My son Thomas made the high school baseball team this week.
He’s a ninth-grader, but for sports purposes, he
and all Lawrence ninth-grader are eligible to play high school sports.
He was placed on the C team, which is made up of freshmen and
sophomores, and two rungs behind varsity baseball.

Playing a high school sport is expensive. In the past, all the school
district gives the program is about $1,500 a year. As the coach
explains, that doesn’t even cover the cost of baseballs for a season.

When you make the baseball team, as we learned from our oldest son
Eric playing four years of high school ball, you have to pay $99
for two caps and practice jersey. Each player also has to pay the
district a $50 pay-to-play participation fee.

We’re at $149 just for making the team.

Each player is responsible for their own equipment, including bat,
glove, equipment bag, batting gloves, cleats, turf shoes and socks. My
husband found Thomas a bat on eBay for $99 before the beginning of the
fall season. He bought this discounted bat because we weren’t sure
Thomas was going to make the team and we didn’t want to spend up to
$400 for a new bat. Also, the bat is good for only one season because
high school rules abolish the use of certain metal bats after this
season. So by next year every player across the state, and the
country, will be buying new bats. It’s a a good business to be in.

Thomas also needed new cleats and turf shoes (baseball shoes for
indoor workouts and conditioning). We got a 15-percent off coupon at
Dicks and bought Thomas lower-end spikes and turf shoes and a pair of
batting gloves. The final cost was $120. Cleats alone could cost that
much, so I think we got a good deal, especially after the coupon.

We’re up to $368, and this is for a C team.

Thomas still needed socks and a bat bag, which after years of use had
split down the side and was dropping balls and other equipment when he
picked it up. My husband suggested duct tape to fix it. Thomas wasn’t
amused. We went to Francis Sporting Goods, where they were selling
socks buy three get one free. And the bat bag was $50. The clerk gave
us 10 percent off the bag. This bill was $62.

We’re up to $430.

There was one last item on the list: a baseball glove. My husband
promised Eric when he made the high school baseball team four years
ago that he could pick out his own glove as a reward. We had
connections then through a friend to Rawlings. Eric was able to get a
top-of-the line Pro Preferred glove for $250, a $50 discount over
retail. The glove lasted him all four years.

After making the team this week, Thomas was counting on the same deal,
make the team, get a glove. He reported that he did need a glove, that
the materials inside the glove he’s been using were falling apart, and they are. We no
longer have the Rawlings connection, so we were on our own. Thomas
spent a lot of time online looking at what was available. He had it
down to a Wilson A2000 for $199 and a Rawlings Pro Preferred for $299.
While at Francis, however, he fell in love with a Nokona infielder’s
glove. It cost $175. A deal, my husband thought. The tough decision
was made. With tax, the glove cost $192.

So our total for outfitting one high school C team player for a 20-
game season is $622. Eric plays college baseball at a junior college
in suburban Chicago. College players get a lot of discounts and most
equipment is covered by the school. Our cost for his 60-game season
will be about $200.

The high school season ends in May and summer baseball starts in June.
The paperwork came home this week informing parents that the fee for the summer season is
$450.