Too much baseball

What do you feel would by a games per week total? whole summer total? With his age/ school year. Its a pivital year for alot of the kids.......

Sounds like a lot of baseball for a 14 yo. Does he play any other sports?

I would suggest that he spend as much time studying as he does playing BB. May sound crazy but,  grades & test scores help just as much as great pop times and a solid stick. If he has both skill and high test scores he will have many more options. 

JMHO

Travel weekends 3-5 games.  Catch maybe 3 of 5 (If we play all 5) .  HS JV would be 2-3 a week and hearing the chatter he would be the  #1 catcher.  Not sure if that means they start him every game or not....Varsity would be more games on the schedule but he wouldnt start or play in as many as he would drop to the #2 or 3 guy....  Once HS ends, Jr Legion has 2 games a week and he would be the starter.  So the schedule when it gets nuts would be 2-3 games a week.  3-5 games a weekend (off roughly every other weekend on average) from april though mid august.

Picked Off posted:

Sounds like a lot of baseball for a 14 yo. Does he play any other sports?

I would suggest that he spend as much time studying as he does playing BB. May sound crazy but,  grades & test scores help just as much as great pop times and a solid stick. If he has both skill and high test scores he will have many more options. 

JMHO

Grades aren't an issue.  He is taking several honors courses this year and was on the honor roll.  He needs some gentle nudging at times though!  We dont have plans to take a SAT test till near the end of the 10th grade year to get an idea of weaknesses.

Im just trying to keep an eye on how much playing time he is doing.  Dont want to burn him out.

First are you sure the rules will allow the kid to play HS and travel at the same time.  Most places do not.  HS is all about HS! 100%. Once HS is over he can go back to travel.  Then it is between travel and legion.  Do your know if the HS does summer?   That could add as well.  If it was me, I would keep it at one team per season.  

Catchers have tendencies to break down. Definitely too much going on, if you play that schedule. 

You have to learn to say no, for the health of your son.

Here in California, a player cannot participate in outside competition in same sport while the HS sport is in season (first game to last).  The rule is there for good reason.  Aside from that and making sure there is at least a month or two break somewhere in the year, it is up to how much THE KID really wants to play and if the parents are OK with it from a cost and time commitment standpoint. 

Personally, I think it is important to continuously introduce a variety of sports and activities, certainly including the age of 14.  Balance is good.  What if he plays baseball year 'round from age 11 to age 16 and then decides he doesn't like it any more?  What other experiences will he have to fall back on?  What will be his identity?

If he makes any level of high school program travel ball should cease until the season is over. From there you decide how much is too much in the summer. Often the decision come down to heat and humidity. 

If your son is a high school freshman he should start playing grade or talent appropriate. At the least he should be playing 15u. 16u would be better. 16u is like high school varsity without the 17/18u studs. The focus (playing 15/16u) should be on becoming a high school player. Not being a 14u stud. 

I had what would have been a very good 15u team play 16u. For my son he was 14u eligible. They began the summer splitting weekends. From mid summer on they expected to be in the final three or four. 

I was in the same situation where my son was playing a lot of baseball. To make a long story short it wasn't elevating his game but it started taking the fun out of the game. We asked him what he wanted to do and to our surprise he wanted to cut back and it was the best thing for my son. 

Same in Ohio....you can't even practice with your travel team once HS season has started

My son pitched varsity as both a freshman and sophomore. First year, he also went to all freshman games and played third. While he only pitched one, maybe two games a week, the time sitting on the bench, cheering for the team, plus practices, plus helping with field maintenance, plus all the other activities wore on him. He loves the game, and his friends, and WANTED to do it all. We didn't realize how exhausting the freshman year was until the next year when he only did varsity. I would let him focus and savor the experience of being part of a team.

Sounds like too many games, teams, and direction your son will be pulled in....  Gotta protect arm and those knees.  My son's travel team has two high level catchers who rotate games to keep them healthy.  Club off season training and development just ended prior to HS tryouts.  Now It's pure HS practice and play 5-6 days per week thru first week of June.  Club tourneys start in June with only a handful of kids playing their respective Legion teams during the week for 4-5 weeks.  Legion isn't that big in Northern IL any longer so I pulled my 2018 from Legion ball last summer.  Thought it was best for him to have 3 solid days off to recoup from previous weekend and prepare for the following weekends 6-7 games.  My son was rewarded with being healthy the entire summer.  I had a happy healthy kid refueled every week.  

Sometimes as parents we have to pull the kid back.

Interesting thread also going on similar.  HS/Travel ball at the same time...

We always played on three teams but those three teams fell in line.  Middle school then summer followed by fall, if we played fall.  He practiced with travel because the MS coach was clueless (coach yelled at him cause on a flyball he stepped back, then came in.  Coach said he was WRONG.  First step was always in.  LOL)

In fall of 2016 we got ask to play for a very good travel club.  We had NO idea if he would even make a HS team (he has the skills but would politics come in.  Would he need to know the right people?)  Had NO knowledge of what would pan out.  So we agreed. Flash forward to spring.  Coaches are enamored with his receiving.  He is getting  a lot of positive vibes from the coaches and the older kids are telling him that he did the best.  I prefer him to stay at JV and play instead of being #2 or 3 on Varsity.  not my call of course.  Now today, he went with a friend to our summer legion program's practice.  Coach came up and asked about whether or not he would play up for the SR Legion.  he hasnt seen my son catch in years.  so he has been talking to someone.  My kid is all stoked and is ready to play for anyone who asks him.   Problem is:  For the first time seasons are overlapping.  HS ball during the week (either JV or Varsity) along with travel games out of state on weekends starting in April.  I think there are three travel weekends we have off during the course of school ball.  But once school ball is over, he will continue to travel to mid august while legion is playing.  Was planning on skipping legion but now hes all over legion cause the coach wants him to play up.  

Its a mess...

Kevin, what is HS/Travel Ball thread?  I don't see that within this website, assuming another blog...I've never heard of it.

Thanks

Its on this site... Hopefully link I copied works..

http://community.hsbaseballweb...=lastReply#lastReply

Folks, Op is in PA, I looked up their dual team rule.  Apparently they allow kids to play on the HS team and another team at the same time...

OUTSIDE PARTICIPATION

If you participate in a non-school athletic program during the PIAA Season for that sport, while enrolled at a school which has a Team in that sport, you will not be eligible for District and Inter-District Championship Contests in that sport unless you are in uniform and available to participate as a member of your school Team for at least 75% of its Regular Season Contests.

We have a one or two conflicts.  And his travel coach is aware of them.  I think since a majority of his teammates are 2021 he is only one of a few players on his travel club that are 2020.  Maybe these conflicts wont occur when almost all the players are HS.  Again.  We will cross that bridge when we get there.  It will be more of an issue IF he would somehow make the Varsity squad.

I appreciate you confirming the PA rule.   It seems like we are committed for his Freshman year to playing both but he will have to make a serious decision next year....

Thanks..

I can never say someone is playing too much, but it does sound like your son is catching too much.

I am glad our hs rules were hs baseball only during hs season. Besides the ball there was  so much social team activities and great friendships made. 

Summer was legion/ travel ball. 

HS ball for my son and our family was so much fun .

HS ball is five days a week plus a few weekend games/ tournaments. How much more ball do you need. Seven daysa week? They need rest and down time  jmo

fanofgame posted:

I am glad our hs rules were hs baseball only during hs season. Besides the ball there was  so much social team activities and great friendships made. 

Summer was legion/ travel ball. 

HS ball for my son and our family was so much fun .

HS ball is five days a week plus a few weekend games/ tournaments. How much more ball do you need. Seven daysa week? They need rest and down time  jmo

 

 

Yes.  I don't see how it is doable. Kid has HS practice 6 days per week.  Early in the season it can be in doors at all times, morning, after school, late night, etc.  When games start it is 4-5 a week, usually till 7-8 depending on travel.  Then doubleheaders on Saturday, which pretty much kills that day.  Sunday is for recovery and maybe working on a few extra things like hitting or ground balls.  The HS expectation is you're there 100%. If you miss, you sit.  I can't imagine any HS coach being ok with his players also playing travel ball during the HS season.  Thus in my area 14u teams that have a freshman or two usually carry extra players so they can play during HS season.  

PGStaff posted:

I can never say someone is playing too much, but it does sound like your son is catching too much.

^^^^^THIS.  Catcher is, in my opinion, the most physically demanding position.  I've seen two 14u and under kids already have to have surgery on their knees, and your boy is still growing.

Can't you just tell the travel coach he will be back after HS baseball? That's what we did and the travel coach is carrying on playing tourneys and prorated the fees for when my son can join.  It stinks hearing about the great games the TB team is having but JV coach said, regardless of state rules, there is zero other baseball when the player is playing JV.  I agree.

Somewhere in the original post I missed that the kid is a frosh playing down for travel.  I hope the OPs son has talked to the HS coach about team expectations.  I can't comment on HS ball in PA but in IL its a 6 (sometimes 7) day a week sport.  Usually 3 games M-Th, a game on Friday and a DH on Saturday.  Normally Sunday is given as a rest day, but occasionally there is some type of team activity on Sunday. Sometimes its BP, sometimes its just getting together for lunch.  

If a similar schedule is run in PA, I don't see how its possible to play both HS and travel.  Unless the travel coach is well aware that HS is a priority and he will not be seeing the Frosh player until after the HS season is over.

OP, one thing to think about...If your son has the skills, and desire, to play at the college level playing down may hurt your recruiting efforts in the next two years.  At some point between now and the summer between your sons Soph and Jr years of HS he should play on an grade appropriate team.  When attending a lot of the recruiting tourneys many of the schools pay attention to the grade they are currently recruiting and pretty much ignore all the other teams, unless there is a stud on one of the teams.  By playing down, you will miss some timely exposure.  Its not impossible to play down and then play in college, but it does complicate the recruiting process some.

Missed the part about playing down.  If a kid is good enough, there' s no reason not to play up a year....especially when 15U and 16U are basically identical....but I'd see no reason for a freshman to play down to 14U....even if he is age eligible.

It's too much.  Drop travel ball during HS season.  If son does anything extra to HS, strength and conditioning. Bands for shoulders, etc.  If travel ball team objects, your son is on the wrong travel team.

IMO

Buckeye 2015 posted:

Missed the part about playing down.  If a kid is good enough, there' s no reason not to play up a year....especially when 15U and 16U are basically identical....but I'd see no reason for a freshman to play down to 14U....even if he is age eligible.

I can add some perspective on that one. I had a 6'0 13u eligible 8th grader...so I asked him to play 14u last year. I have read this site up and down and just KNEW I was making the right choice for his "baseball future"... should have read more about enjoying the moment and not worrying about the future.

Yes, he played 14u, yes he "played with his grade", but he didn't get to play with or against any of his baseball friends that he has made over the last 8 years.  He enjoyed the baseball, he more than kept up with kids that were 1-2 years older than him, but it wasn't the same.  I know that as he grows older he will have to play with people he doesn't know, but for now he's a kid and it's a game.

So, what reason would a 9th grader have to play 14u???  Because that's where his friends play and that's where he would have more fun.

You will wear your catcher son out playing that much, not to mention make him susceptible to arm/elbow problems with all that throwing. The reps he is taking in practice, catching bullpens, games...that will take its toll quickly. Like GOV said, YOU need to be the voice of reason, not him. Sure, it feels great when all of these teams want you to play for them, it makes him feel special. Those coaches have their own agendas, and if they all knew how much he was playing, and were okay with it, I would say their best interest is not your son's health.

I'm not sure if it's a rule in NY but none of the players on our HS team played travel or for any other teams during the season - and the rule/guideline applies to all sports not just baseball (my freshman played JV hoops and coach told them absolutely no outside teams during the season).  

When our 2016 was in 8th grade he was in a similar situation - he was on a travel team that he'd been playing with for several years and was committed to play in the spring for them (thinking he'd be on the school middle school team) when he was moved up to the HS team.  He is a PO now but played infield and pitched back then.  It was too much baseball.  The school coach wanted him to pitch when they needed him to pitch and did not want to worry if he had pitched on Sunday and the travel coach was not thrilled that we didn't want him to pitch on Sundays if he had a game on Mon or Tues for the school.   He should have been resting on Sundays instead of playing double headers after 6 days in a row of HS baseball.  In my opinion you should have him focus on the school team during the HS season - I think you are going to find that it's the HS coach's expectation once the season starts. 

Do your kid a favor, get out of the 5 games a weekend travel ball mindset. Especially as a catcher who is playing HS ball this spring. 

He needs to continue working on his defense and offense. If he can receive well, but doesn't hit, he may not play as much as you'd like during the spring. Playing down on travel this spring will only diminish his hitting and help to exhaust him. This will eventually hurt his grades as well.  

Stick with the HS team and workout to improve his defense, arm velocity and hitting skills on his off days. He'll be stronger when summer ball comes along. 

JMHO

CaCO3Girl posted:

Buckeye 2015 posted:

Missed the part about playing down.  If a kid is good enough, there' s no reason not to play up a year....especially when 15U and 16U are basically identical....but I'd see no reason for a freshman to play down to 14U....even if he is age eligible.

I can add some perspective on that one. I had a 6'0 13u eligible 8th grader...so I asked him to play 14u last year. I have read this site up and down and just KNEW I was making the right choice for his "baseball future"... should have read more about enjoying the moment and not worrying about the future.

Yes, he played 14u, yes he "played with his grade", but he didn't get to play with or against any of his baseball friends that he has made over the last 8 years.  He enjoyed the baseball, he more than kept up with kids that were 1-2 years older than him, but it wasn't the same.  I know that as he grows older he will have to play with people he doesn't know, but for now he's a kid and it's a game.

So, what reason would a 9th grader have to play 14u???  Because that's where his friends play and that's where he would have more fun.

So he has no friends in his grade?   

Yes my kid had baseball friends who where his age, but a grade lower.  But his "real" friends are the kids he hangs with at lunch, goofs off in class with, and plays HS baseball with. 

Kevin A posted:

We have a one or two conflicts.  And his travel coach is aware of them.  I think since a majority of his teammates are 2021 he is only one of a few players on his travel club that are 2020.  Maybe these conflicts wont occur when almost all the players are HS.  Again.  We will cross that bridge when we get there.  It will be more of an issue IF he would somehow make the Varsity squad.

 

I appreciate you confirming the PA rule.   It seems like we are committed for his Freshman year to playing both but he will have to make a serious decision next year....

 

Thanks..

I hope you are HEARING what you are reading over the last ten or twelve posts.  You/ he are NOT committed to play both this year.  If you do the math and determine, as others are emphatically stating, that this is likely too much, there is nothing wrong with telling the travel program that, after reviewing time commitment, son needs to wait to start travel until after HS season.  No good travel coach will have a problem with this.  Sounds like your son can play and is starting to get more attention.  For the tens of thousands of players who fit this description, learning to say no, keep a reasonable schedule and keep the player healthy and energized will become more and more of a challenge in the upcoming years for parent and player.  Now is a good time for lesson #1.

As long as he is up front, honest and respectful with the coaches, as he continues to improve, those same coaches will respect his decision and continue to seek out his services when available.

Golfman25 posted:

CaCO3Girl posted:

Buckeye 2015 posted:

Missed the part about playing down.  If a kid is good enough, there' s no reason not to play up a year....especially when 15U and 16U are basically identical....but I'd see no reason for a freshman to play down to 14U....even if he is age eligible.

I can add some perspective on that one. I had a 6'0 13u eligible 8th grader...so I asked him to play 14u last year. I have read this site up and down and just KNEW I was making the right choice for his "baseball future"... should have read more about enjoying the moment and not worrying about the future.

Yes, he played 14u, yes he "played with his grade", but he didn't get to play with or against any of his baseball friends that he has made over the last 8 years.  He enjoyed the baseball, he more than kept up with kids that were 1-2 years older than him, but it wasn't the same.  I know that as he grows older he will have to play with people he doesn't know, but for now he's a kid and it's a game.

So, what reason would a 9th grader have to play 14u???  Because that's where his friends play and that's where he would have more fun.

So he has no friends in his grade?   

Yes my kid had baseball friends who where his age, but a grade lower.  But his "real" friends are the kids he hangs with at lunch, goofs off in class with, and plays HS baseball with. 

There are 10 Freshman on the JV team.  Three of them are in his 14u boat, he knows them well.  The other 6 he has never hung out with. He's in a 7A school, LOTS of kids. So to answer your question, the only baseball friends he has in his grade are the other 14u kids.

Do the right thing for your kid. Riding him to the point of fatigue will ultimately result in injury (in the worse case scenario) or poor habits from spreading himself too thin. Recovery is extremely important and there is too little time in a HS schedule to recover properly, let alone doubling down (a subject for another time).

Baseball has a LONG process and your going to disappoint some folks in the journey and for a good reason. You can't please everybody and your players health.

Seems like there are three teams?  JV/Varsity, Travel and Legion?

When my son played HS ball (JV/Varsity) practice/games were 6 days a week (M-Saturday) with 2-3 games per week and practice on Saturday.  Even if VHSL allowed an athlete to play on an outside team, there simply wasn't time.   I can't remember if VHSL forbade playing on a non-HS team, but the HS coach definitely frowned upon it.

When my son played Legion, the games were on weekdays and weekends.  It would have been tough to schedule travel ball.  And our legion team season started right after the HS season ended (early-mid June) and played 40-50 games by the end of July.  Again, it would have been near impossible to play Legion and travel without sacrificing one or the other.

I would advise committing to the HS team whether he makes JV or Varsity.  It usually is an experience not to be missed.  Some of my son's best memories are from his HS competitions - travel ball not so much.  Then decide whether the travel team or legion team will be the priority and inform the respective coaches.

When my son was 9-10 years old he played LL and travel.  Fortunately the schedules had no major conflicts and he was able to do both, but it was a grind.   We were at a ball field 6-7 days a week until the LL season and All-Stars ended.  But we had informed both coaches if there was a conflict that the travel team would always take priority.  We made a point to never do it again. 

Throughout his HS career, the typical schedule was HS ball from February to June, Legion from June through July, then a local fall ball league (equivalent to HS) from September through October.  One year there was some travel ball mixed in but it was only a few tournaments during the summer when Legion had a short break.

Good luck!

A simple question, "has your son talked to the HS coach about his plans"?  This may lend some insight into if this is doable or not.

I have two boys playing in college.  Where you are now, we were there a number of years ago. 

If I could do things over, I'd do a lot differently.  My guys played and practiced too much baseball.  Every weekend wouldn't be at some Comfort Inn or driving around for some 11U/12U/13U/14U/15U, et.al. tourney.  We'd find more balance.  My boys would work more and learn to manage their money.  They'd volunteer.  We'd go to church much more as a family.  We'd have dinners together.  The boys would play other sports more than they did.  Academics would be a greater focus.  We'd encourage pursuits of other, non-academic interests more than we did.  How about a non-baseball family vacation?

We did things a bit differently with my younger son when he was about 14.  It improved our mental health and a lot of other things. It didn't change his destination for college baseball at all.

joes87 posted:

Folks, Op is in PA, I looked up their dual team rule.  Apparently they allow kids to play on the HS team and another team at the same time...

OUTSIDE PARTICIPATION

If you participate in a non-school athletic program during the PIAA Season for that sport, while enrolled at a school which has a Team in that sport, you will not be eligible for District and Inter-District Championship Contests in that sport unless you are in uniform and available to participate as a member of your school Team for at least 75% of its Regular Season Contests.

The above not withstanding, your son will need to decide who is his primary team is.  Im sure there will be some practice and/or game conflicts.  Looking at the HS games listed on maxpreps it appears that a lot of HS play on Saturday in PA.   If he decides his HS is not the priority I would not expect to see much playing time in games.

Being a catcher may be a major issue here. The varsity coach may feel he's the backup catcher in case of emergency. Unless the PIAA rules have chanced recently players can bounce back and forth between varsity and JV. In fact, they can play for both teams on the same day. 

One year my son's team starting catcher got injured. The backup became the starter. Had the backup starter become injured there were two possible options to catch an inning while the JV catcher was hustled over from his game. 

Never overlook being eligible for the district playoff roster. Freshman year my son was the JV soccer goalie. He was rostered for districts. His first varsity appearance was the second half of a district playoff. I'm betting the starting goalie that year (who wasn't a senior) has since been told the story of Wally Pipp. 

branson baseball...my sentiments exactly.  We had this exact conversation today! Wish my kids had more experiences, more volunteering, more travel besides a baseball field every weekend. Wish they had fished, camped and lived more.....but...I guess they will after college ball...Sure will put my two cents in when we have grandkids. LOL

CaCO3Girl posted:

Buckeye 2015 posted:

Missed the part about playing down.  If a kid is good enough, there' s no reason not to play up a year....especially when 15U and 16U are basically identical....but I'd see no reason for a freshman to play down to 14U....even if he is age eligible.

I can add some perspective on that one. I had a 6'0 13u eligible 8th grader...so I asked him to play 14u last year. I have read this site up and down and just KNEW I was making the right choice for his "baseball future"... should have read more about enjoying the moment and not worrying about the future.

Yes, he played 14u, yes he "played with his grade", but he didn't get to play with or against any of his baseball friends that he has made over the last 8 years.  He enjoyed the baseball, he more than kept up with kids that were 1-2 years older than him, but it wasn't the same.  I know that as he grows older he will have to play with people he doesn't know, but for now he's a kid and it's a game.

So, what reason would a 9th grader have to play 14u???  Because that's where his friends play and that's where he would have more fun.

I guess to each his own.  I always welcomed son playing up for the competition, and I always felt it was a way to add to his friends.  #broadenhishorizons

Branson Baseball posted:

I have two boys playing in college.  Where you are now, we were there a number of years ago. 

If I could do things over, I'd do a lot differently.  My guys played and practiced too much baseball.  Every weekend wouldn't be at some Comfort Inn or driving around for some 11U/12U/13U/14U/15U, et.al. tourney.  We'd find more balance.  My boys would work more and learn to manage their money.  They'd volunteer.  We'd go to church much more as a family.  We'd have dinners together.  The boys would play other sports more than they did.  Academics would be a greater focus.  We'd encourage pursuits of other, non-academic interests more than we did.  How about a non-baseball family vacation?

We did things a bit differently with my younger son when he was about 14.  It improved our mental health and a lot of other things. It didn't change his destination for college baseball at all.

My wife and I have come to the same conclusion.  We had a lot of fun, boy developed, met great friends along way, etc.; but, I honestly feel like he would have ended up in the same spot, if we (I should say I) would have pulled back a little bit.  All of the high school ball, travel ball, Legion Ball, it can take a toll on your family. 

I'm not saying ditch it all together but find some balance.  It won't hurt him to miss a tournament here or there for your family to do something together.