Baseball America story on travel ball, showcases and invitation-only tournaments

Thank you for all the emailed replies. If I use your information or need specific clarification, I will contact you. For future responders, please be detailed -- if you quote amounts you've paid for travel ball, for example, please say what time period that applies to. Also, I need first and last names and ages of players, where you're located, and names and locations of teams, tournaments and showcases.

 

Some people mentioned academies and how some players are benefiting, but also how they're attracting younger and younger customers. I asked previously if some parents of lesser talented players are being sold a bill of goods with some of the showcases/high profile tournaments. Does this apply to some of these academies who are attracting high schoolers who may have the money, but not necessarily the ability to play at the next level? 

 

I noticed on some older threads about high schoolers being "selected" as All-Americans by an organization, but that that label came with a price tag. If you couldn't pay its asking fee to play in its tournament, then the organizer moved down the list to the next potential "All-American." Is this still true?

 

Any experience with travel teams "affiliated" with high school teams? Anyone want to go on the record with actual knowledge of this? Would need names of schools and coaches. I have heard that some high school coaches won't consider you for the team if you're not playing on a travel team affiliated with that school. I assume these coaches must also be coaching these travel teams? True or false?

 

Thanks again.

PKD,

 

Just wondering if you know of any sports that aren't like this.  Every college sport I know of has travel programs, camps, academies, personal trainers, private instructors, showcases, and lots of parents plunking down more money than outside observers would think prudent in relation to their child's potential to earn a scholarship or go pro.  What makes baseball any different from soccer, cheer, gymnastics, field hockey, swimming, golf, football, or even basketball?  Granted, equipment needs vary by sport, but they're all expensive.

To be honest, you might want to go to some of these tournaments this summer and actually talk to the parents involved in these programs.  Some of their responses may suprise you.

 

We feed into this whole idea that our kids are missing out or falling behind if we don't get them involved in this select/travel/elite baseball crapola.  We take the dream of our kid playing professional sports and somehow use it to justify spending thousands of dollars on top end bats and gloves, to buy matching bags, warm up jerseys and home and away uniforms for our 'elite' ten year olds.  We shell out money so that our kids can have some huge banner that lets everyone know they are playing the Scorpions, Pythons or Shockers and look with distain on another team that must be inferior because their team's uniforms don't have their kid's names on the back.

 

So we play an adult version of dress up with our kids, telling ourselves that the thousands we spend on all of the games and travel, the gas and the motel fees are for the kid but in reality it is an opportunity for the parents to live a dream vicariously through their child.   We spend every weekend playing 4-8 games, 16-20 weeks a year and worry that our kid isn't getting the right 'experience' because their team came in third in the 4th Annual Okeblagokie Tournament in Whatevertown USA.

 

It's a load of crap.  What we have done (myself included) as parents is transform the dream of an 11 year old to play pro ball into some kind of vendetta to make sure that he actually does play pro ball.  What kid doesn't dream of playing pro sports?  But instead of allowing the kid to enjoy himself and actually play a game we shove that game into their face 24/7 and create the impression that baseball, and only baseball, is the important thing in life.  Every weekend, some tournament.  Constant pressure to perform and do well.  I mean, we spent 2-3 grand so you could play on this team, why did you strike out looking in the third?  All of that training, why did you let that ball go through your legs?  You know if you keep this up the coach will bench you and you won't be playing.  I'm not spending $2500 for you to sit on the bench.

 

God, I used to think like that, still do at times.  I really have to fight it some days.  In the effort to ensure my son's 'dream' of playing baseball I probably screwed it up for him.  I am sure that there are plenty of parents that get their kids involved in this stuff for the right reasons but others confuse their dreams with their kid's dreams. 

Not to be harsh. But that may have been your experience, but it does not resemble mine. I had three sons that played baseball and two daughters that played softball, two sons that played on travel teams and one that played college ball and now milb, and a 26 year old daughter still playing competitive softball on multiple teams.

 

Everything we did has been a joy and a cherished memory. I can hardly imagine a better way to have spent our days together with our children as they grew up!

That's why I said there are plenty that get their kids involved for the right reasons.   I'm sure yours was a good experience for both yourself and your kids.  I had good times too, I just remember putting a lot more pressure on my kid at the age of 12 than he probably needed. 

 

I do stand by my opinion that you don't need matching bags, gloves, shoes, helmets warmup jackets and many of the other things that some of these clubs toss out there in an effort to give kids the 'big league experience'.  You don't have to travel 350 miles to play a game when there are plenty of talented teams locally in tourneys that are both fun and within a reasonable cost.  Spending thousands upon thousands of dollars is fine if you have the money I suppose but people without that kind of money are given the impression that their kid will fall behind if they don't travel to different states and play 70-100 games a year.  And there are people that prey on that fear, and profit from it.

 

And it isn't true.  You don't need to play 85 games, 4-6 games every weekend, to be a good baseball player in high school.   People are being told that.  I was told that.  I believed it.  Some kids thrive on that but even Major league players don't play more than 5-6 days a week, and that is spread out over the whole week.  In our summers we would often put in the same number of games in a single weekend-maybe more if we kept winning.  I remember many weekends when we got to the field at 8AM and got back to the model room after 11PM only to be back there the next morning.  It got less fun for him as the summer went on and more of a grind.

 

And what do we see now?  Kids don't play for their high schools now because parents fear that they won't get the right kind of exposure playing HS ball.  Kids miss school days because they travel to different areas to do 'prospect camps'.  There are parents that fret more over an 0-4 game than they do the D the kid got on his math test earlier in the day.  People spend tons of money on videos and other programs that will help your kid get 'recruited' yet I have talked to three Major Division 1 head coaches (well two Pac 12 coaches and one Mid American) and all four told me that those CDs go right in the trash because they flat out don't have the time to look at every kid with a video.

 

Travel and select ball has its place but when you see people talking about 'elite' 8 year old teams and kids not even in Junior High traveling thousands of miles to play baseball I have to start wondering who we are really doing these things for?   I'm not impugning parents that do it for the right reasons.  But if someone is doing it to live through their kid it will not have a positive effect.

 

WkLink, 

 

Wow.  Your description is so foreign to our experience I hardly know where to begin.

 

Only one of my sons plays baseball, and we didn't hit the travel circuit until after his sophomore year of high school.  My son played on a well-run team.  Nearly all the players were above average or better students looking to play ball at good colleges.  The parents were balanced and decent people.  A couple players had and might still have pro aspirations, but nobody encouraged false hopes of pro careers.  The coaches kept fees reasonable.  My son never had a bag or jacket with the team logo; I have one shirt with the logo.  

 

The coaches facilitated carpools and room shares to reduce travel costs, and they let some of the pitchers-only families skip days or events when they weren't likely to be needed.  

 

All in all, it was a sane, healthy, and very positive experience.  It gave us a lot of good family memories, father-son time, and baseball experiences.

While I don't believe that Wklink's description is typical of the average parent/son baseball experience, I appreciate his honesty.  There are parents out there such as he described, though I feel they're in the minority.  I know a few and it's not a pleasant experience for the player.  Baseball is too difficult of a game to succeed all of the time.  It is, as they say, a game of failure.

 

While my son, as many baseball kids his age, does have pro aspirations he knows that any chance of going that route (for him) has to be done via college.  He also knows that the odds are highly stacked against a pro career.  But, after college, he will have a career in something.

Good dialog.  Wklink, thanks for your honest post, the experience of some, but I hope few.  I could have made some of those mistakes (well, I still have time to, but hopefully will not) but I took in a lot of information from this site and friends who had "been there, done that". 

 

PKD, you will find that the range of academies is from a one-man bucket shop that is academy in name only to IMG in Florida.

 

The rec/Little League experience that many of us had as kids has been diluted as the more talented boys move to travel or travel-light as it may be.  I find this sad, but acknowedge that we are part of the migration and therefore the problem, if there really is one.  That probably defines me as an old fogie, pushing back however weakly against the calculus of many things ordained by the dimension of time.  I miss the joy of watching a kid who plays baseball for the first time hit a home run, disregarding errors, only to cross the plate, pick up the bat and get in the batter's box because he thinks he gets to bat again.  The pleasure of community.  Our current baseball situation is very cohesive and functional but the community is smaller.

 

I want as many kids playing baseball as possible, it is good for America.  I hope that the move of many to travel ball does not diminish the fun of rec baseball for those who choose to play LL or Babe Ruth.

 

More advanced youth baseball has a bad reputation among some because of the obnxious and provincial parents who cannot see beyond the present.  I know of parents who spend considerable money and time on developing their child's musical talent, but they tend to be more bearable.  You have likely seen the youth baseball article from the Sun Sentinel last month.  Seems like there will always be a supply of proud parents willing to speak a bit too much.

 

It sounds like your article will present the changing landscape from various perspectives and that seems fitting.  The value and experience of more advanced youth baseball depends on so many factors: family situation; expectations; coaches; other parents; talent; desire; time commitment....

Wklink, thanks for your honest post...

I'll second that.  I didn't read it all, but there are flavors in there that I've heard about, seen and experienced too.

I have three sons who went through this entire experience. Their ages span 10 years, so I saw the "travel" circuit evolve into what it is today.

 

I have a few observations.

1. Our family had amazing times doing this stuff (and spent more money than I even want to think about -- and we did it cheap).

2. No travel team should ever deny a player a spot because of a lack of money. When a kid can't afford it, the other families ought to pitch in to help. This is what we always did.

3. If you do it with the primary goal to gain a college scholarship, don't do it at all. Save your money and send your kids to college three times over because baseball scholarships will never amount to the money you will save.

4. Good players will emerge. Bad (and even average) players will fade away over time -- with or without travel baseball. I still believe high school baseball is all a talented player needs to reach the next level. If high school baseball is not enough, then the talent was lacking.

5. The best players get better competing against other great players under pressure. This is part of the reason why Jupiter and the Area Code Games and the Connie Mack Regionals and World Series are so great.

6. I never want to know how much money I spent.

7. I detest showcases of every kind and I wish they would simply disappear. I think they present inaccurate portrayals of the players involved. I want to see them compete in real game situations. They also are amazingly over priced (with a few exceptions).

8. I love tournaments of every kind (except for the ones that have so many games in such a tight time frame that young arms end up abused).

9. If had had it to do over, I would do it in a heartbeat and exactly the same way (except I would eliminate any day that included a triple header -- and we had some of those and any tournament played on a poorly maintained field -- we had some of those too). I don't care about the money. The great times and the memories will last a lifetime and beyond. In fact, now that it is over with my sons, I am doing it on my own and enjoying it just as much. (And, never, in the way we have done it has anyone made a profit out of this. At best, we picked up expenses for the coach. And these teams were among the best in the nation and included several players (to this point) who have reached the Major Leagues, lots who have played high-level D1 baseball and won (or nearly won) events up to and including USSSA Select World Series, Super Series World Series, Junior Olympics and the Connie Mack World Series).

In my opinion, there is no such thing as "typical" baseball experience, be it high school, Legion or travel.  The experience will vary depending on many factors, including socioeconomics, geographic location, education level (academic and baseball) of the parents,   quality of coaches, commitment of players (and parents), ad infinitum.  There are many paths to success (and failure).  And there are many ways to define success and failure.  

 

Just a few observations based on our experience.   Please pardon the stream of consciousness.  

 

There are people out there who will spend $50,000-$100,000 on travel ball over the course of their sons' "careers".  I know a couple that did.  Most don't go that far.  Did they get their "money's worth?"   Only they can answer that.   

 

We chose to take a different path, for the most part.  Son played travel ball only once.  But, he and I worked on baseball pretty much year round.  He had one of those HS coaches who repeatedly tried to influence (I'm trying to be polite here)  him to play on the travel team in which the coach had a financial interest.  He did so, for one fall season, when he was in the 10th grade.  It was a total waste of time.  Lots of unkept promises about playing at Jupiter and at various major college sites. Lots of games against some sorry teams.  And only 2-3 practices the whole season.

 

Are kids and parents being "pressured" to do the travel scene?  We were, and not just by the HS coach.  When my son was coming up I had numerous parents and youth level travel team coaches telling me he "NEEDS TO DO THIS."  Sometimes they were well meaning.  Sometimes they were just looking to stack a team.  Sometimes the pressure was subtle.  Sometimes it was overt.  After he committed to a college, the premier travel team in the state came calling.  This team traveled all over the country.  One of the coach's sales pitches was a scare tactic.  Son needed to get used to the travel now, because he had seen kids get to college and quit because they weren't used to it.  The coach/owner of the No. 2 team also came calling.  His pitch was also a scare tactic, "Legion ain't gonna cut it, you call XXXX (recruiting coordinator at college son had committed to) and ask him."  I already had, and he didn't care.  

 

Are parents being sold a Bill of Goods?  Sometimes.  We certainly were.  But frankly, I don't think that coaches misleading parents/players is that big a problem.  Word gets around, and guys that do that aren't going to be in the game for long.  (Hopefully).

 

One of the main problems I always had with travel ball in MY area is that it is generally what I call Show Up And Play Baseball, especially in the older age groups.  There is usually not a whole lot of practice/instruction involved.  HOWEVER, from what I have read on the HSBBW, there are some areas of the country that do have great programs featuring lots of practice/instruction.  You guys are lucky.  It's not like that everywhere.

 

Is baseball becoming the sport of the affluent?  Absolutely.  There are some travel teams around that will "scholarship" a kid that can't afford to pay.  But, there aren't many that will do that.  And you can bet that the kid they scholarship is usually going to be a kid that is already a decent player.  They're not going to take many true "projects."   

Does your kid HAVE TO play travel ball to get a chance to play college ball?  No.  Mine is living proof.  He played pretty high level college ball at a good baseball school, had a decent career, and is now taking his shot in the minors.  But frankly, I'm not sure how many people can do what he/we did these days.  I still coach a little rec ball, and I tell the parents that if their kids want to continue to play they need more.  Some may be able to do it on their own, but not very many.  For most, private lessons and/or some form of travel ball may be the only option they have, IF they can afford it.     

What we are seeing IN MY AREA is something of a three tiered system of Rec Ball (LL, Ripken, etc.), Serious Travel Ball, and what I call Weekend Ball.  Another poster called it Travel Light, and that's a good way of putting it.  I think the Travel Light players and parents are the ones that are being most mislead.  But, I'm not sure it's so much that the coaches are misleading them as it is they are misleading themselves.   I've watched some of these teams play, and it's basically Rec Ball On The Weekends.  Maybe the parents feel better saying that their kids are on a "Travel Team", but if they don't practice much, the head coach is the SS's dad, and they're playing the same teams they used to play in Rec Ball, what are they accomplishing?

Some would have you believe that everything is fine and dandy in the world of travel ball.    One last story.  On the day my son was being "offered" by his future college coach, I stood to the side talking to the recruiting coordinator.  While we waited, he started talking about having to go to East Cobb to scout a tournament, and how he HATED going there anymore.  I was shocked and asked why.  This is not a direct quote, but it's pretty close.  "It's the parents and the kids.  All of the kids are just playing for themselves and swinging for the fences.   I want to see kids playing the game the right way, and you don't always get that there.  And then you've got the parents in the stands yelling at them, complaining about umpires and coaches, and trying to talk to you about their kids."  But that was 6 years ago, so maybe things have changed.

Great discussion. I read all the posts (so far). My 14YO son has been playing baseball since 11U, mostly "travel light." Some higher level, some lowere level (currently low). This is primarily because our local LL program is tiny and largely devoid of meaningful baseball talent (players and coaching). In short: my son enjoys playing with and against (much) players with much higher ability. The latter brings out the best in him, and he has more fun--even in a game of failure. Costs more, but not a lot more, and certainly not more than I can easily afford.

 

HS baseball starts next year for us, and I'm very confident he'll be ready, contribute, and be proud to where his school's colors.

It's Bryce Harper's fault! He's the poster boy/success story of this new era of elite youth baseball.

Can't really put it on Harper.   8-9 years ago it was Robert Stock who was in the news for lighting up the radar gun at every tournament he went to.  Yeah, the phenoms like Harper and stock do fuel the dream. (Just like David Clyde did back before the travel ball era).   But, it's not the kids at all.  They just want to play ball.  It's the dreamers around them.  

My parents never pushed me into the travel ball circuit. They never suggested tournaments, locations, showcases, anything. I found the team I wanted to play for and the tournaments I wanted to go to. I wanted to face the best possible competition for as many games as I could. My parents made it work financially to the best of their abilities. 

 

Most of the teammates I had growing up had the same type of passion. I looked forward to the summers more than anything else because I was going to get to play baseball everyday, not because of a dislike for high school baseball or a yearning for a college scholarship. I enjoyed every minute being on the field with my peers.

 

Some of the best memories I have from baseball are from East Cobb, Jupiter, Connie Mack tournaments, etc. Those memories have nothing to do with college coaches or pro scouts watching me. They have to do with the opportunity to play baseball every single day against the best competition available, and with the best teammates I could find. Who wouldn't want to do that? It was absolutely awesome.

 

Sure, there are plenty of cases of parents pushing their kids to extremes. But I promise you that the vast majority of these players are there because they want to be. I have a hard time coming up with more than one or two former teammates of mine that were pushed by their parents. In the same light, I have a tough time coming up with more than one or two former teammates that don't wish we could travel back in time and do it all over again.

Now that my son is approaching his last summer of travel ball (rising senior),  I look back now and think he was trully happiest when he was 12.  In the spring/summer fall of 2009, he averaged about 8 games per week between Middle school team (16), Little League (20),  Little League All Stars (14), Town Travel (16 - it was requisite for All-stars), Spring, Summer, Fall Travel League and Tournaments (60) and Cooperstown (8).  He also filled in on other teams whenever he got the chance to the tune of about 140 games.  It was hectic, but he loved every minute of it.  He would do it again now if he had the time.

 

However, this Spring is about 26-30 HS games and then another 40 or so tournament games in the summer and maybe another 20 plus college camps in the fall.  He would double it if he could.  He has no illusions about scholarships or getting drafted, but he has a real shot at parlaying his love and talent for the game into an Ivy League admission ticket because he works as hard in the classroom as he does on the field.  He has also said that if he can't play in college, he would have to go to a school without a baseball team because he loves the game that much and could not bear to see it carry on without him.

 

We have averaged about $5,000 per year between gear, team fees, hotels, gas etc.  I consider that vacation money and I got to spend priceless time with the family watching him do what he loves.  As he finishes up, I am starting on the socker/lacrosse circuit with my daughter and look forward to the same experience.

 

I don't care if it is music, theater, chess, scrabble, other sports, dancing etc.  I think it is very positive if you are able to support an endeavor that is your child's passion in a positive way as long as they hold up their end of the bargain with honest classroom effort (notice I did not say results because everyone is different).

I agree, baseball is no different in the amount spent for travel, equipment, etc. than many other sports.  I have friends who almost went broke over gymnastics, meet after meet each weekend all over the southeast and national meets qualifying for junior olympics and a future olympic hopeful, then one day at 17 the son said he was over it.  They were stunned. And down here it is tennis and golf...lessons, very very expensive.

 

Great responses in this topic, and I like Wlink's honesty as well.  Parents have to make sure that they are spending for the right reasons.

 

 

 

 

There have been several travel ball threads in the past on this site regarding the subject of cost to the family & benefits to the player...whether it was to make a HS team, college, or the professional ranks. 

 

There will be a wide range of experiences throughout the country, but I can honestly say from my point of view it was worth every penny.  We live in Southern California and really didn't need to leave our area to find good competition, but we did and planned family vacations around tournaments.  Travel Baseball took us to Steamboat Springs, Colorado; Orlando, FL; East Cobb/Atlanta, GA; Henderson/Vegas, NV; and many trips to Arizona.

 

If I could go back in time, I'd change a few small details of the journey, but nothing major.  With that said, I'm happy the way things turned out and where he landed in college...Now, if the kid would get healthy again and have an opportunity to contribute to his team, that would complete the family journey.

 

 

 

PK,

Looks like a lot of this was covered in a recent article in the SunSentinel.

http://articles.sun-sentinel.c...avel-ball-head-coach

 

Some interesting quotes:

 

"Travel ball is as close as you can get to real Major League Baseball," said Anthony Russo, coach of the Lantana-based South Florida Stealth. "By 12 years old, we know everyone who is [any]one."

The taxis are rolling up," said George Gonzalez, the association's (USSSA) vice president of international baseball. The young players "will come in, pitch a game, get back in the taxi and fly back to wherever [teams] recruited them from. It is serious baseball."

 

"One 12-and-under team from Moreno, Calif., won a major travel ball title last summer by bringing in a half-dozen boys from Florida, including a youngster from Bartow who has played for 27 USSSA teams from 19 organizations since 2010, according to the association's website."

 

"Teams are outbidding people on the field and off the field with balls, bats, equipment, [sun]glasses and sneakers to go to school in," said George Fernandez, a coach for the Miami Prospects 11-and-under team. "All the teams are doing it."

"Players also are prohibited by the NCAA from accepting "excessive" awards. That restriction, however, doesn't apply to the grown-ups.

DeLeon, the Banditos' owner, flashed a chunky, stone-encrusted ring before a game at the Pembroke Pines tournament. He said team funds paid for the showpiece after his 12-and-under boys captured a second straight national youth baseball championship in Memphis, Tenn., last summer.

He told a reporter it cost $24,000."

 

 

"A not-for-profit organization lured to Kissimmee 10 years ago from Petersburg, Va., the USSSA has been enormously profitable to those running it.

The association's revenues come from organizing tournaments and levying registration fees on teams and players. It is now the dominant force in travel sports in the 8- to-14-year-old age bracket nationwide.

Its chief executive, Don DeDonatis, was paid $729,600 in 2011, and seven other executives, including DeDonatis' son and son-in-law, took home more than $116,000 each, according to tax records."

 

"At our top level, we don't really limit anything," said Don DeDonatis III, DeDonatis' son and the USSSA's vice president of baseball operations — though the association does have rules that bar last-minute player-swapping during major tournaments.

"We're looking for the top teams, however they are formed, to all come to one place and play," the younger DeDonatis said. "That's why we are going to get this on ESPN … You put our 12 elites versus the Little League [best players], and it's not even close."

More quotes:

 

"Some South Florida parents say they are disconcerted by travel ball's excesses — the expense, year-round commitment and obsession with winning — yet believe there is no real alternative if their children intend to play baseball in high school and beyond."

"There are a lot of sick fathers who will fly [their kids] in from wherever to wear our uniform," Sagaro said. "If I'm going to pay [travel expenses] for a kid, he's going to be a superstar."

"The Florida man said he constructed a 10-by-10-foot room off of his son's bedroom to hold all the medals and trophies Tommy has won.  It's not about just having fun. It's not," Don Boyer said. "It's about going out and doing a job ... [Tommy] loves to play with the best and for the best."

"Every aspect of what [travel ball owners] do would violate all the high school association rules and the NCAA rules," said Filipkowski, who was a USSSA regional director until last year, when he left to devote more time to his law practice. "There is not any question about that. ... The state directors of the [USSSA] have the power and authority to step in and regulate it, but there is no desire to do it."

The reason, the former prosecutor said, is economics.

"That's their business," said Filipkowski. "You're asking them to cut off their own legs."

Others appreciate WKLink's honesty. I'll be honest back. It sounds like you burned your son out, and have regret. Is that the real point? Did he quit before HS ball? If so, that isn't the fault of travel ball. You gotta own that. 

Regardless of his situation he brings up some very valid points.

Most of the kids that played with son who played serious travel ball too soon and too often  either burned out or had injuries that ended the game for them.

I think that is something that all parents of young players should be aware of, while you might be having the time your life watching your son/sons playing and traveling all over the country it does takes its toll. It's not necessary.  The stuff he wrote about parents trying  to reproduce the pro experience is really funny as nothing comes even close.

My kids played travel baseball and softball. LL was a priority in the preteen years. There were never any pro delusions. I figured my kids could play college ball at some level because they come from two families full of generations of college athletes. My kids never played fall ball until high school. Other seasons were for other sports. My daughter played three sports in high school. My son played two. Baseball and softball didn't involve year round training until high school. Travel ball wasn't expensive at all until showcase ball. Even en they played for partially subsidized programs. They always had August off to do other summer things.

 

The interesting theme that keeps popping up is rec ball wasn't "good enough", so we played local travel ball with a few go away tournies.  Then local travel ball wasn't good enough, so we played travel ball to the best tournies. It's a self-fulfilling prophecy if you take away any number (and the better) players from rec that the rec program will be weaker. Do both and make the rec program what it is - a way for you and your child to interact with people from town and have fun playing the sport, while the travel team becomes the be all and all cut throat environment.

 

While this is a baseball forum, there are corollaries to other sports.  In the end we all want what's best for our kids and will do whatever can within our means to make it happen (whether it's sports, music, academia). So sure it could be considered elitist because some can certainly afford to pay more and do so. If there's only 9 players on the field at one time, then there's bound to be 3-9 players families who are sold that false bill of goods.  False in who's eyes though?  Even the pros need backup players. The better teams/coaches will be very up front with families, while those looking to make money and fill roster spots won't communicate resulting in unhappy parents.

 

When doing the research don't forget that it's not just the pure cost of the team - there's also the cost of "private lessons". Many of those lessons are with someone involved with the team - that's where the real money is made and it's probably done tax free so you many not get someone willing to talk about it for obvious reasons.  Funny sometimes how those private lesson players end up with more play time as well which perturbs the other families.

 

The premise of elitism is bound to be met if only looking at our youth.  Compare our kids to the Dominican Republic or Puerto Rico players who are still considered so much better and they probably have far fewer nickels to rub together than most of us have ever spent! 

 

For those that have had a bad experience with travel ball - I would think it was primarily because your expectations weren't met (be it your child's performance or the coaching). It may also be the first time you saw someone was better than your child and that was recognized by the coach resulting in less play time per dollar spent.

 

Having gone through "part" of the experience with all 3 boys and now seeing it from behind the dish, there are far too many that continue to place way too much pressure and think their child is "so much better" than everyone else. When failure happens blame is spread everywhere but where it should be placed. In the end you still only have a few short years to enjoy the experience with your child - take it for what it is "a game" and be realistic about your child's abilities and your expectations. It may make your and his experience 'better'.

My son is 13, really just getting going with a high level travel team. I got to coach him through 3 years of little league Williamsport tournaments and as of last year I happily handed him off to the middle school coach and a travel team. I plunked down my $3000 for the travel team and in my opinion it is worth every penny!  He has made great friendships with other good ballplayers from surrounding towns. In fact, yesterday some of them were matched up against eachother in a school ball game, thry loved every second of that. The tournaments away are the best part of the season as all the kids run around hotels together and then go play some high level baseball. There is no place my son would rather be and standing on the sidelines watching is just where I want be. $3000 for these experiences is well worth it in my opinion. These are better memories than any vacation and it covers a whole year. I'm sure the costs will go up as he gets older and enters bigger tournaments that may be further away but we all (the whole family) look forward to those times. I realize the question is, is baseball becoming a sport for the priveledged? So is my son priveledged because I can afford to give him these experiences? I guess so. Is it worth it?  Every penny.

Back to the original topic....the article for which the OP is seeking input is more than likely going to be a hit piece on travel ball...just like the Orlando Sentinel story and the Sports Illustrated bit from a couple years back.

 

This story has been told ad nauseum. Maybe it needs to be told again, but don't be surprised if you're quoted in a story that paints travel baseball in a negative light.

 

You might be right, but I'll wait for the article.  I looked up some of her freelance work, and she can hit upbeat, inspirational notes.  

NYbaseballdad,

If you enjoy these times and doing it for these reasons, then yes, it is worth every penny, to you.

The chances of your son getting a college scholarship or beyond has nothing to do with how much you spend on your son at 13.

From what I have seen, very few really priveledged kids get to play baseball beyond HS.  What moves you forward is talent and skill, not how much money mom or dad have in the bank.

I just want those folks that are reading understand that if they can't afford youth travel ball at 3K per season, it's not important for future success.

 

What some parents fail to realize is they can buy training and an experience for their kids, talent can't be purchased. Potential can only be polished. I've seen preteen get ahead of the curve due to extensive training. But many of them fell to the back of the pack when puberty and genuine talent rose to the top. I never paid for training for either of my kids until high school. At that point both were taught how to optimze their running stride and had hitting lessons. My son also had pitching lessons. Travel was never more than $600 through 16U. But I ran the team as a not for profit.

As someone who has run a youth baseball club for going on 14 years, one that caters primarily to high school aged players who aspire to play in college, I will only say that I'm fortunate to coach older kids.  By the time their sons have reached high school, the parents of older kids tend to settle down and enjoy watching their sons, especially at the Connie Mack level.  I hardly ever have any concern expressed by parents of players on my Connie Mack team, and only a few associated with my Mantle League team.

 

In my experience, the worst parents of all are those of kids between about 10-14 years old.  I want nothing to do with those age levels.  Too many delusional parents, as some of the above posts have illustrated.

No, he is a Sophmore, playing on his HS team, JV this year.  I never had any real illusions that he would do more than play on his HS team, the rest of it was for him to enjoy himself.  I am just not totally sure that he enjoyed it as much as maybe I did.  I also think that his fear of disappointing me may have made forced him to keep playing on teams when maybe he really didn't.

 

Look, I don't think travel ball is bad in and of itself.  In many respects my son is a better baseball player for playing on some of these travel teams but I do honestly believe that he probably would have been just as good as he is now if I had left him playing on a local team that went to local tourneys and then had extra instruction.  Maybe not bouncing him from team to team would have created better and longer relationships with his teammates and his coaches.

 

Now he is playing summer ball through Legion and he has some extra games over the summer that he will play with a local team that will be involved in tournaments in a 60 mile radius.  We might go and play a tourney east of the Rocky's in Eastern WA but that is up to the parents.  I don't care either way, we've done enough of that but some of the kids on the team haven't experienced an 'away' style tourney.  The team, compared to some my kid has played on and has played against, is pretty meh but he is having more fun and seems to enjoy these kids. 

 

I figure he is going to be a Junior next year.  That to me means two more years of definate baseball for the kid.  If he plays in college it will probably be at a JUCO unless he shocks everyone by putting another 15mph on his fastball (he is 15, throws in the mid to upper 70s).  I want to make sure that his last couple of years as a kid are the fun for him, being an adult kinda sucks sometimes and that is coming soon enough.

I agree that if you are playing travel ball to further your future career, you are prob. not going to be happy.  If you are doing it because your son want to be standing between the lines as much as possible then it will be much more enjoyable.  One of the more common pieces of advise I have heard given from parents of my former players to the current parents is to enjoy the ride. No matter the skill level. 

 

I have also found that no matter where you live there are current or ex college/pro players/coaches that will help you and your son for nothing or next to nothing.  

Here’s my personal take – first as Father to a HS age player, then as a Travel Coach.

Pre-Teen Travel Baseball 99.9% of the time (if you have to ask if your son is the .1% then he isn’t – just saying – mine included) does not matter, as far as affecting the player being able to play the game post-puberty.

If your kid enjoys playing more baseball, he’s not being overused, you enjoy spending time on the ball field, and you can afford it – why not?  I can think of a lot worse things a kid could be doing besides playing baseball.

Sure, if the instruction is good, your pre-teen might pick up some things about the game that could help him later on, but everything is a hormonal toss-up until puberty.  Way too many factors to take into effect to predict whether a kid will play in high school or even beyond.

The catch is that people apply the “Travel” label across the board, when many times “travel” could be across town.

Pre-high school travel for my family meant playing a couple of weekends a month during the Spring, Summer and early Fall.  The vast majority of our tournaments were a 30 minute drive – we did play several that ended up being about an hour away.  Rare for us to stay in hotels at all.  From 9-12 Little League All stars took priority in June / July.  I think we stayed in hotels more for those few weeks than we did travel ball.

From 9-12 years old we normally scheduled one week-long tournament.  This almost always was near other attractions and we made it a tournament / vacation time.  One year it was on the lake, another year near amusement parks, another year it was the beach.

For my family it worked.  Every year my son and I would have a talk and make sure he still wanted to play travel.  It was always up to him.  I’m a coach, but I’m a Dad first. Hard to not forget that sometimes, but I’ve managed to not screw that up most times.

Now High School ball takes absolute priority.  No travel games at all during the season.  We do practice in the off season for travel, but never during the high schools season.

I do think that many parents think that once their son makes the high school team that’s it.  The high school coach will work with colleges, help their son get recruited etc.  While there may be some programs out there that allow Coaches that type of freedom and actually compensate them for their time – most high school coaches also teach, not to mention they also have a family.  I won’t even go into the situations at many schools were compensation for coaching Varsity level baseball is laughable at best.  Coaches I know have to have a passion for the game, simple as that. 

The focus once a player makes the HS team should be on getting better.  If parents / players are thinking that just showing up for HS practice will do it, they are wrong.  Players need to put their own work in – off the field.

Once HS season is done, our travel organization focuses on playing against known, quality competition.  Getting game reps (whether it be pitching, hitting or fielding) is important in my lowly opinion.  Adding in quality showcases that feature schools that your son is actually interested in, not to mention schools that match your son’s academic goals as well as his talent level is important too.

I see way too many parents during HS ball simply getting their son on a travel team and sitting back and waiting for the offers to roll in. 

One end of the spectrum had people reciting “If you are good enough, they will find you.”  The other end has parents believing that they need to start their son of with pitching instruction / hitting instruction / fielding instruction when they are 8 years old – if they don’t, they are doomed to never play beyond high school. 

Personally I think the best path is somewhere in the middle, but again - that’s just my opinion.

 

 

 

Spend what you want to spend.  Go where you want to go, but just remember you don't have to spend huge amounts and travel the country to get good competition and exposure.  Is it fun to do those things? Heck yeah, and enjoy it, but don't feel like you have to.... This goes for every sport from golf to baseball

 

BTW....if you think the cost is high for this, be glad your kids are not into the sport my daughter loves...

I wish I could feed my 16 year old oats.....that would save some serious money.

Teenagers can rack up a petty good grocery bill that is for sure. The up-side is you don't have to feed, shoe, clothe, doctor, etc. his bat and glove like you do a horse.  Plus they top out at a few hundred bucks.  Horse prices are basically unlimited. My daughters horse cost more than my first car.

My guy is probably of the more luckey ones.He made a well coached travel club and played last summer.He only tried out for two teams last year(for this year) made both.Money IS an issue here while one team was not much of a cost the other was.The expensive told him they would charge what the inexpensive team charges.GOOD COACHING GREAT PEOPLE.

rec vs. travel I would have never left town but for the attitude toward the better kids.When my guy was in tee ball/coach pitch I coached him at home.I watched the so called games from the stands.His first year they only had him at first because he was the only little guy that could catch on a regular basis fine.his second year they only had him playing the catcher spot.After a couple of games I talked to the coach and told him my guy could play anywhere.i was told they were aware of that but they were worried that if they put him in a spot where he would throw to the other kids they felt that he would seriuosly injure someone.I never thought of that.I was told to get him moved up.Went to board meeting with coach went thru all the details was told we don't push the kids up.We have found that leaving them together they all even out more or less @ 10-12.I was nice about the whole thing but did mention the fact I was glad none of them were educating my guy.Technically my guy has not worn the same uni two years in a row(have had same coach)Even tho I do know there are alot of parents out there that like to brag about how much travel costs, who they play for  where they are going or where they have been or who johnny takes lessons from.In a way one could make the argument that that type of baseball parent helps drive the types of travel ball thats been talked about above.As far as the lessons go its true thats where the real money is.From what I have seen with my own eyes the average kid that racks the bill up with all those lessons its few from what I've seen that its money well spent.These kids either have it or they don't.I am not saying when they reach HS that they should not think about some lessons from time to time.But really it comes down to what are they doing on thier own..Of course you see the exeptions but with high school sports are'nt the best kids basically the same kids that stuck out when they were 8,9, and 10?Parents get what they pay for and as far as this research ending up a hit piece no one is forcing anyone to pay up.When you think about it isn't baseball the purest form of capitolizm?Parents can pay all the money they want but as things go further down the road its performance that takes you anywhere.Ya gotta love it. 

Hello,

 

My story on travel ball/showcases appeared in the June 12 print issue of Baseball America. However, it posted online yesterday, along with a first-person account that accompanied it.

Here are the links: