10U Top teams going to PGF Nationals

[fontana10!]

Td, that's spot on.

[fontana10!]

I can only speak from my experiences. I pushed my now 16 year old son from the time he was 8. The kid played for one the best teams in the nation. Playing in the Elite 32 in Florida to every other major boys tournament around. At 14 he broke my heart by saying dad I just like the game I don't love it. And yes he sure appeared "PASSIONATE" when he was between 7-13, but that was primarily to make dad happy. Our children want nothing more than to please us at a young age. He still plays for a high level team but we don't push him at all. When he wants to hit we hit, field we field. I've learned a valuable lesson from this and now I am applying that to my daughter. Take it slow because the recruiting and showcase gauntlet will hit you in the face before you know it. And if you've burned your kid out before they reach that point, you will surely regret it.

[mrmarcos33]

There are participation drop offs at every age level in rec ball as well with 12U-14U being the biggest, and these drop offs were happening long before PGF. You could probably say that a large percentage of 8U rec ball players will quit by the age of 15 as well. I wonder if anyone has these numbers?

Funny that soccer has a very large number of single sport athletes that specialize from the age of 4, and there aren't people clamoring about the specializing of that!

Yes that is accurate.
There is a fall off in all activities as kids become teens and explore their options. Yes softball is not the only sport and activity where there is fall off. Also, if the players aren't elite by 14s then most will say what is the point of still playing!
If everything was so easy and simple then people wouldn't change jobs, careers, majors in college.
In short softball isn't the only activity in which kids get "burned out"
There are many other sports with high youth enrollment: soccer, martial arts, gymnastics. According to some people here if the kids are good they should not work hard to get better because they will burn out.
Come on!
If the kids want to play then let them play! If the parents are there supporting them and spending money on lessons and teams that is great! I tell you that is better than having parents not care about their children or their activities.
Have you guys not been noticing the trends of our youth today? No respect for authority, do not want to work hard to get anything in life.
Kids who play sports and have high parent evolvement have a much higher chance to graduate at the top of their high schools, attend college, graduate and have success in their professional careers away from sports.

[Hollow Grind]

And, as far as what Fontana10! has to say...I mean, come on...FONTANA...nuff said!

What's the implication? Is the city of Fontana somehow beneath you? Nuff said, indeed.

[catcherzrule]

Kool Aid...

No, not beneath...adjacent.

They don't call it "FON-TUCKY" because it's on the top 100 cities to visit in the US!

[Hollow Grind]

Please digress, why do "they" call it "FON-TUCKY?"

[Safebyahare]

I'm sure you are just fishing but Fontans + Kentucky= Fontucky
I'm sure you have heard jokes and jabs about KY not being the top of the genetic heap. Add in the fact that there is a large Meth presence and well, you already knew the answer to your question

They got NASCAR thar in Fontucky!

[CheckWriter]

If the issue is the number of games and overuse then does anyone have some guidelines on what a good amount of practice\games is for a girl this age to keep them safe(r) from overuse injuries?

STOP Youth Sports Injuries - a foundation started by James Andrews:

http://www.stopsportsinjuries.org/softball-injury-prevention.aspx

If you don't know who James Andrews is:
http://espn.go.com/espn/story/_/id/9669812/celebrated-orthopedist-james-andrews-treats-robert-griffin-iii-bryce-harper-espn-magazine
Worked on athletes like Brett Favre, Adrian Peterson, Lindsey Vonn - list goes on and on. He is tired of reconstructing kids.

Have you guys not been noticing the trends of our youth today? No respect for authority, do not want to work hard to get anything in life.

I get so tired of this refrain. Such crap. Been said about "the younger generation" since the dawn of time.

[Sam]

I blame ALL of the Associations who could easily institute ptch count limits for the pitchers but choose not to.....for no reason I can discern. Pitch count limits would change the game for the better by protecting these little girls' arms and improving the overall level of play. Teams would be forced to carry 6-8 pitchers which would decrease the number of teams. This would ensure that only the best players would be carried on TB teams, increasing the quality of play. It may also eliminate the need to play friendlies, decreasing the amount of games along with the wear and tear on the position players as well. Rec ball quality would also increase due to the increased enrollment of the players who no longer have TB teams available to play with.

Dr. Andrews has suggested pitch count limits for all the ages. The Associations would need only to adopt Dr. Andrews' limits. The reason the Associations don't do it is purely financial. More teams = more enrollment = more tournament participation = more money. The could give two shits about the health of these kids.

Snack Bar/Water Cooler Parents are equally to blame for pushing their kids to perform better so that they can brag and feel better about themselves. Some of them are listening to the warnings and adjusting, but way too many do not. The injuries that continue to occur don't have to happen. The pitchers' parents control everything but they choose their egos over the health of their little girls. Sad.

[tbjd33]

I blame ALL of the Associations who could easily institute ptch count limits for the pitchers but choose not to.....for no reason I can discern. Pitch count limits would change the game for the better by protecting these little girls' arms and improving the overall level of play. Teams would be forced to carry 6-8 pitchers which would decrease the number of teams. This would ensure that only the best players would be carried on TB teams, increasing the quality of play. It may also eliminate the need to play friendlies, decreasing the amount of games along with the wear and tear on the position players as well. Rec ball quality would also increase due to the increased enrollment of the players who no longer have TB teams available to play with.

Dr. Andrews has suggested pitch count limits for all the ages. The Associations would need only to adopt Dr. Andrews' limits. The reason the Associations don't do it is purely financial. More teams = more enrollment = more tournament participation = more money. The could give two shits about the health of these kids.

Snack Bar/Water Cooler Parents are equally to blame for pushing their kids to perform better so that they can brag and feel better about themselves. Some of them are listening to the warnings and adjusting, but way too many do not. The injuries that continue to occur don't have to happen. The pitchers' parents control everything but they choose their egos over the health of their little girls. Sad.

Also a big issue is one sport athletes... Multiple sport athletes develope different muscle groups helping support others.

Can only spin that arm so many times people!