2020 give or take a year...

Cbubba and Msrift, welcome.  Please keep in mind that this thread is often overlooked by the general board because frankly pre-high school stuff is not what a majority of the board gives advice on, but we the around 2020 crowd are living through this now, and are stumbling along just like you guys.

Msrift, you aren't behind since all of this stuff is a marathon and not a sprint.  It's not possible for a 2020 to be behind, right now I would think it's only possible for a 2016 to be behind, everyone else has time.

Cbubba, I struggle with that issue as well.  My very uneducated understanding is that by 10th grade if the kid is a better pitching prospect he should give up catching.  Conversely, if the kid is a better catching prospect he should be pitching RARELY as in maybe a fill in when you really need to save the other pitchers for the championship game, i.e. no more than 2 or 3 innings a week and never after he has already caught that game.  The stronger the catcher the stronger the pitcher in youth baseball but there has to be a line.  Many of the top catching prospects on the PG website have pitching velocities listed but most of the top pitching prospects don't have a pop time listed.  My understanding is that pitchers have the highest incident of TJ surgeries, Catcher's are the next highest.

msrift

In reference to your homeschool and high school sports issue, I would start calling state representatives to pass legislation. It worked in our state, at least for baseball, football and basketball. 

Quin4 posted:

msrift

In reference to your homeschool and high school sports issue, I would start calling state representatives to pass legislation. It worked in our state, at least for baseball, football and basketball. 

We've been trying for many years to get a less restrictive bill passed, but they keep dying in committee. We'll keep trying, though we're not particularly hopeful. Charter schools are still illegal here as well.

So I joined this site when my 2016 was in 8th grade.  I learned so much from the "Old Timers" like TPM, CabbageDad, Fungo, Justbaseball, TRHit, and the list goes on.  This thread caught my eye, as I also have a 2020.  Quick question - why on earth would you want to have private conversations (PMs) amongst yourselves about your 2020 son?  Do you expect to learn the process from each other?  Sorry if i'm missing something here, but it seems that by having a PM discussion with all 2020's, you are missing the entire point of this message board. 

I love this sight for everything it has taught me and for the things that I have been able to pass along to others.  FWIW - Much of what I have learned on this site will allow me to watch my 2016 play baseball for the next four years. 

Ok - I'm going back to reading the boards now. 

bballdad2016 posted:

So I joined this site when my 2016 was in 8th grade.  I learned so much from the "Old Timers" like TPM, CabbageDad, Fungo, Justbaseball, TRHit, and the list goes on.  This thread caught my eye, as I also have a 2020.  Quick question - why on earth would you want to have private conversations (PMs) amongst yourselves about your 2020 son?  Do you expect to learn the process from each other?  Sorry if i'm missing something here, but it seems that by having a PM discussion with all 2020's, you are missing the entire point of this message board. 

I love this sight for everything it has taught me and for the things that I have been able to pass along to others.  FWIW - Much of what I have learned on this site will allow me to watch my 2016 play baseball for the next four years. 

Ok - I'm going back to reading the boards now. 

I suppose if the only goal of this message board is to learn "the process" or gain knowledge about recruiting or getting to the next level, you have a point.

OTOH, if people just want to discuss baseball, what's wrong with it? As with any other PM, people may be comfortable sharing things that they don't necessarily want searchable on a message board. I can tell you that the PM so far hasn't included anything about recruiting, or exposure, or getting to the next level, or any of the things that parents of 2019-2021 kids are supposedly obsessed with.

bballdad2016 posted:

So I joined this site when my 2016 was in 8th grade.  I learned so much from the "Old Timers" like TPM, CabbageDad, Fungo, Justbaseball, TRHit, and the list goes on.  This thread caught my eye, as I also have a 2020.  Quick question - why on earth would you want to have private conversations (PMs) amongst yourselves about your 2020 son?  Do you expect to learn the process from each other?  Sorry if i'm missing something here, but it seems that by having a PM discussion with all 2020's, you are missing the entire point of this message board. 

I love this sight for everything it has taught me and for the things that I have been able to pass along to others.  FWIW - Much of what I have learned on this site will allow me to watch my 2016 play baseball for the next four years. 

Ok - I'm going back to reading the boards now. 

I think the point is to actually be respectful to all the others - old timers included.  We ENJOY talking about tournaments and accomplishments of kids our age. Maybe find out we might meet each other somewhere. Or have played a common opponent. Or just plain talk about general things from our age level. We could just keep this thread going in perpetuity and make it a thousand page thread but it seemed more polite to have our chat elsewhere. And yes a bit of privacy to speak more freely is nice. You say you have a 2020.  We welcome you to join. For that matter anyone at all who wants to join simply needs to ask Caco to add them and I am sure she will happily do so. we are not always here to get advice or learn something. And by the way that's a two way street. I bet the others could learn something from us once in a while. After all we are not all inept people. But our PM is just about sharing and having fun. And yes we can in fact learn a lot from each other if that is our goal. I don't think we are missing the point at all because the point of this site can be different things to different people. 

bballdad2016 posted:

So I joined this site when my 2016 was in 8th grade.  I learned so much from the "Old Timers" like TPM, CabbageDad, Fungo, Justbaseball, TRHit, and the list goes on.  This thread caught my eye, as I also have a 2020.  Quick question - why on earth would you want to have private conversations (PMs) amongst yourselves about your 2020 son?  Do you expect to learn the process from each other?  Sorry if i'm missing something here, but it seems that by having a PM discussion with all 2020's, you are missing the entire point of this message board. 

I love this sight for everything it has taught me and for the things that I have been able to pass along to others.  FWIW - Much of what I have learned on this site will allow me to watch my 2016 play baseball for the next four years. 

Ok - I'm going back to reading the boards now. 

No one is missing any points.  It is still possible to read a PM and the rest of the threads.  The Board Elders should be happy they don't have to read pre-high school posts.  On a plus side, you have about 20 new participants to the board.  It's like a pre-teen slumber party in there.

bballdad2016 posted:

So I joined this site when my 2016 was in 8th grade.  I learned so much from the "Old Timers" like TPM, CabbageDad, Fungo, Justbaseball, TRHit, and the list goes on.  This thread caught my eye, as I also have a 2020.  Quick question - why on earth would you want to have private conversations (PMs) amongst yourselves about your 2020 son?  Do you expect to learn the process from each other?  Sorry if i'm missing something here, but it seems that by having a PM discussion with all 2020's, you are missing the entire point of this message board. 

I love this sight for everything it has taught me and for the things that I have been able to pass along to others.  FWIW - Much of what I have learned on this site will allow me to watch my 2016 play baseball for the next four years. 

Ok - I'm going back to reading the boards now. 

I'll take a stab at this with the disclaimer that this is why "I" like the PM concept, and may not represent why others like it.  There are 2 main reasons:

1. PM's are non-searchable, so if I want to say something specific about my son's team and or coach it can't be searched in 5 years on the general search option and come back to bite me or him.

2. The PM isn't about recruiting, it's mostly about talking about things we don't want to bring up on the board for fear of being called naive/stupid or being told we should stop thinking about it.  While I have read many posts by the "old timers" and agree they have a wealth of knowledge sometimes I just want to be able to say something, or ask a question, about my 2020 without being told "None of that matters until Varsity", "It's obvious you care more about baseball than your son", "Stop thinking about these things and enjoy the moment." ...and a slew of other comments that pretty much pair down to how I think about 9u kids...they are young and they don't understand how baseball works.  I get that I am young and naive and my kid is in 8th grade and none of this actually matters, but on the PM all the other people are young and naive and they are happy to share if the same stuff is going on in their neck of the woods and we are learning from each other, not so much about recruiting, but we are learning what other 2020's are going through.

We have had conversations about bat preferences, catcher/pitcher combo and what your kid is going through, how much practice is too much or not enough practice?  If I put it out on the general board How much is too much practice, and explain my kid is in 8th grade the responses are likely to be along the lines of you haven't seen too much practice, wait until your kid gets to college, if he can ever make it there, but why would you even have him in practice 3 days a week, just enjoy the moment, he's not even in high school...etc.  it isn't that that is bad advice it's just I honestly wanted to have a discussion on what people thought was too much without being told that my question doesn't matter.  In order to compare MY KID with HIS GRADE I need to talk specifically to those parents and to be blunt many of the parents on the PM don't post on the board, and to be even more blunt I have posted at least 100 responses and or questions and rather than have my questions answered I have been told I shouldn't be thinking about that question yet....yeah...well...I am thinking about it and I wish people would talk to me about it.

So, in conclusion, the PM is about things relevant to around the class of 2020, but not necessarily recruiting things.  None of us has a secret plan to get to our kids recruited to an 8 million dollar deal, and none of us thinks we are experts, we just enjoy talking about our kids. 

To those that have responded to my post: valid points to all of you.  Sorry, I didn't have time to read 6 pages of messages.  

To those that are here for the enjoyment of watching your sons play baseball and sharing the experience (which should be all of you).  This is a great site. 

To those that are here to gain knowledge about "the process", there is no better site to ask questions and learn from others as well as each other. 

CaCO3Girl posted:

bballdad2016 posted:

So I joined this site when my 2016 was in 8th grade.  I learned so much from the "Old Timers" like TPM, CabbageDad, Fungo, Justbaseball, TRHit, and the list goes on.  This thread caught my eye, as I also have a 2020.  Quick question - why on earth would you want to have private conversations (PMs) amongst yourselves about your 2020 son?  Do you expect to learn the process from each other?  Sorry if i'm missing something here, but it seems that by having a PM discussion with all 2020's, you are missing the entire point of this message board. 

I love this sight for everything it has taught me and for the things that I have been able to pass along to others.  FWIW - Much of what I have learned on this site will allow me to watch my 2016 play baseball for the next four years. 

Ok - I'm going back to reading the boards now. 

I'll take a stab at this with the disclaimer that this is why "I" like the PM concept, and may not represent why others like it.  There are 2 main reasons:

1. PM's are non-searchable, so if I want to say something specific about my son's team and or coach it can't be searched in 5 years on the general search option and come back to bite me or him.

2. The PM isn't about recruiting, it's mostly about talking about things we don't want to bring up on the board for fear of being called naive/stupid or being told we should stop thinking about it.  While I have read many posts by the "old timers" and agree they have a wealth of knowledge sometimes I just want to be able to say something, or ask a question, about my 2020 without being told "None of that matters until Varsity", "It's obvious you care more about baseball than your son", "Stop thinking about these things and enjoy the moment." ...and a slew of other comments that pretty much pair down to how I think about 9u kids...they are young and they don't understand how baseball works.  I get that I am young and naive and my kid is in 8th grade and none of this actually matters, but on the PM all the other people are young and naive and they are happy to share if the same stuff is going on in their neck of the woods and we are learning from each other, not so much about recruiting, but we are learning what other 2020's are going through.

We have had conversations about bat preferences, catcher/pitcher combo and what your kid is going through, how much practice is too much or not enough practice?  If I put it out on the general board How much is too much practice, and explain my kid is in 8th grade the responses are likely to be along the lines of you haven't seen too much practice, wait until your kid gets to college, if he can ever make it there, but why would you even have him in practice 3 days a week, just enjoy the moment, he's not even in high school...etc.  it isn't that that is bad advice it's just I honestly wanted to have a discussion on what people thought was too much without being told that my question doesn't matter.  In order to compare MY KID with HIS GRADE I need to talk specifically to those parents and to be blunt many of the parents on the PM don't post on the board, and to be even more blunt I have posted at least 100 responses and or questions and rather than have my questions answered I have been told I shouldn't be thinking about that question yet....yeah...well...I am thinking about it and I wish people would talk to me about it.

So, in conclusion, the PM is about things relevant to around the class of 2020, but not necessarily recruiting things.  None of us has a secret plan to get to our kids recruited to an 8 million dollar deal, and none of us thinks we are experts, we just enjoy talking about our kids. 

Oh wow, I didn't mean to strike a nerve.  

bballdad2016 posted:

CaCO3Girl posted:

bballdad2016 posted:

So I joined this site when my 2016 was in 8th grade.  I learned so much from the "Old Timers" like TPM, CabbageDad, Fungo, Justbaseball, TRHit, and the list goes on.  This thread caught my eye, as I also have a 2020.  Quick question - why on earth would you want to have private conversations (PMs) amongst yourselves about your 2020 son?  Do you expect to learn the process from each other?  Sorry if i'm missing something here, but it seems that by having a PM discussion with all 2020's, you are missing the entire point of this message board. 

I love this sight for everything it has taught me and for the things that I have been able to pass along to others.  FWIW - Much of what I have learned on this site will allow me to watch my 2016 play baseball for the next four years. 

Ok - I'm going back to reading the boards now. 

I'll take a stab at this with the disclaimer that this is why "I" like the PM concept, and may not represent why others like it.  There are 2 main reasons:

1. PM's are non-searchable, so if I want to say something specific about my son's team and or coach it can't be searched in 5 years on the general search option and come back to bite me or him.

2. The PM isn't about recruiting, it's mostly about talking about things we don't want to bring up on the board for fear of being called naive/stupid or being told we should stop thinking about it.  While I have read many posts by the "old timers" and agree they have a wealth of knowledge sometimes I just want to be able to say something, or ask a question, about my 2020 without being told "None of that matters until Varsity", "It's obvious you care more about baseball than your son", "Stop thinking about these things and enjoy the moment." ...and a slew of other comments that pretty much pair down to how I think about 9u kids...they are young and they don't understand how baseball works.  I get that I am young and naive and my kid is in 8th grade and none of this actually matters, but on the PM all the other people are young and naive and they are happy to share if the same stuff is going on in their neck of the woods and we are learning from each other, not so much about recruiting, but we are learning what other 2020's are going through.

We have had conversations about bat preferences, catcher/pitcher combo and what your kid is going through, how much practice is too much or not enough practice?  If I put it out on the general board How much is too much practice, and explain my kid is in 8th grade the responses are likely to be along the lines of you haven't seen too much practice, wait until your kid gets to college, if he can ever make it there, but why would you even have him in practice 3 days a week, just enjoy the moment, he's not even in high school...etc.  it isn't that that is bad advice it's just I honestly wanted to have a discussion on what people thought was too much without being told that my question doesn't matter.  In order to compare MY KID with HIS GRADE I need to talk specifically to those parents and to be blunt many of the parents on the PM don't post on the board, and to be even more blunt I have posted at least 100 responses and or questions and rather than have my questions answered I have been told I shouldn't be thinking about that question yet....yeah...well...I am thinking about it and I wish people would talk to me about it.

So, in conclusion, the PM is about things relevant to around the class of 2020, but not necessarily recruiting things.  None of us has a secret plan to get to our kids recruited to an 8 million dollar deal, and none of us thinks we are experts, we just enjoy talking about our kids. 

Oh wow, I didn't mean to strike a nerve.  

There have been 43 requests to join the PM.  While I have no proof, I am going to go out on a limb and say that mine wasn't the only nerve that got struck with the general board.

CACO3, I've been where you are.  Read a few of my original posts from a few years ago.  Feel free to ask me anything you like.  I will gladly share what we experienced at each age (7th-12th grade).  Heck, I'm going through it a second time.  Anyhow, if people aren't posting anymore that's too bad.  Hopefully they are reading.  I rarely post anymore, but that's because I read more than I post anyway.  "Two ears, one mouth". 

Take care,

Matt

CaCO3Girl posted:

1. PM's are non-searchable, so if I want to say something specific about my son's team and or coach it can't be searched in 5 years on the general search option and come back to bite me or him.

 

The only caution I would say, is that while "private" it is still on the internet.  It still can be "found."  I know someone who lost sponsorships for his kid's racing team because of things he said in a private forum (as I recall it had to do with politics or religion ).   

CaCO3Girl posted:

bballdad2016 posted:

CaCO3Girl posted:

bballdad2016 posted:

So I joined this site when my 2016 was in 8th grade.  I learned so much from the "Old Timers" like TPM, CabbageDad, Fungo, Justbaseball, TRHit, and the list goes on.  This thread caught my eye, as I also have a 2020.  Quick question - why on earth would you want to have private conversations (PMs) amongst yourselves about your 2020 son?  Do you expect to learn the process from each other?  Sorry if i'm missing something here, but it seems that by having a PM discussion with all 2020's, you are missing the entire point of this message board. 

I love this sight for everything it has taught me and for the things that I have been able to pass along to others.  FWIW - Much of what I have learned on this site will allow me to watch my 2016 play baseball for the next four years. 

Ok - I'm going back to reading the boards now. 

I'll take a stab at this with the disclaimer that this is why "I" like the PM concept, and may not represent why others like it.  There are 2 main reasons:

1. PM's are non-searchable, so if I want to say something specific about my son's team and or coach it can't be searched in 5 years on the general search option and come back to bite me or him.

2. The PM isn't about recruiting, it's mostly about talking about things we don't want to bring up on the board for fear of being called naive/stupid or being told we should stop thinking about it.  While I have read many posts by the "old timers" and agree they have a wealth of knowledge sometimes I just want to be able to say something, or ask a question, about my 2020 without being told "None of that matters until Varsity", "It's obvious you care more about baseball than your son", "Stop thinking about these things and enjoy the moment." ...and a slew of other comments that pretty much pair down to how I think about 9u kids...they are young and they don't understand how baseball works.  I get that I am young and naive and my kid is in 8th grade and none of this actually matters, but on the PM all the other people are young and naive and they are happy to share if the same stuff is going on in their neck of the woods and we are learning from each other, not so much about recruiting, but we are learning what other 2020's are going through.

We have had conversations about bat preferences, catcher/pitcher combo and what your kid is going through, how much practice is too much or not enough practice?  If I put it out on the general board How much is too much practice, and explain my kid is in 8th grade the responses are likely to be along the lines of you haven't seen too much practice, wait until your kid gets to college, if he can ever make it there, but why would you even have him in practice 3 days a week, just enjoy the moment, he's not even in high school...etc.  it isn't that that is bad advice it's just I honestly wanted to have a discussion on what people thought was too much without being told that my question doesn't matter.  In order to compare MY KID with HIS GRADE I need to talk specifically to those parents and to be blunt many of the parents on the PM don't post on the board, and to be even more blunt I have posted at least 100 responses and or questions and rather than have my questions answered I have been told I shouldn't be thinking about that question yet....yeah...well...I am thinking about it and I wish people would talk to me about it.

So, in conclusion, the PM is about things relevant to around the class of 2020, but not necessarily recruiting things.  None of us has a secret plan to get to our kids recruited to an 8 million dollar deal, and none of us thinks we are experts, we just enjoy talking about our kids. 

Oh wow, I didn't mean to strike a nerve.  

There have been 43 requests to join the PM.  While I have no proof, I am going to go out on a limb and say that mine wasn't the only nerve that got struck with the general board.

Caco you and I usually agree. We have had a couple strong disagreements but generally on the same page. But this one...  I got to say you nailed it. The judges gave it a perfect 10!  You go girl!

bballdad2016 posted:

CACO3, I've been where you are.  Read a few of my original posts from a few years ago.  Feel free to ask me anything you like.  I will gladly share what we experienced at each age (7th-12th grade).  Heck, I'm going through it a second time.  Anyhow, if people aren't posting anymore that's too bad.  Hopefully they are reading.  I rarely post anymore, but that's because I read more than I post anyway.  "Two ears, one mouth". 

Take care,

Matt

Thank you Matt, it isn't an indictment against any one person it's just an overall feel of the general board when any pre-high school question comes up.  I think half of the 2020 parents have said they are clueless, and we all mean it.  But when you take clueless and add it to parental wisdom (a.k.a. oldtimers) it can blow up and feelings get hurt.  I find myself thinking and saying things like "You just don't understand", "Things have changed since you were a kid"...and several other things that cause me to flash back to my teenage years.  For the most part my parents were right and the old timers probably are too.  However, it has been very enjoyable to talk with strictly my son's age group, much like when I was a teenager I spoke to my friends because ONLY they could identify, my parents knew nothing!

For the record I am not clueless. Some are with younger kids and that's perfectly ok. But since Caco is on a roll...  You can't win no matter what. I point out that I was a coach long before being a parent as I had kids late so I do have some insights... And the response is 'why does it matter when you had kids'. That was a real response I got. Uh...  Well I think the larger point was the years of coaching but when I had kids is still germane since it demonstrates that I had many thoughts about baseball BEFORE I started thinking about baseball through the eyes of a parent. Yes some things will still take me by surprise but not many. 

• Bullet point.....what others have failed to realize is the true purpose for the reason for the HSBBW.  My understanding is that there are plenty of sites out there that can  be utilized for middle school players.  Heard that someone invited posters from another site to join. If the purpose was for them to sit back and learn that's OK, but my understanding that wasn't the case.

Many years ago a forum was created for those with middle school players. Not really sure of why a pm was created, but IMO, this is a big indication of what parents today, with younger players in all sports are like.   Its also a free site to them, whereas there are many here who have supported this site for years financially. However I am at this point not really sure who is really in charge, which is why it kind of has become, IMO, not the place it was intended for.

I am involved in one other site. I read much more than I post. The board is moderated daily and there are specific forums created for specific topics, many don't interest me.   There are no private discussion boards, however for some you must pay to access them.

I understand why people prefer free. 

Oh yes be very careful what you say in private.  

Baseballdad2016, you are a perfect example of why the HSBBW exists.  I do remember when you and others first came. I enjoy watching folks go through the process and in turn give their advice.  But I realize people don't want it, they no better, they just feel much better discussing when son did well or maybe not so well.  I get it, but once again that was not the purpose for this site.

JMO

TPM posted:

• Bullet point.....what others have failed to realize is the true purpose for the reason for the HSBBW.  My understanding is that there are plenty of sites out there that can  be utilized for middle school players.  Heard that someone invited posters from another site to join. If the purpose was for them to sit back and learn that's OK, but my understanding that wasn't the case.

Many years ago a forum was created for those with middle school players. Not really sure of why a pm was created, but IMO, this is a big indication of what parents today, with younger players in all sports are like.   Its also a free site to them, whereas there are many here who have supported this site for years financially. However I am at this point not really sure who is really in charge, which is why it kind of has become, IMO, not the place it was intended for.

I am involved in one other site. I read much more than I post. The board is moderated daily and there are specific forums created for specific topics, many don't interest me.   There are no private discussion boards, however for some you must pay to access them.

I understand why people prefer free. 

Oh yes be very careful what you say in private.  

Baseballdad2016, you are a perfect example of why the HSBBW exists.  I do remember when you and others first came. I enjoy watching folks go through the process and in turn give their advice.  But I realize people don't want it, they no better, they just feel much better discussing when son did well or maybe not so well.  I get it, but once again that was not the purpose for this site.

JMO

 

TPM, not sure where that bullet point came from but in my particular case I am on a youth site, 14u and below, and this site, that's it.  I do not know of other sites "that can be utilized for middle school players".  I did inform several people about the HSBBW site, these people had 2020's and even a 2019, is there something wrong with that? Yes there is a pre-high school forum but when it pops up on the side of the screen it just appears to be an open thread and multiple people respond inevitably that we should not be thinking about such things, or that we don't understand, that is not exactly helpful. 

The PM allows for an open conversation with other people that are in the same boat right now. Again, the PM is not about recruiting it's about sharing experiences. Yes, we are also talking about when son did well or maybe not so well, and we recognized that it was not the purpose of this site but what is the harm in it if we do it in a PM and aren't flooding your inbox with it?

We on the PM are talking about average pitching speeds in your area, which bats are popular, and even what we heard our kids high school coach is like....to me that sounds more in line with what HSBBW was created for.  I love all the information about getting to the next level and college recruitment and I often use the search function, but my kids next level is JV High School Baseball and that is what we are talking about in a fun environment where we get to share our excitement, not sure what is so wrong about that or why it is "not the purpose for this site."

P.S. I haven't supported this site financially for years, but I have made a PayPal donation.  I appreciate the site.

It doesn't flood my in box unless I want to follow that topic.  

And no you don't understand this place at all.  

I have read and re-read the welcome page which is essentially a mission statement. Anyone can read it so no need to cut and paste. So this site officially was created to talk about hs baseball and the recruiting process. Now pretty clearly the site has morphed into something much more all inclusive and I think it's fair to say it has become now just a baseball site in general. Remember the recent post with all the lively debate about Adam laroche?  That was fun. And had absolutely nothing to do with the original intent of the site. All the college experiences shared here or pro experiences that have nothing to do with actual recruitment. Also fun and also nothing to do with the original intent. Now as for our group of 2020's give or take a year...  We just enjoy having a safe environment to talk about our kids. People feel better about sharing specific information with at least a degree of privacy. I get anyone at any time could cut and paste our comments. But I think as Caco stated you would be surprised at how vanilla and boring our conversations are. They are fun to us but anyone else would not really care. So seems to me we are doing everyone a favor keeping it off here.  But please let's not talk about 'the original purpose' cause it's just not relevant. Besides our 2019 contingent IS in high school and the 2020's are now a whole 4 months away. The next time my son plays a SCHOOL sport will be in the fall with a HIGH SCHOOL uniform on. As for the 2021's so they are a little more than a year out.  They are welcome with us that's for sure.  For some reason there seems to be a feeling this PM was set up for us to have our own little gripe session or to gossip or something. As Caco stated I don't think the word recruitment in any form has even come up. Very little asking for advice. Just about our kids - hey my kid went four strong giving up two unearned this weekend - my kid was 3 for 5 with a bases clearing double - we faced a kid throwing 86 this weekend - we went 2-1 but lost the tie breaker so didn't get to Sunday - saw a 14u hit a 400 ft homer this weekend etc.  those are our big secrets. And we have fun with it. Live and let live. 

Morning,

I think the one thing we call agree on is we love this game that our kids played, or are currently playing. There is an unbelievably large pool of knowledgeable people that post and share experiences. We are fortunate to have access to those that built the site and have grown it over the years. Many people have said if it werent for this site they would have made many mistakes. As an example, I think many of younger players  have benefitted tremendously from posts regarding arm use, pitch counts, injuries and unfortunately surgey and recovery. Hopefully, to the point that can be avoided! Thankfully,  there is, and always will be parents/players coming thru the ranks that will also allow the game and this site to grow and evolve. These are the same parents who in 10 years will most likely say they just can't understand 2030 parents. That is why I will make a $ contribution ( I breezed right over that ability apparently ��). I personally hope long-time posters stay engaged, share stories, advice and enjoy helping/assisting others; humor is always appreciated.  I also hope those new to site continue to search, listen, ask questions and feel they can participate, respond and engage as well. If they didn't, wouldnt the site just become stale and eventually die?

Maybe I am mis-reading but there appears to be frustration or misinterpretation taking place regarding who should/should not post; rather than changing the dial if someone doesn't appreciate a particular topic/poster, it seems like this back/forth is becoming a tad personal for my tastes vs enjoying and learning about all levels of the game. 

Good luck to all and a huge thanks to those that started this unbelievable resource and to those that are keeping it going!

I have a 2020 kid.  I started visiting this board a few years ago, but rarely posted because the topics didn't hit home with me because my son was too young.  I found the topics being discussed fascinating, though.  This thread has helped me to become more active on the board.  It has brought a lot of lurkers out of the woodworks.  For those that don't have older kids, we don't have a lot to add to the board and that is why the PM thread works out very well for us.  We don't have the experience yet, but one day we will be more active and will be part of the group giving advice to the 2022-2030 kids.  I don't see how any of this can or should be considered a negative.  

Ok, so this thread has certainly caught my interest for more reasons than one.  Originally, I posted why anyone would start a private thread concerning underclassmen.  I asked because, quite frankly, I didn't have time to read through 6 pages of chatter from 2 or 3 posters feeding off each other.  It seems the answer has two parts.  The first part is to take random chit chat off the boards and into a private conversation. That's all fine and dandy.  The second part is so people can discuss things privately without reprisal (talk about coaches, teams, etc [your words, not mine]).  This is somewhat concerning because number one, there should be no fear of reprisal when you ask a question about bats, how much practice is too much, is 82mph RPH normal, etc, etc, etc.  These are all normal questions that many here have asked and situations that have already been experienced.  There is no better way to learn than from others and their mistakes.  Im sure all of us at some point have said "If I could do it all over again I would...".  Number two, it saddens me that a board that I learned so much from (publicly) when oldest was in 7th grade, has now diminished to parents getting their feelings hurt and squandering off to private messages with 40+ members.  The conversations may be just chit chat, but the things that you are experiencing as rising freshmen and sophomores are the same things that all of us have experienced.  Not one successful high school baseball player was born as a flawless varsity starter and not one parent knew (or knows) it all.  This site was designed with the intention of learning from each others experience and sharing information.  When I hear about 40+ parents of underclassmen participating in a private conversation so they can share their experiences and gather info, all I can envision is a small group of parents down the left field line gossiping about why Johnny isn't playing and complaining about the coach. 

Anyhow, a bit about me.  I came to this site when my son was just finishing his 7th grade middle school season and I was looking for a competitive travel team in SoCal.  CabbageDad (If I remember correctly) was the first to respond and pointed me to the SD Show.  I was living in Va at the time but preparing to move to Ca.  I asked a ton of questions.  I asked about wood bats, practice questions, BBCOR bats (they were in their first year then), and a ton of other questions that I don't recall.  I learned a lot from those that had been there and were willing to share advice.  Sometime that advice came in the form of tough love and I took as advice rather than bashing or getting my feelings hurt.  I even had it out with TPM at one point (who hasn't?).  But I learned.  I've had the wonderful pleasure of coaching high school baseball who went on to win it all in my last year coaching.  Some of those players are now playing D1/2/3/and JUCO.  Others are no longer playing but they are all in college and are productive members of society.  Why do I bring that up?  Well because even as a HS coach, I didn't have all the answers for myself or my son.  I also took advantage of this sites "coaches forum".  I have shared practice plans, bunt coverage's, and general coaching info.  I don't coach anymore, despite being asked many times.  Maybe when my 2020 is done playing ill coach again.  Its his/their experience, not mine/ours. 

Well, I would love to say more but I need to get some work done at the office.  Ill close by saying, this thread has drawn me back into the HSBBW.  I hope that the parents of underclassmen players to include middle school players take full advantage of this site and its members.  You would be really surprised to know who many of the members are, who don't post, but read a lot. 

Matt

Bball34 posted:

Morning,

I think the one thing we call agree on is we love this game that our kids played, or are currently playing. There is an unbelievably large pool of knowledgeable people that post and share experiences. We are fortunate to have access to those that built the site and have grown it over the years. Many people have said if it werent for this site they would have made many mistakes. As an example, I think many of younger players  have benefitted tremendously from posts regarding arm use, pitch counts, injuries and unfortunately surgey and recovery. Hopefully, to the point that can be avoided! Thankfully,  there is, and always will be parents/players coming thru the ranks that will also allow the game and this site to grow and evolve. These are the same parents who in 10 years will most likely say they just can't understand 2030 parents. That is why I will make a $ contribution ( I breezed right over that ability apparently ��). I personally hope long-time posters stay engaged, share stories, advice and enjoy helping/assisting others; humor is always appreciated.  I also hope those new to site continue to search, listen, ask questions and feel they can participate, respond and engage as well. If they didn't, wouldnt the site just become stale and eventually die?

Maybe I am mis-reading but there appears to be frustration or misinterpretation taking place regarding who should/should not post; rather than changing the dial if someone doesn't appreciate a particular topic/poster, it seems like this back/forth is becoming a tad personal for my tastes vs enjoying and learning about all levels of the game. 

Good luck to all and a huge thanks to those that started this unbelievable resource and to those that are keeping it going!

I agree with you, not one person here who has been a long time poster has ever stopped anyone from posting.  There are many though that have taken exception to things said, so they created the divide, NOT one old timer.  

That's what burns me.

It's my problem. 

bballdad2016 posted:

Ok, so this thread has certainly caught my interest for more reasons than one.  Originally, I posted why anyone would start a private thread concerning underclassmen.  I asked because, quite frankly, I didn't have time to read through 6 pages of chatter from 2 or 3 posters feeding off each other.  It seems the answer has two parts.  The first part is to take random chit chat off the boards and into a private conversation. That's all fine and dandy.  The second part is so people can discuss things privately without reprisal (talk about coaches, teams, etc [your words, not mine]).  This is somewhat concerning because number one, there should be no fear of reprisal when you ask a question about bats, how much practice is too much, is 82mph RPH normal, etc, etc, etc.  These are all normal questions that many here have asked and situations that have already been experienced.  There is no better way to learn than from others and their mistakes.  Im sure all of us at some point have said "If I could do it all over again I would...".  Number two, it saddens me that a board that I learned so much from (publicly) when oldest was in 7th grade, has now diminished to parents getting their feelings hurt and squandering off to private messages with 40+ members.  The conversations may be just chit chat, but the things that you are experiencing as rising freshmen and sophomores are the same things that all of us have experienced.  Not one successful high school baseball player was born as a flawless varsity starter and not one parent knew (or knows) it all.  This site was designed with the intention of learning from each others experience and sharing information.  When I hear about 40+ parents of underclassmen participating in a private conversation so they can share their experiences and gather info, all I can envision is a small group of parents down the left field line gossiping about why Johnny isn't playing and complaining about the coach. 

 

Anyhow, a bit about me.  I came to this site when my son was just finishing his 7th grade middle school season and I was looking for a competitive travel team in SoCal.  CabbageDad (If I remember correctly) was the first to respond and pointed me to the SD Show.  I was living in Va at the time but preparing to move to Ca.  I asked a ton of questions.  I asked about wood bats, practice questions, BBCOR bats (they were in their first year then), and a ton of other questions that I don't recall.  I learned a lot from those that had been there and were willing to share advice.  Sometime that advice came in the form of tough love and I took as advice rather than bashing or getting my feelings hurt.  I even had it out with TPM at one point (who hasn't?).  But I learned.  I've had the wonderful pleasure of coaching high school baseball who went on to win it all in my last year coaching.  Some of those players are now playing D1/2/3/and JUCO.  Others are no longer playing but they are all in college and are productive members of society.  Why do I bring that up?  Well because even as a HS coach, I didn't have all the answers for myself or my son.  I also took advantage of this sites "coaches forum".  I have shared practice plans, bunt coverage's, and general coaching info.  I don't coach anymore, despite being asked many times.  Maybe when my 2020 is done playing ill coach again.  Its his/their experience, not mine/ours. 

 

Well, I would love to say more but I need to get some work done at the office.  Ill close by saying, this thread has drawn me back into the HSBBW.  I hope that the parents of underclassmen players to include middle school players take full advantage of this site and its members.  You would be really surprised to know who many of the members are, who don't post, but read a lot. 

 

Matt

Well said.

I have a 2016 and a 2020.  I started posting a reply several days ago similar to what Bballdad first posted and then just decided to send CACO a message to ask why they had moved to a private thread.  I actually do understand the reason for it but decided not to join for a few reasons - the first being that my 2020 isn't as serious about baseball as he is about football and basketball, may not play travel this summer and it seemed like that was going to be one of the main topics of the PMs.  

The second reason is I do think there is a place for that kind of thread here.  There are lots of threads already going that are just about baseball experience(s).  There is one on college baseball 2016, high school baseball 2016 - where people are just posting about what's happening, games played, number of hits in big games, etc.  I click on those and read them even though my 2016 isn't playing college ball yet because I like to see what is happening with some of the other member's who have helped me since I joined.   It seems like the 2019s-2021s could do that here (and by the way, this thread is still open and people are still adding to it) without moving to PMs.  As a parent of a 2020 I could still follow along, still chime in if something came up where I thought I could add value or share something.   

If someone posts and says "don't worry about that, you can worry when they get to high school" just ignore them or reply thank you and move on.  If someone else chooses to pick an internet fight about it, let them, and ignore them both.  

And finally, I didn't know you could donate via paypal to keep this site up and running.  That was the first I've heard of it and I will take care of that today.  

MKbaseballdad posted:

I have a 2016 and a 2020.  I started posting a reply several days ago similar to what Bballdad first posted and then just decided to send CACO a message to ask why they had moved to a private thread.  I actually do understand the reason for it but decided not to join for a few reasons - the first being that my 2020 isn't as serious about baseball as he is about football and basketball, may not play travel this summer and it seemed like that was going to be one of the main topics of the PMs.  

The second reason is I do think there is a place for that kind of thread here.  There are lots of threads already going that are just about baseball experience(s).  There is one on college baseball 2016, high school baseball 2016 - where people are just posting about what's happening, games played, number of hits in big games, etc.  I click on those and read them even though my 2016 isn't playing college ball yet because I like to see what is happening with some of the other member's who have helped me since I joined.   It seems like the 2019s-2021s could do that here (and by the way, this thread is still open and people are still adding to it) without moving to PMs.  As a parent of a 2020 I could still follow along, still chime in if something came up where I thought I could add value or share something.   

If someone posts and says "don't worry about that, you can worry when they get to high school" just ignore them or reply thank you and move on.  If someone else chooses to pick an internet fight about it, let them, and ignore them both.  

And finally, I didn't know you could donate via paypal to keep this site up and running.  That was the first I've heard of it and I will take care of that today.  

First, I did make a suggestion to create a middle school topic and ask that it be pinned to the top just like the college and HS topics.  I guess it was either over looked or the idea of keeping it secret was of greater importance. 

I did not ask anyone to donate. I made a comment about those that did for many years to help to keep it alive. I do believe that may be taken care of.  It was just an example of the real purpose here, helping to move the process along, not post in secrecy.

Why not just create your own website for youth players?

I am done with this, I have said what's on my mind. 

bballdad2016 posted:

Ok, so this thread has certainly caught my interest for more reasons than one.  Originally, I posted why anyone would start a private thread concerning underclassmen.  I asked because, quite frankly, I didn't have time to read through 6 pages of chatter from 2 or 3 posters feeding off each other.  It seems the answer has two parts.  The first part is to take random chit chat off the boards and into a private conversation. That's all fine and dandy.  The second part is so people can discuss things privately without reprisal (talk about coaches, teams, etc [your words, not mine]).  This is somewhat concerning because number one, there should be no fear of reprisal when you ask a question about bats, how much practice is too much, is 82mph RPH normal, etc, etc, etc.  These are all normal questions that many here have asked and situations that have already been experienced.  There is no better way to learn than from others and their mistakes.  Im sure all of us at some point have said "If I could do it all over again I would...".  Number two, it saddens me that a board that I learned so much from (publicly) when oldest was in 7th grade, has now diminished to parents getting their feelings hurt and squandering off to private messages with 40+ members.  The conversations may be just chit chat, but the things that you are experiencing as rising freshmen and sophomores are the same things that all of us have experienced.  Not one successful high school baseball player was born as a flawless varsity starter and not one parent knew (or knows) it all.  This site was designed with the intention of learning from each others experience and sharing information.  When I hear about 40+ parents of underclassmen participating in a private conversation so they can share their experiences and gather info, all I can envision is a small group of parents down the left field line gossiping about why Johnny isn't playing and complaining about the coach. 

 

Anyhow, a bit about me.  I came to this site when my son was just finishing his 7th grade middle school season and I was looking for a competitive travel team in SoCal.  CabbageDad (If I remember correctly) was the first to respond and pointed me to the SD Show.  I was living in Va at the time but preparing to move to Ca.  I asked a ton of questions.  I asked about wood bats, practice questions, BBCOR bats (they were in their first year then), and a ton of other questions that I don't recall.  I learned a lot from those that had been there and were willing to share advice.  Sometime that advice came in the form of tough love and I took as advice rather than bashing or getting my feelings hurt.  I even had it out with TPM at one point (who hasn't?).  But I learned.  I've had the wonderful pleasure of coaching high school baseball who went on to win it all in my last year coaching.  Some of those players are now playing D1/2/3/and JUCO.  Others are no longer playing but they are all in college and are productive members of society.  Why do I bring that up?  Well because even as a HS coach, I didn't have all the answers for myself or my son.  I also took advantage of this sites "coaches forum".  I have shared practice plans, bunt coverage's, and general coaching info.  I don't coach anymore, despite being asked many times.  Maybe when my 2020 is done playing ill coach again.  Its his/their experience, not mine/ours. 

 

Well, I would love to say more but I need to get some work done at the office.  Ill close by saying, this thread has drawn me back into the HSBBW.  I hope that the parents of underclassmen players to include middle school players take full advantage of this site and its members.  You would be really surprised to know who many of the members are, who don't post, but read a lot. 

 

Matt

I appreciate your thoughts on the subject and I understand your point of view.  Caco has done an excellent job with the PM thread from a standpoint of establishing some rules for that thread on what should be posted there vs what should be posted in this thread.  The PM thread is nothing more than chit chat.  There is no gossip about teams.  When we talk about teams the conversations are about teams in our age group or how we did on the weekend.  There has been nothing negative said about any coach, player or team.  Most of the posters in that thread gave a small introduction that told where they are from, which team they are on, etc.  I don't know if they would have done that in a public thread.  Since posting about my location and team, I have had multiple PM's from people that are playing against us in the future, teams we've played against in the past, or people that were from my area.  I feel more attached to this board since the thread was started.  I've learned a lot over the last two years from reading this board and I thank all that participate.

Son (14u) is having elbow pain on the back of his elbow after the weekend.  He is a catcher and caught a lot this weekend.  We are icing it and I have him taking Aleve.  Should I try and stretch it at some point or just let it rest?  He has rarely had any arm issues over the years, but he also plays QB so he throws a lot and I am always concerned about the number of throws on his arm.       

d-mac posted:

Son (14u) is having elbow pain on the back of his elbow after the weekend.  He is a catcher and caught a lot this weekend.  We are icing it and I have him taking Aleve.  Should I try and stretch it at some point or just let it rest?  He has rarely had any arm issues over the years, but he also plays QB so he throws a lot and I am always concerned about the number of throws on his arm.       

Going to a doctor is always the number one call on these things....and ice is up for debate as to if it is actually helpful or harmful. 

In the words of my son's old coach "Kids this age don't have their arm hurt for no reason, something is wrong, it could be how he is throwing, or it could be an arm issue, either way he needs 2 weeks off or a doctors clearance to come back."

Since 12-15u are the best time for growth plate injuries if it were me I would pull him for at least a week, then let him practice and if it still hurt during the practice I would take him to a SPORTS ortho, not just a regular ortho. I was told early on that the bigger the sub-high school kid the greater the chance for injury.  Kid muscles in adult bodies are begging for trouble.  Local 14u kid was doing the long jump at school and fractured his hip, parents were told the muscle pulled away from the bone due to growth...now that's some freaky stuff!

We are off this weekend and he only had football one day this week (today, which he did not participate) so it came at a good time.  Rest through this week and re-evaluate.  If it is still sore we will take him to the Dr. 

Sometimes the problem isn't the message but the messenger.  Newbie parents just that.  Right now, youth travel ball is their world.  When they have a question, it is just that - a question.  It is easy for those of us who have been thru an experience to give it little thought and say - stop worrying, get real, you have no clue, blah, blah, blah.  But an attempt should be made to lighten it up and send the message more diplomatically. 

As for the PM, it is what it is.  I was hoping for a lot more "dirt."   

Golfman25 posted:

Sometimes the problem isn't the message but the messenger.  Newbie parents just that.  Right now, youth travel ball is their world.  When they have a question, it is just that - a question.  It is easy for those of us who have been thru an experience to give it little thought and say - stop worrying, get real, you have no clue, blah, blah, blah.  But an attempt should be made to lighten it up and send the message more diplomatically. 

As for the PM, it is what it is.  I was hoping for a lot more "dirt."   

This board, especially it's experienced posters, has such an opportunity to educate parents on baseball for their son, regardless of age.  There are many threads about arm injuries, where invariably (and often correctly) youth parents are blamed for the overuse of their son.  Also posts on overbearing parents, wasted money.  And lot's of the good things that come with youth baseball.

No poster needs to take accept the task of educating a crazy ten year old baseball dad, but there are many good messages to spread.  As any reformed youth parent, I didn't change overnight.  And I know I am not alone.

I think there should be a permanent thread at the top "Pre-High School".  Nothing wrong with the private PM, but that will play out.

My son had similar issue with elbow pain.  Didn't know if it was the football, long toss or combination of both. We took time off from throwing.  Then used an abbreviation of a Tommy John rehab/conditioning program. It worked for my son. We both agreed that if it comes back we are going to see a specialist. 

As an administrator of this site, I think it is great that the parents of soon-to-be HS baseball players are already involved in this site, and I'd like to make appropriate adjustments to this site so we can accommodate the discussions and follow the ride of the players in this age group.

d-mac posted:

Son (14u) is having elbow pain on the back of his elbow after the weekend.  He is a catcher and caught a lot this weekend.  We are icing it and I have him taking Aleve.  Should I try and stretch it at some point or just let it rest?  He has rarely had any arm issues over the years, but he also plays QB so he throws a lot and I am always concerned about the number of throws on his arm.       

 

My son has experienced chronic elbow pain since 11U. His ortho has always recommended ice for 20 minutes and Alieve or another anti-inflam twice a day.

I would definitely shut him down for a week since you are not playing this weekend and see how he feels afterward. If it's on the inside of the elbow (arm at 90 degrees) between a large and small bone, it could be ulnar nerve irritation. My son dealt with it earlier this year for about a month. 

Swampboy posted:

As an administrator of this site, I think it is great that the parents of soon-to-be HS baseball players are already involved in this site, and I'd like to make appropriate adjustments to this site so we can accommodate the discussions and follow the ride of the players in this age group.

I think this is a great idea and with the way baseball is going (more comparative at younger years), it is needed.  I would recommend a message board pinned to the top, similar to the HS and College board.  Just need some message board name recommendations I guess.  And would it be an "annual" or "seasonal" board.  Most pre-HS players play middle school (seasonal) as well as travel ball (annual), sometimes as their primary season (August to August)? 

d-mac posted:

Son (14u) is having elbow pain on the back of his elbow after the weekend.  He is a catcher and caught a lot this weekend.  We are icing it and I have him taking Aleve.  Should I try and stretch it at some point or just let it rest?  He has rarely had any arm issues over the years, but he also plays QB so he throws a lot and I am always concerned about the number of throws on his arm.       

Is he currently doing any arm care exercises like thrower's ten to work on stabilizing muscles?   Has he had the pain before, is it constant or due to the throwing motion?  I think most Ortho doctors will recommend shutting down the throwing for a relatively long period of time (for the middle of the season) like 6-8 weeks depending if it is anything other than muscle soreness.  The location of the pain is concerning for a hyperextension type injury.

bballdad2016 posted:

Swampboy posted:

As an administrator of this site, I think it is great that the parents of soon-to-be HS baseball players are already involved in this site, and I'd like to make appropriate adjustments to this site so we can accommodate the discussions and follow the ride of the players in this age group.

I think this is a great idea and with the way baseball is going (more comparative at younger years), it is needed.  I would recommend a message board pinned to the top, similar to the HS and College board.  Just need some message board name recommendations I guess.  And would it be an "annual" or "seasonal" board.  Most pre-HS players play middle school (seasonal) as well as travel ball (annual), sometimes as their primary season (August to August)? 

Hey Swampboy, welcome to the party!  Is there a way to make the 7th-9th grade discussion a button on top but also NOT show up on the recently discussed thread bar on the side?  That way you have to actually click and WANT to see what is being said on the 7th-9th grade forum.  I do my best not to click on the 6u group on the youth board I am on because well, um, yeah SIXu!!!!!  I'd like to give the old timers the same accommodation to be able to avoid the younger forum if they don't want to see the questions.

One thought though...   If it is just a 'middle school' thread.  It will only apply to us for a short time or not at all.  I think what at least I had in mind was keeping our group in touch for the duration.  The approximately 2020 crowd.   That's why we opened a ~2020 thread and PM.