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18 replies

Sit back and relax

TPMTPMHSBaseballweb Member since 2003
Reading the Jeff Taylor thread, what hit me hard was that JT was beginning his senior season. Eek

How can that be? It seemed like yesterday that he played his first college season? Where did the time go?

Then I realized my player would be entereing his fourth pro season, oh my! Seems like a year ago that he was playing college ball.

As the years fly by you will one day look back and realize that you may have spent too much time worrying about too many things and you really missed some of the more important things you should have been paying more attention to. It happens, it happens to all of us, then one day you look back and wished you had taken more time to take it all in, smell the roses, enjoy the moments, the good games and the bad games.
This is especially true if your son is in HS, stop thinking about how you can't wait until he gets to college or maybe drafted, those years are so special, those years are the last ones you will truely ever be able to most likely attend every game, or share the good moments and the bad ones while he is still with you, after that it's phone calls, or no phone call, games on the internet and a lot of time passed before the next chance you get to see him. No more summers at home. And try to do this for all of your kids, not just your sons. Rergardless of whether they play after HS or not. Trust me, you'll look back one day and understand. I won't get into the do and don't do, that advice is plentiful here if you need it.

So for all the advice I have ever given, I hope that those of you with younger players will try to be less anxious, don't worry, regardless of what happens, if it is meant to be fro him to move on he will, enjoy each level your child is at and try to go with the flow, it will all work out, trust me. The years fly by SO quickly, it's actually scary at times.

When the time comes that your son is ready or has to hang up his cleats, you don't want to look back and wished you had taken more time to enjoy each season, no matter what level.

Most importantly, have fun!
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G gamedayrocks10+ posts
quote:

So for all the advice I have ever given, I hope that those of you with younger players will try to be less anxious, don't worry, regardless of what happens, if it is meant to be fro him to move on he will, enjoy each level your child is at and try to go with the flow, it will all work out, trust me. The years fly by SO quickly, it's actually scary at times.


No truer words were spoken! A person (like me) can spend way too much time looking ahead, worrying about their son's baseball future, and miss out on the enjoyment of the present. I've vowed to NOT be that person (thanks to the advice of my friends at HSBBW.) And might I say, my son is certainly ready to see this change in me.
Last edited by gamedayrocks
YoungGunDadYoungGunDadHSBaseballWeb member since 2005
quote:


Originally posted by TPM:

those years are the last ones you will truely ever be able to most likely attend every game, or share the good moments and the bad ones while he is still with you, after that it's phone calls, or no phone call, games on the internet and a lot of time passed before the next chance you get to see him. No more summers at home.



It's funny how when the phone rings nowawdays how you HOPE that it is son's cell phone# on the caller id. The one thing that I've had to train my own self to do is not inundate him with calls but allow him to call when he wants/needs to talk. Otherwise it's just a lot of yes and no answers which lets you know that he's busy or just chillin with his teammates. lol

The snow this past friday stopped us from seeing him since Christmas and his opening day start on the bump. I cursed at the snow for keeping me from seeing him. How crazy is that! lol Now it will be another 2 weeks before we get the chance to go. Oh well, we've grown accustomed (somewhat) to the long period of times without seeing him. It really is sad to make the statement that it becomes a little easier as each day goes by. But it will never, ever be completely ok.

What really keeps me grounded and focused is being a part of this HSBBW family that we are all a part of dysfunctional at times or not. lol. You folks help keep things real and remind me that I'm not alone in this carousel of watching my son grow up and move on. And at the end of the day, it's gonna be alright!
Last edited by YoungGunDad
ClevelandDadClevelandDadHSBBWeb Administrator
I definitely miss high school baseball as I am now missing college baseball in the worst way.

I think by focusing on the here and now, and by extracting as much fun as there is to be had out of today, then tomorrow will take care of itself beyond your best dreams. Of course take the necessary time to plan and prepare for the future. After that, pay it no more mind. Pour all your energy on savoring this gift that is high school baseball.
C CaBB1,000+ posts
I agree with all these posts. At some point, hopefully sooner than later, us baseball parents have to learn to enjoy the present and not wish away the time.

With son playing in college now it's easy to sit back, relax, and just enjoy each inning. College is already going by so fast and it's great to realize it's all in his hands now. In retrospect, looking back, I worried about way too many things out of our hands. And yet, son didn't worry about those things, he just got it done. And in college he still is continuing to get it done. They grow up so fast and at this point we just become cheerleaders (and pay the bills).

I thank all the more experienced posters here for so many life lessons that I have benefited from. Thank goodness for the hsbbweb.
bsbl247bsbl2471,000+ posts
It's nice to have so many dad's and mom's that have gone through, or are going through the high school baseball adventure with their son. TPM and many other HSBBWeb Old Timer's do a great job giving us newbies their persective on the process. Yes, "sit back and relax" is excellent advice for myself, and many other parents that are supporting our kid(s) on this ride. Everyone wants the best for his or her son, that's why so many people read and participate on HSBBWeb.

I don't know if it's easier or tougher in today's environment for player's in regards to getting to the next level? Ten plus years ago HS players were mainly scouted at their HS games. There were a few top prospect showcase events and summer programs, but to my knowledge, not many?

Now, most of the colleges hold prospect camps. We have Perfectgame, Underarmour, and several other showcases to choose from for our son's. Should your son particpate on a national travel team, local travel team, or just play summer ball with his HS team? Also, the internet is much more prevalent, as BaseballAmerica, Rivals, Maxpreps, Perfectgame, HSBBWeb, and many other sites are visited on the web quite often.

College recruiter's have many more ways to communicate with recruits. Ten years ago, the average 17-18 year old in high school didn't carry a cell phone. They didn't have their own email address. Nobody new what texting was? Today, recruiters can deal directly with the HS player, whether it's the old fashion way via snail mail, a phone call to home, or a call on our son's cell.

So, as I babble on, I'm wondering...Is it easier to sit back and relax today? Or, was it easier before the information age exploded in the past ten years?

My son is a 2011, and I don't know where his baseball potential will take him in the next couple of years? The recruiting stages for him have really just begun. I appreciate the advice given by TPM and I'll do my best to "Sit back and relax" and enjoy this ride! Because I agree, time is certainly flying by!
PU Pop Up Hitter dad1,000+ posts
TPM, surely one of your best posts to date! I am bummed that I missed our son's first college home run. We live too far and had other plans so we could not watch his first 3 weeks of college ball. But no matter what it costs I am going to as many as his games as possible. Every step of his career, from Babe Ruth on, I thought he had peaked, I've been wrong every time. Good job son.
C CaBB1,000+ posts
Bsbl247- my son is an '08 grad and while I do see that in a short period of time recruiting has changed somewhat, it hasn't changed that much in 3 years. The main change I've seen in our area of CA is that more players are going to showcases @ younger ages.

So, at some point you as a parent do have to sit back and relax. It's probably a different time for every kid and you'll know when your son totally takes responsibility for his baseball future. For us it was about jr to sr year of hs. Son was mature enough to determine what he wanted his future in bb to be and set about getting to that destination. We just were along for the ride at that point. We facilitated his journey by paying for a few camps and showcases, travel team, WWBA in East Cobb, etc.

But he's the one that set his course and he's the one that had to do the work to get there. In my mind he's where he's wanted to be, playing in college, but I don't think he has met his own goals yet. But at some point we parents become spectators because the will to succeed has to come from within the player.
igballigball500+ posts
Nice post TPM. As a father of a high school senior I can relate to the theme. Last year was a crazy recruiting year with its share of uncertainty, stress and excitement. This year, with all that settled, its more about appreciation and simple enjoyment. Of course what TPM is saying (with the perspective that comes with time and experience) is that no matter what level you're engaged in that we should try to sit back and enjoy it all.

On the CBS Sunday morning show a few weeks ago they reported on the timeless popularity of Thorton Wilder's Our Town. One theme of the play is to show that change is an integral part of life but nevertheless we should try and appreciate the mundane moments that make up our every day existence because they are so fleeting.

Baseball, because of its pace, lends itself to that level of appreciation. The game also resists our modern temptation to speed everything up to our crazy pace of life and in fact when we change our pace to reflect that of the game, we find ourselves in a better position to sit back, relax and enjoy it.
TPMTPMHSBaseballweb Member since 2003
igball,
You may have gotten the recruiting stuff out of the way, but it's your son's draft year, the ride could be a lot crazier.
Very distracting, try not to concentrate on scouts, but the game. We spent some time on that when we should have been watching the game. Guess what? Son wasn't even drafted after all that went on.

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