2015 LHP looking for advice

22...I'll share a little bit of my 2013 LHP story. Did not play Frosh year, school he attended did not have BB team. Transfers to small catholic school plays varsity soph year. He began to get interest from travel/showcase that summer. Attended 2 school camps that showed interest. Very interested, but no offers.Son made a list of 50 schools D1,2,3 NAIA. Reached out to them all, visited many (unofficial)during travels over the course of summer after soph year & beginning of junior year. Unofficial visits were great, gave my son confidence to talk with coaches as well as it gave him the feel of the school. When it was time for him to make a decision, he had been to a lot of schools and knew what he liked and didn't like.Summer after junior year it got interesting, several D1 schools were actively courting him, but know offers. RC's came to see him at several events & he attended several camps including Stanford. Because my son was not a 90+ guy (83-87) 6'3" they wanted see him again. This became a recurring theme during the summer and just when we were thinking an offer was coming as told by the RC, we were asked to attend another camp/event. Then after an August tournament, a RC who had seen him pitch called & said they liked him & wanted to move quickly. This school had not been in the top 10 for whatever reason (very successful D1). He was asked to come to a camp to pitch for the HC. The following week invited for official visit & a nice offer was extended. He was told it was good for 1 week. He accepted & signed NLI in November.

I tell you this because it is a roller coaster ride, a good one, but very stressful. He was able to make the quick decision because of all the leg work prior to that OV. He knew what he wanted & more importantly they wanted him. This is a dance, that is mostly slow, then turns to a fast dance quickly. The other RC's that were dancing slowly missed out & a couple acknowledged that after he accepted his offer. Hopefully this will help you & your son.

Side note: It was some of the best time I spent with my son. Good luck and enjoy the dance! Feel free to PM me if you want to contact me.      

I would make a list of the schools that your son is interested in and then match that with the interest from the coaches. If there is a program that he is very serious about and they are not then have him get in contact with them and let them know of his interest. 

We started with schools that fit his academic profile, wants and needs, and then blended it with baseball afterward. Once you spend some time doing this then it will become apparent where the best fit is. Being a LH pitcher with promise gives him a little more leverage, but in the end make sure he goes to a place that he will be comfortable with. Sometimes kids don't think through issues like distance from home, culture, academics and end up being unhappy. If you/he plans up front then he will have a better chance of making the right choice.

Best of luck!

BOF & Picked Off thanks for some great insight. The tough part picking schools he likes. Without some sort of visit its hard to know how much you really like a school. He hasn't really zeroed in on Major yet, just floating some idea's. There were several schools in the Lina's and even one in Fla that has been really courting him hard however at this early stage we have learned that he prefers being close to home (good for me lol). 2 Big East Schools that are both moving to the Big 10 are very interested and we have visited them both and they both seen him in Jupiter. Both are hinting towards a verbal this summer. Another NEC school who seen him in Fla wants us to come for un-OV next week during their practice and a tour afterwards, not sure what's up with that yet but they have been very complimentary of him.

LeftyDad22,

You're in a fantastic position to learn more about the schools and the process.  Continue doing whatever it is that you are doing, and my suggestion would be to follow BOF's advice.  Begin making lists, educating yourself on the topic, and have a real heart to heart with your son about what it is that he wants out of college.  Does he want to play college baseball or is college baseball a means to another end.   These aren't easy answers, and it will take some time.

I'm sure your son is excited about many of the opportunities that have presented themselves but it soon will be time to think about what he wants.  There are many, many choices.  I would do a lot of homework on the topic and listen to what others have done in similiar situations as well.  The message board is a fantastic resource.   Everybodys path and choices are different, and it is great to listen to how others went about it, so when it is your son's time he'll be ready.  The more research we did on college baseball recruiting the more we found out it was about us.  You have to know what your son wants, and the best way to do that is expose him to all the options that interest him.   Good luck!

LeftyDad22,

My addition to the good advice already given here:

Your son may still seem young to you; but, he's not too young to begin taking the lead on his development as a player. By "development," I mean not only the on-the-field part; but, I mean the off-the-field-part, as well.

Important to the "off-the-field" portion are two variables: (1) academics and (2) his recruitment. As you'll see many times on this website, good grades can be a very important factor in the recruiting equation; not to mention what they provide beyond baseball-related considerations.

As far as his recruitment is concerned, it's entirely reasonable for him to begin to be the one who leads the way. It makes all the difference when he's the one pulling you toward the goal; looking to you as a resource. This implies that he takes a consistently active role in doing much of the research mentioned above, that he be the one who communicates with coaches, etc. 

Baseball played successfully at the highest levels requires passion, determination, and perseverance. It's not too early for him to begin reflecting that in the way he approaches his academics and his recruitment. If he'll do so, you'll be pleased and grateful down the road with how it grows him as a person and furthers his baseball career.

Best of luck to him!

keep in mind  that it is not always the school   you want but the school that wants nyou  that a player  ends  up at..  you do not always have the choice

in  addition it helps to  be on a summer// fall team that gets great exposure--  if you have the talen and do this you will get a lot of interest

WOW you all have been very helpful, thanks so much! He has good grades, mostly A's with a B+ or two mixed in however he is not a very good test taker. He gets good grades because of his diligence in homework, projects and labs. For example he will get a 105 on a project but only get an 85 on a test. This concerns me for when he takes his SAT's. I plan on having him tutored this summer hope and pray that will help. More and more he has been doing the communicating with the coaches but I am always right there monitoring, should I back off a little and leave it mostly up to him?? I feel I need to stay involved to make sure he is saying the right things.

Excellent and I wish the both of you the very best.  My 2017 has attended a couple of college camps over the past year plus.  I let him do all of the talking, but I have coached him on how to do it and what to say (and not say .  I do try, if it's possible, to stay within earshot and pick up some of the conversation.  So far he has been doing well for himself, but it does take practice.

Since he is a 2015 you have time, we made mini vacations out of visits to school so he got an idea of what his likes and dislikes were. Since HS baseball will likely take away the spring break opportunities I would plan for the summer, fall and Christmas break as times to organize some family trips to schools, both as official and unofficial visits. School size, location, program, facilities, dorms, majors, housing after dorms, all factor in. I helped my son make up a "T Chart" (pluses vs minuses) that he did on each visit. Have him make up a binder to keep track of it all since they will tend to blur together. It really helps them mature and think about their future. You will be surprised at how he will develop an understanding of what best suites him. Admissions offices will always arrange for tours, even if he is not in touch with the coach.

As far as helping him, by all means help him organize the lists, and help him draft the first few emails, and make sure you proof every one he sends out.  We set up an email account that he managed and I helped him with, but the emails and calls were always his. I would pretend to be the coach and have him practice talking to me, and after some roll playing he became an expert at dealing with the recruiting coaches. BTW my wife still thinks most college recruiting coaches are used car salesmen. 

It is a great experience to get closer to as a family. My wife and I would sit with him and let him talk about what he liked and disliked, my wife would have one opinion, I would have another and he would have another. I will say this, moms in particular are very insightful.

Enjoy the process as it can be maddening at times.  

LeftyDad22 posted....For example he will get a 105 on a project but only get an 85 on a test. This concerns me for when he takes his SAT's. I plan on having him tutored this summer hope and pray that will help. More and more he has been doing the communicating with the coaches but I am always right there monitoring, should I back off a little and leave it mostly up to him??

 As parent, you are "coaching" him about what is possible.  You've identified "test taking" as an improvement area, and you've taken action by having him tutored.  Great move.  Keep in mind there are many self-help free resources (Kahn Academy comes to mind) on a topics that you can use together with the tutor in a particular subject.  The better student, test taker and baseball player the more options he will have with colleges.  You may also consider the ACT which tests more knowledge learned than aptitude and reasoning does with the SAT.  My two oldest sons have taken both tests, and concluded the tests are vastly different.

My philosophy has always been to "teach him how to fish" when it comes to phone, email and face to face communication with college recruiters or college coaches.  You want to show him how to do it, and then let him do it.   You will be amazed at how quickly these young men grow up when they take ownership of their recruiting effort.  As you would expect some kids take longer than others to feel comfortable communicating with college coaches.  Be patient.  Most college coaches know how get them to relax.  You should always be there for him as a resource (after the conversation), but let him handle all conversations until it comes to commitment and financial decisions.  Then the parent needs to step back-in IMHO.

If you have questions, come back here to ask them.  You've got folks who are playing (or have played) at the highest levels of major & minor leagues, top 25 college, all levels of D1, D2, D3, NAIA, JUCO, and high school.  I submit all the answers/advice is right here on HSBBWeb, you just have to ask the right question or use the search function on a particular subject.  Good luck!