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Reply to "Travel Ball - Good and Bad......."

My son was varsity from day 1. He was a polished 6'2 150lbs LHP. His experience was obvious and he was already pitching against college players. He wasn't overly fast but kept up with most players. He was about 7.2 in the 60. He also had great read off the bat and his foot work was excellent. He was an average hitter but we knew he was going to just pitch eventually. He had great hands and balance. He was never hit by a come backer although 1 tested him pretty good.
He pitched all the big games in his freshman year and was MVP. He handed the best team in the league their 1st loss. They had 3 drafted players and several college players. One is in MLB.
The way I see it everything you do is a step in the direction you want to go. He was taught how to pitch and play. When the ball was put in play he knew what to do and where to go. When he played I watched him and not the game. I watched what he did and how he reacted. I videoed him and not the game. I would then go through the video and we would talk about mis ques etc. You would be amazed at how untrained some pitchers are. I see them stand on the mound not knowing what to do. Our practices where 2-3 times a week and 4 hours long. They were set up in stations just like college and MLB. There were 4-5 knowledgeable coaches at each practice and game. We usually had 3-4 games a week and occasionally 1 mid week. The coaches gave lectures all winter in a class room on strategy and skills. The actual season was short but the fall and travel added up to 75-80 games. I never spent more than 2200 and the total was between 6-7 thousand. We had a large return 1st year of college. My accounting degree tells me my investment paid off big in year 1.
My son played on as many as 5 teams a season for at least 3 years until the year before college. He spent more time on a part time job and just played elite.
This return on investment doesn't even take into consideration the fun our family had. We like many took the BB trips as holidays.
My guy has for now stopped playing and is concentrating on his career. He has been home for 2 weeks but is heading to Wilmington NC until his fiancé graduates next spring and then they will deal with the job offers he has. We are very content with him moving on. They are planning a plantation wedding in Charleston within 2 years. This is all very exciting to us.
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