A Message About Travel Baseball in Comparison to Little League
Players at age 12/13, are in a transition mode regarding their level of play. All of the players are accustomed to playing Little League where at best 2 or 3 players on each team are at the top of their age group in ability. Once the lineup passes those players, or if a ball isn't hit to one of those players, the level of competition lessens and it does not take one's best effort to compete and do well. This can be defined as recreational baseball.
The next logical progression, for a player who does not want to play at a recreational level, is travel or school baseball. At the level of travel baseball and school baseball we see the "best" two or three players from each Little League team now competing together on one team. Subsequently they are playing against the "best" two or three players from other combined Little League teams as well. In some cases, teams recruit and select the "best" single player from several towns and form one team. You can easily see how the competition gets better and better. Suddenly there are no longer easy outs after the fourth batter in the lineup. The 7th, 8th and 9th batters in a lineup were once 2nd, 3rd or 4th hitters on their Little League teams or the "best" player in their town. As a batter, fly balls that were once "triples" are now automatic outs.
It is at this next level that old habits must die. The swing that worked against weaker pitchers no longer works against an accomplished pitcher with two or three pitches in his arsenal. The speed on pitches and changes of speeds will force poor balance and poor mechanics into pop-ups and weak ground balls. The good Little League hitter now became an easy out. To become effective at hitting, the fly ball "doubles and triples" from Little League must turn into line drives into the power alleys or hard ground balls into the infield holes.
As a pitcher, it will not be as effective to simply throw the ball "over the plate". There is good logic to being able to simply throw strikes, as is commonly taught in Little League. Without speed or movement on the ball however, and the ability to change speeds, a good Little League pitcher is no match for a good travel or middle school hitter .
With this in mind lets continue the progress that we have started and expect to continue. Outside of Angel's practice time, work on your swing and on your arm strength. There are countless drills that can be done and countless methods of teaching the swing. The basic tenet of all methods are seeing the ball, having good balance, keeping your weight back and having quick hands through the zone. Throwing drills are just as plentiful but long toss will undoubtedly help with arm strength. What has helped many players regarding throwing is the old saying "Practice as though you were in a game". If you are having long toss or even short toss. Make it a habit to throw the ball at the person's chest. At the level where our team is, having a catch or warming up should not be an adventure. Do your best to put every throw at your partner's chest so that at game-time it becomes second nature.
Practice hard, play even harder. For now, enjoy a few weeks off from competition. We look forward to the tournament. As soon as we have more information the website will be updated.
The word "Best" is used with quotes since it is very difficult to use that word with a team sport. Unlike golf or tennis, regardless of any team's "best" player, it takes 9 individuals to play the game. A team effort involves 9 players, with the addition of subs, giving a team effort for a common goal. At any given time a player may be asked to play a position that is unfamiliar to him. That player helps his team by performing to the best of his ability at that position. The same holds true for hitting/bunting, and doing what it takes to win a game. A great player plays for the name on the front of his jersey so that the team as a whole can become the "BEST".
