Tryouts While Current Season is Still in Progress

I think it is a shame as well. DD's team played their final tourney as a team on 7/9. They had a bid to Nationals that the HC declined. Held tryouts for that team on 7/13. DD tried out for a different team on 7/11 and committed to them on 7/12. That team still had nationals to go to.

Tryout time is stressful enough without the added stress of trying to keep secrets from the current team. Now everyone says - "oh everyone knows who is planning on leaving anyway". Not true. DD was pretty sure she was going to return to her old team. HC loved her, she was pretty much guaranteed lead off batter and she never sat. DD decided on 7/11 that she needed a change. Shocked everyone. Me included.

beachball said:

The fact is it effects everyone not just the team that is having the tryouts early. The girls are rostered until July 31st. Girls are having to sneak around and go to tryouts when then should be at their current teams practice etc. My daughter is staying with the team she's on but why was the old practice of waiting until August 1st so wrong? It's just coaches with too much testosterone trying to build up their egos by grabbing all the stud players before anyone else can. It's immoral and bad practice but that is just my opinion. It wouldn't happen at the college or pro level or even at the high school level so why is it accepted in travel ball?

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Do you ever notice that's is not unusual for college coaches to give verbal offers to 8th graders. Same concept, coaches get the perceived better players to commit early, before your rival gets them. That's 4 seasons they're being recruited before they're going to the college level. You're worried about a couple weeks. For what its worth, Ive seen some of these teams have super early tryouts. They don't always come out so well. Anyway its musical chair time in the softball world. You just hope you're not the person the gets left standing.

Not saying I agree at all. It's a result of the influx if teams in your area. Too many teams, not enough talented players to get a full roster of "A" or even "B" level players. I understand the need to get first crack at players. Not saying it's right, but saying I understand.

And regarding HS and college - for non-public schools there are plenty of examples of 7th graders going on school visits arranged by the HS varsity coach who has the visiting student paired up with the stud player with practically a red carpet laid out when they arrive for the visit. For college - girls are committing as early as 7th and 8th grade. If that's not trying to beat the next coach to the stud, I don't know what is.

Our first tryout for the fall season isn't until August 24th. We have USSSA Nationals in the first week of August, and have 2 weeks off after that. Many teams in our area are advertising for tryouts starting at the beginning of August.

Eric in California it may be different. I'm just assuming that you might not start tournament season until later in September.

In Beachball's area, fall season starts right after Labor Day. So you need to pick the team and start practicing no later than mid August. Not to mention sizing for uniforms so they get them in time for the first tournament. Fall season is short - usually just September and October unless the team is traveling south for a late October / early November showcase.

SBmom8992 said:

Eric in California it may be different. I'm just assuming that you might not start tournament season until later in September.

In Beachball's area, fall season starts right after Labor Day. So you need to pick the team and start practicing no later than mid August. Not to mention sizing for uniforms so they get them in time for the first tournament. Fall season is short - usually just September and October unless the team is traveling south for a late October / early November showcase.

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Teams don't start playing games until October where we are. Usually one day friendlies and maybe a two day pool play/bracket tournament toward the end of October. Practices would start the beginning of September.

At any rate why are we having girls go to tryouts while they are still rostered on their current team? Up until two years ago it never happened now it is common practice. What changed?

It's disgraceful IMO but that's my opinion. As I said My DD is staying with her team but I can tell you it causes turmoil and misplaced priorities while coaches are trying to finish out the season that the girls already committed to. So do we just throw away the last three tournaments of the year as not mattering because now girls have tried out and been accepted on another team and could care less now about what happens to their current team?

I just think it's a bad life lesson.

beachball said:

Teams don't start playing games until October where we are. Usually one day friendlies and maybe a two day pool play/bracket tournament toward the end of October. Practices would start the beginning of September.

Are you playing A level ball in NJ? Wildwoods in your avatar would lead me to believe that. If so - I don't know of many orgs in the area that aren't playing ball in September considering the short season before the winter sets in.

So do we just throw away the last three tournaments of the year as not mattering because now girls have tried out and been accepted on another team and could care less now about what happens to their current team?

I just think it's a bad life lesson.

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That's an issue of character and not a result of early tryouts. DD knew she was leaving her current team before our last tourney and you wouldn't know it. But that's a result of having self-pride and being a good teammate.

SBmom8992 said:

Eric in California it may be different. I'm just assuming that you might not start tournament season until later in September.

In Beachball's area, fall season starts right after Labor Day. So you need to pick the team and start practicing no later than mid August. Not to mention sizing for uniforms so they get them in time for the first tournament. Fall season is short - usually just September and October unless the team is traveling south for a late October / early November showcase.

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As I commented before there are some teams in our area that start tryouts at the beginning of August. Those teams will likely be playing tournaments in early September. Our team doesn't do that. We probably won't play our first tournament until late-September or early-October, however. Also, there is a clause in our team contract that forbids players from trying out for another team before the season is over. Do it, and you're off the team.

It happens in other sports as well. Older DD does comp cheer and try-outs for the next season can start as early as April/May but there are EOS big comps still going on until Mid-May. DD's team actually did not do try-outs at the normal time with the gym since they were still practicing for their next comp.

Not so bad if you're sticking with the same gym, but if you're trying to switch - some gyms have week-long try-outs as well..

It is an interesting time period in central PA also. Our last tournament for this season is the weekend of August 12. By then, most teams have already had their tryouts. And at the 16u and 18u levels, showcases will begin on the weekend of September 9. So if a team decides to play late like ours, you are definitely going to overlap with tryouts. Luckily that is a part of the sport that I no longer need to worry about.