At any given time, but especially during the heart of the season, there are players (and parents) who are unhappy with either the amount of playing time they’re getting or the amount of playing time they’re getting at their preferred position.

I get that. You don’t sign up for a team and spend thousands of dollars on player fees, uniforms, equipment, travel expenses, and maybe even private lessons and personal training sessions just to get a closer seat to the action. You don’t spend all that time and effort working on the skills for one position only to never get the chance to try those skills out under actual game conditions.

Now, if you’re on a middle school or high school team you have two options: accept it or move. You can also entertain the option of complaining to the administration or school board but to be honest I’ve never seen that work personally, and have rarely heard about it working.

Your better bet is to find a good real estate agent and start packing.

If you’re in college you do have the option of transferring the old-fashioned way or entering the transfer portal. But just be aware if you opt for the latter of those two you could find yourself without a place to play next year.

If, however, you are playing travel ball you do have another option – you can sub for another team without giving up your place on your current team.

Subbing is a great way to test out the waters to see if you actually have the goods to play more/play a particular position more with essentially no risk (providing your current team doesn’t outright prohibit it).

What you want to do is look for a team at or below your current team’s skill level that is in desperate need of a couple more players in order to play in a tournament, round robin, or other situation. You don’t want to just be there for insurance in case someone gets hurt; you want to know they will actually need you on the field and at the plate.

If you’re looking to sub at a particular position – especially pitcher, catcher, or shortstop – be sure to look for those opportunities specifically. If you’re a pitcher looking for an opportunity to show her stuff, the last place you need to be is on a team that will already have four pitchers available that weekend and just needs a player or two in the outfield.

Basically, you want to look for an opportunity where the team you’re subbing for is forced to put you where you want to be. At which point it’s then up to you to perform.

One of the great things about subbing is that it takes some of the pressure off of you when you’re given your opportunity. Even under the best of circumstances, where your current coaches are rooting for you, you know that if you don’t perform it will probably hurt your future chances.

That adds a lot of pressure to the opportunities you are being given. It’s tough to perform well with a gun to your head.

And, of course, if your current coaches already don’t think much of you, any failure to perform will just reinforce their already low opinions of you.

If you’re subbing under the right circumstances, though, worst case is you find out your current coaches are right that you’re not ready, you get through the round robin or tournament as best you can, and you get back to work. That happens.

Best case is you get the opportunity to prove to yourself (as well as others) that you are, in fact, ready to play regularly and contribute and you build more confidence. Then, if you’re given an opportunity on your own team you can approach it with a “watch this!” attitude.

And if you still don’t get the opportunities with your current team, you can start making plans for next year knowing that someone will want to take advantage of what you now have to offer.

Think of it like a software app. Many paid apps offer a 14-day or 30-day free trial before you’re actually required to pay for it. This trial period gives you a chance to see how the software works and if it does the job you want it to do.

Subbing is your free trial. If it works out great!

If it doesn’t work out you’ve learned something about yourself and can keep working to put yourself into the position you want to be in – literally as well as figuratively.

There are plenty of places to learn about subbing opportunities – friends, former teammates, co-workers, Facebook groups, etc. Keep your eyes and ears open and when your schedules align do your best to take advantage of them.

It just might be the situation that launches your playing career in a new direction. Not to mention being a lot of fun.