Someone asked me about this event as I've been to youth showcases before, and I have no experience with it. Has anyone participated before (Dodger Town Vero Beach FLA)? Wondering if it's a good event with good competition or another money grab. This is a YOUTH event not a high school age showcase.
Tournament Name: Baseball Youth® Best of the Best. Late November. Youth ages 10-13 I think based on the website. Process involved tryout or nomination. $295 fee.
Appreciate all serious responses. Thx
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Rather than the event itself, what is your goal with a "youth showcase"? Do you expect college scouts to be present to evaluate, observe and place 10-13 yr old players on their radar?
If that's the case, I'd re-evaluate your expectation of the recruiting process.
There is no reason, whatsoever, for anyone under the age of 14 to attend any showcase.
Showcase
Nuke83 posted:Rather than the event itself, what is your goal with a "youth showcase"? Do you expect college scouts to be present to evaluate, observe and place 10-13 yr old players on their radar?
If that's the case, I'd re-evaluate your expectation of the recruiting process.
There is no reason, whatsoever, for anyone under the age of 14 to attend any showcase.
showcase was the wrong word it's a local all star event for the person who asked.
My son played in the Baseball Youth All-American games in Indiana this summer and was invited to the "Best of the Best" tournament you mentioned.
I will say this: he had a blast. He completely loved it. The competition was pretty good, not consistently great, but pretty good. My son was 13U and the 13U/14U age groups were combined, so that was good in terms of "playing up" for my kid. The competition was several levels down from what I saw on the Perfect Game 14U Showcase field, but there were some good players there. We kept expenses down by driving there and treating it more as as part of a family vacation (had been wanting to go to the Indiana Dunes on Lake Michigan for years).
There weren't any "scouts" there, nor was I expecting any. Certainly not any college scouts. We won't be going to the Vero Beach event, mostly because it is during the time we are making our son take time off, but also just the expense of flying cross country.
Baseball Youth puts on good events. My son would love to go back next year, we'll weigh our options. If we do go it'll be purely for the fun of it, not with any expectations of it furthering anything more than the love for the game (which is a reward in itself)
I will say the atmosphere will be cool. My son played on a team that flew from Wisconsin to Vero Beach to play in February. Facility was nice, good experience for the kids, and the chance to play on the big field where the Dodgers used to play was a memory. You never know what you will run in to. Son's team got "buzz sawed" from a team that flew in from Venezuela.
The other thing I will say that I liked about the Event was that we got to meet people from all over the country. Just on my son's team there were kids from Georgia, Arkansas, St Louis, NYC, South Carolina, and Chicago. It is good to expand a kid's world like that.
