TB vs. Rec

[GatorGirl]

Its is tough now as I have seen this from two different league perspectives. One the one hand yes the girls should play TB if they are that talented, but should they also be able to take the All-Star spots? Based on what you are saying, these girls are just taking the spots to boost the league and the other girls are just brush offs. How do the other girls get a taste of stronger competition if all the competitive players take the spots?

Some leagues require that TB players play rec also if they use their facilities and some discourage it. It is blatantly obvious when there at TB players on a rec. team. It is sad for the girls that just want to play rec. IMHO. I am not saying you should be allowed to do both, but I don't understand the thrill of beating the pants off a team just because you can--is that really practice for the level you will play in TB teams. Sigh......so much sports drama and it really can't be avoided. Best of luck to you.

GG

 

[Phathead]

Our rec is a little different but similar problems. TB is here but most of girls still play rec and most of TB coaches coach a rec team. Our league is headed in the direction of the OP. The tb girls have made choices about which tb team they want to play for, it might be because of the coach or the girls on that team or other factors either way thay made a choice. Now come all-star time if this coach is the all-star coach there are girls that will play and girls that wont because of the coach and players that he picked. We are not necessarily fielding the strongest team because of it. The problem for rec all-stars and rec in general is these young ladies with skills have choices that they didn't have 10-15yrs ago when it was rec-alltars-done.

 

[GOINGDEEP]

I don't think I've ever seen, BB or SB, a travel ball player who didn't start off in rec.

I've only seen a few who jump from rec to TB exclusively in one season.

I've only seen a couple who play serious TB, continue to play rec after 11-12yo.

We made it to the "win your way there" All-star World Series as 10u's. One team represented it's own state, think there was 12 states. ( southeast region ) Once we made it thru the preliminary games to get to the World Series, every one of the 12 teams there were like us. Girls who started in a local rec org, and had been playing TB on the side for a couple of years.

 

[Slappers]

Our local league makes it difficult due to scheduling. Also, the fall has double the players the spring has due to school ball. But the scheduling is the worst part. the league has an 8u, 10u, 12u and 16u division as there are never enough girls for a separate 14u and 16u division. Typically you would get a game week and one on Saturday. They tried to push a "high school" division in the fall on Wed. evenings for one game a week. The problem was no one played in the high school division because they were at travel practice and on weekends, they were at tournaments. I tried to get them to bag the high school thing and let the 16u's play two games during the week and leave the weekends free. They didn't want to do that so most weekend games were either forfeited or played with 6-8 16u players and a couple of call up 12u's.

 

[CatchTheFever]

Some good valid points made in this thread. I can understand OP's concern as I have seen our Little league program nearly decimated in the past 2 years going from 4 Major (12u) teams down to having to bring girls up just to field a team. Part of the problem was the park didn't want to work with anyone as far as establishing a travel program based out of the park, thus people started leaving.

My 10yo daughter started playing travel last May. The league was so much in need of girls to play this Spring that they offered my daughter the chance to play for free without having to attend practices and only having to play the minimum # of games to qualify for All Stars. Personally, playing both TB & LL is too much, especially when we play year round as it is in FL. Also, to validate Gatorgirls concern, I wouldn't feel good about my daughter just showing up whenever it's convenient and taking another girl's spot who has paid to play and attended practice and games on a regular basis. We declined the offer to play LL but there are a few other travel girls that are playing...presumably under the same terms we were offered.

A sister league has a couple of established TB programs and keep their girls playing LL by letting them use the facilities for practice, etc. The TB girls are always split up between their teams in LL, but their All Star team is always the strongest around. The way they seem to have embraced TB, seems to be working well for them as they have not had nearly the same decline as my daughters LL park has. These 2 parks are 10 min away from each other.

 

[chinamigarden]

So this season our rec league was faced with an awkward and challenging situation. We have a great league with great facilities and usually have around 300 girls from 6U-14U. This past Fall season one of our leagues more popular coach formed a 10U TB team and hand picked our league's top 12 '03 girls. From what I understand his intentions were to introduce these girls to the TB environment and challenge them to get better. During Fall and winter season everything seemed well but come Spring this TB team situation kinda got out of hand. The coach put his TB team first and the league second and put our league's president in real bind. To protect the league from any ASA All-star violations the president insisted the TB team who was now split up between the 6 different 10U teams in our league stop any and all TB activities or else ALL players associated with the team would get banned from All-star selection. Now no one in our league wanted that considering how greatly that would have affected the level of competition in our 10U division. TB HC made threats to leave the league and take an entire generation of players that our league has helped develop. Threats were made both ways and in the end TB HC decided to go dark with his team until after All-stars and not challenge any ASA rules that would make his girls ineligible. Now here we are at the end of the season, All-star teams have been selected and the majority of the TB girls have made the Gold 10U team. A large number of parents feel the draft was greatly influenced by the fact that coaches pick the All-star teams and HC and 5 of the league's 6 10U coaches are affiliated with the TB team. And the coaches voted in thier TB HC to coach the All-star team. It seemed like this situation has put a great strain on our league and especially the 10U division this season.
I have mixed feelings about the situation. I have recently become more involved with the league and I'm torn between the idea that this TB team has by no doubt helped improve the level of talent we already have in our league but I now here that most if not all of the girls will be leaving after this season. I personally know a lot of the parents involved and I have great respect for their DD's and I know this has been a great learning experience for them moving forward. I mean in the end thats what we want for our girls. But I'm saddened with the thought that an entire generation of talented girls will not be returning. The league has always lost girls here and there to TB but not and entire hand picked team. I feel like our 12U division moving forward is going to struggle without these girls.

Sorry for the long gripe Im sure our league isn't the only league that has experienced this kind of situation and moving forward I'd like to know how does a league protect itself from this?

Whether they should go TB or not, I am not addressing that. The question about All Stars, are these girls who were picked for All Stars deserving, regardless of this travel team and the coaches and who selected them? If they are the best then who cares how they got there. If the bottom 5 are no better then 5 other girls who didn't make the team. Again so what. Now if you can honestly tell me that half the team doesn't belong, then you have a gripe. I remember how All Stars were picked for LL when I coached my son. The coaches all went into the shed, nominated the players from our own team that we felt deserving and if there was the right number we were done. If not, we voted if we had too many, or tried to figure out who was next deserving if we had a shortage. Its not science and it always comes down to a few humans who have their own ideas and perceptions of a group of kids making the choice.

 

[JJsqueeze]

Its same in every league. Usually about 9 players that are unanimous and 2-4 that are roughly the same as some girls who didn't make the team. These spots are universally assigned to

A) coaches DDs if not in top 9
B) AC DDs if not in top 9
C) girls from worst team to even out selection numbers so each team has about the same number on all stars.

 

[JAD]

I know some areas of the country push for girls to play TB and REC, but once a girl starts playing TB here she never looks back....I guess some communities take their REC all-stars more seriously than we do!

 

[Pdiddy]

please help some of us understand the importance of fielding the most competitive all star team you all can because, I would think some people here are wondering why wouldn't you all just let the TB do whatever they want, as long as the show up for their league games, and just select other non TB players for your all star teams....? It seems a team representing your league is the most important thing from your post.....

Also, can and explain the ASA Gold 10U Division.....is that just the same as 10A...I know ASA added a Gold 16U Division this year....did ASA add GOLD Division's to every age group...?

 

[JJsqueeze]

10u gold = Asa b
10u silver = Asa c

Usually anyway- at 10u. The gold silver thing is really just a name given by the league.