Why do so many kids quit baseball at 13?
Steve Springer has heard every excuse. But the real answer is usually simple. It is the pressure put on them by the people who love them most.
Parents who turn the car ride home into a postgame review. Coaches who only talk to a kid if they got two hits the night before. Ten year olds playing with tension, anxiety, and pressure instead of calmness and focus and fun.
Steve's response to the parents who ask what happened: you know what happened. You were a whack job.
Hard to hear. But the cost is real. Kids who quit at 13 because of that pressure don't always come back to the game. And even if they do come back, it's usually not til they are 17, once their body changes and they want to try again. That is four years of instincts they never get back.
@qualityatbats has coached, scouted, and played professionally for decades and this week on the podcast he breaks down what kids need at every age to keep developing instead of burning out.
Want the full episode? Comment PODCAST and I will send it over.
There is nothing like high school sports. It’s about so much more than wins and losses. The relationships are like no other. Playing for your school and your town is something special.
Things #Teachers don’t talk about:
We fake being okay when we’re not. We show up with a smile even when our life is falling apart, our health is declining, or we’re grieving… because the kids still need their teacher.
My opinion…..Travel baseball up to the age of 12 is for the dads that want to drink at the hotel bar after the game with other dads and the moms that want to post pics that their kid is on a travel team on social media
Gavin Newsom is telling Californians to boycott Chevron because they're "ripping you off."
Today:
- Chevron, L.A. County CA: $6.39
- Chevron, Jackson County MS: $3.99
It's not the oil companies ripping us off in California, it's Gavin Newsom and the Democrats. Vote for change!
Everything today is “look at me” and “look what I’m doing.”
8th graders are making announcement posts about what H.S. they’re going to.
I honestly just don’t understand when youth sports turned into personal branding. Maybe I’m just old school.
If you are a parent trying to run a HS coach off for your kid not playing I got news for ya
You are doing your kid a disservice, you are probably a bad person, and in the long run you’ll definitely find that out
The stories I’m hearing from multiple HCs across DFW are baffling and some of yall need a reality check for dang sure
Raising spoiled brats ain’t it yall
Biggest Team Builder: When the best players are hardest workers at practice.
Biggest Team Destroyer: When the most talented players are lazy and uncommitted.
HS Baseball Players ⚾️
I’ve been around this game a long time, and something’s changed...
We’re losing respect for the game.
• Chirping after every pitch.
• Celebrating routine plays like it’s Game 7
• Trying to embarrass opponents instead of beating them.
That’s not toughness. That’s insecurity. 💯
Somewhere along the way, being loud became more important than being good.
And the worst part? It’s being allowed.
When I came up…
• You showed up early.
• You handled your business.
• You played hard.
• You shut your mouth.
• If you had something to say…
you said it with performance.
• And if lines were ever crossed, the players took care of it.
The truth: 👇
• Baseball is hard.
• You’re going to fail.
• You’re going to struggle.
• The game doesn’t need more noise…
• It needs more respect.
• Nobody remembers who chirped.
• They remember who showed up.
• Who competed.
• Who handled adversity.
• Who left the game better than they found it.
Want to separate yourself?
Stop talking. Start working.
Respect the game.
💯⚾️
Turns out grouping kids by ability isn’t “symbolic violence”:
“Teaching pupils in classes grouped by ability improves the results of high-flyers but does not affect the progress of less able children”
The best coaches…
Challenge AND encourage
Teach AND praise
Expect AND accept
Toughness✅
Discipline ✅
Accountability ✅
Structure✅
Respect ✅
Love✅
#BaseballTruth
“I don’t get why teachers are leaving. They knew what they were signing up for.”
NO, THEY DIDN’T!
And before you say you’re okay with tens of thousands of effective teachers leaving, understand this…America is currently short 400,000+ teachers & it’s only getting worse.
Being a head coach at any level where you’re trying to develop and win is extremely lonely. As a HC you’re thinking so many steps ahead of everyone else. Assistants, parents and kids are normally singularly focused. This means you’re constantly second guessed and challenged.
This has happened at pretty much every level from travel ball to high school.
How about, Thank you coach we’re killing it and you’re a big part of it. To which I’d say, “Thank you, but it’s all about the kids really.”
I kind of hate it.