Quote Originally Posted by Commercecomet24 View Post
I have coached travel ball for the last 20 years. My youngest son is 15 and started at catcher as a freshman this past year. We played all over the southeast looking for the best tournaments against best competition. He can hit anyone's fastball and I have no doubt it's from facing the best competition in the south. It's my first year not to coach as I have turned him over to a showcase team. When you go play against the best competition in the south you can't help but develop. Heck we faced a kid in a national championship game when we were 9 that was throwing 68 mph. Best way to develop play with the best against the best! Imho
Don't disagree...but it's not for everybody and in a majority of instances it's not necessary. Which is where my issue with it begins. The folks that make money off of these organizations and tourneys want folks to think it is necessary. It is big business...there are folks that work 3-4 months a year doing tourneys and never work til the next year. These coach's that get paid by these organizations are also feeding the kids and parents lines about HAVING to pay and play with them to get seen. They are pulling focus and kids away from high school programs without having the investment in the kids and their overall development.

This doesn't describe all travel ball or showcase organizations but in my 15+ years of involvement in many different avenues, it's pretty accurate of most.