Weather to play competitive vs rec

[Rolling Hard]

The opening ceremonies, Closing ceremonies and the All-Stars experience memories that rec provides are priceless. In So Cal it use to be that good players would go to travel after first year 12u. (with their All-Star coach) That soon fails and players/families split up and go to tryouts and join a team.
WOW how things have changed. With covid many rec leagues shuttered down and with the spring season still unsure, now 10u and .....wait for it.......8u TB teams are breaking out all over the place. Covid has killed rec ball.

 

[Rick M]

DD had a great summer playing 8U with rec and then All-stars. The parents all got together and kept the team playing through the fall as a town travel team. We continued into the spring, but the group fractured as some parents wanted to leave the rec program and others chased bigger 10U travel orgs.

That left DD in the fall after first-year 10U with no place to play. We decided to try out for another local travel team and she made it.

That team went on an absolute tear, winning 70 games as second-year 10s and she was hooked.

She continued to play rec through second-year 12U, because it was mostly that 8U team where she started and they all play on different travel teams.

This year, with the uncertainty of Covid looming, we’ve managed to wrangle the parents of all the players who would have been on the middle school team to sign up for another season of rec. We’re hoping that some other surrounding towns can do the same.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[uncdrew]

After reading many of the replies. I started wondering: when do most people think a kid is ready for playing rec verse competitive/travel teams?

My DD made two comments that made it obvious she would benefit from moving from rec to travel:


1. I want to throw the ball and not worry if I hurt the girl I'm throwing to
2. I want to play a lot more often

 

[Eric F]

Why did your DD make the move? What is your DD's story?

For my DD, it was the second year of 10U...

The previous fall, a couple of coaches took a group of 10U girls that had been on the all-star teams during the summer, and created a "select" team that played outside the regular league, against similar teams in the area. Since the fall program in our league was designed to be "instructional" for beginning/newer player, playing with the better players was a good fit for my DD. Her skills definitely took a step up.

The following spring, a large number of the top girls on the "select" team decided to make the move to TB. My DD opted to play another season in the rec league, but it became clear very quickly that she was one of the top players in the league. About halfway through the season, we discussed the path forward, and decided that looking into TB was the right choice to continue her development. We could see that our DD wanted more out of the game than the rec league could offer. My DD tried out with a couple of TB teams, and decided to join one that included a teammate from her fall "select" team. It was as great fit. We had committed to finishing the spring rec season, and my DD played for both rec and TB teams as much as our schedule would allow. The TB coach understood that our priority was to complete the season with her rec team. My DD also made the decision to skip rec all-stars in the summer (I got a lot of heat from rec parents on that, but it was my DD's decision, and I supported her on it). Working with the TB team during the end of the rec season saw my DD's skill set improve dramatically, and she became clearly the best player in the league, and lead her team to the league championship title.

My DD's time with her first TB team (second year 10U, and all of 12U) was huge for setting her path in the game. The coaching was excellent (very development-focused), and it was awesome to see her skills grow to a level she never would have reached if she stayed in rec. For my DD, we made the right move at the right time, and found the right situation for her development.

From the "select" team...Three went to TB teams with demanding, win-first, coaches. All of them quit the game completely within about a year. Four others (including my DD) started with teams with more focus on player development, and all are still playing TB (16yo). One went to TB after the spring season, but went back to rec a short time later. One stayed in rec through 12U, and then moved to TB. She is still playing TB. The rest stayed in rec, and some eventually moved on to other sports.

When my DD was a HS freshman, I saw her alongside a couple of girls she had played rec ball with in 8U and 10U, but they had never made the move to TB. The difference in skill level - both physical and mental - was vivid.

 

[KrisHur]

My DD made the jump from rec to travel the second year of 12U. I think we waited one year too long. The first year of 12U coaches were fighting over her at the draw and she was a hitting/pitching machine. When she went to travel there was a bit of a learning curve as the other girls already knew a lot more about the game and had better running/hitting/fielding technique. But that could have just been the coaching at rec. level - daddy ball but nice fair guys who fostered a love of the game.

 

[Towny9]

My DD made the jump from rec to travel the second year of 12U. I think we waited one year too long. The first year of 12U coaches were fighting over her at the draw and she was a hitting/pitching machine. When she went to travel there was a bit of a learning curve as the other girls already knew a lot more about the game and had better running/hitting/fielding technique. But that could have just been the coaching at rec. level - daddy ball but nice fair guys who fostered a love of the game.

Never heard “daddy ball” and “fair” in the same sentence before - had to do a double take

 

[Lightning]

My husband and I had planned to keep DD at her rec league (Southern California) until her second year of 12U and then see what happened. But after her first year of 12U was cut short by COVID, one of the coaches started organizing practices to keep the girls sharp and it's turned into a decent travel team.

At this point I don't think it would benefit DD to go back to her league (which may not play a spring season anyway). The coaching she's getting now is too good and she wouldn't be challenged enough. I don't know how long this team will stay together, but right now it's the best place for her. The focus is on development, the coaches are incredibly patient, and the girls have gotten so much better.

That being said, I know other families who managed to pick the wrong travel team and they're not getting any better. So I don't think that rec vs. travel is a one-size-fits-all solution. It really depends on what your daughter wants, and what kind of teams are available for her.

 

[Quigs10]

The opening ceremonies, Closing ceremonies and the All-Stars experience memories that rec provides are priceless. In So Cal it use to be that good players would go to travel after first year 12u. (with their All-Star coach) That soon fails and players/families split up and go to tryouts and join a team.
WOW how things have changed. With covid many rec leagues shuttered down and with the spring season still unsure, now 10u and .....wait for it.......8u TB teams are breaking out all over the place. Covid has killed rec ball.

Yup!! So true. Boggles my mind when I see the ads on Facebook for new 8u TB teams looking for "dedicated and committed" girls for their 8u team. LMAO.... Dedicated and committed 7 and 8 yr olds?!?!?! Good grief!

Sooo many new young 8u and 10u "TB" teams out here in So Cal due to leagues not playing.

 

[NJSwampdragons]

We moved away from rec when we took my DD to a 10-U travel tournament and realized what she was playing at the time wasn’t really softball.

 

[MNDad]

Yup!! So true. Boggles my mind when I see the ads on Facebook for new 8u TB teams looking for "dedicated and committed" girls for their 8u team. LMAO.... Dedicated and committed 7 and 8 yr olds?!?!?! Good grief!

Sooo many new young 8u and 10u "TB" teams out here in So Cal due to leagues not playing.

I like seeing discussions about “highly competitive 8U COACH pitch travel”.