High School Baseball - JV vs. Varsity for Freshmen

Don't worry about it, it will play itself out.  Unfortunately it sounds as though the culture at your son's school isn't fantastic, although hopefully he can use this as a learning experience, and when he is an upperclassman he will be very welcoming and helpful to the younger players & encourage his teammates to do the same.  Can't do much about the parents.  And the Coach is going to do what he wants to do...

It doesn't really matter what you think in terms of JV/V or what others are telling you, please do your best to not get caught up in any of that.  I certainly hope you aren't thinking about talking to the coaching staff about any of this...

Ultimately he should just focus on the things he can control:  his GPA, his attitude, his work ethic, and his preparation both at team practice and on his own.

I've never understood the be on Varsity, but sit the bench.  But, it happens everywhere.  Same with the snarky parents...they suck!

I agree with 3and2, just go with it.  Don't get involved or have your son ask the coach to go back down.  Both send the wrong message.  He should gain more confidence, just repping with V and will help him be that leader and change the culture a couple years down the road.

Doesn't seem like it, but it's a good problem to have.

Thanks for the reply.  I would never approach the coaches (They seem a bit arrogant and stated in the one and only parent meeting they do not intend to ever speak with a parent). We live in Florida in an area where prep baseball is extremely competitive.  I was just wondering if this was common everywhere.

Welcome to the site, you've found a great resource.  You will get direct responses and you can also search tons of threads on this very topic.  It is one of the most common discussions here.

There are numerous advantages (and drawbacks) to both staying with V and going back to JV but it is most often a coach/program decision, not a player or parent decision.  So he (and the parents) should embrace the role, whatever that may be. 

A V team will always need competent depth readily available to be truly successful, so there is need to have strong backups on the bench.  This is an important role and even if coach has the best of intentions to get players at least some playing time during the course of the season, often the game scores and situations will go a long way in determining how much he can work in those players.  So, it is not always as easy as putting them where they will play.  Meanwhile, those players can battle hard to work their way up the depth chart in practices, intersquads, etc.  You can't do that from the JV field.  And you pointed out one of many other advantages... practicing every day with the better V players.  I could fill the page with advantages of a freshman player staying with V even if given little playing opportunity.

You are generally correct in that, from a recruiting standpoint, the right summer travel arrangement is more important than HS.  But both are very special in different ways.

Oh, and there will always be those parents and those teammates...  there will always be challenges to overcome.  The majority of HS coaches will prioritize playing to win and will play those who give the team the best chance to do so, regardless of class (and regardless of what a teammate or parent may voice).  Earning one of those spots should be the goal.  Tune out any bad noise.

TideFanRTR posted:

Thanks for the reply.  I would never approach the coaches (They seem a bit arrogant and stated in the one and only parent meeting they do not intend to ever speak with a parent). We live in Florida in an area where prep baseball is extremely competitive.  I was just wondering if this was common everywhere.

Standard pretty much. Coaches tend be pretty sure that anyone who isn't a coach is not capable of grasping the concepts of organization management...and then they hang out together and reaffirm the belief that everyone is an idiot except the group that has chosen to be coaches. 

In fairness to them many parents are idiots who don't grasp it at all...you are better to just leave it alone. 

My sons coaches refer to parents who get it and they will talk to as the 2%'ers...

varsity at his high school is about the players who have paid their dues ??? .........what is paying your dues?  Been out awhile but you play the best players. Say a kid tries out for the team senior year and he is a real good player better than some who have paid their "dues" As a coach you do not play him? Many years ago brought up some JV players because some players who "paid their dues" were playing like crap. loss after loss.  News flash you have to earn playing time . Just because you made the team and are an upperclassman does not guarantee your playing time. At least in my opinion. Of course that may be old school and what do old school guys know?

I am very much in favor of playing time at a lower level vs. bench time at the upper. What sometimes happens around here is that a fast SO gets moved up to V, and is usually only used as a pinch runner. I've seen talented kids quit baseball after having a year like that...they usually have another HS sport they are good at, and choose to play one where they...play!

Still don't understand how a Freshman can be playing Varsity at a "extremely competitive" level, unless he was held back a grade, or is a highly unusual physical specimen. Is it a small school? At small schools around here we have kids in gr. 8/9 playing V due to numbers, but they play in way less competitive conferences.

In general, the team/parents vibe around younger call ups is pretty good around here. Quite supportive. Part of that has to do with with almost no Freshman playing V, and the only SO's(rare) that do are usually very talented, and clearly deserve to be up there. 

  Don't pick the fruit before it's ripe. 

It's possible my freshman son may get pulled up to V from JV (we don't have a freshman team) just to pitch. Issue is once you bring a kid up, you have to keep him up. In JV he is a P and SS (he's not really a SS, he's a 3B on summer team).

V has D1 or D2 commits at 3B,SS and 2B, so will be hard for him to get ABs or see the field. Would rather he stay in JV. We'll see. Would rather he stay in JV and get ABs

Our school doesn't have rules about keeping a kid up once he's pulled up. Mine pitched on varsity as a freshman, played third with the freshman team when he wasn't needed for varsity. It was a wonderful balance, except for the day he played third in an afternoon game and pitched that night in a playoff game — which we lost.

Playing V as a freshman isn't all it is cracked up to be.  It has not been a great experience for my son.  In fact, he probably will skip HS season altogether his next three years and play in a HS alternative program because the coach has so soured him on this team.  He is a catcher also and gets some playing time--an inning here or there, but he mostly catches bullpens during practice and at games.  He's not getting quality reps in practice, as far as I can tell (I'm not there, but that is what it sounds like), and he's definitely not getting them in games.  It is a tremendous time suck--6 days a week of practice or games.  Last week, he played 6 games, Monday-Saturday, due to rain make-ups and dropping down to play JV (and I use the term "played" loosely; he plays the whole JV game but only warmed up pitchers for V).  He has very little time to study, and it shows.  Unlike the upperclassmen on your son's team, the upperclassmen on our team are not nice to him.  As the only freshman, he is the brunt of all of the hazing, shall we say, and he has no one to commiserate with.  The team is losing a lot of seniors to graduation, so my son would probably start most games next season, but this one has just about done him in.  I am grateful that there are alternatives in our area.  He is not the only talented player at his school who won't play for this coach.  I know of at least one other, and this other kid is a real stud.  He won't play because of his older brother's experience with this coach.  The team's loss, I guess!  But, yeah--upperclassmen get seniority rights here, too, and freshman are told they're lucky to get to crouch in a bullpen for 3 hours.  (Upperclass catchers don't catch bullpens.)

Not playing as a freshman isn’t that big of a deal, but if the coach is that big of an issue, that’s unfortunate.  

My only consult, if you were to go another route next year, is don’t underestimate the value of playing for your high school with your friends.  He’s got 3 important years of high school left, making friends and the related social interaction.  Playing outside of HS may, not only rob him of some friendships/team bonding, but create some animosity.  Playing on a non-HS or travel team often doesn’t result in the same strong friendships as HS.

Something to consider as you’re making your decision.  Good luck!

My '22 just made varsity.  I'm a bit nervous about hazing and also other parents' focusing on him.  Also, I don't want to rush things as I know a big part of high school is building strong friendships.  He has a great group of freshman friends but they will all be on JV and game days are same day as varsity but in opposite locations.  On the other hand, he is likely to improve his skills this way.  He is used to playing up and has been exposed to a lot from older kids already (ugh) so we'll see how the first year of high school plays out. We're going to just buckle up and enjoy the ride (from a distance, preferably left field).  We're proud of him no matter what.  

My son played Varsity his freshman year, there were two other freshmen also on the team (it's not that big a program).  The first few weeks of the season, he rarely played at all, maybe an inning here or there.  We didn't know what to make of it (had not found HSBBW yet), it didn't seem like a good idea because he wasn't getting reps, but on the other hand, he was practicing with varsity.  Son had no idea what it meant, or why he was there.  We asked him if he should ask to go to JV and play more, he said absolutely not.

3 weeks in, big cross-town rivalry game, everyone is there.  We settle into our seats; at least when son isn't playing, it's relaxing to watch.  At the start of the 2nd inning, my husband says to me, by the way, who is #32?  He's not on the list.  I said, that's our son's alternate number for this uniform.  We looked down, sure enough, there he was on the field - we hadn't even noticed in the first inning! 

He started the rest of the season, and has started ever since.  However, freshman year he was almost always DHed for, even though he hit well when given the chance.  It took him a while to get back into form in summer ball, but he did.   And, he got used to the varsity coaches and system, and was a leader of the team by junior year, so obviously the coach had a plan, for him and for the team, and it worked out.  A good lesson to learn, in hindsight, even though it was painful at the time.

My son played Varsity as a freshman as well, as the starting 1B.  (He's a catcher, but the starting catcher was a D1 commit senior.) Because of the senior catcher, we told him enjoy JV, but to our surprise, they really needed 1B and the coach liked using a catcher as a 1B (plus he was 6'2).  He started every game at 1B for Varsity, but had a few times when he was pinch hit for.  (It's also a small program.)  There was some minor hazing, but he was so proud to earn his pink backpack.  What we noticed was if your freshman contributes, the other players and parents have no issues with having a freshman on the team.  However, the juniors that didn't get to play b/c of the freshman in the starting 1B role ended up irritated and didn't play the next year (their parents also weren't very friendly either).  For my son it was an awesome experience, but he did struggle hitting compared to what he was used to doing with travel ball at his age group.  However, he learned a lot about baseball and himself that season.  He's now a junior team captain and has started in every game as catcher since the freshman year. 

The coach does what he wants based on the needs for his team.  If your son keeps a positive attitude and keeps working hard, the noise will decrease to a whisper.  I would also say that next year is a whole different experience and he should still consider playing high school b/c there's something about playing for your school with your friends that's for the love of the game.

If you son wants play time, I would tell him to ask the coach to be on JV.   My son was brought up to varsity as a PO, but would have played a position as  freshman/sophomore. He is now a PO as a junior and it feels like he didn't get to play high school ball.  Last year, he  asked coach, if he wasn't pitching, if he could play JV.  He let him do that and those were his favorite games of the season.  Got to play with his friends and play position or pitch.  I don't think rotting on a bench helps anyone.  

Gives you perspective on younger kids and parents though when you are an upperclassman.  Don't be a jerk....

Since I started this thread, it is appropriate to make an addition. The kid was suppose to start on the mound last night with the JV and was happy. Late in the afternoon, he was told the starting 3rd baseman on varsity was injured and he would start the varsity game last night.  It was awesome.  He made some great defensive plays and actually got on a short news clip on the local TV news. He went 0 for 2 but heck, he made contact and and was thrilled to have his name called out on the PA System as they announced the starters. Only negative was the passive-aggressive comments from some of the varsity parents.   Not sure I understand the intellect of these folks but heck, I refuse to be drawn into the pettiness.  

catching22 posted:

Playing V as a freshman isn't all it is cracked up to be.  It has not been a great experience for my son.  In fact, he probably will skip HS season altogether his next three years and play in a HS alternative program because the coach has so soured him on this team.  He is a catcher also and gets some playing time--an inning here or there, but he mostly catches bullpens during practice and at games.  He's not getting quality reps in practice, as far as I can tell (I'm not there, but that is what it sounds like), and he's definitely not getting them in games.  It is a tremendous time suck--6 days a week of practice or games.  Last week, he played 6 games, Monday-Saturday, due to rain make-ups and dropping down to play JV (and I use the term "played" loosely; he plays the whole JV game but only warmed up pitchers for V).  He has very little time to study, and it shows.  Unlike the upperclassmen on your son's team, the upperclassmen on our team are not nice to him.  As the only freshman, he is the brunt of all of the hazing, shall we say, and he has no one to commiserate with.  The team is losing a lot of seniors to graduation, so my son would probably start most games next season, but this one has just about done him in.  I am grateful that there are alternatives in our area.  He is not the only talented player at his school who won't play for this coach.  I know of at least one other, and this other kid is a real stud.  He won't play because of his older brother's experience with this coach.  The team's loss, I guess!  But, yeah--upperclassmen get seniority rights here, too, and freshman are told they're lucky to get to crouch in a bullpen for 3 hours.  (Upperclass catchers don't catch bullpens.)

Sorry to hear that. As a former C, I am very appreciative of the grind they have to face even in a good situation. Your son not playing in the next three years will send a message to your school, I'm guessing. Best way to handle that is not to talk about it...his actions will speak loudly enough.

   The coaching staff is not perfect at our HS, and has it's quirks, but in general they have a pretty supportive atmosphere. When my son was called up, they made some jokes about hazing him, and had him do things like carry the buckets of balls, but in general they really took care of him.

   To just have him just catching bullpens for hours and not having him work on C technique, and at least get in the late innings of an uneven game (there are a few each year), sucks. It's even tougher when the player is a Freshman, who likely won't have as tough of a skin.

 BTW, have never heard of a "HS alternative program". Do you mean a Club team that runs during HS season?

The fact that the high school coaches choose, or have a policy, not to speak to parents will benefit you, your son, and the program in the long run. Ride it out, be proud that your son is on varsity practicing with older players (will only make him better) and take it as a strong training opportunity for upcoming summer travel ball. I'm in So Cal, which is also competitive in the high school ranks....there are quality juniors and seniors on my son's varsity team that don't get the playing time they probably deserve due to the amount of good players on the team. Your son is very fortunate to letter his freshman year and "pay dues" so to speak at the varsity level as a 9th grader.  

As far as the snarky parents go. Ignore, ignore, ignore. Good luck!

one and only parent meeting ........ why do you have to meet with the parents.  Kid  is on the team the coach is the coach.  I know that today sounds awful to the parents but believe it or not there was a time when that was the case. I think these meetings are necessitated because of what has developed over the years.   

TideFanRTR posted:

Since I started this thread, it is appropriate to make an addition. The kid was suppose to start on the mound last night with the JV and was happy. Late in the afternoon, he was told the starting 3rd baseman on varsity was injured and he would start the varsity game last night.  It was awesome.  He made some great defensive plays and actually got on a short news clip on the local TV news. He went 0 for 2 but heck, he made contact and and was thrilled to have his name called out on the PA System as they announced the starters. Only negative was the passive-aggressive comments from some of the varsity parents.   Not sure I understand the intellect of these folks but heck, I refuse to be drawn into the pettiness.  

Awesome story!  Good for your kid for hanging in there and being ready when the opportunity presented itself.

It seems there are a lot of different scenarios that can play out for a Freshman.  I feel badly for those of you whose kids are struggling with their experiences, and very fortunate that my Freshman is having a good experience.  He was put on the JV team - not a particularly good team, and 6 games into the season he is (or was - now I would say hes 1a or 1b) probably the top pitcher.  He is a third baseman and has gotten all of the starts that he wasn't on the mound and has yet to come off the field for an inning.  He has hit in either the 4 or the 5 hole.  I couldn't hope for much more.

Contrast that with a good friend of my son's who is a Sophomore and made the V team.  Also a good P and corner infielder.  IMO, he is remarkably similar to my son in both positional strengths and overall talent and ability. The first several weeks he played very sparingly, some games not at all.  For whatever reason, the V coach came to him and told him while he was a talented player, he didn't see him getting much playing time with the Senior 3B who was in front of him and gave him the option to move down to JV.  The kid chose to move down to JV.  The JV team has played one game since he moved down.  This kid started on the mound and pitched 3 scoreless innings.  My kid played 3rd.  Then my kid pitched the final 4 innings, giving up 1 ER, while this other kid played 3rd.  The team is better with this kid on it, but it is very obvious my son will be giving up some playing time to his friend, which I have zero issues with.

I'm evaluating my son and this other kid as objectively as possible, and IMO either one could have been pulled up and either one of them could have been left down.  They're that close.  Its amazing how much of this comes down to chance.  Maybe this other kid hit one more line drive than my kid at tryouts.  Maybe it's because he's a sophomore.  Maybe it's because the V coach knew him from last year and knew what a good kid he is.  Who knows?  I'd give my son the same advice if he was on V - control what you can control, be a good teammate, be prepared when you get an opportunity, etc...  I know a kid has to learn the life lesson of turning whatever situation he's put in into a positive one, but I'm silently thrilled he is playing with the JV team. 

2022Wildcat posted:
"I'm evaluating my son and this other kid as objectively as possible..."

That's the thing though:  it is not possible for 99.9% of parents to evaluate their kid objectively.

"Your son not playing in the next three years will send a message to your school" 

I think many parents, through transfers, re-classing or playing in some alternative league, believe this is true.  I believe it's quite the opposite.  Out of site, out of mind...no meaningful message will be sent. Next man up!

I know many who went this route and it didn't turn out how they hoped... 

CTbballDad posted:

"Your son not playing in the next three years will send a message to your school" 

I think many parents, through transfers, re-classing or playing in some alternative league, believe this is true.  I believe it's quite the opposite.  Out of site, out of mind...no meaningful message will be sent. Next man up!

I know many who went this route and it didn't turn out how they hoped... 

Any team that has a Freshman playing Varsity has to be desperate for talent, tiny, or immensely screwed up. A talented player leaving will leave a hole. Hell, it would leave a hole at our HS(we've had numerous kids quit for other reasons), and we have 5 teams!

I would strongly disagree.  There are freshmen that are able to play at any high school.  I will agree they are few and far between but they could play at almost any high school in the US no matter the size.  Lefty throwing 83-85 topping 87 with three pitches can throw at any school.  And hitting .400 with 6 home runs.  Unless there is a coach who doesn't play freshmen no matter how good they are. 

CTbballDad posted:

"Your son not playing in the next three years will send a message to your school" 

I think many parents, through transfers, re-classing or playing in some alternative league, believe this is true.  I believe it's quite the opposite.  Out of site, out of mind...no meaningful message will be sent. Next man up!

I know many who went this route and it didn't turn out how they hoped... 

Up here in Wisconsin, a lot of the top players take part in the Hitter's Spring League (with the ability to play games indoors during bad weather). That league also sends teams to play in the Perfect Game Spring League in Iowa (Iowa high school Baseball is in the summer).

For years, Wisconsin had some high school teams play in the spring & some in the summer.  Now that they switched to all Spring (can't figure out why, they probably think they are competing with travel ball, or they are counting on global warming, but due to bad weather a Wisconsin spring season ends up being about 4-6 weeks long) I thought most of the top players would play for their high schools, however the Spring League has lots of great players, D1 commits, top JUCO commits, etc etc from WI, IL, & Iowa.

As with most things in life, having options is a great thing.  Keeps people honest, and forces people to provide quality experiences.

57special posted:

CTbballDad posted:

"Your son not playing in the next three years will send a message to your school" 

I think many parents, through transfers, re-classing or playing in some alternative league, believe this is true.  I believe it's quite the opposite.  Out of site, out of mind...no meaningful message will be sent. Next man up!

I know many who went this route and it didn't turn out how they hoped... 

Any team that has a Freshman playing Varsity has to be desperate for talent, tiny, or immensely screwed up. A talented player leaving will leave a hole. Hell, it would leave a hole at our HS(we've had numerous kids quit for other reasons), and we have 5 teams!

I'd beg to differ.

Freshman on the #2 5A team in Texas. 

#2 pitcher w/ record of 5-0-1, ERA under 2.00 with WHIP of less than 0.90. 

Hitting .350, second on the team in RBI, Runs, and SB and playing CF. 

57special posted:

CTbballDad posted:

"Your son not playing in the next three years will send a message to your school" 

I think many parents, through transfers, re-classing or playing in some alternative league, believe this is true.  I believe it's quite the opposite.  Out of site, out of mind...no meaningful message will be sent. Next man up!

I know many who went this route and it didn't turn out how they hoped... 

Any team that has a Freshman playing Varsity has to be desperate for talent, tiny, or immensely screwed up. A talented player leaving will leave a hole. Hell, it would leave a hole at our HS(we've had numerous kids quit for other reasons), and we have 5 teams!

You keep bringing this up, but there are now freshman that throw 87 and commit to top schools before ever setting foot on campus. I know of two state champion/nationally ranked schools, both will be starting freshman again this year. I don't think they're desperate for talent. 

PABaseball posted:

57special posted:

CTbballDad posted:

"Your son not playing in the next three years will send a message to your school" 

I think many parents, through transfers, re-classing or playing in some alternative league, believe this is true.  I believe it's quite the opposite.  Out of site, out of mind...no meaningful message will be sent. Next man up!

I know many who went this route and it didn't turn out how they hoped... 

Any team that has a Freshman playing Varsity has to be desperate for talent, tiny, or immensely screwed up. A talented player leaving will leave a hole. Hell, it would leave a hole at our HS(we've had numerous kids quit for other reasons), and we have 5 teams!

You keep bringing this up, but there are now freshman that throw 87 and commit to top schools before ever setting foot on campus. I know of two state champion/nationally ranked schools, both will be starting freshman again this year. I don't think they're desperate for talent. 

I think that making a blanket statement about schools that have freshmen starting as being desperate for talent, tiny, or immensely screwed up is rather shortsighted.  I’m not saying that travel ball is the be all to end all, but with the high level of baseball that some of these guys are playing in the summer, many freshmen come in ready and able to play varsity and hold their own if not excel.

I just think somebody/bodies need to get out and see the level of play that is out there.  There are a lot of freshmen who play up or the highest level that can compete on any team.  I will agree they are few but still 100's across the US.  They may be as some have said the elite but the elite is still a lot of players.

We are ranked 2 in the nation and we have had a freshman start a few games. We aren't weak and we are 6A, so not small.

3and2Fastball posted:

2022Wildcat posted:
"I'm evaluating my son and this other kid as objectively as possible..."

 

 

That's the thing though:  it is not possible for 99.9% of parents to evaluate their kid objectively.

Valid point.  But not why I posted.  This is just the situation I have to use as an example for what I'm trying to say.

Let me leave my kid out of it.  Any player who is on the bubble between JV and V will be a strong contributor on JV or a much less featured player (or maybe a total benchrider) on V.  Ideally the player should be able to recognize and benefit from the positives in either scenario, but I think most players, especially Freshmen, would prefer to play more baseball on the JV squad.

To expect a 15yo to hold his own against a 18-19yo is asking a lot. If you don't understand that, i don't know what to tell you. It is very rare for a 15yo to be good enough to play against top flight 18 yo's, just like it is really hard for a 18 yo to hold his own against 22-4 yo's in college.

A couple of things.  First, I've coached some of the top HS teams in America.  During that time, we have started several freshmen on the varsity.  The vast majority of them went on to play professionally after attending serious collegiate baseball programs.  Secondly, I forget who made the comment about a player not playing after his freshman year and how the school will react.  Let me state that in no uncertain terms, not one minute will be spent worry about or wanting that player.  People make choices and coaches don't have control over that.  They do have control over who wants to play in a program and so, put all of their energy into those who want to play for the school.  

57special posted:

To expect a 15yo to hold his own against a 18-19yo is asking a lot. If you don't understand that, i don't know what to tell you. It is very rare for a 15yo to be good enough to play against top flight 18 yo's, just like it is really hard for a 18 yo to hold his own against 22-4 yo's in college.

Nobody denies that it is a tall task, but there are plenty up for it. There are also plenty of people letting you know it is not desperate or immensely screwed up. You're also forgetting that most high school teams are not made up of top flight 18 year olds. Most are average run of the mill high schoolers who will never get another AB after the season ends. 

Once you get to the college level you are expected to hold your own as a freshman or you're gone the majority of the time. Most freshman don't see a ton of meaningful time, and there is definitely a transition period, but at that level if you aren't ready to compete with the big boys they move on to the next set of freshmen that will. If you show up in the fall and can't hit 91 thru November, you'll most likely be living on a new campus come January. 

As a parent of a freshman who made varsity, I can share this one item. What was amazing to me was how much everyone else has eyes on my kid. Every time I run into someone, they make some comment about him being on varsity, or on something he did in a game, his condition, playing status, etc. 

The microscope is real and it is always on. 

I get it. The parents of freshmen and JV are annoyed because he bypassed those levels. The parents of juniors and seniors are ruffled because their kids had to wait 2 years and he didn't, etc.

There is over 40 kids in the program. Yet, so many are laser focused on him.  Meanwhile, I couldn't tell you what position their kid plays or if he even plays at all.

Francis7 posted:

As a parent of a freshman who made varsity, I can share this one item. What was amazing to me was how much everyone else has eyes on my kid. Every time I run into someone, they make some comment about him being on varsity, or on something he did in a game, his condition, playing status, etc. 

The microscope is real and it is always on. 

I get it. The parents of freshmen and JV are annoyed because he bypassed those levels. The parents of juniors and seniors are ruffled because their kids had to wait 2 years and he didn't, etc.

There is over 40 kids in the program. Yet, so many are laser focused on him.  Meanwhile, I couldn't tell you what position their kid plays or if he even plays at all.

I don't believe the HS baseball world is quite as hostile and perilous as you make it out to be.

Some parents comment on younger players because they enjoy having them on the team and seeing them play, and these remarks to the players' parents are intended to be kind.   

JCG posted:

Francis7 posted:

As a parent of a freshman who made varsity, I can share this one item. What was amazing to me was how much everyone else has eyes on my kid. Every time I run into someone, they make some comment about him being on varsity, or on something he did in a game, his condition, playing status, etc. 

The microscope is real and it is always on. 

I get it. The parents of freshmen and JV are annoyed because he bypassed those levels. The parents of juniors and seniors are ruffled because their kids had to wait 2 years and he didn't, etc.

There is over 40 kids in the program. Yet, so many are laser focused on him.  Meanwhile, I couldn't tell you what position their kid plays or if he even plays at all.

I don't believe the HS baseball world is quite as hostile and perilous as you make it out to be.

Some parents comment on younger players because they enjoy having them on the team and seeing them play, and these remarks to the players' parents are intended to be kind.   

Maybe your school is nicer... I walked into the press box area last year just as my son and his friend (the only sophomores on the team) were put in to play and heard them all saying “Why are they playing the sophomores? Are you kidding?”  It made it sweeter when the first hit a double and the second knocked him in to put us in the lead.

Why are they playing the sophomores? Are you kidding?   ......Maybe they are better..Just a thought!!!  As a coach why would you not play the better players?  If they are sophs so be it. 

Francis7 posted:

As a parent of a freshman who made varsity, I can share this one item. What was amazing to me was how much everyone else has eyes on my kid. Every time I run into someone, they make some comment about him being on varsity, or on something he did in a game, his condition, playing status, etc. 

The microscope is real and it is always on. 

I get it. The parents of freshmen and JV are annoyed because he bypassed those levels. The parents of juniors and seniors are ruffled because their kids had to wait 2 years and he didn't, etc.

There is over 40 kids in the program. Yet, so many are laser focused on him.  Meanwhile, I couldn't tell you what position their kid plays or if he even plays at all.

Don’t you think you’re being a bit dramatic? It’s hard to imagine it’s this intense in a program that’s historically mediocre (you’re definition). 

Yes, there are cliques of parents. They prefer to see another parent of the clique’s kid play over yours. They’ve been hanging together at games since kiddie ball. Yes, the other parents of kids in the same class wish their kid was on varsity. But they could see last season who was starting to fast track. The scrutiny ultimately comes down to can the kid play and help the team?

People who cared asked how baseball was going for my son. They were typically parents from other sports who knew baseball was his priority sport. I never paid attention to the mumbling in the distance.