Alumni player or have to tryout for a spot?

[SSmom83]

Just finished our 1st year of TRUE TB (70+ game season), we have played TB locally but with a less competitive & MUCH shorter 20 game season & a required town ball season of about 12-15 games on top of that.

We have been told by many seasoned TB parents that Alumni as they call them (those that have been on the team the previous year) are kept on the teams & in most cases do NOT have to even try out.

We played 12U last year & moving up to 14U this year. 1 coach was moving up with the girls as well.

Just curious of others' experience from where you are from.... do previous players keep spots, are they promised spots, have to tryout, promised nothing, etc. Just wondering how everyone else's experiences or policies are, etc.

 

[JAD]

I think a lot of that depends on what level TB your DD is playing. As my DD has moved up the "ranks" of TB over the years, it gets more competitive and cutthroat at the top. Very competitive TB teams will "churn" 3-4 players every season, a lot like a business does their sales force. Top teams will hold "open tryouts", meaning that all positions are open and if a better player shows up than their "alumni" there is a good chance the coach will make a switch.

You should have a candid discussion with your current head coach before you make the assumption that your DD is automatically back on the team.

 

[CoogansBluff]

Two common situations -

One team will invite everybody back (no one has to try out) and will seek to replace only those who choose not to return.

One team will tell everybody that they have to try out again, but all the while knowing that a few if not several players are locks to return. These 'open tryouts' are a way of telling weaker players that that aren't guaranteed a spot back, but while keeping them on the string in case you can't find anybody better.

If a team doesn't want a player back, usually the coach will run them through tryouts and soften the blow that way rather than telling them flatly, 'We're not taking you back no matter what.'

Now, there are a very few teams that truly have open tryouts where everybody's spot is truly on the line. But these are elite teams that are trying to win national titles (or at least qualify for ASA nationals) and are run like pro teams. Or it might be a showcase team that has to have the best talent in order to get in the tournaments they're trying to enter. Or it might be a team that is part of a larger organization that dictates this policy. But even those teams are going to have some that they know are coming back.

Most teams are like the first two that I described.

 

[GOINGDEEP]

Every travelball team and circumstances are so different I couldn't list them all if I tried.

For us, we called them "core" players instead of alumni. Our core ( girls from the last completed season ) were asked who wanted to stay. ( our core averaged 7-9 players over the TB years ) Those core positions were pretty well locked, so for us we recruited during the fall/winter position players for the open slots instead of tryouts. For me it was just easier to go to Sally, who plays second, and say "I need a second baseman, would you like to play for us"..............rather than hold open tryouts for 10-30 girls............when all I need are a couple of positions covered.

 

[guero_gordo]

I only know of one team where the girls are told you are a "member for life". This doesn't mean they won't go after an upgrade and park a girl on the bench until she quits, cashing checks all the while.

 

[Momo'sDad]

Some of the less scrupulous coaches will advertise that all positions are open when the reality is that they're only looking for 2-3 impact players. They want to see 20-25 players at a tryout, which gives them more to choose from. Parents - and players - tend to prefer the more honest coaches, however, who'll advertise they are looking for 2-3 and who won't be deceptive when parents contact them to ask directly whether they are looking for a pitcher.

I'm not speaking for any team, but anecdotally, what I see more often than not in this region is that teams tend to give returning players deference. In general, players - or their parents - cut themselves rather than being cut by a team. A player or parent choosing not to return to a given team (includes bad behavior from parents) is more common than the team cutting a weaker player in order to create a roster slot for a stronger player. I'm not saying it doesn't happen, I'm just saying that it's less common. Solid, loyal players and families don't grow on trees, which is why coaches value them.

 

[Jr10234]

Our experience:
some coaches promise returning players guaranteed position and keep their word.
Some coaches tell a player they are guaranteed a spot and then cut them in the end
Some make their players tryout again with an idea of who will likely be kept and who will be cut
Some teams blow up every year

Pretty much any scenario you think can happen, does.

My DD and four others didn't return to their team for tryouts, figuring he wanted top talent and wouldn't keep most of the players. We were wrong, all returning players who tried out were kept.

 

[YOCOACH]

I can tell you that we consider our team as an elite team or "A" team in our area. Every year we have open tryouts and we will take the best 12 with the exception of the few that are "untouchables"...the studs do to speak. Our local area "B" teams will keep anyone from the previous year that wishes to return but they still must try out.

 

[SSmom83]

This is the sad reality seen in travel ball. I have never seen a player not make a team she previously played for. Most always the weaker players are made sit much more than they want, a fuss is made about it, and they leave for teams who will play them, or quit.

Between seasons the most likely scenario is the best one or two players move to a more competitive team. The middle girls stay, and the worst just don't come back. Tryouts fill in the rest.

Yes, most every coach will sit the worst player most the time, keep cashing the checks, be nice and not rude and let the player and parents decide what is next.
.

See, this is what i have heard.... My daughter was a dedicated, committed player! The coach put her at 7 different positions (sometimes 4-5 different positions a game) and never heard a complaint out of her! She is no stand out player, but a very good player! We went to tryouts & was under the impression she had a strong chance of returning since she played for them before (although nothing was promised). We even brought my DDs best friend from our town to better the team. They chose the best friend & did not offer my DD a spot! Tryouts are over! We are searching for a team, but distance is an issue... Most teams with spots are about an hour away - something I can't do to her on school nights!
I am probably taking his too personally, but just feel betrayed as there was NO indication she wouldn't be asked back! Rookie mistake I guess!?!

 

[guero_gordo]

I am probably taking his too personally, but just feel betrayed as there was NO indication she wouldn't be asked back! Rookie mistake I guess!?!

This, is where people blow it. Teams and parents need to say what they will do and then do what they say.
There is risk and reward with any scenario. If you retain some/all players, they may become complacent or you may miss out on a stud. If you put all spots up for grabs, parents will look for other options so the kid will have a place to play, and the grass might be greener.
Add dishonesty on either part, and people get hurt. Players' and team's reputations get trashed, and it spirals.