The unexpected costs of my 11-year-old's baseball season caught me off guard. Receipts show that we spent around $8,800.

The author, shown with one of her sons, said that extras like fan gear, gas for away games, and concession snacks add a lot to the cost of youth sports. Courtesy of Alexandra Frost.

Ten years ago, I was the mom making fun of select sports parents . I thought they were crazy. Nuts. Over-spenders. People who didn't understand priorities, or budgeting, for that matter. Then I became one of them.

It didn't happen overnight, but gradually. My then-7-year-old son was asked to try out for a team. At the time, it seemed more competitive than the rec league he had been playing in, but not overly so. Practice times doubled. Costs also doubled. The following year, it happened again, and they doubled again. And now, I'm a mom of 5, with an 11-year-old who is obsessed with his select baseball team. Well, career.…