Interesting Article in NY Times Re: Youth Baseball

Yep! (I'm still a recovering addict.) I did not read anything new here that I did not see 5 years ago when my son(s) were that age. However, I do believe it is worse now than then. The article is a good example of how out of control some folks are getting in youth sports. Agree KG?

"...As a 12-year-old last year, he played for teams from California, Colorado, Texas, Arizona and Nevada...." One of my pet peeves against select ball. The "guest " player rule. Many times, especially in younger ages, the team with the best "guest" wins the tourney. That rule ought to be one of the first rules scrapped!

Here is the quote from the article that I can't seem to get past.....

"Nowadays, Jarrod is 5-foot-3 and weighs 110 pounds. He is a recent graduate of the sixth grade at Apopka Memorial Middle School in suburban Orlando, and arguably as close to being a professional baseball player as a 12-year-old can be."

I don't think "professional baseball player" is an appropriate label for a 12 year-old kid ...isn't that just a little too much pressure? I predict that if you did a study on these kids in five years some will still be on the "professional" path....but others will have given up the sport entirely due to burnout or too much pressure from parents. I've seen it already with my sons peer group...some of the players on the top area teams at age 12 gave up the sport by 15 because they were the "worst" player on an outstanding select team....by most standards they would be pretty darn good for youth baseball but by comparing themselves to their elite teammates they did not believe they measured up.

Things have changed since we were kids...remember the sandlot next door?

Oh well, I can always rationalize this phenomenon by telling myself, "At least we are not as bad as those s****r (commie kickball) parents! They're crazy!"