Pros and Cons of AAU baseball and Insights on playing both AAU and Little League

This will probably be a bit long but.....The pro's and con's really depend on the individual programs, and you goals as a baseball player.

Basically, your question is Is it wise to play for a Travel team (AAU) and a local team(LL) at the same time. My oldest son has been involved with both for the last 3 years and the answer is "It depends..."

Each area runs their program a little different, and each manager runs his team differently. There are several LLs in my area (San Diego) which claim that they will not allow their players to play outside of their league (never stand up in court, nor LL rules) and several Travel team managers which want exclusivity. (Play for them only)

It is comes down to what schedule demands are put on your son and family. My son played for one team that wanted exclusivity but (35% players did not comply). That team scheduled minimum 3 and up to 5 games a week. (A lot of games) When my son was 10 he played both LL and that Travel team. (over 125 games that year- Too much) We made the Travel team a priority, so we missed 20% of LL games (no problem because the LL team wanted my son's talent whenever it could get it.) Problem did occur during LL All-stars. Travel team ended up winning State and western regionals and went to AABC National World Series, so LL All-stars were dropped after first week. (left some hard feelings even though LL knew of the possibility, prior to selection of all-star team) The next year LL was dropped.

Travel teams are great for the top line player. Each team tries to field the best players possible. There are recruiting problems, (some teams raid other team's talent) and if you are on the bubble (12/13 man on depth chart) it is possible to be dropped from a team. And Prima Donnas are formed. Again, those policies are determined by the teams manager. Each team is its own entity and makes up its own rules. If you can find a club or manager, who has a similar philosophy as you and your son, you will be in a great situation.

Travel teams, normally play MLB rules, with minor exceptions, (No collisions are allowed in some leagues, and substitution rules are relaxed). AAU uses federation rules (High School). The big advantage here is lead-offs and stealing, and defending against same. It is an entirely different game from LL. Also, the fact that there are 9 quality players always on the field, all the time, allow the kids to excel and depend on each other more so than LL. Players earn playing time, there are no minimums (good or bad). They are facing the top competition available so it challenges their abilities and IMHO accelerates them.

The down side of Travel teams is... Costs are up, Local leagues dominate the practice fields so it is sometimes difficult to find facilities., There may not be many teams in your area with similar abilities, and there is a possibility of being dropped from a team and being forced to find another. (which may be difficult if limited number of teams.)

Playing for both provides the best and worst of both assuming you can put up with the schedule. There is a Burn-out factor to consider, but most kids, who do both, love the game so much that they want to play 7 days a week. (Moms burn-out sooner that Dad and son (generally)) Pitchers have to be really careful, and arm problems are common if not monitored correctly. Don't try to pitch for local team on Sat when travel teams expects you to pitch Sunday. Again, communications with both managers are a must and an understanding with both is essential.

Bottom line: Travel team will provide better environment for developing BB skills, LL will allow play with friends (also Big fish in small pond benefits) (Also, on travel team, only 1 or 2 kids play SS, You may have to play RF and never see the infield)(good or bad) LL allows players to continue to play top skilled positions SS,C,P which some travel teams may restrict. Of coarse if your son is the SS and Pitches on the travel team this is not a concern.

This year my son is on a different Travel team and it encourages players to play for the local league. This team only schedules Sunday games (except for 2-3 tournaments) but it does expect to have a shot at the Nationals at which time you are required to attend qualifiers etc or lose you spot on the team. (Some possible conflict with LL All-stars) They are planning 20-30 Sunday games and 3 tournaments (4- 7 games each) plus Nationals (7-11 games). Total of about 60-70 games. Add LL and you are approaching 100. Even with all this, my son runs out to play catch or wiffle ball or street ball at any chance he gets.