The mistake I saw made in our area is parents thinking their kids would automatically pass through thr system from 13u to 17/18u and play college ball. When my son played 13u to 16u almost all of the better teams were created by dads who played and knew the game. Other than Arsenal the academy teams from 13u to 16u were loaded up with mediocre players. Very few of them "graduated" to 17/18u. The academies recruited legitimate college prospects for the showcase level teams. Fillsfan (if I have the name right) told me even on Arsenal only four kids from the dominant 13u team his son played were around and made the 17/18u team.
In between games at an ECTB/USSSA tournament I was watching a bit of a 10u game. The dads were all intense. The circle I talked with told me their kids are going to play D1 college ball because they're playing for 10u Arsenal. They were paying $3,600 per year for instruction plus team fees for a delusion.
i don't believe travel baseball organizations lie to parents. I believe they paint a rosy picture the parents buy hook, line and sinker because they want to believe it. And the parents are inexperienced and uninformed.