Is being on the best Travel teams the answer?

baseballdad65 posted:

If the coach  has a desire to win he will always do what is best for the team.  Here is our story...

There has been talk of "top travel teams" my son played for arguably the best Evoshield Canes National 17U last year.  (He is currently an incoming College Freshman at a D1 School that is in 2nd semester Summer School)  He was the lowest ranked player on the team around the 350ish mark as of February 2015 and started out batting last in the order (someone has to not a big deal).  We have players from all over the country on our team.  I knew playing time would be split at best.  He is a 6'3" 185 pound 1st Baseman. Bats - L, Throws - R.  We had 2 other 1st Baseman one from South Carolina and one who was a 1st round pick in this past draft.  Long stories short.

 

He was the only player on the entire roster of 25 guys that did not participate in any of the following events:  PG National, East Coast Pro,  Area Code Games, UA All American, PG All American. 

At the 17U WWBA they brought in yet another 1st Baseman from California who batted 0-10 with 7 K's. My son kept plugging away.. batted .700 in Atlanta for the week.

Go to PG World Series in Arizona the 1st round pick quits because he is not getting playing time. My son keeps working...

After winning Jupiter and unprecedented 3 straight years he was one of the top 10 players in all of Jupiter batting 5 hole behind a couple guys you might know: Joe Rizzo and Seth Beer (his 2 best friends).  For the season in 42 games he hit .362 2nd on team, led in Home Runs, RBI and OBP, 2nd in Doubles, Triples, SLG, OPS.  By playing on such a high level team they faced every teams best guy as everyone was always gunning for us.  In College they are going to have to compete everyday for their playing lives start now and let them challenge themselves.  BTW, our team had 9 PG All Americans on it, he was not one of them but he did bat 5 hole in Jupiter while 2 of them sat the bench.  Results always matter more than tools.  Our Coach who is the best in the business wanted to win he did not care what your name or ranking was. 

 He is 6'3" 200 now.  Had 20 MLB scouts at first HS game this Spring.  You will find guys who have great tools but they mean nothing when the game light comes on. A scout told me I can evaluate all the physical tools but what is in his head when a player in the box  is something I can't. There were guys selected early in the draft that had no business being taken that high.  In 2 weeks time you can already start to see some of those results. I could have told anyone that for free. The best prep position players in this past draft were Rutherford, Rizzo, kiriloff and Bichette and Quintana. They have staying power at the plate.

He's right, I was there.... 2018 was on 16 Canes last year in Jupiter.

 

Good question C2019...... FWIW .... being involved with travel ball for 10 + years ..... many many teams.....

The top level teams.... they are like colleges in that they pick you .... you cannot buy your way on to the top team. Maybe a regional team but not the National team. 

If you make the National team, by all means take it.... because that tells me you already have the tools, more scouts and recruiters know who you are than you realize and all that "playing time" is not what is important... get your playing time in the spring... If you are on a elite travel team sure you need to get a few innings and a few AB's but the fact that your on the team raises you stock.

Most of the time the scouts and recruiters have already talked to the elite teams coaches before they ever see you....

Secondly, like old-school said.... these travel teams are not for every player.... 2018's team has 5-6 PO's 90+  lefties in the high 80's   IF you are one of these guys.... don't worry the Arsenal, Canes, Banditos,  Marucci, etc will find you.

Being on these elite teams is a big bonus only if you are an elite player.... if your a really really good player maybe you stay closer to home.. baseball is a regionally scouted sport for the most part .

2018 has been gone for 6 weeks... covered thousands of miles... I get to see him in Atlanta tomorrow.... believe me there is a huge expectation playing for these teams...  travel coaches, college coaches, scouts, advisors, ....

Most of the players on these teams have already been identified.... if you are 16/17 and you have not been, then chances are you are not this type of player.

Net, net, it sounds like the consensus is:  the key is being really good at baseball. 

bacdorslider's 2018 is really good at pitching. baseballdad65's kid kept working and kept improving. They play(ed) on a national travel team, but the key is really to be good enough to play on one of those teams, whether or not the kid actually plays on one of those teams. For example, looking at PG's rankings of 2017s, the #1 kid is not on one of the elite travel ball teams; he is, however, really good at baseball. I'm certain any one of those teams would take him in a heartbeat.

Using a slightly different measuring stick, one could ask "is the key being on one of the USA Baseball national teams?" . . . no, they key is being good enough to be on one of those teams.

Some excellent guidance in this topic. 

My two cents...

There are tremendous benefits from playing on an excellent travel team, all of which have been referenced. However, it's only one part of an overall mix of tactics that are a part of an overall strategy! It's not the be-all and end-all.

Just be sure that the team selected fits in well with your other marketing tactics.

C2019,  you are correct however.... I will have to say that sometimes they find you and sometimes you need to try-out for several of these teams and find the right fit.  The travel is exhusting  and you will spend a ton of money...

2013 / 2014 did not play on an elite team but a very good regional travel team... they did fine.

2016 hardly played travel ball,  but is going to a very nice D3 and it is costing me very little... so al the money I spent towards his baseball has paid off very well.

In your situation, I would at least give the opportunities a look and see if it's a good fit. 

Being able to be on one of these super teams would be nice. But most kids I really do think realize they are not first round draft choice material. One thing the Information Age has done is give them comparisons. Back in the day no way we would know how kids in Nebraska were doing.  There are a ton of kids not good enough to make one of these super teams who are in fact good enough to get a nice baseball offer for college.  Pick the team appropriate for you and don't worry about there being better out there. 

2020dad posted:

Being able to be on one of these super teams would be nice. But most kids I really do think realize they are not first round draft choice material. One thing the Information Age has done is give them comparisons. Back in the day no way we would know how kids in Nebraska were doing.  There are a ton of kids not good enough to make one of these super teams who are in fact good enough to get a nice baseball offer for college.  Pick the team appropriate for you and don't worry about there being better out there. 

Totally agreed.  Information like we share here on the hsbbweb can be invaluable but it also can create anxiety when none should exist.  Go out and play the game and don't worry who is on this super team or that super team.  Playing on one of those can be great if you are one of those kids but it is by no means a requirement for success in high school or college.

Golfman25 posted:

So here's a question.  If the goal is to be seen to get to the next level, why do some coaches not strive for getting everyone good playing time.  I have seen several "tournaments" which there is no bracket and no "winner."  The goal is to play in front of recruiters.  Why wouldn't you mix it up in that situation?  

Maybe some of the players were post sophs and wouldn't gain interest that year. So the post juniors got more playing time. I've seen it before.

2020dad posted:

Being able to be on one of these super teams would be nice. But most kids I really do think realize they are not first round draft choice material. One thing the Information Age has done is give them comparisons. Back in the day no way we would know how kids in Nebraska were doing.  There are a ton of kids not good enough to make one of these super teams who are in fact good enough to get a nice baseball offer for college.  Pick the team appropriate for you and don't worry about there being better out there. 

Most high school and travel baseball players are not studs pursued by pro scouts and the top ranked college baseball programs. Start with an objective assessment of your son's potential. Your son can be a very good player, even all conference and all metro and not be one of the aforementioned studs. It doesn't mean he can't play in a major conference.  Playing for a quality D3 is an accomplishment.

Decide what conferences your son can compete. Make a list of colleges from those conferences that are a baseball, academic, social and cultural fit. Find a travel team that will get him in front of those colleges. That's the right travel team. 

There are some players who are in college with the intent of turning pro. The top studs are. Every kid entering a major conference or Coastal, UCSB, etc. type program believes as an entering freshman he's a pro prospect at some level. Many get a quick wake up call**. But for most players they should be finding the best place at any level to have a quality baseball experience while getting a quality education.

** I went to see a friend's band play in the park last night. The members of the band and his wife are good enough to be known in the music community. Aside from the band they are studio musicians. They have also been in bands with rock stars where the band didn't make it. They've toured and opened for big name bands. His wife sang a song she wrote years ago about an audition for an Idol like tv show. It reminded me of travel baseball and working towards college ball. The song was "Thousands Just Like Me." 

My son just returned from the WWBA 17U. He's been a PO for a well known area travel team the past 2 summers. To be honest I never cared for him in that role because he performs well at the other parts of the game. But it was his decision and because they have a reputable program, we felt good exposure would come with it.  Going to Ft Myers, East Cobb, PG Kernels and Jupiter would not be an option on the other area teams he could of gone with as a multi-position player.  However, as a 5'11 low 80s kid, the colleges at those type events aren't there to watch that type of pitcher. In 7 games last week he was given 3 innings.  At Fort Myers in the fall, same thing.  Not a great value when you add up the travel, hotel, and food costs we accumulated for those trips.  My point is that you really need to assess what the player is going to get out of those programs. If your kid throws 90 it's probably an easy call. For our case,  I don't think they had his best interests in mind last week or was looking to get every single kid exposure. Maybe that's the chance we took going with this team, but it wasn't like we ever thought we could make the playoffs there.