Cooperstown Strategies (Dreams Park)

My son's team went fairly deep into the tournament (3 games away from final) and what I can say is this, our players were all baseball players first so they understood the game and positions.  We could plug players into positions where needed and all supported each other, not all played great but kept a positive attitude and cheered each other on.   If you have players who understand positions and how to play them that helps because you never know who might get hurt or not be able to play and to be able to adapt is the key.  We were up against big boys ( I mean 6' 2" and 195) but don't be intimidated by size cuz we matched up well and didn't seem to matter.   And above else have fun and enjoy the experience, my son who is playing college ball still to this day talks about that time at Cooperstown. 

Don't be afraid to take chances during the week.  We played the eventual winner on a Monday night after rain at 10 PM.  We tried one of our better pitchers and he got tuned up for 6 in the 1st.  So we surrendered and put a big kid out that had a herky jerky motion and nothing on the ball.  He rarely pitched and had the time of his life.  Totally baffled them and the few that got hit hard were at'ems we made plays on. 

In the 6th inning on the way to a 7-3 loss opposing coach says to us "How are you going to explain this to the parents?"  We were confused and said "How do you mean?"  He says - "Why you didn't start this guy."

Really happened.

Go Blue, I like your strategies, though you might want to go a little deeper with your pitchers.  during the single elim part we planned on starting pitching going at least four, but our pitching doesn't sound as deep as yours.  I had our HR guys hit 3/4 and my fastest players hit 1/2.

I ran out the same line I typically used, it is still the same game, a few more HR's but ultimately it is walks and errors that will kill you. A solo homer is just a run!

I wanted to be 4-2 if possible for seeding, I thought was realistic. I used my top 2 pitchers on Sunday for about 60 pitches each, won both and pieced it together from there. We ended up 6-0 by a miracle, got the big bye break in the play-offs and won our first game. By the time we were done I had zero pitching left and were top 32...not bad for a local league in house travel team!

No bat rules?  That seems ridiculous?  So they can use one of the illegal Zen bats?

there are no illegal bats...so yes

I wasn't a coach but I think our coaches did an OUTSTANDING job in letting the kids have fun!  Please try an remember that there are teams coming to this thing that have been pulled together from across the entire state and they have the 12u version of Mike trout being flown in to assist them, the chances of you "winning" this are slim and none so why not make this the best experience the boys could possibly have had?

My son's coaches plan, in a nutshell:

1. NO ONE BUNTS...no one....every single kid gets to swing for that 200ft fence, and we had 3 boys get HR's that never had before, it was amazing.

2. Everyone gets to pitch, your ace is used strictly as a closer in a tight game...you will have more than one of those, so keep your ace kid in reserve to be able to pitch 1 inning here, 2 innings there.

3. If you are up by 10-15 points let the boys got play wherever they want.  This was probably the most memorable game we had.  The SS went to catcher (never donned the gear before), the LEFTY 1B went to SS, 2B went to P (he hadn't pitched all season, I think he was maybe 75 pounds!), OF came in for infield...mass chaos and the boys were laughing so hard they could barely pitch and or field...what an awesome time....until the game got within 2 and they sent in the ace pitcher to close...the SS was still catching.  The ACE was throwing 70+ from a 50 ft mound, the SS actually said loudly "please TRY not to kill me!", at which point the other team turned ghostly white....LOLOLOL, just thinking back on his little face, and then after the game when his look very clearly said that he had survived a war....OMG, it was truly awesome and the best game of the week because it was about fun!

Keep it about FUN!  Don't bring doctored bats, that isn't in the true spirit of baseball. Are they allowed, yes, but should you....no!  Focus on the fun and not about the winning at all costs and you will have an amazing week and those kids will remember it for the rest of their lives.

Did you just say up by 10 -15 points? 

Son's team went in 09, placed 4th out of 106 teams and just ran out of pitching. Two FL teams that were loaded and huge played for the title. In the end, its about attrition, arms get tired, kids get tired and its fast and furious...what a great time!!!

Shoveit4Ks posted:

Did you just say up by 10 -15 points? 

Son's team went in 09, placed 4th out of 106 teams and just ran out of pitching. Two FL teams that were loaded and huge played for the title. In the end, its about attrition, arms get tired, kids get tired and its fast and furious...what a great time!!!

LOL, yup, haven't had my coffee yet.  Up by 10-15 RUNS is what I meant...my bad!

We were fortunate enough to go twice (as 10's and 12's), with pretty much the same team. As 10's we finished (literally) around 99 out of 100+ teams (we lost some close games in pool play that killed our record). As 12's we finished 13th out of 100+ teams (got knocked out on back to back wind-blown HRs by the 8 and 9 hitters on a team and lost 2-1). One of the big differences between the two experiences was (us) coaches knowing how the "system" worked up there. By "system" I mean meals, dorms, laundry, etc..

On our first trip we were overwhelmed with the "herding of cats" and getting kids to the dining hall on time, to the cages on time, to the showers on time, getting laundry sorted, etc. That really hindered us in our game preparation and keeping the kids focused. We got stressed by that stuff, and in turn it trickled down to the kids. The second time, we knew what to expect and had our own "systems" in place as to how we would handle that stuff. It worked like clock work and we were able to be more relaxed and focus on the baseball part of it more.

Since you can take a bunch of dads with you as "coaches" I would suggest you do that. It makes life a lot easier to have guys that can be responsible for laundry, escorting kids in and out of dorms, to meals, showers, etc. and allows the "real" coaches to focus on the baseball.

From a baseball perspective, and this is obvious, but play for slaughters by being aggressive early. If you can get out of those games in four innings as opposed to six, it can dramatically save your pitching by the time you get to the end of the week. Also, seeding is everything when you get to the end. Don't sacrifice wins early, just to save pitching for the end. If you get a bad seed...you still won't have enough pitching to go very far.

Finally, something else we did as 12's that was different than 10's was change our expectations. We were a pretty good team and we went up there as 10's to try to "win it all". We put undue pressure on ourselves and the kids, and that didn't work. The second time, we went up there with the idea of just letting these kids have the times of their lives and make some memories they wouldn't forget. We figured if we took the pressure off, the baseball would take care of itself...and it did. We had a blast that second time. My HS senior that just graduated still says if he could do anything over again it would be to do that week again.

Go up there with the goal of having the best week of your life with your son (assuming you have a kid on the team) or with the kids you are coaching. Laugh at the craziness, don't stress and get your kids stressed, and truly truly have a great time.  Don't let where you finish impact the experience for the kids...seriously, just have fun.

You dont need illegal bats for 200' fences, a broomstick would work.

We went 2'ish innings a pitcher to stretch them the week. Depends on the team your facing but some games our hardest throwers got jacked and our junk ballers had success, it just depends, short leashes.

Outfielders play shallow take away bloops and line drives anything over your head is gone. 

We batted the same order we always do.

We are a small in size squad, all from same neighborhood / school and we made it to top 16. Most teams saw us and thought they would crush us, my best memory was facing a powerhouse from California who brought in a PO one after another and hearing the parents yelling at the coach "this is what we pay you for?" as we beat them handily in the first round of sweet sixteen.

My advice is just have fun and dont put to much pressure on the kids, seen a lot of that, didnt look like they were having fun, to serious from both parents and coaches. Its probably the best baseball vacation / experience we've ever had, wish we could go back, good luck.

Position OF in; no need to play the OF deep cuz deep shots either go over the wall or hit it bouncing back in.

Some good suggestions above. 

I'd add that bringing a dad or two will allow you to scout some teams before most of the pool games. That will usually give you an idea of which pitcher(s) to use. 

Rely on the parents for extra drinks and whatever else you may need. Especially food for that eventual game you'll play after midnight when the rains come. Expect to play all of your games. No matter what the weather is that week. 

I went with both my boys and it is without a doubt the best baseball experience either of them have ever had and they've had several notable experiences each. Older son was with a team from kids in several counties and we came in top 32 and I was an Assistant Coach and stayed in the barracks. Younger son, who I was Manager for, came in top 16 and we were a 1 LL team! We did get lucky with our draw, but we had to survive a power outage Saturday night during skills ceremony. I was the only one to stay in the barracks that night - but the quiet was awesome!

Anyway, I decided that above all else we were going to have FUN and EVERYONE was going to play more or less the same amount of time. We accomplished both and still came in top 16, so it can be done! Remember the finalists are built just for winning that week - pulling in ringers from all over. We weren't about that. It is about playing, staying, eating with your buddies and making memories to last forever. Besides, would you really want to ask people to pay all that money and spend all that time on a trip and have the kid hardly play, just so you can win a 1 week tournament at 12 yrs old????? How bad would you need validation to do that? 

On the way home from our 1st trip my older son said, "this was the best week of my life". That made everything worth it! 

The balls are juiced, the fences are at 200 feet, illegal bats are legal, what's not to like?  Until the pitcher gets injured by a comebacker

Have fun.  Take it with a grain of salt.  It is not real Baseball or anything even remotely close to real Baseball.  All for $900-$2000 per kid for the week (depending on how much your team gouges you.)

end/rant

Keewartson's team, strickly a LL team,  probably finished in the top third.   I did not get to purchase and wear a "my son hit a home run" button or T-shirt.  Or the hand holding a HR ball in plaster.  (They try to get you to purchase A LOT there!)

The team had a blast.  One of the best things they did was have a picnic/cookout one evening by a lake.   One family had brought their boat.  I loved the Hall of Fame and thought there was no way I could spend more than an hour there.  Spend the whole afternoon!

It IS about pin-trading, sleeping in the bunk house, and playing as a team probably one last time together on the small field, before players move on to different teams.  Whatever you do and decide, make it memorable for the kids.

Keewartson love it so much he went back and umpired one week the summer between HS and College! 

Box fans, Gold Bond, ear plugs, flip flops, and be sure your parents label their child's clothes.  I was constantly amazed at how many players didn't know what their own clothes looked like. They really don't need too many, but multiple towels is a good idea. The importance of pin trading cannot be underestimated - it's how you meet other players/teams; however, it's also a distraction/nuisance at times. Set up some strict rules about it before you go and don't make it a penalty if the team doesn't perform well for a game.

On the field - play ball. Know when you're "in control" and when you're "outclassed".  Batting order is tough - just make sure you understand the CDP rule on EH's - IIRC it's a bit different than you may be used to (batting at the end of the order and they cannot go on the field). I saw teams playing their middle infield back more often to get those little flares that usually drop in the triangles. I agree with the OF playing in a bit - 9-3 is almost a given, an 8-3 out happens, and I saw a very close 7-3 play.  As for pitchers - you can never have enough. Sure you can dog it during the week, but that means a long road to the final day (16 teams). I've seen top 16 teams lose because they only play once on Wednesday and they're too cocky while the other team that's riding the wave of having played and won a playoff game or two jumps out to an insurmountable lead. Our first year we went on one of those runs and put the #9 ranked team down by a bunch. When they couldn't figure out our pitcher, they started bunting because they realized our 3B was a bit slow. We changed our 3B quickly... After winning the game (and making top 16) Lou comes over, congratulates us for winning and makes a comment (paraphrased - it's been over 10 years) "I didn't build these fields with 200' fences to have some f*g team bunt, thank you for knocking them off".

Keep it in perspective - it is U12 baseball, it is being played in a very beautiful setting, and as others have noted - far more kids leave with the "this was the best experience" regardless if they're in the championship or not. In fact, it's probably more fun once you lose (that's strange to say, but all the pressure is off). All 3 of my boys still say it was an awesome experience.

I can not say more strongly to have fun first and formost. We went when my son was eleven to "have an experience of a lifetime". I even helped put team together with another mom. Her husband was one of the coaches who after all of us paying to go decided to give the coach job to another dad. 

We were all told its for fun and my son was eleven and solid player but small. Coaches kid was 6'2 12 year old that was ok but big. 

We got there and first couple games everyone played, then they changed and started playing the 12 year olds. 

Took the bat out of my sons hands and when we went they could play defense but not hit. ( not fun)

These were people we knew and they turned into idiots and ruined much of it for the younger ones. Then made a comment that they should of only brought the older bigger boys. 

It is a good memory because we traveled after but the tournament was not fun for my son. 

Later that year the hc tried to justify what he did and told my husband 'some boys never saw the field at cooperstown on othet teams". 

My husbands remark was thats fine but you and the othet coach presented this as everyone plays and we have fun. After 1000s of dollars spent for you to decide lets try to win now was not what parents were told. So your excuse is unexusable"

My son did not make a single error in the games he played. They did stuff like he would be up to hit and at the plate and take him out. It was awful and it really still leaves ugly taste. 

His son didnt even play in hs because of grades my son played d1 and minor leagues. 

Whatever you tell your parents as far as the philosophy dnt change that. 

Now I am not talking its championship game and you go with who is hot. I saying two games in your sitting kids with a screw you im tbe coach and I decided this is what were doing . 

Not cool. My son was a team guy but it wasnt cool to sit prob 2/3 of the games and not hit. 

Wasnt what we signed up for. 

So dnt do that. 

We didnt have the team to win. We watched the good teams they were really good tourney teams. 

My son just graduated last Friday night, they him and some good friends had a little fire pit going in my backyard after all the respective family obligations were done. He told me the next they spend a ton of time talking about...Cooperstown trip!

He has since been to FT Myers, Lake Point, Cary, Omaha (youth tournament during the college WS) and more other places I can recall or care to remember. But the 12u week with his boys from elementary school was the highlight for just fun, nothing but good memories and just as many off the field as on the field!!

Sure he played in bigger more important events in other places on better teams but it didn't matter.

3and2Fastball posted:

The balls are juiced, the fences are at 200 feet, illegal bats are legal, what's not to like?  Until the pitcher gets injured by a comebacker

 

And they allow the fake bunt and slash.  Almost "killed" our third baseman.  Created a real ruckus between the coaches.   

fanofgame posted:

I can not say more strongly to have fun first and formost. We went when my son was eleven to "have an experience of a lifetime". I even helped put team together with another mom. Her husband was one of the coaches who after all of us paying to go decided to give the coach job to another dad. 

We were all told its for fun and my son was eleven and solid player but small. Coaches kid was 6'2 12 year old that was ok but big. 

We got there and first couple games everyone played, then they changed and started playing the 12 year olds. 

Took the bat out of my sons hands and when we went they could play defense but not hit. ( not fun)

These were people we knew and they turned into idiots and ruined much of it for the younger ones. Then made a comment that they should of only brought the older bigger boys. 

It is a good memory because we traveled after but the tournament was not fun for my son. 

Later that year the hc tried to justify what he did and told my husband 'some boys never saw the field at cooperstown on othet teams". 

My husbands remark was thats fine but you and the othet coach presented this as everyone plays and we have fun. After 1000s of dollars spent for you to decide lets try to win now was not what parents were told. So your excuse is unexusable"

My son did not make a single error in the games he played. They did stuff like he would be up to hit and at the plate and take him out. It was awful and it really still leaves ugly taste. 

His son didnt even play in hs because of grades my son played d1 and minor leagues. 

Whatever you tell your parents as far as the philosophy dnt change that. 

Now I am not talking its championship game and you go with who is hot. I saying two games in your sitting kids with a screw you im tbe coach and I decided this is what were doing . 

Not cool. My son was a team guy but it wasnt cool to sit prob 2/3 of the games and not hit. 

Wasnt what we signed up for. 

So dnt do that. 

We didnt have the team to win. We watched the good teams they were really good tourney teams. 

^^^^  This.  Figure out why you're there and enjoy it.  Our coach was a tool and pretty much ruined it for some kids.  Then gave us this big speech about "here to win" so they will be playing the "best players" more than others.  Until it came time for elimination and he allowed our "worst player" to bat which sent us home on three strikes.  Ended up leaving early and blowing off the finals and closing ceremonies.  Kid's got their "rings" in the parking lot of the next game when we got home.  Bottom line, if you have a good group of kids, great parents and good coaches it can be a lot of fun.  Any one of the three is absent, it's too long, to far, and too expensive to be worth the trouble. 

I will say it isn't just the coaches that can ruin it, as golfman25 said...the parents are VERY capable of ruining it.

There were 4 or 5 hard core parents when we went.  They kept on about what does he mean there won't be bunting, why didn't he send that kid, why this, why that...I smiled and said "You guys understand this week isn't about winning right, it's about the boys having fun?"  One mom replied "Who cares about having fun, I didn't pay a thousand dollars to have fun, I want them to win, THAT will be fun!"......and I shut my mouth and went back to my chair.

If the parents, kids, and coaches come in with a good mindset it will be a wonderful experience.  If any one of that group doesn't understand why they are there...well gird your loins, you are in for a rough week!

MidAtlanticDad posted:

When they have buckets of it when you walk into the grocery store it is a for real problem!

NTGSon went in 2010, added 1 player to a successful travel team from our area of Virginia. The kids as a team won the Round the Horn Plus skill competition which set a tone for them during the tournament. They dropped two games, 1 by an error and 1 by getting hammered....seeded 40th which added too many games for the pitching staff, especially when one of the team's better pitchers came down with a sore arm the very first day....made it through Wednesday and onto Thursday to lose in quarterfinals and not move into Final Four (leaving them tied for 5th?). The score of that quarterfinal game was 25-18....14 HRs hit between the two teams. We were out of pitchers, they were saving at least one. NTGSon had pitched the Wednesday night game (4 innings-very limited pitch count) and the first Thursday game but he was done as was our other strong pitcher.

NTGSon has just finished his 1st year pitching at D1 level, is playing in the West Coast League this summer, but will tell anyone who asks that Cooperstown was the most memorable experience he ever had playing baseball. His 12U coaches stressed the camaraderie and fun of dedicating a week to nothing but the team and the game. All on the roster played. All collected pins (the coach was an avid pin collector). Free time was spent on the open fields below the dorms playing a form of stickball with little baseballs not much bigger than a golfball (helped them as much as time in the batting cages). Video games and devices could only be used in the dorm but the coaches and dads did a very good job of keeping the focus on team fun, baseball fun and memory creation.

Plan to play loose, have enough players who will pitch and play another position and approach the experience as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for most. We did and it was worth the effort and planning and every dime.

We took what was a "pretty solid" travel team when my son was 12.  I had never been there, but we knew a lot of the "big boys" were there our week once we saw the schedule.  Didn't have huge expectations....but we got a good draw.  We (myself, HC and other asst coach) went out the first day and scouted our opponents games....then planned our pitching accordingly.....which I think really helped us.  We had some ideas based on where the teams were from who would be our toughest opponents of the pool games and ended up completely wrong on 2 of them.  One was absolutely awful.  We started a kid who wasn't a pitcher and he went 5 innings.  Used our weakest pitcher in the other of those 2 games....basically leaving us our top 4 guys to try to win 2 of the remaining 4 (figured 4-2 was good enough for seeding....had no plans of trying to go 6-0).  We were #32 heading into bracket play.  Worked out perfect.....had our ace available for the start of bracket play and took down #33  team 9-4 in our first game.  They had averaged 11 or 12 runs/game.  Lost to the #1 seed 10-2 in our next game....we just ran out of gas in a long, hot week.  Final 4 were the 2, 14, 20 and 29th seeds, 14-and 20 in the final and 14 won it all....so don't think you need to be in the top 10 to win it...just need to be close and have some arms left

Also, in case you didn't know....you can still see all the weeks from a long way back on their website.....just looked back at our week.  Interesting trying to remember those games from that long ago.

My son went in back to back years and had two TOTALLY different experiences.  He is a kid that up until the first Cooperstown tourney didn't stay at friend's houses, so that made the first trip hard on him.  Second year he had gotten over that and had a BLAST.  Hit three oppo BOMBS and the boys on the team had a great time.  What is the best part was that his sister was talking to me recently and said I wish we were going back to Cooperstown this year.  I think she had as much fun with the pin trading as he did!  

But if nothing else allow them to have fun and even stay in the barracks the night they lose to have one more night together as a team because it is inevitable that at least one of those players will not be with the team in the fall!!!

GOBLUE33 Please let us know how it goes on your trip. 

All these posts got me thinking. I recall my son joining a new team that 12U season. It had been together a while so he got limited reps all year. It was new for him. Back then i thought best was about winning. Learning how to compete and be the best by beating the best. It turns out the 12U season was full of wins and several tournament trophies but less PT for my son and more than likely less developmentally beneficial. That's on me.

While he saw limited action, he did pitch some, play MIF some and actually hit a few homeruns. But it was a lot of practice and little playing. Cooperstown with that group was the icing on the cake. He hit 9th in the 1st morning game and hit a GS, later he hit another bomb and was having fun again. I still have the pic of him hugging his mom after that first game and those HR/RBIs. Priceless. He went on to contribute in several more games, more HRs and pitched some too. All in all, a great experience to make a run to 4th overall. 

We moved back to the team we left the year earlier primarily because the coach announced in Cooperstown after our semifinal loss that he was no longer coaching a team and would be breaking up these boys who had played a while with him. But ....come to find out, he wasn't leaving coaching after all...he was taking his son and a few other boys on the team to another "new" team at EC with a few other dads of kids that were "better" and most of the boys weren't invited or aware of it. Sad to see that happen to them but that is the shady side of travel ball. I guess open tryouts and those boys not making it would have hurt as well but i believe it would have been a bit more honest. And at 12U-13U aren't you teaching character lessons as much as baseball (smirk).

We were leaving anyway and breaking up that team had no effect on us. Other boys had a hard time with their coach moving on and frankly the parents were probably most hurt. All in all, everyone survived and Cooperstown was an incredible experience for those 12U East Cobb Braves.

 Sorry is this is construed by some as a thread jack.

CaCO3Girl posted:

I will say it isn't just the coaches that can ruin it, as golfman25 said...the parents are VERY capable of ruining it.

There were 4 or 5 hard core parents when we went.  They kept on about what does he mean there won't be bunting, why didn't he send that kid, why this, why that...I smiled and said "You guys understand this week isn't about winning right, it's about the boys having fun?"  One mom replied "Who cares about having fun, I didn't pay a thousand dollars to have fun, I want them to win, THAT will be fun!"......and I shut my mouth and went back to my chair.

If the parents, kids, and coaches come in with a good mindset it will be a wonderful experience.  If any one of that group doesn't understand why they are there...well gird your loins, you are in for a rough week!

And the worst part is you have to sit in that little coral with them.   

I'll go on to say this.  A year prior to my kid going, we had a local kid go.  He was a former teammate of a good friend, and friendly with my kid.  His mom was battling cancer at the time.  She did everything she could to make the trip.  He promised a home run and hit a Grand Slam for her and gave her the ball.  There was a big write up in the paper, even a video posted somewhere.  Mom passed away by the end of the year. 

Golfman25 posted:

CaCO3Girl posted:

I will say it isn't just the coaches that can ruin it, as golfman25 said...the parents are VERY capable of ruining it.

There were 4 or 5 hard core parents when we went.  They kept on about what does he mean there won't be bunting, why didn't he send that kid, why this, why that...I smiled and said "You guys understand this week isn't about winning right, it's about the boys having fun?"  One mom replied "Who cares about having fun, I didn't pay a thousand dollars to have fun, I want them to win, THAT will be fun!"......and I shut my mouth and went back to my chair.

If the parents, kids, and coaches come in with a good mindset it will be a wonderful experience.  If any one of that group doesn't understand why they are there...well gird your loins, you are in for a rough week!

And the worst part is you have to sit in that little coral with them.   

Yeah, unlike in LL All Stars where I was an Asst Coach and wasn't making the playing time decisions several kids (including mine) sat for almost the entire experience - not fun. I decided that at Cooperstown EVERYONE was going to play as close to the same amount as possible with the main goal of having FUN and secondary goal of winning enough to enjoy the experience. If we went 3-3 in pool play and won 1 playoff game I'd be good. We went 6-0 in pool play and came in top 16 with a TOTAL TEAM EFFORT! I took meticulous notes (to show complaining parents) on playing time and top to bottom kids were separated by only 4 innings of play across 8 or 9 games - can't get much more even than that. 

So in the corral, my wife hears the wife of the LL All Star Manager complaining about how her son (who played every inning in LL tournaments through State Finals) is sitting so much and how unfair it is. My wife couldn't let the hypocrisy go and reminded her of how her husband had our son and several others sitting waaaaay more all summer. She showed her my notes on playing time but the Mom still was hurt. Oh well, you're never going to make everyone happy and I'm just fine with that as long as the kids had the experience of a lifetime. Ya know what, I got many compliments from the parents - particularly those who's kids rode the pine all summer! 

Great thread. I just read them all and my son (2017 who graduates tomorrow) never even went!

A quick story. My son went as a 10, 11 and 12 year old. A little over 3+ hours door-to-door so the trip is no big deal. It was a local team from our county. 

At a tournament on Long Island about a month before his last visit to Cooperstown he gets recruited by a big-time program from MASS, who (at least at that time) was always in the final 8, often in the finals. My son knew of this team very well as he had seen them over the previous 2 years. A team full of 12/13 year old ballplayers from all over. I've heard that 500+ try out for a spot on their roster. 

I saw the coach from the MASS program talking to my son, but didn't bother to interject. Afterwards I asked him what the conversation was all about. He said, the coach offered me a spot on the team. So what did you tell him, I asked. He said, I told him thank you, but I have already given my word to the coach of the team that I will playing with in Cooperstown. 

As a side note, that was one of those days where you knew you were raising your kid in the right way. 

His travel coach did ask him what was said and my son told him, so it was out in the open. 

Fast forward a month and my son makes it to the homerun derby finals at Cooperstown where he wins that event.

After it was all done I told him, that was because you did the right thing. He knew it. 

Those weeks in Cooperstown were some of the best, most fun weeks that he's had along the way.

CaCO3Girl posted:

I will say it isn't just the coaches that can ruin it, as golfman25 said...the parents are VERY capable of ruining it.

That is so true - only we had two!  Son went when he was 11 on a 12u local travel team.  Truthfully, we didn't have real high expectations, but did have reasonable expectations that they would win a few games.   After three or four games (all losses) one of the parents asked me to support her in going to the coach over playing time.  She had been keeping track of innings played and noted there was certain players that had played every inning to date in the tournament and the rest had rotated in and out though they had played in every game.  I said no even though my son had sat some innings.  I felt it is the coach's team and he was doing what he felt best to win games.

One parent (whose son had played every inning of every game) confronted the coaching staff after the 3rd loss.  Something about him playing 3B instead of SS.   It was nasty from what I was told - I had missed it since we went back to the rental house for lunch before the next game.  Anyway - he pulled his son for the rest of the tournament and went home (600 mile drive).   Up to that point I could feel the tension building with some of the parents.  After that, it wasn't quite as tense.  Team went on to win games 5 & 6, lost the 7th, won in the 1st round and lost in the 2nd round.

My son did have a good experience (except for the parental blowup which was in front of the entire team), and I think he had as much fun trading pins.  

Ah, upstate NY in summer. Beautiful scenery and a quaint little town with a primo baseball museum...ruined by travel baseball. Yep, I said that. 

2019&21 Dad posted:

Golfman25 posted:

CaCO3Girl posted:

I will say it isn't just the coaches that can ruin it, as golfman25 said...the parents are VERY capable of ruining it.

There were 4 or 5 hard core parents when we went.  They kept on about what does he mean there won't be bunting, why didn't he send that kid, why this, why that...I smiled and said "You guys understand this week isn't about winning right, it's about the boys having fun?"  One mom replied "Who cares about having fun, I didn't pay a thousand dollars to have fun, I want them to win, THAT will be fun!"......and I shut my mouth and went back to my chair.

If the parents, kids, and coaches come in with a good mindset it will be a wonderful experience.  If any one of that group doesn't understand why they are there...well gird your loins, you are in for a rough week!

And the worst part is you have to sit in that little coral with them.   

Yeah, unlike in LL All Stars where I was an Asst Coach and wasn't making the playing time decisions several kids (including mine) sat for almost the entire experience - not fun. I decided that at Cooperstown EVERYONE was going to play as close to the same amount as possible with the main goal of having FUN and secondary goal of winning enough to enjoy the experience. If we went 3-3 in pool play and won 1 playoff game I'd be good. We went 6-0 in pool play and came in top 16 with a TOTAL TEAM EFFORT! I took meticulous notes (to show complaining parents) on playing time and top to bottom kids were separated by only 4 innings of play across 8 or 9 games - can't get much more even than that. 

So in the corral, my wife hears the wife of the LL All Star Manager complaining about how her son (who played every inning in LL tournaments through State Finals) is sitting so much and how unfair it is. My wife couldn't let the hypocrisy go and reminded her of how her husband had our son and several others sitting waaaaay more all summer. She showed her my notes on playing time but the Mom still was hurt. Oh well, you're never going to make everyone happy and I'm just fine with that as long as the kids had the experience of a lifetime. Ya know what, I got many compliments from the parents - particularly those who's kids rode the pine all summer! 

You took your notes on LL all star playing time with you on a trip to Cooperstown? Am I the only one who is thinking this is passive aggressive?

I don't know if this was mentioned but when you get closer to the end in the playoffs they haul the kids and their gear from field to field on golf carts to make game times and save them them the walking. And the HOF trip was pretty cool too.

SanDiegoRealist posted:

2019&21 Dad posted:

Golfman25 posted:

CaCO3Girl posted:

I will say it isn't just the coaches that can ruin it, as golfman25 said...the parents are VERY capable of ruining it.

There were 4 or 5 hard core parents when we went.  They kept on about what does he mean there won't be bunting, why didn't he send that kid, why this, why that...I smiled and said "You guys understand this week isn't about winning right, it's about the boys having fun?"  One mom replied "Who cares about having fun, I didn't pay a thousand dollars to have fun, I want them to win, THAT will be fun!"......and I shut my mouth and went back to my chair.

If the parents, kids, and coaches come in with a good mindset it will be a wonderful experience.  If any one of that group doesn't understand why they are there...well gird your loins, you are in for a rough week!

And the worst part is you have to sit in that little coral with them.   

Yeah, unlike in LL All Stars where I was an Asst Coach and wasn't making the playing time decisions several kids (including mine) sat for almost the entire experience - not fun. I decided that at Cooperstown EVERYONE was going to play as close to the same amount as possible with the main goal of having FUN and secondary goal of winning enough to enjoy the experience. If we went 3-3 in pool play and won 1 playoff game I'd be good. We went 6-0 in pool play and came in top 16 with a TOTAL TEAM EFFORT! I took meticulous notes (to show complaining parents) on playing time and top to bottom kids were separated by only 4 innings of play across 8 or 9 games - can't get much more even than that. 

So in the corral, my wife hears the wife of the LL All Star Manager complaining about how her son (who played every inning in LL tournaments through State Finals) is sitting so much and how unfair it is. My wife couldn't let the hypocrisy go and reminded her of how her husband had our son and several others sitting waaaaay more all summer. She showed her my notes on playing time but the Mom still was hurt. Oh well, you're never going to make everyone happy and I'm just fine with that as long as the kids had the experience of a lifetime. Ya know what, I got many compliments from the parents - particularly those who's kids rode the pine all summer! 

You took your notes on LL all star playing time with you on a trip to Cooperstown? Am I the only one who is thinking this is passive aggressive?

To clarify, I didn't take notes on LL all star playing time. I took notes on the playing time decisions I made at Cooperstown, first to help me keep track and make it fun for the kids by keeping them in the games, and secondly to be able to point to them for any parents who complained. The LL playing time was just easily apparent and I didn't disrupt the team by complaining about it. I did advocate for all the kids playing more, both to keep them sharp for when needed, and for their enjoyment of the experience. I'd recommend the same strategy for Cooperstown.