Travelball, club, whatever you call it is bad for sports and bad for kids... here's why. Kids should be kids, let's not forget that most of the players we are talking about were sleeping with teddy bears five years ago. I can't get my daughter out of bed for school right now because we spent a total of 24 hours traveling to, and playing in a soccer tournament this weekend. My boy (who is a phenomenal pitcher) wants to quit because his last season was daddy ball at its best and he too is burned out having spent every weekend playing tournaments and not playing with friends. Most of these kids will NOT play college and will NOT get scholarships. Their memories of sports when they grow up will NOT be fond... exhaustion, sitting in cars for hours, overbearing daddys, ridiculously intense coaches who want to win at any cost so they can increase their roster (bottom line) next year. It's a puppy mill of players. Not to mention repetitive motion and other injuries. Most will quit by age 15. And, you are robbing rec of all their good players, the result? Rec leagues are having trouble fielding teams and getting fields to play on. My local LL could only get together enough kids for 4 teams for fall ball this year (at all ages), so we are robbing the mediocre kids of their chance to play ball too. In the long run, big picture, it's bad for kids and bad for sports. You people need to keep parenting in perspective.
Some true. A lot BS.
Rec ball and LL has created its own demise. Too many nonsense rules and too political. Rec ball is daddy ball on steroids. They have driven many people away.
Here's the thing. The first order of business is to get your kid to high school with the skills to make the team (and hopefully contribute). As parents we provide that guidance. In many cases, definitely not all, "travel" ball helps with that. After that, it is up to them -- and many will not play beyond HS. So what.
Most join "travel" for advancement. It starts with better coaching and ends with more consistent competition. That is not to say every "travel" team has either. There are way too many PO dad teams, which are nothing more than glorified rec teams. So you need to do your homework.
As for the time commitment, it certainly is a concern. But it is a great life lesson about "sacrifice" and commitment. He'll get upset when he has to miss the "big party" but he gets over it after he finds out it wasn't that good. We make sure he has enough hanging around with friends time.
I am glad we have done it. Did we miss some things? Yes. But we gained many more.
Ok, this statement is for everybody... Ask your kids in 15 years if it was worth it, then ask them if they will steer their kid, if talented enough, toward a club team. When you're at your next tournament, look around, see if everybody is really having fun. When was the last time you took your son camping, fishing, biking, or something else he likes to do? Or does he do anything else? Commitment is a valuable lesson, but so is being well-rounded.In America we put everything on steroids. Literally, look at steroids in HS sports. If I build a 500hp hot rod, you build one with 800hp... We're obsessed with how many gold medals we win at the Olympics. It's not healthy. But that's just my opinion, and you now what they say about those...