2019 (Soph) on JV.....will it hurt recruiting chances?

Similar thing happened with my 2010 when he was a freshman and played basketball that delayed involvement with the HS baseball team (I know, he was only a Freshman . . .but there was talk of playing on Varsity by the coach).  He was placed on JV and later before the league games started, he was brought up to play in a couple varsity games where the coach was sizing him up.  He did well then and never went back to JV and was a starter of varsity ever since. 

So, let me say this:

This may be that the coach is simply giving him time to get up to speed before moving him up to the varsity team, which is not uncommon.  Give it some time to see what coach does and if your 2019 gets a chance to play in a  varsity game or two before regular season games starts, that'll be the chance for him to show that he belongs.  In any case, it's really not that big a deal for his baseball at this time anyway.  This coming summer is where he'll need to shine to keep the interest he's already generated and make some more.   And certainly, he'll need to be on the varsity team when he's a Jr.

I simply say NO, to answer your question.

Good luck to your son and enjoy the ride!  

I hope not. Sounds like a ballplayer. My son actually was one of 3 freshmen listed as "swing" players on our JV that could play varsity as freshmen. Well, my son was pretty much JV and rarely played his fresh year with the big boys. Deference to a Sr SS kept him on the bench. The Sr couldn't hit his way out a paper bag either ( i had forgotten about this story).

Anyway, staying on JV into his Soph year he was untouchable on the mound and moved up to varsity later in season. Good for him to get the mound time. Junior year came out touching 93 and the rest is history. County pitcher of the year and never looked back.

Best of luck to your son!

We have a senior at our high school.  

9th grade - freshmen squad

10 grade - JV squad

11 grade - varsity 

He picked up an offer from Power 5 last fall. 

So, I say doesn't matter. 

College coaches are aware of potential "politics" in high school baseball.  What truly matters in being recruited is what you are doing when the college coach's eyes are on you.  If you're playing up to their level, it won't matter if you were on JV as a sophomore...it also won't matter where you're ranked on a showcase site, or if you start on the travel team.  Play well in front of the right audience and it takes care of itself.  

I wouldn't worry about it.  College coaches could care less what he does against HS pitching if they've already seen him play in top level events.  Unless one of the colleges is close to you, there's almost zero chance they would get a chance to see him play a HS game anyway.  My son is at a D1.....started getting some interest from colleges the winter before his junior season but never had one coach come see him play....heck, we sent them schedules and I don't think HS was ever even mentioned in a conversation with any of the coaches.  Next summer will tell a lot for your son....if he is already drawing D1 interest, he's going to be fine.

I agree with Brian.  So long as the athlete has the "tools" the college coaches are looking for it doesn't matter what team (JV or Varsity) he plays on.

Definitely does not matter! Two players at our high school with great D1 offers (one Pac12) both played JV as sophomores. Some of the players who were on varsity as frosh and sophs have zero offers! 

One thing I am not seeing is what size/quality of the program you are in. Largest classification in the state and routinely competes for state titles? Maybe the two classes ahead of your son have 7-10 college players, has to be considered. 

I imagine your sons talent is not lost on the coach.

One of the things my sons' high school coaches have said in our parent meetings is that they have a couple of days (and in Nebraska those are in a gym) to size up the talent of the players trying out.  They will probably get it wrong sometimes.  If he plays another sport and it's a new coach then he really only did have a couple of days.  If he is anything like our coaches he will continue evaluating during the season and make adjustments where needed.  And as others have said, if he's already gotten the attention of college coaches it really won't matter anyway.

Brensdad posted:

One thing I am not seeing is what size/quality of the program you are in. Largest classification in the state and routinely competes for state titles? Maybe the two classes ahead of your son have 7-10 college players, has to be considered. 

I imagine your sons talent is not lost on the coach.

Ditto!  My sons high school currently has 7 college committed players on Varsity, and more than one being considered for the draft.  It's not uncommon for some really good players to spend two years on JV because Varsity is stacked.

Personally, I would rather my 10th grader get to play often on JV than sit the bench while the Seniors and Committed players get playing time on Varsity.

Its pretty normal at our HS for the coaches to keep the kids together with their classes.  There are a few exceptions here and there, but for the most part you progress up with your class.  Frosh team (A or B team), Soph Team (only 1 team) and then Varsity/JV (one team - if you don't get significant V playing time you get to play in the JV games).  

Last year we had 5 kids move on to playing college ball, 1 D1, and the rest D3.   This year we have 6 kids commit or sign NLIs.  2 D1, 1 Juco, the rest D3 and will probably have a few more before the end of the year. 

All of these kids except 2 progressed up as mentioned.  None of the college guys cared that they progressed up normally.  In fact, AFAIK, there were only 1 or 2 college guys watching any games last year, and then it was to see a late 2016 prospect.  The majority of the recruiting is done through showcase/travel ball. 

No, it does not matter. 

And has been discussed here many times, high school stats don't matter either.

College coaches and pro scouts primarily assess tools.  Based on their experience and what they see, they project whether a player fits in their program. 

Do not worry about it. Just enjoy the time you get to spend watching him play.

Just to give you an idea of how this doesn't hurt, we had a kid on our summer team who is a stud behind the plate. He plays for a solid high school ho had a draft pick behind the plate. His sophomore season, not only was he not on varsity - he didn't even start on JV. All of this while sporting a 1.75 pop time and a LOT of power. At a tournament over the summer at a Power 5 team (and a traditional powerhouse, at that) he was launching them over the fence with wood. He received an offer (and committed) of 55%, including COA. So, no, they could care less if you're on varsity and have the tools.

BrianTRC posted:

College coaches are aware of potential "politics" in high school baseball.  

College coaches are also leery of parents who drop "politics" as a reason for anything happening in the kid's career.

We had two kids last year, one a Junior and one a Sophomore who both were first year Varsity players. Junior barely threw his first Varsity season, is now a D1 commit to a very good school. Soph barely pitched (control issues) but also had some non-throwing related injuries that cost him ABs and general playing time (he has a big bat). He committed to a high caliber D1 during his rising Junior summer and is a highly regarded pitcher. 

JV asa sophomore (especially as a pitcher in my view) is not a big deal, and as others have said, you have no control over who is ahead of you in the pipeline.

It was the Spring of 1997 and all the pro scouts mentioned a young LHP at Vallejo HS. His name was C.C. Sabathia.  Decided to make the journey to Vallejo and during my walk across the field I passed a JV game and watch a young right handed hitter with good bat speed and foot speed and strong arm. He reminded me of Henry Aaron. I placed both players in the Area Code games and Goodwill Series International.

5 years later, the young OF graduated from SF State University.

"Keep swinging, you never know who is watching".

Bob

Exposure comes from showcases and showcase level tournaments. The competition is better than high school. Talent will show through. College recruiters understand some high school programs are loaded and/or the coach only selects juniors and seniors for varsity.

The only questions asked of my kid's high school careers was about their leadership, character and ability to handle academics and athletics together. 

One of my daughter's high school softball teammates verballed two years before making varsity. From a high school perspective she had the misfortune of being one year behind one of the top pitchers in the state. She proved herself as one of the top travel pitchers in the region.

I know of 2 players that, because of the schools they were at, committed to D1 and played a whole year of JV and this was in the last 5 years.  I am not sure when the "my kid is to good for JV as a sophomore" attitude started.  FYI....that was a in general statement that was directed at the OP.

Not that big of a deal. Most players are recruited from summer and fall travel teams anyway. The colleges dont always ask for your sons high school stats. If he does well at showcases and tourneys where there are high level talent at most positions, he will fare much better than a platoon player on Varsity...have fun playing on JV. Enjoy watching him play every inning of eveery game. Hard to get better any other way...

hshuler posted:

We have a senior at our high school.  

9th grade - freshmen squad

10 grade - JV squad

11 grade - varsity 

He picked up an offer from Power 5 last fall. 

So, I say doesn't matter. 

Of course it doesn't matter.  Things are relative in high school.  Sometimes the talent is questionable on varsity and a promising freshman or sophomore may get a chance on varsity.  Sometimes, the varsity team is loaded and a player just has to bide his time on JV's. 

My son's graduating class was 1100.  Over 100 kids tried out for the freshmen team.  It was a big deal to make and play on the freshmen team and then again to make/play on the JV team the following year.  He got called up late to varsity his sophomore year and both of us felt like we had won the lottery.  He was the starting shortstop on a State Championship team as a junior and went on to be All-State as a senior while leading his team back to the State Championships as the only returning player from the year before.  He went on from there to be a starting D1 shortstop at a top southern baseball school (last years D1 National Champions) and now is in his 10th year of professional baseball where the only thing he has not done is play in the big leagues.  I am pretty sure playing JV's as a sophomore did not harm his career.      

It's not going to hurt him. My son didn't play varsity until his junior year was the best thing for him. If your son got the tools he will get recruited. Jv don't  mean your child is not good by any means. I think it means more to the parents sometimes than the players. Remember it's not about us !!

I'll echo what most others have said - it won't hurt his recruiting as long as he has the tools.  I'll also add one piece of advice for him that I've told numerous people before - "Grow where you're planted".

Meaning whatever role he's given, be the very best at that role instead of griping about how he should be given a different role.  If he's relegated to pinch runner, and gets picked off 5 times in 5 appearances, guess who isn't going to be given a more high profile role?

On the other hand, if he steps up on JV, becomes a team leader and contributes to the team, he shows that he's ready for Varsity.

Thrive in the role/position you're given, regardless of the role/position you think you deserve, and good things will come.

In my experience, the summer team is much more important.  My boys play for a very good high school team (nationally ranked) and all of the recruiting attention that our team has had seems to have come from their travel team.

No. Not at all as long as he kicks but. Agree with other's advice. Get in with a good well respected travel organization. If you're in the Carolinas, the Dirtbags and Canes organizations are two of the best.  

Westcostpapa - I can attest that not playing varsity as a sophomore doesn't hurt college chances. My LHP got cut his freshman and sophomore years from JV. He tried out as a junior and made varsity. However, he got very little pitching time but when he did fared well. He doesn't have overpowering stuff (82-84) but good control with a nasty change and curve ball. During the summer between his junior and senior years, he was the primarily reliever for his travel team. He got attention from several D2, D3 and NAIA schools, and he made sure to let coaches of schools he was interested in know where he was playing. Just about every weekend there was coach at his games watching him. Several time coaches came out to watch him pitch and then leave, even though there were good players/pitchers on the field. It was obvious they were there to watch him. He ended up getting offers from several D3 and NAIA schools. He decided on a D3 close to home because of their academic program. When he told his high school coach he was participating in the school's signing day, the coach was surprised and made the comment he had talked to any college coach about my son. My son's response was priceless, told the coach he been talking to them for two years. Had my son not signed with a college, I think the coach might have cut him as a senior. He pitched very little his senior year, but was 1-0 with a save, 14 ks, 5 walks, and no lie a 0.000 ERA. Don't know how much he'll pitch as a freshman this year because of the large roster but he is using the year to get stronger and pick up his velocity.

Great story and great for your son. Obviously, he took the bull by the horns when he needed to performing well for his travel team and in front of coaches. I wish him all the best in his college career....and thx for the feedback.

I can quickly think of two D1 baseball players who did not make their varsity team (initially) as a junior in HS.  Thats right, junior.

One played at Stanford, the other at USF (San Francisco).  The latter was eventually a 2nd round draft pick (pitcher).  He did make it up to varsity after a few weeks on JV as a junior, but was the #3 pitcher that year on his HS team.

He played in double-A this past year - good chance to be in the big leagues by the end of next year.

JBoss posted:

Westcostpapa - I can attest that not playing varsity as a sophomore doesn't hurt college chances. My LHP got cut his freshman and sophomore years from JV. He tried out as a junior and made varsity. However, he got very little pitching time but when he did fared well. He doesn't have overpowering stuff (82-84) but good control with a nasty change and curve ball. During the summer between his junior and senior years, he was the primarily reliever for his travel team. He got attention from several D2, D3 and NAIA schools, and he made sure to let coaches of schools he was interested in know where he was playing. Just about every weekend there was coach at his games watching him. Several time coaches came out to watch him pitch and then leave, even though there were good players/pitchers on the field. It was obvious they were there to watch him. He ended up getting offers from several D3 and NAIA schools. He decided on a D3 close to home because of their academic program. When he told his high school coach he was participating in the school's signing day, the coach was surprised and made the comment he had talked to any college coach about my son. My son's response was priceless, told the coach he been talking to them for two years. Had my son not signed with a college, I think the coach might have cut him as a senior. He pitched very little his senior year, but was 1-0 with a save, 14 ks, 5 walks, and no lie a 0.000 ERA. Don't know how much he'll pitch as a freshman this year because of the large roster but he is using the year to get stronger and pick up his velocity.

Close to 70 names on the web site...wow, just wow. I assume they won't all be carried over to the spring.

Aren't D3 signing days just for show? They're not signing/committing to anything. They're not getting athletic money. The kid might be #50 on the roster and never dress for a game. 

RJM posted:

Aren't D3 signing days just for show? They're not signing/committing to anything. They're not getting athletic money. The kid might be #50 on the roster and never dress for a game. 

pretty sure all signing days regardless if they are getting something or not are just for show....if not for show what else would they be for?

to take it a step more I can find 1000 or posts on this site about awesome it is for a kid to play at any level, how much commitment is required by the athlete and so forth...but now the signing days only matter if you are getting few bucks...maybe the some of the kids in D3 are getting considerably more money for the academics D3 then they would have for the athletic D2....

RJM posted:

Aren't D3 signing days just for show? They're not signing/committing to anything. They're not getting athletic money. The kid might be #50 on the roster and never dress for a game. 

the more I think about it the arrogance of this post annoys me. Why would a kid committing to a D3 to study and play baseball mean anything less then a kid "getting something" we all know half or more of the freshmen D1 players "getting something" get cut, over reach, never play or never even enroll at the school. We also know that quite a few of the D2 and Juco kids are there because they aren't good enough to play D1 or smart enough to get into many of the D3's...but you are going to toss a who the hell cares you aren't signing anything comment at them?

old_school posted:

RJM posted:

Aren't D3 signing days just for show? They're not signing/committing to anything. They're not getting athletic money. The kid might be #50 on the roster and never dress for a game. 

pretty sure all signing days regardless if they are getting something or not are just for show....if not for show what else would they be for?

I agree with old_school.  All signing days are for show.  No need to imply the D3 signing is any less than a D1 signing.  Some D3 players turn out to be better than D1 players down the road so I am not sure why we need a distinction on signing day.  Committing to play for a college is a big deal imho regardless of the level.  Most of us never even played high school ball let alone college baseball so imho, signing to play at the collegiate level should be celebrated.

ClevelandDad posted:

old_school posted:

RJM posted:

Aren't D3 signing days just for show? They're not signing/committing to anything. They're not getting athletic money. The kid might be #50 on the roster and never dress for a game. 

pretty sure all signing days regardless if they are getting something or not are just for show....if not for show what else would they be for?

I agree with old_school.  All signing days are for show.  No need to imply the D3 signing is any less than a D1 signing.  Some D3 players turn out to be better than D1 players down the road so I am not sure why we need a distinction on signing day.  Committing to play for a college is a big deal imho regardless of the level.  Most of us never even played high school ball let alone college baseball so imho, signing to play at the collegiate level should be celebrated.

Just for clarification...is the letter the D1 commit signs on signing day a binding contract?  Or is that taken care of prior to that event?

In our admittedly small neck of the woods, they invite EVERY kid to the signing days, no matter what college level.  D1 draft guys sit next to D3 guys getting nothing but financial need money.  It's a great party for everyone.  All these guys have played together on all-star or travel teams, and against each other for many years.  All the parents know each other.  We're a D3 family and were grateful to be invited.  Our kid wasn't sure he wanted to, at first, but after he thought about it, he decided that his college commitment was worth celebrating with his summer and all star team buddies. 

So here is question, would you be happier for your child to get some money and have his signing from Ole Miss who is out recruiting 8th and 9th graders or for your son to get his financial aid package and play at Tuffs, Franklin and Marshall or Amherst?? of one of many top D3 schools...for me it is a no brainer.

old_school posted:

RJM posted:

Aren't D3 signing days just for show? They're not signing/committing to anything. They're not getting athletic money. The kid might be #50 on the roster and never dress for a game. 

the more I think about it the arrogance of this post annoys me. Why would a kid committing to a D3 to study and play baseball mean anything less then a kid "getting something" we all know half or more of the freshmen D1 players "getting something" get cut, over reach, never play or never even enroll at the school. We also know that quite a few of the D2 and Juco kids are there because they aren't good enough to play D1 or smart enough to get into many of the D3's...but you are going to toss a who the hell cares you aren't signing anything comment at them?

The kid signing his NLI may also be #50 on the roster and never dress for a game.  $ and NLI's don't get you in the lineup. 

ClevelandDad posted:

old_school posted:

RJM posted:

Aren't D3 signing days just for show? They're not signing/committing to anything. They're not getting athletic money. The kid might be #50 on the roster and never dress for a game. 

pretty sure all signing days regardless if they are getting something or not are just for show....if not for show what else would they be for?

I agree with old_school.  All signing days are for show.  No need to imply the D3 signing is any less than a D1 signing.  Some D3 players turn out to be better than D1 players down the road so I am not sure why we need a distinction on signing day.  Committing to play for a college is a big deal imho regardless of the level.  Most of us never even played high school ball let alone college baseball so imho, signing to play at the collegiate level should be celebrated.

I've always felt signing days were more about the high school than the player. Anyone who is really interested already knows where the kid is committed.

Its interesting after the travel team does most of the recruiting work for the player the high school gets the media exposure. Then on the college website the high school is listed. You might find the kid's travel team in the "personal" section.