@anotherparent posted:That's too bad, Arceku21, hope he gets through it well.
Thanks. Actually a blessing in disguise. He gets to push reset on his freshman year, and come back bigger and stronger. He is in great spirits. He is pumped to get back to work once he is allowed to.
Lemonade from lemons. Winner's attitude.
My guy did. not. have. a. good. week. last week. Appearances on consecutive days, and 0 outs. So hard to watch, even on a crappy video feed. He's handling it better than I am. Gotta give him credit for that. Another pitcher's dad was at both the games and said my son's velo was down 5mph from normal. That dad thought all the pitchers are tired coming off their spring trip. Rainouts forced a lot of games closer together on the calendar, taxing everyone. No mid-week game this week, so hoping everyone is fresher. Fingers crossed.
@ARCEKU21 posted:My son's season came to an end last week. He has been battling a stress reaction in his elbow since the summer after his junior year. Took that following fall off to try to heal it, but it looks like now it never really healed 100%. Had an MRI done on his arm after the last time he pitched, turns out the stress reaction turned into a stress fracture (of the olecranon). So today he had a procedure done to put a screw in his elbow to fix the fracture. Back to swinging a bat in 3 months, return to throwing in 4 months, and doc said he should be back to 100% on the mound at the end of the summer.
Good news is that he comes in below the criteria for a medical exemption. The school filed it for him. So looks like he will get a do over on his freshman year with a repaired arm.
For those who have been following Duke, Duke's #1 pitcher (possible 1st round pick) had the same procedure done last season.
Sorry to read. My son had elbow problems for several years that resulted in the elbow surgery your son had plus an internal brace for his ligament so he got the two for one deal that probably in the long run gave him a college career. It took about 5 to 6 months to recover, he got the surgery just before Thanksgiving of his senior HS year and was able to play a little bit on his final HS season. He was pretty much throwing at max velo without pain in the fall of freshman year and still gets some mild phantom pain in the cold and numbness by the ligament. I am glad to read your son is getting an exemption.
Son is travelling to a state that just had a Nor'Easter and 25% without power. The weekend weather forecast is bleak. Yikes, God bless those parents who is going to trek north to watch the games.
@smokeminside posted:Lemonade from lemons. Winner's attitude.
My guy did. not. have. a. good. week. last week. Appearances on consecutive days, and 0 outs. So hard to watch, even on a crappy video feed. He's handling it better than I am. Gotta give him credit for that.
Ugh. 2 days in a row against the same team often doesn't go well.
Saw it with my son too, recently. I don't understand how they deal with it. I guess that's one of those intangible benefits of sports.
Son sets all-time appearance record for University of Tennessee. Now at 106.
Pitching fan:
"outstanding" ! A new Mike Marshall.
Bob
@PitchingFan posted:Son sets all-time appearance record for University of Tennessee. Now at 106.
Congrats! Gotta believe that will hold up for a while.
That's awesome! Congrats
@PitchingFan posted:Son sets all-time appearance record for University of Tennessee. Now at 106.
Huge achievement!
My soph son started the season with his role mostly being first out of the pen. He didn't throw in the fall because of an arm injury (more to follow). For the most part looked very good out of the pen. Average FB velo up 4mph, and able to throw his slider and change up on any count. A few weeks in they moved him to Friday starter. First outing pitched 5 scoreless for the a win, similar second outing but didn't get the win. Basically going 5+ every Friday. Two weeks ago didn't recover well after a start. Long story short having TJ surgery hopefully next week...I'll post to my other TJ thread with the details.
@nycdad Sorry to hear of your son's injury. Wishing him the best moving forward.
The only certainty in life and baseball is they are both not fair.
I wish we had a HATE button next to the heart button @nycdad. Sorry about your son and hoping for a full recovery and opportunity for all around growth for him as a baseball player and a human!
Kid went on a tear 4 HRs in 6 games with almost 1 or 2 more but caught as the OF fell over the makeshift fence. He then sprains an ankle while running to first. He is hoping to return for the final weekend game. Team is on the conference playoff bubble.
3 weeks to go for D3. It seems to have flown by, as it always does.
@nycdad posted:My soph son started the season with his role mostly being first out of the pen. He didn't throw in the fall because of an arm injury (more to follow). For the most part looked very good out of the pen. Average FB velo up 4mph, and able to throw his slider and change up on any count. A few weeks in they moved him to Friday starter. First outing pitched 5 scoreless for the a win, similar second outing but didn't get the win. Basically going 5+ every Friday. Two weeks ago didn't recover well after a start. Long story short having TJ surgery hopefully next week...I'll post to my other TJ thread with the details.
nycdad, very sorry to hear about this and best wishes to your son for a great recovery!
It is now officially RPI canceling season, lol.
Kid's team is getting ready for the conference playoffs on Saturday. Their last game was yesterday against a very good team. They held the lead until the 8th and lost a close one...seems to be a theme with this year's team. I will make the 5 hour drive to the middle of nowhere to support them and hoping they can extend their season a little longer. My son is disappointed about the season and he was informed there will be a significant reduction in roster next year. He has been great in responding to struggles and I absolutely trust him in managing his time for work, summer ball (he agreed to participate since he is going abroad this fall and will miss fall ball), training and fun. I hope my next post will be about the kid preparing for the next playoff series.
Needed a couple of days to recover, but sadly the kid's season is over! It was a both a tough and emotionally draining series. The team lost game 1 on a walk off homer, took game 2 on a nail biter and forced a game 3 on Sunday. It was played in a freezing monsoon and both team gave up a lot of runs, there was a lead, then a huuuuge deficit and a comeback that came up short. There was a lot of emotions, saying goodbye to the graduating players, and I was told the ride home was so quiet you can hear the players blinking. This is finals week so the kid is pretty occupied. He is going to recover from his injuries, likely skip summer ball.
@2022NYC posted:he was informed there will be a significant reduction in roster next year.
What does this mean? Did they have an over-large roster this year? Are they not replacing seniors or bringing in freshmen?
@anotherparent posted:What does this mean? Did they have an over-large roster this year? Are they not replacing seniors or bringing in freshmen?
Inflated rosters have been allowed post Covid and many schools have opted to do that. But as older players finally begin to age out of college baseball roster sizes are reducing to more normal numbers.
The reduction is due to title ix roster management and the cap is a ridiculously low number like 29 or 30.
How many did they have this year? Are they going to reduce by cutting current players, or just not admitting many?
I think what's happening at D3s is not quite the same as what's happening at D1s.
ISU... I think their conference record over the last two years is 40-8? Lost today by a run. Ranked #20. Forever grateful for the opportunity they gave my son to come back home and play some baseball.
@anotherparent posted:How many did they have this year? Are they going to reduce by cutting current players, or just not admitting many?
I think what's happening at D3s is not quite the same as what's happening at D1s.
Final roster was 32 this season as a couple players quit at the beginning. The team recruited 17 incoming freshman and will not cut the rising Sophs due to push back. Some of the rising seniors and juniors (my kid's class) was already cut.
Sports Center Top 10 Honorable Mention Catch
Son's JUCO team made it to the 2nd round of playoffs (1st time since 2017). Tough task ahead on Wednesday-Sunday, but who knows as its a double elimination so #whynotthem ?
In his 3rd year the coach has turned the program around.
@adbono is right about the JUCO route. Go where you can play and get reps, as that is the only way to get better.
He had a really good 2 years starting and will get to play next year at SFA.
Besides his defense in CF, this is the one thing that I'm most proud of............can't win if you don't score runs and you can't score runs if you don't get on base. Except for a few small blips, his OBP was over .450 both years while batting anywhere from 2nd, 5th (most of this year), to 9th last year.
I appreciate the acknowledgment by @russinfortworth. Had a chance to see his kid play last year when they took a swing thru North Texas.
In a nutshell this is my litmus test for recruiting after seeing what I have seen over the past few decades.
If a player is getting legitimate draft interest he is probably capable of getting significant D1 innings as a freshman
If a player is getting significant D1 interest (and multiple offers) he is probably capable of contributing at a D1 in his sophomore/junior year.
If a player is a tweener, getting mostly D2 interest but some D1, he should focus on the D2 offers. Do not turn down a D2 scholarship to walk on at a D1.
If a player is getting solid D2 offers he is probably capable of contributing at a D2 during his sophomore/junior year.
If a player is getting D3/NAIA interest (and offers) the first thing to determine is why he is being recruited. Is it b/c he is good enough to help the team win? Is it because his high GPA will help the team average? Is it because his tuition revenue will help fund the program? D3 programs often carry large rosters so it’s important to understand the pecking order. Many D3 rostered players seldom, if ever, see the field.
Notice that nothing said to this point mentions playing time as a freshman
If a player is receiving legitimate JuCo interest (scholarship offers) then he is probably capable of a meaningful contribution as a freshman. If offers are “walk on only” the same areas of caution apply that were mentioned in regard to D3/NAIA. Special attention should be paid to JV programs. They normally exist as a source of revenue - not a place to develop and move up.
If a player is only receiving walk on offers the writing is on the wall. It means that no school that has seen that player deems him worthy of a scholarship. That doesn’t necessarily mean the kid can’t play. But it does mean that he hasn’t proved that he can. This is the time when a player has to get very realistic about what his goals are and what his baseball future will look like, if there is one.
IMO, the overwhelming majority of HS players (that are legit college prospects) should go the JuCo route. By definition, the overwhelming majority would not include the top 5% of HS players. But most HS players are not finished products. They are still developing their game. And to continue developing they have to play. And they will play in JuCo before they would get on the field at almost any competitive 4 year program.
The level of play in the better JuCo programs is much higher than most people think. Don’t assume that just because a HS player is a HS Varsity starter he is good enough to play JuCo baseball. This is especially true in the smaller classifications. I saw a 4A HS (6A is largest class in TX) second round playoff game on Saturday. Not one player on either team was good enough to play in NJCAA Region 5.
There are always exceptions but as a general rule all of the above applies. I hope this is helpful to someone.
I notice now that I contradicted myself in the 7th paragraph. My apologies. I think everyone gets the drift tho.
@adbono posted:I appreciate the acknowledgment by @russinfortworth. Had a chance to see his kid play last year when they took a swing thru North Texas.
In a nutshell this is my litmus test for recruiting after seeing what I have seen over the past few decades.If a player is getting legitimate draft interest he is probably capable of getting significant D1 innings as a freshman
If a player is getting significant D1 interest (and multiple offers) he is probably capable of contributing at a D1 in his sophomore/junior year.
If a player is a tweener, getting mostly D2 interest but some D1, he should focus on the D2 offers. Do not turn down a D2 scholarship to walk on at a D1.
If a player is getting solid D2 offers he is probably capable of contributing at a D2 during his sophomore/junior year.
If a player is getting D3/NAIA interest (and offers) the first thing to determine is why he is being recruited. Is it b/c he is good enough to help the team win? Is it because his high GPA will help the team average? Is it because his tuition revenue will help fund the program? D3 programs often carry large rosters so it’s important to understand the pecking order. Many D3 rostered players seldom, if ever, see the field.
Notice that nothing said to this point mentions playing time as a freshman
If a player is receiving legitimate JuCo interest (scholarship offers) then he is probably capable of a meaningful contribution as a freshman. If offers are “walk on only” the same areas of caution apply that were mentioned in regard to D3/NAIA. Special attention should be paid to JV programs. They normally exist as a source of revenue - not a place to develop and move up.
If a player is only receiving walk on offers the writing is on the wall. It means that no school that has seen that player deems him worthy of a scholarship. That doesn’t necessarily mean the kid can’t play. But it does mean that he hasn’t proved that he can. This is the time when a player has to get very realistic about what his goals are and what his baseball future will look like, if there is one.
IMO, the overwhelming majority of HS players (that are legit college prospects) should go the JuCo route. By definition, the overwhelming majority would not include the top 5% of HS players. But most HS players are not finished products. They are still developing their game. And to continue developing they have to play. And they will play in JuCo before they would get on the field at almost any competitive 4 year program.
The level of play in the better JuCo programs is much higher than most people think. Don’t assume that just because a HS player is a HS Varsity starter he is good enough to play JuCo baseball. This is especially true in the smaller classifications. I saw a 4A HS (6A is largest class in TX) second round playoff game on Saturday. Not one player on either team was good enough to play in NJCAA Region 5.
There are always exceptions but as a general rule all of the above applies. I hope this is helpful to someone.
I support everything mentioned above, as I've seen it from both sides.
Oldest son was a HS "pitcher" (meaning RH and 85-87), but very successful in HS and at the elite level of summer ball. Pitched successfully at Jupiter and Connie Mack. 38-3 record in high school (including 10-1 in 5A Texas playoffs). 300+ K and less than 30 BB over 3 years. WHIP < 0.5. But had exactly 1 D1 offer AS A WALK ON.
After Connie Mack of senior year (7 IP 2H 1R 0ER) MANY JUCO offers came his way on his bus trip home (with school starting in 2 weeks), but he stayed true to his word and walked on at UTA. Earned a roll out of the BP as a freshman and contributed over 4 years (although his success was less each year as the book grew larger on him). His scholarship went 0 / 50 / 0 (to give money to pitchers) / 100. So he saved dad about 37% each year. After watching JUCO hitters (who want to HIT), I always wonder what would have happened if he had went that route, as I don't doubt that he would have been VERY successful (especially w/ umps that don't know where a strike zone ends). But he met a lot of good friends and saw a lot of areas that he had never been to before. He got his degree, has a good job and is getting married to a SOFTBALL player on Sunday, plus we have 1 year old who already loves to hit - FIELDS MCCOY, so I have a reason to post on the Tball board here soon.
I've told youngest's story on here before, but suffice it to say he went from on mid level D1's radars to not due to an ACL injury before his junior season. Had a good fall of senior year, and ened up with walk on offers at a couple of D1's and small scholarships to D2's and several JUCO offers.
He bet on himself and committed a JUCO in Kansas in December of senior year, as he wanted it "over" and be able to concentrate on his senior season.
Sometimes you make lemonade out of lemons, and sometimes it turns out being just what you were thirsty for.
Again, go where you'll play and where you'll be happy. Life is too short.
Good luck.
Adbono's post is so useful; really should have its own thread, called something like "How to know what college level to play" or something.
After 5 years and one worldwide pandemic, my son graduated last weekend! However, he has more baseball to play...
@2022NYC posted:Final roster was 32 this season as a couple players quit at the beginning. The team recruited 17 incoming freshman and will not cut the rising Sophs due to push back. Some of the rising seniors and juniors (my kid's class) was already cut.
Wait, so you're saying that, knowing that they would have to make cuts, they are still bringing in 17 freshmen? That seems pretty crazy to me.
Yes as they were already offered before the roster reduction announcement.
The Twitter post shown below (from an Asst Coach at McLennan CC) is a great illustration of why I talk about how competitive JuCo baseball is in Texas. The NJCAA Region 5 tournament just completed (McLennan won and is headed to the JuCo WS) and this post applies to the 8 teams that participated - the top 4 from the North Conference & the top 4 from the West Conference. 47 pitchers threw at least 91 and 10 threw 94 +. Let that sink in. These 8 teams all had 6 pitchers (on avg) that throw at least 91 mph. And they all back it up with great secondary stuff.
@2022NYC posted:Yes as they were already offered before the roster reduction announcement.
But this is D3. So there's nothing to say that just because the coach gave them an "offer" - even if they got admissions support - that he would have to keep them on the roster. Deciding to keep the freshmen and rising sophs is presumably a decision he's making, throwing the upperclassmen under the bus instead. Which, frankly, is not great in my book.
@adbono posted:The Twitter post shown below (from an Asst Coach at McLennan CC) is a great illustration of why I talk about how competitive JuCo baseball is in Texas. The NJCAA Region 5 tournament just completed (McLennan won and is headed to the JuCo WS) and this post applies to the 8 teams that participated - the top 4 from the North Conference & the top 4 from the West Conference. 47 pitchers threw at least 91 and 10 threw 94 +. Let that sink in. These 8 teams all had 6 pitchers (on avg) that throw at least 91 mph. And they all back it up with great secondary stuff.
A kid from our hs just committed there. He was pitcher of the year and tops 94. He made a good choice.
@baseballhs posted:A kid from our hs just committed there. He was pitcher of the year and tops 94. He made a good choice.
Yes he did. A kid from my neighborhood HS is also committed to McLennan. He is a LHP that sits 89-91 T93. Texas Tech just came after him (w/o talking to the coaching staff at McLennan as they are supposed to) offering a “NIL deal that would cover 100% his freshman year.” I have advised the family of the pitfalls of that kind of offer and recommended that he honor his commitment to MCC. I have a lot of respect for the players and coaches at McLennan - especially PC Peter Stark. It’s among the best JuCo programs in America.
@anotherparent posted:But this is D3. So there's nothing to say that just because the coach gave them an "offer" - even if they got admissions support - that he would have to keep them on the roster. Deciding to keep the freshmen and rising sophs is presumably a decision he's making, throwing the upperclassmen under the bus instead. Which, frankly, is not great in my book.
Yup. There is turmoil. Kid told me a couple of the rising sophs are not returning.
Season ended last weekend for my son's team.
Started the year with the long time coach leaving unexpectedly, asst coach and team running the fall practices, new coach arriving, ups and downs of the season, and ending with winning the conference tournament and the automatic bid to the D3 regional.
Time for summer work, and work outs.
Did they win the Regional in LA?
Bob
