Interesting:
http://perfectgameyouth.com/
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Yea, that is interesting.
We live in Tennessee but will happen to be in Florida at during that week.
Interesting that they reference TravelBallSelect.com. I monitor that site frequently during the February thru July months.
Wonder what it cost to attend the 3 day event in Florida (assuming my 11U gets an invite).
We live in Tennessee but will happen to be in Florida at during that week.
Interesting that they reference TravelBallSelect.com. I monitor that site frequently during the February thru July months.
Wonder what it cost to attend the 3 day event in Florida (assuming my 11U gets an invite).
Does anyone know if the fields will be 60/90 and costs? My son is on the younger side of this group and has only played 50/70.
With all due respect to everything positive Perfect Game showcases represents, this looks like a money grab on overzealous parents of young players
Look at the advertising. They pitch how many PG players were signed by the SEC, ACC, PAC 10 and Big 12. I'm sure none of them were ages 11-14.
They're identifying the top players nationally from ages 11-14. What does this matter? Before anyone brings of the unusual examples like Delmon Young and Robert Stock, aren't they easily detectable at sixteen years old?
There's a tournament for the top 200 prospects. Prospects? LOL! How can you tell him someone is a prospect before puberty. What if the kid is just an early bloomer who's peaking early.
Look at the advertising. They pitch how many PG players were signed by the SEC, ACC, PAC 10 and Big 12. I'm sure none of them were ages 11-14.
They're identifying the top players nationally from ages 11-14. What does this matter? Before anyone brings of the unusual examples like Delmon Young and Robert Stock, aren't they easily detectable at sixteen years old?
There's a tournament for the top 200 prospects. Prospects? LOL! How can you tell him someone is a prospect before puberty. What if the kid is just an early bloomer who's peaking early.
USA baseball is moving toward identifying players earlier for their 14U National team, but I question how closely tied this organization is to the Perfect Game organization we know.
If you look at who is involved, a totally different group of names and their links to Perfect Game goes back to their own website.
I heard Perfect Game was moving toward having showcases toward younger showcases (freshman) but I don't think this is it....as they had their own.
If you look at who is involved, a totally different group of names and their links to Perfect Game goes back to their own website.
I heard Perfect Game was moving toward having showcases toward younger showcases (freshman) but I don't think this is it....as they had their own.
quote:Originally posted by Brian Shanberg:
Does anyone know if the fields will be 60/90 and costs? My son is on the younger side of this group and has only played 50/70.
The Calif location is on the smaller fields.
Perfect Game Youth is not owned by Perfect Game. No one paid Perfect Game anything to support this venture. Perfect Game is no more than a sponsor of Perfect Game Youth. It will probably cost Perfect Game to be involved.
We are involved for a couple reasons. First of all, we have a genuine interest in knowing who the top players are at every level. It gives us a head start on identifying the top players before they enter high school. Even more important is our mission to promote amateur baseball at all levels.
I'm sure there will be naysayers, but USA Baseball and others involved in putting together top youth level teams, should benefit from all of this. I really can't see how this will hurt any young player in America. It is very much an educational thing where young kids can learn and experience a high level. Some of the people involved are among the finest baseball people and instructors that we know.
We noticed that there are others trying to do the same type thing. We wanted to make sure this was done right. Our only stepulation on agreeing to allow our name to be used was that our name and reputation is protected. We never allow our name to be shared by anyone other than those who we respect completely.
And now before anything has even happened, I'm already hearing things like "money grab"! Just how much money does anyone think this will make? There are a lot of very respected baseball people involved with Perfect Game Youth and they are extremely interested in doing things the right way. If they don't, there will no longer be a Perfect Game Youth.
We are involved for a couple reasons. First of all, we have a genuine interest in knowing who the top players are at every level. It gives us a head start on identifying the top players before they enter high school. Even more important is our mission to promote amateur baseball at all levels.
I'm sure there will be naysayers, but USA Baseball and others involved in putting together top youth level teams, should benefit from all of this. I really can't see how this will hurt any young player in America. It is very much an educational thing where young kids can learn and experience a high level. Some of the people involved are among the finest baseball people and instructors that we know.
We noticed that there are others trying to do the same type thing. We wanted to make sure this was done right. Our only stepulation on agreeing to allow our name to be used was that our name and reputation is protected. We never allow our name to be shared by anyone other than those who we respect completely.
And now before anything has even happened, I'm already hearing things like "money grab"! Just how much money does anyone think this will make? There are a lot of very respected baseball people involved with Perfect Game Youth and they are extremely interested in doing things the right way. If they don't, there will no longer be a Perfect Game Youth.
Why does it matter who are the top players in the 11-14 age groups? What percentage do you think would change from age twelve to age fourteen? We've all seen the early bloomers who peak on the smaller fields. I'm asking will all due respect to what PG high school showcases represent.
quote:Why does it matter who are the top players in the 11-14 age groups? What percentage do you think would change from age twelve to age fourteen? We've all seen the early bloomers who peak on the smaller fields.
It might not matter to a lot of people, but it does matter to us. Data is important to us. Knowing how many players who are extremely skilled at 12 years old and still among the best at 17 years old is important to us. Finding out what those percentages really are is important to us.
We already know that an "unknown" percentage of the top 12-13 year olds will become top 17-18 year olds. We have already had 13 year olds like Justin Upton and Delmon Young at our older events. At 13 we started tracking them closely. At 17-18 they both became the first overall pick of their draft class. Of course, we know that many top 12 year olds will not be among the top 18 year olds. Is that a good enough reason to ignore all 12 year olds? Truth is we or no one else knows what the percentages are, but we would like to try and find out.
Here is the release written by a long time believer in all the different age brackets having baseball prospects. Allan Simpson founded Baseball America 27 years ago and was the editor their until coming to work for PG. His Baseball For The Ages articles were extremely interesting and turned out to be accurate for the most part. Below is the last one he did in 2004. Surely people will recognize a few names. I don't think any of this hurt anyone, but notice how much he is promoting baseball at all the levels.
AGE: 12
CODY POLK, lhp/1b, North Richland Hills, Texas
The 5-foot-8, 150-pound Polk was the ace pitcher for the Texas Rattlers, the nation's No. 1-ranked team in his age group in 2002 and 2003. At one point, the Rattlers strung together 57 straight wins. At 18-0, he went unbeaten this year for the second season in a row as the Rattlers went 68-6. While Polk didn't lead his team to a national title as he did in 2003, when he was the MVP of the United States Specialty Sports Association (USSSA) Majors World Series, he pitched all of his team's big games--and beat all the nation's top-ranked teams.
He was invited to join the Texas Steel at one of Cooperstown Dreamspark's weekly 80-team tournaments, and excelled as the Steel won the title. He hit .778-9-21 in 12 games and went 2-for-4 with three RBIs as the Steel beat the top-seeded Miami Mudcats 10-3 in the championship game. His most important pitching performance of the tournament came in the semifinals against California's Say Hey Kids, when he assumed a 4-0 first-inning deficit, promptly struck out the side and went on to register 12 strikeouts in a 12-4 win.
HONORABLE MENTION
RANDAL GRICHUK, ss/rhp, Richmond, Texas
Richmond was one of the rare teams to make consecutive appearances in the Little League World Series, and the 5-foot-7, 126-pound Grichuk was the only player to be on both squads. Though the team finished third at this year's Series, Grichuk went 12-for-19 with a tournament-high four homers and 12 RBIs. He also blanked Mexico 5-0 in the third-place game on three hits, walking none and striking out 11. In the central regionals, where Richmond earned a return visit to Williamsport, Grichuk went 10-for-17 with four homers and 13 RBIs, and tossed three scoreless innings in the championship game.
KYLE KERBY, 1b/lhp, Huntington Beach, Calif.
Kerby made his mark at three prominent tournaments during the summer for the Huntington Beach Vikings, the nation's No. 3-ranked 12-year-old team. He was named the outstanding offensive player at the Pan American Games in Hermosillo, Mexico; he was named to the all-tournament team at the USSSA 12-year-old Elite tournament at Disney World; and he slugged a pair of home runs and was the winning pitcher as the Vikings hung on to win Cooperstown Dreampark's National Tournament of Champions, 14-13. On the season, Kerby hit .518.
PATRICK LEYLAND, c, Pittsburgh
The son of former major league manager Jim Leyland, Patrick always has played a year ahead of his normal class. This year, he was the catcher for Pennsylvania's successful Beaver Valley Red, the nation's top-ranked 13-year-old team. He was named to the all-World team as the Red won the USSSA 13 Elite tournament, the premier 13-year-old tournament in the country. Leyland missed almost a month of the season with a shoulder injury. With him in the lineup, the Reds went 53-1; without him, they went 11-2. Leyland threw out more than 40 percent of basestealers, hit .445 with 25 doubles and struck out just nine times in 270 plate appearances.
DAVID PAIZ, rhp/ss, Austin Texas
A seventh-grade student at Murchison Middle School, Paiz spent most of the 2004 season with the Austin Eagles, who went 55-8 on the year and went undefeated during one of Cooperstown Dreampark's weekly tournaments. The 5-foot-9, 138-pound Paiz missed two games in that tournament because of illness, but hit .797-9-36 in the other 10. He also won three games while working 13 scoreless innings and striking out 24, and won the championship game 12-0 on a one-hitter. The Eagles, ranked No. 1 in the nation at the time by USA Sports Rankings, also won eight of 11 USSSA-sanctioned tournaments. Picked up by the Texas Express for the USSSA 12 Elite tournament at Disney World, Paiz won one game and saved two others as the Express beat 15 of the nation's top 12-year-old teams. He also hit .560 with a home run (on 285-foot fields), and earned tournament MVP honors. Just like at Cooperstown, he played an error-free shortstop. On the year, Paiz went 17-1, 0.42 and hit .542 with 18 home runs.
AGE: 13
ZAK SINCLAIR, rhp/ss, Pittsburgh
The 6-foot-4, 175-pound Sinclair did it all for Pennsylvania's Beaver Valley Red, the nation's top-ranked 13-year-old team. He pitched, he played shortstop, he hit cleanup and he was his team's fastest runner. At the premier event for 13-year-olds, the USSSA Elite World Series, he earned MVP honors as the Red went unbeaten.
Sinclair showcased an 86 mph fastball and 72-74 mph slider, and worked only his team's most important games as the Red amassed a 61-3 record. He went 13-0 with a sub-1.00 ERA and also had four saves while striking out 178 in 82 innings. He threw five no-hitters and handily beat the East Cobb (Ga.) Astros, the national AAU champions and the nation's No.-2 ranked team, 9-1 in April, striking out the first six batters he faced. Sinclair also played a big role with the bat, hitting .608 with 28 home runs.
HONORABLE MENTION
MILES HEAD, c/1b, Fayetteville, Ga.
At 6 feet and 195 pounds, Head is a man among boys at his age level, and he is spending the fall playing fullback and linebacker for Whitewater Middle School. He won't turn 14 until next May. Head began making a name for himself as a 12-year-old, when he spent most of the season playing for the Georgia Mud Dogs and hit 75 home runs, many against a national schedule. He spent most of the spring and summer of 2004 playing for the Knoxville (Tenn.) Yard Dogs, who finished second at both the AAU 13 and USSSA Elite 13 national championships, went 82-13 overall and were ranked third in the country by USA Sports Rankings. He was named all-tournament at the USSSA event, the nation's most prestigious tournament for 13-year-olds. Head also was selected to compete at the CABA World Series for the Bergen Beach Youth Organization, an all-star squad of players from around the country based in Brooklyn. Head hit cleanup for the team, went 12-for-22 with a homer and seven RBIs and was named the tournament MVP as the team swept to the title. On the year, Head hit .627 with 32 home runs and 125 RBIs.
RYAN KLEM, rhp/of, Chandler, Ariz.
The 5-foot-8, 140-pound Klem was our 12-year-old winner a year ago, when his accomplishments included 35 wins and 360 strikeouts in 145 innings, along with 71 home runs over a 12-month period. He wasn't quite as dominant as he progressed to larger fields, often playing against competition two years his elder. He helped the Bergen Beach Youth Organization to the CABA 13 World Series title by pitching a no-hitter against defending champion Brazil in the semifinals, while going 10-for-23 with six RBIs at the plate. With a fastball clocked at 86 mph, he also pitched a complete-game two-hitter at the Pacific Southwest regional against the Honolulu team that went on to win the Babe Ruth 14 World Series. On the year, he gave up just three runs while averaging more than two strikeouts an inning.
AGE: 14
ROBERT STOCK, rhp, Westlake Village, Calif.
Stock has been one of the top players in his age group for three years running. He earned runner-up honors as a 12-year-old before earning his due last year at 13, when his fastball was clocked at 89 mph. He dialed the pitch up to 91 in the spring as a freshman closer at Agoura High, to 92 at an Area Code Games tryout in Sacramento in July and to 93 at the Team USA youth team trials in August. Stock, who turns 15 on Nov. 21, was the youngest player ever selected to USA Baseball's national youth team, which qualified for the 2005 World Youth Championship by finishing second at a qualifying tournament in Mexico in September. Used as a closer, he threw four scoreless innings and also hit a walk-off home run in his only at-bat. "He's unbelievable for his age," said USA Baseball's Jeff Singer, who oversees the youth squad.
Stock also spent part of the summer playing for the West Coast Rebels, who finished fifth at the USSSA Elite 14 World Series after winning the national title in his age group as a 12- and 13-year-old. He worked 18 innings at this year's tournament, allowing one run and two hits while striking out 25.
HONORABLE MENTION
JAKE DAVIES, 1b/lhp, Stockbridge, Ga.
Davies is following in the footsteps of his brother Kyle, a rising star in the Atlanta Braves system. As a 13- and 14-year-old, the older Davies was BA's choice as the top player at his age while starring for East Cobb, the nation's most celebrated youth program. Jake led the East Cobb Astros to the PONY League World Series title this year. He won both his starts at the tournament, including a 14-strikeout performance in the championship game, when he also went 3-for-3 with a homer and two RBIs in a 3-1 win. He homered three times in four tournament games. In a season that started in February and wrapped up in August, the 6-foot-2, 225-pound Davies hit .465-14-105 with 39 doubles and a .789 slugging percentage for a team that went 83-6. He never lost a game as a pitcher while posting a 2.49 ERA and striking out 153 in 101 innings.
ERIC HOSMER, lhp/1b, Plantation, Fla.
The 5-foot-11, 185-pound Hosmer continues to excel in his age group as both a hitter and pitcher. He's expected to pitch regularly and start at first base as a freshman for American Heritage High in the spring after earning all-tournament honors for the South Florida Diamond Kings, who finished third at this summer's USSSA 14 Elite World Series and went 28-1 on the summer. Hosmer went 11-0 and hit over .500 with four home runs. At the USSSA tournament, he got two hits off Stock, the only player to hit safely against the nation's top 14-year-old.
AGE: 15
MICHAEL MAIN, rhp/of, Deltona, Fla.
Main was the runner-up at 14, and his skills continue to be extremely advanced for his age. He already rates as the No. 1 high school player in the Draft Class of 2007. Though only 6-foot-1 and 165 pounds, Main is extremely athletic and has excellent arm strength. His fastball was clocked at 94 mph in September, when he helped lead Team USA's national youth squad to a second-place finish in an America's qualifying tournament for the 2005 World Youth championship.
Main's skills aren't limited to the mound, however. He's been timed in the 60-yard dash in 6.6 seconds and is a superior defender, capable of playing almost any position. As a freshman at DeLand High, he led his team in hitting with a .407 average, while showing the plate discipline expected of a leadoff hitter. Main later excelled at Team USA's Junior Olympics tournament in Jupiter, Fla., for the Southeast Florida Selects and for the DeLand American Legion team that finished third in the Florida state tournament.
HONORABLE MENTION
ERIC GOEDDEL, lhp, Hillsborough, Calif.
One of the best pitching matchups of the summer took place at the World Wood Bat Association 15-year-old summer championship in Marietta, Ga., when NorCal's Goeddel hooked up with Main, who was playing in the tournament for the local East Cobb Aztecs. Through six innings, the score was 0-0 with Goeddel allowing one hit (by Main) and striking out 14. Largely off that performance, Goeddel was named the event's outstanding pitcher. His fastball was clocked at 92 mph. He also earned all-tournament honors for NorCal at the AAU 15-year-old national championship. The 6-foot-1, 145-pound Goeddel already projects as the best pitcher to ever come out of the NorCal program--better even than Chris Gruler, the third overall pick in the 2002 draft. A sophomore at San Jose's Bellarmine Prep, Goeddel didn't pitch on the varsity until the playoffs but quickly developed into the team's best pitcher.
JOSH SMOKER, lhp, Sugar Valley, Ga.
The 6-foot-3, 180-pound Smoker ranks second to Main among prospects in the prep class of 2007. A banner 2004 season began in the spring as a freshman at Calhoun High when he set a school record with 121 strikeouts while going 8-4, 0.91. It continued during the summer as a member of the powerful East Cobb Astros, who won the AAU 16-year-old Junior Olympics for the eighth time in the last nine years. He threw a perfect game in the AAU tournament and won the championship game. He also threw a no-hitter as the Astros won the Continental Amateur Baseball Association 16-year-old World Series for the third straight year. He was named to the all-tournament team in both the AAU and CABA tournaments. As the only 15-year-old on the Astros, he went 11-1, 1.16 with 74 strikeouts in 54 innings.
Finally, please read this written by the same Allan Simpson...
By Allan Simpson
Perfect Game USA is recognized as the industry leader in the showcasing and scouting of the nation’s top high school-age baseball talent. With the establishment of Perfect Game Youth, a new organization for top players aged 11-14, Perfect Game plans to establish a foothold in the youth baseball arena.
Perfect Game Youth (PGY) will launch immediately, with two National Invitation Showcase events scheduled for the Christmas holidays in Orlando, Fla., and Riverside, Calif. The events will be by invitation-only and extended to the top 200 prospects in each of the 11-, 12-, 13- and 14-year-old age groups. The 14-year group is limited to players of that age who not currently enrolled in high school.
From those introductory showcases, PG Youth will host events throughout the country on a year-round basis as it becomes actively involved in the development and promotion of the top prospects in each age group. It will focus on programs and events that emphasize instruction, skills testing, education (for both players and parents) and game competition at a national-caliber level.
PG Youth, however, won’t be limited to just the elite young players in the country. There will also be opportunities available for players of all skill levels, both at the recreation level and travel-ball level of competition, to participate in PG Youth Challenger events throughout the country. Through skills testing and related activities, players will be able to measure their ability against their own standards over the course of time, and also relative to other players of differing skills sets.
“Our primary mission is to identify and develop the top youth players in the country, to better prepare them for and expose them to the various levels of participation that lie ahead,” said PG Youth president Tim Dulin, who has been actively involved in the development and instruction of youth players since 1991. “We’ll provide them with the skills they’ll need to eventually participate in Perfect Game’s showcase events and tournaments, and also at the collegiate level and beyond. But we’ll also provide something of substance for young players of all abilities.”
Dulin is a former University of Memphis All-American and played seven years of professional baseball. Over the last 10 years, Dulin has built a reputation throughout the country as one of the leading developers of youth baseball complexes while being instrumental in the growth of travel baseball competition in all youth age groups. His elite Dulin’s Dodgers youth teams have won six national championships with 288 of his former players receiving college scholarships.
Joining Dulin in playing a major role in the development of Perfect Game Youth are Garth Iorg, a nine-year major league veteran with a lengthy coaching resume that includes being the third-base coach of the Milwaukee Brewers in the 2008 National League playoffs, and David West, a 10-year major league veteran.
Much of the PG Youth’s agenda will involve the interaction of youth players with current and former major league players. Most of the activities and events will take place on location at various baseball training sites and competition centers around the country, but players and parents will also be able to access pertinent information on a new website (www.perfectgameyouth.com) dedicated to PG Youth.
They will also have full access to a parallel site operated by Alabama-based Travel Ball Select, an online newsletter and website (www.travelballselect.com) that is geared towards players aged 9-14. Travel Ball Select has been providing national team rankings and identifying All-America players in the 9-14 age groups since 2002. PG Youth will work closely with Travel Ball Select in identifying the nation’s top youth-level prospects.
Perfect Game’s primary mission for almost two decades has been to scout and identify the top prospects of high school age, and to provide a forum—through both regional and national showcases, and national tournaments—for players to be exposed to scouts and college recruiters, while playing against the best competition possible.
“Perfect Game Youth will give youth players a better foundation as they move on to high school baseball and beyond, and it will give us a head start in identifying the top young players in the country.” said Perfect Game USA president Jerry Ford. “Young players will be given an excellent opportunity to get top-notch instruction from some of the best teachers in the game including Major League Stars like Abert Pujols and others. It will also provide young players a forum to measure their skills, while also getting a greater opportunity to play with and against the top players in the country in their age group. Perfect Game greatly supports PGYouth as it falls in line with our most important goal of promoting the game of baseball at all levels.”
The PG Youth’s own independent website is active, and has also been launched as a sub-site on the Perfect Game, PG Crosschecker and Travel Ball Select websites.
FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, Please Contact
www.perfectgameyouth.com
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES
Key Personnel, Perfect Game Youth
Tim Dulin was a two-time All American at the University of Memphis and member of the 1984 U.S. national team. He was the second pick of the Baltimore Orioles in the 1985 baseball draft and played professionally for seven years as a middle infielder. Over the last 10 years, Dulin has built a reputation nationally as one of the top developers of youth baseball complexes while also being instrumental in the growth of travel baseball competition in youth age groups. He has also coached and trained 20 All-Americans and 46 players who have gone on to professional careers. His elite Dulin’s Dodgers travel teams have won six national championships with 288 of his players receiving college scholarships.
Garth Iorg was drafted in the eighth round in 1973 by the New York Yankees out of a California high school. He was taken in the American League expansion draft by the Toronto Blue Jays in 1977 and began a nine-year career in the major leagues a year later, all with the Toronto Blue Jays. Iorg also managed at every level of the minor leagues for the Blue Jays and served as a major league coach for three years in Toronto. He currently serves as the third-base coach and infield coordinator for the Milwaukee Brewers. Iorg has three sons who have all played Division I baseball and been drafted.
David West was selected in the fourth round of the 1983 draft after graduating from Craigmont High School in Memphis. He made his major league pitching debut in 1998 and went on to spend 10 years in the majors, with stints with the Twins, Phillies and Red Sox. He won a World Series ring with the Twins in 1991 and also pitched for the Phillies in the 1993 World Series.
I think this s a step in the right direction for the group of talented baseball players out there. I know in Wisconsin hockey and volleyball kids are recruited by college very early. (same recruiting rules do not apply). As a matter of fact the University of Wisconsin just recently got a verbal commitment from a 14 year old. It is not a steadfast commitment but one still the same. I know that does not apply but why not give these kids an early advantage. College coach/pro scouts will have so much more data an these class if everything works like it should and to top it off these kids may have a skill level that is more advanced than there predessors. Only time will tell. JMHO 
PG, my free legal advice is, don't let anyone use your name and trade on your hard-earned reputation without their paying you for the privilege.
If you're going to stick your neck out to help them, and they could potentially do damage to your reputation, they ought to have to pay you something for that.
My first thoughts on this were that the big criticism of USA Baseball's 14u team was, how are they going to compare kids from all over the U.S. at that age? Well, here you go.
My fear would be that this will only accelerate the process of better players gravitating to fewer and fewer, talent-concentrated teams. Right now that free agent/funneling process takes place in the 14-16u years. Are we now going to put the local-based travel teams in the 11-14u age ranges to death? Because if those teams all lose the 2-3 studs they depend on to the 11u equivalent of the Bingo Long Traveling All Stars, how do they function as a team at all? And what is left as a development vehicle for the "late bloomer"? (Heck, 14u is not even late to bloom, you're barely finishing up puberty!)
If I had to wager, though, I'd bet this one fails to take off, at least at the younger ages. 11u-12u is just too young for all this stuff, and way too young to pretend you can ID the top kids with consistent accuracy. 13u, still doubtful. 14u, maybe, but no better than maybe.
Right now may not be the best time to be trying to get folks to increase their travel baseball expenditures on youngsters, either. When you get to HS age, you can at least tell yourself you're shooting at a return on your investment via college money. At age 11, it's just an alternative to taking a week off to go play golf somewhere. Which I'm all in favor of, don't get me wrong, it's just that in the nation as a whole all such expenditures are going to decline in the next year, maybe for longer.
If you're going to stick your neck out to help them, and they could potentially do damage to your reputation, they ought to have to pay you something for that.
My first thoughts on this were that the big criticism of USA Baseball's 14u team was, how are they going to compare kids from all over the U.S. at that age? Well, here you go.
My fear would be that this will only accelerate the process of better players gravitating to fewer and fewer, talent-concentrated teams. Right now that free agent/funneling process takes place in the 14-16u years. Are we now going to put the local-based travel teams in the 11-14u age ranges to death? Because if those teams all lose the 2-3 studs they depend on to the 11u equivalent of the Bingo Long Traveling All Stars, how do they function as a team at all? And what is left as a development vehicle for the "late bloomer"? (Heck, 14u is not even late to bloom, you're barely finishing up puberty!)
If I had to wager, though, I'd bet this one fails to take off, at least at the younger ages. 11u-12u is just too young for all this stuff, and way too young to pretend you can ID the top kids with consistent accuracy. 13u, still doubtful. 14u, maybe, but no better than maybe.
Right now may not be the best time to be trying to get folks to increase their travel baseball expenditures on youngsters, either. When you get to HS age, you can at least tell yourself you're shooting at a return on your investment via college money. At age 11, it's just an alternative to taking a week off to go play golf somewhere. Which I'm all in favor of, don't get me wrong, it's just that in the nation as a whole all such expenditures are going to decline in the next year, maybe for longer.
Many sports we already participate in have national rankings including Cross Country, Track, and Swimming. I don't think this is anything new.
I don't plan on getting hung up on the national rankings; regardless of the outcome.
I live in the 'fly-over' state of Tennessee. We don't see too many of these events at the youth level.
We will happen to be in Orlando/Tampa area during this event and my kid loves to play ball at different venues, in different cities.
So, I don't really see any harm in attending.
Having said that, if its so expensive that it harms my wallet, we'll go to Disney instead. (Although, that might hurt my wallet too.)
I don't plan on getting hung up on the national rankings; regardless of the outcome.
I live in the 'fly-over' state of Tennessee. We don't see too many of these events at the youth level.
We will happen to be in Orlando/Tampa area during this event and my kid loves to play ball at different venues, in different cities.
So, I don't really see any harm in attending.
Having said that, if its so expensive that it harms my wallet, we'll go to Disney instead. (Although, that might hurt my wallet too.)
I tried to reply... A real long one, a little while ago.
For the first time ever I got a message that said my post needed to be OKed by an administrator because it contained one or more trigger words. I don't understand that at all!
Do we think that USA Baseball is going to end this program? Is it possible that there could be a way of identifying more players and open up the door for others to participate.
People need to understand that finding the best talent at young ages is going on all over the World. Especially in the Dominican, Venezuala and Cuba. The % of players in the Big Leagues from those countries is astounding. Why should American Youth be protected from this? Especially when there exists International competition.
BTW, the 14U Youth National Team won the gold medal in Puerto Rico. That will be a life long memory for those kids. Even the ones who might not end up being the best 17-18 year old players. However, I'm betting some of those boys will in fact be among the best 17-18 year olds. I don't think it hurt any of those kids and I'm pretty certain it didn't hurt any kid who didn't participate.
We already know that many talented young players get abused every year. The best pitchers often throw way too much and coaching varies from excellent to terrible to dangerous at the youth levels. What is wrong in educating talented young players?
For the first time ever I got a message that said my post needed to be OKed by an administrator because it contained one or more trigger words. I don't understand that at all!
quote:My first thoughts on this were that the big criticism of USA Baseball's 14u team was, how are they going to compare kids from all over the U.S. at that age? Well, here you go.
Do we think that USA Baseball is going to end this program? Is it possible that there could be a way of identifying more players and open up the door for others to participate.
People need to understand that finding the best talent at young ages is going on all over the World. Especially in the Dominican, Venezuala and Cuba. The % of players in the Big Leagues from those countries is astounding. Why should American Youth be protected from this? Especially when there exists International competition.
BTW, the 14U Youth National Team won the gold medal in Puerto Rico. That will be a life long memory for those kids. Even the ones who might not end up being the best 17-18 year old players. However, I'm betting some of those boys will in fact be among the best 17-18 year olds. I don't think it hurt any of those kids and I'm pretty certain it didn't hurt any kid who didn't participate.
We already know that many talented young players get abused every year. The best pitchers often throw way too much and coaching varies from excellent to terrible to dangerous at the youth levels. What is wrong in educating talented young players?
There's a link to travelballselect.
You all remember them, they came here and drove Julie crazy a few years back.
This is not directed towards PG or anything to do with PGY, but I find it so interesting how so many people first start out coming here to find business, I go to other sites and find them talking about the HSBBW being the best for info. TBS had a page where they actually made so much fun of many of us here in their joker page and Julie.
They also posted things that were actually original ideas from Bob as many other sites have done (recruiting timeline).
I have seen many of our thread ideas brought to other sites for discussion, yet the HSBBW depends upon everyday folks for donations while others reap some profit from our site, usually in finding players, without ever giving a dime back (this excludes PG).
You all remember them, they came here and drove Julie crazy a few years back.
This is not directed towards PG or anything to do with PGY, but I find it so interesting how so many people first start out coming here to find business, I go to other sites and find them talking about the HSBBW being the best for info. TBS had a page where they actually made so much fun of many of us here in their joker page and Julie.
They also posted things that were actually original ideas from Bob as many other sites have done (recruiting timeline).I have seen many of our thread ideas brought to other sites for discussion, yet the HSBBW depends upon everyday folks for donations while others reap some profit from our site, usually in finding players, without ever giving a dime back (this excludes PG).
My post also went into moderation, I am pretty sure why and hope that it is posted after review.
quote:Originally posted by TPM:
There's a link to travelballselect.
You all remember them, they came here and drove Julie crazy a few years back.
About a year ago, travelballselect.com was sold to a different group of owners. I find the present ownership to be completely different than the previous folks. In fact, I think it is a very good site, seemingly run by entirely rational people.
TPM,
I replied to your already released post, and mine was moderated.
The site you mentioned was sold about a year ago, and the new owners are rational. The site itself is very good, and bears no resemblance in appearance or tone to the old one. I recommend it to those interested in youth baseball.
I replied to your already released post, and mine was moderated.
The site you mentioned was sold about a year ago, and the new owners are rational. The site itself is very good, and bears no resemblance in appearance or tone to the old one. I recommend it to those interested in youth baseball.
I'm a little leery about posting about the questions above, but thought I would try to clear some things up.
Yes, the original owner or manager of the T B S website made life very difficult for me and some moderators of this site, for a period of about one year (Fall 2005 until sometime in 2006). A few of the fun highlights were threatening me with lawsuits several times, and actually trying to get one of our moderators fired from his real job.
It's a relief to hear that they are under new ownership, but that's what I would expect if they now have any connection with Perfect Game. I make no secret of my admiration for Perfect Game. I speak with PGStaff from time to time and know that he is a very good judge of character, and a very honest and caring person.
I'll confirm and clarify with PGStaff, and perhaps we can remove the T B S website name from the trigger list!
Julie
Yes, the original owner or manager of the T B S website made life very difficult for me and some moderators of this site, for a period of about one year (Fall 2005 until sometime in 2006). A few of the fun highlights were threatening me with lawsuits several times, and actually trying to get one of our moderators fired from his real job.
It's a relief to hear that they are under new ownership, but that's what I would expect if they now have any connection with Perfect Game. I make no secret of my admiration for Perfect Game. I speak with PGStaff from time to time and know that he is a very good judge of character, and a very honest and caring person.
I'll confirm and clarify with PGStaff, and perhaps we can remove the T B S website name from the trigger list!
Julie
Thanks for the update Julie.
That was real scary for a moment!
That was real scary for a moment!
PGSTAFF,
I am glad you came on here and gave some insight to this new showcase. I was wondering how direct a relationship there was to Perfect Game.
My son made it to Jupiter for the 14U USA Baseball tryouts as one of, if not, the youngest attendees. He had just turned 13 a week earlier. I say that only to bring up that he attended, not because he had great odds of making the final team, but for two other reasons, 1) as a reward for making it through two other cuts, and 2) to get exposure to a tryout/showcase event in hopes that the more times he was exposed to that type of environment, the more comfortable he becomes. Not to mention being exposed to the USA Baseball staff.
He has been invited to the PGY Winter showcase. I am not that interested in the rankings, but would like him to have exposure to what it takes to prepare and perform in a showcase. I am not sure we can afford the cost, though.
For anyone considering attending, the question is whether the event is worth the $595 registration fee. That is a lot for this age group. Especially right after Christmas, and the way the economy has been going lately. That is a little more expensive than I had expected. $300 or less would have been more attractive.
I am glad you came on here and gave some insight to this new showcase. I was wondering how direct a relationship there was to Perfect Game.
My son made it to Jupiter for the 14U USA Baseball tryouts as one of, if not, the youngest attendees. He had just turned 13 a week earlier. I say that only to bring up that he attended, not because he had great odds of making the final team, but for two other reasons, 1) as a reward for making it through two other cuts, and 2) to get exposure to a tryout/showcase event in hopes that the more times he was exposed to that type of environment, the more comfortable he becomes. Not to mention being exposed to the USA Baseball staff.
He has been invited to the PGY Winter showcase. I am not that interested in the rankings, but would like him to have exposure to what it takes to prepare and perform in a showcase. I am not sure we can afford the cost, though.
For anyone considering attending, the question is whether the event is worth the $595 registration fee. That is a lot for this age group. Especially right after Christmas, and the way the economy has been going lately. That is a little more expensive than I had expected. $300 or less would have been more attractive.
There is no comparison between the old and new travelballselect.com websites. The previous site in my opinion was not very reputable and the administrators were not ethical in how they promoted themselves . Even though they discussed our team and my son, I told family and friends to ignore it.
The new website is significantly better. I have corresponded several times with their webstaff and have had nothing but positive experiences. I find their discussions of tournament results, team rankings and player identification reasonably accurate and fair. There coverage is growing and expanding rapidly. I respect their efforts to provide prositive recognition of teams and players. They are making good strides in focusing on other teams besides the top 10. They also provide timely game summaries of several major tournaments which is great for following a friends team or just tracking how the competition is doing. I now recommend the site to family and friends.
In my opinion the current site provides a good service to the youth baseball community and should not be blocked by HSBW
The new website is significantly better. I have corresponded several times with their webstaff and have had nothing but positive experiences. I find their discussions of tournament results, team rankings and player identification reasonably accurate and fair. There coverage is growing and expanding rapidly. I respect their efforts to provide prositive recognition of teams and players. They are making good strides in focusing on other teams besides the top 10. They also provide timely game summaries of several major tournaments which is great for following a friends team or just tracking how the competition is doing. I now recommend the site to family and friends.
In my opinion the current site provides a good service to the youth baseball community and should not be blocked by HSBW
i have no dog in this fight,but i'll throw my two bit's in.
my first thought was why? do we really need to know the top 200,will we really know the top 200 or just the top 200 that had the money?
i am very jealous of the fact that pg found a way to help kid's,be around good baseball, and pay some bill's. i'd be pooping in tall cotton if i could do those things.
then i think of the number of 12 year olds that attend cooperstown dreams park every week in the summer. no promise's,just a week of baseball. it isn't cheap, but they still go every week. at least they'll get some feedback/instruction here.
having been a parent that's been through the process from t-ball to pro ball,and the high's and low's in between.i often look back and see what was/is important,and what should be fun. i'm sure we all know 10 kid's that were the best 12 yr olds in our world,only to find other interest's at the high school level. but i have never known or seen a top 200 level player. that would be fun. it would be fun to see how many progress and to what level.
this may trigger great things for those boy's.it may just be another trophy in the bookcase.
as pg pointed out.
it won't hurt them to go,won't hurt them not to.
no harm ,no foul
my first thought was why? do we really need to know the top 200,will we really know the top 200 or just the top 200 that had the money?
i am very jealous of the fact that pg found a way to help kid's,be around good baseball, and pay some bill's. i'd be pooping in tall cotton if i could do those things.
then i think of the number of 12 year olds that attend cooperstown dreams park every week in the summer. no promise's,just a week of baseball. it isn't cheap, but they still go every week. at least they'll get some feedback/instruction here.
having been a parent that's been through the process from t-ball to pro ball,and the high's and low's in between.i often look back and see what was/is important,and what should be fun. i'm sure we all know 10 kid's that were the best 12 yr olds in our world,only to find other interest's at the high school level. but i have never known or seen a top 200 level player. that would be fun. it would be fun to see how many progress and to what level.
this may trigger great things for those boy's.it may just be another trophy in the bookcase.
as pg pointed out.
it won't hurt them to go,won't hurt them not to.
no harm ,no foul
The people running TBS are involved for the right reasons. They do a ton of work for very little (if that much) money.
The people running PGY have a long history of helping youth baseball. They are very involved in educating young players and parents.
We PG support both groups above until they prove they don't deserve that support. This has absolutely nothing to do with PG making money.
It has everything to do with promoting youth baseball.
I think it is wise to study the progress of PGY. I hope people will base their opinions on what happens in the future (the results). So far, there are no results. If it's not done correctly and is not benificial, then PGY will deserve to be blasted.
If it helps educate talented young players and parents and does the other things it advertises, it should gain respect and become successful for those who own it.
Time will tell! I'm hoping it becomes something that people (not all people) respect.
The people running PGY have a long history of helping youth baseball. They are very involved in educating young players and parents.
We PG support both groups above until they prove they don't deserve that support. This has absolutely nothing to do with PG making money.
It has everything to do with promoting youth baseball.
I think it is wise to study the progress of PGY. I hope people will base their opinions on what happens in the future (the results). So far, there are no results. If it's not done correctly and is not benificial, then PGY will deserve to be blasted.
If it helps educate talented young players and parents and does the other things it advertises, it should gain respect and become successful for those who own it.
Time will tell! I'm hoping it becomes something that people (not all people) respect.
I just want to confirm that the trouble with TravelBallSelect.com was with the previous owners. Reports are that the new group of owners is very reputable...of course I expected no less since they earned the approval of Perfect Game.
Now we can even post their website name without the post going to the "trigger words" bucket!
Julie
Now we can even post their website name without the post going to the "trigger words" bucket!
Julie
Looks like the PG Youth partnership beings instruction and evaluation to an age group that is badly in need of some structure. I wish them luck.
We had a very strong LL all-star team. We may have been the second best team in the state to a team that went to Williamsport. We lost to them in sections.quote:I'm sure we all know 10 kid's that were the best 12 yr olds in our world,only to find other interest's at the high school level.
In our area the kids play LL with some travel on the side through age twelve. Of the twelve all-stars on our team, only four are still playing baseball as high school sophs or juniors. The rest were cut along the way or became role players and quit for other sports. All of them were good athletes. They're all going to letter at least one sport in high school. But on the smaller field some outran or outmuscled the size of the field.
There was a 5'0" kid who hit fence scrapping home runs. Another 5'7" kid hit sky bombs. Guess which one is hitting homers in high school and which one is running track. The 5'0" kid is now a 5'11" soph. At fourteen he was only 5'4". He's projected to be about 6'2". The 5'7" kid is a 5'8" junior. For the long run I'll take sound fundamentals over results in the preteen years.
pgstaff
i would like to wish you well with this new idea. i'm not so sure it's filling a need. but if you think it is ,it must be.
you run a first rate/well respected operation,i'm sure this will be as well. i'm sure you don't need it ,but good luck with it.
as i said earlier, i'm just jealous.
i would like to wish you well with this new idea. i'm not so sure it's filling a need. but if you think it is ,it must be.
you run a first rate/well respected operation,i'm sure this will be as well. i'm sure you don't need it ,but good luck with it.
as i said earlier, i'm just jealous.
I'm also a little skeptical about "identifying" players too young, although I'm guessing what PG Staff has in mind is a heavier emphasis on development.
Bum, Jr.'s little league team won the city championship when he was 10. Bum, Jr. was an outfield sub on that team. The "star" of the team was the coach's son, an early bloomer, who is now a D1 freshman LHP in the West Coast Conference. Bum, Jr., a late bloomer, also is a D1 freshman LHP in the Pac-10 Conference. Two players, two distinctly different starting points, but same result.
All the other kids on that team, save my younger boy, have stopped playing baseball. I guess my only reservation is the potential to discourage late bloomers, but talented players--late bloomers or not--never quit.
Bum, Jr.'s little league team won the city championship when he was 10. Bum, Jr. was an outfield sub on that team. The "star" of the team was the coach's son, an early bloomer, who is now a D1 freshman LHP in the West Coast Conference. Bum, Jr., a late bloomer, also is a D1 freshman LHP in the Pac-10 Conference. Two players, two distinctly different starting points, but same result.
All the other kids on that team, save my younger boy, have stopped playing baseball. I guess my only reservation is the potential to discourage late bloomers, but talented players--late bloomers or not--never quit.
quote:you run a first rate/well respected operation,i'm sure this will be as well. i'm sure you don't need it ,but good luck with it.
as i said earlier, i'm just jealous.
I appreciate you saying that. I hope it is a first rate/well respected operation. Once again we (Perfect Game) do not own it and will not run it. We are supporting it with our name. If it looks like our name is getting jeopardized, we will withdraw the name. However, there are some very good people involved and that is what convinced us.
If we thought someone would give us a bad name with young players we wouldn't take the risk because it will hurt us in the future when those kids get to the age we concentrate on. We think and hope this will be an advantage to many young players or we wouldn't allow our name to be used. We are not very smart but we're not stupid enough to jeopardize what we've been doing for the last 16 years.
It might not make sense to everyone, but our main objective is to identify and follow players no matter how old they might be. We understand that many will not progress and they will be passed by other young players. If and when that happens we want to know about it.
There will always be late bloomers and others who will hopefully be discovered later. For us this is simply information gathering. There are players who played in the Little League World Series who have made it to the Big Leagues. It's possible that the history of these players and other top 12 year olds who made it to the top could reveal a lot of important information. It's easy to say it doesn't matter, but we think everything matters. The more we learn the more it might matter. If 100 12 year olds are followed, no matter what happens we are going to learn something. Might be something important, might not.
Testing young kids skills is nothing new. When I was in elementary school there was a government based skills test that we took each year in our Gym classes. I don't really know why this was done, but I imagine it involved gathering information. Obviously the fastest or strongest 12 year olds didn't always end up that way at 18. I know, not the same thing, but why did the government do this?
Anyway, If this is done correctly with honesty and integrity and we see young kids benefiting we will be very happy. Anything less and we will withdraw our name. We have attached our name to several other ventures. Some of them still exist, others don't. We do not always have to profit from everything we attach our name to.
Wish people would do what we are going to do... Watch closely and see what happens... Draw our conclusions based on the results.
For anyone reading this who may have casual doubts.. the one thing I can attest to regarding Perfect Game is honesty. 100%. If your son is a prospect, they'll let you know. If not, they'll let you know that, too! They will tell you the truth.
I took my son at the age of 16 to one of their national events and it opened my eyes to what is out there. So often we see the talent level of our player, or at least the hopes we have for him, through rose-colored glasses. We judge him against players in our own town, often against players who are not prospects to reach the next level, whether college or pro. But a PG event places him shoulder-to-shoulder with kids around the country. Can he compete at that level?
As parents we come away with three choices: Be satisfied with our player's status, be resolved to help our sons get better and reach prospect status through hard work, or quit. There is a choice to be made.
Although my own son was not a "prospect" at age 11 or 13, I believe the process to help him become a prospect started then. As a loving parent, I began to educate myself, on his behalf, to help him maintain a level of competitiveness that allowed him to eventually reach the prospect level. At 13, I realized it was time to put him on a top travel team to help him suceed.
The point is, this process didn't suddenly happen at age 16. The process of him being a "prospect" happened much sooner.
I think what PG Youth will do, at least what I am hoping it will do, is 1) raise the awareness of parents of the need to raise the bar competitively, and 2) give them honest feedback as to where they stand. I'm sure there will be fanatical parents who somehow think a showcase will get them a college scholarshp at age 12, but we've all seen these nutcases at every level and we all know they are a flash in the pan.
The strong remain.
If PG Staff puts his stamp of approval on this thing, I believe it will be for the best. Let's give it the benefit of the doubt. And as far as money-making, godspeed, I hope it makes enough to pay off the national debt. Since when is making money in America wrong?
I took my son at the age of 16 to one of their national events and it opened my eyes to what is out there. So often we see the talent level of our player, or at least the hopes we have for him, through rose-colored glasses. We judge him against players in our own town, often against players who are not prospects to reach the next level, whether college or pro. But a PG event places him shoulder-to-shoulder with kids around the country. Can he compete at that level?
As parents we come away with three choices: Be satisfied with our player's status, be resolved to help our sons get better and reach prospect status through hard work, or quit. There is a choice to be made.
Although my own son was not a "prospect" at age 11 or 13, I believe the process to help him become a prospect started then. As a loving parent, I began to educate myself, on his behalf, to help him maintain a level of competitiveness that allowed him to eventually reach the prospect level. At 13, I realized it was time to put him on a top travel team to help him suceed.
The point is, this process didn't suddenly happen at age 16. The process of him being a "prospect" happened much sooner.
I think what PG Youth will do, at least what I am hoping it will do, is 1) raise the awareness of parents of the need to raise the bar competitively, and 2) give them honest feedback as to where they stand. I'm sure there will be fanatical parents who somehow think a showcase will get them a college scholarshp at age 12, but we've all seen these nutcases at every level and we all know they are a flash in the pan.
The strong remain.
If PG Staff puts his stamp of approval on this thing, I believe it will be for the best. Let's give it the benefit of the doubt. And as far as money-making, godspeed, I hope it makes enough to pay off the national debt. Since when is making money in America wrong?
Thought this was appropriate for this thread:
The market will decide if this is a good idea. There will always be parents who push their kids at a young age so there will be some takers.
Personally I believe kids should be playing multiple sports and enjoying their community at these ages. IMO we already worship sports too much and this just further exaserbates this trend. The cream will always rise to the top so the Delmon Youngs of the world will be found regardless of stuff like this. Who really cares if they are "known" at 12? Sorry but I think this is a really bad idea.
Why don't we start trying to identify the best teachers, Dr's, etc at 14? Seems to me a better objective for parents then chasing some far flung dream at 12.
http://www.gocomics.com/inthebleachers/
The market will decide if this is a good idea. There will always be parents who push their kids at a young age so there will be some takers.
Personally I believe kids should be playing multiple sports and enjoying their community at these ages. IMO we already worship sports too much and this just further exaserbates this trend. The cream will always rise to the top so the Delmon Youngs of the world will be found regardless of stuff like this. Who really cares if they are "known" at 12? Sorry but I think this is a really bad idea.
Why don't we start trying to identify the best teachers, Dr's, etc at 14? Seems to me a better objective for parents then chasing some far flung dream at 12.
http://www.gocomics.com/inthebleachers/
I respect all these opinions whether they are for or against.
Please understand that we have gone over the positives and negatives many times before allowing our name to be associated.
I really don’t care if this program becomes financially successful or not. That doesn’t pertain to us being it’s not our business. I do care that it serves a purpose. The negatives we went over never included things like… Why do we need to know who the best players are? Or how do we know who they really are. Those are questions that we would like to find the answers to.
Please allow me to explain our thought process.
First of all, the most talented young players are in fact identified in places like the Dominican, Venezuela, Cuba, etc. Once they are identified they usually receive much better advice, training/instruction, opportunity, etc.
We have all heard the stories about talented young kids who end up in bad hands and the possibility of reaching their potential is squelched through abuse, forming bad habits, or lack of knowledge. Why not try to identify these young kids who are very talented and educate them and their parents to give them a better chance of reaching their potential. Sure some are going to go to other sports, but some might not if they understand what can be accomplished in baseball.
This is not about eliminating someone’s childhood or giving up other sports and activities. These will still be young kids, only a day or two older than they were when they showed up. I would expect this to be a positive experience for the most talented and the least talented. I would never expect any kid to give up the game because of anything that took place. The people running this thing fully understand that the lesser talented 12 year old could easily end up being an extremely talented 18 year old. The last thing anyone wants is to chase young people away from baseball. It’s all about learning. Players and parents learning. Gathering data that might be helpful to us and others. Finding out what is below average or above average at these ages. Finding out which kids end up being the best and how they went about it. I just don’t believe in things happening by accident all the time.
And yes, It’s possible we might learn that this is all a bad idea. Maybe it will turn out to be a big waste of time and serve no worthwhile purpose at all. If so, I hope no one profits from it.
One thing I do feel fairly certain of… This will not hurt those who attend and it certainly won’t hurt those who do not attend. I’m not telling anyone to do this or not do this. Chances are very good that we will all find out about a talented player sooner or later, anyway.
I will be very interested in hearing what the people who attend the first events have to say about their experience. Good or Bad, either way I’d like to know!
Please understand that we have gone over the positives and negatives many times before allowing our name to be associated.
I really don’t care if this program becomes financially successful or not. That doesn’t pertain to us being it’s not our business. I do care that it serves a purpose. The negatives we went over never included things like… Why do we need to know who the best players are? Or how do we know who they really are. Those are questions that we would like to find the answers to.
Please allow me to explain our thought process.
First of all, the most talented young players are in fact identified in places like the Dominican, Venezuela, Cuba, etc. Once they are identified they usually receive much better advice, training/instruction, opportunity, etc.
We have all heard the stories about talented young kids who end up in bad hands and the possibility of reaching their potential is squelched through abuse, forming bad habits, or lack of knowledge. Why not try to identify these young kids who are very talented and educate them and their parents to give them a better chance of reaching their potential. Sure some are going to go to other sports, but some might not if they understand what can be accomplished in baseball.
This is not about eliminating someone’s childhood or giving up other sports and activities. These will still be young kids, only a day or two older than they were when they showed up. I would expect this to be a positive experience for the most talented and the least talented. I would never expect any kid to give up the game because of anything that took place. The people running this thing fully understand that the lesser talented 12 year old could easily end up being an extremely talented 18 year old. The last thing anyone wants is to chase young people away from baseball. It’s all about learning. Players and parents learning. Gathering data that might be helpful to us and others. Finding out what is below average or above average at these ages. Finding out which kids end up being the best and how they went about it. I just don’t believe in things happening by accident all the time.
And yes, It’s possible we might learn that this is all a bad idea. Maybe it will turn out to be a big waste of time and serve no worthwhile purpose at all. If so, I hope no one profits from it.
One thing I do feel fairly certain of… This will not hurt those who attend and it certainly won’t hurt those who do not attend. I’m not telling anyone to do this or not do this. Chances are very good that we will all find out about a talented player sooner or later, anyway.
I will be very interested in hearing what the people who attend the first events have to say about their experience. Good or Bad, either way I’d like to know!
PG, I would love for my son to be a test case. Waive the fee and have a place for us to stay and I will give you an honest report. Don't worry about transprotation, I can cover that.
Doughnutman,
Guess I haven't been very clear. Other than the name and some support, we have nothing to do with the operation of PGYouth. Our major interest is gathering information. I don't even know what the cost is.
I suggest you contact the people in charge.
Guess I haven't been very clear. Other than the name and some support, we have nothing to do with the operation of PGYouth. Our major interest is gathering information. I don't even know what the cost is.
I suggest you contact the people in charge.
Just joking PG. I think it will be a great source of information. I think everyone in the game of baseball would like to see how players mature and if you can tell at an early age how they will do as adults barring injury. They have been doing that around the world for decades and it hasn't hurt any of their sports.
If kids(and more importantly, parents) are getting proper education on the do's and dont's of baseball, I don't see how it can be a bad thing. It will save a bunch of arms.
Plus, everyone who has a talented kid wants to know how they stack up against other very talented kids. I know that half the fun of large tournaments is seeing what kind of talent is out there. At least that is why my son's team always tries to play in the largest local tournaments. We love to see out of town teams. It is always great to play a team out of Cali instead of banging our heads against the same teams, month after month.
If kids(and more importantly, parents) are getting proper education on the do's and dont's of baseball, I don't see how it can be a bad thing. It will save a bunch of arms.
Plus, everyone who has a talented kid wants to know how they stack up against other very talented kids. I know that half the fun of large tournaments is seeing what kind of talent is out there. At least that is why my son's team always tries to play in the largest local tournaments. We love to see out of town teams. It is always great to play a team out of Cali instead of banging our heads against the same teams, month after month.
Agree or disagree with this trend I think it is following the example set by basketball. It seems to me I've read about 6-8th grade basketball players being tracked at this young age also.
Having an 18 yr old son it is interesting to look back to his younger years and remember the "studs". Many of those kids stopped growing @ 13 and are the same height today. They had an advantage quite often due to size. Many of the most vocal parents (read pushy) seemed to want it more than their kids and the kids are no longer playing baseball.
As we know with teens many things can be unpredictable as their focus can change radically. If they truly love baseball they'll continue to play regardless of not being a top player at a younger age.
Having an 18 yr old son it is interesting to look back to his younger years and remember the "studs". Many of those kids stopped growing @ 13 and are the same height today. They had an advantage quite often due to size. Many of the most vocal parents (read pushy) seemed to want it more than their kids and the kids are no longer playing baseball.
As we know with teens many things can be unpredictable as their focus can change radically. If they truly love baseball they'll continue to play regardless of not being a top player at a younger age.
My question is... The information page says "Invitation only, events are for nationally ranked players" Where and how are players at this age nationally ranked?
quote:"Invitation only, events are for nationally ranked players"
norstar,
You bring up a good point.
Actually it says...
"Perfect Game Youth (PGY) has launched, with two National Invitation Showcase events scheduled for the Christmas holidays in Orlando, Fla., and Riverside, Calif. The events will be by invitation-only and extended to the top 200 prospects in each of the 11-, 12-, 13- and 14-year-old age groups.
As far as I know there is no "ranking" system for these age groups at this time. I know we don't do that. I agree that the word "prospect" is a bit over board at age 11, but not sure it hurts anything.
I guess they will use their contacts to determine who the best 200 players are based mostly on their opinion. I think it will end up being 200 talented young kids, but obviously, it would be impossible to know the top 200 at those age groups. It will be the top 200 that they know about, I guess. The more kids they see the easier it will be to draw those opinions.
If anyone is interested please contact... info@perfectgameyouth.com or call 901-328-0343
Hopefully they can answer many of these questions.
It looks like they have gotten a hold of some listing of selected coaches and are looking for recommendations:
Dear Coach,
I am writing you to give you some new and exciting news about youth baseball. Perfect Game USA has been the industry leader in showcasing baseball players at the high school level for over 10 years. Two out of every three players drafted in last year’s major league draft participated in a Perfect Game USA event. They had 77 players sign in the SEC and 59 in the PAC 10 alone in 2007. College coaches and major league scouts recognize Perfect Game USA as the premier scouting service in the country.
Now, Perfect Game USA is introducing Perfect Game Youth. Perfect Game Youth (PGY) main intent is to help identify, develop, and educate the top players in the country in the 11 to 14 year old age groups to help them reach their baseball goals. PGY will be conducting two national invitational events during the holidays this year. These 2 events are invitation only and will be conducted by current and former major league players and coaches.
The East Division Holiday Showcase will have a guest appearance by Albert Pujols at the South Orange Sports Youth Complex in Kissimmee, FL - Dec 28 -30.
The West Division Holiday Showcase will have a guest appearance by Michael Young in Riverside, California at the Big League Dreams Park in Riverside, CA - Dec 20 -22.
As a respected supporter of youth baseball, PGY would like to have your opinion in recommending the top players in your area as soon as possible, as the events are growing near and the spots in each age group will fill quickly. Again, these two events will feature the top players in the country in each age group. For more info on Perfect Game Youth, go to www.perfectgameyouth.com and click on National Holiday Showcase.
Attached, is a player recommendation form. Please fill out the information, click on “File”, drag down to “Save”, and click again. Then send me an e-mail at info@perfectgameyouth.com with the saved file as an attachment. I look forward to hearing back from you soon.
Dear Coach,
I am writing you to give you some new and exciting news about youth baseball. Perfect Game USA has been the industry leader in showcasing baseball players at the high school level for over 10 years. Two out of every three players drafted in last year’s major league draft participated in a Perfect Game USA event. They had 77 players sign in the SEC and 59 in the PAC 10 alone in 2007. College coaches and major league scouts recognize Perfect Game USA as the premier scouting service in the country.
Now, Perfect Game USA is introducing Perfect Game Youth. Perfect Game Youth (PGY) main intent is to help identify, develop, and educate the top players in the country in the 11 to 14 year old age groups to help them reach their baseball goals. PGY will be conducting two national invitational events during the holidays this year. These 2 events are invitation only and will be conducted by current and former major league players and coaches.
The East Division Holiday Showcase will have a guest appearance by Albert Pujols at the South Orange Sports Youth Complex in Kissimmee, FL - Dec 28 -30.
The West Division Holiday Showcase will have a guest appearance by Michael Young in Riverside, California at the Big League Dreams Park in Riverside, CA - Dec 20 -22.
As a respected supporter of youth baseball, PGY would like to have your opinion in recommending the top players in your area as soon as possible, as the events are growing near and the spots in each age group will fill quickly. Again, these two events will feature the top players in the country in each age group. For more info on Perfect Game Youth, go to www.perfectgameyouth.com and click on National Holiday Showcase.
Attached, is a player recommendation form. Please fill out the information, click on “File”, drag down to “Save”, and click again. Then send me an e-mail at info@perfectgameyouth.com with the saved file as an attachment. I look forward to hearing back from you soon.
quote:Two out of every three players drafted in last year’s major league draft participated in a Perfect Game USA event. They had 77 players sign in the SEC and 59 in the PAC 10 alone in 2007. College coaches and major league scouts recognize Perfect Game USA as the premier scouting service in the country.
Actually those figures are incorrect. Over 78% of last year's draft were players who participated in Perfect Game events. Also the 77 players (SEC) and 59 (Pac 10) is incorrect. Those figures are from just one event (Perfect Game National Showcase)
Those mistakes don't bother me, but there is one sentence that is a little troublesome, even though basically true.
quote:Now, Perfect Game USA is introducing Perfect Game Youth.
While it is true that we are helping to introduce and we do support, it sounds like it is our business.