texcoug

Ha ha. We pick our Tball allstars by who gets to the snowcone machine the fastest after the game. Lazeek plays PONY. Allstars and playoff all the way up to Dallas for State Championship. Southlake Carroll won title last year.

I disagree totally. PONY rules allow stolen bases at will for the younger players. I get sick of seeing a walk and two stolen bases(all the while the batter has the bat on his shoulder waiting until the runner gets to third.) No force outs at second, no double plays, and a pitcher who is just fighting to get the ball over the plate while all this is going on. It's a lot further from real baseball than little league. If you think you get real baseball in little league well....thats funny. In Pony Pitchers have to learn how to pitch from the stretch, throw over to first. Runners have to learn how to lead-off. Coaches actually have to know a little something about the game in Pony or select. I have coached both Pony and little league for over 10 yrs and there is no comparison. Interesting discussion. I am in a PONY league and have to agree with both. I think that the local leagues should not allow stealing in Mustang until mid-season (because of the issue raised by westend -- he is right, that is not helping anyone to see the walking triple -- happens ALL the time, especially early in the season). On the other hand, the kids need to learn to hold a runner. I just think in league play that they should wait until the middle of the year -- like, allow leading off base, but no stealing until May 1. That way the P could learn to hold the runner without getting made a fool (I have seen poor Ps break down on the mound watching the base runners literally nanny-nanny-boo-boo the P who has no clue what to do). The problem is that the one league will not do it if it feels like it will put their kids at a competitive disadvantage from other leagues they compete with in tournaments. If all of the PONY leagues would adopt something along those lines, it would be good (IMO).

Congrats to both squads. Keep it up. Someone from here needs to get to the next level (in one league or another).

That's an interesting comment coming from a "fan in the stands" who the Pony Director had to tell to be quiet. I thought your team was great and had no problem with your coach. The problem was your fans. Yelling at 6 year old boys when they bat is ridiculous. You were told the first night you could not talk to our players, so the next night you yelled especially loud when our boys were batting (for your team). Interestingly, you weren't nearly as loud when your kids were batting. That, in essence, is why the Director told you to stop. In fact, your coach apologized for your conduct. FYI.

Glad to hear Southlake won..."Ut oh"!! "Don"t ya know" I bet they were a little humbled after that game..... Yeah -- Southlake was putting on them pretty rough. Not a lot of noise on their side. Southlake 10 runned them -- they were very disciplined and balanced. The Austin team hit the ball better but got rattled early -- like how they rattled when we beat them on Thursday.

Just returned home. Southlake Carroll won the Shetland over the Austin team that we beat 28-20 then lost twice to them. They had to beat us twice on Friday and they did. The first game was close (21-20) but the second was not and the Austin team (Young Legends) played their best game of the tournament. Our boys had never lost and I think it was tough on them. I learned a lot up there -- we played the fewest games of any team in the Shetland tournament. Most had played 20+ games (their All Star tournament plus several invitationals). I am super proud of our boys. Even in the last game when things weren't going well, they still played and kept their heads up. It was a great experience and, for sure, we can compete with any team up there. Pinto did great as well. They will be a force to be reckoned with next year. Kudos to Robbie, Lance and crew for their work with that team. They represented our area well. Lots of people at the tournament were wondering "who is Vidor?" after the wins posted by our teams. Coach Clint

I want to be careful not to offend the baseball gods, but I think this page of the thread is overlooking another really good team -- Vidor's second team. I have watched them play and have been impressed. Not sure who will win between them and Groves but it will be close. Good job coaches and I am looking forward to the games tonight.

Any updates on Game 1? Game 2?

I hate to sound to ignorant, but who is FHWS? I keep seeing that name over and over. Be kind.

Well said.

Can someone post the bracket? Also, where is the tournament going to be held? Good luck to everyone. I know lots of kids on the Vidor squads and wish them the best. Both coaching staffs are doing a great job.

Where is the tournament at Troy?

I think I understand your point, but please leave out the anecdotes to support yourself (there are multitudes more that go the other way). All of your analysis seems to be based on one premise: That parents of 5/6 year olds (btw -- at the all star level, there was only 1 5 year old on the winning team and he turned 6 in June) are registering their kids in competitive baseball (i.e., PONY) versus instructional only (like LL) because they want either (a) to live through their kid for things they couldn't accomplish, or gasp, (2) play in the major leagues. Please. It could be based on GEOGRAPHY (like, what baseball league and facilities are available to them in their area). In addition, I think that you have answered this one yourself. The attrition rate in youth sports takes care of the vast majority of 5-6 year olds (and they don't continue to play for whatever reason -- some of them because they do not like kid pitch, others because they lose interest, etc.). BUT, what you forget is that is the SAME for virtually every little league sport. More than 1/2 of the kids at our league (400 kids) were 8 and under. If you have ever gone to a swim meet, you will find the same is true for swimmers. If you coached soccer (I do), you will find the same is true there too. Or, how about dance? Ditto. Piano? Yep. (Check the number of participants at your next recital under the age of 10 versus over). Truth is that lots of small children in all different sorts of disciplines move on to something else -- and it is not necessarily because of a parent driving them away. It is just a fact of life. In other words, I have to assume for my child that he may not be playing baseball 4 years from now. We can sure have a lot of fun and build a lot of memories along the way. Ultimately, you have to do what is best for your child. And, you have to assume that other people are doing the same and give them the benefit of the doubt.

Billy: Thanks. By the way, not only would the poster be surprised to see how disappointed Braden (sp?) was, he would be totally surprised to see how he plays. I don't think that some people think that 6 year olds can play like that. He is fantastic. We'll see you again in the future.

One other thing: I think the parents are extra-protective of the kids at this age (and defensive) because the kids are 5-6. As young kids, the parents and grand-parents are extra-cautious in a manner that they may not be when the kids are 10. Just my two cents. Rob -- tell Collin he hit great tonight (I told him after the game). And Bryce Jewell did a great job of snagging liners (Baker too of course). Congrats to all the Vidor kids. They have been wonderful. And, fyi, our other coaches are Jason Sylvester and James Odom. Jason is great with the kids and is especially good with their hitting approaches. James has drilled the OF over and over and I though that they did a great job today (and Wednesday). We also had some other great volunteers from our parents at every practice (Scott Kizer, David Bowman, Todd Nunez, and a few others). Thanks for all the support from the team moms and their work. It has been a fun experience (my first All Star experience as a coach).

Come out of the rubble? How about you come off your high horse? Message boards are full of "everyone is confused but me" posters -- you just joined the club. I presume that you managed your few paragraphs without watching any of the games or talking to any of the coaches or the players for that matter. If I am wrong, please correct me. And, surely you should know that the comments on this thread are not necessarily indicative of the attitude everyone involved. . . I am proud of the kids on our team and the TC team. We focus on baseball fundamentals and teach all along the way. I don't think competition at this age is necessarily a bad thing. In fact, for many of these kids, they may only have a few more years of baseball anyway. And, this is where you really stretch yourself as I am not sure that the attrition rate in baseball is related to whether games were scored or not when they were 5 and 6. Maybe to you, it doesn't matter -- let the insinuations fly and hope that some of it sticks. I am sure you cannot support whether the attrition rate is related to score keeping or not at this age (if so, the attrition should be different in PONY vs. LL), coaches, or if maybe some of the kids, by the time they turn 10, decide they want to do something else. I do wonder if this much baseball is good for a 6 year old. I think all kids need time to play and have free time and this schedule has been a bit hectic. I really wish that the State Tournament were next week so we could get it over with. Anyway, we keep it light with Spongebob and stay positive with the kids. Congratulations to all the kids, parents, and coaches of the teams participating. I saw almost every game. Great job Demaro and PA. We loved the music, goodies, and fun times (we have two good memories on that field now).

Quite apologizing Benn -- tell us how you really feel. We all know that you are a Select Snob! ;D Just kidding! Our little teeballers will be playing for the Championship tomorrow night. FYI -- several Fall Ball grads made the team.

Agreed. There was definitely a lot of noise during the game. I don't think that this is a forum to attack individuals. Honestly, LawDog, you don't qualify to give an opinion about Hal unless you know him. He is wonderful with the kids and always stays positive. I think it is odd that the coaches and even some of the parents (Lazeek) didn't have a problem after the game (or after the Director's Tournament Championship for that matter). I do think it is inappropriate for the TC coaches to talk to our kids (unless they are complimenting them). No need to talk while they are preparing to swing or encourage them to throw a ball. That was one area that was bothersome. I know all the parents are super-excited (and we are having to tell our parents to quit instructing from the sidelines -- it interferes with our instruction ;D !), but not need to make comments about where we are from. Ultimately, it is a game for the kids. What is lost in all of the yelling is that the kids on the field did a great job. They couldn't care less where one team is from or another (someone from the TC sidelines made a derogatory comment directed to our team as being from Vidor -- not something our kids need to hear). In fact, my son hung out with a TC kid eating pizza after the game. I think the parents could all learn a lesson from the kids here. Both teams played hard and the kids should all be applauded for that. Good luck to Groves and TC tomorrow night.

Any update on the weather in PA? Rained hard in Beaumont.

Saw all the games today. Shiner: Good job to Groves A today -- you came out hitting a lot better than Sat. I know Vidor was disappointed but you guys played well. Good job to both TC teams. TC A won a good game against Orange A. Both teams did a lot of great things. It was a fun game to watch. Finally, watch out for Port Arthur. They impressed me with their speed and defense. Lots of fun. We play tomorrow against PA. It was HOT. Wow. Really hot. And, in case I forget, bring some ant killer. I think we all need to jump in and kill some ants. I am not knocking PA -- I think they have been great hosts (and I love the music). But only 1 guy can't do it all. Let's give him a hand.

Dopplar showing that the storms have moved off. Hopefully, we can get started today.

I think they were already losing ground in Groves as it is (to the Groves LL League -- National). Good luck Shiner. One big asset you have is a great facility. Too bad we are not playing the All Star tournament there. (We played the first 3 days of the Director's Tournament there).

It seems to me, that once you add the score-keeping and record keeping (and qualification for state tournament), the tournament turns competitive. Once the level of "competition" is established, the rest takes care of itself. Now, rather than question coaches who, placed in a competitive environment, respond appropriately, the real question to me is how much baseball is too much for a 6 year old? My kid is on one of these teams and, if we win this tournament, the next one is in mid-July. By the time that is over, 1/2 the summer is over. I did that in youth baseball, but not when I was 6. I think it is a lot of baseball for kids this age.

I also heard that Groves American lost some players to Groves National. What is the story there?

Lazeek: For our Shetland Tournament, it will be interesting. Orange had so many teams that it is hard to rank them for me. Groves Yankees had some studs so I am not surprised that they had 4 All Stars. Seems like TC did well but we only saw you guys in the Championship. As for Vidor, the talent is spread. We had 9 teams but only 7 in the Tournament. The First Team will likely have kids from 7 different teams (just a guess).