2020 Select Baseball

[systemnt]

Alright, good deal. That's who my boy is playing with, he's on the 7u black team.

Awesome burly is great with the kids and good people.
Welcome to the baller cult! LoL

[jshouse]

Moco ballers.

My youngest jumped teams, and 9u lol, will be playing 10u this year with Texas Oilers-Overstreet, are you guys coming up here to play this spring? We are going out of town April 25-26 to Shreveport for our only utrip tourney, all the rest are travel sports and triple crown in DFW.

[gingib]

Ok question for you experts out there. My son just turned 7 and is starting Coach pitch this year in league (Huffman).

My wife and I both are teachers. What age do you suggest getting into the Select world?

I have some questions for the "community" if you don't mind--as I am just trying to plan ahead.

What age is the best to start?---Do you wish your son started earlier/later?
what are the team fees associated with your team? Is there a set fee and monthly?
how far away do you travel? How often?

Thanks--if you don't want to answer on here or at all I understand on the money!

I would not start that early. No chance. It cracks me up they have 5/6u select teams. But parents pay for it

[systemnt]

My youngest jumped teams, and 9u lol, will be playing 10u this year with Texas Oilers-Overstreet, are you guys coming up here to play this spring? We are going out of town April 25-26 to Shreveport for our only utrip tourney, all the rest are travel sports and triple crown in DFW.

Should get our schedule tomorrow.. i know we are doing a few NITs and select/elite30 ...not sure where they all are yet.. and most likely GWS again..
We get the vip enrollment into all the big usssa tourneys by default just so we dont get bumped..but it makes seeing what our real schedule is a pain in the arse lol
I think black is headed to dallas at some point..

[jer_james]

I would not start that early. No chance. It cracks me up they have 5/6u select teams. But parents pay for it

That doesn't answer the question at all …

I'd say right around the 9/10 yr old level is a good start. I would start with some good Coaching before that though. If you just ask a few folks, they can point you in the right direction.

You can never play enough catch, hit enough balls off the tee.

[jer_james]

A guy was pointing us to a newly developed higher competition rec league that has been started locally. I think we may take a look at it. 1-2 games per weekend and 2 practices a week sounds nice.

[LukeDuke]

What age is the best to start?---

The best age to start depends on the kid...

Does he stand out as clearly one of the best players on his team and in his league?

Does he love the game and pay attention to the game?

If you can honestly answer "yes" to both then he is ready.

In the best case scenario you find the most competitive situation where your kid has a chance to play.

Another cheaper option to consider is "playing up".

Good luck and keep it fun!

[systemnt]

That doesn't answer the question at all …



I'd say right around the 9/10 yr old level is a good start. I would start with some good Coaching before that though. If you just ask a few folks, they can point you in the right direction.



You can never play enough catch, hit enough balls off the tee.

We did 7u.. but my advice/opinion is go 8 ..but thats to be determined by his ambition and drive as well as his talent when compared to the LL teams around him.
Get away from machine pitch if you can.. as soon as you can.

Practice pitching to him as often as you can..
T work..and like above.. play catch all the time.

[jshouse]

Ok question for you experts out there. My son just turned 7 and is starting Coach pitch this year in league (Huffman).

My wife and I both are teachers. What age do you suggest getting into the Select world?

I have some questions for the "community" if you don't mind--as I am just trying to plan ahead.

What age is the best to start?---Do you wish your son started earlier/later?
what are the team fees associated with your team? Is there a set fee and monthly?
how far away do you travel? How often?

Thanks--if you don't want to answer on here or at all I understand on the money!

No expert here, just someone that's knee deep in it right now...

Let him play league this year and see how much he likes it before you make a move. If he's good other coaches will find you in the parking lot and try to get him on their team so pay attention to the teams you play

A select team will probably run anywhere from $750 to $2500 for a spring season, like we are all about to get started with. Will generally include 10-12 tournaments from March to July and could include uniforms. Cost will depend on if the coach is taking a cut, if you have to pay for a practice facility, and how many tournaments you play.

[Welding Teach]

No expert here, just someone that's knee deep in it right now...

Let him play league this year and see how much he likes it before you make a move. If he's good other coaches will find you in the parking lot and try to get him on their team so pay attention to the teams you play

A select team will probably run anywhere from $750 to $2500 for a spring season, like we are all about to get started with. Will generally include 10-12 tournaments from March to July and could include uniforms. Cost will depend on if the coach is taking a cut, if you have to pay for a practice facility, and how many tournaments you play.

Thanks!--This will be his 4th year in the league play. He started at 4 with coed t-ball then 2 years boys t-ball. Now this year with Coach pitch.

This will be his 3rd year with the same coach, personally I don't know how good he is. I know he tries hard and makes sure he has fun--Yes-- I am his coach! That has always been my number one thing I tell the parents when I coach--we are here to learn about baseball and have fun doing it.

[systemnt]

No expert here, just someone that's knee deep in it right now...



Let him play league this year and see how much he likes it before you make a move. If he's good other coaches will find you in the parking lot and try to get him on their team so pay attention to the teams you play



A select team will probably run anywhere from $750 to $2500 for a spring season, like we are all about to get started with. Will generally include 10-12 tournaments from March to July and could include uniforms. Cost will depend on if the coach is taking a cut, if you have to pay for a practice facility, and how many tournaments you play.

Plus unis

[glen]

To give an honest answer- every kid and situation are different.
While young I would find a good coaching staff and as little traveling as possible. Best coach right now is you or Mom playing catch, burnout, etc. Plastic golf balls and a T are good for hitting and don't go far. Games when young mean nothing at all and coaching and good form and reps are all that matter.

Once a kid most into Select they need to have a true self evaluation of their goals. Lots of different "Select" type baseball. All of it give kids time on the field and learning. There is Select development and Showcase which are way different.

Price is anywhere from $500 to way too much. I have talked to parents that probably spend $40k a year for some Showcase organizations.

[Welding Teach]

My absolute biggest fear is he gets too involved and gets burned out before he could truly shine.

[rtarcher]

What age and team are all your boys, if you're comfortable with sharing? My son, 8th grade, is playing 14U as he did this past Fall. He is with an organization that has teams in San Antonio (where we live) and teams in Abilene. The organization founder called me during the Spring of 13U season to ask if my son would join his team for the the first of their last three tournaments. He did, then they asked if my boy would play with them for the USSSA South State and the State tourneys that followed. Fast forward to last Fall and subsequently this Spring, the West Texas team has again chosen to have my son on their team as opposed to the local SA team. We enjoy it because the WT team is better organized and is a more competitive team. Also, my son gets to practice locally. He will be playing AAA/Major (AA last spring). I say all this, but here's the kicker. My son wants to play golf.

My son started playing golf with a buddy of his this past Summer that lives on a local course. At first, I bought him a very inexpensive set of clubs. As time progressed, he borrowed clubs from his friend as his hitting improved. For Christmas, I bought him a full set of Callaway clubs from the pre-owned Callaway website. I've taken him to Top Golf a few times and have been with him to the driving range on many occasions. He has a great, natural swing though his consistency in hitting straight is lacking as well as his putting skills. He is getting better, and I'm sure will continue to improve. His best friend, who he has been playing with, goes to a different middle school and will go to a different high school come this Fall, but is pursuing golf for this 8th grade year and beyond. They both grew up playing baseball together, my son since the age of three (10 years). The friend was a less than average baseball player and quit after his 12U Spring season as he did not make the cut for the select team my son played for, he and his dad had seen the writing on the wall.

My son has reported that he doesn't have the drive to play baseball as much as he does to play golf. When it's game day and he's in the field, he loves it, and he admits to that. Here is my dilemma: My son is an above average baseball player in both the fielding and batting categories, though he is not a pitcher and not a homerun hitter. He plays CF and 2nd and bats around .275 per season. He is fast, has a great eye for the ball in play on the ground or in the air, smart play maker, and has a decent arm. His draw back, and I think what gives him an inferiority complex, is his size. He has not had a growth spurt yet. He is the smallest player on any team he has played on. Even though he played quarter back for the middle school team in both 7th and 8th grade, it was on "B" team, and he gets frustrated at his lack of size. He will be 14 in March this year. He will also be going into 9th grade in the Fall. If he continues to play baseball at the level he is capable of, he still may not make the high school JV team (there is not a freshman team) unless he has a huge growth spurt in the next 6 to 9 months. Coaches, in my opinion, will see him as not mature in physical stature, and will pass him over. Now if he does sprout up, he would easily be able to make that team come Spring of 2021. The question is, what do I do about golf? he will be trying to play for his middle school team in a month or so against kids who have been playing since they were 3 or so. I feel he is a disadvantage trying to compete being so fresh, even though I think he will get there soon, to compete with other 8th graders. Just not sure how he could make a high school team, as I'm sure that is a lot more competitive.

We are trying to do both this Spring, splitting our time at the driving range and at the field/batting cage. I could go on and on, but this is long enough already. I didn't know I would go on this long. Any input is appreciated!

I forgot. I really want him to play baseball, almost to the point of pushing him into it more. Of course, I don't want to push too hard to alienate him. I just don't see golf as being advantageous for him in the near future.

Todd

[jer_james]

We did 7u.. but my advice/opinion is go 8 ..but thats to be determined by his ambition and drive as well as his talent when compared to the LL teams around him.
Get away from machine pitch if you can.. as soon as you can.

Practice pitching to him as often as you can..
T work..and like above.. play catch all the time.

Agree 100% with this! You know your kiddo and his attitude / drive towards baseball.

Select ball is almost a completely different sport in terms of time and commitment.