Playing Indoor Fastpitch in the Winter

[InSider]

I'm sure all of us have had our daughters play on a team that plays indoors in the winter. I know there are some really good facilities and some not-so-good facilities. I have also heard over the years that the West Coast and southern players are better than northern players because they are in the dirt year round. I do believe that we are closing the gap talent wise. However, I wonder how much of it is that our girls are playing indoors during the cold months. Could the level of private instruction be compensating for the year round reps? Could it be because the top teams in this area are seeking out better competition?

Does playing indoors really make that much of a difference? What is your opinion?

 

[CARDS]

I think the improvement in play is mainly because of better instruction and practice routines.
Organizations are bringing in better coaching and coaches are seeking out learning opportunities to become better coaches.
Parents are also more educated about the game seeking out private instruction including, running, strength and agility trainers etc.

I do think playing indoor ball does allow teams to work on some stuff including seeing some live pitching especially at 8U to 12U before the girls get into HS.
However; a lot of the facilities playing surfaces and surroundings can create some challenges/risk. Some places have to use RF Balls or Incredi balls that can affect play.
Cost is another factor, Some of these indoor events are $600 or more dollars for 3/4 games that are generally a one hour drop dead time limit. If you are roster batting sometimes players do not even get an AB so you have to weigh the ROI with the event since $500-$600 can buy a lot of indoor practice time.

The Dome up in Ft Wayne was probably the best indoor facility we used back in the early 2000s at 12U and 14U. We always enjoyed taking the HS team to Sinclair in Dayton. They did a good job with the event, it was reasonably priced and the playing field although a hard surface was a little better than the other options available in SW Ohio.