Choosing the right team.

[Lothar241]

Through no fault of her own or my own, my dd has played for 3 travel teams in 3 years and is now in the process of going through tryouts for possibly her 4th team.

Quick history.

2010 (10u) - 1st year playing TB. Manager not liked and daughter treated like an outsider by the other "in-town" girls. Moved on. B-team that did not win a lot.

2011 (12u) - Team broke up and organization collapsed at end of season. Needed a new team. A-team that did not win a lot.

2012 (12u) - 1st year 12u team. My dd the only 2nd year 12u on team. Played a lot and really grew as a player. Did not win a lot. Daughter aging up this season (the only one). However, there is no 14u team in place. The current 14u team is moving to 16u. No manager, no core group of girls to build around for the 14u. No guarantees of who will manage or even if there will be a team.

My dd being upset that she needs to find another team (she really likes the girls she played with). We have tried out for 4 teams so far.
#1 is the existing organization with no team in place. Very few 14u eligible girls tried out.

#2 an organization that is very close to home, has a good coach with a good reputation, and over the past 3 years has gone from feeling good when they didn't get mercied to winning several tournaments. However, dd has not made the team every year she has tried out and has never been notified either way that she made the team or not every year.

#3 is a brand new team that is made up of a core group of girls who aged out of a town Little League program and wanted to continue playing. The manager seemed nice and my dd really likes the other girls that tried out. My dd made the team on the 1st try out.

#4 is a solid program. First try out today. DD commented that the coach yells a lot and that she is not sure if she would want to play for him. Confirmed with other parents that he has a short fuse.

The only team that dd was invited to(so far) was team #3. Still have 2nd tryouts for teams #1 and #4. I asked my dd to rank her choices and she really likes #3. I also asked her if she minded playing on a team that does not win a lot and she said that she was OK with it. I have come to the conclusion that much of TB for her is about being with other girls and team first, playing softball 2nd, and winning 3rd.

After that long story, I am asking for opinions on my dd's situation. Also, what kind of questions do I ask the #3 manager to make sure it's the right team for my dd. My #1 issue is that she is on a 1st year 14u team so that she can stay with the team for years to come. All of these teams would be 1st year 14u.

 

[Momo'sDad]

After that long story, I am asking for opinions on my dd's situation. Also, what kind of questions do I ask the #3 manager to make sure it's the right team for my dd. My #1 issue is that she is on a 1st year 14u team so that she can stay with the team for years to come. All of these teams would be 1st year 14u.

IMO, she has already given you all the opinions you need to consider.

Regarding the questions you should ask, you should try to get a feel for the coach's philosophy based on what your DD considers to be important. Be a parent, but don't let too many of your own concerns about what you want influence the decision.

 

[Dtwn92]

We have kind of been in the same boat. I learned alot last year only picking a few teams I thought were a good fit. This year I sat down with my DD and went over tryouts and made a schedule. (Here) Make sure they are willing to answer what you want to know. Alot can be said of how things will go if they don't have the time to make you comfortable in choosing them.

Best of luck, I hope which ever one you pick works out well.

 

[Lothar241]

Sent an e-mail to #2 manager. His honesty was greatly appreciated. He told me he was specifically looking for speed. My dd wears cement shoes but can pound the ball. He did not want her just to be a hitter, it would not have been fair to her.

I am taking the wife and dd to #3 tonight for a 2nd tryout (we were told there was no need to show up again since she already made the team.). We will ask the coach several questions ($, PT, positions, etc.) If we like what we hear, we will probably commit, even though we have more tryouts. I will lay out the options to my dd, but it is ultimately her decision.

 

[joemcq51]

Through no fault of her own or my own, my dd has played for 3 travel teams in 3 years and is now in the process of going through tryouts for possibly her 4th team.

Quick history.

2010 (10u) - 1st year playing TB. Manager not liked and daughter treated like an outsider by the other "in-town" girls. Moved on. B-team that did not win a lot.

2011 (12u) - Team broke up and organization collapsed at end of season. Needed a new team. A-team that did not win a lot.

2012 (12u) - 1st year 12u team. My dd the only 2nd year 12u on team. Played a lot and really grew as a player. Did not win a lot. Daughter aging up this season (the only one). However, there is no 14u team in place. The current 14u team is moving to 16u. No manager, no core group of girls to build around for the 14u. No guarantees of who will manage or even if there will be a team.

My dd being upset that she needs to find another team (she really likes the girls she played with). We have tried out for 4 teams so far.
#1 is the existing organization with no team in place. Very few 14u eligible girls tried out.

#2 an organization that is very close to home, has a good coach with a good reputation, and over the past 3 years has gone from feeling good when they didn't get mercied to winning several tournaments. However, dd has not made the team every year she has tried out and has never been notified either way that she made the team or not every year.

#3 is a brand new team that is made up of a core group of girls who aged out of a town Little League program and wanted to continue playing. The manager seemed nice and my dd really likes the other girls that tried out. My dd made the team on the 1st try out.

#4 is a solid program. First try out today. DD commented that the coach yells a lot and that she is not sure if she would want to play for him. Confirmed with other parents that he has a short fuse.

The only team that dd was invited to(so far) was team #3. Still have 2nd tryouts for teams #1 and #4. I asked my dd to rank her choices and she really likes #3. I also asked her if she minded playing on a team that does not win a lot and she said that she was OK with it. I have come to the conclusion that much of TB for her is about being with other girls and team first, playing softball 2nd, and winning 3rd.

After that long story, I am asking for opinions on my dd's situation. Also, what kind of questions do I ask the #3 manager to make sure it's the right team for my dd. My #1 issue is that she is on a 1st year 14u team so that she can stay with the team for years to come. All of these teams would be 1st year 14u.

My DD was on several different teams in the last few years. You need to find the most competetive team, that she will get significant playing time on. My DD has made friends on every team she has played and that is a great part of the game. If your DD is serious about the game, now is the time to give her a little nudge to get on a better team. 14U seems to really have a big seperation between the good and bad teams.

I would ask some of the following questions

1. How many assistant coaches have DD's on the team?
2. What type of tournaments will you be entering? A, B, Qualifiers???
3. Fees? You want a small enough fee you can afford, but a large enough fee to ensure the families are committed.
4. Playing time? Where does the coach see your DD fitting in?

If there is a core group of kids and your DD is the newbie, you should expect that she will have to be heads and shoulders above the other girls to earn a spot. Sort of what you went through already.

Good luck and don't stress the switching teams so much. 20 years ago, a girl would stay in one program. Today, it seems that as long as you honor your commitment for an entire season, you are ok.

 

[hacksaw]

team 3 gets my vote. the more fun she has being part of the over all softball experience will carry over to her longer term desire to play .

 

[howellhandmade]

My daughter had a choice of three teams this year, too. I tried to be all analytical about it -- character of coaches, overall strength of the organization, quality of instruction, indoor facilities, quality of tournaments, blah blah blah. In the end, there was one team that my daughter really wanted to play for, and when she was offered a pitching spot she was really, really happy. Had to go with that. It's a game.

As it happened, the team she chose is the closest, which will save us hours and hours sitting in rush hour traffic. And it has a paid coaching staff of two young women, which I like. They're very smart, clear and direct. Demanding, but not in the noisy, harsh, quasi-military way that you get when middle-aged men use their daughters as competitive proxies. We've had both really good and really bad experience with dad coaches. I realize that the vast majority of softball teams wouldn't be there if it weren't for dads (and moms) making it happen and I'm a dad coach myself so this isn't to categorically slam them, but I'm looking forward to trying a different dynamic. Ahhhhh, glad that's over.

 

[Lothar241]

I brought my wife down to see the second tryout for team #3. The girls were more than capable. The manager has 15+ years experience, does not have a daughter on the team, and all of the girls either already on the team or trying out seemed more than capable of playing the game. They will be playing mostly "B" tournaments and "open" tournaments. The price tag is a little high, but within our budget. The facilities are really nice. The commute is at our maximum distance that we set for ourselves, but it is not a bad drive.

We are now on our 4th team in 4 years, but confident that we made the right choice. Go team #3!!!

 

[YOCOACH]

Congrats! I wish you and your family all the best in the upcoming season.

 

[southwestsoftball]

Congrats! Sounds like you all are very happy with your decison and excited about the new team. Cant put a price on peace of mind and it seems like you have that. Best of luck to your dd on the new team!