After Little League...

We're going to put our tournament team in a fall select league. They should get beaten up pretty badly by some of the teams, but they'll be able to get used to decent pitching. We'll also play a few tournaments. My son wants to play Pony next year so we'll look for the best fit in the local area. I'm not too worried about his 13yo year. I'd rather work with him on building his arm and not have him pitch all that much during the season.

I really think for the 13-year old year, that the best system is one with 80-ft. bases. That could be Pony, USSSA and I believe Koufax.

The 80-ft. bases make the gamespeed a good rate for that age. Infielders have to react a little quicker than 90, hitters need to also react a little quicker to 54 ft. pitching. 90-ft. fields are just too slow for 13s.

There are some that are sure to argue with me on this...mix in a little 90 ft. stuff in your travel ball. But the best thing you can do is improve reaction times and play on a field size that forces quick action.

14s could be a different story...my comments above are for 13s.

I would tend to agree about 13s playing at 54-80. A lot of 14s are ready to step up to 60-90. I think many 13s will benefit from the transition from Little League dimensions to 60-90.

Agree with justbaseball on the distances. There are certainly a few 13s ready to handle the big field, but they can always play up. The majority are better served by 54/80. Our junior program switched from 54/80 to 60/90 midway through the season and the coaches tell me it was a joke.

Our Little League Jrs program switches halfway through the season from 54/80 to 60/90 and it works well for both 13s and 14s. The 13s get a taste and the 14s get needed playing time at baseball distance. I see more hitting at 60/90, but the pitchers in our TOC/All Stars tournaments have no problems. The bigger field does require more baseball skills vs just being a big kid that dominates because the field is so small. Make sure your 13 throws alot of long toss and works on arm strength and they will have no problems at the 60/90 distance.

I disagree. I think it is according to the area you live. Our middle schools play 60/90 and with that 13 year olds play 60/90 then go back to 54/80 for tournament ball. We also have several 14s that play 54/80. That is rediculious. YOu played 60/90 in middle school and will play 60/90 in high school. why play 54/80. Develop the arms.

Jeff - Going back and forth between seasons is probably not good...I would agree.

I've coached this stuff on both size fields for a lot of years. I very strongly believe that after LL, going to 80 ft. fields is much better for development. Quickness is a very important factor in baseball whether it be in the infield or at the plate. Or in the outfield for that matter (gotta get to the ball in a hurry on 80 ft fields to stop the extra base).

My point is that for 13s, the speed of the game at a higher level (HS and beyond) is better simulated by 80-ft. fields. The one downside that I saw is that a dominant pitcher (an 80 mph guy at 13/14 and there are a few) can make a 54-ft. pitching distance look ridiculous for the hitters.

My son is 14 this year. He payed 54/80 as a 13U which seemed just right.

He pays 60/90 now. We played one 54/80 tournament early this year. It was frightening to me to see watch how hard some of the 14s can hit a baseball. I wouldn't want my son pitching from 54' at this age. It is just plain dangerous for the pitcher. The extra 6 feet seems to make a big difference on the come-backers. My son hit one directely at a 54' pitcher's face. The kid saved himself through pure reactive instinct and caught the ball in his glove. Whew. There was a a very audible sigh of relief from both sides of the bleachers.

The 73 mph pitch comming in can easily be a 110 to 125 mph or higher hit going out at 14 years old. 54' is to close.

I agree with JustBB

80/54 is a good transition.... for 13s

Unless he has already reach puberty and is 6' PLUS.....

I have both 17U and a 13U... and my 13U (will be 8th grade next fall) plays primarily on a team his age group at 80/54 He also plays on a 14U team once in a while on a 90/60 field... and the 80/54 is MUCH better for development of the players IMHO... This fall he'll make the transition to 90/60 a permanent one.

As far as going back and forth... It will affect Pitchers... and sometimes catchers... but most of the players adjust pretty quickly...

The first 1 or 2 ABs may need adjustments... but.. hey... that's the NAME of the game, learning to make adjustments....

I have a simple solution. My advice would be to revamp the age limits that play together. It should be like this...8 and 9's play together..little league field. 10 and 11's play together on little league fields. 12 and 13's play together on 54/80. Then 14 and 15's play together 60/90. Then 16 and above play together. In my opinion there is not a big difference in these ages physically and little league and Dixie and all youth baseball should consider it. It would be more competitive and prepare kids earlier for the move to the bigger fields.

dwill - I think I completely agree with you. There's more to your solution than meets the eye.

At 16 and above, we are talking about sophomores and above. That is a time when ALL players are preparing for varsity baseball the next HS season and being grouped with the older kids is good for them. Babe Ruth does this, but they are totally messed up by grouping 13/14/15's together the year before.

The biggest problem with your solution is that LL/Pony/Ripken/etc... ALL make the 12-year old year a traditional big deal. Someone would have to move a mountain to get them to change IMO.