FOR PARENTS: Knowing when to invest for your kid

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Strike2

Allergic to BS
Nov 14, 2014
2,044
113
I think by 14U, and certainly 16U, most become realistic about the scholarship situation in college softball. Players at that age either like playing or very quickly find something else to do. However, the parental emphasis seems to shift to "she's gotta play college ball somewhere, or we've wasted all this time and money". They head to schools where, yes, the tuition is covered this year, but not room/board. In some cases, it costs significantly MORE to do that than it would to send them to the local JC, which is potentially BETTER academically. I'm seeing kids heading for overloaded JUCO teams that may have two-dozen or more players when school starts later this month. Not only are they unlikely to play, they may not get through the workouts designed to force some attrition. I wish I had a dollar for every kid who signed a "letter of intent" to much fanfare who is not on the roster after their freshman year.
 

BigSkyHi

All I know is I don't know
Jan 13, 2020
1,385
113
Got to spend 10 wonderful years watching DS & DD playing in the dirt rather than on the wonderful Florida beaches. Spent lots of money on family time traveling and living out of suitcases (worth every dime). DS got most of higher ed paid for through baseball. DD gave up fast pitch at 16 for music.

DD is back in the city now with a nice apartment view going for her music doctorate.

MVIMG_20200810_204536.jpg
 
Aug 25, 2019
1,066
113
I knew one family in travel ball whose took money out of their 401k to pay to play travel each yr thinking it was an investment ..... Their daughter decided not to play college ball. Possibly she had grade issues but she was a really good player and had no lack of interest.


.

You're kidding me?.........

I'm a simple man, I really don't understand people's thinking. If you have a kid (I have two), start a college fund when they are born, I did it as soon as I got their SS numbers. I didn't invest alot into their accounts, but in 18 years, it all adds up, they can both go to 4 year state schools for free, and since they are both smart, they can get some academic money (like son did) and go to a private college with little expense to me.

It's a shame that a girl has to play with the worry of getting a scholarship, no parent should put that burden on their child. Play for the love of the game, not for financial investment.
 
Jun 16, 2010
259
28
You're kidding me?.........


Most certainly am not.
Our organization had fundraising activities
You could pay your fees, or you could work them.
I always worked them cuz I'm cheap. And it was a lot of money to me.

These people that used 401K money did not work them either.......

it wasn't like it was easy work it actually turned out to be less than minimum wage........ Lots and lots of hours.
 
Jun 4, 2019
134
43
I wouldn’t invest anything in the hopes of playing college softball. Is that honestly a goal that players and parents strive for? Is there any pot of gold at the end of a softball rainbow that I don’t know about? There’s no professional league where they can make millions of dollars.

I went to a coaches clinic with about five coaches from power five schools. They all said the same thing, if your daughter is not a high-end pitcher, you can forget a full scholarship. Only so much money to give out - most of it goes to pitchers, the rest goes to a catcher and if there’s anything left over it goes to a shortstop. They all said if your daughter has great grades, they can package other money together, but it’s nowhere near a full scholarship. If you’re spending a lot of money and gambling on your kid getting a scholarship, you might want to reevaluate the situation

I know six girls who played college softball, all were awesome in my local high school. Three of the five quit after their freshman year. Thats the reality of college sports.
 
Dec 11, 2019
30
8
This thread is spot on for me. My DD is 13 and loves the sport, we enjoy watching her do something she loves. I think it is great if she continues to love it and plays in college, but I would like her to pick the college for the all around best fit for her - program strengths, size, location, etc.

I think of softball as her favorite hobby and not much more, but now that she is in 14U I am starting to wonder if I am shortchanging her because she has never been in private lessons* and we don't have her swinging at 100 pitches every day in the yard or something. We are in the north east, so I don't think we are home to the strongest softball around, but she seems to play pretty well. I take cell phone videos and send them in braggy texts to my mom, but I don't critique her swing (I wouldn't know how) or keep stats to see if she is on track for D1 at 13.

She definitely loves it. Should I be taking it more seriously?

*we did start weekly batting lessons with her team coach last month
 
Aug 25, 2019
1,066
113
This thread is spot on for me. My DD is 13 and loves the sport, we enjoy watching her do something she loves. I think it is great if she continues to love it and plays in college, but I would like her to pick the college for the all around best fit for her - program strengths, size, location, etc.

I think of softball as her favorite hobby and not much more, but now that she is in 14U I am starting to wonder if I am shortchanging her because she has never been in private lessons* and we don't have her swinging at 100 pitches every day in the yard or something. We are in the north east, so I don't think we are home to the strongest softball around, but she seems to play pretty well. I take cell phone videos and send them in braggy texts to my mom, but I don't critique her swing (I wouldn't know how) or keep stats to see if she is on track for D1 at 13.

She definitely loves it. Should I be taking it more seriously?

*we did start weekly batting lessons with her team coach last month
MY DD is the same. She's 16, on a 18u team, she's a good player, but she's not playing in college. She just loves playing. I take her to hitting lessons once a week to keep her sharp, and we hit with the tee and bownet 2-3 times a week. She's much happier when she's hitting well.

If your DD is holding her own, then you really don't need to get crazy with private lessons, but as you know, pitchers get better the older they get, so you may want to look into hitting to keep her sharp too.....Have fun!
 

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