I would never advise a kid to request being on the JV team to play rather than varsity and sit. The player is more likely to improve in varsity practice than JV games. Plus, the coach who makes the decision on who plays on varsity is there to see the improvement. The varsity coach will notice if a player needs a start on JV to shake off some rust.
Grades. Grades. Grades.
A high GPA can do more to help a kid get recruited and get academic scholarship money than just about anything (outside of the outliers who throw 95+)
Work on getting Bigger, Faster, Stronger. A bare minimum of a 3.6 GPA or higher is a must for anyone wanting doors to open for college Baseball.
One thing I haven’t seen mentioned is to try and find a way to fit working out into his schedule. Nothing like what they should be doing now, but 30minutes or so after practices or games if possible. Looking back, having the spring cancelled made my son a significantly better player this year due to the increased ability to work out.
My son started all 4 years of HS. Now plays for D1 in California. IMHO the rule of thumb is, "Don't engage with Coaches unless, they engage with you". Unless, as others have pointed out, there's something the Coach should know about(divorced parents, illness/injury, etc) The Coach is there to put together the best team he sees to win. If the coach thinks your son should play up, he'll have that conversation with your son...and you. That's how it worked for us. Coach asked my son to have me come to a practice earlier, than the normal pickup time, and we had a conversation. He was upfront and said he'd play, but couldn't guarantee, starting, my son needed to earn that. And, as luck would have it, one of the OF suffered a concussion early in the season. My son was given the opportunity and showed well. That's the difference from being on Varsity and and not playing, vs playing on JV. You have a better opportunity if you're already on the Varsity roster.
As already posted, once he's on any team, get involved. Players bond when they see parents hanging out. Now with Covid, that might be harder to get together with other parents. But, you can sponsor team dinners, do field work, etc...I video taped all the games, and got to know every parent, because they all wanted video of their kid, that they couldn't capture.
One of the toughest things about having my son play varsity was "some" of the other parents. Being new, the first couple games, parents didn't know everyone. We had a couple parents of Seniors that my son started over. My wife reminded me not to get into arguments with parents. And it was tough, when you hear things like..."Why's the freshman starting, Why'd the Coach put him in the 5 slot, He's a freshman, why's he DHing"? Although, by around the 5 or 6 game of the season, his BA spoke for itself. But, still had a few "mouthy" parents. By the middle of the season, it all worked itself out, and those couple upset parents just didn't show.
Aside from baseball, the social aspect of being on Varsity was something my wife and I had to deal with. I remember telling my son he couldn't go to a HS party. Even though I knew he was going with the team, it just wasn't something he was mature enough to handle. But we did let him go with the team after every win to the team dinners. They would go to a BBQ place for dinner, after a win. So, that was an adjustment to let him jump in a car with a bunch of guys 18-19, while he was 14. But, as my son tells us now, he's got more great memories of the dinners and hanging out with that team, then the season itself.
Also, the other aspect, is can your son handle the pressure? Sophomore year, there's an expectation of doing better, as with Junior, and Senior year. Coaches, team mates and parents, look at him as he's a Varsity guy, so, he'd better come through, or produce. Let's face it, kids talk.
Lastly, my son's goal was to play at a D1 college. So, how many college recruiters are watching JV freshman players, let alone Varsity Freshman players. Not many...if at all, right? But, once again, as luck would have it, his freshman year they made if to the CCS championship game. He had a Sac Fly, and a double, while throwing out a kid at home from RF. He got noticed by recruiters that were there to see players for the other team. You're not going to get that chance on JV.
@TerribleBPthrower posted:How did the CX 440 work out for you? Did you get the quality you need?
The CX 440 still working for me. Used it for the 15 games he played in college. Extra batteries, and memory cards are a must! Quality is fine, it's really what you capture and getting it edited and posted. Clips should be around 15 seconds. People watching have short attention spans and are watching tons of video.
thanks to all, for the good info/experiences. I look forward to "a heck of a ride"! Currently my son is in Rehab, and probably won't be ready to play on his Select Team until April. Still, he's throwing, playing catch, or weight lifting everyday, so i know that he is still motivated. Our HS HC hosts a camp each June ( except this last Summer). I hope that he gets a look then, as well as next Spring. Our coach typically keeps 9th graders in the 9thgrade team, but we'll see. I just hope he gets to play alot, wherever he is. He is so competitive, that sitting just gets him frustrated.