Tagged With "Future"
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Recruiting/Future help
My son is a 2021 LHP. He isn't committed anywhere and has some recruiting interest from some major D1s in our area. He plays for the preimere showcase team in our state. We finished in the Top 10 nationall by PG and advanced to the finals of one of its biggest summer events. He's 6'0, 190. Velo tops at 87 (once last October) and he will cruise anywhere from 83-85. Runs a 7-flat 60, 93 mph exit velo w/ wood off a tee. That's my son. Here's our story. And let me apologize in advance for how...
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Future Stars Series
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Freshman Future Is Now
The time is near for what the player has done before...But this time it is different. Hlgh school baseball is all these players have been talking and hearing about the past couple of years. Preparation is the first word that comes to mind when you are talking about an upcoming season. The player is either ready or is not, and the results always display themselves. With that being said, many players have been working and playing hard. Those are the players that will find themselves in...
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
My son is a 2021 also, but doesn't pitch (he's a 3B/1B), and plays for one of the best travel programs in our state.... So I'm familiar with that age group & the way things are working w/ recruiting etc your kid has the "golden ticket" (lefty pitcher) & I applaud you for shutting him down when the shoulder issue came up. There are a lot of 2021's out there throwing mid 80's these days. Every top travel team has several of them, and there are many throwing upper 80's/low 90's (i.e.
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
I've found that comparing my kid's recruiting experience to his teammates' was a gateway move to dependency on antipsychotic drugs. 3/2 gave you great advice. I'd focus on patience, while still pursuing as many options as possible, AND getting an ACT/SAT tutor. That score can go up significantly with the right preparation.
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
I echo much of what 3n2 said. You seem to have a pretty good awareness of what's up and you seem to have him in a good situation with a well connected travel org and he is getting attention, albeit no solid D1 offers. The few red flags I see are tied to panic. He's a soph and you have already had a "revenge tour" and you are reacting to others on his travel org getting offers already. A soph in HS and you're already planning a redshirt year in college. Take it down a notch. I'm guessing part...
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
Great reply that I needed to hear. You're exactly right. He's fine. He's a typical weirdo lefty. He thinks he's the best pitcher in the country and, that (Major Division I) is completely ignorant for not offering him. He'll always have that confidence. The "panic" is from me. Deep down, I know that it's going to be OK. But you're right, he got early attention and it didn't quite materialize yet. I left out the fact that the RC at the SEC power told the showcase director that he thinks the...
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
I’m on board with the responses. As a lefty D1’s are probably looking for him to hit 87/88 consistently. If he was right handed it would be 90. It’s great your son is dominating the hitters he ‘s facing. It’s good for his confidence. But the college coaches aren’t necessarily gauging him against those hitters. They’re looking at his tools and trying to project if he will get college hitters out. And you’re right about if he were 6’2”. Is he done growing? Are his growth plates still open?
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
JayLu0204, Thanks for posting. So I think you'll discover that your approach, history and results are not that unique. Actually, I found myself reading your post and thinking..."yeah, I've been there and I remember going through exactly that". Nothing you posted surprised me at all. I'm not sure you know this but, ge tting recruited to play college baseball at any level is ridiculously hard. Listen, my kid was the second-to-last kid on his national travel team to commit. Guess what? I...
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
Food for thought....do not give up on shooting for a P5 school....LHP's live in a different world. They usually develop slower than others and coachs know that. Ensuring your son is healthy is the most imporatant thing right now.
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
Your son can still be a P5 prospect, schools are just looking for more consistency at this point. Topping at 87 then 83 then 86 then 84 is a bigger issue than 85 every time he takes the mound. The velo differences probably tell coaches that he is either injured or doesn't have proper routine/training to maintain that peak performance yet. It sounds like the latter, and it sounds like they are still interested, just waiting for him to correct that part. If he doesn't have it yet, get him in a...
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
My sons' story is very similar in terms of velocity, growth, etc. Everyone above gave good advise. My only add would be to look at a different P5 conference. Our experience was that ACC & SEC were looking for large kids, can't change that. Shop in a different area. A lefty in the upper 80's will find a good home with a good offer, IMO. Be patient, make a list of target schools, reach out to different areas. Be open to this part. If you son projects an attitude, attempt to kill it! Being...
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
He's a lefty and going to be a pitcher in college so forget all the other stuff. He is a "potential" P-5 candidate, but be aware P-5 programs are very demanding and only the best play. Higher reward, but higher risk. Better to be a big fish in a winning program than a small fish in a demanding P5 IMO, as I many of my son's friends who went that route flamed out and transferred. Develop a plan and work the plan. Make a list of preferred programs 30-50 and make a list of recruiting and head...
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
"RC of local major D1 contacts showcase director and invites him to their prospect camp the next weekend." "Gets a call from showcase guy a week later and is told he needs to go to the camp. " Always like to hear pitcher experiences. As my user name indicates, my son is a 2020 RHP. Similar to your son, my son was the only freshman on a top 6A varsity team in Texas and did well (he was pitching against full grown major D1 commits that spring when previously he had only pitched against 8th...
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
The Ft. Myers deal was kind of a fluke thing I think. RC saw something on twitter about him and invited him to camp. The other was due to our showcase director. He hit 87 in an all-star game on Tuesday. Wednesday, he puts in the call to the PC. Saturday he came to watch. Those are the only two times a coach has specifically contacted someone about my son.
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
Don’t worry about how much he does or doesn’t pitch in high school. His exposure to college coaches will be in the summer. College coaches are mostly busy right now coaching. It’s MLB scout’s who show up at high school games. But if your son isn’t in high demand for college ball yet it’s not time to worry about pro ball. The scouts are looking at the 90+ high school pitchers.
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
To echo what BOF said, for a pitcher, I don't think the P5 thing is quite as important. Looking at the Fangraphs 2019 draft board current rankings,, the first college pitcher on it is George Kirby of Elon, the second is Jackson Rutledge of San Jacinto JC, the third is Alex Manoah of West Virginia (a P5), the fourth is Seth Johnson of Campbell. Or look at last year's Cy Young voting. In the AL, of the top 4, Snell was a HS pick, but Verlander went to Old Dominion, Kluber went to Stetson, and...
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
Yep. Most of D1 can be a rat race, but the kid's we know that went to the big time baseball schools are struggling to get any playing time. Sometimes you are better off playing at a mid major, and getting off the bench. If you produce, they will find you.
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
My advice is always to use baseball as a vehicle to get into schools he might not get into academically and use it as leverage. He is likely not going to play pro-ball so use baseball to find the right college home that fits his profile. Also go to a winning program as it is a lot more fun than loosing and find a head coach that is going to help him grow into a man, not necessarily a better baseball player, his pitching coach should do the baseball part. Also most HS players (and their...
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
Yes, that is worth repeating. As they say, be careful what you wish for because you might get it. Major college sports is a full-time job with lots of overtime. As I've heard many times, there is no such thing as a college baseball scholarship.
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
Hey Jay, Lots of good advice above from experienced people. If you have been reading the board for awhile, you have read all of above before. And it is all good advice. To what you (your son) should be focusing on? Health first and foremost, combined with strength, mobility and conditioning. My recommendation is to go to Eric Cressey or an Eric Cressey like experienced PT / CSCS that has a lot of experience with pitchers. Get your son a movement assessment and a bio-mechanical assessment and...
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
Be patient. It is hard not to panic. I remember being exactly the same thinking, my son just killed it against other D1 powerhouse commits, why did this coach just watch and not offer? Some schools are looking for specific things. Some schools talked to my son almost weekly for a year and never offered. He didn't commit until August after his sophomore year. I think for him, the number was 91. He had a couple offers before while hitting 90. He hit 91 3x and for the first time and he had guys...
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
It appears that your lefty pitcher has performed well in front of the right people. Impatience, frustration, worry all set in when the phone/texts/e-mails are not as plentiful as you'd like after seeing him do so well. My son was playing for a top level west coast travel ball team the summer before junior year. He absolutely went off at the travel team's prospect camp, which had over 30 college coaches (mainly D1) attending. Hit a ball out of a minor league stadium and hit the fence on two...
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
You just really need to be patient and let the the velocity catch up with the talent. Though talented, your son is still young and I believe most P5 coaches need/want to see velocity in the high 8's before moving forward. A few years back my son's velo at 15 was low 80's. - Consistent work and development led to low 90's the summer prior to his senior year - while it may seem like power 5's aren't recruiting rising seniors, there were still Power 5 offers to be had.......so be...
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
Lefty pitchers that can get outs get innings in College ball. Your son is young. He's left handed and he can pitch. He'll find a school to play for. There is nothing to worry about here other than his health and his grades. Health, Arm care is the number one priority for any potential college pitcher. Velocity is a measuring stick used by RC's and pro ball scouts to sort recruits and it can become important to players ( and parents ) but sometimes there is a price to pay for throwing a...
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
I read the first line of this reply to my wife and all she did was point at me and nod knowingly.
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
Another thing you could work on with your son is the immaturity part. College coaches don't want problem players that don't show up to practice on time, not going to mandatory study hall, not making up work and tests from away games, etc. There are GPA minimums at some schools that are above the NCAA minimum. (So, not only do you have to get recruited by the school, and get accepted, you have to make the grades to STAY there !) Make sure you son is getting up on his own, with his own alarm...
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
I’m looking for some advice on coach/player communication. I’ve read that the “earlier” you reach out to schools the better as long as you are close to entering High School. My son is in 8th grade, has had a heck of a year with showcase ball, and he’s been told by numerous coaches that barring any injury he should be able to play at the next level. My son reached out to two of his dream school’s assistant recruiting coaches and received a reply later in the day in the form of a prospect camp...
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
He is young. Most replies will be firm letters to get kids to camps. It will take the effort of the college coach reaching out to his club coach and asking him to call to get real communication. That won’t happen from first emails. I would say to send short video clips and update new stats. That may get them out to see him at a tournament and from there, if they like him, he might be asked to call. It’s hard to project an 8th grader unless he is the very top percentage for the class. I just...
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
The kids we've known who got college attention that young didn't need to do any outreach to college coaches. They played events like USA Baseball and the coaches came looking for them.
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
I would disagree with the earlier is better unless as we say here you have something to tell them about. If your kid is as another post says a 6' throwing 80 or hitting bombs on high school fields then you have something to tell them about. If he is throwing 70, then wait until you have something to tell them about. You don't want them to take you off a list because you persisted too early which they will do and it is harder to get back on the list. Unless you are talking I personally do not...
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
Ok thank you. He’s definitely not throwing 95. His numbers are at the top in several categories (60, exit velo, infield velo) for his class according to PG. He’s been described as a young frame who’s highly projectable and is a “secondary” pitcher with velo 80-81mph. I guess I’ve read several pieces that say wait and they’ll find you and I’ve read to have a list and reach out. This is our first go around with this so we are trying to take all advice and stay ahead of the game.
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
Definitely need a list, reach out and assume it's a part time job, but 8th grade is far too early IMO. I always think how would I react, if I were the coach, when communicating. Think my eyes would roll inside my head if I was receiving outreach from 8th graders. I sent my son to a camp at UCONN October of his freshman year, just for the experience of being on a college field (no Idea at the time it was a recruiting/$ tool). Coach Penders told my son he was the youngest there by 1.5 years.
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
4arms, he's on a good track but just too young for colleges to really want to follow or care to hear from just yet. At least let him get to HS and compete at the V level. And, along the way, make sure you both fully enjoy the HS experience (don't let the recruiting process distract too much from that or prevent him from having the fun a HS kid should have). If he sticks with baseball and plays in college, it will become a much bigger sacrifice of time and other activities once he heads off...
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
I wouldn't be too worried. 6' lefties throwing 82-83 are fairly common...especially in baseball hotbeds. To get an offer before his sophomore year in HS he'd have to be something truly special. This coming summer should be really interesting for you...especially if he can consistently be 85-86. That seems to be the "magic number" for velo. The other MAJOR issue is the ACT score. 18 is likely going to prevent him from going to a D1....23-24 would be better, but still a stretch for some of the...
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
If your kid is good enough to be recruited as an 8th/9th grader he won't need to email coaches. They will already know who he is. 80 is good for a freshman, but until he sniffs 85 or is a rising senior he is not a college prospect on any school's radar.
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Re: Future Stars Series
Anyone have any recent dealings or experience with the Future Stars Series?
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
Just my 2 cents worth but need that ACT higher. But I know of parents that paid 5K to go from 22 to 30!
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
All great advice above, in fact maybe the most informative post if read on here. I would agree with it all. To me the glaring thing is there is a difference between “topping” 87 and “sitting” 87. In the Northeast it seems like for most mid major D1 they wait to see you sit 85. And if it’s 84 they wait. Saw it happen with many kids I coached. Some eventually made it and some didn’t. But in the end as a LHP when they starting sitting 85 then the gates opened. For RHP in general it seemed like...
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
WOW - Things have changed and I haven't been on the forum in a while. I'm blown away by the responses and how informative/accurate they were. Thank you guys so much. Such a great resources for people struggling w/ similar issues. I wanted to update you on my son's story. He had a banner sophomore year in HS. Had a 1.42 ERA in 34 innings in the state's highest classification, led his team in hitting and ... was on the mound when his team won the state championship! LOL, things couldn't have...
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Re: Recruiting/Future help
Huge congratulations!! Great to hear things have worked out so well for him... so far . Now, the real work begins!
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Re: Freshman Future Is Now
Maturity is a funny word....as a freshman my son is going to try his hardest out on the field. He will dive into the wall to get a foul ball, no second thoughts about it. However, after he makes that catch he is also likely to go into the dugout and make a fart joke. He IS 14 after all :- )
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Re: Freshman Future Is Now
Wow! This is enlightening. I wasn't aware those who want it more and work harder tend to get ahead. Does this also work outside baseball? Or is it unique to baseball?
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Re: Freshman Future Is Now
ALL replies are appreciated. Would like to contribute more if I had more time, but always at a field or facility almost everyday living the dream. RJM anytime you would like to come out to our facilities or games, I encourage you to do so. You are more than welcome. We would be so greatful if you bestowed your knowledge upon us...definitely going to make the time to post more.
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Re: Freshman Future Is Now
I recall HS tryouts and son's freshman year. Hate to sound cocky but we new he would make the team, his goal was varsity. He did make the team and played primarily on JV (was considered 1 of 3 JV players who could play JV and varsity) but carved through everyone he faced with a sub 1 era for the season. Called up to play a few games on varsity at year end and i distinctly recall him hanging a change up that ended up in the stratosphere somewhere. Try to enjoy these times, they are...
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Re: Freshman Future Is Now
My son has tryouts in two weeks and I have talked to so many folks that have gone through it before and I am trying to just enjoy it all. I can definitely now see how you can miss it if you're not careful.