| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| ingasven |
Posted - 07/13/2010 : 18:54:45
The other day my wife was having a conversation with a parent from our daughter's softball team and somehow the topic of pitching lessons came up. Without thinking about it my wife off-handedly said, "Some people will spend, over the course of their daughter's career, the equivalent of two years worth of college costs on pitching lessons to get their daughter a partial college scholarship. I think we'll just let her play, hope she's good enough & if not we'll have two years worth of college tuition in our pockets, not an instructors."
Wow, I never really thought about it, but add up what some people spend on pitching and/or hitting lessons and she may be right.
I'm not writing this to bash instructors as I feel if people are willing to hand over their money for another person's expertise then so be it. I do wonder, however, how many will tell a parent that all the lessons in the world aren't going to make their kid the next Pujols. Also, does it almost become a monster like steroids in professional sports...I've got to do it to keep up?
For the record, we have never paid for a softball or baseball lesson. I will also say although each kid has at some point played on teams thought to be very competitive neither is a top 10%, must have on your team, we'll never win without them kid. They aren't bench-warming material by any stretch either.
I really never thought about the money invested over a long period of time and I'm wondering how others with similar and different opinions view this.
I'm not trying to sway anyone as I'm not looking to be swayed, what I stated above clearly lays out my opinion. I'm just curious to hear varying opinions.
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| 6 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| bigcatsdad |
Posted - 07/14/2010 : 12:41:30
* A lot of instructors will "talk up" your kid to make you think their skill level is higher than it really is in order to continue getting the lessons. "Oh your kid may be the best I've ever seen." The other factor is how many lessons it takes to see progress. The first is basically to say "Hey, how are you? I'm so and so." I just wanted my son to learn a couple of new pitches. But no, we have to play pitch and catch for 5 lessons before any instruction really begins. (Not all instructors are this way.) Just be aware that for many instructors, this is their only avenue for employment.
Parents, please try to be aware of your child's skill level. Playing travel ball for the first couple of years can be very exciting, while you as a parent, want to help them gain as much knowledge as possible. Make sure your son or daughter wants to take the extra time and effort it takes to be a good travel player. Otherwise, you as a parent, will be just wasting your time and money. Although some parents want to live vicariously through their children, it is still up to the kid as to what decisions will make or break them as ballplayers.
We went a couple of times when our son was 8 yrs old for lessons from a former Red Sox pitcher. After a couple of lessons, my wife could tell our son everything the coach said. Now he's 16 and with college on the horizon(baseball or not) I can't afford the outrageous cost of lessons anyway. So we continue to go to the cage like cavemen to tweek little things.
Ingasven, I can't think of one instructor who would say "no amount of lessons"... |
| oldmanmj |
Posted - 07/14/2010 : 10:05:22
Paying for lessons does not guarantee saving in scholastic fees. I know many young women whose parents have spent thousands of dollars on private lessons and couldn't even make their school team, the same for many young men. Does it help, it does in different ways, but not always you may desire it too help. None of my children have had private lessons, they are some of the best at their position. They have received scholarships to play their sport, men and women. Every individual is different as well as the player. But you can't look at it as a return on investment. |
| gasbag |
Posted - 07/14/2010 : 09:59:40
BlueCup - I agree with you and would also add.....no matter where you play or at what level, there are associated costs. If you really want to save money, don't have them play sports at all. That's a real cost savings. Sounds ludicrous cause it is.....let the kids play the sport at whatever level they are comfortable with for as long as you can. The higher the level, the more time and effort you'll need to put into it. You should be looking at developing a well rounded kid and not obtaining a "return on your investment" perspective.
I'm not making judgements cause if it works for your kids, that's great....just sharing my opinion based on previous experience with my older one. |
| bluecup |
Posted - 07/14/2010 : 07:37:22
Getting instruction is never a magic bullet. It can help you on your path, but it's up to the player to continue to practice and improve on what he's taught. Relying on a few one hour lessons or a few team practices to make you a top player would be a mistake--more of it is about drive and what you do off the field.
That being said, to me, getting instruction isn't about getting a scholarship or any direct payoff in the future. There's no real cost/benefit analysis you can do (if I spend $X now, I'll save $Y later). It's about helping your kid play a game that he loves as well as he can play it--and your getting enjoyment watching your kid learn and play at a higher level. It's one piece of a complicated puzzle, and there is no price tag you can really put on it.
Even the best instructor in the world can't turn a player without good talent and work ethic into a "top" player. But, the process of improving at a sport teaches valuable lessons in and of itself that "pays off" later in life such as the importance of hard work, developing skiils, exercise, team work, etc. What's the payoff in guitar lessons or art instruction for your kid if he doesn't get a music or art scholarship? It's about being well-rounded and doing something you enjoy.
And, even if there's no scholarship at the end of the day, playing a varsity sport in HS can be the difference in admissions between your kid getting into a top college or not. It's a factor, along with grades, SAT scores and other extracuricular stuff.
Also, being good at baseball may help you get a job or advance in the business world some day--a lot of companies look for employees who can play on the company softball team (it's certainly been a big plus at my company to be able to get out there and play on the team, network, etc. and help our team win a championship)! 
But, again, to take lessons as some kind of investment so you can get a direct payoff in reduced tuition seems like the wrong way to look at it.
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| Alter-Ego |
Posted - 07/13/2010 : 23:15:47
The "don't's for instruction" line should have been above the last two bullet points. |
| Alter-Ego |
Posted - 07/13/2010 : 23:08:31
This was my First year to coach a travel softball team. My opinion on pitchers is they need to get pitching instruction to learn the mechanics. That does not mean they have to continue going for years but until they can pitch a game without walking everyone they need the instruction. Most coaches don't know how to teach the mechanics. Unlike baseball, the softbal pitching motion is not naturally similar to any other motion.
Here is my overall opinion about instruction:
If you want your kid to get better at a particular skill then get them instruction. Don't expect coaches to be able to spend the detailed time to get players significantly better. Extra work is typically needed. For that, a good instructor is needed.
* Assume that all instructors are good. A lot are not. Finding the good ones is the challenge. Just because you played does not make you a good instructor. If you did not play pro ball, that does not make you unqualified.)
* expect that you will ever get a return on investment other than the belief that it made your kid better at that skill and hopefully helped them keep from injury by reinforcing good mechanics.
Don't's for instruction: |
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