Tryout season has a smell. Fresh-cut grass, cheap coffee, and a hint of panic. I’ve watched my sons go through more baseball tryouts than I can count, rec, travel, school ball, the whole circuit. And no matter the age or field or stakes, the same pressure-driven mistakes show up like clockwork.

Kids don’t melt down because they’re “not good enough.” They melt down because the tryout environment flips every mental switch the wrong way. You can prep all winter with Driveline drills, follow Pitch Smart guidelines like a religion, get reps with legit MLB development coaches, and still let nerves wreck the simplest things.

Here are the mistakes I see over and over, including a few my own kids have absolutely mastered despite my best speeches in the car. Before I jump in, let me tell you it doesn't matter what I told my son. He thought I only told him positive things because I was his dad. My ideas were dumb because I was his dad. I got him a book; he actually listened to it.

1. They try to look impressive instead of looking repetitive.

I swear, nothing changes a kid faster than the word tryout. Suddenly, every swing becomes a moonshot audition for a contract they’re never getting. The problem? Coaches don’t want impressive. They want predictable. Clean mechanics. Balanced finish. Barrel control. The stuff nerves quietly murder.

When a kid sells out to “wow” people, the swing falls apart. It's like their body forgets it already know how to play baseball.

2. They rush. Every. Single. Thing.

Pressure makes the feet quick and the brain quicker. Fielding? Too fast. Throws? Fired before the arm is ready. Hitting? Front foot flies open because the mind is five pitches ahead. The irony: slowing down looks more confident.

The players who stand out don’t look panicked. They look like they’ve been here before, even if they haven't.

3. They stare at other kids and instantly freak out.

One kid throws 80, and suddenly six others “forget” how to play shortstop. Comparison is like a virus at tryouts. My sons will deny this, but I’ve seen that sideways glance a thousand times. The shoulder slump after watching a bigger kid take BP is almost scientific.

Here’s the truth: evaluators don’t compare you play-for-play. They look for whether you execute what you can do.

4. They think errors are fatal. They’re not. The reaction is.

A bobbled grounder isn't the killer. The body language afterward is. I’ve seen MLB development guys write notes after mistakes, not because of the error, but because the kid mentally imploded.

Pouting. Swearing. Head drops. That stuff screams uncoachable louder than any muffed play.

Resetting quickly is the move. Tap the cleats. Brush the dirt. Breathe. Then move on. Coaches love that.

5. They forget to breathe. Literally forget.

Breathing turns into this weird half-gasp, half-shallow pant. You can almost see the oxygen leaving the building. And when breathing goes, mechanics get tight.

You don’t need meditation music. Just one long exhale before each rep. My sons roll their eyes at this advice, then use it anyway.

6. They overcomplicate their thinking.

Kids go into tryouts with a whole encyclopedia of swing thoughts. Nothing ruins a player faster. Under pressure, the brain can hold maybe one thing. Two if you’re a Jedi.

The best cue is simple:

“Smooth.”

Or, “See it.”

That’s it.

Driveline can break down biomechanics all day, but on tryout day, minimal wins.

7. They don't warm up enough because they’re nervous and don’t want to look awkward.

This one drives me nuts. Kids do a half-hearted stretch, throw eight times, and call it good. Meanwhile, their arm is begging for one more minute to wake up.

I’ve watched kids tank their entire tryout because they were too anxious to get a decent warm-up in. A tryout is not the place to be timid about taking space.

8. They try brand-new things they learned on YouTube last night.

Baseball players are master tinkerers. Pressure makes that worse. Suddenly, they’re experimenting with a brand-new swing path, fresh grip, funky leg kick.

Tryouts are not the lab.

Tryouts are the performance.

Stick to what’s trained. MLB development guys can smell “just learned this yesterday” mechanics from across the field.

9. They hide their personality and come off stiff.

Coaches don’t want robots. They want kids who look like they actually enjoy baseball. This doesn’t mean screaming “LET’S GO” like a caffeinated dugout gremlin. Just… be a human. Smile. Nod. Compete.

When my sons let their natural vibe show, quiet confidence, tiny smirk, whatever, it’s like their whole game unlocks.

10. They don’t realize coaches watch the in-between moments.

Water breaks. Jogging to stations. Picking up baseballs. These little moments reveal everything nerves try to hide.

Effort. Attitude. Composure.

Coaches see it all.

One of my sons got praised once, not for his hitting, but for how he encouraged a kid who was struggling. I didn’t even see it happen. The coach did.

Pressure reveals character faster than ability.

The part I wish every kid understood

Most tryout pressure isn’t real. It’s imagined. Fabricated. A monster under the bed with a wiffle ball bat. Coaches already know mistakes happen. They expect nervousness. They expect uneven reps.

The kids who separate themselves aren’t fearless; they’re the ones who stay functional while nervous.

Every tryout my sons survived, and a few they didn’t, taught me this:

Being good at baseball helps.

Handling pressure helps more.