Why so many openings, especially at 14u?

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Stats are only as good as the teams you played against; if your team played a mediocre schedule against "lesser" teams, then those stats don't really stand out to coaches. Now if you spent the season up against Stingrays, Lasers, Ice and others of that caliber then the stats definitely are impressive. It could be the coaches already knew the type of schedule once they saw the team she played for and that's the reason for no interest. Some of these teams are looking for a certain playing level and not all kids are there. I'd rather have a coach not waste my time then try my dd out knowing there was no chance he was going to take her.

This is very true...you might not want to hear this but alot of times the kids that played for the "lesser" known teams often get passed over or are not given consideration because they are not "tested" against the better teams. You will find that it is much easier to get looks if you played for a team with a better reputation. If you want to make the "jump" so to speak, you gotta network.

 

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This is very true...you might not want to hear this but alot of times the kids that played for the "lesser" known teams often get passed over or are not given consideration because they are not "tested" against the better teams. You will find that it is much easier to get looks if you played for a team with a better reputation. If you want to make the "jump" so to speak, you gotta network.

Do TB coaches have that kind of bias at tryouts? I hope not. Why even have tryouts? Why not just post that you're looking for players that have played for the top teams and if you didn't, need not apply? I can imagine a whole bunch of diamonds in the rough getting passed over simply because they don't have the resume.

 

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I think that every team, good or bad, has atleast a handful of good players who can compete with the big dogs. As a coach, I don't give too much consideration to who they played for in the past because there are countless reasons why a kid plays for a team and leaves a team. Maybe they were following their friends, or their parents don't want to or can't travel that much, or they have multiple siblings and they just can't make it work, or they can't afford the big tournament schedules or the elite team fees, or they want more playing time as a younger player to hone their skills for better teams as they get older, or they are fairly new to travel and didn't know any better...who knows. Playing on a 'lesser' team shouldn't disqualify a player from trying out for a better team. Judge them by what kind of player they are at tryouts and what kind of player you can make them become if given the chance.

 

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Do TB coaches have that kind of bias at tryouts? I hope not. Why even have tryouts? Why not just post that you're looking for players that have played for the top teams and if you didn't, need not apply? I can imagine a whole bunch of diamonds in the rough getting passed over simply because they don't have the resume.

whether they will admit it or not, i beleive that when a kid comes to tryouts and either (1) their parents emailed the org before hand to let them know their previous experience, or (2) they put on their registration form Lasers, Classics, Ohio Ice, etc., those kids will get the looks over the kids that are from a community based travel team and for good reason- its experience (similar to a resume).
Diamonds in the Rough happen all the time!!! and there are some kids that just don't try out well - the kids that are gamers and you need to see they play and you see wow, they do alot of things well.

 

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I believe that's why so many kids wear their old jersey during try outs.

My older daughter has been turned down do to lack of experience when she was 14, even though coach liked her athletic ability.

 

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Do TB coaches have that kind of bias at tryouts? I hope not. Why even have tryouts? Why not just post that you're looking for players that have played for the top teams and if you didn't, need not apply? I can imagine a whole bunch of diamonds in the rough getting passed over simply because they don't have the resume.

Speaking for myself, I do not have that kind of Bias. I'm the eternal optimist when it comes to evaluating talent, just ask my wife and assistant coaches LOL! I would suggest however that you do NOT send stats in advance of a tryout. Let your kids abilities speak for themselves on the diamond. Sending stats and youtube links is a RED FLAG for Crazy Daddy!

 

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whether they will admit it or not, i beleive that when a kid comes to tryouts and either (1) their parents emailed the org before hand to let them know their previous experience, or (2) they put on their registration form Lasers, Classics, Ohio Ice, etc., those kids will get the looks over the kids that are from a community based travel team and for good reason- its experience (similar to a resume).
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very true at 13u and above (obviously more so from the top notch organizations)

 

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I would suggest however that you do NOT send stats in advance of a tryout. Let your kids abilities speak for themselves on the diamond. Sending stats and youtube links is a RED FLAG for Crazy Daddy!

maybe at the younger age groups 10's and 12's
at 14u and older, stats and video are often sent to travel ball coaches and college coaches- not necessarily a red flag....i guess it depends on how it is done but at these ages, most teams have "heard" of the better players

 

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This is very true...you might not want to hear this but alot of times the kids that played for the "lesser" known teams often get passed over or are not given consideration because they are not "tested" against the better teams. You will find that it is much easier to get looks if you played for a team with a better reputation. If you want to make the "jump" so to speak, you gotta network.

Do TB coaches have that kind of bias at tryouts? I hope not. Why even have tryouts? Why not just post that you're looking for players that have played for the top teams and if you didn't, need not apply? I can imagine a whole bunch of diamonds in the rough getting passed over simply because they don't have the resume.

that bias for sure exists IMO. Especially when you are playing the top tournaments or even trying to get into them. The team resume is driven by the roster, the staff, and historical proof you can compete. In our case, we have only agreed to take a pitcher if she has pitched at high level in areas such as top level Mid-West tournaments, Lasers, Stingrays, etc. Does that mean the pitcher is not going to get a look, no, but it's a start. Picky is important when adding to a secure roster and seeing them prior in the year or "knowing" about "her" is huge. Rocking the boat has it's costs and having players that are battle proven are important. At 10u and 12u, not so much and again it's relative to the team's goals.

Watered down... for sure. Even our org did it... and we are learning to pull back. 14u has to be one of the toughest competitive years for next year the theme switches over to Exposure more than winning... at least that's my take on it. Not sure I like it but the goal is generally driven towards collegiate looks and not so much a title. Not sure I'll ever get past going after a title. Love seeing the girls go after the pinnacle at the same time collegiate options.

Oh yeah, and if my resume is weak... an employer will overlook me (my resume) unless I "sell" myself in a way that catches their eye. Not a bad way for a young lady to learn the ropes before it counts...

 

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For those of you who are wondering, well how the heck do i get my kid to get some looks if she doesn't play for Team A? Here is my advice -for what it is worth!

If you strive to play for one of the top teams next year, make sure your kid is getting year round solid instruction and putting in the work at home. Next year, when you see Team A on the ballfield, hopefully your kid can showcase her skills at the plate or, in the field.

If you see Team A advertising for a sub one weekend (which rarely happens, because these teams have a list of 5 or 6 kids on speed-dial that they "call in" for the weekend- usually kids they met through networking with coaches) offer to fill in.


Network network network whether it be a camps, clinics, through instructors, at the ballfield whatever! Don't be afraid to talk with coaches of other teams you are interested in for next year.

 

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Speaking for myself, I do not have that kind of Bias. I'm the eternal optimist when it comes to evaluating talent, just ask my wife and assistant coaches LOL! I would suggest however that you do NOT send stats in advance of a tryout. Let your kids abilities speak for themselves on the diamond. Sending stats and youtube links is a RED FLAG for Crazy Daddy!

Stats will tell the staff what may be there in a sea of other girls with talent. Durning tryouts a girl truly will only get 5-10 mins to shine. And not all our DD can play DADDY BALL.

 

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Stats will tell the staff what may be there in a sea of other girls with talent. Durning tryouts a girl truly will only get 5-10 mins to shine. And not all our DD can play DADDY BALL.

I am not a college coach, so just speaking from the realm of my personal experience, stats and videos generally do not represent the player in front of me, thus I become even more skeptical when I get unsolicited stats and videos.

As Mark Twain once said "There are three kinds of lies. Lies, damned lies, and Statistics". JMHO

 

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I won't reiterate what some others have said here about stats ... obviously, both the quality of the opponents and the quality of the stats being kept are big factors. Aside from what I said in another post about teams preferably being built with players on a similar level, I do know that some coaches take an approach of keeping one spot open if a stud player was to come along.

For example, there is always debate about the right number of players to keep with most people being in the 11-12 range. So if such a coach has a team with 11 that they're more or less happy with, they might hold that 12th spot for that stud if and when they come along. I think that can create some internal issues down the road if they continue to advertise for a player who might relegate to the bench someone already on the team, or even just if the new player shows up late in the process when the team has been practicing for some time and has begun to build a chemistry. Personally, I'd rather get that 12th player on board at tryouts so the team can get right to work at full strength, but I also understand the logic doing it the other way.

 

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Just look at this web site under legands and give this coach a call if you are still looking. I think think they are still looking and this is a new team.

 

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Just look at this web site under legands and give this coach a call if you are still looking. I think think they are still looking and this is a new team.

Huh??

 

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The legands website of course.

 

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Just look at this web site under legands and give this coach a call if you are still looking. I think think they are still looking and this is a new team.

New teams can be a large contributor to this problem, imho.

 

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I believe its desperation. My DD has gotten multiple contacts from teams she turned down already. Even stranger, one team she did not make is now reaching out almost daily to see if she is interested. What's interesting is this coach contacted her the day after tryouts with a clear message that he did not need her skill set on the team. I'm guessing he has found himself with not enough kids on the team and the skillset is not as important any longer.

I initially respected his quick reply that she was not what he was looking for. My view has changed on him, her skills haven't changed so why is he now so interested? Desperation. ;&

 

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New teams could be part of the problem but there are two sides to every story.
All old teams were a new team at one time. I have no problem with new teams because this gives more girls a chance play. It also brings more choices to the sport and generates more money for the cause. In any market it is important to have more choices, it helps keep the market fair. I think the new teams will grab at a girl that may be border line and who knows one of these border line girls could turn out to be one of the best because a new team grabbed her and gave her a chance to get or stay involved long enough to grow.