WHAT IS THE PROGRAM ALL ABOUT AND WHO IS IT FOR?
The travel program offered through the BPGSA is intended to be for those players looking for an opportunity to participate in a more competitive form of softball against other local communities. Players are selected for their respective teams on a tryout basis and if selected, will be expected to commit to the program that spans roughly 6-9 weeks (including about 2 weeks of practice) immediately following the end of the recreational season. Timing may vary based on the league.
WHO IS ELIGIBLE TO PARTICIPATE?
All players who have both paid in full and have been an active participant during the spring season of recreational softball are eligible to try out for a travel team within the age division determined by their age on 12/31/2022. Regarding players that are currently playing for an older division (for example 8U eligible players on a 10U FP team and 15U eligible players on an 18U team), the player may choose to try out for their age-eligible division and/or the current division they are playing in. The player must declare a preference for one program or other, at signup for the first tryout. However, if the player chooses to participate in try outs for 2 divisions, keep in mind they may commit to ONLY one travel team and are not permitted to play on two BPGSA travel teams at the same time. This is non-negotiable and is done to ensure the proper level of commitment to their teammates.
WHAT IF MY DAUGHTER WOULD LIKE TO BE CONSIDERED FOR TRAVEL SOFTBALL BUT CANNOT ATTEND THE TRYOUT?
As soon as possible, notify the BPGSA board via email ( [email protected] ) of your situation. This notification must take place prior to the day of the tryouts for your daughter to be considered. After the notification email to the board has been sent, your daughter will not be able to qualify as part of the top 8 or 9 players selected during the tryouts but will become available in the pool of players known as "manager selections." (See section on player selection below.)
HOW ARE PLAYERS SELECTED?
The BPGSA will announce an official time and date for travel tryouts for each league and division. Eligible players simply need to show up for the tryout 15 minutes prior to their tryout time and sign in.
The in-house regular season managers of each team in their respective division (or an elected representative in the event the team manager cannot attend the tryout) will be on site to evaluate each of the players in the following categories (continued on next page)
- Hitting
- Throwing
- Fielding Ground Balls
- Fielding Fly Balls
- Base Running
- Player’s performance and participation during the regular rec season
It is understood that a player's tryout performance may not be entirely indicative of their overall ability. That is why their performance during the regular season is also considered when determining that player’s final score.
Once all of the scores are tallied, the top 9 players (or top 8 for some fast pitch divisions) automatically make the team. From those top players, a manager is selected and then approved by the board. This is where the board’s involvement ends in the process.
MANAGER SELECTIONS
Once the team manager is selected, he or she will usually select an additional 2-5 players to round out the team. The remaining players chosen do not necessarily need to be the next ranked players from the tryout. One example of this might be that within the top-ranked players there are no available pitchers and the manager needs to select a few pitchers for the team.
Also included in this pool of players the manager can select from are any players who could not attend the tryout but notified the board of their interest to participate prior to the day of the tryouts. For players unable to attend the tryout, the selected manager will usually consult with the player's coaches for that season to help gather information on the player's skill set in relation to other players in the remaining pool.
IF MY DAUGHTER MAKES THE TEAM, WHAT CAN I EXPECT?
- Travel softball is very competitive. While some managers will make an effort to play all girls, please keep in mind that team managers are not required to rotate players in the field and there is no requirement for a minimum number of innings played per game.
- Travel softball is a different level of commitment compared to recreational softball. Most travel seasons consist of 4 full weekends of tournament games preceeded by several practices each week. In many cases, you may be asked to play 1-2 games during a weeknight preceeding the weekend.
- Each tournament offers a fresh start for the team. There are usually trophies, t-shirts or other awards available for the winners of each tournament.
- Most managers will select tournaments that are played locally, usually within 1-hour or so of the city. There have been several occasions where managers have chosen to participate in tournaments slightly further out, but that usually does not occur often.
- Costs vary depending on the number of tournaments entered, the cost of each tournament and the cost of the uniforms chosen by the manager. Typically, these costs fluctuate around $75-$125 per player for the travel season, but can go up or down from there.
- Special Note (2022): The BPGSA understands that each player’s financial situation varies, especially with our rapidly changing economy. The BPGSA Board is actively looking into various means of covering a portion or if possible all of the additional costs for our Travel teams that will be representing our community this summer.
WHAT IF MY DAUGHTER DOESN’T MAKE THE TEAM?
Unfortunately, not everyone can make the travel team as there are a limited number of slots. If interested, you can inquire with the team manager about being selected as an emergency backup player for the team that you tried out for. (see notes on emergency players below).
WHAT ARE EMERGENCY PLAYERS?
Once the travel season has started, there are circumstances in which the team may find themselves shorthanded or in a position where they have to consider forfeiture. This can happen on short notice due to injury, sickness, death in the family, etc.
If this were to happen, a team manager may select emergency player(s) prior to submitting their team rosters for any given tournament. Under these circumstances, a team manager is permitted to act quickly and select a player that meets the following criteria:
- Participated in the spring season of BPGSA softball and paid in full
- Participated in EITHER the slow pitch or fast pitch program
- Does not have a conflict with another team that would prevent them from fulfilling their obligations to the requesting travel team (this applies to call-ups or cross-league play)
OTHER IMPORTANT NOTES….
Travel softball is a commitment, both in regard to time and finances. Please consider that commitment prior to trying out. In the event you know you will be unavailable at any point during the travel season, please make the evaluating managers aware at the tryouts. Softball is a team sport and during a competitive travel season the team will rely on your full attendance, outside of an emergency, to remain competitive.
Please also note that disputes with the manager over playing positions and playing time must be discussed and resolved with the Travel Team Manager. The Board will not intervene in such circumstances. The BPGSA Board will act if there are actions and/or behavior exhibited by the manager that can be substantiated. Those would include but are not limited to; abusive behavior towards the player (yelling, belittling, etc.), use of foul language, fighting or being confrontational with other coaches or parents.