Youth soccer and baseball - any seasonal league options where you live?

[Nolathyme]

Is this the state of youth soccer and baseball where you live?

If you want to play youth soccer or baseball on a level higher than rec, do your kids need to commit for fall and spring?

For example, it is very easy to play soccer on a rec team just in the fall where we live. It is very easy to play baseball on a rec team just in the spring. You may be on a new team every season, but you can do it. And the level of play may not be that good.

But, if you want to play a step up from rec caliber players, you will need to commit to play and pay for fall and spring for soccer and baseball. There may also be a winter workout commitment and a summer optional/not optional commitment.

 

[Big Matt]

What you refer to is the rise of travel teams. It becomes a lifestyle as parents if you get caught up in it. The problem is that it starts when the kids are very young and if you don't start it may be difficult to get on a team later. My son started AAU baseball when he was 8. His team was real good and we played as many as 60 games in a season. He got burned out by 12 and ended up playing high school basketball instead. The fathers/coaches of the 8 year old players all thought that their son would get a college scholarship or get drafted by the pros. None of them did, and 2/3 never made the high school team.

 

[PigsDad]

If your child is looking a joining a club team, then yes, the norm is for a full year commitment. Our daughter was involved with both soccer and softball growing up, and the step up from rec to club in both of those sports required the longer commitment. This was 15 years ago, so it is nothing new.

Kurt

 

[Nolathyme]

Kurt,

Do you remember how many practices per week your daughter had for soccer and baseball?

 

[b2bailey]

My two grandsons (7th and 8th grade) are part of a 'traveling' baseball league.
Not on the same team.
The financial and time commitments are astonishing.
Sometimes there are overnight stays required due to distances traveled -- rarely are both boys playing in same city.
I keep my negative opinions to myself.
And then I think -- would they just be at home playing Minecraft for more hours?
So, I guess it's a good thing -- for now.

 

[bizaro86]

I would say you can get "competitive" level without a year round commitment for baseball here up until age 12. My son (age 10) is doing the 10 week fall program from a local club. There isn't any travel, 2 practices and 1 game per week. There are much more intensive programs, but at the younger ages there are still quality programs outside of that. Once you're 13+ here the options are completely bifurcated into rec and high intensity travel.

 

[PigsDad]

Kurt,

Do you remember how many practices per week your daughter had for soccer and baseball?

Depended on the team, but usually 2 or 3.

Kurt

 

[Nolathyme]

Depended on the team, but usually 2 or 3.

Kurt

Which probably means she was missing one or two practices a week.

In a near perfect world, the kids would play on their middle school team and have practice 4-5 days a week for their school. Then they would play that sport on a team after school (play one sport per season). Just wondering if there are any places in the US that still follow common sense.

Here in Maryland, soccer is a spring sport in middle school but changes to fall in high school. Baseball is not offered in middle school, only fall softball.

 

[PigsDad]

Which probably means she was missing one or two practices a week.

In a near perfect world, the kids would play on their middle school team and have practice 4-5 days a week for their school. Then they would play that sport on a team after school (play one sport per season). Just wondering if there are any places in the US that still follow common sense.

Here in Maryland, soccer is a spring sport in middle school but changes to fall in high school. Baseball is not offered in middle school, only fall softball.

Nope. The travel teams here would not practice during school seasons -- they always prioritized school ball over club ball.

Kurt

 

[Timeshare Von]

"Travel teams" are a whole other level of commitment and money! Having worked in youth soccer at the club/facility, state and national level, I can attest from an administrative perspective that while player development is important, it's not the MOST important thing . . . follow the money!

Once players get to around U11 or U12, there is an increasing desire to move them into competitive or travel team participation. I've even seen some youth soccer clubs start grooming the players & their families as young as U9/U10, encouraging them to play up an age division . . . especially if the family is of financial means.

Yes they want/need a full year commitment to make their expenses for these teams . . . travel expenses is one part of it . . . paid coaches and administrators is another significant part. In some areas, clubs/teams have to pay for field time for practices & games as well.

As previously mentioned, many states (Wisconsin being one; Iowa NOT) . . . the high school season for the sport cannot conflict with club team activities. In other words, for HS Soccer here in Wisconsin, the boys cannot participate (practice or play) during the fall season, and the girls cannot in the spring season. Like I said, it wasn't like this in Iowa when I was there 15 years ago . . . I'm assuming it's unchanged. This is all dictated by the state's high school athletic association.

I once "did the math" following one player through his youth career and how much his family spent for him in soccer through high school. They kid was good and the parents' motivation was a D1 scholarship for college. The family could have saved the money spent and paid for college tuition. Even sadder in that particular case, once he went to college, he was burned out on soccer and the regiment of training, practice, etc. He ended up dropping off the team before his sophomore year in college . . . and dropped out of college all together the following year.

It's unfortunate, but I have a pretty jaded perspective on how youth sports (and administrators & parents) ruin it for too many kids who just want to play and have fun with their friends.

 

[TUGBrian]

have huge systems for this here in florida... though admittedly my kids are on the young side and its more of an organized practice vs anything competitive.

this is one of the larger outfits:

i9 Sports®

i9 Sports® offers families age-appropriate instruction that's both fun for kids and convenient for busy families. Find a program near you!

www.i9sports.com

 

[davidvel]

Very few boys, if any, will get a college scholarship money for baseball or soccer. All the $$ goes to football, and to a lesser extent basketball. Due to title 9, girls get equal money and that is spread across a variety of sports.

The best pro players in any sport were usually multi-sport athletes as youth. If you are one of the best, teams in all sports will beg you to play. You do not need to play one sport year round to et on a team. If they are not begging you, and you are not playing at the highest level league/flight, you will never get a scholarship or be a pro. It is not that complicated.

 

[bizaro86]

Very few boys, if any, will get a college scholarship money for baseball or soccer. All the $$ goes to football, and to a lesser extent basketball. Due to title 9, girls get equal money and that is spread across a variety of sports.

The best pro players in any sport were usually multi-sport athletes as youth. If you are one of the best, teams in all sports will beg you to play. You do not need to play one sport year round to et on a team. If they are not begging you, and you are not playing at the highest level league/flight, you will never get a scholarship or be a pro. It is not that complicated.

I assume that's the reason for the thread. My son was the best player in his baseball league this spring. He hit more home runs than the rest of the league combined. But that's a regional league for 9/10 year olds in Western Canada - there are functionally no pro baseball players from here, and the idea of him playing pro ball has zero weight in any of our decisions, because it's vanishingly unlikely.

I'm not the OP, but I can understand the desire for a league with a certain level of competition/competence that isn't a crazy intense travel league. It's frustrating for kids when a weak ground ball hit to their their teammate at first is an automatic double because many of the other kids can't catch or throw. But wanting to play decent quality rec sports isn't the same as being super-intense and wanting full time training on the basis of scholarships/pro potential.

There's a potential middle ground where you'd like good coaching and teamwork while acknowledging it's a game for kids and doesn't need to be a life-committment.

 

[davidvel]

I assume that's the reason for the thread. My son was the best player in his baseball league this spring. He hit more home runs than the rest of the league combined. But that's a regional league for 9/10 year olds in Western Canada - there are functionally no pro baseball players from here, and the idea of him playing pro ball has zero weight in any of our decisions, because it's vanishingly unlikely.

I'm not the OP, but I can understand the desire for a league with a certain level of competition/competence that isn't a crazy intense travel league. It's frustrating for kids when a weak ground ball hit to their their teammate at first is an automatic double because many of the other kids can't catch or throw. But wanting to play decent quality rec sports isn't the same as being super-intense and wanting full time training on the basis of scholarships/pro potential.

There's a potential middle ground where you'd like good coaching and teamwork while acknowledging it's a game for kids and doesn't need to be a life-committment.

I totally agree. Both my kids played competitive sports for a long time. Both were in very high levels. They also played multiple sports. I don't think it is healthy or advantageous to play a single sport year round (or as year round as climate allows.)

My point was that if they cannot get on a competitive team if they don't play year round, they are probably playing at too high a skill level. Prior to mid teens, kids should play multiple sports. Even then they should only commit to one sport if they are in the highest level league in that sport.