cabbagedad posted:Well, this has been an interesting thread to read. Seems like many "between the lines" and "behind the scenes" discussions and points being made.
I'll throw in some of my observations, which include things happening in today's environment.
Son's D2 HC or RC alternately head off to to watch JC and HS players and recruit them during the current HS and college season on the D2's practice days and they are not limited to Mondays. I was surprised to hear how often this happens.
I agree with Root's statement... The truth is that the vast majority of serious recruiting is done from mid-June to November. With year-round showcase opportunities, this gives more rather than less flexibility to build in rest periods.
The problem is that, unlike Root, the parents and players usually only go through this process once. Much of it is learn-as-you-go or learn-by-mistake. There is a lot of pressure to get these good players seen and find the best match. The window is often short (from the time they have the skill set to show something to the time the corresponding level of college typically recruits). So, while the year-round opportunities do provide MORE flexibility, there is a pressure that is very hard to resist for the player/parent to participate in as many good opportunities that come up as possible. So, they find themselves either abandoning the planned rest or never really planning to take it at all. And, to pile on, they often have pushed the heavy schedule in years prior, also to try to give the player a leg up on competitive experience and determine where their potential ceiling is. This can be valuable but almost always overdone. Many players and parent feed off the building demand of player. Many can't say no to a respected coach. Many fear any missed opportunity as "the one that could have been it".
In most cases, if that player/parent team could identify the right year and time of year to push the showcase/travel/exposure scene and stick to a schedule that was healthy (along the lines of what Matt Rieland laid out), they would figure out where they belong, or at least what level to target, and the process would become more manageable. I know, much easier said than done.
I have seen this cycle repeat itself with each crop of ambitious HS players/parents we get over the last several years. As much as we advise to plan carefully and not overdo it, the intense "want the best opportunities for my kid" mentality, the fear of falling behind, the "things are different now", the scramble of the process and the panic of "not signed yet" usually get the best of them. Heck, even with the rare ones that sign early, they still overdo it in hopes of a shot at the draft.
As soon as I see someone defend the ambitious travel/showcase schedule and dismiss experienced advice as outdated, misinformed or "you don't know MY kid", I know they are in the heat of the battle.
So, what are some of the possible repercussions?
This year, I have the youngest V team I have ever had, by a lot. Several are promising players who certainly have a shot at playing at the next level. They love the game but most are caught up in what I have described. They are all scrambling to latch on to the next club team for the next season and don't want to miss out on anything their teammates may be getting. Between last year and this year, I have eight freshman/sophomore players who have already had arm issues. Most are not even pitchers (or, at least, they won't be now anyway). Lots of labrums. Bad tear - missed a year, still having a tough time figuring out how to throw again. Mild tear, inflammation, torn bicep tendon, rotator cuff, etc. Most had no issues during HS season but by November, problems popped up. Two missed entire freshman season before they were able to step on the HS field. Two started to show issues during my season. I shut them down and required proper assessment and PT plan before letting them back. Parents' initial reaction was mad at me. They wanted them to keep playing. I honestly believe we saved those two from more serious damage. We had one senior who is a highly decorated D1 bound P. I fear for his future because, even after he committed, they kept pushing hard on the summer/fall/winter tour, largely with the draft in mind. He was clearly fatigued on a televised event and I don't think ever fully recovered. I really love the kid and the family but my advice in that regard went largely ignored.
On the other side of the coin are young players who are more than capable of enjoying and contributing at the HS level but are discouraged and quitting because they are unable, for a variety of reasons, to "keep up with the Jones's" with all the travel, showcase, instruction, etc. that the others are doing. Then I have another who's parents pulled him from the program because he was initially assigned to get playing time at the JV level and that was beneath their son since they had put so much into travel ball to assure his success in HS and beyond.
Please, people.
Well said. 