The other side to the "Multi-Sport Athlete"

[CloudofDust]

I think the "evolution" of youth sports now vs. even 5 years ago, much less 10 years ago, needs to be taken into consideration. What kids experienced 5-10 years or more ago cannot be compared to today's kids. Year-round travel, club, AAU, etc. programs have taken over youth sports. The traditional fall, winter and spring sport seasons have gone the way of the dodo bird. Competitive kids/parents feel compelled and pressured to specialize in one sport early or be left behind

That is spot-on. I was talking to a parent with a DD playing her 2nd year of 10U travel ball the other day. His DD decided she was interested in pitching but he told her she was too old to start trying pitch. What?? One of the best pitchers of all time didn't start pitching until she was almost 12. Things have changed since Cat's little league days, but the pressure parents feel is real.

I support the multi-sport approach 100%, especially at the younger ages. Different sports require different sets of skills, but allow players to become better, well-rounded athletes. Some skills will translate from one sport to another without the player even realizing it. Sort of like Mr. Miyagi's karate drills...some of the best volleyball servers just so happen to play a lot of softball. Additionally, younger kids don't/can't really know which sport they'll enjoy, or excel at without trying them for a few seasons. They will eventually figure out which is their best sport, but they should be allowed to do that on their own, without a parent pushing them to play only one sport. 14-15 is about the right age for that decision to be made and, even then, the best athletes will still be able to play multiple sports at the varsity level.

Your kids only get one childhood and they should get to experience as many sports as they like and have as much fun as they can. Any lost ground can be easily recouped in high school, with a lot of hard work and dedication.

 

[schwabach]

Your kids only get one childhood and they should get to experience as many sports as they like and have as much fun as they can. Any lost ground can be easily recouped in high school, with a lot of hard work and dedication.

You can't say this too often.

 

[livingontheroad]

I knew one player that went to college to play basketball.......ended up playing softball instead.

I knew another that went to college to play softball.........ended up playing basketball.

Good athletes, are good athletes at more than 1 thing usually.

 

[DanMaz]

one thing i can say about multi sport athletes is that it helps to avoid burn out and over use injuries if they just play one sport by the time the athlete gets to be a freshman or sophomore in college.

 

[Westwind]

Completely disagree. This is the kind of oft repeated fairy tale that becomes “true” after parents repeat it while trying to justify running their kids into the ground with three sports.

Small hs perspective here. The hs pushes the three sport athlete bs, as do neighboring schools. The three sport athletes I coached in tb had more injuries. Plain and simple. They got ran like cattle from volleyball to basketball to softball with no break in between and in the summer they had “voluntary“ summer volleyball and basketball often both in the same day. Plus conditioning. Plus strength training. TWO three sport athletes on my 18u tb team had shoulder surgery last summer.

These kids never got a break to heal mentally or physically.

 

[_MIA_]

Completely disagree. This is the kind of oft repeated fairy tale that becomes “true” after parents repeat it while trying to justify running their kids into the ground with three sports.

Small hs perspective here. The hs pushes the three sport athlete bs, as do neighboring schools. The three sport athletes I coached in tb had more injuries. Plain and simple. They got ran like cattle from volleyball to basketball to softball with no break in between and in the summer they had “voluntary“ summer volleyball and basketball often both in the same day. Plus conditioning. Plus strength training. TWO three sport athletes on my 18u tb team had shoulder surgery last summer.

These kids never got a break to heal mentally or physically.

Yeah I don't buy the less injury thing..I mean they may have less Softball specific injuries but knee injuries are prevalent in girls who play volleyball and basketball. Play multiple sports because you like playing multiple sports not because you think it will make you better in softball or cause less injuries.

 

[Westwind]

It especially irritates me that the high schools push this and claim they are doing it for the good of the athletes and then let the coaches start practicing the day after the last sport ends.

So disingenuous.

And of course Day 1 of every practice is “conditioning”. Great plan for a bunch or worn out athletes.

Then you gotta do “team building” because all these small town kids are looking at each other’s mugs 340 days per year.

 

[radness]

Yeah I don't buy the less injury thing..I mean they may have less Softball specific injuries but knee injuries are prevalent in girls who play volleyball and basketball. Play multiple sports because you like playing multiple sports not because you think it will make you better in softball or cause less injuries.

Basketball/Volleyball = seasonal jammed/broken fingers.
Just something i've noticed.
________________

Question i think is important to this is
***Just because a person can play multiple sports does that in itself mean the other sports technical skills will help or hinder in the cross over?

Sprinting = Sprinting
Agility = Agility
Hand eye coordination = Hand eye coordination

How does serving in vollyball help throwing a softball?
Or
Can it actually (mechanics wise) work against each other?

I played racquetball.
At high school age a very well known successful coach told me to stop playing racquetball if i was planning to prioritize softball.
They said
" it will mess up your swing"...hitting

I thought about it.
And stopped playing racquetball.
While it was great agility i do think the seperate but very close/similar mechanics
Could have caused muscle confussion.
Say this now having taught others for over 30 years.
And having encountered this delema.
With tennis players and golfers. Think i made the right choice for me.
Plus racquetball was something i could go back to later.

 

[jdint]

Completely disagree. This is the kind of oft repeated fairy tale that becomes “true” after parents repeat it while trying to justify running their kids into the ground with three sports.

Small hs perspective here. The hs pushes the three sport athlete bs, as do neighboring schools. The three sport athletes I coached in tb had more injuries. Plain and simple. They got ran like cattle from volleyball to basketball to softball with no break in between and in the summer they had “voluntary“ summer volleyball and basketball often both in the same day. Plus conditioning. Plus strength training. TWO three sport athletes on my 18u tb team had shoulder surgery last summer.

These kids never got a break to heal mentally or physically.

There actually is a fair amount of research that indicates the opposite.

Research confirms that single sport athletes have a higher career rate of injury than multiple sport athletes. Specifically, in a recent study published in the Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine, evidence suggests an association between “early single sport specialization and overuse injuries.” The author goes on to point out that single sport athletes are associated with higher rates of psychological burnout and dropping out of sports altogether.

A study by the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health which included more than 1,500 high school athletes found that athletes who specialized in one sport were twice as likely to report a lower extremity injury as compared to those who played multiple sports.

Another recent study published in the American Journal of Sports Medicine has those numbers even higher, claiming that spending more than eight months annually in one sport leaves young athletes nearly three times more likely to experience an overuse injury in their hip or knee.

I don't have a strong opinion on it one way or the other, but I don't believe it's necessarily a "fairy tale" justified by parents. You would like to think common sense would come into play when not running your kid into the ground.

 

[_MIA_]

There actually is a fair amount of research that indicates the opposite.

Research confirms that single sport athletes have a higher career rate of injury than multiple sport athletes. Specifically, in a recent study published in the Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine, evidence suggests an association between “early single sport specialization and overuse injuries.” The author goes on to point out that single sport athletes are associated with higher rates of psychological burnout and dropping out of sports altogether.

A study by the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health which included more than 1,500 high school athletes found that athletes who specialized in one sport were twice as likely to report a lower extremity injury as compared to those who played multiple sports.

Another recent study published in the American Journal of Sports Medicine has those numbers even higher, claiming that spending more than eight months annually in one sport leaves young athletes nearly three times more likely to experience an overuse injury in their hip or knee.

I don't have a strong opinion on it one way or the other, but I don't believe it's necessarily a "fairy tale" justified by parents. You would like to think common sense would come into play when not running your kid into the ground.

Those are studies regarding overuse injuries but other sports like volleyball and basketball tend to have more injuries that are traumatic in nature..sprains,tears,etc.

Like I said before, if you are making your kid play multiple sports because you think it is going to optimize something else softball related I think you are barking up the wrong tree. I also think that if you make your kid play only 1 sport because you are afraid they won't maximize their softball potential that is silly too. So at the end of the day don't make your kid do anything (sports-related) I guess is my point...lol