I have a senior in high school and am going through the recruiting process so I will try to elaborate on what I have seen so far.

1) If your kid is a pitcher he will not get recruited by a D1 school unless he is 6'2" + and throws 90 mph. There is a kid in Florence, Al who just turned 15 and is already throwing 92 mph. He is 6'2" 205lbs.

2) The money you spend playing travel ball could pay for your kids education.

3) A D1 college gets 11.7 scholorships
4) A D2 college gets 9 scholorships
5) A D1 college gets 0 scholorships
So a full ride scholarship for baseball is non existant unless you are another Bryce Harper type player.

6) High School ball sucks compared to travel ball

7) The cost is dictated by the team you are on, some play every weekend some play every other weekend some only play a few tournaments. I will tell you when they get to 15 years old and up you will travel further and pay a lot more money.

8) Travel ball is watered down with rec ball players so unless your kid is on one of the Elite teams it is just a little better than the park. If the parks would do a competitive league they could get the kids back play Monday thru Thursday and then let them play tournaments on weekends if they want, but they are afraid little Johnny or his parents will get their feelings hurt because he is not on a competitive team.

() Get your kid some lessons whether it is hitting, pitching or fielding most coaches don't have the time to dedicate to a kid to really improve especially with travel teams.

I have done it for 8 years with my oldest and going on 7 years with my youngest and would not trade the time or experiences with them and ball for any amount of hunting time by myself. They will be gone before you know it. If you decide to do it then do it because your kid loves to do it not to get a scholarship or play on the school ball team but if they get on a decent team with decent coaches they will get much better.