question for ya'll

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My DD is 12 going on 13 in August. She plays up in rec ball (14u) and plays 12u travel. When travel is over and regular rec season ends she's going to play fall ball. Here's my question..... her rec coach wants her for play on his 18u team? I know if a girl wants to get better she needs to play better competition, but is this too much of a move? By no means do I think my DD will go up there and stand out as a stud. Shell hold her own for a13 yr old but do you think the experience would help her or hinder? Playing against 18 yr olds as a 13 yr old sounds a little outrageous to me? Just curious on opinions on this one.

 

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Forget about skill level disparities, the psychological impact is the red flag from my vantage point.

 

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Will she be in high school this fall or middle school? If high school she might as well get used to it, if middle school, well.... It really depends on her and the girls she'll be playing with/against - not only do you have the softball differences, but you'll also have the social (18 vs 13) and shall we say "maturity" discussions that go on between players. Walking into the dugout of a high school aged team can be very enlightening. Having said that, my DD played up with the HS summer team at 12/13 and had a blast.

 

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We went through the exact situation last fall. DD was 12 turning 13 in dec, she played on a 16u fall team that was playing up in an 18u fall league in stark county. honestly, the best decision she has made since she started playing softball. She caught every game and besides getting ran over a time or two really had no issues and was very productive. I was worried about "dugout talk" but I lucked out and placed her on a team full of good kids, so that wasnt an issue either. Here's our problem. We decided to stay with the team this summer as a 13u playing 16u travel, she has been very productive behind the plate (even won a game mvp at a recent tournament) i've only seen maybe 2 or 3 catchers out play her since she made the jump, but her batting average is horrible (cant hit a beach ball right now) because they turned her around to the left last winter. Now, she cant hit left, she cant hit right and i'm at my wits end. She wants to sub the rest of the season somewhere but she cant go back to 14u and on paper, what 16u coach is going to look at a 13 year old with hitting issues. So the moral of the story is, make sure everything fits. And any 16u coach out there that needs a very productive catcher with hitting issues, shoot me a pm lol.

 

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Sounds to me as if a coach doesn't want to recruit and with her has the numbers he needs to field a team. Be careful she doesn't get squeezed out the bottom of the roster and spends the summer as a pinch runner or less.

Maturing as a hitter in many cases comes along slower than you think. Some girls never make the adjustment and it can ruin there confidence. Be sure to look this situation over from all angles and decide what is best for YOUR daughter. Having never seen her play, i'd say the majority (not all) would benefit staying back and settling in with girls closer in age unless as mentioned this is in preparation for her freshman year in high school.

Keep it fun while learning right now or you could see her skills tank out.

 

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There's a whole other level of maturity going on in 18u girls compared to 12u. As Bear mentioned, alot of dugout talk goes on that the parents have NO idea is ever discussed...trust me, you'd be amazed. The strength of the older girls is way beyond 12u, they hit much harder than even your biggest 12u player. The aggression level is higher too and that may be intimidating to the younger girls. I'm sure there are some instances it would work but I don't think I'd let my 12 year old play 18u ball, too many risks and not enough benefits.

 

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We have one playing with the Reds 18u RBI team...if parent is close...it's not impossible. It's actually been a good thing for her. She is 13.

 

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If it were me I would let her if she wanted and not push her if she didn't want to. In other words leave it totally up to her.

In Kentucky they let six graders play on the high school team. Talked to the parents of a catcher who said their six grader loved playing on the HS team. No problems.

 

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My opinion ... its not about the skills at all ... its about 12 year olds hanging out with 18 year olds ... from a parent perspective, I say not a good idea. Period.

 

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Ou rec league does 13-18 so it can work, but be careful as stated above with maturity...

 

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I coach high school, a 12u Rec team and a 10u travel team and the dug out talk of the high school team is not what I'd want my 11 year old to be around. Obviously I don't know your DD's matureity level is, but what Bear and Klump mentioned should be really thought about not glossed over. Just IMO.

 

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Fully agree with Uber on this one. Sorry, but high school aged girls are going to talk about things that 12 year olds aren't ready for. As a coach or parent, you may not hear it yourself or even hear about it later, but I have had info passed back to me in a couple of different instances (once from my own DD and once with someone else), and it's not something I would expose my daughter to again at that age if I didn't have to.

 

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My 12 year old has played HS rec when she was 11 and has played travel ball for 3 years. We are from Ohio and have played with those Kentucky girls that have played HS ball since they were in 6th grade. I don't think playing up on a travel team would benefit your daughter unless the coach is who you want her to play/practice with. At any given position during any given game, your player is only going to get so many defensive attempts. If they get any play on the ball at all. Her at bats will be limited as well, this is assuming she isn't sitting the bench. I would be more concerned with what is taught at practices where they get 100 or so cracks at the ball during practice and 100 or so attempts to play a ball defensively. I have been so happy with the little things that my daughter has learned from great coaches and keeping her at her age level. Foot work for holding a runner at third, actually why she should sometimes take the first pitch(let the fast girl in front of her steal), when to cover third vs. second as a shortstop. If your daughter is going to get better coaching playing up, then yes, do it. But make sure she has been coached well enough to put her there.

 

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I appreciate all the thoughts on this. We've decided to have my DD play at her age level for next year which is 14u. I have to agree the dugout talk isn't something my DD wouldnt want to hear about. Her maturity level is beyond her age, (she doesn't get that from me)..... but at 12, she's still a kid and I want her to stay that way for now. Thanks again all for the opinions on this. I can always count on my fellow ofcr's to help me out.

 

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DD had just turned 12 and was asked to fill in for an 18u team for a championship series for our local rec league since she was a TBer. Much to our chagrin, she learned WAY too much in the dugout from those girls. However, she did drop one about 230' with bases loaded in the bottom of the 13th innimg to win the game. Yes, a little bragging to go with a word of caution.

 

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My concerns is why are travel ball kids still playing rec leagues? Why are rec leagues offering 18yr olds the ability to play as most generally stop after 16U? My opininon is get your kid away from rec ball as fast as possible, your travel ball teams needs to be playing this fall and if they arent then go find another travel ball team. As far as moving up in age, it is truly position dependent and hitting dependent in my opinion. Pitchers should almost always stay at thier age levels, with a few exceptions here and there. The older they are, the harder they hit and more physical they become and the game is so much faster....

 

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Your dd is 13. There is no reason to help her grow up faster. She'll get there without putting her on a fast-track.

I am also concerned that by playing on a 18U Rec-ball team she'll learn a bunch of very bad habits from both her teammates and the coaching staff (not all softball related). If that league is anything like our local leagues there is a tremendous difference between the players of rec and that of travel-ball in that age group. She needs to hang out with great players and great coaches to really learn this great game. You won't find either on a 18U rec ball team recruiting 13 year olds. If this was a national Gold team recruiting top talent then I might have a different answer; but a rec-ball team, forget it. You might be better off taking the fall off.

 

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DD had just turned 12 and was asked to fill in for an 18u team for a championship series for our local rec league since she was a TBer. Much to our chagrin, she learned WAY too much in the dugout from those girls. However, she did drop one about 230' with bases loaded in the bottom of the 13th innimg to win the game. Yes, a little bragging to go with a word of caution.

That's great, but your facing 52 mph average at 12, I know there are kids out there throwing 65 at 12, but that's another thread LOL, the average speed at the 18u level is 58 to 59, remember that's the average..., so I cant see any advantage of a 12 yr old facing speeds and spins they cant handle. Keep in mind as a coach told me years ago, "i can find anybody to play defense", hitting is the key to obtaining scholarships if your not a pitcher or catcher....