Fall ball to play or not

Commit to eating a great diet 6 days a week and skip fall baseball and work on getting stronger. There will still be time to hit a couple days a week.

So, it seems like your son has lost some confidence and he has some "cracks in his foundation".  I would leave the  ultimate decision to him about playing or developing.  I think spending some time rebuilding that foundation would be worthwhile for his confidence and re-engergize him.  I have 3 boys and they are very, very different in terms of how they handled success and failure.  My wife and I knew what buttons to push with each of them.   I suspect you do as well.   If he wants to play in college he'll need baseball tools when recruiting comes around in a couple years.  You have time before that happens.

As a side note, I coached travel for a number of years and I'm a big believer in repetition and self-awareness.  My college coach was ahead of his time (40+ years ago) and a big believer in video recording skills, and technique.  Seeing yourself is instant feedback.   If he decides to do the strength & conditioning program, is it possible he can do some tee hitting drills off or soft toss hitting drills 2-4 times a week?  If so, I'd work with him and video it so he can see himself and make corrections.  No live hitting just working on mechanics, timing and the 5-basic hitting movements (stance, load, stride, contact, follow through).  Rinse and repeat.  Watching the video and doing the things he should be doing at the plate is a very good use of time.

As always, JMO.

‘27 is so young, and the critical thing is that he’s enjoying the process. As a HS baseball parent who loved the game, I had to be careful to ensure it was my son’s passion, and not his desire for my approval. The rule we had was I’d put the gas in the car, but he needed to drive…

My son was a standout as a younger player but fell back 12-14. He went from a star to a contributor on a high-level team. It was important to me that he made the call, drop to a less talented team and get more playing time or stay, have less playing time and be a contributor. He chose to stay, and we supported him.

Only time will tell where the journey will lead, but it's his journey so IMO it should be his call...

Where are you located?  Fall ball in the NE is not really good baseball.  If so, I'd take off the fall and find something fun to to play -- football or soccer might help reset.

I'm a firm believer in training over games in all sports. Especially in baseball where you may spend your entire weekend at the ballpark and get 6-8 plate appearances. And in those, you are counting on a random kid to throw strikes.

Getting bigger, stronger, and faster will bring a confidence of it's own. Throw in some hitting whenever he feels like it.

For 99.9% of kids that play this game development is not linear. It's a sport if peaks and valleys. The ones who figure out how to deal with the setbacks usually get to play the longest.

What does the rest of his HS team do in the fall?

My son played every fall in a league made up of high-school players.  It was fun, because he could play with some HS teammates, and it could be challenging because most of the college-bound players in our area played in it, plus it was all ages.   He did play in the occasional tournament with his travel org.

But doesn't sound like that's what you're talking about, if you're concerned with his "moving down a team."  Baseball should be fun, it's a game, and he should be able to play it without (too much) anxiety.  If your fall ball involves a travel organization, then I agree with others that he should train, lift, and not play in the fall, or find some local games to keep his eye in.

https://x.com/drivelinekyle/st...5UZSee3e_0Q&s=19

Some helpful advice from Kyle Body about taking a mental break, which sounds like he needs.

JMO

BB328;

Can your son practice with the Track team in the Fall?

Learning to run "efficient" will improve his baseball skills.

"Quickness" can be acquired and it is an asset to a team.

Bob

@Consultant posted:

BB328;

Can your son practice with the Track team in the Fall?

Learning to run "efficient" will improve his baseball skills.

"Quickness" can be acquired and it is an asset to a team.

Bob

Bob,

He will most likely do winter track. There is no fall option.

BB328;

Do you have a College team near? Take your son to their practice and watch the "quickness" of the players. Study the Coach's philosophy. Watch closely the "hitting" and defense Coach.

Bob

Your question could be answered a thousand different ways. Hitting coach. It could be he is only in it for the money and is booked solid. Or he could think your kid isn't worth his time.

>I feel like if he doesn't play fall and work thru his issues at the plate by seeing live pitching he will fall behind since he is in hs now.<

Swinging at live pitching with a flawed swing only reinforces that flawed swing.

Hard to help without a vid of that swing.

@fenwaysouth posted:

So, it seems like your son has lost some confidence and he has some "cracks in his foundation".  I would leave the  ultimate decision to him about playing or developing.  I think spending some time rebuilding that foundation would be worthwhile for his confidence and re-engergize him.  I have 3 boys and they are very, very different in terms of how they handled success and failure.  My wife and I knew what buttons to push with each of them.   I suspect you do as well.   If he wants to play in college he'll need b aseball tools when recruiting comes around in a couple years.  You have time before that happens.

As a side note, I coached travel for a number of years and I'm a big believer in repetition and self-awareness.  My college coach was ahead of his time (40+ years ago) and a big believer in video recording skills, and technique.  Seeing yourself is instant feedback.   If he decides to do the strength & conditioning program, is it possible he can do some tee hitting drills off or soft toss hitting drills 2-4 times a week?  If so, I'd work with him and video it so he can see himself and make corrections.  No live hitting just working on mechanics, timing and the 5-basic hitting movements (stance, load, stride, contact, follow through).  Rinse and repeat.  Watching the video and doing the things he should be doing at the plate is a very good use of time.

As always, JMO.

Thanks for the thoughtful reply. We purchased a tripod for a cell phone and brought it to the field where he could review his throwing mechanics and swing in real time and make adjustments as he was working. I think it will be a great tool.

As far hitting my son does hit 5-7 days a week. But he really needs to watch himself that he is not overworking his swing into something that doesn't work. He also is incredibly hard on himself so I think the mental part is very real for him.

I am not sure what his decision will be with the fall. I sense that if he continues along his current path and training regimen he will see a fair amount of growth come spring.

I just wish I felt more equipped to help him myself but I know just enough to screw him up and not enough to help.

@BB328 posted:

I just wish I felt more equipped to help him myself but I know just enough to screw him up and not enough to help.

Sometimes having someone to listen to your son vent and be angry and worried and all those things is the biggest help. My son is a pitcher and after a game that went badly, I find that just asking a question or two and then letting him take the conversation or text exchange wherever he wants it to go and not judging him lets him get that frustration out of his system. And occasionally saying, I know that didn't go well, but remember, you're very good at this. . . and of course, I love you.

Again, a pitcher thing, but after almost every pitch he swipes his right foot across the mound. I asked why and he said it's a physical thing he does to remind himself to wipe the last pitch, good, bad or indifferent, out of his brain and move on to the next one. Maybe your son could develop his own kind of trigger that would serve the same purpose?

Like you, I know enough to be dangerous, but maybe some of these thoughts will help.

@Iowamom23 posted:

Sometimes having someone to listen to your son vent and be angry and worried and all those things is the biggest help. My son is a pitcher and after a game that went badly, I find that just asking a question or two and then letting him take the conversation or text exchange wherever he wants it to go and not judging him lets him get that frustration out of his system. And occasionally saying, I know that didn't go well, but remember, you're very good at this. . . and of course, I love you.

Again, a pitcher thing, but after almost every pitch he swipes his right foot across the mound. I asked why and he said it's a physical thing he does to remind himself to wipe the last pitch, good, bad or indifferent, out of his brain and move on to the next one. Maybe your son could develop his own kind of trigger that would serve the same purpose?

Like you, I know enough to be dangerous, but maybe some of these thoughts will help.

Excellent advice!

If he enjoys playing in the fall play the short season and enjoy it. Then spend the remainder of the ball into the spring fixing the flaws. He can work on the flaws in the fall games as long as the coaches understand he working on adjustments more than results.

My son’s high school had a fall ball team. He used call ball to make spring tryouts a formality. The next year he spend the fall and winter training to make a hitting adjustment. I paid an instructor a lot of money to change something I had been telling my son for two years as his travel coach.

He was also paying varsity soccer. His time was very consumed. He ultimately decided he just needed to do workouts on his own rather than play baseball in the fall.