Funny thing, but I had a chance to really talk out the situation with my son's baseball with a couple of great parents from last year's team and now I feel pretty good about things. I think it just helps sometimes to talk things out with a patient listener, and to just get things off your chest.
In the final analysis, my opinion is unchanged. However, now, I think I accept it emotionally as well as intellectually.
Basically, it boils down to:
1. The tryout process is imperfect.
2. It is fair in the sense that no kid gets preferrence over any other kid.
3. Generally speaking, it gets things pretty much right, most of the time.
4. Every once in a while, they're going to make a mistake.
I don't think anybody who saw my boy play last year would say that he wasn't one of the better players on his team. So, for him not to make the team this year is probably an indication that things went awry one way or another.
However, it's not like he didn't make any team at all. He made the black / B / light team. He'll still play travel ball, though on a team that's a step down from his team from last year.
Again, I think this is actually a better situation for him. I think it'll open up doors for him to develop both infielding skills and pitching skills.
If he continued to play on A, he would have continued to be a gold-glove-caliber center fielder, but would also have reached his high school tryout having played virtually no infield at all.
He'll also get the chance to pitch, now.
On his previous team, he showed good fundamentals at infield. It's just that there were 4 kids on the team who were better. The league was competitive, and despite the coach's best efforts, the best he could manage averaged out to maybe an inning of infield every 8 games or so.
Pitching, same story. Logan needed a lot more work to develop into a pitcher and he just wasn't getting it on his old team.
Although the analogy isn't flattering, this is a little like going back down to AAA ball to work on some skills so you can come back better than before.
So, although this is disappointing and was a little shock to the system, I think, ultimately, that this is the best move for the boy's future development as a baseball player.
Now, the A team loses it's star center fielder, and a player who led the team in OBP. They picked up a couple of good players. All in all, for the A team, I think they came out a little better off.
The B team (my son's new team) picked up a guy who was one of the better players on A. They also picked up a very athletic kid who had previously been playing rec. I think, overall, they're much, much better as a team than they were last year.
In the A versus B game last year, B gave them a hard time. They eventually lost, but this year, who knows. On the right day, maybe they win. I'd say the B team rose from being a team who could beat A 1 time in 10 to maybe a team that beats A 3 times in 10.
Also, I think my son will benefit from playing for a different coach. Not so much that the old coach was bad in any way. I thought the world of him and he gave 100%, every day to these kids.
It's just that a new coach will bring different strengths and teach different things. This is the chance to study under two masters.
Though it was sort of funny. One of the other parents who saw my boy during the football scrimmage where he got hurt, said that although my boy may play baseball in high school, his sport is probably going to be football.
Lots of things can happen or not between now and then, but based on what I saw in that scrimmage, I think he may be right. The boy was a force to be reckoned with on the football field.
So, I think I internalized the realities of the baseball situation. Ultimately, I think they made a mistake, but they made it the right way. The tryout process, though flawed, is fair in the sense that it gives each kid an equal chance. For whatever reason, Logan didn't accumulate enough points on day 1, and a couple of other kids accumulated more.
I really wouldn't have it any other way. Those kids earned their spots and they should get them. In the final wash, Logan ended up in a better situation.
So, this is one of those rare win-wins.
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