Find out what position the HC, AC, team mom kids play. If it's the same as yours, keep looking. It's critical for 10u kids to play. Pessimistic, but oh so real.
P, SS and 1st. C might be thrown in there. Why even ask.
Find out what position the HC, AC, team mom kids play. If it's the same as yours, keep looking. It's critical for 10u kids to play. Pessimistic, but oh so real.
Maybe. Maybe not. AC's DD on my DD current 14U team is also a catcher. My DD earned the #1 C job over the AC's DD by being an undeniably better player in that position. That said, there are certainly plenty of examples that confirm your point. My advice...Proceed with caution, but don't make it an automatic deal-breaker.
All that said, it sounds like this is the only TB option available in the OP's area. It's either this or back to rec.
EDIT: At 10U - and even 12U - if players aren't playing multiple positions, the coaches are doing it wrong. This is the time to build all-around ballplayers with a complete set of fundamental skills.
2nd base seems to be prevalent in my neck of the woods.P, SS and 1st. C might be thrown in there. Why even ask.
Do you coach on the team as well? If not, you have found a rare coaching staff, and I congratulate you for having your DD in a very good place! I agree with your sentiment in theory, as well as what you added in your edit, but I can cite a half dozen examples from our travel ball journey with "name brand" SoCal squads that validate my cynicism.
On the flip side, maybe all the adversity helped build character. Within three months of joining a non daddyball/buddyball team, DD verballed with a pretty good D1 mid-major.
Haha, what #10 said, then go back and read post #10. Of course me and #10 say this in jest.........right #10?? I'm not even going to speak for my DD, I couldn't imagine MY life without TB!! I have met so many great people and made friends with some of the coolest people that I know will be lifelong friends, had some of the best weekends with some of these people, but most of all I got to spend so much quality time with my daughter!
TB can be ugly, it's definitely expensive, and man.......so time consuming, it seemed for the longest time for us there was never any middle ground, just extreme highs and even worse lows. Getting into a solid organization with solid, connected coaches is THE key to success! Trust your gut, if your gut says heck no, run away! Having said this, I'd do it all over again, just with many less mistakes!
OP, good luck with your decision, if it works out hang on, it's a crazy ride you'll never forget!
It also sucks for the other kids in your family if they aren't into sports. This past summer I felt like I never did anything with my 12yo son and felt terrible about it. We talked about it and I promised him we would go fishing more this year and get the kayaks out more as well. It's a difficult balancing act to say the least, especially if you are involved in the coaching side of it.