Who are legit in 14u?

[Clever Name Here]

anyone care to take guess at an order of finish?

Was the Coastal Elite at HOF a fluke or are they the real deal?

[Lefty's Dad]

anyone care to take guess at an order of finish?

No way, far too many possiblities. How many still have girls in playoffs or just found out they lost a player for one reason or another. How many have injuries? How many are just gonna be short players for some reason. This is just for some tough teams to get some long games in against some tough competition. Hopefully this will be the first of many like this. DD won't be there this weekend due to a previous committment which really blows but I'm gonna come out to some just to see how they all look.

[CB_8]

Clever Name Here wrote:
anyone care to take guess at an order of finish?


No way, far too many possiblities. How many still have girls in playoffs or just found out they lost a player for one reason or another. How many have injuries? How many are just gonna be short players for some reason. This is just for some tough teams to get some long games in against some tough competition. Hopefully this will be the first of many like this. DD won't be there this weekend due to a previous committment which really blows but I'm gonna come out to some just to see how they all look.

Also, teams may not be putting "best" team on the field, wanting to get girls extra playing time that they normally would not get in a qualifier.

[SOFTBALLS]

CB8 or Coastal Elite I would hope you wouldn't put in your scrubs for a format
Like this cause that doesn't do anything for your team or the teams your playing
Against. It seems the teams that are in this rr are getting prepaired. If you want to play your bench players you should of picked another rr. Just my opionion and I hope its not just an excuse by you when y
'all face real teams.

[CB_8]

CB8 or Coastal Elite I would hope you wouldn't put in your scrubs for a format
Like this cause that doesn't do anything for your team or the teams your playing
Against. It seems the teams that are in this rr are getting prepaired. If you want to play your bench players you should of picked another rr. Just my opionion and I hope its not just an excuse by you when y
'all face real teams.

"face real teams" ???

I would not call them scrubs, some are not as strong and need more work, I believe this is the place for them to get it. If I choose to let players that are struggling get extra at-bats to help them, how does that not do anything for our team? I believe it helps us a good deal. We are in the rr to prepare us, and that is what we are trying to do, wins and losses are not the goal in this format, getting better is. IMO being stonger 1-13 is better than 1-6 or 7 with sure outs mixed in.

[SOFTBALLS]

Look you drew attention to yourself when you went out of your way to let everybody know yall
where going to let the bench players play. I wish you and your team the best of luck in the weeks ahead. Personally I think wins do play a role in your following game or tourny it helps the moral of the team. If a team gets beat up 4 games straight do you think they will be ready to play that fifth one. Just an opionion.

[Bleacher Mom]

Anyone know which 12's are playing in Sugarland this weekend?

[CB_8]

Bandits
Thunder
Fury
Peppers
Aces
Riptide
Kaos

[Blendin N]

A win is a win is a win. I am not sure about everyone else but dont teams usually spread out the playing time during early spring and now that we are approaching the end of May it is time to play each game as if it could be the last of the season. I am sure that all of the teams that are playing this weekend have injury/out of town issues this weekend so that should never be used as an excuse. Looks like we will have great weather this weekend to go along with some great competition. Good luck to all!!

[RexinTex]

I saw quite a few of the 14u games this weekend and this is what I took from it. There is a lot of talent on these teams.

Since high school is mostly over, I would assume this is a few of these teams first tournament together and this could all change with the practice time that they will be getting together now.
When my daughter was in high school, her select team was “rusty” to say the least for the first tournament or so.

This is my OPINION and do not mean anything personal by anything I say.

MC Magic - Most consistent. If they go to ASA tomorrow, this is the team that I think would do the best right now. Solid team with good talent. Do not make many mistakes offensively or defensively. They bunt the ball VERY well and they play small ball well. Coach has a good grasp on the game and this team reflects that. If you can not field a bunt, they are going to beat you. They bring good offensive pressure to the game. They have girls that slap and run it out, or they will stand there and hack away and hit the ball with some authority if they have to. Very classy group of kids and coaches. Defensively, they are solid but nothing flashy. They just make the routine plays. Catcher is solid. Not a great arm, but does a good job behind the plate. Has 3 above average pitchers that throw hard. One of them is a little wild and I saw her hit a few kids this weekend, but she controls the inside of the plate. Every other position on the field is just a solid, fundamentally sound ball player. They know their positions and what to do with the ball in every situation. This is a team that I would bring my 10u All Star team to watch to teach fundamentals. Base runners are smart and do not make many mistakes. I didn’t see a slow kid on the field for them this weekend. They are not all “burners” but they are average speed to above top to bottom. Great team chemistry.

Texas Peppers – Most Inconsistent. I saw them play 3 games this weekend and in one and a half of those games, they looked unbeatable! In the other game and a half, they looked pretty rusty. Their infield is good. Their outfield looked inconsistent all day. Classy kids and coaches. Looked a little rusty at the plate at times, but hit the ball all over the place at other times. Few kids can fly, but they have a few that will be a liability on the bases and clog them up when they get on. Defensively their infield is good. 2 catchers I saw were both solid with good arms. Let a few balls get by that I thought should have been caught. 1b is solid but not flashy. Throw it to her and she will catch it. Fields the ball pretty well. Hits a ton when she hits, but misses a ton when she misses. 2b can slap or drive the ball from the left side. Kid can fly from home to second. If an OF bobbles, she is going to second every time. SS is fast down the line. Pretty good bunter with good speed, and slaps the ball pretty well. GOOD defensive player. 3b can HIT and she is solid at 3b. Saw her make some good plays over there that were well above average. She has a pretty good combination of speed and power. OF has a burner that is just raw in the field. When she learns to play at the same speed she can run, she is going to be a site. Doesn’t get a good jump on a lot of balls but has great recovery speed. Has all the tools, just needs reps. One of the catchers is also a VERY good outfielder. Pretty good speed but gets a great jump on the ball and has great body control and makes a lot of plays that most would not. Did not see her hit the ball real well, but she is very talented. Part of their inconsistency was due to a terrible accident on the base paths that put their SS getting x-rays. I know when kids see their teammate and friend get hurt like this, it takes them a while to get back into the flow of the game. When she got hit, you could see some of the air go out of them. If anyone knows how she is doing, please post an update. I hope and pray she is OK and that this will not affect The Peppers ASA plans. It is a big loss for them. She was one of the leaders of the team, and her presence was missed when she was gone. I saw 3 pitchers for them. Blond girl throws hard and dominated at times. Had a few errors in the outfield that cost her. Little lefty hit her spots and looked good. Not over powering, but she got outs. The little I saw of the other pitcher, she got hit pretty hard. Looked a little rusty. If they can put it all together, they will be a force. Good team chemistry.

Texas Hawks – Best Defensive team. In the games that I saw them play, their defense kept them in all of them. They looked VERY rusty at the plate. Their infield was the best I saw this weekend hands down. Their outfield was solid with kids that know what to do with the ball and have good strong arms. Very class group of kids and coaches. Inconsistent pitching, VERY intense and aggressive defensively. One of their pitchers dominated the portions of the games that she pitched and the other struggled to throw strikes. Saw the pitcher walk the leadoff batter and the catcher threw her out trying to steal 2nd. Pitcher walked the 2nd batter and the catcher threw her out the same way. Pitcher walked the next batter and the catcher picked her off of 1st. They will snap the ball all over the infield. If you get on base, you are in jeopardy every time you leave your base. Saw them pick off at least 5 kids this weekend. Catcher has a good accurate arm and will throw it anywhere at any time. She hit leadoff for them and is pretty fast with decent pop. Bleacher Creature’s DD is the real deal at 1b. Snap throws do not get by her! Infielders are very comfortable throwing the ball at her. She will catch it. She is also a good 3b. Average speed (good compared to a lot of 1b) and very smart on the bases. Good contact hitter. SS is a human highlight film on defense! I saw her throwing out kids from all over the field. Threw one kid out off of her knees when she dove for a ball that went under the 3b glove. She is fast and has a great arm! Didn’t hit the ball especially well, but didn’t look overwhelmed up there. OF is full of athletes that go get it. Didn’t see a ball drop that I thought should have been caught. This is the team I would want to bring my 10u All Star team to watch for their intensity. Looked to me like it started from the coach and went down. Don’t know what he was telling them, but they were listening. Hustle on and off the field. Great teamwork and camaraderie. 1b and catcher are the straws that stir this drink. They play the game at the next level. Very impressive. If they get the hitting and pitching figured out before ASA, (that’s easy though right? Lol) they will make some noise.

Texas Jets – Solid team with a few more deficiencies than some of the other 94 teams. Good pitching staff and pretty good hitters. Defense was pretty good, but not great. Good coaches and good kids. Outfield was solid and made all the plays they were supposed to make. Catcher is a solid receiver of the ball. Does not have a great arm, but she throws the ball pretty well. She hits the ball pretty well also. 2b made some good plays and played good heads up ball. Didn’t hit especially well, but had some good swings. SS was big strong kid that hit the ball HARD a few times. Doesn’t have the greatest range on defense, but she gets it done. OF was good with good fundamentals. Didn’t really see any of them that stood out offensively to me, but no one on this team looked overwhelmed. Saw them use the push bunt a few times with good success. Never really see this tactic employed anymore and when they got it down, it worked every time. Well coached group of girls that should do OK at ASA and if they get hot, could do well.

Kaos – Fastest team. Man these kids can fly. Pitchers throw OK. Defense was not great, but this looked like a ’95 team. If they start playing the game at the speed that they can, they are going to be tough. Coached by former NFL football player and you can tell that he is BIG on team work. Very good group of kids and coaches. Lots of potential in all areas of their game. Pitching needs some improvement and with another year of growing, may be enough to get them through as 2nd year 14u. Catcher is big strong kid and can hit the ball hard. She is fast and smart on the bases. Throws the ball decent but not great, but I think she is still an 8th grader and that freshman year will make a big difference. SS is fast and has good hands. Little confusion at times as to where to throw the ball. Good hitter and good base runner. Not enough teams focus on that aspect of the game. They obviously have. 2b had a lot of range, but is very raw. OF can track the balls down. You had better hit it over them because not many are dropping in front. Made a few mistakes with the ball after they had it. Good mix of speed and power, just younger than the ’94 teams that were there. I was really impressed with their attitudes on the field. They were always smiling and talking no matter the score. Coach was intense, but not loud. They know what he expects of them and they give 100% effort.

Coastal Elite – Better team than I thought they were going to be, but the least talented of this impressive group of ’94 teams. Only saw 1 pitcher and she was good. Good location and good velocity. Got a little wild a few times and got herself into trouble. Corners IF are not very agile and not very good in bunt coverage but they can hit. Pitcher is very athletic and was able to get to most of the bunts. This team looked like they use the old school Earl Weaver “Bloop and a Blast” offensive strategy. Not a lot of team speed, but had good power. Not a great defensive team, but they got it done. SS had good range and made the plays she was supposed to make. 2b booted the only 2 balls I saw hit to her and their OF was suspect outside of CF. They do play very well together. 3b played the balls that were hit at her, but threw to the wrong base a couple of times with 2 outs. 1B made the plays that she had to. They have some talent on this team, just seemed to lack intensity. I could see how, if they put it all together, they did well at the HoF Qualifier. Seemed a little intimidated when other teams applied pressure.

Houston Power – Good little team that doesn’t make many mistakes. Best ’95 team out there to me. This team doesn’t get blown out very often because they make you beat them. They usually don’t beat themselves. Solid, but not dominant, pitching. One kid throws hard, one relies on breaking balls and location and the 3rd that I saw is a junk baller that throws hi 40 to low 50 fastball and then throws a changeup with that and keeps batters off balance. Coach mixes them in well. Good solid group of kids and coaches. Catchers that I saw were both solid. Shorter of the 2 is a good little athlete and plays 3b as well as she catches and she can hit. She is relatively fast and has a good arm. 1b looked like a rotation of the pitchers. 2b/SS/3b are all solid players that can hit/run/field and throw. No superstars on this team. Just all solid ballplayers that make plays. They have good team speed with the exception of one pitcher, but she hits the ball hard and she is solid in the circle-something that a coach will trade speed for every time. There were a few times that the ’94 teams “bullied” them, but not often. There were a few times that they bullied the ’94 teams. They have good chemistry and they are going to be one of the elite 14u teams from this area next year. Coach is intense and the players listen to him. Gets a little wound up sometimes, but don’t we all? This little team is fun to watch play. Good kids that are well coached and very fundamentally sound.

GOOD LUCK TO ALL IN ASA!!!!