10th grader, possible college prospect

I forgot to mention that it's pretty cool that this site is free. Thanks.

Frank

Welcome MidwestPop to HSBBW!

If you move your curser over to the upper left, it will bring out the site menu and there is a tab for recruiting tips and timeframes. It has a wealth of information on timeframes and processes that you may want to follow.

There have been several threads which also discuss what others have done in the past that you may also find helpful.

Good Luck, enjoy the ride!

Welcome to the HSBBW! You are correct, this is a terrific site. I wish I knew about it before my oldest child graduated from high school.

The best advice that I give anyone regarding playing ANY sport in college is to find a school that you want to attend---that is, is a good fit academically, geographically, the right number of students, has your major, Greek system or not, FINANCIALLY, etc. And then contact the coach.

At a D3, without any athletic scholarships, the player "goes out for the team". NO cuts, typically, so playing time could be determined by talent. Yes, I said "could be".

Bottom line, make sure that your child wants to be at the college, in case something happens that he is not able to play, such as injury, classes, coaching, politics.... there are just so many scenarios. My two sons started out at two different schools and both transferred for different reasons: one after two years and one after his first. It's no fun to select a college one time--let me tell you it's less fun the second time.

Make sure you want to be there if the sport was not.

Make sure you choose a school you want to live at even if you can't play the sport. This is critical.

quote:

So I will keep reading up here but I want to ask if there are any special areas I should read to learn about how to help my son a 10th grader, not a "stud", but wants to play college baseball. I think he has a decent chance to play at a small college but probably not at a high level. We won't have to worry about any pro scouts calling our house in a couple of years unless something changes drastically between now and then.

How does a D3 / small college prospect approach this compared to the D1 / pro prospect?

MidwestPop - a hearty welcome here at the hsbbweb!

I believe the small college strategy should be similar as the big college strategy and that key is exposure. He needs to be seen by college coaches. This can happen at his high school games (possible but sometimes unlikely), at summer tournaments (more or less likely depending on tournament), and the guaranteed way via showcases. There are showcases (especially in the NE and the midwest) where D3 coaches are known to attend. He can also attend showcases that recruit D1's but D3's are also in attendance. If he is a good student, there are headfirst showcases where it is guaranteed D3's will be there. You can find out about many of these via Perfect Game. Their logo is at the top of the main hsbbweb page and you can navigate there by clicking on the logo. The most important summer to showcase is between junior and senior year. As play baseball noted above, there is nothing stopping you from contacting schools you may be interested in and starting a relationship with the respective coaches at those programs.

Finally, your attitude about things is quite refreshing. Humility will serve you and your son well in this game. The key is to play at the collegiate level and get a great education and have a great social experience while doing so. Who knows, with further development and exposure, maybe there will be D1 or D2 coaches who also come into the mix. Find (don't wait for the phone to ring) the school that meets all of his needs and where he can thrive. A kid does not need overwhelming talent to succeed at the collegiate level. Decent talent plus desire, competitiveness, and the willingness to improve over time are the keys. You got a great head start. I would also read all of the following articles:

http://www.hsbaseballweb.com/recruiting_tips.htm

Thanks everyone. I'm reading all the links.

A question about D3, does the coach formally "recruit" the HS player and eventually make some kind of commitment? I mean with a baseball scholarship at D1 or D2 you sign some papers. I hope that the D3 coach at least tells a kid whether he wants or needs him in their program. If my son's desire to play college baseball remains strong - I would not encourage him to just show up and try out without a solid indication from a coach that he was wanted.

ClevelandDad, thank you for the compliment about my attitude. I played D3 baseball so I have seen that it takes a special player to play in college at any level. More recently I have watched local HS players who went on to play college ball, and around here it is only a few of the top standouts in the conference that would play D1. Maybe the top 1 or 2 standouts per team would play college baseball at all. It looks like my son will make varsity this year in 10th grade and I hope he will have a real good HS baseball career, but looking with a realistic eye it doesn't appear that he is headed for d1 or the draft.

So thanks again and any more advice about D3 level is appreciated.

Frank

Frank -- I sent you a private message...don't know if you saw it yet or not.

Several threads in past about how DIII recruiting is different. While money conversations do not take place, coaches at schools with quality programs make it very clear that they are recruiting players. They use language like, "we'll support your application" or ask you to send application directly to them so that they can take it over to admissions. At all levels, the players have to "make" the team come fall/spring of freshman year, whether they have been recruited or not. It might be easier for coaches at DIII's to keep walk ons, as they have committed no money, but what I have seen leads me to believe that recruited players at DIII have a signifcant leg up on walk ons.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by MidwestPop:

A question about D3, does the coach formally "recruit" the HS player and eventually make some kind of commitment?

The D3 schools in my area actively recruit players but I am not sure wheteher they actually signed any kind of commitment like the NLI for D1/2.


I hope that the D3 coach at least tells a kid whether he wants or needs him in their program.

There are discussions that occur and you need to ask questions like how many are being recruited for son's position? You need to know how many are returning to same position and what grade are they. Many of the kids that went to D3 that played with my son ended up with some sort of academic money from the school.

If my son's desire to play college baseball remains strong - I would not encourage him to just show up and try out without a solid indication from a coach that he was wanted.

I believe you will know, but as someone else pointed out, you have to earn your way into the spot.

Good luck

Midwest Pop,
Welcome to the HSBBW and thanks for bringing terrific questions.
First, let me suggest that you cannot really tell in 10th grade how good your son might become with maturity, playing year round in college, good coaching and a solid strength and conditioning plan.
When our's was in 10th grade, heck when he graduated 12th grade, he was viewed as a "nice" player with some tools, but nothing to stand out.
He went the DIII route, did well and got his chance in Milb.
So far as DIII commitments, that is going to vary from coach to coach.
I would fully agree that you do not want your son to show up in August and knock on the coaches door, with that being the first real contact.
Based on the experience of our son, many DIII coaches recruit and commit just like DI's do, sometimes more so. From what we know, a DIII coach isn't just willing to recruit, he can be willing to describe where you fit, where you can go and what you can contribute all 4 years, why going to that DIII might be better than other options(playing from day 1) and the efforts the coaches will make on your behalf for Summer leagues.
For our son, he didn't sign an NLI, but he and his roommate, and numerous teammates had no doubt they were wanted, were being recruited and their choosing that school was the focus for the coaching staff.

Thanks again for the answers above since my last post. This is very interesting and it will help me to help my son with his approach.

MWPop, let me also welcome you to the hands down best (and free) high school baseball site known! As you mentioned (between the lines) in your original post this site is monitored by the Owner and Moderators quite frequently to make is a pleasureable experience for all. Heck, even I had my hand slapped just recently and looking back, rightly so.

I just wanted to highlight on a couple of things already suggested or mentioned to you but worth repeating.

1 - Do make absolutely sure your son finds the college he would attend should baseball be taken away for any reason. The NCAA just incorporated this year a new rule about transferring which basically prohibits a player (any sport) from transferring from one 4-yr school to another 4-yr school without sitting out a year in between first before being able to participate in said sport. So now its even more important to find the "right" fit for your son especially if politics, coaching, playing time, etc. become an issue.

2 - When younggun himself was a 10th grader he had a couple buddies who made varsity as 10th graders and even played. IMO, they were physically and mentally ready (older sophomore age) to play at that level. Younggun wasn't ready in either capacity and I knew it. He played East Cobb ball after his sophomore year which made a huge difference getting him ready for the next year. Long story short, I knew he dreamed of playing college ball one day but his sophomore year had me worried for him on many levels. What I didn't take into account was his growth over the next 2 years. Today he is 6'2 and 220lbs and a freshman RHP at a great NAIA school. You mentioned that you wasn't sure he would play past a small college level but just sit back and watch before your eyes how much he will grow in so many wonderful ways. You may be singing a different tune 2 years from now!

Good luck in your research and I commend you for starting ahead of time to get your ducks in a row!

quote:

The NCAA just incorporated this year a new rule about transferring which basically prohibits a player (any sport) from transferring from one 4-yr school to another 4-yr school without sitting out a year in between first before being able to participate in said sport.

The situation isn't quite that severe.
The rule only applies to transfers into a D1 school from any 4 year school, and only applies to baseball, basketball, some types of football, and men’s ice hockey. (D1 Manual 14.5.5.2.10) The change in the rule added baseball to the list.

Finding a good fit, without transferring, is still very important to getting a degree in a timely manner.

MidwestPop:

I have watched “your son” (metaphorically speaking) for the past three years. He is a Sr this year and was never the most talented, or stood out in any particular area. Watching him day in and day out he always seemed to get the most of what God gave him. He always had a positive attitude and played for the team and was always helping out the coaches in doing any extra work around the field.

What he also did was work harder than anyone else in the program. He always seem to be at the gym when I go, when our coach offered to help out some kids one on one in hitting he was first in line. He took more ground balls, hit more BP and did more weight work than anyone else. He has slowly raised his game the past two years, and our coach told me is getting a lot of interest from a number of D2 programs. According to our coach there are many Midwest schools that have more difficulty attracting kids from the West Coast and Southeast that are looking for solid players.

I will see him this week and ask him how they found him, but as far as I can see they do the same thing as the D1’s but just focus on kids they think they can attract. I will talk to the coach and post something later in the week. I do think the key for your son will be to out-work everyone else and make the most of his abilities.

3Fingered, thanks for the correction. I think I knew what you just said but failed to think it in my brain to type it...LOL.

Thanks again for clarifying it so as not to mislead anyone inadvertently!