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He looks to be off the board for an extended period of time, but this might explain why:

 

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My son is a 2016.  However, he is 15yrs old and is young for a Sophomore and does not turn 16 until next summer.  He just received a Nationa Underclass Showcase invite I guess based upon his results from the showcase in August.  He just got a "7" and I don't think he needs to go to another showcase until after his Junior year or possibly next year.  What are your thoughts on this, I'm very new to this.  He is a 77-79 pitcher with great movement and results for his showcase team.  Thanks

Now you got me curious Russ. Just did some quick internet sleuthing (looked up the showcase in Texas in Aug of 2013 for a LHP who was class of 2016 and didn't turn 16 until the following summer and who was 77-79 and got a 7.0) My best guess is that he is currently a D1 pitcher on the staff at Stephen F. Austin university.

piaa_ump posted:

There was an adage that you should write down all the names of the starters on your sons 12 year old all star team. Store the letter.

Open the letter and check it against the starters of his HS baseball team his senior year.

In my sons case........only 3 were starters on both lists.   

We have gamechanger now...pencils and paper are soooo 1990’s....

anecdotally, HS varsity teams are kind of a melting pot of talent over a  3-4 year period...stands to reason only 3-4 would make the roster per year.

Last edited by 2022OFDad
piaa_ump posted:

There was an adage that you should write down all the names of the starters on your sons 12 year old all star team. Store the letter.

Open the letter and check it against the starters of his HS baseball team his senior year.

In my sons case........only 3 were starters on both lists.   

None of the kids on my son's 12 year old team (travel, not all-stars, though) were starters their senior year in HS, including him (he didn't play HS ball his senior year). Also true of his 13 & 14 year old teams (basically same group of kids those two years). AFAIK, he's the only one from those years playing college ball, and he's one of three from his graduating class in HS (like 800 kids, FWIW) who went on to play college ball (though one of those sat out an academic year at some point, so is now a class behind him).

My son's travel team when he was 12 came from a 30 mile area with less than 50,000 people.  They have1 second round draft pick, 2 SEC, 1 ACC, 3 Mid Major D1's, 3 NAIA players, 1 turned down  and all except 3 started varsity as freshmen.  2 were player of the years for their states and 10 of them made all-region senior year.  All 13 started their varsity teams last year.  When they started at 8, their goal was to get the best, add the best, and every kid to start varsity as a freshman and all to have a chance to play college. 

I can tell you that holding a kid back a year is a common occurrence in Southern California. A coach suggested we consider holding our son back in the 7th or 8th grade. He is an end of May birthday. We chose not to. He is at a public school, and appears to be doing well academically and socially.

However, be aware that at some Catholic and private schools, if you are not a hold back, you will likely be one of the youngest and smallest at freshman tryouts. We know of good players at a particular school who did not make the team, basically because they were a year younger than most of the other boys.

i think it’s worked for our son during summer travel ball, much better competition against the older players. It’s ultimately up to each family, just telling you how things are in this area.

There are tons and tons of kids who are considered super studs on a a lot or travelball teams under the age of 14, that end up not making or barely making their Highschool teams in my personal experience. Some of those kids lose the drive, others simply stop growing ( like my son ) and others get injured and quit. That why I just chuckle and laugh at all these delusional parents who think their kid is going pro. Look at the percentages who are lucky enough to play past HS. Many times, its a long marathon. IMO, its about avoiding the many pitfalls and roadblocks to just give you an opportunity and at the same time work your complete but off to truly be competitive. Along with that a little luck and the right connections plays a part. 

My son could have stayed back a year.  We decided not to even though he was a "little kid" at 5 years old.  We ended up glad we didn't.  His class growing up was an amazing group of kids...athletically and otherwise.  The grade below him where he could have ended up...not so much.  He probably graduated with what overall is probably the most athletic overall class our HS has seen in a long time.  3 D1 athletes (including him)....one each in basketball, football and baseball, which isn't bad from a small essentially rural school with a class of about 70 boys.  I would say out of the 70 that probably 55-60 played sports at some point in their 12 years of school.  They pushed each other....sometimes probably too much....to get bigger, faster and better.  Sure, maybe he'd still have ended up the athlete he was if we'd held him back...but he'd have missed out on a lot by not being in the same class as the kids he graduated with.

baseballhs posted:

Held my late August (started late), and no regrets. That said, I wouldn’t do it just for sports at 12. Lots can change. A lot of stud 12 year olds don’t play in high school.

People must really have a much lower bar than I for what a stud 12 year old looks like.  I have never yet (and I am old) seen a stud 12 year old not be good enough to play in high school.  Some get injured.  Some simply decide to drop baseball for other sports but have never seen this mythical 12 year old stud who can't play in high school.  

Last edited by 2020dad

I will agree with you 2020DAD.  There is a difference between 12 year old stud and a kid who grew faster than the rest.  I saw Bryce Harper at 12 and there was no doubt he would be a superstar.  I coached Ryder Green, drafted last year by Yankees out of HS, and there was no doubt Ryder was a stud.  I think too many people say a kid is 12 year old stud just because he is the best in their LL which, if he is playing LL at 12 and not travel ball, he is probably not a stud.  The 12 year old studs that I have known in my coaching/dad career are still playing the game at a high level today.  We played in a WS in Florida years ago outside Tampa.  They had a HR derby at Devil Rays Stadium and a kid put 12 straight in the stands.  They had the fence at 250 feet for the HR Derby.  Most of the kids left to hit refused to hit after that display of raw power.  He was a SS and could pitch.  He hit one in the semi-final game over 350 feet to dead center through the windshield of a Recreation Department truck.  I told my sons that was a true stud.  We kept up with him and guess what?  He was drafted first round.  Studs don't lose their stud power.

PitchingFan posted:

I will agree with you 2020DAD.  There is a difference between 12 year old stud and a kid who grew faster than the rest.  I saw Bryce Harper at 12 and there was no doubt he would be a superstar.  I coached Ryder Green, drafted last year by Yankees out of HS, and there was no doubt Ryder was a stud.  I think too many people say a kid is 12 year old stud just because he is the best in their LL which, if he is playing LL at 12 and not travel ball, he is probably not a stud.  The 12 year old studs that I have known in my coaching/dad career are still playing the game at a high level today.  We played in a WS in Florida years ago outside Tampa.  They had a HR derby at Devil Rays Stadium and a kid put 12 straight in the stands.  They had the fence at 250 feet for the HR Derby.  Most of the kids left to hit refused to hit after that display of raw power.  He was a SS and could pitch.  He hit one in the semi-final game over 350 feet to dead center through the windshield of a Recreation Department truck.  I told my sons that was a true stud.  We kept up with him and guess what?  He was drafted first round.  Studs don't lose their stud power.

I think you just said that much better than I did.  It's not that the stud 12 year old falls off it's that the parents who say that can't identify real talent and are mistaken in their evaluation of the player!!   And sometimes people are unfair out of jealousy too. We have a kid around here that was a dominant 12 yo pitcher.  He goes to high school and 'only' throws like 80-82 his freshman year and people start talking about how he's a thing of the past.  Well now he's a senior topping 90 and committed D1.  Everybody hates the big guy.  

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