bballdad2016 posted:Swampboy posted:...What baseball wants and what's best for individual players don't always coincide.
For the overwhelming majority of parents--the ones whose children aren't pro prospects and who don't show college-level tools until late in their high school years--early showcases may not help create the college opportunities they seek....
If you only read one part of this thread, this is some solid advise and probably applies to 95% of HS players.
+1....good post Swampboy.
FWIW - and this is purely anecdotal - I grew up with several super stars in the 13-15 year old age range. I was not one of them. By the time all of us were 16-17 and juniors in HS, the subset of area players that were considered potential college players shifted dramatically to a different group. I can't think of many of those 13-15 yo studs that were still the best players late in their high school careers. Some weren't even starters.
So although my experience is slightly outdated, I'll echo the sentiment of others on the thread who have pointed out that fall of junior year through spring of senior year (even into the summer) is a key time period.