Number 1 Training Bat on the Market⬇️
Camwood Bats
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There is always the question of to move up an age group or to stay down in your age group. There are pros and cons to both, and every situation is going to be different, but I personally love the idea of staying down in your age group. I don't see the rush to move up, especially for pitchers. To me, it is all about gaining the most confidence while learning the most you possibly can WHILE you are still having success, as this is a game of failure, and all too often players move up early, and then do not have as much success, and then they end up losing confidence. CONFIDENCE is the key to success in our game defensively and offensively.
Logistically- a pitcher only gets to pitch at 35ft in 10U and now only gets to pitch from 40ft in 12U. Then, she will move up to 43ft for the rest. Learn to DOMINATE at each distance, not just be "good" at that distance. Understand what dominating looks like and feels like. That experience in itself is invaluable for the rest of a pitcher's career. Learn counts, and situations, and to read hitters. If you are playing well, it's usually when you can learn deeper and learn the most because you are more open to learning when your confidence is higher. You can try new things, expand your game.
Secondly, Even if you are the "best" player/pitcher on your team, there are so many intangibles to be learned from being the "best" player on your team, one of the oldest players on the team and quite frankly, learning what it feels like to consistently WIN and expect to win every time you show up to the ballpark. If you are the "best" pitcher, then lead your team to the Championship game and get the opportunity to play in a Championship game every single tournament. THAT is important later down the road.
You will have time in your future to play 12U, and then to play 14U, and then to play 16U, and then to play 18U. Those age brackets are not going anywhere, they will always be there with good competition. But, potentially the experience of learning to be the day in day out ace on the team or standout hitter with extra pressure where your team is relying on you may change if you move up.
I hear an argument that "the competition isn't good enough." To me the "competition isn't good enough" only if you are going 4-4 every game, with multiple hits to opposite field or if you are a pitcher who throws no hitters every single game and never walks a batter. If the excuse you are moving up is because the competition isn't good enough, then you are teaching a player at a young age that the best form of competition is against someone else, not internally. You are missing out on an opportunity to teach a player to dig deeper, get out of comfort zone and push herself.
If you feel like the competition isn't good enough, then you should be challenging YOURSELF more. Here is what I mean: If you are a pitcher who only has a fastball and change up in 10U and you "get everybody out," then learn a new pitch and challenge yourself to only throw that pitch in the 10U game and see if you can still get hitters out. Learn to mix in a new pitch, and know that you can always rely on your pitches that you have against hitters that make be weaker than you, rather than learning a new pitch while you are going up against hitters who are better than you at the higher age level and then you have no confidence. Another example: If you are a hitter who consistently gets hits, challenge yourself to hit the ball to the opposite side of the field in two of your at bats instead of pull everything like the average hitter does at a young age. It is a perfect time to talk to the talented players about pushing themselves to be the best they can be. You never ever stop learning no matter how old you are.
The better option to me, rather than to move up early, would be to find the most competitive team in your age group to play on in your area. You get experience from the tryout to play on that good team. If you make the team, then you most likely will be playing the best competition in your area, in your state or in the country. The most competitive teams are going to play the BEST competition. Play the best to be the best.
I know others will have different opinions on this, and that is fine. At the end of the day, to me it is about finding the most confidence, learning the most you possibly can WHILE you are the most confident and actually teaching the sport rather than thinking the best option is to move up, especially for pitchers. In the middle of being an actual player and family making the decision, it seems like a sprint, and not a marathon. When you step out of it and really look big picture, it's not about this ONE season of playing - it's about a longevity of the career. Learn to win. Learn to be a leader. Learn the pressure of being a leader. Learn to love to compete against yourself more than you love to compete against others.