Playing AAU and Little League with a new twist

You may recall back last winter I inquired regarding the pros and cons of AAU baseball and any insights on playing both. Here’s the new twist. My son has been invited to try out for the AAU 13U team for next season, and he has another year of eligibility in Little League. I’m wondering what the impact will be moving back and forth between diamonds, and whether anyone has any insights or experiences to share. Also, what do you think about the importance of that final Little League season.

For those of you who wish to comment specifically rather than in general terms, my son played both Little League and 12U AAU this season at 11. He had a very enjoyable and successful season batting @ 400 on his AAU team, and @ 800 on his LL All-star team as the lead off batter on both. On his AAU team of 14 players (the remaining players being 12 year olds) he played 90% of the time, playing mostly 2B and some 3B, C and OF. On his LL All-star team he was considered a leader, playing Catcher, SS and pitching a 12k one hitter, given up in the 1st inning.

As it stands today (of course with an 11 year old it could change tomorrow) he would like to continue playing with his AAU teammates (13U). He is very interested in making the diamond jump and would be much happier if he were headed to Babe Ruth next season. He will be a 7th grader this fall and is very interested in playing school ball. Physically he stands a few inches shy of 5’ and weighs only 80 lb. (expected to be about 5’9").

His parents would like to see him finish his final season with Little League. We feel that community ball is a very important part of his learning experience and helps to keep him grounded. We recognize that LL will not be enough from him next season and that playing AAU (with talented teammates) is what helped to improve his skills, but we are unsure if making the big jump in diamonds is in his best interest (physically as well as mentally).