quote:Your son bats 1.000 and has a 1.000 fielding percentage? j/k
CD, didn't I tell you about my son's stellar season last spring?
quote:Most college players were the best in their conferences, counties, and states. What they cannot prepare themselves for is competing against a whole team full of players like that. Learning how to beat out a player who is three years older, 30 lbs heavier, was equally heralded in high school, and has subsequently been heralded in college. That is a challenge and it must be experienced to be truly understood. Some kids will grow because of that experience and others are crushed by it.
I do believe some kids can grow farther in the long run by learning to compete yet maybe not being quite able to start right away. Others may not want to risk as much for the opportunity to play all four years but they may not develop as much since they don't have those powerful competitive forces forging them ahead.
I can understand what you're saying. I know of one high school stud whose confidence plummeted during his freshman year in college when he was forced to sit the majority of the season. Almost a year later, he still struggles with confidence issues.
On the other hand, my son transferred to a new high school last year and had to sit behind a very talented group of senior infielders, all of whom had made All District the previous year. He seemed to do okay mentally and performed well in the summer. Hopefully, this bodes well for his college experience, in case he has to sit his freshman year.
Perhaps I misunderstood the original poster. I was wondering about college players who experience a frustrating season followed by a very successful one that is spurred on by their original failure.
(Btw, had my son not made that one error during his 20 fielding attempts last spring, he would have had a 1.000 fielding percentage!
)