"If you can hit a rock you can hit a baseball"

I work with kids and I can say that an attitude like that is not a good one to have. First of all, it is a given that some kids develop faster than others. Just because a kid is not very coordinated at 12 does not mean he has no hope of being an athlete. What that athlete needs is good coaching so that when he does begin to grow physically and mentally he has a sound fundamental base to grow from. Maybe your friend has not been around kids a long time, but I have coached for six years and worked with kids for eight. The remarkable thing is that only a few of the "little league stars" are the strong players at the varsity level. The better players in little league are often better because they have begun maturing earlier and are bigger and stronger.

For example, there was a boy named Dave, and was 6'1" at twelve. Dave dominated in youth baseball, basketball and football. He has only grown two inches since then (now a junior), does not play basketball at all, average baseball player, decent football player.

Now your friend can say that Dave just had "good genetics", so let me give you Chris Mullin of the Indiana Pacers.

I know Chris is a basketball player but your friend's theory is not sport specific. Chris Mullin WAS NOT a high school standout. Barely made it into St. John's. In college he practiced three hours a day on three pointers, in addition to his team practice. Now he is one of the better shooters in the NBA. He was not born a great shooter, he made himself a great shooter.

Sorry for such a long post but being that I work with kids, I take these kind of things to heart. I think if you take a look at your local varsity baseball team you will see that some of the little league stars are not playing, or are marginal players. For me, little league cannot be the make or break point in an athlete's career, to think so is not fair to the athlete giving it his all.