Specialize or Diversify? Year-round Sports Choices

Ed Note: This is an excerpt from the recent eNews from Cal and Billy at Ripken Baseball and well worth reading. We often hear comparisons between how kids play today (structured, playdates, select leagues, etc.) and the glory days of pick-up games and riding your bike to the local park to play till Mom called for supper.

Truth be told, our kiddos may not be playing more baseball, but as Cal points out, they're playing more intense baseball -- working through tournaments and league schedules instead of time at the sandlot. As you read through Cal's comments, take a minute to reflect on your son or daughter's past year of competition. It may be time to "lighten up" ever so slightly to let the fun stay in the game and your progeny. Which is ultimately where it belongs.

Here's Cal's Comments (visit his site at RipkenBaseball.com, and subscribe to his eNews)

Baseball Doesn't Have to be a Year-Round Commitment
 
November 30, 2005 -
By Cal Ripken, Jr.
Most people think that my dad, Cal Ripken, Sr., pushed my brother Bill and I to become big league players by making us play baseball and drilling us on the finer points of the game non-stop. Actually, nothing could be farther from the truth. Dad allowed us to discover the game and develop our own feelings about it on our own.
Of course, we had plenty of opportunities to develop a love for the game of baseball. We had the luxury of being around professional ballparks and professional players for most of our childhoods, which created a certain excitement surrounding the game for us. Bill and I watched our father closely and noticed the joy he felt every time he pulled on his uniform and took the field. If it was that much fun for him then why wouldn’t we want to play, right? But, it was always our decision. Dad never pushed us at all.
As a matter of fact, Dad actually encouraged us to put our gloves away at the end of the summer. He was a very good soccer player and seemed to enjoy teaching us and playing that sport with us, too. In addition to soccer, I developed a love for the game of basketball and played that in the off-season as well. Later as my baseball career developed I found that basketball was a great way for me to stay in shape during the off-season. I enjoyed basketball and its physical benefits so much that I incorporated it into my conditioning program once I made it to the big leagues.
My son Ryan turned 12 in July. He is developing into a pretty good ballplayer and for the past several years has played on a local travel team. One of my biggest fears when it comes to Ryan and baseball – and really when it comes to any youth baseball player – is figuring out how much is too much. I’m worried that some youth teams play too many games in the summer, and I also am concerned about the idea of spreading games out so that they are played in the spring, summer and fall. You want to be sure not to zap the kids’ enjoyment of the game and the fun surrounding it. There is a danger of making baseball seem too much like work.
I have run into parents who hope to develop their children into the next Alex Rodriguez by literally standing over them and forcing them to play and practice baseball as much as possible. One parent I spoke to recently equated practicing baseball to homework: “If my son is going to spend two hours on homework, he’s going to spend two hours playing baseball,” the parent said to me. To which I replied, “Well, how does he like it?” The parent responded, “He doesn’t like it at all, but someday he’ll thank me.”
While this is the mentality that worries me most, there is an argument to be made that if a kid enjoys being on the field and wants to play every day, we as parents should try to accommodate those wishes. I don’t recall playing in that many games as a child; Ryan’s team can play as many as 65 or 70 games during the summer. But, what I do recall vividly is having a glove on my hand almost every day during the summer. Back then we played pick-up games, played games with plastic bats and balls and even invented fun baseball games. I can’t recall many summer days when Bill and I weren’t playing baseball. In this day and age maybe all of those extra organized games make up for the fact that kids don’t play pick-up or sandlot baseball anymore.
There is no blanket answer as far as how much baseball should be played by a child. Each situation should be monitored closely by parents and coaches. To me it is all about the kids’ level of enjoyment and staying in tune with their needs and desires. Watch closely for signals that the fun or excitement to play or practice is fading. It’s okay to take a break from the sport or encourage a kid to try something different for a little while.
“We probably did play more baseball than we thought as kids,” says Daniel Wann, professor of psychology at Murray State University and a member of the board of directors for the National Alliance of Youth Sports. “But, we probably didn’t play as much organized baseball as we thought. For the kids who play so many games on travel teams, the impact on their bodies may be the same, but I’m not sure about the impact on their minds. When you play 70, 80 or 90 games with intense competition, burnout can set in. It’s not the games that burn the kids out, necessarily; it’s the structure of the games.”
One thing that I do feel pretty strongly about is allowing the kids to play other sports in the off-season. I do not favor specialization. Kids who play different sports throughout the year are more likely to avoid burnout and will develop their overall athleticism. If their athleticism improves, it stands to reason that they will improve their baseball performance. I always found that playing soccer allowed me to develop better balance and agility since it really is the only sport where you only use your feet. Basketball movements are more explosive, helping improve power, quickness and lateral movement.
“Kids really need to be encouraged to play different sports,” Wann says, “and there are two sides to the coin as to why that is the case. First, it allows the muscle groups used to play baseball to take a break. And second, it allows for other sports skills to be developed. Many sports skills are transferable. For example, the footwork in soccer can be transferred very easily to basketball or baseball, and the starts and stops in basketball can be transferred to infielders or when running the bases. A kid can be playing sports other than baseball and still be getting better as a baseball player.”
Taking some time off from baseball also seems to allow that flame to rekindle during the off-season, generating a feeling of excitement toward the game as the spring approaches. This is not to say that a kid should never pick up a ball during the fall and winter months. If a kid enjoys playing catch or going to the local batting cage to hit, by all means let it happen. Just let the kid dictate. Don’t force it. Throwing and hitting a little bit during the winter months can help keep the body’s muscles in “baseball condition,” and allow the player’s reflexes to stay sharp. Those are good things, but only if the kid is allowed to make the decision about when and how much to practice.
The key from a parental and coaching standpoint is to keep the kids’ best interests in mind when it comes to any athletic activity. Kids are driven by fun. If they are not having fun, it will become readily apparent. They will be reluctant to go to practice and will perform sluggishly when they are there. Monitor your child’s progress and keep these warning signs in mind. If the child asks to take a day off or to try another sport let him or her give it a shot. Maybe the child will miss baseball and be more excited to come back and play it again. Or perhaps the child will fall in love with another activity and get years of enjoyment from it. Either way the kid wins, and that’s what is most important.
“I don’t think you can make one broad stroke and say that every kid who focuses on one sport all year long is going to be negatively affected,” concludes Wann. “This is just not the case with everyone. There are kids who live for baseball – who don’t want to play football, basketball or soccer. We don’t want to overstate the case. We should just try to do what is right by most kids, and for most kids it is beneficial to have on and off seasons and to play multiple sports.”