Travel players switching teams so often

I have found at least 10 different players that I have known since they were younger constantly moved from team to team, high school to high school and college to college.
Most of them were fairly good players.

I don't know what conclusion to draw or if it effects their recruitment to colleges.

Unless there's a dang good reason for changing teams (and these reasons can be/have been debated) I don't believe that you're teaching your son anything good by changing teams each year. By staying with the team you pick a kid is learning about commitment, adversity, interpersonal skills, etc., etc. These are skills, in my opinion, that our society doesn't have enough of. If a kid just gets up and leaves for any foreseeable reason then he might learn to deal with all of his relationships that way.

14U is irrelevant to being recruited for college ball. Sometimes there are legitimate reasons to change teams. However, in some cases it's just a case of a parent teaching their kid a "me first" lesson.

I once had a travel parent approach me whose son really was getting daddyballed. The dad said he'd like to have his son play for me since I'm fair (my son is a very good shortstop, but moved him to second for a better one other than when the ss pitched).

When I got done chuckling, I told the dad if I guaranteed his kid played short, it wouldn't be fair to other players who want to compete for the position. He took his kid to another team. The kid wouldn't have won the shortstop job on our team, or backup when the shortstop pitched. I did want him to play third. But the conversation never got that far. It was shortstop or take a hike. The kid played short for a very mediocre team instead of playing third for very good team. The father is teaching his kid the wrong lesson.

For what it's worth (which isn't much) our son changed teams last year and we haven't regretted a minute of it. While there were some minor issues it all boiled down to playing at a level where the players will see competion that will stretch them and make them grow as a player. We were stuck in a rut playing the same teams over and over and we could see the kids getting complacent. For us, it was time to move on. Do we have plans to move again? Nope--he is getting challenged just fine and has grown tremendously as a player and is turning into a fine young man. Maybe for some of the players you speak of, it is the same issue??

When we talk of players changing teams are we talking of during the same season/year or in the ensuing year?

In our case it was after the fall season as we were getting ready to take time off for the Holidays. And if it is the players I believe the poster is talking about, it looks like the same thing. Changing before spring and after HS for some.

I wouldn't encourage switching teams in the middle of a season unless their were concerns physically for your child and only after speaking with the coaches about concerns.

I don't see what the big deal is. My son played for several different teams when he was playing travel ball. I would get calls all the time to see if he could pitch for a team in a tournament here or there. He of course would alway prioitize his "home" team.

I am still in contact with a number of the managers from these teams and my son is good friends from many kids from our area because of it. Now that he is in HS he knows 2-3 kids from all of the HS teams he will end up playing. Nothing but a positive experience.

BOF-I think what the concern is that the "home" team isn't prioritized and that kids are switching teams looking for something better. Sometimes in the middle of the year so that one weekend they are on "Team A" and the next weekend they are playing against them. I know of several kids that have played for many teams and are often on several rosters at one time. That, to me, doesn't show much of a commitment level and will most likely cause some animosity amongst the players.

Helping out a team, on occasions, when it isn't affecting your "regular" team isn't the problem.

I certainly understand the importance of making a boy complete his commitments. I guess it really depends on the situation. My experience was that most teams had 6 to 8 core players and the balance of the roster fluctuated for various reasons - playing time, overload at a positions, coaching issues, competitiveness (too much - too little) family moving, and PARENTS. This happens from elite teams on down.

I ran a team for two years and had a "free market" approach to it, as I was only out to try to get a group of kids to learn how to play good baseball. So if for whatever reason they thought it would be better for them to be on another team then I would help them get on one. In the end I think it was healthy for kids to experience other teams, coaches and team dynamics, particularly at young ages. Looking back on it now, my personal opinion is that this whole elite team thing at young ages is way overblown. (for another thread)

Frankly, in most cases I think it was the parents who created "commitment" problems not the kids. On the elite teams this tends to be more prevalent since parents are paying more and expect more. They also tend to have more unrealistic expectations for “Johnny” From what I have seen it has always been this way and will always be so, just the nature of people.

I guess another part of it was touched on about being asked to play on another team. If my son were so good that another team asked us to play with them in the Elite 24 or something, no matter how good he is I do not truly think we would do it. Just as I would be perplexed if his coach went and sought a high caliber pitcher to take to a National tourney, I would not be in favor of it.

We are those people... we have changed teams every year but last year and my son is now eleven... soon to be twelve... you can aim those canons over here...

I'll be honest - I've always felt guilty about what lesson I am teaching my son in terms of commitment.

Without a doubt, my son has emerged a significantly better baseball player for these choices. We are from a small community and our experience has been that players from our area that are trying to make moves to the larger centres now - are just way too far behind. The arms are more than 10 mph behind in they can barely make contact at the plate at a Try Out.

My son has trained in many diferent places and much of the time, he is learning from former Major or Minor Leaguers. They know their stuff, their message is consistent, they command respect, and they set high expectations. It is rare to find coaching environments that are well matched to these experiences. In my son's case, he took different things from different environments.

He has made friends in many cities, leagues, and teams - far more than he ever would have had he stayed stagnant.

In comparison, he is also a centre for the local Rep basketball team and is in his second year. His best bud from school is also a second year centre. They were best buds when they started and still are today. Everyone else though is an aquaintance - some less important than baseball guys he played with two years ago in a city an hour away (he sees them a few times a summer). I did mention that he stayed with the same team last year in baseball - no major buddies resulting but, the city was a half hour away. My point is that relationships are developed through a number of shared significant experiences. I dont see that a lot today in youth sports. When I was a kid, I played ball all day in the summers with my buddies from the neighbourhood and many of us played on the same team in the evenings. Our Moms and Dads didnt worry that we would get taken away by some axe murderer. We had a lot of time to share great experiences "unsupervised". Nowaday's kids get driven to a venue to practise or play and get driven home again. I think kids arms get worked by their parents more today than they do by other kids in play. As "play" has become more controlled, there is now far less opportunity to share a lot of experiences together. Society has robbed our kids of what we once took for granted only a generation ago. Thus, I do not see a big loss with staying on the same team in terms of friendship.

I still feel guilt about the commitment part though... I know that it is hard for him to rationalize this. It is easy to give up, to allocate blame for errors, etc. when a situation is perceved as short-term. I want to make sure my son recognizes that victories are not hollow, consequences are shared and to be less fatalistic.

The time is realy short - and on these forum's who will come back in time and keep score of who made the right moves and who made the wrong ones. Maybe my kid or yours will make the Majors only to find that his/her life is miserable because of it. Perhaps in another ten years, I will be able to say that moving a kid around is the best. Then again, I could be speaking to an audience here who have children who can only practise and play indoors year-round for safety's sake and the issue of moving a kid around wont even be relevant. Have fun and do what works for you.

Merry XMAS!

D

I didn't worry about the teams my son played on when he was eleven. He played LL and community based travel. The travel was only for more games, not development. The preteen years are for learning basics and building a passion for the game. As long as a preteen is having fun he won't turn away from the game. 13U on the big field is where the journey starts.

quote:

Originally posted by Eric G:
I noticed in looking at some new makeup of some high end caliber teams in the 2008 U14 group specifically and see a LOT of moving and shaking, ONCE AGAIN...

It just makes it that much sweeter when a team like mine or your son's beats them.

I think it shows commitment to stay on the same team through thick and thin. I mean, of course, there is always exceptions, like unfair treatment, etc. However, I think to stay with the same coach and team, a real family and love for the game developes.

Sometimes it is at no fault of the player. We played on one of the top teams in the country for 5 years. When the age change came and players were able too "drop down" Kids from other teams were brought in. We could have stayed with the team, but our playing time would be very limited. That team was a win for the orginization at all times.
They only have 4 kids that have played longer than 3 years together.

You could put my son on the list of players changing teams yearly.

His reasons however were to be on competitive teams. Several of the teams he moved from went down from AAA to AA or even single because the coach/team didn't want to play at a higher level. Coaching tactics was another reason. When the coaches son plays on the same team he sometimes gets his desired position when there are clearly others who can play it better. I hate the politics of coaches sons. Some are deserving, but most from what I've been witness to are average at best.

My son wants to play at the highest level he can complete at. As parents I believe it is our responsibility (If the talent is there) to ge them with the best coaching to take them to the next level.

My son has always played up one to two years. This will be the first year (14U) that he has been with his age group since he was in T-ball. He's looking forward to it as a lot of these boys will go to the high school he wants to attend.

He has never switched team during a season, He has played for other teams but only with permission from the primary teams coach. Usually for an out of state tournament.

I guess what I'm getting at is there are lots of reasons to switch teams. some are valid some are not but it depends on the situation

IMHO opinion it is always the fathers/parents who move the kids from team to team. What I have seen is that when a kid is "recruited" by another team the father's ego gets involved and he can't say no to the "recruiter". He can always find something he doesn't like with the old team to use as an excuse.

Another thing I've seen is that some dads want Johnny to play on a team where he is the best player. He has to be #1 and #2 has to be far behind. So he moves his son to teams where he knows Johnny will bat 3rd and play his position of choice. Switching teams usually means burning bridges as they go and leaving less and less options for the boy as he gets older. I guess dad doesn't get the point that a player gets better playing with and against better players. Also, to be challenged, fail some, and then succeed is one of the best things that can happen to a player in any sport. Their are many long term lessons to be learned from this including humility and a work ethic.

I was told when I started up our AAU travel program last year that you can expect 25-30% turnover of kids from one year to the next. Obvious reasons cause this - don't likethe coach, too much money, kid isn't into it...

It's the nature of the beast when it comes to travel teams. Sure enough, it's our 2nd year in and we had 4 players opt to not return. Big deal, we replaced them with better players.

Our son asked to switch team because the travel team he no longer had the same work ethics as he did. A new friend here suggested a couple teams and one was the perfect fit. Son is amazed that only one coach can run a practice with the whole team and no one gets out of line or mouthy.

coachbwww - I have sent you a PM on this.

coachbwww,

Yes. The team has 5 of those same players that were the core of the team at that time. Lefty34 was not with the team at 11U. And yes, we ran out of pitching by the 7th game. Out team slept in a hotel for 3-4 days and the team we played was local. I'm sure sleeping in your own bed at night makes a little difference too. The heat took it's toll on everyone that tournament....... It was a good game though. 2-1

I think that once the season starts, you should be committed to completing the season. Quitting a team during the season is not fair to your teammates nor the coaches. If there is an issue or you are thinking about leaving a team, the consider think to do would be to discuss it with your present coaches.

Just my opinion.

We certainly agree once the season starts no switches should be made unless it is a severe situation. However switching teams happen all the time, hopefully for the betterment of the player