2019&21 Dad posted:2019 was accepted at Caltech and will be a Frosh this coming Fall. He was recruited at Caltech and talked with Coach Carroll at MIT in Summer Headfirst (CA) and Brown camp. Coming off injury/surgery his velo wasn't there for MIT to have serious interest, but Caltech was interested and kept in touch through last Fall. What I know is that both schools offer Early Action - so no commitment needed on the student's part until May 1st. Having said that, I can tell you that the 1st conversation with coaches at both schools started with him telling them about his SAT's, GPA and courseload. Once established that he could get in on pure academics, they moved into a baseball conversation. Both said they don't do a pre-read, but since it's Early Action, not Early Decision, you can apply to both and wait it out to see how it all shakes out.
My son applied to both EA, and was deferred at MIT and accepted EA at Caltech. If he got into MIT and decided to go there, he was planning to walk-on. He didn't end up getting into MIT, but by then had pretty much decided he wanted Caltech anyway. Caltech coach advocated for him both with Admissions and with Financial Aid office. While there's no recruited athlete "discount" at Caltech, they are looking to improve all sports and of course are looking for a well rounded student body. He didn't have all the extracurriculars many others at that level had because of baseball training/playing, so I believe being able to play made a difference in him getting accepted.
Good luck to your son Chico!
Was hoping you’d jump in! Solid info