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I concur with Midlos advice. Play on the best team you can where you get playing time. Play on college campuses where the coaches are watching.  If your son is very good, national teams will make inquiries about joining them, but you may not play.  Unless your son is an incredible hitter with some good tools, pitching might be a better option for a scholarship. Your sons travel coach should also help them in the recruiting and mlb experience.

FYI, interesting things taking place, some of these coaches are so good at identifying top talent, they are being hired as scouts for college programs and if they have degrees being offered college coaching positions. This gives the programs an edge on recruiting. 

Your best source to get known is a travel coach who has connections. It worked 10 years ago and still to this day.

baseballhs posted:

I think we are saying the same thing.  Yes, if they are looking at a specific kid they will probably go to the satellite locations, but Lake Pointe is the only spot where they can walk around and see several teams at once.  I for sure saw more coaches there during the WWBA than I did at satellites. 

Baseballhs, I'm in Texas with a 2020 also and had this dilema this past summer. Local team played V-tool events. Been on the team for 3+ years, friends, comfortable, etc.  V-tool has a good texas circuit, but hit and miss for exposure in pool games. 

We took this tac. Son is a pitcher and position player.  Good pitchers are in high demand for the WWBA and other big PG tournaments. Consider being a PO on a top team. Reach out w some video, bio to some of the teams. PM me for more details. 

adbono posted:
RJM posted:
roothog66 posted:

The top program coaches get calls like this: "Coach, I need an outfielder in the 2019 class. Whattaya got?" 

It actually happens almost exactly like this.

Top travel coaches also make calls like this: Mr. College Coach. I have a kid who wants to play there I believe is an ideal fit. You have to see him play when you're at XYZ tournament.

Even better is when the travel coach is a buddy and/or been feeding the college program for years.

Some of them make calls like that - but not all of them.  They (travel coaches) all say they have the contacts to make that call.  But the truth is that some do and most don't. You have to figure out who does - and that's where you go.

You look at team placement history and ask questions. 

roothog66 posted:

Yes, yes, and...oh, hell yes. You will be surprised at how much the word of a well-respected, credible, power travel team coach can have. My son played summers for a team that was good, but not one of the powerhouse organizations. However, they were a top 25-type team. The HC had a reputation for being brutally honest with college recruiters. My son had an offer from a Power 5 school based on nothing more than his coach's word that he was the real deal and had been throwing 2-3 mph above what had been recently verified. They never even saw my son play, but the RC told us that everything our HC had ever said about any of our players had been verified by the school whenever they saw the kids in action. 

+1.

I think playing for a coach who has credibility with RC's is very important and playing with other college recruits is equally important. 

Teams that make consistently make deep runs in heavily recruited tournaments naturally get their players more looks.

 

Last edited by hshuler

Yes, it matters . My son made that step early his sophomore year. Leaving the comfortable surroundings of his mid-level travel team to a program that PG ranked 3rd in the US.

More exposure ? Hell yes. When THEY played a major event , it was stacked . A sea of Radar guns behind home plate. Not just RC's but Pro ball scouts. This team had RC's coming to program workouts / practice.

Less playing time ? Yes, but it made my son Better....Way better. He was playing alongside not just powerhouse D1 commits but 2016 draft picks. It completely changed the way he approached the game. Also, off the field. Strength and conditioning .Etc. But yes playing time was different. At HS a starting pitcher. On this team outta the pen. I remember doing a 5 day  event where he only made 2 appearances. But i also remember all the RC's that came and posted up when he came outta the pen.....and I still have the business card the MLB regional scout handed me after his second outing

I tell parents that if your kid is one of the best kids on his travel team......he's on the wrong team.

Last edited by StrainedOblique

Yes, it does matter. Travel ball coaches will be a very important conduit to the college coaches. Especially when your players are in that underclass range that cannot have direct contact. College coaches will contact the travel coach to talk to your player.  There are a lot of updates and player feedback questions that take place during those conversations. Son's high school and travel ball coach were positively instrumental in his recruiting process.  

Also, don't forget the post recruiting process. This is not really talked about as much, but college coaches will continue to watch your player to see how they are developing on the field and will likely be in at least semi-regular contact with his coaches to make sure he is working after the offer. Sons coach is very clear on a verbal commitment being a great accomplishment and also just the beginning of the hard work. Again, where the travel ball Coach having a solid reputation is important.  Personally know if a team that is very successful, but players are not as actively recruited bc the coach does not have a good reputation with college coaches and has limited contacts.

Something else to consider. Look at where players in the program commit. Are they colleges your player would be interested in attending? Are there patterns?  For example, have a majority of players committed to only a handful of programs and/or are those the only programs reaching out to your player?  Might mean a coach has limited contacts. If they are contacts at schools your player is interested in that is not a big deal. If not, it does not mean your son won't get an offer from somewhere else, just that the relationship and feedback from the travel coach might not open the same doors as another program. 

Last edited by BaseballFan2016
StrainedOblique posted:

Yes, it matters . My son made that step early his sophomore year. Leaving the comfortable surroundings of his mid-level travel team to a program that PG ranked 3rd in the US.

More exposure ? Hell yes. When THEY played a major event , it was stacked . A sea of Radar guns behind home plate. Not just RC's but Pro ball scouts. This team had RC's coming to program workouts / practice.

Less playing time ? Yes, but it made my son Better....Way better. He was playing alongside not just powerhouse D1 commits but 2016 draft picks. It completely changed the way he approached the game. Also, off the field. Strength and conditioning .Etc. But yes playing time was different. At HS a starting pitcher. On this team outta the pen. I remember doing a 5 day  event where he only made 2 appearances. But i also remember all the RC's that came and posted up when he came outta the pen.....and I still have the business card the MLB regional scout handed me after his second outing

I tell parents that if your kid is one of the best kids on his travel team......he's on the wrong team.

A good friend was initially drafted by the Marlins.  I would be lying if I said i knew how it worked but he was returned to his college team...?? Anyway...He was hurt during his college and never played again.

 

He still keeps the cards from several MLB teams that approached him in his wallet.  It may be more of a sad moment you'd say.  But keep those cards for your son.  They may mean something more than a card to him somewhere down the road.

 

Good luck!

It matters but do your homework.  Some teams are nationally ranked, etc., but it is so big that the coaches never get to know you and sometimes don't even return college coaches' phone calls.  They are so consumed with winning titles that they invite superstar players that aren't even on the team to tournaments for free and not play the kids that pay their dues.  I would ask someone who has graduated from that team if the travel team helped in their recruitment.

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