Travel-Baseball.org
Taking your player to the next level

Travel Baseball Tournament Organizers and Tournaments in South Carolina

USSSA Baseball South Carolina
Learn about the USSSA tournaments going on in SC.

Youth Baseball Nationals - Myrtle Beach, SC
Week long National tournament. Check it out.


Articles For Those New to Travel Baseball

What is Travel Baseball?
Clarkstown Baseball Association provides a cut and dry overview of what travel or elite baseball is and the differences between it and "Recreational" baseball.

Choosing a Youth Travel Baseball Team
This is a great introductory article for those new to the travel baseball scene that can help you narrow down what you are looking for.

Picking the Right Travel Baseball Team
By John Pinkman
Taking a look at Coaches, Mission, costs, size of team and much more.

Overuse Injuries in Youth Baseball
Pitchers aren't the only ones with overuse injuries in baseball. Check out the latest data and prevention tactics.

Pros and Cons of Parent Coaches and Being One Yourself
Parent coaches in travel baseball, good thing or bad thing? Is it a good fit for you?

Youth Sports: Maintaining Reasonable Expectations
What are the chances your kid will play college baseball or softball? Professional baseball or softball? You should read this article.

Where the Elite Kids Shouldn't Meet
By Tim Keown, ESPN Writer
A raw and honest look into Travel / Elite Baseball


Sites, Organizations and Articles We Like

American Legion Baseball
Teams from 50 states, Puerto Rico and Canada. Regional tournaments, State tournaments and a World Series make this one of the most popular baseball organizations around.

Dixie Youth Baseball
They play great baseball and players have an opportunity to play in tournaments and a league World Series. Find a team or start a franchise.

Babe Ruth League Youth Baseball
Great organization and great baseball. This is another option for youth baseball players to continue developing their skills. Start or find a charter here.

Travel Ball Select
Travel Ball News, Forums, Scores, Travel Ball TV and other cool stuff.

Game Changer
Sign your team up, keep stats during the game, track other teams. It's great!


Little League News

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College Baseball News

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MLB News and Rumors from Yard Barker

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pitcher in travel baseball
travel baseball baserunner

Travel Baseball Teams in South Carolina

MLB Players from South Carolina

South Carolina may not be as big a baseball state as its neighbor to the north, but it has produced plenty of big leaguers. There are 17 MLB players who were born in South Carolina. Among them are Chris Owings, Justin Smoak, Matt Wieters, Jared Burton, and Heath Hembree.

Chris Owings

Chris Owings was born in Charleston in 1991. He played in Little League as a child, but notes that he wasn't especially serious about baseball until he made the varsity team at Gilbert High School as a freshman -- that's the sort of thing that can be exciting to a kid. Owings also had the excitement of winning two high school state championships.

Owings exhibited his skills with Perfect Game when he was in his late teens (http://www.perfectgame.org/players/playerprofile.aspx?ID=78682). His 2008 travel team was the Diamond Devils.

Owings was selected in the 1st round of the 2009 draft. He progressed from Missoula to AAA Reno and made his major league debut in 2013 at age 22.

Justin Smoak

Justin Smoak was born in Goose Creek in 1986. As a youth, he was involved in Little League (http://mynorthwest.com/374/480283/Smoak-Wieters-are-a-long-way-from-Little-League). During his time at Stratford High School, his awards were numerous. In 2005, several organizations selected him as a high school All-American and he was named 'Co- Mr. Baseball' for the state of South Carolina.

He continued to be a standout player at the University of South Carolina. He was also on a collegiate summer league team, the Cotuit Kettleers.

Smoak was selected in the first round of the 2008 draft. (Fresh out of high school three years earlier, he had turned down a 16th round pick.) He spent some time playing for the Clinton Lumberkings and Frisco Rough Riders. His big league debut came in 2010 when he was 23.

Matt Wieters

Matt Wieters was also born in 1986 in Goose Creek. He was half a year older than Smoak and a year ahead in school.

Before there was the opportunity to play for the MLB, there was Little League and Dixie League. Wieters was known as a skilled player in both leagues – as Smoak remembers. Wieters’ and Smoak’s paths crossed at multiple points. At one point, they were both playing together on the team at Stratford High School.

Wieters later played baseball at Georgia Institute of Technology. He was first team All-American. After his junior year, the Orioles came knocking. Wieters was selected in the first round of the 2007 draft. The Frederick Keys and Bowie Baysox were among his minor league teams. He also spent some time playing for the Surprise Rafters in the fall league. His major league debut came in 2009 when he was 23.

Learning from the Pros

It’s a long road even for the most talented. Smoak says that he and Wieters set goals of playing on Division I teams when they were teens, but didn’t plan as far as the majors because that would take so much good fortune (http://mynorthwest.com/374/480283/Smoak-Wieters-are-a-long-way-from-Little-League).

Plenty of kids do dream. They may enjoy building skills, participating on teams, and collecting trophies – even if they don’t make it as far as Smoak, Wieters, and Owings.

As a minor leaguer, Chris Owings told how blessed he felt to be able to play a game for a living (http://kingsriverlife.com/06/23/interview-with-visalia-rawhide-baseball-player-chris-owings/). He also noted that the way he got there was hard work -- and that it would take more hard work to reach the next level. "A lot of it is just being patient, he said, "You are going to have days…weeks where you will inevitably struggle. You just have to keep going and try to forget about all of the obstacles and move on to the next at-bat."

Travel Baseball Teams in South Carolina

Teams are coming soon!

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