Red Flags or No?

#7sDad · Jul 17, 2017

Most of the "batting cage teams" around here are sub-par. They create teams to ensure the cages and facility is being used. There are some exceptions but not many. Most of them also seems to be more focused on developing their AU baseball teams and softball is just a nice afterthought and money maker.

These teams also tend to have high player turnover, so you may have that to deal with in a new program as well.

And they will not cut if they don't have to. If they have 12-15 girls come to tryouts, they will take them all. If they have 20-25, they will have a gold and elite team, or something of that nature.

quincy · Jul 17, 2017

I am not so much worry about HC not defined as much as it being a new facility. So many new facilities fold after year or two. It would have to be more established or a really really go price before DD joined.

maksoftball · Jul 17, 2017

CoachChristine said:
Dd11 and I are in the market for a 12u tb team, so I've been talking to people and checking local Facebook groups.

There's a new "sports academy " in a neighboring town that just opened in the past year or so. They have indoor cages, give lessons, cross fit classes, etc. Last month, they advertised that they were going to start 10u and 12u softball and baseball teams. They scheduled tryouts for this month. I messaged them last month to ask who is coaching 12u. They said they were interviewing for the position. Tonight, I messaged them again because the first tryout is tomorrow. They replied, "Still interviewing. That will come together as the teams form."

Does this seem strange to anyone but me? How do you have tryouts with no coach? So they'll just hand someone a group of players and say "This is your team?" I'm wondering if this is just a money making idea for the place or what.

I'd appreciate your thoughts.

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We have been a part of an organization like this - it was very $$$ but we did have excellent coaching - the girls responded well and loved the coaches too. Downside was they gave up after a year and were ready to start their real lives...they were young former college ball players from D1 schools - their enthusiasm and love of the game was well worth the $$ but the parents and other negatives that come with it sucked the life out of them. Now they are very happy with their new young families. No hard feelings at all - just wish they could have rode the waves a little longer until girls graduated.

Just realized that doesn't answer your question - for us, we had the coaches in place already. I would be very hesitant to tryout for a club before knowing who the coaches are - to me, the $$ paid depends on who is coaching my daughter...has to be well worth it.

CoachChristine · Jul 18, 2017

Dd asked to go to the tryout on Sunday (I think to avoid cleaning her room).. She was the only player there. I talked to the owner about their vision for the teams and suggested ways t get the word out. Dd got some batting practice in. I don't know if they'll manage to get a team together or not.

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quincy · Jul 18, 2017

CoachChristine said:
She was the only player there.

That might be a red flag.

CoachChristine · Jul 18, 2017

quincy said:
That might be a red flag.

I can always brag she was the first player they looked at!

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grcsftbll · Jul 18, 2017

What stands out to me is that they have baseball and softball. I'm not a fan of that. Our org is a baseball/softball org and they definitely skew towards baseball, as does another big baseball/softball org here. There is still a heavy bias towards boys' sports IME. We're leaving our org for a softball-only org this year and I'm very happy about that. We had things like the guy that runs the org giving away our night for agility classes at their facility to the baseball team (resulting in most of our team not being able to make the classes). Like lots of brag posts on the page whenever a baseball team won tournaments, but never a shout out for us even when we won major tournaments. Another org I saw just copy/pasted their tryout announcements for baseball over to softball and changed the details...but forgot to change the pronouns so it was all he and him. It would take a lot for me to go back to an org that also had baseball teams.

Red Flags or No?

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