2020 Little League Thread of Dominance

[pepper brooks 580]

Crazy to think our Little League draft is a mere 5 weeks from tomorrow.  Tournament ball season was tough for my son.  He broke his ankle the first week of September so he missed most of the tourney ball fall.  He came back to play two events, but wasn't released to pitch.  We are going to try and put another few events in so he can get back on the mound and shake off some rust. 

 

We've started the research for the USA bat that is the least piece of $hit.  We have gone through many since the change.  2018 he had the Easton Ghost X.  Hit with it once, and said he'd never hit with it again.  I hit some ground balls with it, and agreed.  What a flaming f*cking turd that thing was.  He ended up with the Mizuno Ghost (confusing), and really liked it.  Cracked it during All-Stars and I was able to get him a USA Demarini CF Zen that he really liked to finish the tourney.  2019 he got the Demarini CF Zen in USA version.  He liked it at first, but it seemed to lose all it's pop quickly.  He cracked it eventually, and finished the year with a Louisville Prime USA.  that was his favorite USA bat to date.  He needs a 32 now so we need to get a new one.  I am totally gun shy on this, but reviews on the latest Easton 360 are really good.  Seems they have a new composite material, new handle, new connection, etc.  They also make it in drop 11 which could help swing speed with these terrible bats.  The Demarini CF seems to be the same as last year, but with new paint.  The Lousiville Prime will again likely be a great bat.  Marucci is making a USA version of their CAT which may be good too.  It does seem that the metal bats perform as well as the composites at half the cost.  Maybe it's time to just accept in the USA space there is no discernable advantage to the composites as they all suck.  This is my son's 12U season for Little League.  My coaching career is coming to an end very soon.  Hard to believe.  It has gone by so fast.  

Edited December 6, 2019 by pepper brooks

[MAROON 445]

20 minutes ago, pepper brooks said:

This is my son's 12U season for Little League.  My coaching career is coming to an end very soon.

[Mez2 4023]

Oaks Dad's Club, represent. Chuy is back for his second year of spring tee-ball. He's put in a lot of work since last spring season, he made the "all-star team" and played in a couple of tournaments over the summer - one at ODC which they got second and another in Waller that was actually more of a coach-pitch tourney. He did fairly well in it having not hit much live pitching his first of playing. We played fall ball at ODC and went 8-0; much better experience than my first time around coaching.  

This will be his last year of teeball before moving onto coach pitch, but has really made some great strides with his swing. I'm biased but he has a really good swing for a 6 year old. We practice at least twice a week. I asked him yesterday what he wanted to work on - defense or offense - and he told me baserunning. One thing ODC does is allow up to 4 "contract" players, which means they don't have to go into the draft and are automatically on a team, usually a pre-determined team ahead of the start of the season. Not entirely sure how i feel about that having been on both side of the spectrum - last year I went into the year with 0 players (got our asses kicked) and this year I will go into spring with 4 contracted, 6 year olds (4-6 y/o is division). Good for my team but maybe not good for overall learning experience for the kids. 

anyway, looking forward to it overall. i know Chuy really likes playing and has made a lot of good friends in playing ball. i'm doing everything i can to stay with him as he grows and learns more. pepper brooks' comment about his coaching career ending soon is why i want to spend as much time with him as possible. i already dread the day I won't be his "coach".

fucking baseball, man. it's the best. 

[joeycovers 391]

Coached in League Ball this Fall and went Unbeaten but had a pretty stacked team.  It was our first year in Coach Pitch..  I get to bring back 3 from that team.. Question is what do you guys feel is the single most important thing at that age level? As long as a kid makes decent contact I'm a believer that speed trumps all. Curious yall's thoughts and also what positions do you play your top 3 kids?

 

[Mez2 4023]

granted my age group is 4-6 year olds, but for me, it;s ability to make consistent contact. way too young to worry about driving the ball outta the park, but never too young to have an nice fluid swing. i position my top 3-4 kids at 3b, SS, pitcher position, and 1st, at my level most kids are going to be hitting in that general area and if i good up the middle/pull side (for righties), my 1st baseman can just worry about catching the ball, blocking it. for lefties I can shift over my SS behind the pitcher to cover for my 2B. 

Edited December 6, 2019 by Mez2

[Huckleberry 32861]

pepper, does your son really need a -11 bat if he's big enough to need a 32 inch? Seems weird to me. Bat speed is well and good but at some point you are sacrificing exit velocity by using such a light bat. If your kid can swing properly then I really doubt a 32/21 is the right bat for him. 

And if he's using -10 and -11 that could also explain the lack of pop and cracking. 

[pepper brooks 580]

1 hour ago, Huckleberry said:

pepper, does your son really need a -11 bat if he's big enough to need a 32 inch? Seems weird to me. Bat speed is well and good but at some point you are sacrificing exit velocity by using such a light bat. If your kid can swing properly then I really doubt a 32/21 is the right bat for him. 

And if he's using -10 and -11 that could also explain the lack of pop and cracking. 

He does not NEED a -11.  In tourney ball he swings a -5.  However, the theory is since these USA bats are total shit sticks going with a -11 should increase swing speed thus adding some pop to the otherwise dead face of the bat.  But no, he is a strong kid and does not need -11.  it's merely a strategic thing.  He also has a -3 wooden bat he sometimes uses in USA play.  

[Huckleberry 32861]

Right, that's what I figured. But a -11 and a -5 bat of the same model are not going to result in the same exit velocity at the same swing speed, even if they have the exact same COR. And since your kid is able to swing a -3 bat properly, it's possible he loses more exit velocity from bat mass than he gains from bat speed.

My son recently went through a growth spurt that jacked his mechanics all up. Typical for his age his limbs are too long for his body right now and he was getting frustrated. His swing was all out of sync and disconnected for a while, but while we were working on that I was able to show him at a nearby cage that while his bat speed was faster with the -10 his exit velocity was faster with the -5. He doesn't swing the -10 faster enough to make up for the 5 ounce difference.

Obviously every swing is different so it may work for your kid, just kind of throwing it out on the thread for discussion. I just finished up my first season as a head coach and 3 hitters on our team got instantly better as soon as they stopped using -11 bats that were too small for them and started using -8 (2 of them) or -5 (the other one, big strong but inexperienced kid with mechanics still a work in progress). They were still able to square up the ball with their normal swing mechanics but their line drives were now landing in the outfield instead of where infielders could frequently catch them.

[pepper brooks 580]

Kid cracked his 15th tournament bat Thursday night at his lesson. Found a replacment at budget that would work. First pitch at the tournament today he hits one a mile into the lake out at the scrap yard.  Good day for him today.  

[F250 28777]

On 12/6/2019 at 2:37 PM, Huckleberry said:

Right, that's what I figured. But a -11 and a -5 bat of the same model are not going to result in the same exit velocity at the same swing speed, even if they have the exact same COR. And since your kid is able to swing a -3 bat properly, it's possible he loses more exit velocity from bat mass than he gains from bat speed.

My son recently went through a growth spurt that jacked his mechanics all up. Typical for his age his limbs are too long for his body right now and he was getting frustrated. His swing was all out of sync and disconnected for a while, but while we were working on that I was able to show him at a nearby cage that while his bat speed was faster with the -10 his exit velocity was faster with the -5. He doesn't swing the -10 faster enough to make up for the 5 ounce difference.

Obviously every swing is different so it may work for your kid, just kind of throwing it out on the thread for discussion. I just finished up my first season as a head coach and 3 hitters on our team got instantly better as soon as they stopped using -11 bats that were too small for them and started using -8 (2 of them) or -5 (the other one, big strong but inexperienced kid with mechanics still a work in progress). They were still able to square up the ball with their normal swing mechanics but their line drives were now landing in the outfield instead of where infielders could frequently catch them.

I was always a believer in lower drop > high drop with the exception of the kids that genuinely struggled with heavier bats. Although with most kids it was usually an issue with mechanics than strength. A lot of people mistake bat drag for weakness and think getting a higher drop bat is the answer.

 

[pepper brooks 580]

9 hours ago, F250 said:

I was always a believer in lower drop > high drop with the exception of the kids that genuinely struggled with heavier bats. Although with most kids it was usually an issue with mechanics than strength. A lot of people mistake bat drag for weakness and think getting a higher drop bat is the answer.

 

generally I agree.  he hits -5 in tourney ball since he kept demolishing -10 and -8 CF Zens every couple of months.  We have tried the lower drop USA bats and the higher drop ones.  He has generally liked the lower drop ones for whatever reason in the USA platform.  we will give this a shot.  He's only hit it a few times since we have been trying to fit in a few tournaments.  So far he likes it.  If he ends up not like this Easton I will like just get him a -8 aluminum/alloy and call it a day.  There seems to be no good answer in the USA bat space to date.  

[Hanrahan 1306]

My boy has played tourney ball with his grade, which is a year up for him (he’s aged 8u but plays 9u). Our 9u team struggled but he subbed for an 8u team and they won a one day tournament going 4-0. Got the “gold” ring and he played well. Lotta fun compared to the 9u competition.

[PappyVanVinceYoung 85]

Had an awesome time in the Fall doing our first foray into select ball.

Had my 9 year old on a 9U team coached by our hitting instructor. Ups and downs, but it was a great experience. He learned a ton with his first year of kid pitch and open bases. Played 1B, backup catcher, and pitched quite a bit with a lot of success.

Had my 7 year old on an 8U team that I coached. Coach pitch is a blast, and we had a ton of success. Towards the end, the coach of our 9U team asked my 7 year old to join that team as well. He did that too, so he got a crash course in kid pitch and open bases. He played in 2 tournaments including getting to pitch this past weekend. Went 2 innings giving up 1 run and striking out 5 in his debut. Only real issue is that he's used to playing middle infield, but with this older team he's usually playing LF or sitting on the bench. He also bats last. He's handled it great, and I'm sure he feels cool playing with these older kids and having some success. Kids all treated him great, which I'm sure it helped having his older brother on the same team to stick up for him.

Going to have both kids play in the local little league for the first time this Spring along with playing periodic tournaments with our 9U select team. Older one will be a young minors player, and the younger one will be pee wee. They do machine pitch at that pee wee level. So, he'll be doing both kid pitch with the select team and machine pitch with little league. He's a good fielder, so I hope he can get an infield spot and get a lot of fielding work in this league. I'm assuming there's a lot of offense with machine pitch but not many outfield hits with the USA bats. 

I need to start researching bats for both. We've never used USA bats before.  

[PappyVanVinceYoung 85]

On 12/6/2019 at 11:41 AM, joeycovers said:

Coached in League Ball this Fall and went Unbeaten but had a pretty stacked team.  It was our first year in Coach Pitch..  I get to bring back 3 from that team.. Question is what do you guys feel is the single most important thing at that age level? As long as a kid makes decent contact I'm a believer that speed trumps all. Curious yall's thoughts and also what positions do you play your top 3 kids?

 

Most important thing at that level is having a first baseman that can catch. You put your best players at 1B, P, and SS.  

[joeycovers 391]

Anyone else here have kids that play in Pony? We did All Stars over the Summer and curious others experience. 

[F250 28777]

5 hours ago, PappyVanVinceYoung said:

Most important thing at that level is having a first baseman that can catch. You put your best players at 1B, P, and SS.  

This. And depending on league rules, if base stealing is allowed, a kid that can play catcher. Our league drew a white circle behind the catcher, if the ball went passed it, a runner could steal. We had two kids that knew how to correctly block as a catcher and we never gave up "steals". It made a huge difference as we were able to send our runners at will to the next base.

[F250 28777]

4 hours ago, joeycovers said:

Anyone else here have kids that play in Pony? We did All Stars over the Summer and curious others experience. 

No but I in my humble opinion, PONY league is superior to Little League. If anyone has the choice between PONY and Little League they should choose PONY*.

 

*Assuming that the local PONY league isn't a dumpster fire.

[joeycovers 391]

10 hours ago, F250 said:

No but I in my humble opinion, PONY league is superior to Little League. If anyone has the choice between PONY and Little League they should choose PONY*.

 

*Assuming that the local PONY league isn't a dumpster fire.

Agree. But because ESPN is partners with LL they get more exposure and money but Pony is better baseball. 

[StruggleBus 3922]

I got to see TD Ameritrade stadium in Omaha last week. Damn, that place is awesome. One of my little league all star teams was a game away from going when I was a kid. All I could think about was how awesome it would have been to play at a place like that growing up. 

[PappyVanVinceYoung 85]

What are the main differences between Pony and Little League? 

[joeycovers 391]

42 minutes ago, PappyVanVinceYoung said:

What are the main differences between Pony and Little League? 

Pony is based on MLB Rules. 

Leading Off

Base Stealing

Kids Pitch sooner (I think)

[F250 28777]

45 minutes ago, joeycovers said:

Pony is based on MLB Rules. 

Leading Off

Base Stealing

Kids Pitch sooner (I think)

Plus the field dimensions progress appropriately with the age of the players. Little League uses a 46/60 diamond for their 12U which is what PONY uses for their 10U. Little League Intermediate (13U) uses 50/70 when they should already be on a 54/80 if not a 60/90 field.

[troph 24807]

Christmas morning and my 10 year old has his own catching gear now. He’s ready to dominate.

 

 

He’ll get a lot of practice with wild pitches at the park when I’m the one winding up.

[F250 28777]

Mizuno Samurai?

[troph 24807]

That was from last season at a practice, I got him an Easton set.

[F250 28777]

On 12/26/2019 at 2:07 PM, troph said:

That was from last season at a practice, I got him an Easton set.

Cool. My son who is currently a senior in high school bounced between Easton, Mizuno and All Star gear as a catcher. Finally stayed with All Star for high school ball. I have a son who is a Freshman in HS and his been catching since Little League too. I don't think there is a more expensive position. Especially when they get to high school and the coach is moving them between catcher, 3rd and center field throughout the season.

 

[F250 28777]

By the way. If your kid is a catcher get a quality cup and wrist guards. NuttyBuddy cups are really good for catchers.

[troph 24807]

Have the cup but not wrist guards. Wasn’t aware. Thinking of some camps but he’s not that dedicated. For now it’s videos and then take him to the park and teach him. Pitching some too, but he’s got more talent for catching I think.

[F250 28777]

22 hours ago, troph said:

Have the cup but not wrist guards. Wasn’t aware. Thinking of some camps but he’s not that dedicated. For now it’s videos and then take him to the park and teach him. Pitching some too, but he’s got more talent for catching I think.

The wrist guard will come in handy once the player is blocking regularly and the pitchers start picking up speed.

I think I mentioned this before but the New England Catching Camp material is excellent for catching instruction. Just study the material yourself and then teach it. When he is ready, get him to one of these NECC camps.

https://www.catchingcamp.com/

 

Edited December 31, 2019 by F250

[pepper brooks 580]

Try outs for our league are this weekend and it looks like rain.  Back to the bat discussion for a moment, the -11 Easton ADV is a pretty sweet bat, and the kiddo really likes it, but it's simply too light for him although that will come in handy when he sees a 60+ from 46 feet.  He's also carrying the 2020 Louisville "Select" in -8 set up.  That one feels very balanced, and has the metal barrel with composite handle so he can hit it when it's cold without cracking it like the composites.  

[Huckleberry 32861]

We're going through the bat thing now as my son is playing actual Little League for the first time this spring. Gonna get a mix, as you're right that from 46 feet and with the wide variation in pitcher velocities it can make a difference. A -5 will be his standard bat then a -8 when necessary. Don't think I'll get him anything lighter than that.

I still regret taking a -11 up to the plate against our league's hardest thrower when I was 12 years old. Hit an absolute bomb but pulled it 5 or 10 feet foul. Should have had my regular -6 (the old 2-1/8" diameter Easton 32/26) up there. Stupid little kid.

So now you know where my lifelong mission not to let kids swing bats that are too light for them started.

[F250 28777]

Tryouts are a week from this Saturday. My daughter will be playing softball this season, previously she was playing machine pitch baseball. No more Little League baseball for dad. I still have high school baseball but that really isn't the same.

Kind of glad to be leaving baseball though. There are always those overly competitive parents in baseball who thrive off of their kids being better than everyone else. Something I noticed was those people really don't like it when a girl out performs their son and just really suck to be around.

[pepper brooks 580]

On 1/10/2020 at 11:51 AM, F250 said:

Tryouts are a week from this Saturday. My daughter will be playing softball this season, previously she was playing machine pitch baseball. No more Little League baseball for dad. I still have high school baseball but that really isn't the same.

Kind of glad to be leaving baseball though. There are always those overly competitive parents in baseball who thrive off of their kids being better than everyone else. Something I noticed was those people really don't like it when a girl out performs their son and just really suck to be around.

my son's 10U year we had a girl play baseball in our league.  she also had two mom's.  I drafted her onto my team simply because I knew no one would give them any shit, and the girl could play.  She had a game winning hit against the 1 seed in our playoffs that year, and it was about the coolest thing ever.  Fun times.  

[troph 24807]

my son's 10U year we had a girl play baseball in our league.  she also had two mom's.  I drafted her onto my team simply because I knew no one would give them any shit, and the girl could play.  She had a game winning hit against the 1 seed in our playoffs that year, and it was about the coolest thing ever.  Fun times.  

That’s bad ass. Good on you!

[pepper brooks 580]

So we played our at BBUSA this weekend.  Few tournaments available anywhere.  only 5 teams in the 12U, and they made it "open" division.  A team from dallas came down to play.  They're #1 in the nation for Majors division out at USSSA.  We had to play them in a seed game Saturday night.  Keep in mind out tourney ball team is composed of private school kids from inner loop who all play little league.  We play tourney ball, and we are successful, but we aren't even close to the same level as majors teams.  We compete well against AAA competition.  The Saturday night starter for then goes 6'1 190 with a mustache.  Not peach fuzz.  A legit mustache.  Dude throws:

Fastball 74, Curveball 64, change up 68.  Last year they were 61-2.  so far this year playing 12U Majors, 13U AAA and `13U Majors they are 28-0.  We were the only team to even score a run on them this weekend.  we scored 1.  We played them again in the finals today, and the beat us 8-0, but we held them scoreless for 3 2/3 innings.  They then hit 5 home runs in the last 2 to beat us 8-0.    Former aTm RB, Japorky Lane's kid played on the team.  Kid is really good.  Hell, every kid in their team was better than anyone we had. Pitcher today threw 68-70, smooth as silk with a high school level curve ball.  Good experience for out kids to fight and battle.  Cannot imagine this was good experience for their kids to run rule a bunch of kids who really were not in the same galaxy with them.  their closest games were 13-1 and 8-0.  All the others were worse.  

[Surly Bevo 24926]

19 minutes ago, pepper brooks said:

So we played our at BBUSA this weekend.  Few tournaments available anywhere.  only 5 teams in the 12U, and they made it "open" division.  A team from dallas came down to play.  They're #1 in the nation for Majors division out at USSSA.  We had to play them in a seed game Saturday night.  Keep in mind out tourney ball team is composed of private school kids from inner loop who all play little league.  We play tourney ball, and we are successful, but we aren't even close to the same level as majors teams.  We compete well against AAA competition.  The Saturday night starter for then goes 6'1 190 with a mustache.  Not peach fuzz.  A legit mustache.  Dude throws:

Fastball 74, Curveball 64, change up 68.  Last year they were 61-2.  so far this year playing 12U Majors, 13U AAA and `13U Majors they are 28-0.  We were the only team to even score a run on them this weekend.  we scored 1.  We played them again in the finals today, and the beat us 8-0, but we held them scoreless for 3 2/3 innings.  They then hit 5 home runs in the last 2 to beat us 8-0.    Former aTm RB, Japorky Lane's kid played on the team.  Kid is really good.  Hell, every kid in their team was better than anyone we had. Pitcher today threw 68-70, smooth as silk with a high school level curve ball.  Good experience for out kids to fight and battle.  Cannot imagine this was good experience for their kids to run rule a bunch of kids who really were not in the same galaxy with them.  their closest games were 13-1 and 8-0.  All the others were worse.  

I'm going to take a wild but very very educated guess that you played the Texas Canes Elite (formerly...well they got a LOT of formerly, but Texas Bombers being the most notable) . Almost everything wrong with youth sports.  

Read on

 

https://www.star-telegram.com/news/local/fort-worth/article159060549.html

 

Interestingly enough...they are funded by Lale's family's involvement in a scrip club.

[Hanrahan 1306]

So we played our at BBUSA this weekend.  Few tournaments available anywhere.  only 5 teams in the 12U, and they made it "open" division.  A team from dallas came down to play.  They're #1 in the nation for Majors division out at USSSA.  We had to play them in a seed game Saturday night.  Keep in mind out tourney ball team is composed of private school kids from inner loop who all play little league.  We play tourney ball, and we are successful, but we aren't even close to the same level as majors teams.  We compete well against AAA competition.  The Saturday night starter for then goes 6'1 190 with a mustache.  Not peach fuzz.  A legit mustache.  Dude throws:
Fastball 74, Curveball 64, change up 68.  Last year they were 61-2.  so far this year playing 12U Majors, 13U AAA and `13U Majors they are 28-0.  We were the only team to even score a run on them this weekend.  we scored 1.  We played them again in the finals today, and the beat us 8-0, but we held them scoreless for 3 2/3 innings.  They then hit 5 home runs in the last 2 to beat us 8-0.    Former aTm RB, Japorky Lane's kid played on the team.  Kid is really good.  Hell, every kid in their team was better than anyone we had. Pitcher today threw 68-70, smooth as silk with a high school level curve ball.  Good experience for out kids to fight and battle.  Cannot imagine this was good experience for their kids to run rule a bunch of kids who really were not in the same galaxy with them.  their closest games were 13-1 and 8-0.  All the others were worse.  

My lad has played on a neighborhood AA and run run into a buzzsaw that bad but we’ve had our fair share at getting our bits kicked at BUSA.

[pepper brooks 580]

16 hours ago, Surly Bevo said:

I'm going to take a wild but very very educated guess that you played the Texas Canes Elite (formerly...well they got a LOT of formerly, but Texas Bombers being the most notable) . Almost everything wrong with youth sports.  

Read on

 

https://www.star-telegram.com/news/local/fort-worth/article159060549.html

 

Interestingly enough...they are funded by Lale's family's involvement in a scrip club.

yep.  those guys.  Absolute monsters on that team.  we held them scoreless for a bit over 3 inning and it felt like we won the damn world series.  

[pepper brooks 580]

and wow.  that article is unreal.  we play tourney ball and little league.  we are quasi serious, but we are absolute amateurs compared to this psycho.  we encourage our kids to play lots of sports and make the fall tournaments when they can.  we are nothing like these guys.  unreal.  I am shocked parents are crazy enough to do this.  College baseball gets 9 scholarships, and has a roster of 35.  

[Surly Bevo 24926]

1 hour ago, pepper brooks said:

and wow.  that article is unreal.  we play tourney ball and little league.  we are quasi serious, but we are absolute amateurs compared to this psycho.  we encourage our kids to play lots of sports and make the fall tournaments when they can.  we are nothing like these guys.  unreal.  I am shocked parents are crazy enough to do this.  College baseball gets 9 scholarships, and has a roster of 35.  

Yea the dude is crazy.  He's been banned from USSSA for a year at one point.  I have a kid on a 13UAAA team that has run into them a few times back when they were the Bombers.  Always ugly.  Last fall was in a tournament with them but his team lost in the semi that was for the right to play them in the final so didn't get the pleasure. That team of "12U" kids makes our 13U kids look like they should go back to coach pitch in terms size and maturity.  Interesting that they have JaPorky's kid.  If you look at the roster of that team on the USSSA site it's just a bunch of mercenaries who bounce from team to team, with the one exception of Lale's two kids.  Scoring a run on what's essentially a state-wide (with some out of state talent often sprinkled in) all-star of select/travel team is nothing to sneeze at.  Most never ever come close (we got a kid to third ONCE with one out...he got picked off)

And the scholarship comment is absolutely dead on. You are better taking all that money and putting it in savings if college is what it is about.  Partials ain't paying the fucking bills and there is a 99 in 100 chance your particular kid in question isn't good enough to get one of the very very few full schollies that get offered.  

 

 

 

 

Edited January 20, 2020 by Surly Bevo

[pepper brooks 580]

8 hours ago, Surly Bevo said:

Yea the dude is crazy.  He's been banned from USSSA for a year at one point.  I have a kid on a 13UAAA team that has run into them a few times back when they were the Bombers.  Always ugly.  Last fall was in a tournament with them but his team lost in the semi that was for the right to play them in the final so didn't get the pleasure. That team of "12U" kids makes our 13U kids look like they should go back to coach pitch in terms size and maturity.  Interesting that they have JaPorky's kid.  If you look at the roster of that team on the USSSA site it's just a bunch of mercenaries who bounce from team to team, with the one exception of Lale's two kids.  Scoring a run on what's essentially a state-wide (with some out of state talent often sprinkled in) all-star of select/travel team is nothing to sneeze at.  Most never ever come close (we got a kid to third ONCE with one out...he got picked off)

And the scholarship comment is absolutely dead on. You are better taking all that money and putting it in savings if college is what it is about.  Partials ain't paying the fucking bills and there is a 99 in 100 chance your particular kid in question isn't good enough to get one of the very very few full schollies that get offered.  

 

 

 

 

My son hasn’t turned 12 yet and came in to pitch the last inning. Faced 1, 2, 3. Struck out 1. Got 2 to hit a rollover ground ball for an out, and got 3 to hit a pop fly that hit our right fielder dead in the palm and he dropped it. Gets two strikes on 4, throws a fastball down and out and the kid hits it a fucking country mile. Unreal.  He throws mid to high 60’s too and this kid had no trouble getting it. Like I said it was great experience for our kids who get cocky and need to know they’re not as hot shit as they think. Kids on the canes were definitely not having any fun. As the 3 up 3 down innings piled up you could feel the tensions building for them. 

Edited January 21, 2020 by pepper brooks

[PappyVanVinceYoung 85]

Will have a kid playing Minors for the first time this year. What are the typical velocities that pitchers will throw at that level? 

[F250 28777]

13 minutes ago, PappyVanVinceYoung said:

Will have a kid playing Minors for the first time this year. What are the typical velocities that pitchers will throw at that level? 

Mostly slow and inaccurate. Some of the better ones might cruise in the mid to upper 50's.

[Pato del Muerto 52501]

Just signed my kid up for a tourney team.  Should be interesting. 
but it’s not like down south. Volunteer coaches and my only non travel costs are $300 for six tournaments and a little more for uniforms and access to the indoor facility. 

[texashorne 1178]

Coaching 6U rec this year.. my second season.. any online material y'all could point me towards in terms of basic fielding, throwing, and hitting drills? 

 

[strangulation! 1716]

 

[Jshep34 2308]

Is it tball, machine pitch, coach pitch? You'll need 2-3 coaches to help. Have stations to where kids can stay busy and have 1 on 1 coaching

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[MAROON 445]

On 1/19/2020 at 7:14 PM, pepper brooks said:

So we played our at BBUSA this weekend.  Few tournaments available anywhere.  only 5 teams in the 12U, and they made it "open" division.  A team from dallas came down to play.  They're #1 in the nation for Majors division out at USSSA.  We had to play them in a seed game Saturday night.  Keep in mind out tourney ball team is composed of private school kids from inner loop who all play little league.  We play tourney ball, and we are successful, but we aren't even close to the same level as majors teams.  We compete well against AAA competition.  The Saturday night starter for then goes 6'1 190 with a mustache.  Not peach fuzz.  A legit mustache.  Dude throws:

Fastball 74, Curveball 64, change up 68.  Last year they were 61-2.  so far this year playing 12U Majors, 13U AAA and `13U Majors they are 28-0.  We were the only team to even score a run on them this weekend.  we scored 1.  We played them again in the finals today, and the beat us 8-0, but we held them scoreless for 3 2/3 innings.  They then hit 5 home runs in the last 2 to beat us 8-0.    Former aTm RB, Japorky Lane's kid played on the team.  Kid is really good.  Hell, every kid in their team was better than anyone we had. Pitcher today threw 68-70, smooth as silk with a high school level curve ball.  Good experience for out kids to fight and battle.  Cannot imagine this was good experience for their kids to run rule a bunch of kids who really were not in the same galaxy with them.  their closest games were 13-1 and 8-0.  All the others were worse.  

sounds like a team full of kids who have already hit puberty - my guess is a good portion of those kids will not be all that special once high school rolls around, and the odds are firmly against any of them playing D1 college ball.

Edited February 6, 2020 by MAROON

[F250 28777]

11 hours ago, texashorne said:

Coaching 6U rec this year.. my second season.. any online material y'all could point me towards in terms of basic fielding, throwing, and hitting drills? 

 

Take a look at QCBaseball. Its been around for a long time and has accumulated some good material for new coaches.

 

http://www.qcbaseball.com/coaching/baseball-practice-plans.aspx

Give the manual for coaching Machine-Coach Pitch a read.

http://www.qcbaseball.com/coaching/TeeBall_CoachPitch_Manual.pdf

[pepper brooks 580]

On 1/22/2020 at 2:06 PM, PappyVanVinceYoung said:

Will have a kid playing Minors for the first time this year. What are the typical velocities that pitchers will throw at that level? 

yeah.  at 9/10 firs tyear of kid pitch it will be mostly about 38-45.  you will get some kids who crank it up to low 50's.  my son threw mid 50's at that age.  it was pretty unfair for most of the kids who had to face him.