quote:Originally posted by Panther Dad:
I believe a few things have contributed to this phenomenon -- 1) rules changes in the schools that allow freshmen to play varsity, and 2) the strength of the summer programs. When my oldest (2000 grad) was in HS, there were no/few/VERY few freshmen playing at the varsity level. They could not play V in Plano. I believe the trend will continue.
How long ago was the rule about freshmen not playing on varsity?
In our area, the large suburban districts have added numerous high schools in recent years and the baseball players get spread out. There are now more chances for talented underclassmen to compete for a varsity spot.
I doubt the overall talent level is much different from previous years. There are natural variances in which some years will have a few more freshmen capable of competing on varsity. It seems there are now more chances for these variances to align with older classes not stacked with talent and that are diluted across more schools.