Hounds Baseball FAQs

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Please read this in its entirety before contacting Hounds Staff.

 

When will I find out if my child made the team?
If your child made the team, please expect to hear back within 1 week. If you do not hear from us within a week of your tryout, your child is either on a wait list or we do not have a roster spot available at this time.

 

Does my player need to attend all tryout dates?
Your player only needs to attend one tryout. Each player is welcomed to attend more tryouts, if you would like.

How will I be notified?
An email will be sent within 1 week of the tryout, along with a contract that will need to be signed within 48 hours of receiving the email. Along with the contract, there would be a $550 non-refundable deposit due immediately. This will be done by credit card and turned in with the contract. Remaining payments can be made by credit card, cash, or check made to Hounds Baseball.

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How much does the season cost?
9U - $2750

10U – 18U - $3300
Pitcher Only - $2000

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IS there a payment plan for the season?

A non-refundable payment by credit card of $550 is due with the contract within 48 hours of being notified. Payments can then be made by check, cash, or credit card by the following dates:

 

October 1 $550
November 1 $550
December 1 $550
January 1 $550
February 1 $550

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Other arrangements can be made by request.

What is included in this fee?

The bulk of the fees goes toward indoor facilities, coaching staff, and tournaments. Additional fees included, but not limited to, are league dues, exhibition games, field usage, umpires, insurance, small group catcher sessions, etc.
 
Also included in your fee are uniforms (molded cleats, helmet, hat, full uniform). Bat bags are NOT included, but available for purchase.

Hitting / Pitching Lessons

Private hitting and pitching lessons are not included in the player fee. Our coaching staff is filled with professionals who are available throughout the year for private instruction. Each coach sets their own rates. You can find coaches information on our website or contact Sean Osborne for more details.

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Semi-private pitching lessons are included and there will be signups for the entire organization in the winter.

Who will be my player's coach?
Most of the teams have a paid professional head coach. As we progress as an organization, we have found that some of the teams may be better suited to have a parent coach. If your sons team does have a parent coach, this coach will be interviewed and have an extensive baseball background. The age group will also have a director in place who will oversee practices and games at his discretion. In the winter training months there will be paid professional instructors at each practice. Coaches will be announced once rosters are finalized and tryouts completed.

How many teams are at each age level?
The following is subject to change:

9U – 1 team

10U – 1 team

11U – 2 team

12U – 2 teams

13U – 2 teams

14U – 3 teams

15U – 3 teams

16U – 2 teams

17U – 2 teams

18U – 1 team

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How and when are teams split?

Teams are split based off the coaching staff’s discretion and who will fit best where. There are no guarantees as to which team or which coach your child is placed with.
 

Teams will be split sometime in January. Age groups will practice together all winter up until the beginning or middle of April.

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What level will the teams be playing at? i.e AAA, AA, Gold, Silver, etc.

This will be determined after teams are split. Each Hounds team will play at the highest possible level. Our focus is to build better ball players and better teams, so we will place each team accordingly.

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If I have multiple players in the organization, do I receive a discount?

The sibling discount for the 2024 season will be $200 off the additional registration(s).

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Where does winter training take place?
The Home of the Hounds is the Willowbrook Burr Ridge Sport Performance Center, located at 7850 S Quincy St in Willowbrook. We also utilize the Quarry Fieldhouse in Romeoville as well as a few other winter locations.

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What if my child plays other sports?

We encourage multi-sport athletes. If your child must miss winter training sessions due to other sports, that is not a problem and the staff does not have to be notified. We do expect your child to commit to the Hounds organization during the baseball season of April - July. If your child misses any games or practices during the season, due to another sport, this will impact their playing time.

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Can my son utilize the facility at any time?
The Hounds have 6 permanent cages in the facility. If any of these are not being utilized by an instructor or team, they are free to use. Schedules will be posted in the Hounds hitting room.
 

The rest of the facility is pay to use. However, there is an understanding with the facility and Hounds Baseball, that as long as we are professional and do not abuse our privileges, if there is a non-rented cage open in the facility, typically a Hounds player can use it free of charge.

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Is there position specific workouts? Strength, Speed and Agility?

The Hounds organization has a High School pitcher’s program that meets twice a week in the winter that leads to bullpens prior to the start of the season. We also have a catcher’s program that meets once a week throughout the winter and spans for 4 months. We will have functional movement training and strength With Coach Bill Miller for High School players. Speed and agility for 14 and younger will depend on budgets.

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Where is the home field?
There are multiple facilities we use based on the allocation and lotteries the park districts distribute. The following are all fields we have used in the past:
 

Oakbrook Park District

Pleasantdale Park District

Hassert Park (Lockport)

Burr Ridge Park District (Harvester)

Hillside

Lemont High School & Park District
 

Other facilities will most likely be utilized throughout the season.

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What does the typical season look like?

Youth ages 9U through 14U: Training starts in November/December and goes through March. Games start in April and all practices and games will be scheduled by the head coach or a team admin. Teams will play 35 – 55 games and compete in 3-7 tournaments, based on age and ability. Most teams will join the West Suburban Baseball League or a similar league. The organizational philosophy is to pick up a few exhibition games, but we would rather allocate field time to practice as a team, as this is how we learn and improve.

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15U through 18U: These teams will have 6-8 tournaments. Any additional practices and games during the season are based on the sole discretion of the head coach.

All Levels: Every team should be prepared to attend at least one out of town tournament. Based on ability and the coaching staff, there could be more out of town trips.

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Will we play on a fall ball team?

With most of our players being multi-sport athletes, Fall Baseball is not mandatory and it is not included in our program. If you are interested in fall baseball, the age group director may run a team(s) – If your age group director does not run a team, contact sjosborne4@gmail.com.
 

Our facility, Willowbrook Burr Ridge Sport Performance Center, usually has fall teams as well for ages 14 and younger. You can contact them directly.

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What kind of technology does the Hounds Baseball program utilize?

HitTrax – This program is used at the facility and is for entertainment purposes – it can be used if the cage is available.

Rapsodo – This technology tracks exit velocity and distances hit. Each High School player will have their own profile for recruiting purposes.

Blast Motion – Each High School player will receive a blast motion sensor. It is up to the parent to purchase the yearly subscription for their child if they want to utilize this technology.

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What about High School recruiting?

The Hounds are partnered with NCSA. Profiles for every High School player are free. Any other part of the NCSA program is paid for by you if you wish to utilize their services.

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We have an in-house production company (SG Productions) who can make high quality recruiting videos. This is an extra cost and details will be sent out during the season.

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We will have classroom sessions with our High School players to discuss what is expected of them and what they need to do in order to get to the next level.

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TWITTER – Coach Chris Vaculik is our director of recruiting. He has an extensive recruiting seminar as well as availability to discuss recruiting techniques at any time.