What's New for DREAM Team Baseball in 2024-2025?
1) DREAM Team is all about Player Development, we are taking Development to a whole new level with our Player Progress Cards (and Parent Reports)! We have rolled this out in the Spring, but it's only getting better; our goal is to send automated email reports to parents that show the progress the player is making on the field but also in the cages & during skills assessments (Events & Combines)! Development at this age should not be measured solely by what is outcome-based, it's based on the work they put in on Rapsodo, Pocket Radar, and other Skills Assessments hosted by DREAM! The overall goal is to give parents reporting on how their player has progressed in all areas of development!
2) DREAM Team provides Teams and Training! Both our Teams and our Training initiatives (baseball and softball exercises) will be expanded in 2024-2025. "There's no TEAM without TRAINING" and we added Training Track as a complimentary option for each DREAM Team player.
The Training App will open new doors for each player to take their overall fitness & athleticism to another level! Whether they're 7U or 14U, there will be exercises loaded into the app for them to do at home & help them watch videos at home to help them train not only their baseball muscles but also their mental muscle/IQ.
We will have Player Goals, a Player Leaderboard, a Player Journal, and we'll incorporate Player Rewards that they can unlock 🔓 in their Training Journey! This will show results for the players that put the time into the program, they will compete against their peers and teammates which will motivate them. For our younger ages, players will need parental permission and supervision. If the player has a wearable watch or device that has the Health app, it does integrate with our app platform to help keep them motivated in their progress! There will be a mixture of baseball exercises and fitness exercises that will challenge them while keeping it fun for them to master so they can get their name on the leaderboard! Below are just a few screen shots of this exciting program!
Plus, we will send special invites to our players to introduce them to Player Training Academy sessions!
New to DREAM Team in the Spring, Our Pitching Machines will continue in the Fall to help our hitters gain fastball swing timing, help them recognize curveball spin, and we'll use the machine for catcher blocking practice as well as fielding practice.
What's New for DREAM Team Baseball in 2024-2025?
2) There's a huge value to our instructional value (see Spring Savings Chart below); our organization DREAM Team believes in practice to improve player skills! Additionally, we are adding a FungoMan to our Field practices in the Fall:
One thing about DREAM Team cannot be denied, our players work and train hard because we believe that practice is where development happens.
In Spring 2024, DREAM Team practiced at least 2 times per week as a team plus our dedicated staff of coaches held:
- 2 Baseball Skills Combines
- 4 Baseball Instructional Workshops
- 7 Baseball Camps
- 10 Training Track Workshops
- Summer and Winter Level Up Training
- A total of up to 86 dedicated, pre-planned practices over the course of 6 months that included many Rapsodo sessions.
After seeing how this training (even going beyond team practices) has accelerated the development of our players, DREAM Team is going ALL IN on player development even more this Spring!
This helps our players focus more on their own player development goals and not just on team accomplishments because ultimately the most important aspect of DREAM Team is Player Development. We have firmly stayed true to our DREAM Team Motto: "DREAM Big. Work Hard. Team First."
This Fall, DREAM Team will hold more field practices than even what was planned in the Spring season to help players improve their fielding skills, fielding communication & defensive responsibilities, and also for them to increase their situational defense awareness.
This does mean that the monthly fee will increase (since Training Track is now built in and not an option) this season for some of our members coming out of Spring, but there is a greater value (value shown below in the graphic) built into these training sessions and things that other organizations would charge as extra fees that is well worth the investment. This season is a great testament to that as our Postseason Survey results show that the overwhelming majority of parents love seeing the accelerated development of their player; this is why DREAM Team has a stellar client retention rate when compared to other baseball organizations in the area. Our focus is in the right place: developing players!
What's New for DREAM Team Baseball in 2024-2025?
3) DREAM Team is adding to Staff Coaches in the Fall to help facilitate our Training Track and Skills Assessments and will utilize Rapsodo Technology!
Rapsodo Pitching Report 🔥
Rapsodo Hitting Report âš¾
What's New for DREAM Team Baseball in 2024-2025?
5) Charted Pitcher/Catcher Bullpens for Kid Pitch teams.
In the Spring, our DREAM Team pitchers and catchers (overseen by Coach Charlie Letourneau) have had individualized work built into their Team Practice, but we want to build in more time for specialized bullpen work so that pitchers and catchers can work together more in practice PRIOR to when they're in the game. Catchers can work on their technique and pre-pitch signs just like Pitchers who will work on their bullpen progressions so they can feel confident going into their next game or tournament.
Plus, we will work with pitchers and catchers outside of team practice so that we can have a laser focus on our bullpen sessions. We want to help each pitcher to identify their pitch types, be able to repeat (starting with a four seam fastball) their delivery successfully, be able to gauge the change in pitch speeds, and throw strikes in a pitch sequence called by the catcher (overseen by the coach). Our goal is to have a roving pitching instructor on staff with DREAM Team to help keep track of balls and strikes (incentivizing pitch command; glove side and arm side) during bullpens.
Additionally, pitch counts for pitchers and even catcher throwbacks will be kept in game. DREAM Team does pitch count our pitchers to ensure that they don't throw too many pitches as player safety is our biggest concern. During the era of youth travel baseball, some organizations do not have guidelines for pitch counts which is dangerous for young pitchers; conversely, DREAM Team takes arm care very seriously and will continue to keep a count on pitches thrown and workload.
What's New for DREAM Team Baseball in 2024-2025?
6) New uniform designs!! 🔥
For those that register for the year long season, we will be unveiling a full custom uniform that includes a custom jersey and pants! Check out the initial designs, we're excited to have a fresh new look in 2024!!
What is DREAM Team Baseball?
DREAM Team Baseball is about one thing, kids dreaming big! Kids watch & play the game of baseball & many dream of pitching a shut out, hitting a homer, or scoring the winning run...but there's something more to baseball in that it teaches kids incredible life lessons. Dreams can & do come true, BUT baseball teaches life lessons such as discipline, focus and teamwork. At DREAM Team Baseball, our goal is help provide quality instruction, constructive coaching, and outstanding practice facilities & fields to help kids achieve their dreams of growing in the game of baseball.
