When did you know you had a "Player"

Ouch! That's terrible.

Glad that he recovered from such callous, irresponsible behavior.

How old is he now?

I realized it when my son was still very young. Some parents wrote a letter to the Pony League my son played in. They were complaining that my son's pitching was too dangerous and he should play with the older division. He was nick named "stinger".

NVR1...too sad...shouldn't happen to kids at that age...

But boy it sounds like he had a great response to what could have been a very bad situation.

No one likes to be forgotten.

The first time was when he said his first recognized word, "ball". Actually pronunced "bull" at the time but we knew what he meant.
Second time was when he cried his eyes out because he missed the deadline to move from t-ball to kid pitch.

When he was 7 pitching to the dads in a father/son game and we had to move him back cause he was scaring us.

Actually, I'd say for real when he was 3-0, 0.00 ERA in the 15U AAU Nationals and only one runner reached 3rd base the entire tournament against him.

When he was moved up to LL majors at 8, when playing 3 days a week in little league was not enough so he started playing AAU doubleheaders on Sunday...at 10, going 3-0 with 4o something strikouts in 17 innings, on the big field at 13 in the Top Team district tourney.

Like "Stinger" coaches told him not to throw so hard.

When he only got grumpy and complained during the offseason.

Geaux Cajuns!!

NVR1,
Good story, and I can see your son setting there on the picnic table, tears in his eyes, plotting his future! Competition brings out different things in different people. That’s why we play the game. Great story.
My son’s first word….BALL. We would play ball as soon as he was able to set up. I would roll it to him and he would throw it back.
I knew my son was a players when he was 3 years old..
Seriously, I think most parents think their son is good at a very young age. Then we start looking for reasons to make us change our minds, or events that reinforce our beliefs.
Like I said, I knew he was a player when he was three years old…. . . .plastic ball, plastic bat. From about 15 feet I underhand a pitch to him while baby talking to him…”Hit it back to daddy as hard as you can”…. . . .30 seconds later, covered in blood, I had to explain to my wife how a three year old kid with an 0-0 count on him could bust my lip and my nose at the same time with a plastic ball up the middle.

Fungo

Never argue with an idiot. They drag you down to their level, then beat you with experience.

NRV1, Good topic! We all know what happend to your son in the end!!

When my son was 12 in the championship of a out of town tournament. He had pitched a complete game victory in the semi's and had a couple innings eligibility left to pitch. He started the bottom of the seventh, game tied and proceeded to give up an opposite field triple. I called time out and brought the infield in and told them Josh was going to walk the next two batters intentionally to create a force and then get us out of the jam. He then proceeded to strike out the next two hitters and get a fly ball for the third out.

A couple of the other parents afterward told me (I hope jokingly) that if I would have put their son in that situation they would have killed me. I overheard a couple of umpires that had stayed around to watch the game say that it was a stupid move and I couldn't expect a 12 yo to handle that kind of pressure.

We ended up losing the game the next inning because of the "dreaded" California playoff .

After the game I told my son to put the feeling of that one inning in his "memory bank" and remember that he has it in him to get out of any jam.

BTW, 123Kmom "stinger", I like it . Mine was nicknamed "Danger boy".

PASSION - "There are many things in life that will catch your eye, but only a few will catch your heart...pursue those."

When he first lifted and held that baby bottle to his mouth
with his left hand. lol

Couple of years ago up in Cooperstown at 12 y/o national tournament. We made it all the way to the semi-finals out of 48 teams from around the country with a bunch thrown together at the last minute. He made a game saving diving backhand catch coming in from centerfield in the bottom of the last inning with the bases loaded in the quarterfinals to beat a powerhouse team from calif coached by Damon Berryhill. Never thought I could jump so high lol. He also batted about .600 for the tourny.

'07 Crafty Lefties Dad...

Great topic, we've got two times when we knew he was a player.
The first was like many of you probably, when he would "run the bases" after his brothers games, when he was just out of diapers. We knew he loved the game. He never has really liked any "toys" except for sports related things.
This past summer he matured from wanting to play with the best of his friends (who he will go to High School with) to wanting to play at the highest level he could (opposing High School). We let him know it was his choice to tryout for that team and if it came to a bubble choice for the roster it would go to the area kid. He was alright with it. Long story short version he was number 2 batter and started at catcher all year. Needless to say it made me proud to see how he has matured.

When I bought my 2 1/2 year old a t-ball stand for chrismas because I was tired of holding the ball up in my hands for him to hit it (that hurts by the way).

Of course Grandma was naive enough to say "oh let's just sit it here in the living room, he's too young - he cant' really hit it yet".

(funny - after the first whomped into the mirror she changed her mind and said "outside with that thing - now"

I can't really say I knew then either though - to be honest I was in denial - it took me 10 years to admit it wasn't a phase he would outgrow.

Sandman,

Here's the answer to your question about NVR1's son:
Steve Lerud - Catcher'03 Galena High Reno, Nv
Drafted by Pittsburgh

2003 - 3rd round draft selection
http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/mlb/draftday/search.jsp?sc=lastName&sp=L

Bob,
"Doing nothing is still a course of action"

('06): I'm confident my 06 will get there, but where the seed sprouted was in our basement, when he was 7, playing imaginary games that lasted for hours. The pillows were thrown on the floor for bases and the couch became the home run "wall". I knew I had something different when he came up one day, drenched with sweat, looking a bit down. I said "hey sport, what's up?" and got a disgusted "I blew it, gave up a 2 run homer in the bottom on the ninth." I figure a kid that gives up a gopher ball to himself in an imaginary game, and is mad because he lost, will probably be pushing himself along pretty well later on. And he has...

03 was more conventional. Pitched out of a bases loaded, winning run on third, 16U ECTB World Series game, 3-0 count on the batter, with a 3 pitch K, and never looked ruffled. After the inning, I called my wife and told her, verbatim, " If he gets to college ball, I think he just turned the corner".

Good topic, if only to have neat memories brought back up............

At 10 months when he charged the playpen after being beaned by a pacifier. Ended up with a 1 nap suspension.

As a young 11 year old, my son made the local all star travel team. As he was young he was a bit of a bench player and got in a few innings in most games but not all. His team made it to the final game of the district tournament and he entered the game at 2nd base in the 5th inning. They were up by 1 in the bottom of the seventh with runners on first and second and two outs. There was a full count and the batter hits a high pop up to his position which he had to backpedal to reach. Never taking his eyes off the ball, he fell flat on his back and started pushing with his feet on his back to scoot under the ball for the catch!

Needless to say, he was the star of the game, received the game ball and hasn't looked back since.

1st time is hard to say at 9 he came home from baseball camp with the "Mr. Baseball" trophy. The clincher was at 11 yrs old. local tourney, tie game, bottom of the last, 1 out, runner on 1st.
I spy that look in his eye as he grabs his bat.
3 pitches, count 3-0, fouls off next 3, next pitch line drive dead center field about 3 feet over the 10 foot fence. 15 kids tackled him when he stepped on the plate.

This past fall his coach was calling him "Ricky baseball"

But I'll have my doubts again when he gives me a killer time getting out of bed these frigid mornings. 8am workouts the next 12 Sundays starting this weekend.

I can't remember exactly when it started, but at about age 10 I noticed he wasn't scared of hitting against anybody. He didn't care how old they were or how fast they threw, he just had a "bring it on" attitude. The faster the better.

As a 13 yr. old 8th grader at a small 1A school, he made the HS team & got some playing time. He even pitched an inning in a varsity game (1 K, 1 BB, 2 comebackers) and thought it was no big deal, he was just one of the guys. Just cool as a cucumber.

What cemented it was later that year, I took him to the semi-finals of the 5A state play offs to let him look at how the big schools played. He looked at the pitching (including some D-1 commitments) and said "There're not any different that what I see every day. What's the big deal?"

When did you know? What a great question. You guys are being very creative! Great topics that make you think.

As for my baseball playing son, when did we know?

* Maybe it was sometime around the time that the picture below was taken
* Possibly when he was starting as a 9 year old against the 12 year olds and not knowing he was a little ****
* Or could it have been when we put together our first travel team and his comment was "this is going to be so cool" From that point on he was a part of 7 state championship teams
* Of course there was the day that he came home and proudly announced that he had made the high school team ... only days later did we find out that he had made the varsity team! -- when I asked why he didn't tell us that part his response was .... "I did not try out to make the jv team"
* Maybe it was the fact that he got up every morning, all thru high school, at 6:00am to hit, on his own, in the garage
* And there was his first year of college ball when he competed against 4 other middle infielders (all ex all-state players) and earned a starting position
* And this past year when he made the jump to NCAA DI and old Dad wondered how he would do. All he did was lead the team in every offensive category and be selected the Southern Conference "all conference" shortstop
* And now as he waits to start his senior season of college baseball old Dad wonders if this will be his last time playing organized baseball. Will he be drafted and given another opportunity to continue his dream? I hope that he will be given a chance to prove that he can be a player at that level, for his sake.

My point in this writting is that "knowing your son is a player" comes in steps, levels and increments. At each new level you have questions. Some kids succeed, some do not.

Only the most optimistic or foolish are sure that their child will be a player at each new level.



Bob,
"Doing nothing is still a course of action"

Bob.......what a great picture. What great memories too. I knew when my kid got hooked on the game.......at 3 years of age,he would scream bloody murder if I headed out the door to a game and did not take him with me. My other children never did that.

Bob...absolutely the best picture on this site!

Brings back memories...

When Brandon was around 3 or 4...he'd convince his grandma to play catch with him in the yard. And of course she would...and he'd throw and she'd chase...fortunately his aim has improved.

Even now...he's counting down till his last senior days on that high school field...and can't wait to step back onto that mound.

What a fun thread.

My son had a real leather Wilson baseball glove in his bassinet in the hospital. I think the smell got deeply embedded in his brain ... and his heart.

He's an 04 and I don't know what level he will be able to rise to, but I knew that baseball had a hold on him when he was 3. He would be out in the backyard with a ball and glove, asking for someone to play catch, throwing the ball in the air and catching it endlessly if he couldn't find a partner. By about age 5, when dad played catch with him, he would want to play forever, so finally dad would say, "Okay, the next ball you don't catch, means it's time for me to go in the house." Son would jump and dive and do anything possible to catch that ball, just so the game could go on.

J-
We've talked about this before, our son was given a glove as a Christening present...an 11" Rawlings. I hated BB at the time and thought "what a strange gift". He used it for years.
But the first time we thought "huh" was when he was playing pony ball, starting his pinto year. (Year after T-ball-think he was 7) He was chomping at the bit to pitch, because the coaches wouldn't let the kids pitch until 1/2 way through the season.
Finally, the point comes and he is put in to pitch against a "real player" in a "real game" and the kid throws a knuckle ball.
For a strike.
I picked my husband's jaw off the ground and we have enjoyed every moment since.
It's an awesome game!


_______________________
"People ask me what I do in winter when there's no baseball. I'll tell you what I do. I stare out the window and wait for spring." Rogers Hornsby, Hall of Famer

When Will was 3 years old he would play wiffle ball with his dad and his older brother. When it was his turn to hit, if "prospects" did not look good at first base, Will, the determined soul that he was/is, would head straight to third base. You never got the boy out.

This is a great topic that I'm sure really gets everyone reminiscing about all the great baseball memories our sons have given us.

We knew when my son was eight and playing Little League. He went to a game knowing he wasn't feeling well, but didn't want to let his teammates down. Halfway through the game he told the coach he was really sick, and sat on the bench. In the last inning, the score was tied against one of the best teams in the league. He hauled himself to his feet and asked the coach if he could go back into the lineup. He then hit in the winning run. On the way home I took him to the doctor: strep throat with tonsillitis so bad his tonsils were almost swelling his throat closed.

And of course there were all those times he came in bruised and bleeding after falling into my backyard planters because "I HAD to catch the ball."

The other day we ran into the mother of a boy on his 8-year old team. She asked if my kid was still playing ball, then said, "I'm so glad I don't have to do THAT anymore." Naturally, we looked at her as if she were some kind of alien life form. We wouldn't trade the last ten years for all the money in the world.

I had a good laugh at Fungo's post, could have been our house.
Regardless of where our kids will fall in the future with baseball it was we as parents who saw something special in them at a young age and decided to devote ourselves to that development.
It takes special parents to make things happen for their kids and although we cannot imagine it any other way, there are soooo many parents out there with there own agendas. Some say, well I have to work, I'll get fired, it's too much money, I am too tired, etc. We faced those choices ourselves and decided that raising happy, responsible kids were more important and always found a way to manage between sports for him and dancing lessons for her. We also knew when to draw the line and when to say yes and when to say no.
Congrats to you all for raising such great kids!

Nine years ago, We were at a final team party for the rec league (ten year olds). Coach W said a few words about all the boys on the team. He waited to talk about my son till last. Coach W said that in twenty six years he had never given an MVP award. This year would be different.

He went on to say that he had been tougher on my son than any other kid he had ever coached.
(I had never had a problem with him). He also went on to say that there was a reason for this.What he said next was the kicker. " Maybe when Justin gets older he will sit down and think about all of what went on...And write me a check!"



"Everybody kind of perceives me as being angry. It's not anger, it's motivation." Roger Clemens

quote:

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Originally posted by hsbbweb:
Sandman,

Here's the answer to your question about NVR1's son:
Steve Lerud - Catcher'03 Galena High Reno, Nv
Drafted by Pittsburgh

2003 - 3rd round draft selection
http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/mlb/draftday/search.jsp?sc=lastName&sp=L

Bob,
"Doing nothing is still a course of action"

---

Thanks hsbbweb!

At the age of 3 Bret would go outside while his twin brothers were in school and set up their tee...he would then put the ball on the tee and hit it...he then put down the bat and ran after the ball....after about 100 hits, I figured, housework can wait...! He's had the same work ethic ever since. At 5, he was chosen for the 7&8 yr old all star team...

Playing baseball has made so many great memories and friends for him and us...from all over the United States. I am thankful for every day that I had a dirty floor!!!!

When my '05 was about 12 and went to the coach and begged he be put on the mound, you see his team was losing and he was not about to let that happen, the coach put him on the mound and they came back and won the game.

The other time was when he was a 9th grader and tagged a fastball for his first high school homerun.

And lastly he got hit by a ball in the mouth and got a tooth knocked out, I took him to the emergency room and they called a dentist in and put the tooth back. When he was able to talk, the first words out of his mouth was "I am still going to the showcase" which was about 10 days away. He went.

CV

"It's what you learn after you know it all that counts."

Earl Weaver

First, when my son was in TeeBall at 4years old, and the coach had to tell him not to throw the ball so hard.....not to the other players, but to the coach.


Second, when my son was about 10 years old, he went to a local HS camp in the town we lived in. The HS coach was very impressed, so impressed he kept my son after the camp to talk with him and invite him to work out with the HS team and be the bat boy.

Third was when he was in Select, about 12 years old and the coach he was playing for was playing daddy ball and wouldn't let my son pitch. I had 6 different coaches from other teams calling me to try to get my son to switch teams so he could be utilized.

Last time was just the other day....the high school coach from the town we used to live in (3a) called me to inquire if the rumor he heard about my son moving back into town was correct. Just to let me know that if it was, he had a position on varsity waiting on him. (He's a freshman). Told him thanks for the call, but we were staying put. (I spent a small fortune to get custody of him and he ain't going back!!)

First when my 04 was 6 and playing in a Dixie Youth championship game. He was catching and we have a picture of him catching a popup. The ball is about 2 feet above his glove and you can see a bubble from his bubble gum under his catcher's mask. He definately kept his cool.

Second when he was 8 and begged the coach to let him pitch in a 10 and under league. The coach asked him if he could pitch and he told him "of course". The coach finally put him in for an inning. He had a nine pitch inning, 3 KO's. When he came off the field, he told the coach, "I told you" and went and sat down on the bench.

Nothing seems to intimidate him now.

"When did you know you had a Player"..........when dad could no longer catch what he threw!

It started when we noticed he held his bottle with his LEFT hand. Next, the second word he learned (after Da Da) was BALL. When he was four, we bought him a plastic bat, ball, and tee. I looked out of the window one day and he was throwing the ball up and hitting it the length of our back yard. At 14 he had 17k's in one game at the USSSA World Series in Sterling Hgts, MI. Also, at 14, made the starting varsity rotation as a freshman. First varsity start was a complete nine inning win against county rival Heritage. At 17, closed the game (AAU Nationals) against Texas (after a rain delay from the previous night) to put the Knoxville Thunder into the national championship game against the Dulin Dodgers. Lots of steps, lots of fun!

If you can't have your cake and eat it too, what are you supposed to do with it?

When he was 4 years old I went in one night to give him a kiss goodnight and found him sleeping with his bat and ball.

Couple of moments of "knowledge" for us ...

Initially, at age 2 1/2 ... picture of him standing in backyard with plastic bat in hand, awaiting Daddy's "toss" ... pointing bat towards the roof line ... reminiscent of Babe Ruth (but then, he found out how hard the "big kids" throw the ball and he gave up hitting for pitching full time ... )

Actually, at age 12 ... playing on a local 14U AABC team ... as son heads to the mound in the first inning, the opposing coach (with a nasty tone in voice & sneering expression on face) asks umpire "How old is this kid, anyway?" When told the kid was 12, opposing coach just starts to laugh. The umpire suggests to the coach that he should "...wait and see what he does, first." After 3 shut-out innings against opposing coach's team ... we KNEW we had a player ... and so did the opposing coach ...

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Go HIGHLANDERS !!!
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

When my ten year old son was playing on two summer league teams - and caught back to back seven inning games in over 100 degree sunshine and unbearable humidity - sweated through six tee-shirts - and then caught another seven inning evening game a few hours later. Nearly had a fit when the coach started worrying about whether the heat was too much for him to take.

And the time he was twelve and had a ball thrown home from second base that bounced up before the plate and hit him squarely in the middle of his cheek - he still scrambled for the ball to get the runner out - went to the doctor - nothing broken - and came back to watch his team finish the game. He was black and blue for two weeks after that from the forehead all the way down to the bottom of his cheek.

That's when we found out how tough he was.

Probably when he was about 9 and he was cut from the "A" tournament team and put on the "B" tournament team.. We played "A" in the Memorial Day tourney and he hit for the cycle, then we played "A" for the district tourney and he hit 3 homeruns..

BTW~ "B" beat "A" throughout the tournament season.. We still tease that coach mercifully to this day

_______________
"Baseball, it is said, is only a game. And the Grand Canyon is only a hole."

"JustMom"

My son always loved ball since t-ball but I never thought he'd be much; he rode the bench a lot but started comeing around in Babe Ruth. It wasn't until his sophmore year of high school that I saw something in him. He had pitched one time the last game of the year at Babe Ruth his freshman year for a couple of innings because they ran out of arms and did a good job; luck! Then he started working at learning pitching mechanics and the following year he went out for the pitcher spot at high school and got it. His first start he was all nervous and tightened up and was chocking the ball off. For two innings he got smacked around and was feeling bad. Then he fought back and over the next five innings gave up only one hit. That is when I knew he had something.

Great Topic,
My son was age 5 when he started T-ball, He hit a so called double and was smiling ear to ear, the next batter on his team got up and hit a ground ball to the shortstop who booted the ball, the ball bounced near Daniel who picked up the ball and threw a perfect strike to the first baseman, Throwing out his own player thus causing complete silence from the coaches until I said "atta boy Buddy way to fire that ball" we went to buy a video camera after that game and have taped all his games from that classic moment to the present, He is now a 05 Junior and in his Dad's eyes on his way to the next level if he continues the hard dedication and puts in the time. We do all the right things, Long toss, running, weights, elastics,hitting,fielding ..................etc.......Is was nice to have a son that you can actually go out and play catch with him, I Remember when you had to actually try to throw it in his glove, His Aunt bought him that velcro glove and ball thing when he was 3, I threw that in the attic and went out and bought him a $125.00 Wilson 10 1/2" infielders glove. He has made me very proud of him. And by the way, Now he has to throw the ball in Dad's glove. I tell him nothing over 85, because I don't see it coming untill I feel it in my chest protector. Good Luck this season Buddy...Dad Loves You

"Roundin third and headin home"