KellerDad,
Obviously, I know nothing about your son's abilities, but I assume since he is going to the Stanford camp that he has both the academic and athletic talent to prosper.
I do know a little bit about the Service Academies baseball programs because we have been following them closely for over a year. One thing to understand about all of the service academies, is that the student bodies are made up almost completely of accomplished athletes. Something like 90% of every entering class were High School Varsity letter winners. Not only do the students all have to be academically qualified, but they have to be physically and medically qualified as well.
The service academies do a great job of scouting on a national basis. They have to because unlike a regional university, they are required by law to admit a proportional number of students from all states. The service academies are regular participants in many PG events and any tournaments where there are a high number of talented baseball players.
Having said all of that, the reason to go to a service academy is NOT to play baseball. It is to serve as an officer in the US military, for a period of time or perhaps for a career. If your son wants to fly F-16s, his commitment after graduation will be 9 years instead of 5. There are many sacrifices that cadets must make in order to receive the education which is now valued at $350,000. (Sacrifices such as not being able to sleep in in the morning, not missing class, not having the freedom to go wherever you want whenever you want, not having your summers free to play collegiate summer ball, etc.)
But if it is the right fit for your son, in terms of education, discipline, career, it is hard to beat advantages that a Service Academy education provide.
When my son first became interested in Army's program, he said that playing baseball in college was his first priority and that West Point seemed like a great place and a great program to do that in. It has been interesting to watch the shift in his thinking as he seriously contemplated the larger issues of life and career. Now he is at the place where he wants West Point with or without baseball. I am very pleased to see that development in him, because I think baseball alone would not be strong enough to see one through the extradordinary challenges of a Service Academy.
BTW- my younger brother went to AFA. If you are interested, perhaps we can get together at Stanford and talk about some of the other pros and cons.
Best wishes to your son.