and the baseball cutoff date is May 1st. So he's played up one level to be with kids in his own grade. Fortunately for him, he's a big kid and very good at baseball, so he's never struggled to keep up or compete. He's been one of the top performers on his team at every level. Last year, his 11U travel team disbanded at the end of the season for various reasons. He had the choice to move on to 12U and get on a new team with people we didn't know or stay at 11U with a team he subbed for quite a bit. He knew all the kids, we knew all the parents, and we knew that it was a solid group. So rather than continue on to 12U, he opted for a second year of 11U. He went from being the youngest on the team to now being the oldest. He's in 6th grade, while most of the other kids on the team are in 5th. He's absolutely dominating this year, and it's very apparent he needs to move back up to his grade level for next season. He's put 6 balls over the fence in the first 15 games and nobody else on his team has even come close. Plus all of his other "sports friends" at school give him a hard time for playing a level below them. The fear of going to a new team next year is finding one that fits our budget, time, and travel expectations and has a group of kids and parents that we can enjoy being around 3-4 days a week or more. Even though we have 2 1/2 months left with this team, we're already looking around and talking with other teams and programs about opportunities for next year, which is crazy to me. I feel like I'm cheating on my spouse. But tryouts start in July and you want to have an idea of where you want to land before that comes.
Other than time commitment, team culture is the biggest reason we have not done travel ball yet. Out of control egos and the need to win at all costs for some coaches and parents isn't worth it. My oldest has a fantastic arm and it has been apparent since he was about 8. I don't want some idiot of a coach throwing his arm out. He loves the game enough that I want him to stay healthy and enjoy it through high school at least, beyond that will be up to him and how much work he is willing to do along the way.
I can testify to the rhythm and cohesiveness of the team as the most important factor. I have 2 girls on my team that have no business on the court as the others. They made the team due to spirit and energy. The hard part is 2 fold. Finding a team that works together and is drama free is very hard. But maintaining that team via the proper culture is even harder. Team bonding events help but with the wrong kids they will fail. It comes down to the coach to not pick for skill over toxicity. It's tempting to just take the best of the best but it's a fools errand. Sent from my Pixel 6 using Tapatalk
Like most things in life, much of this can be resolved through proper communication. Talking with coaches and those who are in charge of these programs to understand their expectations and philosophies before signing on the dotted line. Again, we've been very blessed to be on teams where the coaches value the input of parents and the health of their players more than winning. They adhere to youth pitch count guidelines pretty closely and monitor pitch count and days of rest between outings. But I've seen coaches on the other side of this as well. Last year I saw multiple 10 year old kids through 100-120 pitches in an outing where the recommended guideline is no more than 75. My big gripe is with fall baseball leagues. Kids should have 4 months of rest when they don't throw a baseball in a pitching situation, with 2-3 of them being continuous rest. Playing a little catch in the yard is fine, but that's all. But they go from the summer season ending in mid-July to starting fall ball in mid-August through mid-October. Then, they get maybe 45 days off and start indoor practices in December. It's just too much throwing. Aside from football schedule getting in the way, that's a big part of the reason my boys aren't going to be playing fall baseball anymore. Their arms just need a break - even if they don't want to take one.
I completely agree about too much throwing, that is the primary reason I make my kids play at least two sports per year.
We leave tomorrow morning for Philly for our second to last tournament. I'll tell you a quick story about why I do this. My daughter is on the team so I get the Tea. All my girls were having team bonding a few weeks back. When one of the girls turned to my kiddo smiling and said "this is so fun, I've never had so many friends". As all parents here can testify to having good, real friends is so very important. Sent from my Pixel 6 using Tapatalk
My Dad was big into football and track and field. My younger brother and I ran track. Both my brother and I ran on relay teams that placed nationally. My younger brother was an elite 400m runner as a youth(made it to aau national finals and made finals). Too bad he pissed his talent and life away with drugs and alcohol. So my parents were always on the move driving us places. Now that I'm a parent I understand all the sacrifices they made for us.
Absolutely, you can't expect them to realize the effort we as parents put forth. But we don't do it for the thanks Sent from my Pixel 6 using Tapatalk
