World Baseball Federation

Now that my team has played in this event, I will answer my own question for all of you. This was a very well run, very competitive event. If you are a Midwestern team looking for some very good competition, plus some important exposure, especially for your JC and D1 guys that have not committed, this is a great tournament to end your season. We played all of our games at Tigertown, and this tournament was held in conjunction with the Florida JUCO All Star Showcase. There were over 150 coaches and scouts present. Not every scout was there to see our team, but coaches couldn't help but notice our top guys. Many of my guys that were originally worried that they wouldn't have a place to play were hounded by schools like Old Dominion, Florida State, and Florida Southern, not to mention a number of Florida and Tennessee JUCO programs. I am learning day by day how best to help my players find the "right fit". Sometimes I entered tournaments that didn't really help expose my guys to anyone, and I felt as if I let them and their parents down. I really think that this tournament should attract more teams from the Midwest going into the future. Bob Pincus and Bing Tyus, the tournament directors, housed our team in a hotel that was only five minutes from Tigertown, and our entire team enjoyed the experience.

At least 10 of our 15 players would have been offered a place to play if they hadn't already been committed. It was a great way to end the season.

I must admit that I love coaching wood bat games. It really brings coaching strategies into play. I don't know whether or not it is financially possible to have high schools play with wood bats, but the fall wood bat season will remain my favorite time of the year.

If you are a future college baseball player that also plays football, you may be better off leaving the gridiron, and playing fall baseball. You will have a chance to get noticed by coaches that may not have had a chance to see you otherwise. Only the very top players (especially pitchers) get early offers. The fall season affords college coaches a chance to watch top travel teams play each other. Some very good players (especially D2/D3 prospects) that are playing football may get overlooked because they are too worn out to look impressive during Sunday doubleheaders or showcases.

I am a big fan of kids playing multiple sports in high school, but if they have the ability to play in college, they need to maximize their chances to advance. Parents need to understand whether or not the fall season before their son's Senior year is critical to his chances to play college ball. If they are not comfortable with their offers, quit football and basketball, and concentrate on finding the right fit for college baseball.

Sorry for this long post, but I want to see kids make the right choices to help them continue to play the greatest game ever invented.

My team the Tallahassee Titans opted to play in this tournament in place of perfect a few years back and have never been disappointed. The timing is great with the JUCO all-star deal and the coordinators do a great job. It has always been well scouted and well run. And the Titans will continue to go back year after year as long as Bing and Bob will have us.

Son was invited to play with an Atlanta-based  team in Jupiter,

this team now seems to be on the bubble for Jupiter.

 

The coach mentioned the Lakeland JUCO National Showcase tournament the same weekend as an alternative,

saying most all the same MLB teams/scouts are represented in Lakeland.

 

Has anyone gone to this Lakeland tournament recently?

How was it?

To my knowledge it is still a well run and high visibility event.

Thank you, enjoy your weekend