IS TRAVEL BALL leaving people/players/rec & school behind...OR...

[radness]

Yes it does, but it’s probably much easier for the B or A level player to find another team who will pick them up.

If people in earlier age brackets are paying attention to what happens in travel ball usually at a certain point there are not so many c teams anyway. Because of the intention of people who are aspiring showcasing. But as people get older becoming adults there are far less fastpitch opportunities and much more opportunities like slow pitch. Which comparatively years ago, after college, I used to play in fastpitch women's division. It was hard to find teams to play against in our local community and traveling was the only option. But locally if I wanted to play slow pitch I could join a rec league.

Basically,
Sports are we make of them.

 

[LEsoftballdad]

I am a firm believer in rec ball/LL programs. Without them, my daughters never even start playing softball. When my girls were in 4th and 3rd grade, their ages when they started playing softball, the thought of traveling 20 miles to play seemed preposterous. Now, we travel the country. But, we'd never be in this position without our LL experience.

In NY, we have an annual struggle with soccer and lacrosse to get enough players. My HS graduated 2 softball seniors this year, my daughter was one of them, and they graduated 9 girls lacrosse players. Of those 9 players, all are playing in college, and 4 are playing D1.

It's my understanding that the south and California are areas where softball is the top sport. If so, losing a rec league here or there is no big deal. In my area, if we lose rec ball, we lose the sport. Several smaller districts already folded their softball teams due to lack of interest and numbers of available players. Also, cost is huge for a true National program. I'll probably spend $25K plus on tournaments, flights, hotels, rental cars, and team fees this year. Not everyone can afford that, so they need to have an option to play locally without breaking the bank.

 

[radness]

I am a firm believer in rec ball/LL programs. Without them, my daughters never even start playing softball. When my girls were in 4th and 3rd grade, their ages when they started playing softball, the thought of traveling 20 miles to play seemed preposterous. Now, we travel the country. But, we'd never be in this position without our LL experience.

In NY, we have an annual struggle with soccer and lacrosse to get enough players. My HS graduated 2 softball seniors this year, my daughter was one of them, and they graduated 9 girls lacrosse players. Of those 9 players, all are playing in college, and 4 are playing D1.

It's my understanding that the south and California are areas where softball is the top sport. If so, losing a rec league here or there is no big deal.

Why would you say that it would be no big deal if cali. lost a rec league here and there after commenting your daughter wouldn't have played had she not started there?

Soccer *may be the number one sport played here in SoCal.
____________________________

I have pointed out a couple times already that both Rec leagues and especially younger age travel ball teams are volunteer created teams. The people that are volunteering to coach 10U travel ball are the people not volunteering in rec ball.
*There is a reason for that.

If people want rec ball to exist they will have to step up and make it functioning. Obviously there are plenty of people that are making travel ball Thrive which is one of the points of the post.

 

[LEsoftballdad]

Why would you say that it would be no big deal if cali. lost a rec league here and there after commenting your daughter wouldn't have played had she not started there?

Soccer *may be the number one sport played here in SoCal.
____________________________

I have pointed out a couple times already that both Rec leagues and especially younger age travel ball teams are volunteer created teams. The people that are volunteering to coach 10U travel ball are the people not volunteering in rec ball.
*There is a reason for that.

If people want rec ball to exist they will have to step up and make it functioning. Obviously there are plenty of people that are making travel ball Thrive which is one of the points of the post.

I guess I was misled. I was under the impression that softball was much bigger than soccer for girls in California.

I always volunteered to coach in my local LL. I did it every year I had a child in the program.

 

[dbronstein]

When my daughter started rec ball @ 7 there were 8 girls teams from 8-18u in just our town. She’s 11 and this year there was only 1 12u team and 1 14u team. Travel ball and other sports such as soccer, volleyball and dance are pretty much killing our softball program. Kids around here just aren’t interested in it.

Six years ago in my daughter's last year, our league had 18 12U teams in the rec division and 6 more in a comp division. This season we have a total of 23 teams from 8U to 14U. I'm on the league board and coach even though my DD is no longer playing. We just keep losing more players and teams to travel ball every year.

Even with the Millions of people that live in Southern California rec ball programs struggle because there are not people willing to step up and volunteer for them. Interestingly though they will step up and volunteer for travel ball
(there is a reason for that happening).

Our issue isn't a lack of volunteers, it's a lack of players. We have no problem getting coaches. We have the same problem in baseball, although we still have many more baseball teams than softball, but they are declining as well.

 

[Rartuso]

Six years ago in my daughter's last year, our league had 18 12U teams in the rec division and 6 more in a comp division. This season we have a total of 23 teams from 8U to 14U. I'm on the league board and coach even though my DD is no longer playing. We just keep losing more players and teams to travel ball every year.



Our issue isn't a lack of volunteers, it's a lack of players. We have no problem getting coaches. We have the same problem in baseball, although we still have many more baseball teams than softball, but they are declining as well.

Yup it’s insane.

 

[LEsoftballdad]

Six years ago in my daughter's last year, our league had 18 12U teams in the rec division and 6 more in a comp division. This season we have a total of 23 teams from 8U to 14U. I'm on the league board and coach even though my DD is no longer playing. We just keep losing more players and teams to travel ball every year.




Our issue isn't a lack of volunteers, it's a lack of players. We have no problem getting coaches. We have the same problem in baseball, although we still have many more baseball teams than softball, but they are declining as well.

We just have fewer children in our area. Declining enrollment at the schools is hurting all youth sports. My girls have about 185 kids per grade, but the K-3 classes are lucky to have 130.

 

[_MIA_]

Every weekend their are trillions (ok only a slight exaggeration) of social media posts from TB parents/teams exalting their latest accomplishments..from 6u on up. Unknowing parents of new players see this stuff and say “Hey if Joanie’s kid is good enough to do this then so is my 5 YO” and so if they have the means they go find themselves a 6u “travel” ball team. At that point there is typically no going back..they are “in the system”

 

[GKCO]

Late to the party and I'm not going to read 17 pages, but my two cents... There are too many travel ball teams. Too many parents wanting to keep up with the jones' and put their kid on a travel ball team because they have friends that play travel ball when the kid is clearly a rec player. Or, little Jenny doesn't play the prime position so daddy forms his own team and then further waters down the competition. More kids should be playing rec ball.

 

[kennykozman!!]

What I have seen happening with the true “C” teams is that the players who do develop and get better move up to B or higher teams and the rest of the team dissolves.

What also has happened with rec (at least at my local LL) is that due to numbers decreasing, the price to play has increased. So as a parent I’m either going to decide that I can’t afford it or for a little bit more money my kid can play travel and get to play more games.

I can personally attest to this.

My DD started at 10 in LL and probably the worst player in the tryout........
Started playing on a small community C travel team at 11 getting their brains beat in most weekends.......
Moved up to a B team playing .500 ball with an average team but getting reps, experience and building the softball IQ.
Currently first year 16U player deciding to go to a A regional team or stay with the B team....

All this said to make the point without all those games and experience at the bowels of travel ball she would not have the opportunity currently. I don't see the practice time and game experience available at the REC or LL level any longer. The REC coaches moved to travel because they wanted to develop their DD and others that WANTED to get better. How do you develop with a 10-15 game REC schedule and practice 1 time per week with less than half the team showing up? That is what REC looks like here locally.

I also agree many of the girls she played with no longer play travel but this is the regular process of aging up in any sport or activity. My son played low level travel baseball, had fun with friends and decided to only play LL next year because he likes to play and just wants to have fun. So be it.

There is a HUGE developmental opportunity difference between C and low level B travel teams versus REC teams locally in my opinion.