baseball economics

life IS full of choices ...

and IMHO - old, reliable, paid-for vehicles are $ in the bank!

it sounds like several of the folks posting on this thread have the resources, knowledge and discipline to manage these EXTRA expenses along with life's other NECESSARY expenses.

but there are others who do not have one or more of these ingredients (resources, knowledge and/or discipline). they do not have opportunity to go beyond what is necessary.

thanks for the #s highntight. and the reasons and returns for this kind of expense (southpawdad, cougardad, braves, playme). i was just curious about the cost of a year of baseball and now i have some #s.

 

you will always get more here........................good luck with your figures and Budget.

oh yeah, my '82 Chevy S-10 still does the FLA trips after 260,000, 232,0000 '96 Dodge Stratus still doing its share and 93 Jeep is our safety net for local stuff (charlotte, asheville, rock hill, winston areas), youngest DD nissan'95 190,000 plus has had its work too! LOL.........new vehicles are on its way to this family for sure once the last one finishes college next year! i know.....thank God!

Merry Christmas to you and your family!

 

When you talk milage on cars I just have to laugh. We had a 1999 suburban and by the end of the second year we had 96,000 miles on the thing. We also have a 96 Explorer with 230,000 miles on it. My friends that aren't involved in baseball are just amazed at the mileage we have on our vehicles. They haven't a clue! ha!

 

I agree....

your dedication and sacrifice towards your childs future and success are highly commendable

 

I spend about $2,500/year on baseball (average over past 4 years). Let's see, there is me, wife, 3 daughters, and the dog. Hmmmmmmm. I wouldn't trade the friendships I have made with the parents of the kids, and the kids, that have played for me for anything. The weekend travel and games have been a great experience for my "whole" family. My wife gets a big kick out of people coming up to her at games and asking which one is your kid? She just luvs to point out the old chunky one in the 3rd base coaches box, lol.

 

welllll.......

good for u!

 

sounds like we could start a "High Mileage" forum here!

subforums:
- to change the oil ... or just add more
- secrets of jump starting
- don't just sit there, get out and push

where is the cars section of TBR?

 

why?

don't alot of these parents do ANY carpooling to save money and car expenses......

 

If only Dad and player are going out of town, yes. If the Mom, sisters, etc., are traveling, then there's no room to carpool. We always took an extra player with us if their parents couldn't make the trip. We've had more than one player sleeping "on the floor" in our hotel room! Just trying to live thru all of that snoring and GAS is a real challenge!!

 

Though it has been indicated that playing AAU baseball over the years is an expensive proposition, I haven't found that to necessarily be true.

The hotel rooms and gas can add up, that's true .... but we the parents can't afford to travel with the team, our teams in the past have adopted their players and let them "bunk" with families that are traveling. We got enough sponsorship and did enough fund-raising events to not charge anything to the players for participation and provided the uniforms. If you have a younger team (10U - 15U), there are a lot of tournaments and decent competition in the Concord, Charlotte, Greensboro and Hickory areas that don't require overnight stays (now you're down to just gas/meal money).

If money was tight for a family, their son might end up playing an entire season for the cost of gloves, cleats and bats. A glove lasts longer than a season, cleats aren't that expensive and there is always the "hot" team bat that everyone wants to use.

The solution to expensive AAU/Summer and fall baseball is for everyone who is available to "chip-in" and do some extra work ... concession stands, car washes, what-ever it takes. I've also found that there are a lot of businesses where the owners LOVE baseball. They won't mind helping sponsor a portion of a team or sponsoring a player or two, maybe paying the entry fee for a tournament.

Once you get past the age of 15, the game changes. The need to showcase grows and the need to travel increases. Legion is an option (but not necessarily the best option) for a lot of these players. It is critical to play for a good summer/fall baseball team. Get on the best team that you can (and can afford). The better the team, the greater the likelihood that some college scout will come see you play. The tournaments in Charleston are very well attended.

Go to a couple showcases. Impact Baseball isn't that expensive. For the cost of a new bat, you will get the opportunity to perform in front of 50-75 college coaches.

It's been implied that the cost of baseball puts it out of reach of some people. I disagree with that implication. Not doing the research as to what your options are and not doing any leg-work to defray expenses means that you want it handed to you or your son. You expect him to work hard on and off the field. You have to do your work too.