Question about Teams Playing up

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This is a travel ball team. The coach was on here a few times in the fall indicating they were going to do this.

I know from my experience though, the 16u level around Ohio and neighboring states draw the most college coaches. To move these kids to 18u is not going to do them any favors. They will get exposed less to coaches and because of the level of play may hurt the exposure that they do get by getting soundly defeated often.

another point about playing up. If all 12u start playing at 14u, then in reality, you really are playing your own age teams anyway. The Slammers as a older 12U team played up at 14U. This in reality may not have been as big as step as it may seem, if many of the 14u teams they were playing were young.

It works for some, not for others.

usually in pickups and around nationals time, you are trying to play at your own age group and see where you stand. A pickup is normally at the top age limit of an age group. There would not be much sense to pick up a younger player that is physically weaker, slower, etc unless she would be a dominant pitcher.

 

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I apologize for stirring a few feathers. I did not refer to any particular team or organization in my original post nor do I have my facts wrong!!!. Please do not read anything more into what I wrote then what is written.
Let me try to rephrase my original post.
A team that is eligible to play 16U decides to play 18U instead.
The questions are:
Why do teams choose to do this? Is it to showcase their players? Is the competition that much stronger in the 18U as opposed to the 16U? Are there more quality tournaments at the 18U level? I know that there are different reasons why coaches do this but I do not coach and I can't figure it out why.

SBD and Woolfman, Thanks for your insight

 

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There is an area team that I know about that is going from 14U last year right into 18U this season.

Is alot different than this....

A team that is eligible to play 16U decides to play 18U instead.

Ruffling Feathers? ?or Chest Thumping? ?There is a reason you started your thread the way you did, and the reason you got the responses you did. : ?Don't change course in the middle of the race.

 

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Please do not make this personal.
My original post asks a series of questions.
If you have an imput to my questions I would welcome them.

 

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It would be a bad move to skip 16U this year and play only 18u. If you are a 16U team and play up once in a while - AND CAN COMPETE AT THAT LEVEL - then it is fine. But with the tournies Knights listed in this area this year. 16U is gonna be brawl every weekend! - a fun brawl

 

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Playing up is a great confidence builder if that particular team is competetive at that level but if they are not it can really bring them down if they get slaughtered.