How old is "travel baseball"? 20 years? That seems too short. 30 years? Something else? I know it's less than 50. Maybe somewhere between 30 and 40? I'm guessing that it's closer to 30. Could it be as low as 25?
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When I was in HS in the mid 90’s the best players in the area played Legion for the summer. There was only LL spring and fall. I believe the best middle school players played PAL. This was the Tampa Bay Area and was loaded with talent.
I think (opinion) travel ball was spawned by the popularity of the LLWS and the league (T&C, Babe Ruth, etc.) all-stars traveling to compete. 20 years ago we called it select and it was better baseball than league ball, it was mostly unmonitored (except for this new team called the Banditos - but even then the brothers where coaching and they'd not been funded by a billionaire - nor been arrested). Select was better baseball and fun, there were a couple elite showcase leagues (some teams were expensive, some were no cost) for D1 college talent at that time, but this started at HS and they didn't play real games (if coaches were there to see a hitter and he walked, they'd stop and redo his at bat so he got something to hit). Some of these teams have monetized since their initial purpose and take all ages now.
We started select at 7, because my son was disappointed the season was over and didn't make all-stars (coach told him he earned it, but being 7 in a 7U-8U league they were only taking 8 year olds for all stars). Mostly played for 2 great teams (although the names changed a few times) between then and high school - traveled all over and had a blast without a thought of anything beyond a chance to play HS ball.
Things and expectations have changed in the last 20 years - I think they always do...
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Perfect Game was founded in 1995. So, that's at least 27 1/2 years. And I am sure PG only started because there was evidence of a need. So, maybe "travel ball" started around 1990 and is 32 years old, give or take?
Maybe the answer is the question...anyone here have a kid playing travel ball before 1995? What year?
In 1976 I was 12 and on our Little League all star team. After we played the other districts for the city championship we played in a couple of other tournaments in nearby towns. Since I'm sure that these tournaments were not sponsored or sanctioned by the Little League administration I guess this was technically travel baseball? When I was 14 our Babe Ruth league took a group of us several states away to a tournament...again nothing to do with actual Babe Ruth I believe.
Cooperstown Dreams Park started in 1996. So, using the same PG reverse engineering logic, that would put travel ball starting AT LEAST around 1990.
I can share that I graduated HS in 1980 and there was nothing like "travel baseball" (as we know it now) back then. AL and PAL...yes.
Francis;
During the 1980's in Northern California American Legion Baseball was the "KING" of Travel Baseball.
Each team played 20 league games and 15 non-League games. All travel was 2-8 hours. NO Cost to the players.
Forty players in a five year period later reached the Major Leagues. Coaches were pro scouts or HS Coaches.
In 1987, I started the Area Code games and each team played exhibition games in Major League uniforms before the August 6 six day event.
Bob
In 1995 at 10 (and pitching) son played Khourey League which allowed a travel team in each city to form their own travel team and travel to other cities in the area. That is my earliest recollection of travel ball in South Florida. Travel fees paid by the organization.
Since our middle schools do not have baseball teams, by that time there was an explosion of independent youth travel teams in South Florida. Some of them and still 100% paid for by rich donors.
In early HS at PG WWBA in Jupiter at Cardinals/Marlins complex, there were less than 150 teams playing and we thought that was too many!
By sons junior year in HS he turned down the Ohio Warharks and joined a South Florida organization affiliated with Connie Mack.
Things have changed so much. USA baseball used to be a simple process with no fees. You got chosen after a weekend then you went to the complex in Houston try out ..... all expenses covered.
For those that have seen the small travel ball business morph into a huge industry, personally I am all for having as many opportunities as possible for players to choose the right programs that gives best instruction and exposure.
The model for travel baseball was ASA girls softball now USA Softball. ASA started town travel team tournaments in 1974. It evolved into pure travel teams rather than town travel teams. The girls model evolved from the adult travel model starting in 1933.
Back in 1992 Cathi Aradi wrote the first edition of a book on getting recruited to college for softball. It’s still considered the bible of softball recruiting. Change “softball” to “baseball” and most of the advice still applies. A few months ago I was looking through the original edition I purchased in 2002 It has been continually updated since. There is a 2022 edition.
@Consultant posted:Francis;
During the 1980's in Northern California American Legion Baseball was the "KING" of Travel Baseball.
Each team played 20 league games and 15 non-League games. All travel was 2-8 hours. NO Cost to the players.
Forty players in a five year period later reached the Major Leagues. Coaches were pro scouts or HS Coaches.
In 1987, I started the Area Code games and each team played exhibition games in Major League uniforms before the August 6 six day event.
Bob
I am originally from NorCal and American Legion was the big thing for the summer if you were a high school player. I remember sophomore year (1994), four sophomore's made our legion team and it was a big thing. American Legion Post 169! Then around that time AAU teams in the area started forming. There were two major AAU teams. Those teams started plucking players from the local legion teams. By my senior year it was a battle between AAU and Legion for kids. That is my first recollection of anything similar to travel baseball.
I'm still thinking that "travel ball" (as we know it today) started in the early 1990s. That seems about right. Possibly 1990...making it 32 years old. If PG started in 1995 and CDP started in 1996, that means people saw, in the mid 90s, that there was a goldmine ready to be harvested. And it probably took about 5 years for that to come into focus.
Not saying there weren't some form of "select" independent teams formed who traveled to play baseball games before 1990. But, I'm guessing those were the exception rather than the common thing.
I thought it originated from the 70s thanks to the Bad News Bears
@K9 posted:In 1976 I was 12 and on our Little League all star team. After we played the other districts for the city championship we played in a couple of other tournaments in nearby towns. Since I'm sure that these tournaments were not sponsored or sanctioned by the Little League administration I guess this was technically travel baseball? When I was 14 our Babe Ruth league took a group of us several states away to a tournament...again nothing to do with actual Babe Ruth I believe.
I graduated HS in 1975 and we did the same wrt city championship and then travel tournaments. We didn't travel that far. I believe maybe within a couple of hours but we would play two or three tournaments. Some of these tournaments were really neat. I recall one that had a PA system and would announce each hitter as they stepped up to the plate. My brother had a newspaper article written about him at one of these towns because he was so small and yet, pitch and won the championship game.
We played in one of the first USSSA state championships in Ga in 1998. Our little league did not send 8U to state so we put together a travel team, all coaches who helped got banned from coaching LL in our town, and went and played in the state championship. Won state and went to World Series, back when there was only 1 per age group, in Slidell La.
Side note: Had a chance to buy the USSSA franchise which would have included Atlanta for North Ga back then. Didn't think it would work so passed on it. One of the dumbest decisions in my life. I also passed on a stupid idea that you could put movies in a box like a coke machine. Hindsight makes you feel real stupid.
A few minutes ago, from Tony Clark about his view of travel ball.
@PitchingFan posted:We played in one of the first USSSA state championships in Ga in 1998. Our little league did not send 8U to state so we put together a travel team, all coaches who helped got banned from coaching LL in our town, and went and played in the state championship. Won state and went to World Series, back when there was only 1 per age group, in Slidell La.
Side note: Had a chance to buy the USSSA franchise which would have included Atlanta for North Ga back then. Didn't think it would work so passed on it. One of the dumbest decisions in my life. I also passed on a stupid idea that you could put movies in a box like a coke machine. Hindsight makes you feel real stupid.
I think Triple Crown killed USSSA in GA didn't it? Which then got killed by Perfect Game and PBR as they moved in. Did anyone manage to make any real money off of it before it was gone? I think you might have dodged a bullet there.
My friend in Ga that owned it for a while made millions and sold it for a killing. There is no part of it that does not make money. Any tournament directors, especially USSSA, PG, PBR etc make money.
@PitchingFan posted:We played in one of the first USSSA state championships in Ga in 1998. Our little league did not send 8U to state so we put together a travel team, all coaches who helped got banned from coaching LL in our town, and went and played in the state championship. Won state and went to World Series, back when there was only 1 per age group, in Slidell La.
Side note: Had a chance to buy the USSSA franchise which would have included Atlanta for North Ga back then. Didn't think it would work so passed on it. One of the dumbest decisions in my life. I also passed on a stupid idea that you could put movies in a box like a coke machine. Hindsight makes you feel real stupid.
Without getting into too much detail, I used to be a professional blogger like 15 years ago. Seriously, I was getting paid to provide content for a RSN. Anyway, around 2007, the RSN suggested that I start using this "micro blogging" platform called Twitter.
"140 characters? That's just stupid. I am not doing that...the thing is a dud."
Talk about a swing and a miss...
@Goosegg posted:A few minutes ago, from Tony Clark about his view of travel ball.
Yet it produced many of his union members...
Francis
they were produced and evaluated by pro scouts who travel 150,000 miles each year to review hundreds of suspects to find one prospects.
Like “gold miners”! Watch the movie “cannot hit the curve”!
Bob
My son played for one of the oldest programs in California, NorCal Baseball, during the summers of 2006 and 2007. Even then they had been around for a long time. Looking at their website, it appears they formed in 1991. Still a fantastic organization...