r/Homeplate • u/Admirable-Reserve371 • 2d ago
Quitting
I am a high schooler going into my junior year and am unsure whether I want to keep going. I am still injured but not terribly and this season i’ll be the backup catcher becuase the starter is d1. I dread going to practice and never think about baseball even more. It takes up so much of my time. I want to quit but i’m worried i’ll regret it. I have a lot of other hobbies but i’ve played baseball since tee ball when I was 5 and it feels weird to willingly give it up. I am a smart kid with a lot of other stuff going for me and I love to go to the gym and hike and ski. Looking for advice
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u/Nearby-Hold-3986 2d ago
Take a year off. You don't have to quit. You may decide to play again in an over 40 league when you are old enough, you may coach your kids, you may play your senior year. Life is way too short to do something you dread.
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u/Miserable_Wedding657 1d ago
Agree, definitely take your junior year off if you’re dreading it. If you miss it, stay in shape and try out senior year, you can tell coach you were injured and feeling burned out/needed to focus on class. Even if you don’t play HS ball again, there’s men’s leagues after you graduate.
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u/Honest_Search2537 2d ago
Do what makes you happy.
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u/10xwannabe 1d ago
Great advice.
The time to crank it UP a notch is NOW (HS). If you are not willing to do it AND don't even enjoy going then the whole thing is a waste of time.
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u/Coastal_Tart 2d ago
If there is something else that you want to do with that time, then quit baseball and go do that thing instead.
If it is more, I am tired of baseball everyday, then take a day or two off and go do something light hearted and fun. Go see a movie, go fishing, go to the beach, etc. then get back to baseball. You will be done soon enough and better to have given it your all for as long as you were allowed than to regret calling it short and never getting that chance back.
People often regret quitting something they loved during a tough stretch, but they rarely regret sticking with it. But do put less pressure on yourself to excel and focus more on having fun and just being present in the moment.
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u/CountrySlaughter 2d ago
Some good advice here. Impossible to know whether you'll regret it. My daughter played travel softball 10 years and decided not to play as a senior, and she would've been a 3-year starter. But she was just done. Joined the drama club, was in a play. Never regretted it.
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u/Aggravating_Ad_5011 2d ago
Depends on how you love the game. You can love the game, even work in the industry, and not play. But generally, play as long the game allows.
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u/UndercoverFBIAgent9 2d ago
This is your decision and yours alone. Make the decision for the right reasons (you know the difference), and if in doubt, don’t quit until there is no doubt. But once you decide, don’t apologize to ANYONE or second guess yourself. (this is obviously easier said than done, but you get the point).
Life is full of these decisions and it will tear you apart if you spend it second guessing them. Play your cards and don’t look back. The second guessing will tear you down more than the decision itself.
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u/nightgoat02 2d ago
I quit after my junior season. I wasn't going to play college or anything after high school and was well aware of the fact. I got playing time, but our team was pretty bad. I enjoyed my senior year plenty without having having baseball. If you 100% aren't going to play after high school, then just depends if you want to spend your senior year doing the baseball grind or move on to other things.
I also had to work to pay for car insurance and gas money, so I kept busy. I was also partying a lot, not that I recommend that, but baseball was cutting into that as well 😄
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u/Rps99sho 2d ago
You’re too young to be stressing for this reason. Real life has enough of that to go around. Find your way back later in life when the itch returns. There is plenty of rec leagues and beer leagues out there waiting when you’re ready. Maybe one day you’ll have a child who enjoys the sport and you can get back involved that way. Good luck and take care of yourself.
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u/Hank1974 2d ago
Do what makes you happy. But you might end up regretting it. I wonder if you went into the season knowing it's your last if you'll enjoy it more. A who cares attitude. Just enjoy being around the guys, taking joy in the little things. But only you can answer this
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u/RexInvicti 2d ago
College climb is a lot steeper than high school. If you’re done, go out on your own terms.
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u/Bacon_and_Powertools 2d ago
Are you trying to play in college? If not, do guy have fun when you play?
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u/Snorkellingisthelife 2d ago
You’re ready for new experiences. My son switched to Mountain Bike which is huge here! He was re-energized. You do you!
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u/External-Peanut-7077 2d ago
Make decisions your future self will be proud of. Not starting a new season is not quitting. If the season has started and then you quit, how will you feel about it in 20 years? How will you have that conversation with your kids?
If the season hasn't started, will you be proud you made a decision FOR yourself, by yourself in 20 years?
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u/Floortom1000 2d ago
Maybe baseball isn’t for you anymore - that’s ok. If you dread practice, I can see why you would want to walk away.
But if you still love the game, maybe there’s an avenue to play in a different team / league that you will enjoy more.
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u/Jwrbloom 2d ago
Why not another position?
Baseball is a weird sport. If you're behind someone that talented, you shouldn't close out the idea of playing in college. I went to a big high school, and it's much bigger now than when I went. There are kids who have better college careers than high school careers.
I don't know your skill set or measurables, but it's not even all that rare.
You have to decide if you want to play in college. If you want to, I'd keep at it and get to as many college based camps as you can, or reputable camps which will have actual scouts there. The keyword there is reputable.
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u/slaamraam 2d ago
Enjoy your teammates and being a back up while learning. Grew up with a similar situation and now play 25 and up baseball because I always regretted stopping playing so young. Most of the d1 guys I played ball with have hung them up saying they got what they could from the game. Just feel like I’m not there yet. Also get good at catching bullpens and steering your pitcher in the right direction. May not get you a scholarship but your pitchers will love you.
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u/Ill-Stay-1103 2d ago
I read your old post about your injury, did you ever find out if it was a stress fracture? Did your injury impact how you feel about baseball? If you dread going to practice and you don’t think about it anymore, maybe it’s time to move on. Like you said it sounds like you have a lot going for you.
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u/pennyforyourthohts 5h ago
I always wonder why the d1 guys quit. Nobody interested in the farm system?
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u/bjmcclus_78 2d ago
My advice is to only take advice from people on this post that have been in this situation like yourself . Don’t listen to all the other noise! Since I didn’t play bball in HS that’s the only advice I have! Good luck!
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u/GasOnTap08 2d ago
Not much to say if you’re not having fun. Talk to your parents about it though and figure out what about it is making you miserable. If it’s the injury, just focus on getting healthy and then see where you are after. If it’s being a backup, then you need to decide whether you’re going to let him make you miserable or work your butt off to try and earn your spot back. Might seem like a long shot but don’t let him be the reason you quit. But if you fell out of love with baseball and you’re not happy with the sport in general then think about dialing it back and finding something else.
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u/Ok_Alternative875 2d ago
I quit my sport junior year. I was heavily recruited. I truly didn’t love it after loving it more than anything since 4. I felt like you do. I regret it still 27 years later and I was able to walk on to d3 program and have one last season… but at the time that’s how I felt. You just need to ask yourself if going to practice which you dread is worth, maybe, not having regrets.
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u/emptysignals 2d ago
Don’t quit.
What’s the injury?
Put absolutely no pressure on yourself. Do other sports this fall. Lift. Get big.
Go into the spring thinking fun only. Play another position. Try outfield Have fun. Give it your all.
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u/ForwardProgressWI 2d ago
Play summer ball and transition into softball. Umpire. Coach. No reason to remove yourself from the game completely. We all become just a fan at some point!
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u/TakingtheLin2020 2d ago
You don’t like practice, and it sounds like you don’t have the passion for it anymore…it’s perfectly ok to move on! You’re young, please go experience all the different things you can spend your time on. Organized youth sports is insanely forcing kids specialize, and act like their one sport is a job. It’s a game. You have the rest of your life to be an adult and do the job thing.
If you’re not having fun, and want to have fun doing other things, please do it! Life is about making choices, with uncertain outcomes. Of course someday you might wonder, “maybe I should have stuck with it a little longer”. You could say that about any decision, the grass is always greener with that kind of thinking. That’s more a deficiency in not trusting your intuition. Learn to live life in the present, not the past, it doesn’t serve anyone. Good luck, go with your gut, trust your decision and don’t look back!
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u/IKillZombies4Cash 1d ago
Its OK - ton's of kids leave the game in HS because bench time goes way up - get grades, have fun, and realize than in 23 months 95%+ of players are done.
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u/SnooRegrets9521 1d ago
Buddy this isn’t making you happy. You can come back to it later if compelled. For now go enjoy those hobbies!
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u/Comprehensive-Case47 1d ago
He can't play all the games. Stick with it, try travel ball, keep working on ur craft, A lot of schools needs catchers. Nothing wrong with backup. You will get ur chance, as long as you keep developing. It won't be ignored.
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u/Warm-Championship-15 1d ago
Is it baseball that you dread or the team that you are on? You sound like you are reluctant to give up baseball so I suspect that it could be the team. You might want to look into club baseball or American Legion. American Legion seems to have had a resurgence in popularity.
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u/Few_Aside5151 18h ago
Do all your friends play baseball? It might be jarring having a bunch of time on your hands and nothing to do. You sound like a busy /active person, so think about what you would do with your time.
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u/goucho2521 17h ago
No matter what, finish strong and play somewhere, anywhere in college. Seriously, catchers are needed everywhere. Advice, transfer to another school or make the best of it and prepare for another opportunity in college. He's D1, you might be juco... Both paths are rewarding.
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u/IAMShadowKorr 12h ago
Dreading practice and never thinking about the sport otherwise is the answer right there. you already love the memory, that's enough
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u/Used_Pangolin7889 11h ago
Lots of what ifs. What if the starter suffers an injury? What if you worked on playing another position this off season? f you can hit, the coach will find a spot in the line-up for you.
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u/databaseball 3h ago
I was in a similar boat. Got injured my junior year and played most of the year hurt. Going into senior year, I was going to fight for a chance at a spot, while still recovering from injury. I had a coach say “do what you love and you’ll never work a day in your life” but ultimately, practice and games started to feel like a chore/job. I ended up stepping away from playing and helped out as a volunteer coach for a few years and got involved in slow pitch softball. Went through moments of regret, especially when the starter ended up going down with a knee injury, but looking back it was the right decision. Trust your gut, although it may be tough. As others have said, there’s always other opportunities.
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u/Emotional-Swing-5483 2d ago
Quit already. You don't like it. You aren't going pro. You are wasting time. It has to either be fun or lead to something such that the sacrifice is worth it. You aren't even close - quit.
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u/Key-Improvement-337 2d ago edited 2d ago
If you dread practice and aren’t getting joy out of it it’s okay to walk away. I’d follow your gut, trust yourself to make the right decision for you and you probably will.
Good luck with this situation it’s a tough one