37 Odd Reasons Why Late Growth Spurts-MIF & Multisport Athletes Have Better Mechanics!

I can't buy into this, my 2015s 2016s and 2017s are being highly recruited right now because of the commitments, that these players and their families have made to play baseball often with lessons and winter workouts. Vanderbilt, Ole Miss, Okla state, Wichita State, these are a few schools that are very happy that our kids put in the extra work.

 

I don't think any of this contradicts what he wrote.

I guess I can't argue with this at all....here's why

 

1. My son was always the youngest & smallest kid on any team he played for

 

2. He was almost always the shortstop

 

3. He played baseball, soccer, basketball and football thru 6th grade...and baseball and soccer in HS....but any "extra" time or training he put in was always for baseball

 

Every single point that was made fits exactly with what we saw with my son.

 

It may not be what everyone sees, but if anyone who knows my son reads this, they would think it was written about him.

So, the players you're referring to are high school aged kids?  How many of the top recruits have only played baseball their entire life?  How many have always been the biggest kids?  How many of your pitchers have only pitched, or played 1B?  

 

These are questions that me and my buddies always talk about when discussing their rosters.  I know Coach Corbin at Vandy looks for multi sport athletes, as well as Chris Finwood at Old Dominion.  

 

Seems to a positive in the recruiting process with a lot of college coaches.

First, Nyman is a good reference and has always had some good stuff on pitching.  I disagree with the basic premise because my experience has been just the opposite.  My child was always the biggest kid around.  One thing that stood out to college coaches is her size and ability to throw a ball.  She was signed as an OF and ended up as a 1B.  Don't count on her "flipping the ball" as mentioned in the article.  She can flat out throw and led our area in assist two different years from the OF.  One year she threw out 11 runners and her senior year she threw out 12. 

 

As some of you know, I have had a lot of players go on to play college, pro and some MLB.  I'd say that of the ones that made it to MLB, half at least were always one of the bigger kids.  This article suggest that because players are bigger at an early age, they develop a lack competitive nature and drive.  The article promotes the small gritty player who over came to get where he is.  The world against him.  It might be akin to the "fat and happy stereotype."   I am reminded of one of a 7 footer I coached in basketball.  After grueling practices, he would ask me to go to the upstairs running track and time him for a mile run.  He set his goal to be sub 7 minutes on each run.  While some of you might think 7 minutes is slow, you'd have to see what he did in practice and understand how dead his legs were at that moment.  I told him he didn't need to do that and at 7 foot tall, he was going to play in college.  He told me the perception is that 7 footers are slow and he wanted to stand out.  IOWs break the stereotype. 

 

BTW, a couple of Center fielders I coached became outstanding pitchers. 

CoachB-

You mentioned that she signed as an OF and ended up playing 1B...What if she had played 1B all of her life, would she have ended up as an OF?  

 

The premise is around motor patterns and the organization of movement patterns based on the kids environment.  

 

I'm not saying, nor ever will I, that there's absolutes to anything.  I was simply pointing out "food for thought".  

 

I can see how you could perceive much of what you write, and as I review the article, I can see how it's slanted towards the small "gritty" player.  

 

No question that many pitchers are converted OF- because the position requires arm strength.  Once an OF can learn to generate momentum using the center of the body-good things happen.  

 

Thanks for commenting, interesting thoughts.  

 

Lantz

Lantz, actually, she was a pitcher, SS and 1B in HS.  Her sophomore year, she played OF and then her senior year both after games she pitched.  Recently on her women's team the Big 10 SS didn't show up.  The coach didn't have a SS and went to BB and asked her if she could pay SS.  Lantz, She is now the SS of that team.  She is not an athlete.  She is a hard charger who has always been the biggest kid around.  Still, she wanted to play the best.  When she was 14U (13 years of age), she played the majority of games at 16 and 18U.  She was bigger than those girls.  Lantz, all her life I had to battle the stereotype and so that is why I addressed it in response to your post.  The qualities you ascribed to the late bloomer is what she has done all of her life.  Many members here have seen her grow up.  MN-Mom has followed her career. 

 

Lantz, I have had 5 or 6 or .. kids make it to MLB.  One, was the perfect example of your article.  However, a couple were examples of my child.  Always bigger and better.  Every one of them started varsity as a freshman and every one of them did so on nationally ranked HS teams.  So, at the age of 14, they had to be able to beat out upperclassmen who had talent. 

 

Darrell

I'm not disagreeing...

 

I believe once you start to get into the 1% ers (MLB) that comment doesn't surprise me at all.  To make it in MLB requires a lot of luck and obviously "God given gifts"...

As you look around the league, most are the genetic specimens...

Those that aren't have a feel good story attached.... so the MLB players don't surprise me as Bigger and Better their entire career.  

Try this on for size.

There are 2 players of equal talent, the one slightly taller gets selected for stronger team based on size. Subsequently he takes more snaps and gets challenged and pushed by other stronger players and perhaps quality coaching for the next 12 months. Next year the bigger kid gets selected because he has more talent not just size, and the gap begins to widen and continues until HS. This is when a lot of kids quit playing. Bigger fields, BBCOR bats, playing time, not always the case but very often.

Interesting observations but I wonder how much of the percieved cause and efect are reversed. Example, does playing SS delelope a quick strong throwing motion or does the kid with the natural quick strong throwing motion get put at SS.

Excellent point....

Great point Scotty!  I think a lot of the more athletic kids or genetically gifted (Coach's sons, :0) could start at SS and because of that become more efficient throwing the ball.....  That's a really good point, I agree.  

Thinktank - Interesting ideas and definitely agree with a lot of your observations re shorter kids with shorter limbs being more aware of their bodies in space vs taller kids generally having stiffer movements.  But you seem to feel that this is generally an advantage later on; I see it more as a big advantage earlier.  If a shorter kid can develop quick twitch movements... And then later experience a lot of growth, as you describe... Then sure, I can see where that could provide a unique advantage potentially.  More generally though... the lanky, undercoordinated kid who is on the way to eventually topping out at 6'3"-6'5" range and who is shown the OF and corners more often as a youth player may tend to lag developmentally... throwing with more arm/less body as you describe. But while the shorter, quicker body type may excel on the mound earlier and dominate even into HS age (having gotten "there" sooner in terms of velo, movement, confidence), the lanky "stiff" body type guy who later learns how to incorporate his full body into his mechanics will tend to go further by HS and will project much more upside during HS and heading into college.  I guess my point is that things tend to even out by HS and players start to fall into roles and positions based in part on their natural size and physicality.  Always plenty of exceptions of course... ie shorter pitchers, tall athletic MIF's... But talking on average, those taller, stiffer, less athletic looking 11 yo's tend to dominate the bump by HS.

In coaching youth baseball the last 15 years and seeing my own sons experience I would say yes multi sport players at younger ages are usually the better players.  However, the best players at 12 or 13 are also the best players senior year as well.  In looking at the last draft and the HS players, my son played with or against most of them over the years and I can't think of one that was a weak undersized kid at 12 who overcame and prevailed.  They where the better players then as well.

Lots of conjecture and opinion, based on few facts or science. His cause and effect arguments are probably turned around; multi-sport athletes are more gifted, hence they play more sports and are better at it....D'Oh. 

 

We all know someone who fits or does not fit his "theory" which I use loosely.

Allow me to add to that BOF--

Absolutely NO SCIENCE and all opinion- simply "food for thought".

D'oh

Would totally disagree with the conjecture that multi sport athletes are more gifted...ridiculous statement. 

Maybe multi athletes that are "the guys" in each sport are all gifted...

 

Based on your statement... I could take my daughter whom is not athletically gifted (bad genes) and sign her up for multiple sports and suddenly, you were consider her "athletically gifted"

 

If you promise to do so, I'll go sign her up right now.  

Unfortunately, that's not going to happen.  If she decided to play multi sports it would increase her awareness and overall athleticism by challenging movement patterns.  But at the end of the day, she would not be gifted.  

 

 "D'oh" 

Smaller preteens have to develop solid fundamentals to succeed in baseball. Some bigger preteens don't develop solid fundamentals as they rely on their size and strength. It hurts them when they hit the 60/90 field. But by high school none of this matters. By then the game is about kids who will do the work to succeed regardless of their size as a preteen or their size in high school.

 

My son was one of the small kids relative to sports from 11-14. The game got easy as he blew past other kids in size. But he always worked hard regardless of his size.