Hey Ladies: Just got the news!!! My son made the JV team today!! I'm sooooo excited. But most of all, I feel like the greaaaaat advice from the posters here helped me prepare him for this day. Thanks, one and all.

mom - congratulations!!!! It's just a thrill to start the season!

HS tryouts in KY begin Friday! Good luck to all those boys!!

envy, envy, envy.

Our team doesn't start tryouts until the end of Feb.

Good luck to all (and bring on some sunshine and warmth to MO!)!!

Way cool !!!

Enjoy the season.

congratulations to your son and to you for helping him be prepared. with all thats going on in baseball its nice to come to this post and just read about the sweetness of baseball and the excitement when our sons make a hs team .hope he has a great year.

Ohhh are you guys gonna have fun!!!
CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!
Let the games begin!!!!

Hope your son has a great season and a great time!

Don't we love the beginning of baseball season?

Here's hoping he has a great season!

Mom, sit back and enjoy the ride! It goes by WAY TO FAST!!!!!

Thanks one and all! I've, unfortunately, had to deal with phone calls the past few days of parents of very talented boys who did not make the team.

Number 1: It shows how much class they have to call and congratulate us. Baseball does teach people sportsmanship.

Number 2: It's heartbreaking to feel their pain and disappointment for their own sons. It's so difficult to try to offer comfort and encouragement.

Number 3: How difficult it must be for the coaches who have to struggle with difficult decisions: who to cut and who to keep?. Moreover, all parents expect their team to win. (Somebody's got to lose, right?) I've listened to parents with kids at different schools. Some try-outs seem like "going through the motions" of a tryout when they already know who they want. I know our coaches looked at these boys under a microscope for 8 days. Even the kids that didn't perform well in one position were given the opportunity to try another. They had 4 days of scrimmages, 2 days of batting cages, and 2 days of fielding. I'm lucky that my son has the privilege to participate in a program like this one.

I spent the 8 days of the tryouts trying to figure out what to say to my son if he didn't make it. I count my blessings that I didn't have to use any of it. But these past 8 days have somehow for me transformed baseball, the game that can be played anytime, anywhere, into something more serious and competitive. And it has brought me closer to the reality that each year could be his last.

First of all Congratulations!!!! Eight days of tryouts - wow - we had 3. What a long time for you!

Our son also made the team. We are very happy for him. We are able to have workouts preseason. Plus many of the boys played summer ball for the coach.

I had a long sad talk with a good friend whose freshman son was cut. This is a different school, so I don't know what her son was up against. Her son did approach the coach and asked what he needed to work on. The coach said he was not big enough to play baseball. The boy isn't Mr Universe, but he is about 5"7', though he hasn't bulked up. We watched him play for two season. He is a good pitcher and is deceptive on the mound. He is usually very successful, especially in pressure situations. He attended preseason workouts, and had a good tryout according to my friend. I felt so bad for her, and I just didn't know what to say. This is the coach who said they didn't need to work on outfield drills, "anyone can catch a flyball." Our son played with one who made the team. He tried catching a fly with his eyeball once. Didn't work too well.

About the only thing I could say was to continue to work hard, eat right, and prove the coach wrong at summer tryouts.

Happy both your kids made it. Not happy with coaches comment to the kid that hes not big enough. had numerous debates on this website that coaches dont say that ,that it has to be that he doesnt have the talent. BUT there are coaches that say that. The problem I have is he cant make himself grow, he can lift weights and try and be stronger.my son was 5'5 as a freshmen, and 5'9 as a sopmore and now he is almost 6'0. to tell a player as a freshmenn he is too small, whats the guy thinking? I wish the coach could of given him some concrete things to work on: a workout in the summer, or tell him to go to a trainer or a club and work on getting stronger, tell him to work on his swing, or his fielding. His speed, quickness those are tangible things the kid and his parents work on together.It just makes me so sad to again hear this.Its not true and the boy needs to keep working on his game.How did david ekstein get past the naysayers?hope there was more to the conversation then just that he was too small.

oh - I think I'll send an email link to DE. thanks

I'll probably learn more, but I did encourage her have son work on strength and continue with skills.

Thanks 55mom and congratulations to you too and your son!! The talk of politics and differences I'm hearing about the tryout methods have got me a little rattled. I keep hearing it from other parents and also here on the web. As it so happens, my son is only barely 5'7". What's worse is that he has only played Little League where he started at the age of 11. He tried out at one of the best baseball high schools in the state against large numbers of kids from select and travel teams, all who have parents with deep pockets. What are the odds of him making the team of this caliber?

When he actually made it and gave me feedback from the tryouts everyday (I never even dared to leave the parking lot and watch like a lot of the other parents), it gave me some food for thought. Why did my kid make the team and other very talented players not make it?

My son knew going in that all the odds were against him, but he plays for the love of the game. Maybe the coaches saw that fire in him. For a lot of these kids, baseball has become almost a job that they've held since they were 8, 9, 10 year olds with schedules that rival baseball pros. Many of them showed up with tendonitis from over throwing or strained backs from too much batting or bad knees from too much catching.

Maybe the coaches saw that he felt that this is his greatest chance to learn and improve his skills that he may ever get. Zero ego. Many of these kids go in with the attitude that the school will be lucky to have them play for them. They think they know more than the coach.

Maybe they saw total focus under pressure, a good consistent performance each of the eight days he was out there in fielding and batting and base running. Zero fielding errors, strong arm, 2nd highest on base percentage, and third highest batting average. Maybe he did that because he wanted it so badly. Maybe he did that because he didn't take it for granted that he had a spot on the team.

What about all the rumors of politics flying around between the players and parents in this area? I have never even laid eyes on his coach yet and God knows how shallow my pockets are. They could have easily chosen another player for that reason. So why mine?

He got his team hat the first night and fell asleep with it on his chest. He has zero expectations of playing time this year for any of the reasons listed above, but he doesn't care: He gets to practice at the game he loves. I think his "against all odds attitude" will take him far. Maybe that's what the coaches like about him.

izzismom,

congratulations on your sons hard work.A good coach should always recognize the hardworker, the kid who gives 100 % all the time. when my son was a 8th grader he played on a team that sort of fed into the hs being the hs coaches knew a lot of the kids. my son sat on that team. by the time highschool started6 of those players didnt even try out. then 6 plyers were taken to JV as freshmen, my son was not one of them. of those 6 three are not playing. One is homeschooling because he couldnt keep his grades up,another in trouble and now one of are best players cant come out, guess he had grade isssues. thats why its good to hang with it, and keep working. its not always how you start its how you finish. good luck with everyones season. my son has his first two scrimmages tomorrow. really excited. he has worked so hard ,I just hope he savors the senior year and has a really good time with his buddies and I hope we win our conference.

quote:

He got his team hat the first night and fell asleep with it on his chest.

I absolutely love this!! I'm so glad to hear your son made the team against the odds.

IMHO, The high school coach would not have chosen your son if he did not see any talent along with the passion for the game - they are looking for athletes especially at the high schools with large numbers of kids trying out.

fan of the game: That's a really inspirational story! I hope you don't mind me sharing that with a few parents whose kids didn't make the teams at their high school. I know some of them have a lot of talent and I know they should try again next year. Your son had so much courage to stick with it.

curveball07: thanks for the kind words. I'm just a little paranoid about those "rose-colored" glasses that everyone keeps talking about! LOL

izzismon,

no problem. Just tell them to implement some sort of training between now and next year. We hired a trainer in the off season and 5-6 boys would meet him at the park and work out three days a week. it was fun and kept them in shape during off season. My son didnt play any other sports in hs.Instructional camps in the summer, my son did a week long one that his batting coach is in charge of.A week of great instruction, lots of reps with fielding and hitting, they stay at the camp so its a lot of fun. him and 2-3 friends alwasy got to room together. my son did that one for years and this year has been invited back as a counselor. He will get to attend camp for free, still do all the fun stuff, and get paid a little. so there aare lots of things to do between now and then.
also very cool about son sleeping with his hat. i hope his hs baseball is really fun. I have loved it with my son. the team and the going to pizza, making new friends just a lot of really great memories for me. hope its the same for you.

I agree coaches shouldn't tell kids they are to small, Better to say your body is still maturing.

Found out a bit more about friend's son. He was one of three for the last slot. I think that made it harder for them. Hopefully he will follow through and tryout for the summer team.

izzismom - sound like your son has something the coach feels he needs for the team! Enjoy!!

(If you don't mind me saying this, you remind me of me! - I tend to over analyze, much to my husband's chagrin. Son made the team, be happy he tells me. Reminds me of an old song!!)

LOL That's why I post in the Ladies chat room!! I don't want to hear it from my husband too!! LOL