quote:Originally posted by Tom Dorminy:
Grades are more important to parents than coaches , case in point , 2 pitchers , 1 lefty , 1 righty , both throw in the 90's both above average pitchers . One has a gpa of 2.0 , one a 3.2 and good SAT's . Both are attending same D1 school here in Tampa . Righty graduated by a hair , lefty with a 3.2 . Only difference is lefty got a bit more help on academic side of scholarship . Coach looked at ability more so than grades .
Tom,
I think you are looking at one isolated case in the past. The recruiting landscape has changed drastically with the advent of the APR and Roster and Scholarship limits in just the past two years. This year, the NCAA has instituted another provision where coaches who cut players with a GPA over 2.6 are not dinged on their APR. That means that if the coach is going to take a risk on baseball potential, he'll give the nod to the player with the better grades so that if he cuts the kid in the future it won't impact his APR negatively.
Coaches always look at ability first. However, in todays world, that righty might never have been offered by that coach.