Seeking Guidance

Relax, you son is only 11.  Other then grades none of this matters too much at this point.  Please spend sometime reading through this board.  There is a lot of good info.  Your son should be playing where he has the best opportunity for development at this age.  This include coaching that teaches him as well as a significant amount of time on the field.  If that means rec level ball, then play rec level ball.  Being on a super level travel team at this age does not mean a lot.  Its more bragging rights for the kid and family then anything else.  Puberty is the big equalizer.  You will have no idea where you son stands when it comes to playing sports until he and his friends hit puberty.

The majority of college recruiting is done during your sons Jr HS year.  Some kids will get tapped a little earlier but most of them are recruited between their JR and Sr HS years.  You are a ways away from even thinking about that.

whew.... 11... ?  play ball where he can learn and have fun.... the game changes as you get to higher levels... players change,  some choose other sports....  slow down.....  I get it dad, I've been there.... don't forget to set aside time for camping ,  fishing , picking up bugs and worms......

My advice is to slow down and enjoy your 11 year old.  It is much too early to be worrying about the wheres, whys and whens.  I have a HS senior PO who will likely play in college and we didn't stress too much about the recruitment process.  That helps us tremendously with our freshman in HS, who has attended exactly 1 showcase (outside of the "showcases" for USSSA teams and such) and we understand that he should just get his feet wet now but get serious with the recruitment process after his sophomore year.  Unless your son is Bryce Harper at 12, less than a handful of players around the US will get an offer to play college ball between 11-13.  No college coaches give a 2nd look to players who are freshmen or sophomores, unless big time studs and if the latter, they are likely being looked at from the pros.  Take Kershaw.  Just another player as a freshman in HS, pitched well as a sophomore, but really got attention as a junior.  Colleges didn't really focus on him his junior year, because he was too good for college.  One in a million.   At 13 and 14, find the best teams to play on during the summer, whether your son is the best on the team or not.  Find coaches at 15 who can help the recruiting process, but 15 is still the "green" period.  At 16, make sure that team goes nationally, or at least prominent regional showcase tournaments and make sure you son starts contacting his top school HC or RC.  I can't tell you how many coaches have emailed or texted my son to say they saw him at so and so showcase, when we had no idea.  You just never know.  It's work, but it's fun.  Especially if your son is a workhorse and wants to take it to the next level.  Enjoy it all...it goes fast.

BTW, when my 2017 was 12 I probably would have posted something similar and then been irritated with those telling me to relax.  Thing is as you progress through this you will be telling someone else to relax 7 years from now.  Trust me...

My son is also a March birthday. I posted something similar some time ago as my son was wrapping up middle school. Everything above and other information on this board is pretty spot on. Have fun watching your son develop and keep enjoying the game. If he likes flag football, let him do it - my son also started a secondary sport in middle school and now he is the only two sport athlete on his HS baseball team.

As far as travel ball. My son played for local teams until summer prior to 8th grade. Then he transitioned to a "name" travel team. It has worked out fine. As mentioned above, puberty is the equalizer and even into early high school years (9 and 10 grade) you will still see kids that are far more advanced physically than others. Especially 9th grade hold backs that are going on 17 but that's for another thread.

Bottom line, enjoy these years before high school. Work on getting better and if he continues to progress, you will begin the next phase (it comes quick) of perhaps looking at a future in baseball beyond high school. And of course - grades, grades, grades....

Good Luck.

WCP

As guys above said, been there.  Cool your kid has talent...  biggest thing is to keep it fun while slowly introducing more skills - footwork, glovework, throwing mechanics.  The 12 year old year is a blast for the kids - Cooperstown!  

My boys played 3 sports through freshman year of HS, then 2 sports through sophomore year... then they focused on a baseball and strength and skills for baseball because they wanted to play in college.  Oldest son had crazy good summer his rising senior summer, yielding some nice D1 offers.  Yet, he decided he was done with baseball and wanted to have free time in college.  He's currently a freshman in college and very happy with his decision.  Current 2018 is on a different mission.

I'm pleased that I took myself out of the instructing and coaching and focused on being the mental health coach.  This also allowed me to keep my eyes open regarding other baseball programs and paying attention if my kid needs a break or another sport.  Good coaching and instructors are key things to look for:  development, teaching the game, and encouraging the love of the game.

Learn about the other programs in your area.  Where are they playing in the summer, how many kids are being recruited out of their program.  But at this stage that doesn't take a lot of work....

Develop your son as an athlete first...multiple sports .... take vacations, hard to do when you get wrapped in the high end club travel programs.  Also, keep making money, it's expensive....  4 day tournaments plus hotel and travel... all adds up.

Basketball and soccer are great for quick feet and speed....  If you run into anybody that wants your kid to commit all year around, run the other way.  You avoid burnout by keeping your kids balanced with different activities, and you as a dad not getting so consumed by with it all.  

But, in general, think of positioning your son with a good program for the following year or two: 13-14...and you may end up changing programs one or two times by the time he's 16.  Go to the organization you're eyeing and get instruction for hitting or fielding; you'll learn a lot about their program after a few lessons.  But don't take too many lessons at this stage....  if he's got a nice athletic swing and throw stay with what he's got.  He'll be growing and adjustments will have to be made along the way.

Enjoy the ride.... personally, I'd avoid having my kid pitch for more than 1-2 innings.  Limit arm exposure, protect your kid.  He'll learn more by being in the MIF all the time.  

BTW, my son is on a similar path as Gov's.  Having a very good HS career.  Going into his Sr year, All State getting recruiting love from mid level D1 programs.  He has decided to not play in college.  He is sticking to his choice and I have never seen him play more loose on the field, this past summer he had a great time just playing ball for fun.  Thing is I think that decision has taken the pressure off of him which is making him an even better player.  

***proud dad brag time****My kid is on an HS team with a pitcher going to a major pitching factory school down south as well as a SS who can cover from 2nd to 3rd with ease and has committed to a very good baseball school in CA.  Both of them are potential MLB draft picks.  We have had a number of scouts watching our HS team play last year and expect more this year.  HS coach calls my son into his office last week to talk about his off season training.  Goes on to tell my kid that he thinks he can be the best player on the team this year. ****

anothertxguy posted:

...  I see that most posts say don’t worry what travel/select team your son is on until he’s 16, some say 14, which is it?  Gosh I know boys at 11u who have played across the nation.  Yes these are mostly May, June, July babies (oldest as far as USSSA is concerned) who are big and fast.  My son has played with these boys on other teams he was on.  This fall I turned down an invitation from an excellent organization with an excellent team.  I’m regretting it now.  ... I guess I need some reinforcement that my son won’t be left behind.  I’m also having doubts about going to the best coaching over best team.   I need some examples of how you dads and moms got through this.  My son is 11.  Plays 12u ball.  Birthday is March so always one of the youngest.  .... I know and he knows practice and reps are king.  Conditioning and agility are a must.  He puts in the time.  He has great instructors.  He has fun.  Last fall he played flag football for first time.  Coach put him at QB.  Team went 8 and 1, avenged its only loss.  Coach couldn’t believe he never played football before.  Team threw 70% of the time.   If you were developing a progression and developmental plan what would it look like at 12u, 13u, 14u, etc…?  What kind of travel teams to put him on?  He’s in 6^th grade.  Should he play 7^th grade football and going forward?  Should he take AP classes or dual credit classes?  Guys and gals 14 and high school is coming fast.  14u decisions are only about 17 months away.  ...

Welcome to the posting side!  

I guarantee, if you come back in 3yrs, 5yrs, 10 yrs and look back at what you said here, you are going to think... "man, I can't believe I was so wound up with this when he was 11".  We've all been there.

Gov's post (and others) is excellent.  Think of it this way... when your son turns 25 or so and somewhere along the lines, competitive baseball has ended, what will his childhood have been?  Who is he as a person?  What was he able to experience?  Was he able to try lots of different things, go different places, fish, camp, swim, wakeboard, mountain bike, see different cultures, play different sports, be involved in community and other organizations, music, just be a kid?  Or was there a little too much pressure and focus on one thing?  Too much fear that he has to keep up with the baseball Jones'?  Get on the training treadmill as to not lose ground,  etc.?

Your son is 11.  "14u decisions are only .. 17 months away".  Relax.  They don't have to be.  Could be two years or so.  That may go by quickly for adults when we look back but that's an eternity to a kid.

"These are mostly May, June, July babies" - soon, the birth month doesn't really matter much.  They are either players or they aren't.  

"I guess I need some reinforcement that my son won't be left behind".  Well, if you go too heavy with baseball, reps and practice, conditioning and agility, instruction, etc., at 11, I think it's safe to say he will get left behind with all the other things life has to offer an 11 y.o. as listed above.  Let him enjoy all the things a kid should enjoy.  If he keeps pushing for more of one or two things over others, that's great but we still made sure our kids had the opportunity to do and see other things as well - definitely no regrets in that regard.  Each of our three kids eventually latched on to different personal preferences, one still plays college baseball.  But even he has an appetite for so many other things based on his varied experiences as a kid.  If any one thing deserves more serious attention, it would be academics.  But, even then, balance is vital, IMO.

Yes, you could argue that there may be some sport-specific decisions to be made at the 14u level vs the 16u, depending on the individual.  But keep things in perspective, let your son be a kid and be sure to really enjoy each step along the way instead of constantly looking three steps down the road.  If you, as a parent, focus on developing a young boy's all-around character, the rest will take care of itself.

Oh, my gosh I love posts like this because it brings back incredible memories.  My oldest didn't start playing travel baseball until he was 11.  Our lives changed at that moment.  My son always loved the game and took us along for the ride all the way through college.  As young & inexperienced baseball parents, we kept our eyes open to make sure he was developing, having fun, staying healthy and getting the right opportunities.  Although naive, we did pretty good for a bunch of newbies.   We were very fortunate to be part of a local neighborhood team that would go on to win the states multiple times.  When he turned 14 years old things changed and he was being recruited to play on big boy teams.....I really mean it....the guys he played baseball with at that age were full grown with facial hair.  It was eye-opening.  Everybody on this travel team would go on to play D1 baseball.

Your son sounds like he has a lot going for him.  My best advice is to keep encouraging him in the classroom, off the field and on the field.   These work habits and self development are a big deal.   While he is doing that, you can learn all about what he wants to do and how to best position him for college opportunities.   There is so much on this website from all walks of life.  I would encourage your son to dream big as baseball can open all kinds of opportunities you never thought about.  CabbageDad suggested thinking about things when your son turns 25.   Well my oldest son just turned 25, and he still loves the game although he doesn't play it.   He stays in constant touch with college teammates, and he's headed to engineering grad school after getting some work experience.   Baseball taught him how to prepare for just about anything that comes his way.  Our parental style was to let him gravitate to what he wanted to do, and guide him when asked.   It worked for us.

Good luck! 

Wife and I were reminiscing about the journey the other day, as we passed the exit where son played his first travel ball game as a guest when he was 11yo.  It was an hour from our house and we felt like we were travelling 2,000 miles to get there.  One hour!  I couldn't even guess how many hours, miles, or dollars have come and gone since then.

I would say let the boy play with the team that brings him most joy, least expense to your wallet, and where he can get the most PT.  By age 15 or so, look to make the jump to the showcase/exposure level team where he can play with and against the best competition.  

Been through this a few times already and trust me when I say this .....ENJOY the journey. Dont get overly stressed about it now. My 2018 played against kids in an elite travel team and only half are even still playing meaningful baseball. Lots of things happen along the way. Have your son keep playing multiple sports. It will make him better in ALL sports. Narrow down the choices in 7th - 8th grade.

At your sons age it is about development and FUN. If it isn't fun, he will hate playing. So it has to be fun. He has to develop at a better than average rate also. So good coaching is a must. Good practice habits, competition and good grades...This time will fly by and you will wonder what all the stress was about . You will also wish you had those days back!! ENJOY the journey.. 

I really appreciate all the great posts.  You guys are awesome.  I understand baseball isn’t everything, but like some of ya’ll have posted it can consume a well-meaning dad.

 Joes87 your kid must be one heck of a ballplayer.  You should be a proud dad.  I’m proud for you.

CabbageDad,Thanks for the welcome.  Me and the wife give our 2 sons as many opportunities as possible.  Piano lessons for both.  Man that was work.  Their instructor would get upset saying they need to practice more piano than sports.  You know which one won out.  11 year old picked up a guitar and taught himself a handful of songs from watching youtube.  We’ve done Disney Land and Disney World x2.  Zip lined over some gators at Gatorland.  Grand Canyon.  Sorry we did Spring Training too. Mountains in Utah.  Little fishing here and there.  We need more camping for sure.  Stinking video games, sheesh!  Sponge Bob on tv!  Every Avenger/Marvel movie made.  Summer academic and just fun camps.  Possibility we may go to Honduras during spring break with our church.  I promise he and I are just not about baseball.   Thanks for letting me see the big picture again. 

BACDORSLIDER, I love it “play with bugs and worms”.  We have an awesome picture of him and hundreds of ladybugs.  For some reason he loves to chase butterflies.  Ha!   

GOV, HPTX, #1 Asst. Coach, NXT LVL,  thank you for the specific information.  We’ll follow those timelines and encourage other sports.  Next year as a 7^th grader he’s looking forward to playing football in the fall and soccer in the spring. 

Fenwaysouth, I’m glad I could bring back memories for you.  Thank you for sharing yours and your sons.  You’re right life is a lot like baseball.  Looking forward to the opportunities.

WCP with your son having a March birthday we probably understand each other pretty well.  I wish my son could stay 11 forever and at the same time I can’t wait to see if he gets to 5’9” before his 14^th birthday like big brother just did.  Puberty!  It’s coming. 

Thank you all for sharing! : )

Welcome to the site. Support him in whatever sport he wants to play and have fun. I was in your shoes several years ago and miss those days big time. Enjoy it and keep up the hard work, i hope you are considering Cooperstown if you haven't already been....that's what i would be thinking about at 11U.

AnotherTXguy, if it helps, here is an example of what my son did as far as teams.  There are many paths, this is obviously just one example.  The "local travel team" played both AA and AAA in USSSA.

Thanks McLoven!  What an awesome ride!�� Did he play any other sports?

Played basketball through 7th grade, but he made the decision to play only baseball after that.

ANOTHERTXGUY - Relax, take a deep breathe and slow down. 

Take the advise of the previous posters.  Your son is 11.  There is plenty of time.  Enjoy the time with your son whether he is playing baseball, football, s****R, fishing, camping, etc.

At age 10 my son had joined an 11U team that was just forming.  It's stated goal was to prepare the players for HS ball (JV and Varsity).  It was more or less a local travel team.   We entered one tournament a month and played doubleheaders and round robins most intervening weekends.  To that end the team achieved it's goal - nearly every player went on to make their respective HS JV and Varsity team.  During my son's junior year 7 of the 9 positions on the field were former members of the travel team.

At 11 it's good for your son to participate in other sports.  Far too many concentrate on one sport at an early age.  It's too early for that.  IMHO, it's okay to play multiple sports through HS though that can become a challenge.  If he's not having fun, why is he doing it?

At this point in time I would concentrate on letting your son have fun whether it be baseball or whatever.  Yes, MS and HS are right around the corner, but you've still got time.  Not to scare you, but not every 11-12 year old will go on to play HS ball.  Some get discouraged, and/or just find this isn't the game for them.  Also many go through a growth spurt just before HS which can be concerning.  My son went through a phase around 12-13 where he suddenly couldn't buy a hit.  He was right in the middle of his growth spurt - everything was just a little off.  Came out of it as he prepared to tryout for JV (thank goodness).Foxson went on to make the JV and Varsity.  Also played American Legion, travel (through 17U).  In HS he played in the shadow of a player who would eventually be drafted in the 6th round of the MLB draft.  He went the JuCo route making the starting lineup as a freshman (DH) - was recruited as a 1B.  Sophomore year he started at 1B - made 1st team all region and was 2nd in the nation among D2 JuCo's for # of doubles.  Nice scholarship from a D2 university - all conference and 2nd team all region - won conference tournament and team placed 3rd in the regionals.   Unfortunately his grades slipped and the scholarship was not renewed.  Coach still wanted him, but he decided to hang up the cleats.  It had been a good run.   Went back to JuCo, earned his Associates - while there he was a volunteer assistant coach.  He's now at another university finishing his Bachelor's.  It was a great 15 year run.Like Fenway's son, my son still loves the game though he no longer plays.  He's been approached about an assistant coach position (paid) at the JuCo, but he declined since he's still in the midst of his studies.  He may get involved in umpiring when time allows.One last thought (especially as your son goes through HS) - Enjoy the Ride!  It goes by quick.

I echo above the general sentiment from posters who have been through the baseball journey.  Make sure your son is having fun, with friends and gets exposed to other sports, activities and family.

What I will add, is that coaching becomes very important at 12/13/14.  Coaches that teach the fundamentals, how to play and respect the game and opponents and that can instill the value of hard work to reach a goal, as well as how to compete and how to handle adversity.  Those qualities will apply to much more than baseball.

But none of it is worth it if it isn't fun for your son.

Thanks Foxdad and Go44dad.  So much good information. 

Did we all mention that you should relax and take it all in - because time really flies?  I'm pretty sure that was the best advice I received here years ago.

I've got a 2017 and a 10 year old, so I have both perspective on having gone all the way through youth ball - and that of a parent going through it.

I think the biggest takeaway from my older son's experience is that you should focus on the things you can control, and not stress the other things.

Your kid sounds smart, so from another smart kid parent - make sure your kid focuses on academics.  Baseball is great, but realistically educational excellence will be far more valuable in the long run.  Don't get caught in the trap of spending dollars chasing pennies.

My oldest didn't start playing any kind of travel until 13U. Mostly a catcher to that point. By 14U he was the starting pitcher in the bracket games of national tourneys. By 16 he was pitching for a scout team. At 17 he decided to focus on academics and stopped playing. At 18 his friends convinced him to come back for one last season.

It's a strange journey at times.  Your job is to provide guidance and advice, but ultimately you have to let them take the lead.  It's a hard thing to do at times, but you want to make sure they are making decisions because they are doing what makes them happy - not because it makes you happy.  Sometimes that takes a good bit of self awareness.

As you son progresses into high school, he will certainly develop some new interests.  Maybe music or art - or even some other sport.  Nothing wrong with that.  I wonder sometimes how many kids would have been great at something else that they never tried because they were so focused on baseball.

anothertxguy posted:

...Me and the wife give our 2 sons as many opportunities as possible.  Piano lessons for both.  Man that was work.  Their instructor would get upset saying they need to practice more piano than sports.  You know which one won out.  11 year old picked up a guitar and taught himself a handful of songs from watching youtube.  ...

Funny, when ours were young, my wife had a piano brought into the house, determined that the kids would play.  I thought this was a bit odd because her mother did the same to her when she was young and she refused to play.  Each kid spent about five minutes total on the piano over the years.  Two of them did the same as yours and taught themselves guitar.  My wife is now the only one that uses that piano.  Fortunately not very often    

Good resource from Baseball by the Yard. Your mileage may vary, but decent perspective.

http://www.baseballbytheyard.c...yTheYard-version.pdf

AnotherTXGuy, I get why you posted and I get where you are coming from.  The recruitment world IS complicated, it is full of missteps for everyone and no one wants to think back and wonder if they let their kid miss out on something.  My son is in 9th grade, here are my thoughts.

1. Find a 12u team that is going to Cooperstown, there is nothing like it on the planet for a 12 year old boy who loves baseball.

2. Below 14/15u your son should play on the best team for your family.  That may be money wise, location wise, or even that his buddies play on the team.   If you can choose a lower cost team where he is having fun, that would be great.  Around 12u I would suggest putting some of the cost savings into private lessons for hitting and or pitching, which ever he shows an aptitude for.

3. The amount of kids who dropped out of baseball at 14u/15u is staggering.  What the 11u team is now won't even look the same in 4 years.  Your fastest kid could become just average speed.  Your slowest kid could be your fastest.  The kid who use to have amazing reflexes at SS now is in the OF and the kid you hid in LF hoping a ball wouldn't go to him, yeah, he's your SS now.  When the kids undergo puberty and get to the big field everything you ever thought you knew about which teams were good, which kids were good, it all changes.  You don't need anything planned out now..except Cooperstown, I'm serious about that one!

4. Playing up doesn't really matter.  If you want better competition fine, play him up by one year.  However, it has been my experience that some coaches are greedy and they want the very small fast kid to play up so he can be the DR, but they don't really play him in a way that the kid learns.  Don't play up just to sit on a bench.

5. High dollar doesn't mean best choice.  Really look at how the coaches talk to the kids, does your kid respond to a yeller, or a complimentary father figure type coach?  Pick the coach he will listen to and learn from. 

6. Please remember at ALL times, baseball is a game.  If it's no longer fun for your son, or his performance on a baseball field is affecting his life off the field, you guys are doing something wrong.  Take a step back and reevaluate.

7. Take pictures, lots of pictures. 

CaCO3Girl posted:

AnotherTXGuy, I get why you posted and I get where you are coming from.  The recruitment world IS complicated, it is full of missteps for everyone and no one wants to think back and wonder if they let their kid miss out on something.  My son is in 9th grade, here are my thoughts.

1. Find a 12u team that is going to Cooperstown, there is nothing like it on the planet for a 12 year old boy who loves baseball.

2. Below 14/15u your son should play on the best team for your family.  That may be money wise, location wise, or even that his buddies play on the team.   If you can choose a lower cost team where he is having fun, that would be great.  Around 12u I would suggest putting some of the cost savings into private lessons for hitting and or pitching, which ever he shows an aptitude for.

3. The amount of kids who dropped out of baseball at 14u/15u is staggering.  What the 11u team is now won't even look the same in 4 years.  Your fastest kid could become just average speed.  Your slowest kid could be your fastest.  The kid who use to have amazing reflexes at SS now is in the OF and the kid you hid in LF hoping a ball wouldn't go to him, yeah, he's your SS now.  When the kids undergo puberty and get to the big field everything you ever thought you knew about which teams were good, which kids were good, it all changes.  You don't need anything planned out now..except Cooperstown, I'm serious about that one!

4. Playing up doesn't really matter.  If you want better competition fine, play him up by one year.  However, it has been my experience that some coaches are greedy and they want the very small fast kid to play up so he can be the DR, but they don't really play him in a way that the kid learns.  Don't play up just to sit on a bench.

5. High dollar doesn't mean best choice.  Really look at how the coaches talk to the kids, does your kid respond to a yeller, or a complimentary father figure type coach?  Pick the coach he will listen to and learn from. 

6. Please remember at ALL times, baseball is a game.  If it's no longer fun for your son, or his performance on a baseball field is affecting his life off the field, you guys are doing something wrong.  Take a step back and reevaluate.

7. Take pictures, lots of pictures. 

Thanks for the information.  I appreciate your comments. : )

It sounds like he is a solid player. I would have him play with the best team and coaches... as long as he is enjoying it and getting a lot of play time. Keep him challenged.