Little League vs ASA

[Fastpitch Coach]

But LL has such stupid rules (ie no practice with travel during all stars just for one ) He said the coach for LL ask his kid to not throw the ball so hard to 1st base , the 1st baseman can't catch it. This is going on at every league in every city across ohio. MD

I am not sure , but I think that you can practice with an ASA team while practicing for LL All Stars. But once the tournament starts, you are not allowed to play in any other youth sports programs until your All Star team is eliminated.

As far as your other comment, I have been very lucky not to have been it that situation where I have had to throttle any child back from playing their best. I want every child that I work with to give 110%. I can't imagine telling kids to not throw hard, swing hard, and play wide open during any level of play past T-Ball. If I was ever in that situation I would BAIL also.

This POST has went wild over the last few days. Thanks for all of your comments.

[fastpitchfanatic]

At the junior league level and above a player can do both ASA and LL simultaneously. I wonder what LL officals are thinking in not applying this to all ages.

FF

[Orkan]

As far as a coach asking for a committment, that is reasonable when you look at the amount of time & money that is involved with travel ball. The sad part is that it puts these kids in a tough position. Many of them want to explore the world of higher level softball, but at the same time, they still want to play with their friends. We've been to this barbecue twice.
DW was right when saying the Burg kids are good because of their dedication to practicing their skills on their own. The program there flourished when several young coaches educated themselves and stepped in to improve the talent level of the girls. The biggest advantage with travel ball is the number of games the girls can play in during the summer.
Abuck76. Don't be flashing back to your impressionistic teen years of the 60's. You and I have kicked some of the same dirt over the years, especially east of Huntington. I'll probably see you during high school ball.

[buckeye221]

If you look at a successful high school team from around our area(in this example...I mean a team that has made it to probably at least the districts and def. the regionals) I bet you anything a majority of those girls have played travel ASA ball or they are currently still involved in ASA softball.

Now not ALL asa tournaments and teams are like they used to be, as far as everyone being extremely talented and all competitive games. Used to only the best of the best played ASA, but now its becoming a little more widespread...but still is no comparison to LL. There is nothing wrong with LL and its fun and a great tradition. I think that the longer the girls do play together that by the time they are in high school that will help some, but its still not enough. I am sure there has been rare occasions where a high school team has been very successful and only had LL girls...but that has to be rare.

Also I am sure that the high school coaches encourage the younger kids to play ASA because they know they are going to get to play many more games and that is how you get better. Someone can start out in only LL but if the girl is serious about wanting to try to get a college scholarship, they know they have to do what it takes to get better and get the exposure...and ASA is a big part of that.

[Orkan]

221. You obviously have been around this for some time, as I, and have noticed the level of play in ASA has dropped a little, the reason being that there are many more teams now than 10-12 years ago. The better players are spread out much more. It's still a higher level than LL, but the main thing is the kids are playing more.
As far as "exposure", you have to be careful about what coaches tell you. Again, I have been to this picnic, and the best exposure any DD can get is to promote herself. Go to the camps put on by the schools that she is interested in. Send bios and films to those coaches. Don't rely on someone discovering you. College coaches don't spend as much time at tournaments as people believe. I asked Kalafatis if she was going to the NSA Nationals, which were being held in Columbus that year. She told me "No, there's no players we are trying to recruit playing there." She did end up going, but not for long.
I guess the biggest advantage I have seen over the years to travel ball has been better instruction and more games played.

[ManitouDan]

Okran and 221--thanks for adding some wisdom/experience to the softball forum. hope you both continue to post frequently. MD

[buckeye221]

Orkan...ohhhh I agree 100% about not relying on coaches or even AD's to get you a college scholarship. Your advice is very wise and I think accurate. I think I worded what I said wrong...I meant that ASA gives you some exposure to high competitive teams and situations that are crucial if the girl wants to play on the college level. Does that make sense? Just being exposed and around other teammates who have similar ambitions will drive the other girl to stay motivated too. I guess the word I should have used is it gives the girl "experience" lol. I agree that not as many college scouts come out that people think they do. You have to promote yourself...I very much agree with that statement and that is great advice for any young lady to read that is considering playing in college.

Of course all of this is related to girls that are serious about wanting to play at the college level. I don't want to sound like I am against LL because I am not at all...its a great tradition and I think anyone who has ever played in LL when they were young have a lot of special and priceless memories. But lets not be naive...if you want to play in college, you cannot rely on JUST LL and senior league and all of that...you need to get involved in traveling ball and make more of a serious commitment to getting better. You got to go where the other talent is and play against girls that will make you a better player.

[fastpitchfanatic]

Excellent posts Orkan and 221. One addition to your posts regarding ASA players being seen at tourneys. At the 16u and 18u level some travel teams gear their seasons specifically to college showcase events. Become familiar with which organizations focus on getting their girls in front of college coaches, and incorporate this into your plan of moving on to collegiate play. Also the college coaches do attend the higher profile tournaments, such as Compuware, Stingray, and others. Generally the organizations that end up with many or most of their girls playing at the college level are at these higher profile tourneys.

[Orkan]

FPF. You are correct, also, but these coaches are not present in the numbers and frequency people believe. When they are there, usually it's to watch a player/players they are familiar with (possibly recruiting). No coach has the luxury of watching 30-40 teams play for a weekend just to look for unknown talent.

[ManitouDan]

you guys are right on . The primary way of getting "seen" is to promote your own self. When the coaches come to showcases your name will already be on the list to be checked out by whichever coach you have contacted. Good stuff MD

[PirateMike]

I think the rule for LL is that once a tournament starts a player can not participate on any other team during the tournament period. I am pretty sure this counts practice as participating. If any player on a LL team participates on any other team the entire LL team is DQ'd from the tournament.

[fastpitchfanatic]

How do you feel about coaches asking kids to decide to play either
Little League or ASA only ? I feel that if a child wants to play both
they should be allowed too. My Daughter plays both, and loves both.
I would never ask her to choose one over the other. the bottom line
is that She is the one playing, not me.

We have been all over, and around this post. I would like to directly address this question. I do not believe that it is at all unreasonable for a coach to explain the goals of the team, schedules, expectations, financial reqirements, etc., and then ask for a commitment from a player/family. If we are talking LL here this only involves ages 12 and under. Therefore, this has to include mom/dad explaining to dd that when it comes tournament time, it is not possible to do both teams at once, therefore one or the other has to be priority. This needs to be considered and worked out ahead of postseason play, since this is typically when a crisis manifests itself. Both coaches should be informed of this, as a travel coach may have to pick up another player if dd chooses LL. Life is all about choices, it has to start sooner or later. FP Coach you would not at all appreciate a girl playing for you all season and at the last minute up and spring on you that she will not be there next game. If it works out that she can play for both throughout the season that is great, best of both worlds. I know that life is not fair but you have to consider that 12 families from each team plus coaches are involved here and it cannot just be about what dd wants. I would hope that a team would not depend on just one player for success, but if more than one from the same team and they all decide to bail, several families are going to get hurt. Communication is key.
Notice I did not knock LL, but Travel Ball ROCKS!!!!

[buckeye221]

Back when I played both LL and ASA...my parents never decided for me which one I would choose. They simply sat down with me and explained to me all of my options and what each option would mean...as far as when I could play, how much I would play, with who I would play, how much I would travel or not travel, ect... Basically they explained and talked it out with me every aspect of the whole situation. THEN they let me make my own decision. They always supported me and said it was my life and they would be happy no matter which one I picked or even if I said I didn't want to do either one of them (haha but I would have NEVER said that...loved it too much!).

Looking back I think they handled it very well. You hear so many stories of parents telling their kid what to do and not letting them have a say or they go to the other extreme and let their kid make a decision without explaining to them the whole situation. I think it is very wise advice to let the kid decide as long as the parents and coaches and other involved explain to them everything. They gotta learn to make decisions sometime in their life...why not start with something like this. No matter what they pick, what could it really hurt?

ALSO if a girl wants to play ASA but she nor her family want to travel too much and too far...just remember there are tons of teams that play only locally (within maybe an hour or so away). So if you look hard enough and keep your eyes and ears open, you will find a team that will work best for you.

[littleone]

I agree, this is a worn out subject, But it will always be a subject that everyone has to speak about. For all the little league coachs and all the ASA coachs I give you my hand It is all time well spent. I agree with both I town Hoss and COACH1.playing little league and playing ASA are different ballgames different competions. So the level of knowledge that the girls need to know takes drills and so on. OH! let me mention stamina. Three games in one day in 95degree heat and still give it your all thats a ballplayer.

[go_usa]

I don't see how you can totally discount LL, saying that it is "inferior". What bull crap! You ASA coaches are or were LL coaches, all you've done is taken the best LL girls and put them all together stacking up one team. You're still the same coaches and they're still the same girls.

[ManitouDan]

This horse is dead --been beaten to death. You must not get out much. MD

[Fastpitch Coach]

Little League is where almost all of the girls get started. If it wasn't for Little League alot of these girls wouldn't even have been exposed to SOFTBALL. I enjoy watching LL games , and ASA games. I feel that they are both great organizations, and it is a shame that the two can't exist together for the benifit of the girls.

[go_usa]

I totally agree, the girls should be able to choose. Of course ASA gives more experience b/c they play more. I've seen LL put just as much into the girls, I just don't see the need to slam LL like it's "inferior", lots of people invest a lot of time, energy and money into LL sames as ASA. And MD, what's with the "not getting out much comment", you feelin defensive?

[ManitouDan]

thought about typing a response ---na MD

[go_usa]

laughing hysterically