Buffalo Grove residents and all neighboring communities are eligible to try out for the BGRA Full-time Travel Baseball Program.  The BGRA will have final approval of all players. Players playing on our Full Time Travel Teams will not be eligible to play in our house league program. 

This is a full-time travel baseball club and all those who make a team should plan to be at all practices and games unless they have legitimate reasons why they cannot attend.

Full-time Travel Program Overview:

• The season will start with 15 indoor training sessions over a 10 week period, starting on or about January 8th and ending on or about March 19th.
• Practices will continue prior to and during the season weather and time permitting. Once league play has started we commit to at least an average of three touches (weather permitting) per week. A touch = Game, A Practice or A Hitting Session. 
• The season (including tournaments) will conclude in mid/late July.  We expect any player who makes the team, to be fully committed and make it their priority. 
• Teams will be entered into the LSFBL (lsfbl.com) or similar league as its primary league.
• Each team will be managed by either a paid coach, or a parent coach that has been vetted by our organization.
  1. Paid Coaches – We have paid, non-parent coaches as an option for the majority of our teams. Most of our coaches have been with us for over 5 years and are committed to teaching your kids the right way to play the game of baseball.
  2. Parent Coaches – Some of our teams have parent coaches that have also been with us for several years. They too are committed to teaching baseball the right way.
  3. In either case, you have the option to ask for a paid coach only, parent coach only, or any of the above. In any case, if we do not have what you are asking for, and your player makes a team, we will still ask you if you’d like the spot. Telling us you want one over the other will not affect what spot we offer you. You may always decline a spot and ask for a lower-level team if that option exists at your age-level.
• Full uniforms include two game jerseys, one practice T, two hats, two pairs of pants, Pullover or Hoodie, Two Pairs of Socks, Belt.
• The fee will be available for view when you register for tryouts. Fees per team will not go up more than $100 from last year’s fee. In addition to what we offer above your fee will include: Three to four tournaments (depending upon price of each tournament) inclusive of our local Buffalo Grove Dalton Hinkle Memorial Slugfest played over Memorial Day Weekend. There are approximately 14 to 20 league games (dependent upon age) plus a league end tournament.
   
   

Tournaments – BGRA has limited funds set aside for each team to use to pay for, or go towards, extra tournaments.  We feel that outside of the couple of tournaments we mandate it is important for each team, as a team, to decide on and go to two or three additional tournaments.  It helps with camaraderie, team chemistry, parent bonding and frankly they are fun. With that in mind, we do not feel it is necessary, nor do we want to dictate to each team where they should go, how much they should spend, how long they should go for, etc.  Rather, we give guidance at each age group and level as to what we think is appropriate as well as what tournaments might be good for each specific scenario but expect that each team ultimately make those decisions as a team.  Therefore, when your child makes a team it is important that you go into the season with the knowledge that the club fees are not the full extent of your commitment, and understanding that these extra tournaments are the norm in the world of travel baseball.

Dalton Hinkle Memorial Day Tournament – All Bearcat teams will play in our home tournament that takes place starting the Thursday prior to Memorial Day and ends with Championship games on Memorial Day.  Each team will be asked for all parent involvement to work for up to 2 1/4 hours each in the concession stand, Emmerich complex parking lot Marshall, or at a field as a Field Marshall. You may Opt out of this for $150 (Per Player). If you do not Opt out, please expect to help during this weekend. If you are going to be out of town, it is up to you to find someone to fulfill your obligation.

12U Cooperstown – In addition to above it is important to note that our U12 teams may have the opportunity to go to Cooperstown.   Cooperstown only has 12U tournaments.  The all-in cost of Cooperstown is typically somewhere between $4,000 and $6,000 per family of four.  Fundraising is certainly an option and can be discussed at that time.  We encourage our U12 teams to consider it a viable option. U12 teams should be prepared for at least a discussion on this subject and the possibility that you will be going to Cooperstown or another 5-day to week-long tournament.

There are two days of tryouts per age-group.  Players who were in our Bearcat program in 2025 must only come to one of the tryout dates.  New players to our program should also please come to one of the two dates/times provided for your age-group. If you would like to come to both, we will not discourage you. However, please know that coming to only one will give our veteran team plenty of data to make a solid decision. Please do not ask me or our coaches for guidance in this area. We are telling you what you need to know right now, one tryout is enough.

We would like all players to try out with their own grade regardless of their birthdates, with few exceptions approved by BGRA prior to tryouts.  This said, if it is best for the club and the player to move either up or down, we can & will address the situation during or shortly after tryouts.

The number of teams we have at each age group will be based on the size, talent and competitive nature of the different age groups.  Teams will be comprised of anywhere between 11-12 players per team (Some U14 teams may have 13 or 14 players, but that’s not the norm).  Players will be called and offered spots as early as the night after our first tryouts but more than likely sometime after the second tryout of the age-group.  Each player will have 24 hours to commit to your team from the time you are notified. 

At the time you commit, or shortly thereafter, you will be required to pay a $500 non-refundable deposit towards the 2026 club fees. Payment options for the remaining balance will be provided to you at that time as well.

Please read carefully (early offers) – This is our fourth year where will be offering some players spots on teams prior to tryouts being over, as well as creating 2027 teams while 2026 teams are not finished playing. We absolutely hate this, but unfortunately it is necessary for us to survive in the current baseball landscape in our area. I only ask that everyone please be respectful to other parents and players, our coaches and our staff during this time. We will not answer any questions during this time pertaining to tryouts.

Can’t make any of our tryout dates/times – For good reasons, we can allow players to possibly come to a different tryout or come to a private tryout. Please contact Russ Goldstein at travel@bgrabaseball.org or (847) 840-3199 ASAP if you are in this boat.

Things to know for Tryouts:

• Please tryout with your own grade that you are going into in 2026. If you feel like an exception should be considered, please contact Russ Goldstein at travel@bgrabaseball.org or (847) 840-3199.
• Please wear baseball attire to all tryouts. Hat, Baseball pants, jersey (preferably with a name on the back of you have it), cleats. No short, no jeans, etc.
• Please bring all the gear you have. We do not expect anyone to go out and buy something but at a minimum you must have a cup, bat, helmet, glove. If you have more than that, bring it. Please do not bring sliding Mitts.
• Parents ARE NOT allowed at tryouts. This includes anywhere you can see the players from, a park, a parking lot, the street, a rooftop, bushes, etc. Medical exceptions will be made, if needed. If this is the case, please contact Russ Goldstein at travel@bgrabaseball.org or (847) 840-3199 at least one day prior to tryouts to request.
• Please bring the players to and pick up from tryouts at the designated times. In general, we’d always ask you to arrive early to practices and games, but in this case we are on such a strict timeline we please just want you to be on time, not early. We will not start late, and we will not end early unless we let you know ahead of time. The only exception will be due to bad weather.
• If we get bad weather, or think we might ahead of time, please keep your email handy. This is how we will communicate to you during this time if it comes up. If we have to cancel a tryout early or completely, we will find a day/time to make it up most likely 7/11 or 7/12.
• If your child has a medical issue, please let us know prior to the tryout.

Please tell the kids to have fun and try hard. The chips will fall where they fall, so added pressure may not hurt them, but it’s not going to help.

If you have any questions please contact Russ Goldstein at travel@bgrabaseball.org