Team Costs on Team sites - more information

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When you look at all the tryout dates of different teams, no costs are talked about. It matters to me, how much it cost's and how much the team travels.


?Example:

Team cost - what is included
Team fundraisers - approx how much can you defer off the team cost if you are willing to work it.
List of tournaments local
List of away tournaments.
How many players do you try to carry
Practice field location - times a week
Fall ball - mandatory or not

I think it would help to get the right kids and parents at you tryouts, depending on what level you are trying to play at. And what level you can afford.




Straightleg

 

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Have you ever tried to look something up in a search engine? Every word you add limits the potential matches. That is the same premise in posting limited info for a tryout. Do you want to have as many possible top tier girls tryout, who may want to stay once they are sold on your program, do you want to limit those kids to the ones who only want to:
Pay a certain team fee and no more?
Only come to a team that either does or doesn't do fundraisers?
Only plays local or out of towners?
Will only come if you carry 10, or 11, or 12 kids?
Will only come if you practice in certain areas a certain amount of times per week?
Does or doesn't play travel ball?

Why would you want to limit those potential stars?

 

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I personally would think teams would want to be upfront about this. A girl who cannot afford it but may be a star, no matter how sold on the program will still not be able to do it. While others who can afford it may be more concerned about the practice time and making sure their dd gets a lot of time with the coach to better herself. Lot of different things covered in that post. Just seems to me more info is better. IMHO.

 

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i couldnt agree more with putting all info available out there for parents to look at. i plan on having a complete financial breakdown of all costs listed on an information sheet at try-outs.

 

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Look, I'm not a coach, but I have been in Sales for 20 yrs. Trust me when I tell you that pique someone's interest by giving just enough info to get them there. I'm not being argumentative, just giving my opinion. Everyone out there has the ability to call the coach or pm them to ask questions before driving to tryout.

 

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elite tryouts are like the menus at Smith and Wollenski's...they describe the steak, but the price is nowhere to be found....why? so as to not deter you from buying the cow with gold beef! team costs should come into play WHEN a player makes the team, not before....so what, a parent can have their check ready for tryouts? believe me, if you really want to know they will tell you, but to posts it on a website is sorta tacky

 

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Is it tacky to post fees or just deceptive not to?

 

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I don't think it is deceptive. We all know travel ball is expensive.... or should. It is not rec. ball that can mean a 40.00 - 60.00 league. As a parent, those are the types of questions I ask after the tryout, after the offer is made and prior to giving our response.

 

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if it was deceptive, they wouldn't even have a website

 

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Everything is getting more expensive so expect to pay between $500-$700 for most orgs. It's just simple addition of the numbers when you start to add uniforms, tournament costs, insurance, etc. If an org is promising to charge significantly less, then expect to do some heavy fundraising not for you but for the org. If they tout sponsorships to defer your costs, then ask who they are. It is easy to add up.

10 tournament (including nationals) @ $400 on avg. = $4000
Uniforms for 12 kids @ $100 for two sets. = $1200
Insurance/Sanctions = $200
Team equipment (bat bags, helmets, hoodies, t-shirts, etc.) @ $100 per kid = $1200

Total just for the above = $6600 / 12 kids = $550 already and that doesn't include practice facilities, balls, bats and any misc. stuff.

Two very important things to remember.

1) Tryouts are free!!!!!
2) Team fees are just a drop in the bucket of what you'll spend on the whole season. :'(

 

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Everything is getting more expensive so expect to pay between $500-$700 for most orgs. It's just simple addition of the numbers when you start to add uniforms, tournament costs, insurance, etc. If an org is promising to charge significantly less, then expect to do some heavy fundraising not for you but for the org. If they tout sponsorships to defer your costs, then ask who they are. It is easy to add up.

10 tournament (including nationals) @ $400 on avg. = $4000
Uniforms for 12 kids @ $100 for two sets. = $1200
Insurance/Sanctions = $200
Team equipment (bat bags, helmets, hoodies, t-shirts, etc.) @ $100 per kid = $1200

Total just for the above = $6600 / 12 kids = $550 already and that doesn't include practice facilities, balls, bats and any misc. stuff.

Two very important things to remember.

1) Tryouts are free!!!!!
2) Team fees are just a drop in the bucket of what you'll spend on the whole season. :'(

Ringer....How did you get my teams financial statement???

 

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Also keep in mind that most fundraisers are like school fundraisers. Parents or family buy the majority, so its coming out of your pocket anyway. Or at least that's the way it works around our house.

 

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ringer, you forgot the most important fee--keeping your statman happy! (beers, wings and mechanical pencil lead) squeaky wheel gets the hit, er, i mean grease! no metaphors about pay-offs in my posts!

don't forget all the new equipment you'll be buying your DD once she sees the other girls at practice, but beware this ever-popular scenario,

DD: "dad, buy me a rockettech!"

Dad:"honey, you don't weigh but a buck-o-five, the rockettech wont help, just work on...."

DD:" i hate you!"

Dad: "here, honeybun, dad loves you"

DD recieves golden-wrapped Hevybat, slips to bottom of the order

don't let that be you!
but equipment, i have found, especially REPLACED equipment (lost mouthguards, sunglasses, etc) really hit the wallet....

i sound like a Deter-a-con, but the team fee should be the LAST thing on your mind...i like ringer's estimates though

 

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And... The entry fees.

$30 per family x 10 tourneys = $300
Gas - depends on your team
Hotels

It all adds up!

 

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This is a good post and I see right in both sides.

Tryout time is an interesting time of year for everyone. I chose to provide all of the information I had last year concerning tournaments (schedule), fees, mission statements and goals. It did not help my case in obtaining players (being a first year team) but we will do it again this year.

Like business, it is all about perceived value when choosing a team.
Basically, everyone is weighing cost VS perceived return on investment. Which is just being a smart consumer and I personally respect that but.....

The B.etter B.usiness B.ureau suggest you shop three competitors before making your final decision

 

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As the parent of a fastpitch newcomer,(she attended her first 12/u practice last night), here are the following items that I have been contemplating lately.

Coaching - How many coaches, experience, recommendations from parents

1 time deal or does coach plan on keeping team together

is there a next step ? does that org have a team 1 step older ?

is there one team or many teams at that age bracket ?

Is it better to have your child on a established team as a sub or on an new team as a starter ?

I expect to pay $150-$750 to an organization for fee's

I expect to go to tryouts for 2-3 teams.



So in the meanwhile trying to determine the next step, I had a coach offer to teach my daughter the game and invited her to practices. That says alot about a coach and organization.

I would rather pay thousands to keep the kids in sports versus paying thousands to the courts or rehab somewhere else should they make a wrong turn in the road of life.

Besides....You cant take it with you when you die !

 

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wgman21

I had a talk with my dd on what she wanted out of softball being she plays 3 sports - all varsity - no days off during the school year.

Mandatory fall ball does not work for her.

She wants to play, but on a team that does 5-6 local tournaments, maybe 1 out of towner.

?I have three kids playing sports so price and how much out of town matters to me.


I hear what you are saying. ? ?I just look at it differently ?


This information posted for me will have me take her to the right team tryouts.


The ones who play 10-12 tournaments and travel 4 out of towners. Even though I think my dd would make these teams, she does not want to play that much and I dont have that much vacation time, or can i afford to travel that much.
So why would I waste the org. time on taking my dd to a tryout if I knew this information going in.



Straightleg

 

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Here's a thought, for those that want to see the info posted like fees, how much out-of-state travel, whether they have fundraisers or not, etc, email the coaches of the teams you are interested in and then post what they tell you right here on OFC. You will be helping out others who feel like you and want to make an informed decision with all the facts. Maybe someone else will be posting the info for a team you are interested in, helping you. Those that don't want to know, they like being "sold" don't look.

Problem solved...next!

 

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As a parent, I have always expected to see the fees at the tryouts. You definitely have the right to know the cost before you commit to a team. Also, ask about fundraisers.

 

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We (The Breakers) have always provided this kind of info at our tryouts. ?We have a sheet that tells you about our org, our philosophy, what you'll get for your $$, what is expected of our players/parents, what you can expect from us and a dollar range (this year was 400-450) of what the fees will be. ?

We cannot provide exact costs, because we have no way of knowing them up front. ?We do commit that your fees will not exceed the range provided. ?We have been pretty good at estimating, this year we landed in the middle of our range at $425.

For that the players got:
8 tournaments + Nationals entry fee
2 sets of uniforms (w/ 4 pair of socks)
Complete Helmet (assembled)
USB Batbag (w/ embroidery & screening)
Visor (embroidered)
Insurance
All Sanctions
etc.

Total cost per girl was $553, the difference was covered by our organization wide fundraisers. ?That provided enough extra per girl for some pizza parties at away tournaments.