2014 Anxiety

ClevelandDad,

I totally agree with you.  I can give you real examples of great parents, great kids and then same parents and kid who has been in and out of jail or prison since the age of 13.

Its all a crap shoot and lots of patience and prayer.

My sister tells the story of having her first child and how she thought she was the best parent that ever lived, as the kid was really great all the time.  Second child came and it was a whole new ballgame.  Nurture plays a huge part, and it should prevent anyone from judging most of he time.  

to get back on topic....anyone finding any anxiety relief yet????????

not yet, had 14 colleges watching my 2014 pitch today(he did well . a couple are talking to him. we  are planning a "media blitz" with those that have shown interest. We are getting help with what to send from his summer coaches. if anyone here has ideeas as well that would be great.  we are sitting down tomorrow (wife, son, myself) and plan visits in august along with which prospect camps to go too. 2014 will then contact coaches to set up. after this weekend, one more big tournament, then summer season will be over unless he is picked up for another team but truthfully in ohio it has at most 2 more weekends after he is done.  

My son is feeling good today. He received emails from head coaches at two schools on his list. Both of them saw him play at The Stanford All Star Camp and are requesting his transcripts,ACT scores,next years class schedule.They both said they will call later in the week, and are excited that my son has an interest in their school(s) . One coach said  that my son might be a perfect fit for this small recruiting class(5-6 players). Both coaches gave my son their cell phone number

I believe this is real interest.

After my son got back from Stanford, we decided to find out where he stands. So he sent an email to about 25 coaches that were at The All Star Camp.He had a short list of questions like ;

* Did you see me play ?

*What did you think ?

* How do I compare with others that you have recruited in my position ?

These are all questions that I gleaned from this site.Major props to BOF for posting that incredible list of questions to ask

So far about half of the coaches have responded.The ones who did respond were indeed very candid ! There were a couple that said that they are done recruiting 2014's for my son's position(s),A few others stated that my son was in their "mix" but was not their at the top of their board for his position(s).A couple others said that they believe my  son could contribute to their team offensively, but they would need to further evaluate his defense and speed.And there were a couple that said while he is not at the top of their board right now, the situation is fluid and can change at anytime.And, of course there were the two emails that were very positive

I'm actually happy my son asked the coaches these questions.At least now he knows where he stands(for the most part) at some schools on his list.One piece of advice that FenwaySouth and Blue10 have told me is to keep working these lists ! Don't close any doors and keep communicating with the schools on your list.

Everything will work out in the end. It's all good 

Lot's of anxiety here.  The boy was 0 for Georgia this week at the plate, but shined in the field. Don't you just wish there was a viagra for hitting slumps?  They palyed FTB Chandler in the single elimination round, who trucked out 5 pitchers in the game who topped and sat

over 90.  I am not sure there are 5 pitchers in New York who top 90.

The next month will be crucial as he is a high academic kid and will be seen by everyone he wants to be seen by.  He is no blue-chipper, but loves the game and wants to play.  By the way, I have hepled him with questionnaires because he asked for my advice - just as I will help him with a resume and cover letters when he graduates from college if he needs it.  He owns the process, but I ill do what I can to help him. 

Lots of anxiety here too!  Things are happening really fast.  Top choice programs that our son has been communicating with are letting our son know that he is not a good fit at their school, a school that he did not know was interested in him has talked about money and a visit on the first phone conversation (there had only been one email response from the coach and son had written the coach a few times with no response) and brand new schools who saw him at the Stanford Camp have expressed what feels like real interest. One month ago we were thinking that 2014 should just apply to top choice schools and try to walk on. Things can go really fast with baseball recruiting.  One month ago the three schools that are showing the most interest in my son had never communicated with him.  I do not know if any of this will translate to offers, but he is talking with coaches now.

2014Prospect - Your post is what the OldTimers refer to as the recruiting rollercoaster.  Hang on!

Fenway,

I really understand that term better now, up and down, up and down...

The bottom line is that for most, real recruiting doesn't begin until senior summer.

Best of luck, let us know how things work out for him!

With all due respect TPM, don't you mean summer after Junior year and during Senior year. Our experience was that schools are looking at the next group once Senior year is completed. Yes there are still opportunities, but most kids have committed by then.

No I meant senior summer, the summer before senior year. That is when things begin to heat up for most seniors in the country.

You said it brother--"So in the end go where you can play"

Last fall 2014 pitched in the PG tourney in Fort Myers drew Orlando Scorpions Prime,  Then two weeks ago draws Dulin Dodgers and last week in PG WWBA draws Marucci Elite....these three teams made it to the final four of the 17 WWBA.

What's the chances ?  BTW the way his record is 1-1 ND

Well, a few weeks go by and some kids on our team are getting visits from pro agents that say they will be top round picks, some kids are starting to make decisions on where they are going to commit, and some have received no emails or calls at all to date.  Not sure if people in the latter category are glad to be playing with the highly recruited or not, as it clearly is creating dual feelings of happiness for kid and family, but angst as to if it will ever happen for their son.  Think about it, your kid is a LHP that is effective but only throws low to mid 80s at best, or he hits well but is under 6' and does not run less than 7 in the 60.  At present all the attention goes to the 90+, 6'3"+, sub 7 guys.  What should a parent do to put kid on the radar if not one of these highly touted guys?  When do they start getting love?

If a player has enough heart, tenacity and ability, the "love" will come, but sometimes at a very different time  than the the time parents think should happen.  Baseball is truly "the" marathon!

Aleebaba, here is a link to an article about Ben Klimesh. Ben was cut from his HS team and recently was selected to the MWL All-Star team before being moved to High A in Milb.

http://chicago.sbnation.com/ch...15th-round-interview

Also attached is a link to a thread I posted on a friend our our son's, Daniel Nava. Daniel was cut as a freshman in college and offered a position as the team manager. He is  now roving the outfield in Fenway.

https://community.hsbaseballweb.com/topic/team-manager-doing-laundry-to

I can fully relate the angst of a parent at this stage.  Our family shared them when one D3 stepped up and pursued our son through his entire senior year in HS,before a number of D1's and JC's became involved. What is so hard at the stage leading into the senior year in HS is the fact that baseball is so different from every other college sport, or most any sport.  The period from age 17 to 21 is transitional for many players who get lost at age 17-18 and cannot be missed when they are 20-21.

Some will get plenty of love.Others  might not get the love our son "hoped" or we as parents "expect."  If they have talent, tenacity and "guts" the love might be quite distant into the future as it was for Klimesh and Nava.  Again, having been through the journey you and others  are starting, I would encourage patience and the appreciation of just how long  a marathon can be. For our son, I won't ever forget the only love being from the D3 followed by the rich and wonderful feelings of  draft day soon followed by  his running onto the field in the 2005 Midwest League All Star game  and knowing he "proved" he belonged!

Good luck to your son and all those son's and parents impacted with the anxiety of the process!

Aleebaba I feel your pain, I too am a 2014 dad as well that is feeling the angst and frustration of the recruiting process.  My son was an All-League, All-State OF this past season with quite a bit of interest coming from a few D1s and some more D2s and D3s.

Just as the HS season ended he fractured his wrist (Hamate bone) and missed the first 6-7 weeks of the summer ball season.  He is back now and is just starting to get back to where he was at the end of the HS season, but summer ball is wrapping up in another 2-3 weeks.  Many of the colleges he reached out to showed up to his games only to not see him play.  If I believe what many of his coaches have said – he would have had a number of offers already had it not been for the injury.  To top it off, he too is seeing teammates and players he knows getting their offers/opportunities to play at the next level, which I know is affecting him deeply.

I feel like this initial window of opportunity is starting to close, at least from a D1 perspective.  I realize there is still time and obviously nothing will start to get finalized until November, but again its hard not to feel a little discouraged.

I think I am keeping up a good “game face” and attitude for him during this tough time, but believe me when I say we are going thru antacid like candy in my household right now.

Unfortunately I have no advice nor can I answer your question (What should a parent do ….?), I am only sharing in our mutual frustration, stress and anxiety over the collegiate recruiting process.

The only thing I can say is we are heeding the advice of what many bloggers have said in the past – “change what you can, accept what you can’t.”  My son is channeling his frustration into amping-up his strength and speed training regimen, which we normally don’t do “in-season” but I think it helps him cope.  There is still the Fall scout team/season he plays on and the Arizona Fall Classic in October.  With a lot a hard work until then and a little bit of luck … things will hopefully work out.

Good luck …. keep posting updates on your son’s developments, I trust good news is in the near future.

Aleebaba - Is your son going to be HeadFirst next week?  PM me if he is.  You will KNOW, after HeadFirst, what his recruiting status is relative to his true peers.  Remember, the kids being scouted for the draft aren't really competing with your son for recruiting spots.  As I recall your son's situation, his peers will be at HeadFirst.

I think the parent should kinda step back and let the kid deal with the situation on and off the field.

It makes perfect sense that the more talented kids are getting more attention or earlier attention than the less talented kids. How else would anyone want it and expect it to be? If this natural and logical state of affairs in sports and life is causing angst, I think it may be due to unrealistic expectations that need to be changed.

Back when the player was entering high school it might have been helpful for the parents to advise him that 90+ pitchers get taken before low 80s pitchers and sub-7 second middle infielders get taken before the over-7 second kids. But if a 2014 does not understand that today, July 25, 2013..............well maybe it is never too late.

How should less talented kids get on the radar? I would suggest (the player, not the parent) start working even harder and redoubling efforts to keep up communication with coaches/scouts.

part of the problem with these camps is most of the schools attending do look at players but most do not have open spots for all positions at 2014 grad class. I spoke to at least 25 recruiters for schools from div 1 thru d3 in the last few weeks and most will be honest with what their needs are if they know you dont have a kid of your own in mind. I can say almost all schools said they were saving some spots for a few arms but mostly were done with the 2014 grad class.