quote:A great athlete with great hand/eye/speed/reflexes, etc can pass the common kid like a lightening bolt and there is nothing any lesson can do about that.
Amen.
Conversely, all the tutoring, battng lessons, pitching coaches, camps, travel teams, and clinics cannot take a kid beyond what his innate ability will allow. It is like putting high octane gas in a lawn mower.
I was coaching a 12 year old kid in basketball and he dazzled the crowd with an offensive move. A spectator poked me in the back and asked how I taught him that move. I responded that you don't teach moves like that, they are born with them. I merely provided the opportunities for him to learn how to refine them.
For all sports there is a time to up the ante. In women's gymnastics it is essential that tykes start early because the olympics will be their venue as adolescence approaches. A swimmer can learn to save himself at age 15 if he falls out of a boat but he will never be a world class swimmer regardless of innate ability. Some olympic sports are dominated by athletes in their 30's. Look at Michael Jordan and his struggle to enter the world of baseball. He was good but just too far behind.
How about baseball? Anything before the full sized diamond is not really baseball yet. There is no such thing as an elite small diamond youth baseball player. There are elite youth gymnasts but they are participating against all comers. Compared to the pros, all youth baseball players suck.
Once you are playing on the full sized diamond it is time to get serious about the game and play with and against the very best you can. Work ethic, passion, and the mental part of the game are critical elements to future success. Thriving under pressure and adjusting to failure are essential.
It is the intangibles that are the difference makers beyond HS. Everyone at that level has innate ability and refined skills.