The Forest Lake Baseball Association is the traveling baseball group that operates under the umbrella of the Forest Lake Athletic Association. FLAA is a non profit organization made up of volunteers serving the Forest Lake area with many athletic opportunities for our youth.
For more information about FLAAA please visit www.flaaa.org
Who is Traveling Baseball for? Traveling baseball in Forest Lake is for youth age 10-18 who are looking to play more competitive baseball than is offered through a community recreational program. Players try out and Teams are formed by age/grade groups and compete with other teams in the metro area.
Before signing up to tryout for the traveling baseball program, please be aware that this is a very important that you will be available for the time commitment that is required to participate in the program. Typically teams will practice 3 days a week, play about 16 league games in 8 weeks and participate in 3-5 weekend tournaments which may include 1 out of town weekend tournament during April-July. It is the philosophy of the FLBA to provide a traveling baseball program that emphasizes on fun, development of sound baseball skills and healthy competition.
At the younger ages, the emphasis will be on development of sound baseball skills, moving toward a more competitive program at the older ages. Ages 10 and 11 are considered “Developmental”, ages 12-14 “Transitional” and ages 15-18 “Competitive”. Please be aware that baseball MUST take the top priority if you are involved in any other sport during the Baseball season.
Some guidelines for each group are as follows:
Developmental (ages 10-11)
- Stress sound baseball skill development over competition- Coaches will attempt to get players a minimum of 3 innings of play in every league game - Coaches will attempt to give players exposure to both infield and outfield positions in game situations (not necessarily in every game) -
There will be more emphasis on practice and less focus on games and tournaments Transitional (ages 12-13) - Focus on skill development with increasing competition each year from 12 to 14. - Coaches will attempt to get players a minimum of 2 innings of play in every league game - Players should be given opportunities to play many positions, especially early in the year, with increasing position specialization each year from 12 to 14.
- Game and tournament focus increasing from 12 to 14 but practices should still play a MAJOR role in overall season activities Competitive (ages 14-18) - Players earn the right to get playing time - No playing time is guaranteed - Skill development focused on primary position(s) - Finer points and refined skills taught in practices. Practices are still critical to player and team development! FLBA feels that we need to place our athletes on teams in which they will succeed. We do not want them overmatched and therefore not enjoy the game. Having individuals turn away from our sport is our greatest fear! The number of teams for a particular age group will not be known until after tryouts have been completed and shall be at the discretion of the FLBA Board.
The Board will consider at a minimum, the number of athletes trying out, the overall tryout scores and the betterment of the association as a whole. We will do our best to keep moving in the right direction.
