Spiders Elite

Tournament Baseball Serving Parker, Aurora, Centennial, Castle Rock, Castle Pines, Greenwood Village and surrounding Denver, Colorado

Selective Aggression: Enforcing a Productive Hitting Approach

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Selective Aggression Hitting Approach

The one task in baseball that kids enjoy the most is also the most difficult: Hitting.

What most kids — and even parents and coaches — don’t understand is that hitting is much more than simply putting the bat on the ball. A good hitter is a player who knows the strike zone and swings at his pitch.

But this is something rarely executed by young baseball players. They swing at bad pitches. They take good ones. And they don’t understand how situation dictates being more selective or aggressive.

In this post, we are going to take a closer look at what makes a good hitter, and the approach that you can reinforce with your players.

Youth baseball players need to be selectively aggressive hitters. Simple, but rarely executed... Click To Tweet

The Purpose of the Strike Zone

This sounds elementary. In a way, it certainly is. But when you think about the purpose of the strike zone in the first place, everything starts to make more sense.

There is a strike zone for a reason. If a pitch comes in over the plate between the knees and the letters (depending on the umpire), this is a pitch that can be handled. It’s a pitch that can be hit hard. As a result, the umpire punishes the batter if he doesn’t swing.

There are ball calls for a reason. If a pitch comes outside of the strike zone, it has been determined that it is not expected that the player should be able to easily handle that pitch. As a result, the umpire punishes the pitcher, assuming the batter doesn’t swing.

By swinging at strikes, you are giving yourself the highest probability to hit the ball hard. Hitting the ball hard leads to the greatest chance for a base hit.

By swinging at balls, you are giving yourself the lowest probability to hit the ball hard. Swinging at balls not only leads to more swings and misses, but when hit it will result in the lowest probability of a hard hit ball. As a result, this leads to the greatest chance for an out.

The Myth of the Bad Ball Hitter

Some hitters aren’t selective. They swing at bad pitches. And the reasoning provided is often that they are “bad ball hitters” — meaning that they are able to hit bad pitches as well as good ones.

This is largely BS. While there is an exception to every rule, I do not find this to be true of youth hitters. Instead, they cherry pick examples of the few times they hit bad pitches hard and use that as why they should do it again.

I guarantee you that if you were to compare when this “bad ball hitter” swings at both strikes and balls you would find that he hits the strikes far harder than the balls. In my experience, these players may hit a higher percentage of bad pitches hard than normal, but they also get out by swinging at those pitches far too often.

The Overly Aggressive Hitter

The overly aggressive hitter can hurt his team. There are very few pitches he doesn’t like. He swings often, which typically means he’s in a count that favors the pitcher. And by regularly being in two-strike counts, he becomes susceptible to the offspeed pitch and also forces himself to be more aggressive to protect the plate.

The overly aggressive hitter doesn’t value the walk. He thinks that his role is only to hit the ball. He fails to understand that if the pitcher does not provide him something hittable, that taking a base is preferable to swinging at a bad pitch — a swing that will likely result in an out.

The overly aggressive hitter tends to see fewer pitches. As a result, this also gives baserunners fewer opportunities to move up on the bases. Fewer stolen bases, passed balls and wild pitches. That will lead to this player hitting into more force outs, but it will also result in fewer runs scored on singles.

The Overly Selective Hitter

Granted, the overly selective hitter can be just as bad, if not worse. This player will almost always take at least one strike, if not two or three. He is too cautious — almost afraid to swing the bat.

The overly selective hitter seems to be looking for a walk. They believe that they are more likely to help their team by taking a walk than by swinging the bat. This is often due to a lack of confidence.

When facing pitching that struggles to throw more than 55-60% strikes, the overly selective hitter can actually put up some acceptable stats. They don’t get many hits, but they walk and get on base plenty.

However, you can’t put such a hitter at the top of the lineup because they can’t be counted on against pitchers who do throw strikes. They are too cautious and become very likely to strike out looking.

Going back to the purpose of the strike zone, the batter is given up to three good pitches to work with (not counting fouls). Each time an overly selective hitter allows a strike to be called, they are wasting an opportunity to hit the ball hard.

You’ll often see the overly selective hitter strike out after getting only one swing. They need to understand what happened there — that they only gave themself one chance to hit the ball. They wasted the other two.

The Selectively Aggressive Hitter

When a hitter balances selectivity and aggressiveness, the results can be magical.

I am coaching a hitter who both leads the team in fewest strikeouts and most walks. Not coincidentally, he also leads the team in batting average and most offensive stats.

This happens when a player understands the strike zone. He understands which pitches he can hit hard and which pitches he can’t.

This player then lets the bad pitches go by while attacking the pitches he can hit hard.

The biggest difference between the overly selective and selectively aggressive hitters is that the overly selective hitter is never truly prepared to swing. The selectively aggressive hitter is waiting for a pitch in a particular area, and if he gets it he jumps on it.

Note that the selectively aggressive hitter also understands his strengths and weaknesses. If he doesn’t handle the low outside corner strike well, he lays off of it until there are two strikes. We want to avoid weak hits, so taking a strike is okay when swinging at it is unlikely to result in a hit.

Enforcing A Productive Hitting Approach

Help your players understand that the strike zone is there to help them. If a high percentage of their swings are at strikes — pitches they are supposed to hit — they can expect a higher hard hit ball rate. If they swing at pitches outside that zone, they can expect the opposite results.

The first step is the breakthrough, helping them understand that this is a fact. Remind them when they swing at a good pitch and the result. Do the same when they swing at a bad pitch and it is hit weakly.

You can even turn this into a game for certain hitters who believe they are “bad ball hitters.” Start charting when they swing at good and bad pitches and the results.

Finally, it’s all about repetition. Have them simply stand in the batting box and take pitch after pitch after pitch. Before you call a ball or strike, have the batter call out what they think they saw.

Your best hitters aren’t passive. And really, you need your best hitters to be aggressive. They simply need to be aggressive on the right pitches.

Your Turn

What examples do you have of players being overly aggressive, overly selective and selectively aggressive? And how do you enforce a productive approach?

Let me know in the comments below!

12 Factors Other Than Ability That Impact Playing Time

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Tournament Baseball Playing Time

Playing time for youth tournament baseball teams is a tricky situation. It’s impossible to make everyone happy, and it’s important that coaches don’t leave kids and parents in the dark about the factors that impact how often players see the field and where.

The truth is that ability is only one of the many things that a player needs. And ability alone will not guarantee time on the field. Similarly, a player who isn’t gifted with ability can find himself on the field more often than not if he does some basic things that any player can do.

This post is aimed both at the talented and less talented players. If you are talented, don’t take that talent for granted. You must fulfill some other basic responsibilities.

If you lack that talent, you can become a valuable member of the team by doing all of these things.

There are 12 main things a kid can do to guarantee playing time that are unrelated to talent... Click To Tweet

1. Do You Hustle?

Most important of all. While kids have varying level of ability, every kid can — and SHOULD — hustle. All of the time. No exceptions.

It doesn’t matter how fast or slow you are. Run as fast as you can to first base. Everyone should be able to see the desire in your face!

Every coach will list this at the top of their list. We know from experience that too many outs occur every season because a kid doesn’t hustle. It can be that half step that leads to an out and ultimately either a win or loss.

A primary goal of every coach should be to hustle more than the opposition. If you run harder and worker harder than the other team, you are making them earn everything.

If there’s an easy ground ball hit to second base or the pitcher’s mound, a hustling player can make that fielder rush. When a fielder rushes, crazy things can happen.

If there’s a pop-up to the shortstop, the batter should always hustle through the base. Nothing is guaranteed at this level.

I also like when players hustle on and off of the field, to and from their positions. It shows a level of focus and commitment.

If you want to get into your coach’s good graces — no matter your ability level — do these things and he will love you for it.

2. Do You Support Your Teammates?

We are a team. We are a family. Ridiculing a struggling player cannot be tolerated.

Every kid will find himself in a slump at some point. They suddenly can’t hit. When they do hit the ball, it finds a glove. They aren’t making the plays in the field. Their confidence is as low as it can get.

One of the primary ways of turning these kids around is providing them the support they need. Their teammates need to be there to reassure them that they are a good player and they’ll be okay.

Much of the chemistry of a team has its foundation in the bad times. A good team needs leaders to help their teammates get through it.

3. Do You Communicate Well With Teammates?

When you’re in the field at shortstop, do you talk with your second baseman about responsibilities?

When something goes wrong, do you communicate constructively with your teammates to make sure it doesn’t happen again?

Do you lead or do you follow, waiting for someone to tell you what to do?

Every team needs a vocal leader who is a player and not a coach. The vocal leader is the one who players are most likely to follow.

4. Do You Focus Only On Yourself?

As a team, we win and lose as a team. The primary focus should be reflection on that team accomplishment.

After a big win, a good team player isn’t found pouting in the dugout about three strikeouts.

After a tough loss, a good team player isn’t smiling and joking around, bragging about his four hits.

A player focused on the team is most worried about team results. If he hits into a hard out that scores a run, he understands that this helped the team. The focus isn’t on his out.

Kids are immature, and it’s expected that there will be some level of selfishness. But the more selfless a player is, the more aware he is of his actions and the bigger contribution he makes to the team.

5. Do You Freak Out After Making Mistakes?

Players who struggle to control their emotions can provide major distractions from the team focus. We need to limit overreactions after individual mistakes are made. Throwing equipment, feet stomping and pouting cannot be tolerated.

These are kids, but we want them to become baseball players. And if they lose control and react emotionally, they won’t learn from their mistakes.

Freaking out is not only counterproductive for the player, but it also sets a bad example for the team. It warns teammates that something is terribly wrong. It sets a tone of panic instead of confidence.

6. Do You Learn From Your Mistakes?

Mistakes happen all the time. It doesn’t matter what level you play at.

But the question is whether a player learns from those mistakes. A kid who loses control rarely has the awareness to learn from that mistake. They are focused instead on how angry or embarrassed they are.

You made an error, but what will you do to make sure it doesn’t happen again? Will you be prepared next time?

The umpire called a high strike, sending you to the dugout. Will you learn from this and be prepared to swing at it next time?

You missed a sign. Will you get clarifications on signs so you don’t miss it again?

The kid who learns from mistakes is the player who gets better. The kid who is stubborn and refuses to learn from his mistakes will be stuck in a perpetual holding pattern.

7. Do You Keep a Positive Attitude?

When the team is down by five, a coach needs the kids with the positive attitudes to step up. A team of players who mope in the corner can quickly spread the signal that it’s time to quit.

Players often don’t realize this, but their reactions impact teammates. Your decision to fight or quit is contagious.

This also applies to individual performance. Sometimes a player will get upset about a hard hit ball that results in an out, due to an amazing play by the other team. By getting upset, the player is focused on the result rather than the process. He should feel good about the hit and give the opposing player credit for the play.

Hard hit balls become outs sometimes. Soft hit balls become hits sometimes. It all evens out. We don’t call timeout after a soft bloop falls in for a hit and say, “Hey, Blue! That was a bad hit. I’ll take an out!”, do we? Of course not.

By focusing on the process, we can remain positive about the result — good or bad — as long as we did what we were supposed to do. If not, we learn from it!

No one wants to be around a negative person. It’s easy to be positive when things are going well. It’s the kid who remains positive during tough times who makes a special contribution to the team.

8. Do You Complain About Your Role?

As a coach, I can tell you first hand that one of my biggest pet peeves is players who complain when the lineup is announced and they aren’t where they want to be.

If you’re playing in right field, you become the best darn right fielder you can be. If you do that, your role will increase. If you complain about it, expect more of the same or the bench.

By moping and complaining, players are simply providing support for why their role shouldn’t be expanded. It’s selfish and shows a lack of self awareness.

Someone has to fill that role. If you don’t, someone else will. So by saying that you should be playing another position (one you haven’t earned) and a teammate should take your role, a player shows his selfishness.

Instead of complaining, pull your coach aside after a practice or game. Tell him how much you’d love to play that position. Ask what you can do to make yourself good enough to play there. And remind the coach that you’ll play wherever he and the team need you.

9. Do You Stay Focused?

These are kids so our expectations need to be reasonable depending on the age. But a player who remains focused is the player every coach wants.

While in the dugout, are you talking about things unrelated to baseball while the game is going on?

While in the field, are you set and ready when the pitch is being delivered?

Not only can a lack of focus set a bad example, but it is also a safety issue. A kid not paying attention is a magnet for accidents. And I can’t put such a player in harm’s way.

10. Do You Follow Instructions?

Coaches love players who can follow instructions. Those who don’t — particularly when repeated — create unnecessary frustration.

The example that comes up for me over and over again, is this situation…

The opposing pitcher is struggling to throw strikes. Maybe he just walked the last batter on four pitches. Maybe the bases are loaded. The kid in question has shown an inability to understand game situations or the strike zone.

In such a situation, I will often require the player to take until he gets a strike. It’s a simple request. But I can’t tell you how many times a kid will swing in that situation.

After it happens, I’ll pull the player aside. I’ll ask if he remembers my instructions. He’ll say he does. I’ll ask why he swung anyway. He’ll either shrug or say it’s because it looked like a good pitch.

Granted, this can sometimes be attributed to coaching. They need to understand what the instructions mean. They also need to understand why they were asked to do what they were instructed to do.

But eventually, a coach learns who he can trust and who is going to do whatever he wants to do.

11. Do You Fulfill Your Responsibilities?

It doesn’t matter what position you play, they all have responsibilities. Lots of them!

So whether you’re the catcher, shortstop or right fielder, you should know what your responsibilities are inside and out. You should know who covers second and when. You should know when you’re the cutoff man.

A coach’s job is to prepare the players and educate them on these responsibilities. But a player’s job is also to accept this education and apply it.

When a runner is on first and we’re in the field, I’m bound to yell out, “First or second, easiest base! Second and short, talk about your responsibilities!” I’ve yelled that more times than I can count (I can count pretty high!).

But sometimes I decide not to say anything. Will the players know their responsibilities without being told what to do?

The kid who does what he is supposed to do without being constantly reminded is a hugely valuable member of the team.

12. Do Your Actions Reflect the Situation?

A coach can talk and talk until he loses his voice, trying to help the players understand their roles, what they need to do and why. But eventually, something needs to click within the players. They need to start putting two-and-two together to understand why they should do things in certain situations.

If your team is down by one in the last inning and you’re the leadoff batter, it’s more important than ever that you are selective at the plate. We need you on base. If you swing at a bad pitch with a 3-1 count, you show you aren’t aware of the situation.

With a runner on second and a two-run lead, a clean single is hit to the outfield. An outfielder aware of the situation will throw the ball to the cutoff man, understanding they need to keep the hitter from second.

Again, it’s the coach’s responsibility to prepare and educate his players the best he can. But the coach’s voice will eventually become noise during a game situation if he is constantly reminding the players of every scenario.

A player who is thinking in the field about the situation and what they need to do — without the coach saying a thing — is the coach’s best friend!

Your Turn

A kid who applies these things — even without natural size, speed, arm strength or power — becomes a great youth baseball player. And while all of these things require work and preparation, none of them require ability.

Anything you would add to this list? Let me know in the comments below!

Daddy Ball: What It Is and How to Avoid It

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Daddy Ball Youth Tournament Baseball

When I shared my post to Facebook the other day about the 9 Things to Consider Before Joining a Youth Tournament Baseball Team, I was somewhat surprised by the overwhelming response that I forgot a bullet point: Daddy Ball.

Are you thinking about having your child join a youth tournament baseball team? Make sure you do your homework!There's…

Posted by My Kid Loves Baseball on Tuesday, June 16, 2015

I personally haven’t had serious situations with this as a parent or a coach, as it is something that can be avoided. But it is a sensitive issue and something to consider when finding the right team for your child.

So, what is Daddy Ball? Why does it exist? What can both parents and coaches do to avoid it?

Is your child losing time due to Daddy Ball? Here's a closer look at coach's kid favoritism... Click To Tweet

What is Daddy Ball?

Daddy Ball is the common phenomenon of when the coach — or the perception of when the coach — favors his kid over others at the detriment of the team. His kid always needs to be the star. His kid pitches the big game when there are better options. His kid plays when other better players sit.

The emphasis here is on “detriment to the team.” If the coach’s kid is simply the team’s best player, then so be it.

Also note that perception is also reality here. Daddy Ball exists if parents think it does — it’s that simple. It’s not always fair, but it’s something a coach needs to address.

Daddy Ball — the way it’s perceived and defined — also extends to the assistant coaches. Parents can perceive that not only is the coach giving preferential treatment to his kid but to the other assistants’ kids. Again, this is based on the premise that these coaches’ kids are inferior players to other options.

The Source of Daddy Ball

Parents hate and try to avoid Daddy Ball, and I completely understand. Particularly if it’s a blatant case where the coach’s kid is clearly inferior to other options. But let me tell you — as a coach — how this can easily happen.

The coach knows his kid. He knows his kid better than any other kid. As a result, he knows — or thinks he knows — how well his kid can handle a situation better than he knows how another kid will handle it.

Of course there is also potential for bias here. It’s not necessarily wrong, but a coach trusts his own kid. He is less likely to trust another kid. So if the two are close in talent, it’s plausible why a coach would choose his own kid.

Daddy Ball, as defined, can extend to the assistant coaches. Again, there are blatant and more subtle examples of Daddy Ball in this case. But an assistant is the person who the head coach leans on for advice and strategy discussion. Like the head coach, an assistant will be biased to his own kid. That can naturally lead to more playing time for that assistant’s kid.

This all comes down to control. The coach is in a position of control and therefore determines the fate of all of the players on the team. The parents have no control, and this is an uncomfortable and potentially explosive situation when the lack of control results in unfair treatment — real or perceived.

A Coach’s Perspective: The Pitfalls of Daddy Ball

As a dad and a coach of my son, I’m sensitive to all of this. I’m conscious of the potential for Daddy Ball, and I actively make sure that this is not an issue. It’s important that the coach is aware of this and makes every attempt to make decisions as the coach and not the dad.

I can tell you first hand that it can go both ways. As a coach who is consciously aware of the potential for Daddy Ball, I may have limited my son’s opportunities in the past to prove a point. A coach can overreact to Daddy Ball, thereby harming the development of their own child.

I’m also my son’s biggest critic. I see flaws in his game that others may not see. I see him every day, in and out of practice and game situations. And on the flip side, the flaws of other players may not be as noticeable to me.

As a coach, there are a couple of ways to avoid this…

First, make sure that your child is not one of the weaker players on the team. I actually prefer that my son is neither the best nor the worst, but for the purpose of the Daddy Ball discussion it’s certainly bad if he falls on the weaker side.

This is a big issue, not only for playing time but assembling the team in the first place. If the coach’s kid is one of the weaker players, what happens when players with superior ability try out? The coach will obviously not cut his own kid.

Second, have an open dialog with assistant coaches and parents about the performance of the individual players. Have stats publicly available. Be clear about how you determine playing time (hopefully it’s mostly stats based). While not everyone will agree about which players are best — EVERY parent has a bias — this can help limit issues.

As a coach, I am very stats focused. I design lineups to favor the kids who get on base and hit the most. I pitch the kids who throw strikes and limit runs. I place kids in the field based on the ability to make plays and limit errors.

If a coach uses stats as the guide, the potential for blatant favoritism — actual or perceived — is limited.

While stats can be misleading — particularly in small sample sizes — it helps to have them as a defense. Because if there’s a perception that your child is unfairly getting additional time and you don’t have the stats to back it up, you’re in trouble.

Avoid Daddy Ball: Know the History

Before you join a team, get a sense of the ability level of the coach’s kid. If he’s the best player on the team, you have very little to worry about. Any favoritism is at least partially warranted. The concern, though not always deserved, should be if that kid is one of the lesser players.

In that case, get a sense of your coach’s philosophy regarding playing time. See if you can find history regarding how much kids played and at what level in the past. See if you can spot a pattern.

Avoid Daddy Ball: Unicorn Coach

There is one pretty simple way to avoid Daddy Ball, but it doesn’t happen often: Play for a coach who doesn’t have a kid on the team.

In some cases, this could mean that it’s an academy team where the coach is paid. In others, it’s simply a coach who loves coaching — even though they don’t have a kid to coach.

This can be a great situation, if for nothing else but perception alone.

Avoid Daddy Ball: Coach!

Understand that I do sympathize for both sides here. As a coach, I understand how Daddy Ball can happen. As a parent, I want my kid to get the opportunities he deserves.

But we’re all human. If you think you aren’t biased for your own kid, you’re a liar. And in some cases, the perception of Daddy Ball is built on nothing more than the bias of parents who aren’t coaching.

The best way to avoid Daddy Ball is to coach. If your response is, “I don’t have time for that!” then it’s a factor — hopefully small — that you can expect to deal with.

Your Turn

Have you experienced Daddy Ball, either as a coach or parent? How do you feel about it?

Let me know in the comments below!

9 Things to Consider Before Joining a Youth Tournament Baseball Team

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Youth Tournament Baseball

As competition for limited spots on high school baseball teams increases, more and more parents are looking into youth tournament baseball teams. While these teams may not be required (some kids may have the talent without it), the hope is that playing more games against better competition will give them the best possible chance at success.

This is mostly true — at least when the right team is found for the child. When the team fits the player, we’ve seen incredible progress that is difficult to achieve otherwise. But picking the wrong team can make a negative impact as well.

Pick wisely. You may determine that tournament baseball isn’t right for your child at all. Do your research on these teams to find the right fit for your child.

Here’s a list of nine things to consider before joining the Spiders or any other youth tournament baseball team.

Before joining that youth tournament baseball team, consider these nine important things... Click To Tweet

1. The Coach

This may be most important since the coach is the one person has makes the greatest impact on your child. Make sure you meet the coach and fully understand his philosophy and expectations before moving forward.

Is the coach respectful of others? Is he a jerk? How will he treat the umpires, opponents and your kid? It’s also important that you are able to easily communicate with him to voice any concerns.

Is the coach organized? Are tournaments and practices scheduled long in advanced or on the fly?

What is the coach’s communication style? Does he provide all of the information you need via email? Is there a website to access more information? Is he easy to get a hold of via email, phone or text?

Is the coach experienced? How many years has he coached, and at what level? Did he play as well? While playing at a high level isn’t necessary to be a coach, some playing experience certainly helps.

What is the coach’s coaching philosophy? How does he handle problem kids? Does he make sure every kid gets to play every position, or is the focus on winning games? Who gets benched, when and how often? Which approach is consistent with what you want?

What is the coach’s game strategy? Does he bunt? Aggressive on the bases? These things may not seem important, but you may find yourself frustrated later if you have opposing views here.

2. The Teammates

While the coach is important, who your child’s teammates will be is extremely important as well.

Do any of these kids go to school with your child? This could be a huge positive if they are, and a potential negative if they aren’t.

How many are the same age? Older? Younger?

What do you know about these kids? Do they have good reputations? Joining an unknown situation can be dangerous.

Do these kids seem to be good teammates? How do they treat one another?

What is the ability level of the other kids? My goal is that my son is neither the best nor worst player on the team. I want him to be challenged, but I also don’t want him to waste away on the bench.

One of the reasons we started the Spiders was that we wanted to create an environment where our boys were playing with other boys they are going to school with. This way, all kids would have the common goal of playing together on the same high school team.

3. The Families

It certainly helps if you are already close to families connected to a team. This helps provide insight on what type of relationship you can expect with the other families.

The truth is that the team — the kids, their parents and siblings — become something of an extended family. You will spend a lot of time together. Are these people you want to spend time with?

4. The League

The Spiders are an independent team, but many teams are connected to a league to guarantee themselves practice fields. They’ll play league games during the week and tournaments on the weekends.

Is the team connected to the league? If so, what do you know about it? How many games will they play within the league? Who is on the board? What is the history and reputation of the league?

5. The Location

One of the reasons we started the Spiders is because the league my boys have been playing in is about 25 minutes from our home. In this case, location is important to us.

How far away is the practice facility? If there are league games, where will they be played?

It may not seem like a big deal now, but you’ll soon be making that drive almost every day during the spring and summer. Make sure it’s a drive you’re willing to make!

6. The Costs

Tournament teams may cost as little as less than $1,000 for a season or as much as $5,000 or more. What are you willing to pay?

Also get a detailed report of what the team fees apply to. Sometimes a team’s costs may seem low, but only because there are several “add-ons” that you may not know about.

You may want to get a history of team fees to get an idea of whether costs are consistent or if they are steadily increasingly. This can help give you an idea if you’ll be able to take on the costs not only this year but in future seasons.

7. The Tournament Schedule

Do you want your child to be playing five tournaments per season? Or are you looking for something closer to 30?

While age absolutely impacts what is best here, it also comes down to personal preference. There should always be an eye to keeping your child engaged and making sure burnout isn’t an issue.

How many tournaments is your child able and wanting to play? Not only that, but how many tournaments are you as a parent willing to attend? The number of tournaments your child plays in

8. The Competition Level

This is a big one. Will the team be playing at a AA, AAA or Majors level? Is it more or less competitive than what your child is used to? Has the team succeeded at that level? And is your child a fit for that level?

You may be attracted to trying out for a particular team based on the team’s coach, their success, a friend on the team or that team’s reputation. But it’s important that the level of play is in line with where your child is headed.

9. The Travel

This is an added cost that isn’t found within your team fees. And that cost is both monetary and time.

Some teams will play in tournaments that are only within a reasonable radius of the home city. Others will travel across the country to play in tournaments — either by car or plane. Others provide a mixture.

Personally, I think a little bit of travel is fun for everyone. We plan for a few in-state tournaments that require a hotel stay as well as a couple of out-of-state tournaments. Just know up front what is expected.

Your Turn

There is a limitless list of considerations when picking a youth tournament team. Anything I’m missing?

Let me know in the comments below!

7 Factors That Matter More Than You Think at Youth Baseball Tryouts

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Tryouts for youth tournament baseball — or any sport for that matter — are stressful for parents and kids. Coaches analyze every move the kids make, marking down notes that could determine their future.

Tryouts typically consist of simple drills for hitting, fielding and pitching. Parents will prepare their kids for these drills. But what most parents don’t realize is that coaches watch far more than what happens between the lines, and if you don’t prepare your child appropriately you may be harming their chances.

The truth is that tryouts are imperfect. It’s often not easy to separate one kid from another based on a small sample size of throws, catches and hits. And since being a good member of a team involves far more than just throwing, fielding and hitting, expect that the coaches are watching more than these things.

Personally, I have a good idea of a kid’s ability before the tryout even begins. More often than not, his team is on Gamechanger, and I can go back and see how he has done and where he has played. In terms of ability, that tells me more than what a small sample of drills can say.

So, I use the tryout to provide a backdrop to what I saw in the stats. I chart the basics, but I also keep notes on things that kids and parents do when they think I’m not looking. And I routinely choose not to draft kids as a result of these tryout sins.

You're hurting your child's chances in youth baseball tryouts by doing these things... Click To Tweet

1. Warmups

Tryouts haven’t yet begun, but your child is warming up with his friend. I’m watching closely. Does he have a good process? Does he practice well, or does he warm up lazily?

I can often tell whether a kid is draftable before tryouts even begin based on how he warms up. Make sure your child takes this time seriously.

2. Appearance and Equipment

This sounds cruel, but appearances matter. Does your child actually look like a baseball player?

Understand, this doesn’t mean I’m downgrading the small kids versus the big kids. It doesn’t mean they need to have all of the greatest, most expensive equipment. These things are not what I’m referring to.

But I’ve seen kids show up to tryouts in jeans and no baseball cap. That tells me baseball just isn’t that important to them.

Also, if they think they are a catcher, do they have catcher’s gear? Did they come properly equipped, or do they need to borrow a friend’s gear to participate?

3. Obnoxious Parents

Parent, I know you mean well. But you are killing your kid’s chances.

When I add a player to my team, I add his parents, too. And while one bad kid can certainly make my life difficult, a bad parent may be even more damaging.

You can spot these parents a mile away. They are loud. They are obnoxious. They are too pushy and overbearing.

Let go. Once the tryouts begin, give your child a comforting hug and wish them good luck. You’ve prepared them until now, but this is the time to let them show what they can do without you.

If you are loud and critical during tryouts, I know you will be worse during games. Just keep your mouth shut.

Believe it or not, being too supportive can be an issue as well. They made a nice catch, that’s great. But reserve your celebration during tryouts. The “that’s my kid!” parent is also one who often doesn’t see their child’s flaws and will be first to get upset about playing time.

4. Goofing Off

These are kids. I expect they will behave as kids. But I also want the kids who take this seriously.

Your kid didn’t notice, but when he was being loud and distracting while others were hitting, I checked out the number on his back and made a note of it not to add him.

I’d also include the ability to follow instructions here. If a player isn’t well behaved and doesn’t follow instructions well during a tryout, a coach can expect it will be infinitely worse during a practice or game situation.

Coaching kids is a lot of work. That work multiplies with poorly behaved kids, and sometimes we can see these things during the tryouts and save ourselves some unnecessary stress.

5. Ridiculing Others

If you want your child to be immediately removed from consideration, allow them to laugh at others who aren’t performing well in their tryout. I want nothing to do with this kid on my team.

Kids with bad attitudes often out themselves. They can’t help but make that rude or offensive remark. That just makes my job of assembling a team easier.

6. Showboating

There is a fine line here. Yes, I am looking for talent. I need your child to show that talent. I want them to be confident. But this can be taken too far.

I have removed kids from my list who at the age of nine felt it necessary — at an obnoxious parent’s urging — to hit from both sides of the plate. You are not helping your kid. Don’t do this.

I’m sure your kid is an amazing hitter, and it sure is spectacular that they can already hit from both sides of the plate at the age of nine. But you know what? There is absolutely no advantage to that at a young age.

Will your kid be seeing sliders at the age of nine? If so, that’s when it helps to hit from the side that is opposite of the pitcher. Otherwise, feel free to practice it, but this doesn’t help you in tryouts.

Since it’s highly unlikely your child hits equally well from both sides of the plate at a young age, you are only hurting them. There is no utility to hitting them from both sides until they get older, so why should I care if they can do it now?

As a coach, I want you to hit as well from one side of the plate as you can. By trying to hit from both sides in a tryout, you are only exposing a weakness. It wasn’t your intention, but I now question whether your child is coachable.

[NOTE: Obviously switch-hitting can be a benefit for older kids, but make sure they are actually exceptional hitters from both sides before doing this in a tryout.]

7. Timeliness

This one isn’t necessarily fair, but it sends a bad message if you show up late to tryouts or have to leave early. This tryout is an important part of your baseball future, and if you don’t take it seriously why should I add you?

This is a commitment for everyone — the coaches, parents, and players. I want the kid who shows up early and stays until the end. The kid who shows up late or leaves early is likely to be the same kid I can’t count on to show up to games or practices.

BONUS. Respectfullness

When I’m talking to the group, you stop what you’re doing, put your hands on your hips, and give me eye contact. When I ask you to do something, you say, “Yes, coach” or “No, Coach.”

This isn’t the military. I’m not trying to make it seem that way. But respectful kids are a coach’s dream. You can count on them to listen and pay attention. They set a great example. They aren’t the players who create problems.

Being respectful in a tryout is a great way to make a good impression and set yourself apart from other players with similar abilities. Being disrespectful will do the complete opposite.

BONUS. Versatility

If you played shortstop for your last team, that doesn’t mean you’ll be the shortstop — or even a shortstop — for mine. While it’s important to let me know what you’re capable of doing, your position doesn’t define you.

Don’t be that kid who refuses to do anything but take grounders at shortstop. Let the coach know that you’ll play wherever he wants you to play.

Even if you’re a catcher, try not to pigeon-hole yourself here. If the coach only sees your skills as a catcher, what’s he going to do if you aren’t one of the top two players available at that position? Make sure he knows that you can play elsewhere and that you’d like to show what you can do in the field.

BONUS. Hustle

Hustle is so important, not only in games but in a tryout.

So few kids do it consistently. There is no reason whatsoever not to hustle every moment you can during a tryout. It shows your commitment and focus. It shows the coach that you’re always willing to give your best.

Bust your butt. Leave everything on the field. Have no regrets. Whatever cliche you need. You need more than talent. You need to show the coach that you’re willing to push yourself to get the most out of your talent.

Your Turn

I’m actually a bit hesitant to share these secrets because it’s helpful that most families ignore them. It makes separating the kids I want to add from those I don’t much easier.

But you and your child can also make well-meaning mistakes, giving a coach a bad impression of an otherwise good kid. And this is what I want to help prevent.

Any other mistakes that I’m forgetting? Let me know in the comments below!