Playing up?

[Sparky Guy]

My opinion is very simple. If the talent level is such that you are calling it "playing up" don't do it. But if she is really good than she is not playing up, she is just a little younger than the other players.

There is one other thing that is usually not mentioned. That is the social environment in the dugout. Often what is discussed between 14-15 year old girls are not the same topics as the 11-12 year old girls discuss. The transition from 12's to 14's is harder for some girls off the field rather than on it. If a girl can handle both the physical and emotional differences then by all means she should be where she is challenged.

It's always a tough decision because of the varying differences in the physical and emotional maturity of the girl as well as her potential team mates. Unfortunately you as the parent will have weigh all the factors and make the decision.

 

[SoftSocDad]

There is one other thing that is usually not mentioned. That is the social environment in the dugout. Often what is discussed between 14-15 year old girls are not the same topics as the 11-12 year old girls discuss.

This is one of the primary considerations for us as the parents of a young girl who anticipates playing with older girls in the spring. We could hold her back again, but although she'd be able to pitch as often as she wanted, she wouldn't be learning much about the game of softball in the younger age group because of the lack of instructional quality (regarding game situations and basic field mechanics) in our league.

Plus, the league board already said that we have no means to block a particular coach from drafting her, so we want to eliminate the possibility. lol

 

[Carty]

There are a lot of good points to consider. Certainly the difference in maturity levels is going to be important. Also consider her play time, not only as a pitcher but at the plate. She needs to be able to compete both as a pitcher and a batter. Being that the team is sponsored by an association., it might be possible to start her on the 12U team and be called up at times when necessary. That way your daughter, the coaches, and you can get an idea how she will do. If it is good then make the switch up. Otherwise perhaps the arrangement can stay. Then she will at least have an idea of what to expect in the next year. All of my DD's have done this at one time or another and it has worked well.

 

[Coach JV]

In rec. my dd was dominant as a 2nd year 12 and was asked by the league to move up.
In travel that year she stayed in her age group. The social environment she will face is key

 

[sru]

Great replies.

I agree with the comments in having play as a call up. See if she could practice with the team as well. You'll get a better sense of how she fits with the more mature girls, and how she is at the plate with the better pitching. My DD's was asked to play with an older team in our association for a few pre-season games to fill in for girls who where sick. She absolutely loved it, she did well, even hit a double. It was a huge boost to her confidence just to be asked. There was a big defference in the "dugout talk" (boys, high school etc), and although she was friendly with alot of the players from spending the summers at the diamond, she felt a little out of place.

She did walk away with the confidence knowing she could play with the bigger kids.

 

[2bucketdad]

Weather this is a rec team that plays league tournaments or a true travel team that plays travel tournaments needs to be cleared up among other things before this question can be answered correctly and in the best interest of the pitcher...

 

[SBFAMILY]

This is my dd's third year playing 16U and skipping 14U. Best decision we have made.

 

[Coach JV]

One more thing to consider-14U pitching rubber is 43' starting in 2011.
12U is 40'

 

[CoachAl]

Based the info. available here, playing as a "call up" or guest player should be the way to go. If you are playing tournaments, she will likely face some pretty good competition at 12u. It's not like she her progress as a pitcher will come to a halt if she plays 12u. Plus, as a guest player at 14u, you could potentially have her play for a few teams at the level to see which team is the right fit should you choose to make the move up.

 

[starsnuffer]

My daughter played 14u at 11. She played 12u at 12. Here's why:

Believe it or not, it isn't about playing ability. While she is a pitcher, she was #3 at 14u and generally only pitched 1 game a weekend. She did spend a lot of time in outfield and 2b, but that wasn't a problem. It's what we expected and she learned a great deal mechanics-wise.

The issue is that the conversation in the dugout and between games is MUCH different between an 11 year old and a 14-15 year old. She didn't really fit in, as much as the other girls tried, but the life experiences (boys), conversation (boys), goals (boys), and motivation (boys) was just not something she was keen on. She felt she had more fun in 12u so 12u is where we went. It's a game, it's meant to be fun. IF you're doing it for any other reason you only have my pity.

I realize that to this point all of the conversation has been about her ability level. I will tell you from experience that this has absolutely nothing to do with how you should make your decision. It's a completely different situation with a 10 year old playing in 12u (no big deal) or a 14 year old playing in 16u or 18u (no big deal).

-W