The youth sports scene is nothing like it was a few decades ago. In Excelsior Springs and other American communities, we’ve reached the point where kids playing sports yearround is the norm, not the exception. This summer, for example, high schoolers and middle schoolers in Excelsior Springs are already preparing for fall and even winter interscholastic sports. Many people are unhappy about this. They argue that kids have too much to do year-round. They support the saying, “Kids should be kids.” But there’s a truth those people must face: School programs and the kids who participate in them need to train year-round if they want to succeed. Any successful school athletic program offers yearround programs. If a school doesn’t incorporate offseason workouts into its program, then it will fall behind. As proof, consider two successful Excelsior Springs varsity sports programs – boys soccer and baseball. Each program boasts a ...