Moving from 10u to 12u

[Ooogha]

Hi all. Hope you all are well!

We are on the West Coast and have had no tournaments this season. We actually did go to Utah to play in one, but what a very long drive. That is the only tournament we’ve had and I’m hearing that the season is over.

So, my daughter is a pitcher who turns 11 next month. Our current team wants to stay in 10u through fall, but I am hearing we might as well get a jump on 12u pitching and the bigger ball, etc. so we can be ready for spring. There is a team interested in her. Does anyone have any thoughts on this? We’ve already been practicing with the 12u ball and distance and she seems to be doing great. Thanks in advance!

 

[625ender]

Kids adapt and grow like no other. I wpuld let her play up. It has to happen next year any way. She'll be just fine

 

[Rolling Hard]

I believe the jump from 10u to 12u is the biggest jump she will make. Bigger ball and the mound back aside, at 12u there are young ladies mixed in with little girls. Young ladies that are 5'7" and weighing 135 lbs post puberty hitting lasers playing against 4'6", 70 lbs. little girls A decent first year 12u team vs a good second year 12u team get lopsided really fast. Coaches have to be good at scheduling the teams competition in order not to have a 1 and 24 record and kill the teams spirit. Nothing worse than being on a non competitive team.
Almost all teams need pitchers. Check out all your options. Ask questions before you commit.

 

[Westwind]

I don’t know if this will help or if it is relevant but what you might find is that she can switch back and forth between both size balls almost at will. I was surprised how easily that happened.

What Rolling Hard said above, especially that first sentence, is also absolutely true and it is what I remember very clearly.

 

[chinamigarden]

If the team all ages up. Playing this fall at 10u won’t help the girls as much as all moving up will. If they stay down they will be playing younger teams. And if they move up they will be probably playing teams they would have played in the summer.

 

[justAdad2]

i would say it all depends on your daughters size and if she is ahead of everyone else in her age group. usually the youngest player on a team gets the least amount of playtime.

 

[joe720]

My DD started playing 12U when she was 10. Think the hardest adjustment is for the parents. Kids take it in stride.

 

[Eric F]

I believe the jump from 10u to 12u is the biggest jump she will make. Bigger ball and the mound back aside, at 12u there are young ladies mixed in with little girls. Young ladies that are 5'7" and weighing 135 lbs post puberty hitting lasers playing against 4'6", 70 lbs. little girls A decent first year 12u team vs a good second year 12u team get lopsided really fast. Coaches have to be good at scheduling the teams competition in order not to have a 1 and 24 record and kill the teams spirit. Nothing worse than being on a non competitive team.
Almost all teams need pitchers. Check out all your options. Ask questions before you commit.

This ^^^ is pretty spot on.

12U itself has the biggest size dynamic of any age group, and adding 10yos to the mix increases that dynamic even more. Some of the 12U teams you face will feel like monsters (I recall on particular girl over 6' tall), especially if they are older teams who aren't playing up in the fall. That said, I agree with taking the step up in the fall. The fall struggles will be good for their development, and things will normalize a bit in the spring.

The road ahead is still long. Don't panic too much about the details right now. If your DD is having fun and getting better, you're on a good path.

 

[Capone]

My opinion, playing 10U in the fall then having to go to 12U in the spring does not help the girls develop. They may do well against 10U competition but that's not who they will face come spring time. I've heard people call coaches that play down in the fall trophy hunters. Not saying this is the case and there might be valid reasons to play down.

 

[Quigs10]

Agree with others...move on to 12u now. It will prepare your DD and team far more since they move up anyways in spring.