ASA, U-trip, Pony Whats the Difference?

[CoachHarley]

Just thought I would see what everyone's take is on the differences between ASA, USSSA, Pony, and the other sanctions. My organization plays all Utrip and our rec league is Babe Ruth/Cal Ripken. Almost all of the kids in our organization play in the rec league also.

I know there are some slight rule differences, but what about the quality of players, college exposure, tournament quality, things like that?

How about between Babe Ruth vs Little League? My DD's have never played in LL, I didn't play baseball past age 8 growing up so I have no clue about differences there.

 

[CoogansBluff]

My impression of N.C. --

ASA - Has most of the really elite tournaments - the ASA qualifiers, the state championships, some good showcases. But has lost the battle for the mid- to low-level tournaments. ASA ranks 4th in the number of tournaments they run in N.C. now.

NSA - They offer the best competition for local tournaments, especially 14U and below. Their state championships in 14U/12U/10U are probably the best, exceeding ASA now. To win consistently in NSA, you have to be one of the top 20 teams in the state. They rank #3 in number of tournaments.

USSSA & TopGun (which I think is affiliated w/ USFA) - They run the most tournaments overall, USSSA in eastern NC, TopGun in western NC. Well-organized. Good teams will play some USSSA & Top Gun, but also NSA & ASA. Fair to middling to entry-level teams might play entirely USSSA & Top Gun.

There are some other smaller organizations that run lower-level tournaments.

 

[SoAZDad]

In Arizona, ASA, USSSA, and TCS have tournaments that the better teams compete in. The top teams like to travel to SoCal for PGF tournaments, but there aren't many PGF Premier of Platinum events here. NSA is here but has not yet attracted much competition.

Rec ball is widespread, and includes LL and local leagues that typically have modified ASA rules.

 

[Cobb_of_Fury]

I think it all depends on the area - Here in Western PA; USSSA and NSA tend to be the lesser tourney - ASA holds sway for the most part and PGF is just starting to work it's way in.
We do have a couple High lever USSSA and NSA tourneys.

 

[SB23]

Here on Long Island, 90% of everything travel is USSSA, the other 10% are Pony

School ball is strictly ASA -

No ISA, NSA or PGF

I should add all of the quality teams from Long Island are forced to travel out of state to New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania and further to get the right kind of exposure.

No out of state teams really want to travel here...Tournaments are very pricey, fields are OK, hotels are high priced, lots of traffic. sounds so welcoming doesn't it !!!

 

[Lenski]

Here in Ohio, PGF and ASA have the teams, quality tournaments, and college exposure where NSA and USSSA do not. In Ohio, NSA shot themselves in the foot around 2008 (poorly run state tournament) and never recovered from the debacle. USSSA tournaments are usually filled by B/C/rec level teams.

 

[JAD]

In GA the ASA qualifiers are well attended, but their non-qualifiers can be hit or miss. Some of the other sanctions (NSA, USSSA, USFA, GSA, ect) have done a much better job of catering to the B-level and C-level teams. PGF has pulled some of the top teams away from ASA Nationals, but most still play the qualifiers.

 

[Lenski]

Georgia has one of my favorite tournaments of all time......Atlanta Legacy!

 

[MNDad]

As far as college exposure PGF, ASA and TCS National events are the place to be. Other big showcases such as Colorado, Demarini, Legacy etc are also heavily attended. You won't see many colleges at Regional "Nationals" such as ASA Northern or any USSSA event.

Local/Regional showcases and qualifiers are hit and miss. I've been to some and didn't see a single college and others that had a several. The key is contacting schools ahead of time to get them to your games.

 

[JAD]

Georgia has one of my favorite tournaments of all time......Atlanta Legacy!

Legacy is a great showcase, it is not really a tournament.