FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Every now and then a new tournament organization markets their program by knocking others rather than promoting their own. Currently we have a "new" organization out west slandering our name and other organizations as well so I would like to use this page to answer a few questions. Their approach is standard marketing 101 when you are trying to sell an inferior product bash your competition. We usually take the high road but I think time has come to answer some of the garbage being put out their by our competition.
Q: How long has AAYBA been running World Series?
A: We have been running World Series events since 1989 . There are only a few World Series that have been around for over 10 years. These organizations have a history, and you know what to expect from them. New organizations that are credible, won't knock their competition. They have been around baseball long enough to know that you stand on your own merits, letting their events speak for themselves. Those that run a quality event will stand the test of time.
Q: Some of your competition says that you aren't a World Series at all since teams don't need to "qualify" to participate. In fact they say that you are just a big "overpriced" tournament. Your response?
A: Regarding Fees: Over the years we have had several stones tossed our way - never has it been about fees. One competitor in one breath is calling us the most expensive World Series in the country and in the next breath saying that we aren't a World Series at all. When comparing price be sure to compare "apples to apples". We don't claim to be the cheapest (but with the use of our discounts, we might just be), neither are we the most expensive. We offer many, many discount promotions so our fee really depends on your tournament location ( Texas , Missouri , Colorado , or Illinois ), when you enter, if you have played previously with AAYBA, etc .
When comparing fees be sure to consider that we give all teams SIX to EIGHTgames and you don't need to "qualify" to participate. So if you are looking at a World Series where qualifying is required to get to their World Series (most of which will give you 4-5 games), be sure to include the cost of the events you were "REQUIRED" to participate in before being "ALLOWED" into their World Series.
Q: No need to qualify?
A: Regarding Qualifying : We accept all teams of all playing abilities and to participate in any of our World Series events you do not have to "Pre-Qualify" as we "qualify our teams on the field in round one of World Series play. After round one, based on the results on the field" (can there be a fairer way?), we drop teams into 3-5 different levels of play and crown a champion in each level. So yes, we qualify teams we just don't "pre-qualify" teams at the going rate of $300-$500 per weekend. To be blunt 99% of the "qualifiers" out there are nothing more than another place to take your money and are a 100% political sham. The existing ranking systems feed off of the egos of many managers and has zero to do with your true ranking ... Think about this, XYZ tournament takes the top four in their event and "qualifies them for their Nationals/World Series event. In the subsequent weeks these same four teams finish on top in the event that week but are already "qualified" so what do our competitors do? They pick the next four, and if they don't except the bid, they go to the next four. By the time the season is full swing, everybody with a heartbeat and is breathing has now "qualified". Some of our competitors "require" you to play in their State Tournament even if you have previously "qualified for their World Series. You can attend state and finish last place but you must attend or you will not be allowed to use your "Qualified" bid to the Nationals. If that isn't a money grab I don't know what is. So which way is a truer qualifying method ... us, or our competition? All we do is skip the "pre-qualifying" process and in turn save you money. Sign up for one of our World Series events and then play only in the weekend events throughout the summer that you really "want" to participate in and not because you are "required" to in order to get to your world series of choice. Our "Open World Series" is not designed to skip the "qualifying" process, we just don't buy into the existing "qualifying" method. Since it is impossible for every team in the event to play an equal schedule, we felt it was much more prudent to "qualify" our teams on-site, on the field. By using our method teams can schedule well in advance which allows parents to obtain vacation dates, shop and obtain better airfare rates, etc.
