Asma_08 Posted July 16, 2009 Share Posted July 16, 2009 I thought I would see if someone could give me some advice. My kids love baseball and are pretty good players. They are young but you can see they have a lot of potential. We have played at a really strong little league for about three years but some things have occurred and I am not comfortable being affiliated with them anymore. I really don't want to go back to this league but I don't want my sons' baseball development to suffer. I also hate how you have to live in the right neighborhood to make sure you get into a good league. Is it possible for kids to develop baseball skills outside of the little league system? Can they just play select ball year round? Just wanted to see if parents of older kids can offer some insight. Thanks for any advice! Asma Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teachermom2834 Posted July 16, 2009 Share Posted July 16, 2009 Or "travel" as we call it here. They are not in leagues. The oldest one does literally travel out of town for tournaments. The 9 yo has a team that just goes to local (within an hour drive) tournaments. They practice once or twice a week and then play tournaments 2-3 weekends a month from March-June. The kids that don't play a fall sport will play in tournaments in Sept-Oct but it is much more laid back. Usually only 5 tournaments during that time. Most teams hold practice indoors Dec-Feb. Around here this is THE way to develop baseball skills. The serious players leave the leagues behind between the ages of 8 -10. My oldest just tried out for the middle school team and you could see the difference between the "travel" kids and the "league" kids. That is the way it is done around here. The only talented players in the leagues are those whose parents aren't interested in the travel ball. Honestly, most of those talented kids move on to another sport that is easier to pursue locally because they get frustrated by the leagues. That's just our experience. I wish the leagues were stronger. We would have more options that way. I know there are places that there is more of a compromise available. Marie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Asma_08 Posted July 17, 2009 Author Share Posted July 17, 2009 Thanks for taking the time to answer. I really appreciate it, it may seem like a silly question but I really don't know a lot about baseball just that my kids are obsessed with it:001_smile: So I am just trying to get them on the right track, I hear baseball is hard to master as a teen if you don't develop a strong foundation early. I am going to start trying to figure out the select ball system here. Thanks again for the info. Asma Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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