Is it too soon?

IMO - at the pre - High School level, what you want is the best coaching/training. Competition is going to change so much over the coming years that what you see today won't matter tomorrow. Do your homework and determine where you get the most bang for your bucks. Check your local training facilities or ex-players. They will either have a team or know of the best. Ask around.

I know a kid who never played competitive ball at all that is attending college on a scholarship this year just from playing high school ball (a pitcher who throws mid 90s). I also know a dozen other that waited till their sophomore to junior years to play in the big programs and they are playing college ball this coming year.

If you notice it now, it's not going to change. I'd start looking for a new spring team. You're right, the longer you wait, the harder it will be. I have seen my share of daddy ball teams and it will not change. I have seen teams lose a majority of their players year after year for the same reason every year.

quote:

It feels like a very bad case of daddy ball with this team.

If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, guess what!

No it's not too soon- trust your instincts and find a situation where the coaching staff treats the players in a fair and objective manner. And if that means he doesn't play travel this year, dont sweat it. What's really determinative of how a player develops is how hard they work and how much they actually want to improve. Travel ball is great in the right situation, but run, don't walk away if the daddyball element is already apparent.

Good luck!

No money paid, no uniforms ordered, not in debt at all to any of these coaches. Go now. This does not change. Good luck, Good players will find a good fit.

Even if you had paid money, ordered a uniform, etc., it still would be worth it too quit, in my opinion. You'd be spending more money for travel, etc., and in essence, wasting a year if you stayed with this team with all of the basic fundamental errors. Plus, your son is at a vulnerable age--if you waited, your son could get totally turned off to baseball due to what he experiences on a bad daddy-ball team.

My advice, Is to find a travel team with no dad's coaching. Yeah... There are some very good one's out there, but they are still someones dad. Take that out of the equation, and ALL the kids on the team will be better players because of it....

Daddyball can be very beneficial to your kid. Dad's put in a lot more time and effort than a lot of pro coaches. And they are a lot cheaper. You just have to find a team that the coaches kids don't play the same position as your son. You get all of the benefits. That is what we did. All of the money and equipment from Daddyball and good coaching without the drama. 4 out of our 5 coaches either played college or pro ball. We were very fortunate to find a good team that needed a SS. It is rare, but they are out there.

But if you want to play where the coaches kid plays, good luck, you are going to need it.

Always_late, what exactly is a bad case of daddy ball? I would think that defines the situation more than anything else and the term is very broad.

For many years I coached 16-18U ball at the highest level (teams have won Mickey Mantle WS & competed in Connie Mack WS, etc) but retired from that last year to coach my own son who is now going on 7. I am not at all defensive about this issue but would like to know more about what your (and others) definition of daddyball is.

Myself and another individual coach our 7U team and just happen to be baseball guys that are dads as opposed to dads that are trying to be baseball guys. Much of the advanced level training that we are giving to our team is so far beyond what any other teams in our league are teaching their kids it seems we are playing children of different ages....and we are a first year team. This fall we have to travel to tournaments in other cities around Dallas just to get good competition and while we do not dominate as much in that arena it is obvious that the top teams at this age group have gathered very talented players with several years of experience that are just not being taught proper baseball that will help them excel as they get older. Seems a lot of emphasis with some of these young teams is on collecting brass instead of setting long term goals for the kids.

Having said that....I am very sensitive to the appearance of our two sons not getting preferential treatment. They are held to a higher standard, sit our more, not allowed to miss practices, etc. Whether that is fair to our two kids or not, it is the reality of the situation.

Some have said here to find a team that does not have dads as coaches. I find that advice would not be beneficial to the kids on our team in the long run but am very open to others thoughts.

Oh yea, I forgot one thing. Don't burn your bridges. Youth ball is a small community. You never know who you will play with the next year or season. Most of the baseball people know everybody and the higher up you go the less teams are available. My son has played with many teams when somebody needed a player and we had time off. At 14U he is known by just about everybody in the Phoenix area involved in 14U ball, as are most of the players. As parents, we are known by reputation. It only takes one time to ruin it.

If you are looking for an easy key to tell if it is Daddyball or not, just check on this.

Is the second baseman small?
Is it the coaches son?
Does he bat second?

If your answer to all three is yes...

quote:

Originally posted by Doughnutman:
Oh yea, I forgot one thing. Don't burn your bridges. Youth ball is a small community. You never know who you will play with the next year or season. Most of the baseball people know everybody and the higher up you go the less teams are available. As parents, we are known by reputation. It only takes one time to ruin it.

This is what I meant when I said "No money paid, no uniforms ordered, not in debt at all to any of these coaches. Go now. " Parents are know by some ones impression or their reputation just or not. Our son left a team after we had paid in & done fundraisers. We got nothing back & did not fight about it. We (son included) felt it was still going to be better for son if we left. It was a 'Priceless' season of great experiences that the money left behind could not buy.

Now at a tryout this fall a coach said you seem so nice how could you be baggage. WHAT???? Now I stick by my original comment if you feel its time to go GO Now. Do it with class, some one will still get mad, but, you will know you handled it all correctly.

quote:

Originally posted by RETIRED GM:
Always_late, what exactly is a bad case of daddy ball? I would think that defines the situation more than anything else and the term is very broad.

Many runs scored on defensive infield errors, (ie: normal thrown ball to first, hits glove, pops out, runner safe.) Throwing behind the runner, basic errors. Only coaches sons played infield. I had a couple uneasy feelings regarding communication, now I don't like the feeling at all.



Doughnut man, we know not to burn bridges. The coach seems like a nice guy, and we would definately see this team at tournaments.



**edited to get to the point better**

I dfon't think there are many who can say they haven't encountered Daddy ball.
If the dads son is so bad it should be easy to out play him so what is the problem. Most coaches want to win and if your son is good and the other is bad your son will get his time.
Leaving a team should be thought out. Often dads over value their son's talent and blame it on Daddy ball.
We have encountered it and my son stuck it out and he got more than his fair share of PT.
We saw schediled days switched so the son played on the good weather day and my son pitched in the rain at an important tournament. We didn't let it bother us. Just out play the son and you will get your PT.

Bobblehead, not always. Like I said earlier, I have seen teams that no matter how many errors the son makes, he continues to hold the position. I know that families leaving the team have told the coach that is why they are leaving and next year, the same thing happens with a new set of parents. Sometimes it just doesn't work out.

I would say that when it is obvious that there is a better player for the position and the coach continues to play their own son, that is daddy ball.

That is certainly not to say that every team that has a coach with a son on the team plays daddy ball. We have played on teams where the coach was very much harder on his son than the other players. He received what I thought was a fair amount of play time and in fact was taken out for things that happened that other players on the team would not have been taken out for.

All that being said, if you are witnessing true daddy ball, it may be best to move on before the summer season starts and you wind up with a very frustrating, long season.

[Having said that....I am very sensitive to the appearance of our two sons not getting preferential treatment. They are held to a higher standard, sit our more, not allowed to miss practices, etc. Whether that is fair to our two kids or not, it is the reality of the situation.]

RGM,

This is exactly the standard that Parent/Coaches need to adhere to when coaching their own kids. You've got the right approach!

It's the Coaches that have no shame or remorse about advantaging their own kids to the detriment of other, perhaps more deserving, players that contribute to the daddyball debacle. Fixing it is easy- evaluate players objectively and treat them all fairly. On the other hand, getting some Dad/Coaches to do that is another thing altogether.