USSSA, USFA, ASA, etc...: Help a girl out!

[SoCal_Dad]

You information on ASA is somewhat incomplete as it leaves out important details. Roster restrictions are much tighter in ASA, and the berths are not cherry picked to the most advantageous locations. PGF by design will yield more top teams where the self imposed constraints of ASA make that more difficult. The bottom line is they are worlds apart in the way they do business.

I'm very familiar with ASA Code and the roster rules. The only geographic restriction with an ASA team's initial roster is they have to register with the state/metro association where the greatest number of their players reside (with an exception for counties along the border between a metro and state) and that has to be retained for the remainder of the season. Some ASA teams bypass the pick-up player restrictions by putting players from other non-ASA teams on their roster before it is redlined.

BTW, ASA includes all JO registrations -- rec and travel -- when allocating Class A berths. That doesn't make sense...

 

[MNDad]

Depends on your definition of competitive. Some people set the bar low as not being run-ruled while I think it requires winning some games. ASA 18G has been in decline and was gutted by ASA's JO Cup - they were short 11 teams and the top finishers without their ringers wouldn't have been competitive at PGF.

The top 2 finishers at JO Cup didn't fare well at Boulder. Wichita Mustangs went 0-3 against top PGF teams (Corona Angels, Batbusters Haning/Stith and Beverly Bandits Conroy). EC Bullets Schnute went 3-4 without facing any top teams. Mustangs would have only contended for a top-10 finish and it's returning berth.

FWIW, on whose website did this appear...
July PGF Nationals Huntington Beach, CA. This is by far the crème-de-la-crème of FastPitch tournaments with the best teams in the U.S. in attendance. We are proud of earning our berth as a result of our top 10 finish last year and look forward to making a run at the Championship this year.

I'd put being competitive at having a reasonable chance at winning. With the exception of the very top teams the PGF fields aren't that different and can all be beaten on any given day. I'm not saying ASA is better or even just as competitive as PGF. I'm just saying they don't have ALL of the top teams

The Bullets were missing quite a few players in Boulder. Both the Bullets and Mustangs performed very well at TCS Nationals which was attended by some PGF teams. Regardless of their Boulder performance it would be tough to argue that these two aren't among the top teams in the country.

 

[Rambler34]

As you may know from my previous posts, DD is new to TB this year. I'm immersing myself here so that I can have a clue what's going on. Coach is discussing the team playing at either the USFA Softball World Series in Panama City, FL or the USSSA World Series in Orlando, FL next July. I know that there is also the ASA Nationals in Salem, VA (for 12U).

It's all alphabet soup to me at this point. Can someone please explain the various organizations to me, pretty please? Which are the most highly regarded, most competitive, etc...? Just trying to get my bearings.

We always played USFA in PCB up until the second year of 10U when we played both there and ASA nationals in Johnson City. We played ASA southern nationals as a first year 12U team this summer. For 2016 we will be heading to Salem for ASA nationals and are also trying to qualify for the USSSA Elite in Kansas City. I am pretty sure many Georgia teams will be trying to qualify for both this year with some heading out for PGF as well.

PCB was always fun and the girls had a great time away from the park. We never played in Orlando primarily because USFA was always stronger in the Southeast. This year it will be flipped. USSSA have basically taken over everything in Al, Ga, and Tn. I believe as far as regionally the better competition will be in Orlando. I think as far as tourneys around Georgia go USSSA will be the org with the most competitive tourneys. All of the big ones we played in the past have moved over to USSSA this year.

 

[Ghostrider]

As far as where College Coaches will be..
A. PGF
B. TCS @ Colorado
C. ASA ASA hands out berths now like coupons at the checkout...
D....doesnt matter...USSSA and USFA and all the others dont even show up on the radar...

 

[MNDad]

As far as where College Coaches will be..
A. PGF
B. TCS @ Colorado
C. ASA ASA hands out berths now like coupons at the checkout...
D....doesnt matter...USSSA and USFA and all the others dont even show up on the radar...

PGF Premier Nationals are heavily attended by college coaches. Slapping “PGF” on a showcase or local tourney won’t bring coaches out any more than other sanctioning bodies. Between Premier, Platinum and Regionals, PGF also hands out berths like coupons.

TCS Sparker and Fireworks are good tournaments. Most of the coaches however are at the Independence Day tournaments in Boulder and Longmont. TCS Nationals also draws a fair share of coaches.

ASA/USA Nationals still draws coaches. The other tourneys, not so much.

In the end, regardless of the sanction body, the coaches will be at the tournaments the girls they’re recruiting go to.

 

[CMMom1740]

Wow, great info, if not a bit overwhelming. Recruitment is not a big issue for us at the 12U level, but it gives us a sense of direction for the future. Thanks to everyone who chimed in!

 

[Little Angels Softball]

Between Premier, Platinum and Regionals, PGF also hands out berths like coupons.

Umm ..... like .... where I can get one of those "hand outs" for PGF Nats? It appears my girls may have been working too hard to get theirs.

 

[MNDad]

Umm ..... like .... where I can get one of those "hand outs" for PGF Nats? It appears my girls may have been working too hard to get theirs.

Head East for Premier or Platinum berths. Not as many teams and some are just there for the competetion with no desire to play in California. All we had to do for a regional berth is sign up.

 

[Ghostrider]

PGF Premier Nationals are heavily attended by college coaches. Slapping “PGF” on a showcase or local tourney won’t bring coaches out any more than other sanctioning bodies. Between Premier, Platinum and Regionals, PGF also hands out berths like coupons.

TCS Sparker and Fireworks are good tournaments. Most of the coaches however are at the Independence Day tournaments in Boulder and Longmont. TCS Nationals also draws a fair share of coaches.

ASA/USA Nationals still draws coaches. The other tourneys, not so much.

In the end, regardless of the sanction body, the coaches will be at the tournaments the girls they’re recruiting go to.

Agree, to a degree...No, simply slapping a PGF sticker on a vanilla exposure thing (outside of Huntington Beach) wont do much..
PGF Premier league doesn't hand out berths, they may have invites but those teams are legit...PGF Platinum does somewhat (2 different things)
Neither anywhere close to berth handed out by ASA...know of a LA team that got a berth at a tourney that was 0-4 at that tourney...

TCS Colorado...Power polls at Sparkler and Firecracker are big draws (500+ last year) But the 'filler' opens not so much...Louisville Slugger Independence Day tourneys at Longmont and Boulder are invite only and also draw a bunch.
Know of 3 PAC 12 coaches who didn't come to ASA...had no desire to be there...Told me the kids they wanted were at PGF Nats......

Coaches will attend tourney, yes, but only if they have been 'pushed' by somebody they trust...
No magical visits to a generic tourney...

And Mom...at 12U, you better already have a plan, BY FAR the most coaches I have ever seen at a single 4-plex, which about 200+ was at 14U PGF Nats 2yrs ago and most were watching the 2 fields with the power pool teams on them......told somebody I couldn't swing a dead cat and not hit a college coach...

 

[MNDad]

Agree, to a degree...No, simply slapping a PGF sticker on a vanilla exposure thing (outside of Huntington Beach) wont do much..
PGF Premier league doesn't hand out berths, they may have invites but those teams are legit...PGF Platinum does somewhat (2 different things)
Neither anywhere close to berth handed out by ASA...know of a LA team that got a berth at a tourney that was 0-4 at that tourney...

TCS Colorado...Power polls at Sparkler and Firecracker are big draws (500+ last year) But the 'filler' opens not so much...Louisville Slugger Independence Day tourneys at Longmont and Boulder are invite only and also draw a bunch.
Know of 3 PAC 12 coaches who didn't come to ASA...had no desire to be there...Told me the kids they wanted were at PGF Nats......

Coaches will attend tourney, yes, but only if they have been 'pushed' by somebody they trust...
No magical visits to a generic tourney...

And Mom...at 12U, you better already have a plan, BY FAR the most coaches I have ever seen at a single 4-plex, which about 200+ was at 14U PGF Nats 2yrs ago and most were watching the 2 fields with the power pool teams on them......told somebody I couldn't swing a dead cat and not hit a college coach...

I think we're mostly on the same page. My main point is the 64 teams at PGF Nationals are NOT the top 64 teams in the country. PGF Premier has some average teams and ASA has some very strong teams. Overall though PGF is far more exclusive than ASA.

I agree completely with your other points.