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Curt Schilling had a strong message for parents – don’t be a jerk about paying for travel sports for your kids. Trying to get their kids any kind of competitive advantage. The thing is, all that money spent might not be any good.
“If you have to pay your kid to play, they’re not good enough to be a Major League Baseball player … because the game will get them,” Schilling said on OutKick. The Curt Schilling Baseball Show. “If you’re a kid, if he’s good enough, he’ll find his way to the big leagues.”
Schilling then had some hard truths for parents to hear.
“If you’re one of the parents of 277 major league-qualified or talented kids, they’re not a hidden gem. They’re not as super talented as anyone else you see, they’re probably not as good. And I know you hate to hear that,” Schilling continued.
Instead of travel ball, Schilling said, parents should allow their children to play in little league and attend high school.
Money well spent?
The former World Series MVP went on to cite various examples of leagues, coaches and administrators who have stolen or stolen parents’ money and failed to deliver.
“These coaches are promising things that none of them can deliver. And they’re promising things that you don’t want to deliver. If your kid is good enough, he’s going to play on a team that doesn’t have to pay,” Schilling continued.
Schilling’s best proof…
Perhaps the best example to support Schilling’s point comes from actual players.
He goes through a list of different players who never pitched in travel baseball, as well as a list of players who went undrafted and made it to the big leagues because of their talent. He mentioned players like Kevin Millar, Frank White, Larry Bowa, Bobby Bonilla, Dan Gladden and Hall of Famer Larry Walker.
Is Shilling right?
Anyone who is a parent knows exactly what Schilling is talking about here.
The pressure to make sure your son or daughter is getting maximum exposure as a young athlete is enormous. Because of this, many are willing to do anything and everything to do that. Whether it’s athletically or academically, it’s tempting to want to join travel or special programs to set yourself apart from others.
I mean hey – even Lori Loughlin went to jail!
But as a millennial myself (and I’m not a parent), I suggest that parents maybe take some of the money that goes to travel leagues and instead put it into well-designed video highlight packages. I can’t tell you how many tweets and videos of aspiring athletes have gone viral that were ridiculously good and started getting a lot of attention from them. And if we see them – you can be sure that the professional scouts will do the same.
Growing up being part of a travel or AAU team was like, “OMG! They must be incredible! ” That has since changed with an overabundance of different league games.
We’ve seen the rise of NIL deals change the way young athletes approach the sports industry. Perhaps the decline in exposure fees in travel leagues is next.
Regardless, as Schilling says – in the end, talent will find its way.
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