| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| cop311 |
Posted - 07/24/2010 : 13:55:47
I know everyones situations are different but how far are people driving to practices? We are considering an hour each way but not sure if we can handle it. Anyone go longer and if so was it worth it? |
| 23 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| 3sondad |
Posted - 07/26/2010 : 14:23:16
quote:
Originally posted by ItsjustLLBBall
...I have friends who are scouts that are infuriated by these comments and are actively trying to find out who those scouts were to get them fired...
I guess you could start with the coaches at ECB that are scouts?.?!?    |
| fb dad |
Posted - 07/26/2010 : 14:05:48
we love the long trips together gives us time to catch up he is up coming 14 the talks are more important than the games sometimes.and after losing a older brother at such a young age we have some great talks that are worth more than any game so sometimes 2hrs seem like 10 min |
| ItsjustLLBBall |
Posted - 07/26/2010 : 10:57:32
oh...but bballman...according to the "scouts" your boy won't make the 3million signing bonus but only the 1 million because he didn't attend ecb....Can you believe this is what ec is having scouts tell kids they are courting from other teams, they are having scouts tell kids that they have a much better chance of getting drafted higher if they play at ec.....I have friends who are scouts that are infuriated by these comments and are actively trying to find out who those scouts were to get them fired... |
| TAZ980002 |
Posted - 07/26/2010 : 10:31:33
bballman, it sounds like your son is a very gifted young man. No gift greater than his Dad that cares about him and helps him become the best he can be. |
| bballman |
Posted - 07/26/2010 : 10:00:27
Thanks for the response Papa. Just for the record, I'm not saying that you cannot have a good experience when you drive an extended distance for a particular team. I'm sure there are many, many stories out there where a family is driving an extended distance and they wind up on a great team that they love. No question in my mind that happens. I am just saying that you don't HAVE to do that to have a good experience and have fun with your kid (or grandkids :) ).
I would never tell you to leave your team so you don't have to drive that far. I would advise those getting into this world and starting to look at their options to look close to home first. I'll leave it at that.
Cop, nothing wrong with playing AA or AAA at the young ages. As I said, my son played rec until he was 12, then played 3 years for a local, sponsored by Roswell rec, travel team until he went to HS. He has been a starting varsity pitcher in 5A, Region 6 since he was a freshman. Has made 2nd team all region his freshman and sophomore years. He didn't go the long way from home route or the ECB route and he seems to be doing just fine. |
| DecaturDad |
Posted - 07/26/2010 : 09:19:25
bballman,
Thanks for the post. I know these types of posts are what help me keep the game sane. We drive 15 minutes to practice for a team coached by some great dads. These are great coaches who really care about the kids and teach them the best they can. I also work with my son and take him to a private instructor a few times a season. Would his skills improve even faster on a majors team with paid coaches? I think it would. But at what cost? He needs time for things like homework, and doing that in the car just would not work for us.
So, We will stay with the team we enjoy. Have fun playing, but also realize that this game or even this season is not the high point of his career.
- Dad of a raising 11U
|
| baseballpapa |
Posted - 07/26/2010 : 09:12:05
this is one that Papa thinks is very important and one of the most civilized discussions that I have read in a while. To put even more perspective into the discussion I fully agree with both bballman and Bandit although it might be considered that they are opposite sides of the fence.
bballman makes the point that hits closest to my heart when he tells all of us of how many times himself and his son has been in the yard or in the cage working together. Papa had flashbacks on that statement and could see myself in that same spot to the point that my shoulder now constantly aches and I am sure that the yard and cage has a lot to do with the pain. But if you told me that I could go back in time and not spend this time throwing with the grandsons and be pain free I can promise you that I would not do one little thing different as the pain is well worth the gain in my eyes and I am not even counting the joy that I received from these sessions. Dads, Let me tell that this time is a special time that you will never forget and if you let this opportunity pass you by due to being too busy then you will miss out on a memory that you will regret later in life.
I disagree with bballman that it doesn't matter where you play at 10-12. It might not matter as to where they end up in High School but it matters in the memory department. I would drive 2 hours one way to be a Bandit and not for the instruction or coaching although both are worth the drive but I would drive the distance for the opportunity to be and share with people that I care a lot about, I would drive the distance to watch these kids eyes light up when they begin to understand what the coaches have been preaching for weeks. I mainly would drive the distance for a purely selfish reason and that reason is that I love it so much that it hurts and it makes me feel good to be around a family of people that feel the same way about it as I do. To find a special chemistry is well worth any drive. I would not drive the distance so that they could become a famous professional baseball player as bballman is right on in that I could drive a much shorter distance and accomplish the same thing.
This man has given you fathers the key to success to them becoming better players, maybe not great players but certainly better players. And I don't think for one minute that it has passed this man by that the time he has spent with his son has been time well spent and Papa can tell him that this memory will stay with him for a very long time and that when he gets Papa's age and is sitting around the fireplace that he can shut his eyes and playback this time and drift off to sleep with a very large smile on his face and a warm feeling inside.
And in my book BanditHawk and his friend JH has been one of the best additions ever added to the Bandit family and the distance has not been an issue since both Dad's are excellent Coaches and they both train with good instructors and then we try to get the entire team together as much as possible and this has worked well with us.
It's really to each his own and whatever way works best for you and your son is what you should do. Let's all remember that this is the greatest game ever played but it will only give you back what you put into it.
|
| bballman |
Posted - 07/26/2010 : 08:24:50
Bandit, no disrespect taken. Although we have been around for a while, we still have a way to go and a lot more to learn. My son just turned 17 and is going into his junior year of HS. The next level is a mere two years away. Still, a lot can happen over those next two years. I have a feeling, they will fly by a lot quicker than I anticipate. I know the younger years did.
It's been 10 years since my son started playing baseball and a lot has changed over the years. Travel ball is much, much different than it was 5 or 6 years ago when my son started playing travel (at 12). However, I think the fundamental truth is that as long as your child receives good, fundamental instruction, it really doesn't matter what team they are playing on at the younger ages. My son played in the Roswell rec league from 7 thru 11. He had some decent coaches, and he had some horrible coaches. However, he and I worked together A LOT and I think much of what he learned during those early years was from he and I working together, throwing together, hitting together and fielding together. That did two things for us. One is I personally was making sure he was getting the proper (to the best of my ability) instruction and it gave us some very valuable time together as a father and son. I believe the fruits of that still show today. When it got to the point where he was beyond my knowledge base, I started taking him to a hitting and pitching instructor. Guess what, I learned from that as well and could then do my own work with him between lessons.
My point is, why drive excessive distances to play for a coach who may or may not teach your son the things he needs to know. I hear all the time on this board that people joined a team with high expectations for their son only to be highly disappointed with the outcome. Why not take matters into your own hands and work with your son yourself. Instead of driving an hour to go to a practice, get on a local team, show up to practice an hour early and work with your son on his skills and then let the local coach do his thing? Would that be a bad thing?
I'm not putting anyone down. I'm not trying to make anyone do things "my way". I'm just trying to put a little perspective into this whole thing. When you get to HS, it won't matter where your son played at 8-13. A coach may express interest where you played the season prior to coming into HS, but unless you prove yourself on THEIR field, that won't matter either. Even at 14. I guarantee, HS coaches couldn't even tell you what 8-13 year old teams are out there. |
| cop311 |
Posted - 07/25/2010 : 23:32:05
quote:
Originally posted by bballman
Here we go again. Does 11u really matter. Getting good instruction learning fundamentals matters. Where you play just doesn't. With all the baseball programs around metro Atlanta, there is no way you should have to drive an hour to play baseball with a quality coach. There were far fewer programs around when Heyward played and even he didn't make the trek to ECB until he was 14. ECB isn't the only place to play anymore anyway. You've got 643, Team Georgia, Homeplate, Big Stix, Windward Baseball Academy just to mention a few. All with good, quality coaches even for the older kids.
Bandit, when your kid is 17, then you can look back and say whether or not you really needed to travel an hour for your kid to play baseball when he was in the 10-13 year old age group. Have fun, focus on school and enjoy your time with your child. It will be over before you know it.
For us all those places you mentioned are an hour from us (or close to it) In my town AA is the best around with a few AAA maybe 30-40 minutes away. |
| TAZ980002 |
Posted - 07/25/2010 : 22:25:59
bballman, I mean no disrespect to you or anyone in your shoes. I will be the first to admit that you probably know a lot more about travel baseball than I do.
I just think it's different for each one of us. I don't like to paint with a wide brush and say that the only thing that matters is what happens on the "big field". |
| ec1 |
Posted - 07/25/2010 : 22:05:31
bballman has been around longer than most, but he is spot on. When your lad is 14 or 15, get him in the best program he can compete...and he has listed them...good luck, don't think 11U is the breaking point...quote:
Originally posted by bballman
Does 11u really matter. Getting good instruction learning fundamentals matters. Where you play just doesn't. With all the baseball programs around metro Atlanta, there is no way you should have to drive an hour to play baseball with a quality coach. There were far fewer programs around when Heyward played and even he didn't make the trek to ECB until he was 14. ECB isn't the only place to play anymore anyway. You've got 643, Team Georgia, Homeplate, Big Stix, Windward Baseball Academy just to mention a few. All with good, quality coaches even for the older kids.
Bandit, when your kid is 17, then you can look back and say whether or not you really needed to travel an hour for your kid to play baseball when he was in the 10-13 year old age group. Have fun, focus on school and enjoy your time with your child. It will be over before you know it.
|
| bballman |
Posted - 07/25/2010 : 19:51:03
Here we go again. Does 11u really matter. Getting good instruction learning fundamentals matters. Where you play just doesn't. With all the baseball programs around metro Atlanta, there is no way you should have to drive an hour to play baseball with a quality coach. There were far fewer programs around when Heyward played and even he didn't make the trek to ECB until he was 14. ECB isn't the only place to play anymore anyway. You've got 643, Team Georgia, Homeplate, Big Stix, Windward Baseball Academy just to mention a few. All with good, quality coaches even for the older kids.
Bandit, when your kid is 17, then you can look back and say whether or not you really needed to travel an hour for your kid to play baseball when he was in the 10-13 year old age group. Have fun, focus on school and enjoy your time with your child. It will be over before you know it. |
| TAZ980002 |
Posted - 07/25/2010 : 09:25:10
quote:
Originally posted by bballman
If you are under 14, it doesn't matter where you play.
Sorry, it matters. You can never start teaching proper fundamentals, team work, work ethic and other important aspects of the game too soon. If you can't find it close to home, why not find it somewhere else. To each his own. If it works for your son and your family and it's a good situation for your son to be on a team that requires some effort, then do it. He's only going to experience each age group once. Do it right. Don't look back and say "I wish I had done more for my son". |
| bluecup |
Posted - 07/25/2010 : 08:24:08
Two articles on Heyward and the various travel teams he was on:
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1168402/3/index.htm
http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20100309&content_id=8723826&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb
|
| bballman |
Posted - 07/24/2010 : 20:03:39
If you are under 14, it doesn't matter where you play. Keep it close to home. When you get to HS and are still good, drive as far as it takes. I doubt Heyward was playing at ECB at 10, 11 or 12 years old. |
| 12uCoach |
Posted - 07/24/2010 : 19:20:05
quote:
Originally posted by CoachDad
Fifteen minutes.
An hour.. two hours... honestly, do you people not have anything else going on in your lives? Do you have no other children?
Here's a reality check - it's baseball.
You're right. Mr. Heyward should have kept Jason in Henry County. |
| AllStar |
Posted - 07/24/2010 : 18:57:13
7 minutes. If we change parks that will go up to 15.
|
| Peanutsr |
Posted - 07/24/2010 : 18:53:15
This past season we did an hour each way. It was worth it because my son really enjoyed the team he was on and he hit it off well with all the players.
But...
He was in elementary school, got out of school at 2:40 and never had a lot of homework.
This year he will be in middle school, get out at 4:15 and will have much more homework so we will most likely be looking to try and keep it at 30 min. |
| bmoser |
Posted - 07/24/2010 : 16:55:34
My son and I agreed long ago that 30 minutes is our max. In 30 minutes we can get to North Gwinnett, Buford, Mill Creek, and Peachtree Ridge in Gwinnett County, and Sharon Springs (South Forsyth), Dobbs Creek, Central Park, and Coal Mountain in Forsyth County. Maybe we're lucky to be so centrally located. |
| fb dad |
Posted - 07/24/2010 : 16:43:53
2 sometimes 3 times a week to make him better we needed to travel |
| cop311 |
Posted - 07/24/2010 : 15:38:31
And how many times a week? |
| CoachDad |
Posted - 07/24/2010 : 15:29:12
Fifteen minutes.
An hour.. two hours... honestly, do you people not have anything else going on in your lives? Do you have no other children?
Here's a reality check - it's baseball. |
| fb dad |
Posted - 07/24/2010 : 15:04:45
2hrs one way and yes it was worth it |
