adbono posted:I played (a long time ago) at a D1 program that is in the top 20 every year. There were 11 seniors in my class. 5 were drafted and signed pro contracts. 2 of those 5 had decent big league careers and all 5 (plus me) got their degrees. So 6 of 11 seniors graduated - either on time or later. The career paths of those 6 men have been : oil executive, HS principal, construction executive, insurance executive, county judge, and MLB regional Scout. The 5 that didn’t get a degree are all whereabouts unknown. The moral of the story? All the guys that got their degree have been successful in life, whether they played pro ball or not. All the guys that didn’t get their degree....... not so much. Baseball is over way sooner than life is. You better take care of your academic business along the way!
The circumstance that worries me is a kid leaves after his junior year pursuing his dream(and he should) but lingers in the minor leagues until he’s 27, gets married in the meantime, has a kid or two and then has all this family responsibility and never completes his degree. That’s what I would worry about leaving college in the 25th round after your junior year. I talked to a minor leaguer and he said it’s near impossible to finish your degree while in the minor leagues. I would think I would say to a kid, give yourself 3 years after you get drafted after your junior year. If your not making real strides in the minor leagues, hang em up and go back and finish your degree. Your likely only gonna be 23. You’ll have your degree by the time your 25.
I think you have two years to complete your degree once you go back to finish it where MLB will pay for it.