But in the concept of team, I dont think one team is more important then the other.
I was actually going to post a discussion topic on this very thing today. This sentence pretty much says it all. What the rec team is doing is just as important to those coaches, players and parents as what the travel ball team is doing to their coaches, players and parents.
So my question is: If you can't give 100% to one or both teams, why play both?
It's not being elitist at all. I love rec ball and there are some things about it that travel will never touch. But Klump pretty much hit the nail on the head about what it takes for a travel team to compete. But beyond all that, how can you have a true team with part-time players?
Reasons I've been given or read on here for doing both:
1. Any game time is more beneficial than a practice. NO WAY. The price of winning is paid in practice and the benefits of playing in a rec ball game will never outweigh the benefits of participating in a PROPERLY run travel ball practice. There is nothing elitist about it.
2. These are the kids they will play in high school with. Not really. Numbers alone make it impossible - 12 kids from 1 grade will not be playing high school varsity together. Beyond that, a kid playing travel ball will play 3-4 times the games as a rec only player and all other things being equal, the travel ball kids SHOULD be better. That said, travel ball is not a magic ticket to varsity and a rec player certainly can beat out a travel ball player for a varsity spot, earning it on merit not high school politics.
3. They want to play with their friends. If they want to play softball with their friends, they should stay in rec ball and do that. Otherwise, realize that the rest of the year is spent doing activities with their friends and don't worry about missing softball.
4. They want to represent their school and community. They will in middle school and high school sports and they will find it very rewarding. We played travel ball to make our high school team better, not for college scholarships.
5. We play against travel ball players in our rec league. Yes, but you are not playing against solid travel ball teams and that makes a big difference.
6. More reps for pitchers who are not getting as much time on the weekend. I can't argue with the idea of getting more pitching time. However, I believe you will have a better chance to earn more weekend pitching time if you are practicing during the week instead of pitching in a game. The rec ball coach wants to win just like anybody else and he/she will not be wanting a pitcher to show up and work on their other pitches if they are capable of blowing the fastball by their opponents and winning the game.
That's my opinion and of course, other than in my house, it doesn't mean much!
However, I am interested in the reasons people are playing both if they cannot give 100% to one or both teams. I think we would all have to agree that kids missing practice does have an effect on the team.