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18u No-Shows

OB OH BBMom100+ posts
I would appreciate some honest opinions from the knowledgeable and loyal posters of HSBB!

My son is getting ready to enter college and will be playing ball at the DIII level. He has spent the last 2 falls and summers playing with a local 18u program considered to be "select" - that is, there are no try-outs, you can only make the team based on a coach's recommendation. Because of the age group, there were about 12 new boys on this year's team, as compared to last year's.

Here's my question/problem: this summer, we had many, many games when only 8, 9, or 10 boys would show up. This is out of a roster of 18. Included in that number is 1 player who committed to play, and then decided to take the summer off, several who were gone for "senior trips", and many who just didn't bother to let the coach know that they wouldn't be there. There were also times when players couldn't be there because of work or college orientation, which is understandable. The ironic part of the whole thing is that all of these boys but 1 will be playing ball at the next level!

Is this typical of the age group? What have other teams in this situation done? The lack of depth really affected our performance, especially in the dog days of summer.

Additionally, he has a chance to play on the 22u team from this same organization. He enjoyed playing with the teammates who actually bothered to show up, but he would like to be with a team that is more committed to playing and improving over the summer. Being new to college, we're not sure how the summer ball situation will work (are players assigned to teams, are they on their own, etc.). I would really appreciate any advice, insight, stories, etc.
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OB Ole Ball Coach100+ posts
quote:
Originally posted by OH BBMom:
The ironic part of the whole thing is that all of these boys but 1 will be playing ball at the next level!


In my experience, not too ironic.

When a young man has signed, he often steps off the track for a bit. It's usually the last summer before it's a "career" and suddenly a number of other things become important. THAT, and a lot of (most?) college coaches just don't put that much stock in the HS Senior-College freshman season....
06catcherdad06catcherdad1,000+ posts
Sounds pretty typical to me. I've been coaching quite a Connie Mack club in the summers and it is common for rising college freshmen to have schedule conflicts. Whether it is high school all-star games, senior 'trips', college trips, jobs, or any other variety of things that can get in the way, I expect a large number of the players to miss a percentage of the games. That's why I carry larger rosters, and stress that advance communication is the key to making it all work.

It's also why you don't see more 18u teams, a lot of coaches don't want to deal with the hassle of coaching graduated players who have more on their plate than just playing baseball and trying to nail down a college baseball opportunity.
kt333kt3331,000+ posts
quote:
Originally posted by keewart:
A friend's son, who plays at a top D1, said the college coach didn't want him playing ball the summer after high school graduation. I think he got a workout to do from the coach, but no baseball games. He did make a little money that summer, though, since it was the first time he had time to work!


That's terrible.
08Dad08Dad1,000+ posts
Answering the other question, most college coaches will start trying to place their players in a college summer league this fall. There are probably 30 or 40 of these leagues scattered around the country. A good list of these leagues can be found at:

http://www.summerleaguecentral.net/


Also, if you go to the after high school board here:

http://hsbaseballweb.com/eve/f...s/a/frm/f/9886003481

you will find lots of parents commenting on the various leagues.

Hope this helps,

08
OB OH BBMom100+ posts
I realize there are many legitimate reasons for not playing ball. My point is if you know ahead of time that you will not be able to make it to at least half of the games, why commit to play? If you do commit to play, shouldn't that commitment come before concerts, vacations and parties?

08 Dad - Thanks for the website! There are many great leagues listed there. I hope I will get to see my son play in one of those!
Last edited by OH BBMom
08Dad08Dad1,000+ posts
One other comment I should have made - it may be completely appropriate for your son to play outside of those leagues on a team such as the 22U team that you indicated. There are tons of independent college age teams that play great schedules.

The point I was trying to make is that your son's college coach is likely to be making arrangement for your son and may not think that the 22U team is the best place for him.
TPMTPMHSBaseballweb Member since 2003
My son played for a coach that never took a full team of graduating seniors for two reasons, the one stated above and that it was based on helping rising seniors and graduating seniors obtain scholarships through exposure and not about winning. He also made it quite clear about his expectations, if you had other things to do, either do them or not play, and he did carry more than he should after he knew that some wouldn't make it through, or had some obligations that he was told ahead of time. With a 68+ game schedule, he needed to know he had enough players to cover. While you are blaming kids for not full filling their part, seems to me the coach didn't do his job in planning ahead, or making it clear what was expected to players AND parents. The blame goes to each side, players, parents and the coach.
He also had "invited" tryouts, even knowing who he was going to take. I don't think my son ever did NOT try out for any team, it sort of goes along with you have to earn a spot. I know that many coaches take players upon recommendations, but my way of thinking is that when you just "give out" something, you aren't actually teaching them what they need to learn early, that in this game you "earn" it. And this game is also about commitment as well.

Why should one remain with a team if he feels he didn't have to work hard to get it in the first place? JMO.
birdman14birdman141,000+ posts
This year my son had to leave the team he played for the past several years. Last years team of rising seniors lost the commitment as rising college freshmen. I really don't understand why this occurs. Do they think it is going to get easier playing at the next level now that they have "made" it? Do they also think that their new teammates on their future college teams are just hanging out in the summer?
My son was able to fill the void by playing in a league of rising college freshman and an adult league on his off days. The funny thing is the rising college freshman team carried 25 players on the roster. They averaged about 15 players showing up.
TPMTPMHSBaseballweb Member since 2003
As far as I know, many college coaches want their frosh to continue playing during the summer, pitchers perhaps, depending on the work they have put in, take a break. Some will go out and play and just not pitch. Some coaches suggest that players atetnd summer school and begin your workouts, or begin a serious conditioning program before you show up, but sitting around doing nothing doesn't make you better, in anything. I doubt there is any coach out there that doesn't want you to do nothing.

If you have family things planned, then make a decision one way or that other, keeping the team in mind or working with the coach, not showing up for games is not looked upon as favorable, on any team by any coach and in my old school opinion, disrespectful to the coach and his teammates.

The funny part is, many don't feel they want to spend time sitting the bench, but just wait until they get to college.
OB OH BBMom100+ posts
Coach May,

Thank you for your response! I wish my son's teammates could have read that during the season!

To the other posters on the site: The 18u team (all HS grads except 1 catcher) was put together specifically for the purpose of playing quality competition in order to prepare for college fall ball. As I mentioned earlier, all of our players but 1 had already committed to playing ball in college (3 D1, 3 D2, 2 NAIA, the rest - about 10 - D3). For the most part, it was the D3 boys who showed up and appreciated the chance for the work, knowing that they would be battling for a roster spot or playing time in the fall. One of our D2 players, a pitcher, showed up even when he wasn't pitching. It's a good thing he did, because there were a few games when he was an "emergency" right fielder!
zombywoofzombywoof1,000+ posts
quote:
I realize there are many legitimate reasons for not playing ball. My point is if you know ahead of time that you will not be able to make it to at least half of the games, why commit to play?


Because players still want to play baseball and make some money working a summer job. Coaches know this and roster a large team expecting some no-shows. As long as the players are responsible enough to give the coaches enough notice on those days they won't be there, then it should be no problem.

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