What is everyone here paying for lessons these days? I’m in the Northeast and prices have absolutely skyrocketed over the last 3–4 years since my son (8th grade) started travel ball. Around here, 30-minute lessons run about $70 with a 5- or 10-pack, and most travel teams only offer 1-hour sessions, which are anywhere from $100 to $200, in the same 5- or 10-pack. The $4,000–$6,000 summer team fees for 14U seem to be the norm now. Curious what others are seeing in their areas.
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I paid $30 for 30 min lessons once a week. This was about 2 years ago. Many of the lessons I've observed in the neighboring cages, were more along the lines of paying someone to throw BP, with feedback. We figured my spouse and I could do at least that, so my son didn't have that sort of lesson. He didn't take lessons for his swing. I would just video his plate appearances. If we noticed anything off, we'd show him and we'd get to work on making an adjustment. He took lessons specifically to evaluate and adjust his throwing motion (not pitching and he's not a pitcher). He was taught new mobility exercises to do daily and the lesson time was used to make adjustments to his throwing motion so he could continue to practice on his own until the next week.
As for speed training we just signed him up with the local indoor track club for the winter season. Today it's listed as being $100/season. I believe I paid less because it was a couple of years ago and we had a sibling discount. Did he look out of place among the runners?...yes, absolutely. Was it worth it?... Absolutely. When you're talking sprints, proper technique will significantly improve those 60 and home to 1st times. Track coaches are the most knowledgeable in how to get faster.
@theleica $70 seems a lot for 30 minutes. I'm guessing the facility takes a big chunk of that $70 before it hits the instructor's wallet. Do other local facilities charge similar fees?
Our son's lessons were in the neighborhood of $35-$45 for 30 minutes, and these lessons were with really great trainers for pitching and hitting who worked with him on both the physical and mental aspects of the game and gave him "homework" to do before the next lesson.
There are a lot of "instructors" out there, many with very impressive pedigrees, but not all of them are great "teachers." It's also important to work with an instructor your son "clicks" with.
Here's an example, not baseball, but same idea...
Our daughter plays volleyball for one of the top clubs in the country (she is not on the top team) and privates run about $80 - $110 per hour at a facility that is closely, but not exclusively, linked to her club. These sessions are with truly great teachers of the game and include Olympians, national champion players and coaches, and active players who train kids on the side. She's worked with many of them 1-1 and in small groups.
Her two favorite coaches? One was a D2 player and the other played NAIA and is the head coach of a very successful high school program and teaches AP science courses (he always adds some physics and geometry to the lessons - his brother was a gold medalist). Both of these instructors are in high-demand from players at clubs around the area. A few weeks ago my wife spotted the "D2" instructor at one of our daughter's local tournaments. After the match he waved us over and said that he "spot checks" players in actual matches to see if what they are working on is carrying over into the matches and also closely watches how they interact with their teammates and coaches. He had a notebook and a list of "his players" that were there that weekend. His going rate is $100 per hour, and I'm starting to feel like he is underpaid!
$45 for 30min hitting. With a 10 pack it's $42.
I’m sorry, but that’s robbery! Unless they are coming to the games as well and providing feedback. We pay 35-45 per half hour.
$50 for 30 minutes. But $70 for 30 is also pretty standard around the DMV area.
Appreciate all the replies! Definitely agree that quality and fit matter more than just the price. Just to clarify—these rates are pretty much the going rate across the board in my area. We’ve got 7–8 different baseball/travel ball facilities within 30 minutes, and they’re all in the $70+ range for 30-minute lessons and $100+ for an hour. Around 75% of them don’t even offer 30-minute sessions anymore. The only non-travel-team-affiliated facility, our local D-BAT, charges $60 for 30 minutes.
My son does a few pitching lessons each season and I noticed the rates at the place we use jumped almost 20% since the fall. That’s what prompted me to start looking around again and why I was curious to hear what others across the country are paying. Baseball in the Northeast has absolutely skyrocketed in price since 2019 and I’m trying to figure out if this is a regional thing or just the direction the sport is heading overall.
Wow!! That seems REALLY expensive for a travel ball team! Does that include uniforms and all your hotels?
@BB and BB posted:Wow!! That seems REALLY expensive for a travel ball team! Does that include uniforms and all your hotels?
Pretty sure all the teams in my area include uniforms in their fees. Hotels, flights, and other travel expenses are separate if the team plays in PG or other out-of-state tournaments. From what I’ve seen, across the 7–8 travel organizations nearby, just about every 14U team does at least one tournament in a neighboring state, and 3 or 4 of them do at least one event each season that requires flying.
A lot of these programs also charge the same fees regardless of whether it’s the A, B, C, or however many teams in an age group and many include local league play in the schedule as well.
This is why I really appreciate this forum. It helps keep me grounded as a parent because sometimes, it honestly feels pretty ridiculous around here. Also why I was curious to hear how things look in other parts of the country.
We are in the Northeast too. Those prices are spot on. But we have so much travel ball around here that the prices are all over the place. Local league play teams $1500-2000 with a local tournament or two. 4K tournament only team 8+ PG or PBR tournaments with two out of state trips and a showcase or two. These prices are for summer only in 14U and up.