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Well, it's that time of year again and for the first time in 5 years we find ourselves team shopping, previous team dissolved.

 

Now there are MANY choices, TOO many!  13u vs. 14u (13u 54x80 field, 14u 60x90 field)...Major vs AAA....academy vs non-academy....choices, choices, choices.

 

So, when y'all go through the process of picking a summer team what are YOU looking for?  Any specific questions you ask?  What is top of your list when considering a team with/for your son?

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2 scenarios - first one is if they ask you to try out which means they are interested, 2nd one is you walk in uninvited with intentions of impressing. Both set different times to ask these questions

 

Pre tryout - Cost to be on the team (fees and what they pay for), coaches philosophy, how often in preseason and during season do they practice, how many games generally

 

first question once try outs happen is and offer made . where does my son fit in your plans? #1 catcher, backup, upper or lower lineup, lots of playing time, etc. Key is to get on the field most of the time.

 

costs, expected travel (if they are going out of state and you have to pay hotels, etc. that is a real cost for your family. close to home or a drive for everything (including practices),

 

what are team rules?

 

Lastly during tryout hang with other parents . after tryout, does your son seem to "fit" in, does he know boys on the team or see himself making friends with them. For the parent, Do you see yourself hanging around the parents all summer or would they drive you crazy.

I was selling rather than buying at 13u since I started my son's team. What I was selling was ...

 

... A knowledgeable coaching staff of forder college players (two former pros)

... Quality instruction (We had expertise in pitching, catching, infield and outfield play)

... Experience coaching the age group (the four of us had kids in the age group)

... Quality competition (played 13u majors)

... Affordable (we weren't looking to make money)

 

The big picture pitch was transitioning player to the 60/90 and preparing them to become high school players. I recruited top LL and Ripken all stars from the local districts. No tryouts.

 

There wasn't any daddy ball. My son became his high school's shortstop. My team had a better shortstop. My son played where the position the pitcher came from for three years.

 

 

If your looking at the program for the long term then you need to consider your son will be in HS in a couple of years and you need to find a team to meet those needs.  If it were I, here is what I would be looking for:

 

-Play at grade level, don’t play up, and don’t play down.  This becomes somewhat important when you get in HS and start playing in showcase tourneys. 

 

-Find the best team you can where your son will get the most playing time.  It does not help anyone at your son’s age to be sitting on the bench.  He needs playing time to improve.  Conversely, don’t play on a team that plays against teams below his skill level.  That does nothing to challenge him.

 

-Find a program that is not known for daddy ball.  I don’t really care if a father coaches my son’s team but they better not be favoring their son if he is a lesser player.

 

-Decide what you want out of the program.  Do you want a program that works with the kids in the off season on things like strength and conditioning, batting skills, pitching skills, etc.  Or do you want a team that expects the kids to learn those skills on their own.

 

-If looking at the program long term, find out what they do to get the kids exposure.  A lot of programs say they do this, but many of them do not.  I’m not talking about playing in the fall PG event.  Or going to the Under Amour showcase in July.  I’m taking about a program that plays in front of college recruits and scouts more then they play in tourneys.  I started a thread about this a week or so ago.  We have two weekends left in our season and are playing our first real tourney this weekend.  Everything else has been “showcase games”.

 

I’m sure there are a lot of things I am forgetting, but these are what I see as highlights.

What player wants to do

What is reasonable for the budget

Playing time

Best instruction

Reasonable schedule (time & travel)

Good competition

Good people

 

At 13, still too early to worry about exposure.

OK, after listing my criteria, I went back and re-read Chef's... pretty much the same.  Just realize that, in most instances, the perfect scenario doesn't exist and in many cases and many areas choices are limited.  Feel fortunate that you have "too many choices".

 

One comment on joes87 response regarding playing up/down, etc., and something I wish I had thought of earlier in the process.

 

I have a young 2016 who tried out for a team last year and made the top team for his age group in that organization.  We were new and didn't know anyone,so didn't really know what grade the kids were in.  Ends up that my son was one of only a few that were a 2016 on the team, as most were 2017's.  Issue is that he has been playng mainly against kids a grade below his, as opposed to playing against kids that will enter college the same year as he does.  The team iteself has been pretty successful in the PG circuit, so that has helped a bit with colleges, but I still think, had I been more aware, I would've spoken to the organization to get him to play with his class as opposed to his age.

 

 

Originally Posted by Just-A-Dad:

One comment on joes87 response regarding playing up/down, etc., and something I wish I had thought of earlier in the process.

 

I have a young 2016 who tried out for a team last year and made the top team for his age group in that organization.  We were new and didn't know anyone,so didn't really know what grade the kids were in.  Ends up that my son was one of only a few that were a 2016 on the team, as most were 2017's.  Issue is that he has been playng mainly against kids a grade below his, as opposed to playing against kids that will enter college the same year as he does.  The team iteself has been pretty successful in the PG circuit, so that has helped a bit with colleges, but I still think, had I been more aware, I would've spoken to the organization to get him to play with his class as opposed to his age.

 

 

Very good point Just-A-Dad, my son is entering 8th grade so we are leaning towards 14u just because that is what his grade mostly plays. 

You know where I think your son should play .  I pretty much agree with everything joes87 says.  Bottom line, go where your son is wanted, but also where your son will be challenged.  Teams that are way below your son's playing level will always want him.  But, you have to find a place that wants him, but also have other very good players and who play against very good competition.  Follow joes87's advice and you will be fine.

Since your son has been playing for a while, you have probably played some good teams from the area.  Has he said "wow, that so and so team is good, I'd like to play with them."?  Also, certain organizations will provide teams at all age levels.  At the younger age levels the dad's are usually still the coaches, then at 15 and sometimes 16 they start consolidating the number of teams and former MiLB and MLB players take over the coaching. 

 

Don't worry about exposure yet.  Make sure he has fun and continues to improve his game.  The others already gave good lists of questions and items to look for.

 

 

Originally Posted by BaseballChauffeur:

Since your son has been playing for a while, you have probably played some good teams from the area.  Has he said "wow, that so and so team is good, I'd like to play with them."?  Also, certain organizations will provide teams at all age levels.  At the younger age levels the dad's are usually still the coaches, then at 15 and sometimes 16 they start consolidating the number of teams and former MiLB and MLB players take over the coaching. 

 

Don't worry about exposure yet.  Make sure he has fun and continues to improve his game.  The others already gave good lists of questions and items to look for.

 

 

While I agree with you to not worry about getting exposure yet, I also think you need to look at the long term plans of the organization you son is going to.  If you plan to be playing there at 16U and 17U them you should try to understand what the organization does with the kids at this age.  Do they strictly play tourneys?  Do they run "private" showcases for their kids? Do they play in an association that works to bring in the college guys?

 

Exposure is not going to happen at 14U or even 15U.  A little at 16U and takes off at 17U.  If your looking strictly for a 14U team then I would be most concerned about playing time against appropriate competition.  If your looking at the program for the long term then you need to understand what happens with the HS kids.

Originally Posted by joes87:
Originally Posted by BaseballChauffeur:

Since your son has been playing for a while, you have probably played some good teams from the area.  Has he said "wow, that so and so team is good, I'd like to play with them."?  Also, certain organizations will provide teams at all age levels.  At the younger age levels the dad's are usually still the coaches, then at 15 and sometimes 16 they start consolidating the number of teams and former MiLB and MLB players take over the coaching. 

 

Don't worry about exposure yet.  Make sure he has fun and continues to improve his game.  The others already gave good lists of questions and items to look for.

 

 

While I agree with you to not worry about getting exposure yet, I also think you need to look at the long term plans of the organization you son is going to.  If you plan to be playing there at 16U and 17U them you should try to understand what the organization does with the kids at this age.  Do they strictly play tourneys?  Do they run "private" showcases for their kids? Do they play in an association that works to bring in the college guys?

 

Exposure is not going to happen at 14U or even 15U.  A little at 16U and takes off at 17U.  If your looking strictly for a 14U team then I would be most concerned about playing time against appropriate competition.  If your looking at the program for the long term then you need to understand what happens with the HS kids.

Right, and I think we're on the same page...I believe that being with a good organization at 14 is the way to go vs. a different team that falls apart every year and leaves you scrambling looking for a new team. That way you know what the plan is going forward and what the organization can do to help with the process.  

Just to be clear, I haven't mentioned exposure once....my main concern is that he wants to find a good team, where he isn't the star.  This sounded odd to me, but he did clarify that if he is the best pitcher he will always pitch and not be able to catch because they are saving him for pitcher.  If he's always batting 3rd or 4th there is nothing pushing him to make himself swing better/harder/faster....he's a really competitive kid and I guess he's trying to tell me that he wants more...just trying to figure out how to get him in front of a team that has more, and which of the "Moore's" are important for development.

 

*shrug*...I would prefer he be on the same team for the next 4 years and find a good home for the long term, so maybe that is a good avenue to try to focus on.  Which teams have decent 16u/17u/18u teams.

 

As for what teams have we played that he liked the look of, there have been a few but they are geographically undesirable, as is where bballman thinks he should be playing, lol!

Originally Posted by CaCO3Girl:

Just to be clear, I haven't mentioned exposure once....my main concern is that he wants to find a good team, where he isn't the star.  This sounded odd to me, but he did clarify that if he is the best pitcher he will always pitch and not be able to catch because they are saving him for pitcher.  If he's always batting 3rd or 4th there is nothing pushing him to make himself swing better/harder/faster....he's a really competitive kid and I guess he's trying to tell me that he wants more...just trying to figure out how to get him in front of a team that has more, and which of the "Moore's" are important for development.

 

*shrug*...I would prefer he be on the same team for the next 4 years and find a good home for the long term, so maybe that is a good avenue to try to focus on.  Which teams have decent 16u/17u/18u teams.

 

As for what teams have we played that he liked the look of, there have been a few but they are geographically undesirable, as is where bballman thinks he should be playing, lol!

Just an FYI, I was not accusing you of looking for exposure.  I think a few of us side tracked the discussion....

Your kid is in 8th grade.  So he is sprinting to HS.  My first criteria would be the quality of the coaching.  Will he get the offseason training necessary to improve his skills to compete in HS?  If the 13U coaches are better than the 14u coaches, then stay "down."  Don't worry about the filed size -- he'll get there with better coaching.  If you focus on the coaching, generally the rest will fall into place.  Good coaches play the right level of competition and go to the right tournaments.  Good coaches know how to play their players. 

Caco I don't know the dynamics of your area but from my perspective here I strongly feel you have to take exposure into consideration.   It is true there will be no exposure at 14 - and you really should play 14 - it DOES start at 15 and gets more intense every year from there.  If your son has college hopes and I know he does he needs to play with his class of 2020.  You want to do that now because when 15u tryouts come you will want to be 'one of them'.  Which brings me to my next point you need to go with an organization that has 15 thru 18 teams.  Sadly our little boy baseball days are about over.  Time to prep for their future.  Up here I know that at 15 the funnel narrows greatly.  We will have 2 years in by then and if it is close between my kid and a newbie I know mine will get the nod.  Things to think about.
Originally Posted by CaCO3Girl:

And how does one Gage "good competition"...that's really been my problem.  So many teams say they are AAA/Low Major, or Major, or Major Elite, or a slew of other adjectives that I just don't know what level my kid is even at, let alone what level the team is at.

I would say you can pretty much ignore the AAA/Major/Low Major/Major Elite/We are the Best/No one is better designations that most teams use.  Most of these are pretty much arbitrarily decided by the teams in most parts of the country.  I know when it comes to USSSA you pick your designation when registering.  Not sure if they ever adjust it, I know it was never changed on my kids team the 4 years they were together. I've seen teams pick a higher level to suit the coaches and parents egos.  I've seen teams pick a lower level so they can "beat up" on other teams.  

 

The best way to find a good program is to ask around those that know the baseball community in your area.  If they've been around long enough they could probably give you a decent run down on the programs reputations.  

Originally Posted by joes87:
Originally Posted by CaCO3Girl:

Just to be clear, I haven't mentioned exposure once....my main concern is that he wants to find a good team, where he isn't the star.  This sounded odd to me, but he did clarify that if he is the best pitcher he will always pitch and not be able to catch because they are saving him for pitcher.  If he's always batting 3rd or 4th there is nothing pushing him to make himself swing better/harder/faster....he's a really competitive kid and I guess he's trying to tell me that he wants more...just trying to figure out how to get him in front of a team that has more, and which of the "Moore's" are important for development.

 

*shrug*...I would prefer he be on the same team for the next 4 years and find a good home for the long term, so maybe that is a good avenue to try to focus on.  Which teams have decent 16u/17u/18u teams.

 

As for what teams have we played that he liked the look of, there have been a few but they are geographically undesirable, as is where bballman thinks he should be playing, lol!

Just an FYI, I was not accusing you of looking for exposure.  I think a few of us side tracked the discussion....

LOL, it's all good Joes87 I just had visions of some older members coming on this thread and derailing the concept because they would be appalled if a parent was looking at exposure for their 12 year old!  My son is not thrilled starting 8th grade as a 12 year old but he has been made aware that if he wants to tryout next year for the high school team he will be up against other 9th graders that are 15, while he is 13, so he will have to work extra hard this year if he wants to make a splash in 9th grade.  After reading some of the threads about things said in the dugout I'm not excited with this concept, but not my team, not my dream.

Can we all just be honest?  I am definitely concerned about exposure for my 13 year old.  There I said it.  90% of us think the same way.  A lot of competitive people on here with good players.  Now once again let me clarify.  I fully understand his team will get no exposure next year at 14.  I also understand while he will be playing college campus and showcase tournments at 15 the scouts are paying more attention to the 16 and ups.  But still there will be some exposure at 15.  But here is the key.  Unless your son is a flat out superstar who can walk on to any team he wants any time he wants you have to be thinking down the road.  Again I want my son to be in an organization NOW that will get him exposure LATER.  Doesn't that make sense?

The ulitmate expectation/desire for joining higher level "travel teams", I assume is exposure to colleges.  Need to find the right travel program to make sure that, down the road, those opportuities are there.  We only joined a team after my son's soph year.  While looking at these programs as 12's and 13's seems a little early in many ways, I will say it is very difficult to supplant a kid that has been in the program for 2-3 years, if one waits to join the program until they are a 15.  End of the day, there simply are some politics involved.  Not bad in the program my sone plays in, but some nonetheless.  With a player who hits 250 points higher, then that's probbaly an easy change, but for one who is new and hits 100-150 points higher, then it's not so easy.  I have a friend who has a 2019. Based on my son's experience, I have advised her to get her son involved now.

In 7th and 8th grade a kid should play grade appropriate at the least. Starting with freshman year he should play up as far as his talent provides.

 

A kid doesn't need to play for a team that's part of a showcase program at the higher levels In middle school. If he's a good player on a good team he will be noticed playing against the academy teams. They're always watching for good players in future years. 

 

Being on on a lower rung of a program with a showcase team doesn't mean the player makes the showcase team when he's older. A former member here told me only four of the 13u players made the 17u showcase team. For another academy the number may have been lower. That academy started a B showcase team to take the money of the parents who had been forking it over since 13u. 

 

 

Originally Posted by RJM:

       

In 7th and 8th grade a kid should play grade appropriate at the least. Starting with freshman year he should play up as far as his talent provides.

 

A kid doesn't need to play for a team that's part of a showcase program at the higher levels In middle school. If he's a good player on a good team he will be noticed playing against the academy teams. They're always watching for good players in future years. 

 

Being on on a lower rung of a program with a showcase team doesn't mean the player makes the showcase team when he's older. A former member here told me only four of the 13u players made the 17u showcase team. For another academy the number may have been lower. That academy started a B showcase team to take the money of the parents who had been forking it over since 13u. 

 

 


       
While all this may be true you surely agree already being with an organization can help your odds?  And yes as I said if you are really really good you can do whatever you want.  As I have said before on here I consider my son to be borderline.  The longer I am on here I realize those these labels mean drastically different things to different people.  So when I say borderline I mean he is right on that edge of being one of the top notch kids in the area.  As of right now it looks as if he should make that cut at 15 when the funnel narrows.  But he is not so incredibly great that there is no doubt whatsoever.  Therefore I believe him being with the organization now (good kid, people tend to really like him + of course he has ability) gives him a distinct advantage.

A good organization, with good and experienced coaches, can teach the kids to be baseball players.  By that, I mean the mental side of the game.  How to conduct themselves, how to strive to get better, how to compete and how to control their emotions and think during a game.  They really can teach a love for the game.

 

Coaches can see it in a kid.  Of course, hitting it far, throwing it hard and running real fast are still the top three attributes.

 

I originally (at 12U) paid the org fee not to get my son on the field, but to get the dad's off the field.  It has only gotten better for my son since then.

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