Anonymous wrote:I have a 10 year old boy. We live in Lorton, VA area. He is in 4th grade - good athlete. Plays travel soccer, picks up any sport he tries pretty easily.

Is it too late for him to start baseball in the Spring? I know he will not be the star of the team, which will be frustrating for him, but he is ok with that. He is typically always playing the whole game in whatever sport he does.

Anything he could work on over the winter if he decides to play? He likes throwing the ball around in the front yard, practicing batting, etc. But by no means does he know much about baseball. Will he even get to play in the Spring? Or is he at an age where the coaches just sit the kids?

Take him to a lacrosse game. He'll forget about baseball in a heartbeat. And no, 10 is not too late to start.

This spring there are going to be lots of first timers after the Nats win.

Have fun!

He has done rec but it has been a while. Soccer and his other sports get pretty competitive around here at an early age.
I have coached rec sports for years and love them. I also know there are always a few kids that have never played. It is still fun. Everyone has been really helpful with feedback.

Anonymous wrote:I have a 10 year old boy. We live in Lorton, VA area. He is in 4th grade - good athlete. Plays travel soccer, picks up any sport he tries pretty easily.

Is it too late for him to start baseball in the Spring? I know he will not be the star of the team, which will be frustrating for him, but he is ok with that. He is typically always playing the whole game in whatever sport he does.

Anything he could work on over the winter if he decides to play? He likes throwing the ball around in the front yard, practicing batting, etc. But by no means does he know much about baseball. Will he even get to play in the Spring? Or is he at an age where the coaches just sit the kids?

Has he never played rec sports? Rec sports usually have participation rules where all the kids play an equal amount of time.

Anyway, my son just started little league this fall (just turned 11). He is not an athletic star like your son, but he enjoyed it and improved a lot in just one season. Its crazy to even think that a 10 year old couldn't try a new sport.

No- not too late to start at all. My 11yo plays baseball and had a 12yo on his fall ball team who had never played before. He did well (got a few hits, only played corner OF but did ok- I know he had fun). My 9 and 11yo’s both play- my advice:

1: if you’d be willing to do batting lessons over the winter- they can be a big help and are not always expensive. People will say it is overkill but IME if kids are hitting, even a little- they are happy and having fun (even if their fielding isn’t great) while the reverse is not as true. Also IME rec coaches don’t have a ton of time to work on every kid’s swing mechanics.

2. Make sure he understands the basic rules of baseball if he does not already- balls, strikes, outs, positions etc. watch some games on YouTube or let him play a baseball video game (my sons like the game “the show”).

3. Play catch as often as possible! Most of fielding is just repetition and practice, really. They will teach other fielding skills at practice, for sure. If his throwing looks really wonky- ask around for feedback if you aren’t sure what he is doing wrong (most athletic dads uncles friends etc could help you). If he throws well head to a LL field and have him practice throwing from both 2nd and 3rd to 1st.

He sounds super athletic and I’m sure will be fine! Starting at 10 is on the late side but not that unusual.

No, of course not! There are a bunch of teams in your area. I would try to find a fielding or batting clinic (maybe pitching) for over the winter. Look on the NVTBL site at the various teams. While the NVTBL is a travel league, the double A teams are not that great and would be a good place to start.

Anonymous wrote:It is not too late, but not a good age to start. Even our rec league is going kid pitch now. Other than the pitcher, there is almost no action on the field.

Practice is full of drills. And at 10 the pitching has settled down enough that kids can start to get hits and make plays. 8-9 was the worst age for games, if I recall correctly. Literally the kids would get walks until they reached the max number of runs and then switch sides. So boring.

It is not too late, but not a good age to start. Even our rec league is going kid pitch now. Other than the pitcher, there is almost no action on the field.

OP here. Thanks for the feedback. It is sad that I even think it is too late... Plus rec is for fun and learning so maybe we will just go for it.

No, 10 isn't too old to start. He won't be the only one.

If he's an athlete, swing mechanics will come. Just tell him to be patient with the tee work. It takes something like 17,000 reps to build the muscle memory.

It is not too late to start.

Perhaps try wiffle ball in the yard or hitting at field if you want. Have him invite some friends over to play in the yard if he wants!

Some rules to go over might be the force v tag out. My 7 y/o steps on the base and tags everyone to be extra safe, lol.

I would say none of these kids are experts haha he will be fine. The most common mistake I see is overthrowing to the base player when trying to get an out.

Not too late. Get outside and throw and catch with him, a lot. A kid who can throw easily the distance from one base to another, or from the outfield to SS is already way ahead of many kids. Look for a rec-level team in your area. My 9 year old is on a Cal Ripken team with a few stars but most kids are still learning. There should be some baseball clinics and workshops this winter and early spring that you should try to get him into.

Get him on a rec league team and the coaches should be required to play all kids. My youngest (10 yo) had some relative newbies on his team this year. Your son should be OK.

It saddens me that some might consider starting at 10 yo too late. But understand why you might worry about that.

a 10 yr old and "too late to start?" don't go together!

I have a 10 year old boy. We live in Lorton, VA area. He is in 4th grade - good athlete. Plays travel soccer, picks up any sport he tries pretty easily.

Is it too late for him to start baseball in the Spring? I know he will not be the star of the team, which will be frustrating for him, but he is ok with that. He is typically always playing the whole game in whatever sport he does.

Anything he could work on over the winter if he decides to play? He likes throwing the ball around in the front yard, practicing batting, etc. But by no means does he know much about baseball. Will he even get to play in the Spring? Or is he at an age where the coaches just sit the kids?