Rise of select teams

[grcsftbll]

Then there are some girls you see on rec teams and you want to go steal them over to your travel team because they're so naturally talented. I hate thinking about being "behind" with kids who are still in elementary school, you know? It's a game and we have no way of knowing if our kids will still be playing in middle school, or high school, or college.

 

[maksoftball]

You know, when DD started playing BB in 1st grade, she didn't really take to it because the boys were all like "you're a girl". Then I enrolled her into the neighborhood softball league in 2nd grade. She played there from 2nd grade until 5th grade...and I could see her natural drive/work ethic to want to be a better player. We kind of reached a dead end with rec ball in respect to getting to "next level". So I found her a team that she could practice with for a couple of months. Unfortunately, they broke up after that couple of months, and she was "team-less". She tried out for a top tier 10u team and made the team (she had practiced with them previously, and they were so impressed with her progress and work ethic, they offered her a spot).

ANYWAY, she did NOT have athletic abilities then...she was tall and awkward and gangly. LOL. I was told she was the most "graceful" player they had ever seen play on the field. Well, by 7th and 8th grade, the girl was not graceful, and she was by far the dirtiest player to come off the field. And now, she most definitely has athletic build, same work ethic and drive...she is a junior. I feel that had I not encouraged her or pushed her, she would be a totally different kid today. And had there not been a "next level" to pursue, she would not have the same work ethic/drive that she has today.

Now with that said, 6U and 8U travel ball? I think that is too young. They need to mesh with their peers on and off the field with no pressure from anyone. Just have fun learning the basic fundamentals of softball and being a team. I know some have done 8U travel ball, and I am in no way totally against it as I know there are different situations/circumstances that lead the way to playing at that level. I.e. better coaching, better organization, etc.

 

[JJsqueeze]

Out in SoCal the select teams are essentially teams of rec all stars that take advantage of the ASA select classification so they can play in travel ball tournaments and still remain eligible for rec. We call it travel lite. They range in skill from horrendous to mediocre but I think it is a good way to let a family try on travel ball without spending a huge amount of money before making the jump. sometimes they convert from select to travel a little too quickly and get crushed. Its kind of a weird dynamic. I think ASA created this to stop the bleeding to travel ball at younger ages but from what I have seen, parents are jumping quickly to TB after being at tournaments and getting crushed. The system actually lets TB coaches evaluate new rec talent in a game situation with the parents of the standouts right there in the stands to chat with after the game

 

[Orange Socks]

Then there are some girls you see on rec teams and you want to go steal them over to your travel team because they're so naturally talented. I hate thinking about being "behind" with kids who are still in elementary school, you know? It's a game and we have no way of knowing if our kids will still be playing in middle school, or high school, or college.

Just wait a few years. You will find out that many of those "talented" kids will peak at 10U/12U due to many circumstances. Some kids stop growing. Some kids don't feel like putting in the work because they are naturally talented. Other kids just get better than "peaked in 10U" kid. I have seen some really talented kids at the lower age brackets that I thought were going somewhere, get passed up.

Don't get wrapped up in thinking your kid is getting behind if they don't play year wrong. It's counter intuitive to think that way, but it's true. Heck my DD hadn't had a hitting lesson in 3 months, has not had a real practice since Dec, had only hit the fence once in a game-usually one bouncers, and just banged one over the fence in her first high school AB. How does that make any sense? Did she get behind??? Nope, she got stronger by playing basketball as much as I hate to say.

 

[grcsftbll]

Congrats to her, OS. It's always exciting to hit one out!

 

[JAD]

In our area there is REC ball, All Stars, then TB (C, B-, B, B+, A-, A, A+, Gold). "Select" teams are a new phenomenon like the USA Elite Select Futures All American Program, where players pay to try out. Most of the top TB players play with their TB team the entire summer, so these tryouts are very watered down.

USA Elite Select

 

[Jdaddy]

In our area there is REC ball, All Stars, then TB (C, B-, B, B+, A-, A, A+, Gold). "Select" teams are a new phenomenon like the USA Elite Select Futures All American Program, where players pay to try out. Most of the top TB players play with their TB team the entire summer, so these tryouts are very watered down.

USA Elite Select

I'm curious how many of the girls who tried out will decline the spot due to ASA or PGF Nationals. I'm sure some went just for the experience and to see where they fell in the talent pool that attended.

 

[djcarter1966]

Just as I left Texas, Select started catching on...we were involved with PONY and they have "Select" it is basically all season rec All Star team. They only play other Select PONY teams when they play PONY, since there are not a lot of PONY select teams they also go to local tournaments, usually in DFW, Houston and San Antonio you don't have to go out of town to play a tournament almost every weekend if you want.

 

[JAD]

I'm curious how many of the girls who tried out will decline the spot due to ASA or PGF Nationals. I'm sure some went just for the experience and to see where they fell in the talent pool that attended.

In my experience most of the players attending these select tryouts are A-, B+ and B players. Very few A and A+ players attend since most of them are on TB teams that are already scheduled to play at ASA or PGF Nationals. The players that come out of the woodwork are the ones on Tier 2 TB teams that may or may not be going to nationals.

 

[Angus]

I am in the middle of this now. My daughter is 8U, and we live in Missouri. She is on a select/travel team (can be referred to as either), which is affiliated with one of the large travel clubs in the area. They play in a league against teams from around the area (not just in a local community), and league play is divided into Select vs Rec. Additionally, they will play in about 4 local tournaments this year.

So, it's not a full-fledged travel team, in that they are not playing tournaments every week. But it is comprised generally of kids who want to play at a higher level with other kids who are more serious about the sport. Having done straight rec for a couple of years, I think it's a great option to have. There's too much of a skill differential, even at this age, to have more competitive players on the same team as kids who can't catch, throw, or hit with any accuracy . . . which is actually dangerous sometimes. It was very boring and frustrating for her to be on a team like that - some people advised us to have her play up, but I didn't really want to do that. The coaches do a good job of not getting too serious or competitive at this age, however.