I’m a relatively new softball parent. I grew up playing sports in my local summer league and in my high school. I didn’t travel all over or play year round or go to national tournaments or scout camps or showcases. I ended up being a scholar-athlete in college for basketball. Starting point guard for my team.
With that being said, why nowadays, is there such a huge push to start kids super young on very competitive teams/leagues, send them to XYZ prospect camp, etc? I’m probably naive when it comes to how kids get noticed by college recruits. But, if a kid is good enough, like I was (due to hard work on my own time, not travel ball) why is it necessary to start kids at 6/7 years old, playing competitive travel ball? Yeah, the competition is greater, but on an individual level, does better competition really make an athlete better? There has to be a limit. Just because I play against Michael Jordan, doesn’t mean I’m going to be like Mike. This all just doesn’t add up to me, at this point. Again, I’m a fairly new softball parent.
With that being said, why nowadays, is there such a huge push to start kids super young on very competitive teams/leagues, send them to XYZ prospect camp, etc? I’m probably naive when it comes to how kids get noticed by college recruits. But, if a kid is good enough, like I was (due to hard work on my own time, not travel ball) why is it necessary to start kids at 6/7 years old, playing competitive travel ball? Yeah, the competition is greater, but on an individual level, does better competition really make an athlete better? There has to be a limit. Just because I play against Michael Jordan, doesn’t mean I’m going to be like Mike. This all just doesn’t add up to me, at this point. Again, I’m a fairly new softball parent.