Travel Ball or No Travel Ball

Welcome to Discuss Fastpitch

Your FREE Account is waiting to the Best Softball Community on the Web.

Sep 15, 2016
6
1
So my ballplayer is going to be moving from 8u to 10u this fall. She has expressed interest in playing travel ball. She has only played rec so far because even though she has always liked playing softball she didn't seem in love with it. It is obvious that she is wanting to play more and more and the more she plays the better she gets (of course). I know several of the girls on the couple of local travel ball teams and there is no question that they are a few steps a head in certain areas. I know just getting the extra practice and work in can do nothing but help her. This past season she made leaps and bounds of progress and has the potential to be a ballplayer. I am just not sure if she wants it enough to put in the work required. I preach to her that anything worth doing is worth doing right and that means putting in the work. Just not sure what would be best for her.
 
Nov 18, 2013
2,255
113
Research the established travel teams in your area. Look at ones focused on development over trophies and take her to their tryouts. Most 10U is still developmental so it shouldn’t be hard to find a good program.

Aslo, preaching about putting in the work will only drive her away from softball. It’s easy to forget that kids sometimes need parents support more than our pushing them. I didn’t really learn that until she was off to college.
 
Jun 19, 2013
753
28
Well I know in our area, and probably in most areas, there are different levels of travel teams. In our neck of the woods (the Pacific NW) and based on your description I'd recommend you find a B team. Hit some tryouts and see how you think she stacks up against other girls trying out. And if she get's offers be prepared to ask a lot of questions - how often do they practice in what months. How many tournaments do they plan on playing, how many are out of town, cost of team, etc. What is the experience of the coaches. Lots of other folks on here will probably have further advice.
 

JAD

Feb 20, 2012
8,231
38
Georgia
A lot of REC players transition to TB at 10U and the rest transition at 12U. By 14U most REC leagues have lost the majority of their talent unless they force the TB players to play REC too.
 
May 24, 2013
12,461
113
So Cal
So my ballplayer is going to be moving from 8u to 10u this fall. She has expressed interest in playing travel ball. She has only played rec so far because even though she has always liked playing softball she didn't seem in love with it. It is obvious that she is wanting to play more and more and the more she plays the better she gets (of course). I know several of the girls on the couple of local travel ball teams and there is no question that they are a few steps a head in certain areas. I know just getting the extra practice and work in can do nothing but help her. This past season she made leaps and bounds of progress and has the potential to be a ballplayer. I am just not sure if she wants it enough to put in the work required. I preach to her that anything worth doing is worth doing right and that means putting in the work. Just not sure what would be best for her.

If you're not sure, and she's not sure, I wouldn't push it. IMO, you will know when it's the right time.

We made the move to TB during the spring season of my DD's second year of 10U rec ball. At the time, it was becoming increasingly clear that she needed to be playing with a higher level of competition. She was hungry for the challenge, and ready for the additional work. Very quickly, the additional practice time, along with the higher-level skill instruction, made a big difference in her game. As she finished up the rec season (juggling both rec and TB), her rapidly-increasing skill development made her clearly the best 10U player in the league, and confirmed to us that moving on was the right choice. However, making the move to TB has required an all-in commitment for our family. Everything is dictated by the team's schedule. Sometimes this can cause some friction in the house. It gets even more challenging if you have to juggle multiple kids' schedules.
 
Last edited:
Mar 13, 2014
35
8
I would also check to see if there are other options in your area. Our local house league has a part-time travel option. Sort of a travelling all-stars team that plays local tournaments. Practices start in April and they play until end of July. It's really our only option as DD also plays full-time A travel soccer and dances ballet. It's also much cheaper than full-time travel. However, it's a decidedly higher level of play than house, and they are a pretty good team. They play and place in B tournaments and often get "accused" of being full-time. Maybe there is something similar in your area? If so, it might be worth trying to see if she really likes it since you both seem a little hesitant.
 
Last edited:
Oct 21, 2016
189
28
As others have said you and she should know when the time is right. My DD had a good Rec ball year as a 10 year old, but nothing special. When 11 year old year came and she was quite a bit better than everyone on her team, and within the top few in the league, it became evident she needed something else. Once she started deciding to skip Friday night middle school dances for rec games (she was the only one on her team), I knew it was time to move on. We did both travel and rec this year, and the rec wasn't even worth it other than for her to see some school friends. I'm sure it's different for everyone, but that's our story.
 
Feb 7, 2013
3,188
48
In 8u Rec, did she play in all-star tournaments in the summer? That experience will give you a taste of what travel ball is about. With my DD, she played in Rec from 6U until 1 year 12U but she was playing all-stars each summer (6 week commitment) at 7yo and her last two years of rec ball, played on tournament teams (e.g. travel ball lite) in the fall.

Travel ball can be a huge commitment. Around here it typically starts with tryouts in the middle of August and teams will play until the last tournament at the end of July (with only a few weeks off during mid-December to the 1st week of January). Rinse and repeat. IMO - there is no rush to get into travel ball unless she is not learning new skills each season and the coaching is very poor. Lastly, 25 - 50% of the time should be working on her own to get better (e.g. hitting lessons, catching lessons, conditioning, softball camps, playing catch with dad/mom/sibling, etc.) The players that put in the extra effort now, will make the transition to TB so much easier. Good luck...
 
Aug 23, 2016
359
43
In 8u Rec, did she play in all-star tournaments in the summer? That experience will give you a taste of what travel ball is about.

My DD just finished up her rec all-star season, and even though it's a lighter schedule than travel, you could tell the difference between the kids who were really ready for something more rigorous than the regular rec season and those that just didn't enjoy the extra work.

For DD, all-stars is just right for her. She has fun in rec season, she gets to play with stronger teammates against tougher competition for 8 weeks, and then it's not such a commitment that it keeps her from playing other sports during fall rec and the winter off-season.
 
Jun 12, 2015
3,848
83
We went to travel in 8U. DD played All Stars with her rec coach and loved it. It's a great way to see if they're really ready for travel. We went back to rec for one season after all stars and DD was very annoyed. She felt she got way too many homeruns. She kept saying, "That would've been a single in a tournament." So we knew it was time and started in spring of our last year of 8U.

It is definitely a big time commitment. The level varies - you've got everything from lower level teams that play once or twice a month and practice once a week, and it's mostly for fun, to high level A clubs that are a massive commitment of time and resources with the goal of getting their players recruited to D1 colleges. And a huge range of everything in between. You could try to find a lower level travel team that needs a pick up for a weekend and let her go play a tournament and see what she thinks about playing 4+ games in a day. It doesn't cause tension in our house because DH and I are equally into it but it can cause issues in some families for sure. Also with other kids, because it can take up so much time. The other kids can start to feel neglected. It's fairly expensive as well. Between dues, equipment, travel expenses, gas, etc we spend thousands per year.

So all that said, we love it and wouldn't change a thing.
 

Forum statistics

Threads
42,830
Messages
679,477
Members
21,445
Latest member
Bmac81802
Top