i fully understand how the person is feeling. my girl is the youngest player on her 12u team and one of only 3 1st year 12u on the team. she is learning pitching with a private coach and we hope to get some mound time. she otherwise is really not getting much time at bat or the field, it is all about working so that next year when she is one of the older players on the 12u team she can count on getting time as one of the main players. but if we get 2 or 3 abs a tourny it sucks, but this team is a better team with better coaching and procedures then the one she used to be on so the development will be more real. we understand that her main use in games that count is a courtesy runner for the pitcher or catcher. But when you have 13 girls and you are 12 or 13 place on the roster, what else can you do? work at improving, develop and try to have an impact at any roll you have. as i tell her, being a courtesy runner still gives you the ability to work and make decisions that can help win the game and sometimes may still be the decisive player. i do understand though after travelling 4 hours to a tournament knowing you will see little abs can be unsettling. i do this.