April Fools!!!

How could PBR possibly comment on why someone did not make their varsity team? How would he know the reason?

RRF8 -

Not wanting to put words in tralpaz' mouth, but I believe tralpaz' point was a bit of a hit to PBR's ability to rate talent.

I hear you Used to Hit 300, but who is to say who is right and who is wrong. PBR is at several college showcases a year. I'm sure that he knows where the bar is set. On the other side, he is going to play up his showcases. I don't believe that you will ever hear him say, "This group wasn't very good."

Bottom line, if he's going to make money off of showcases and camps. He needs to give up the Sun Times gig.

I asked the All Conference question only because I thought there might be a plausible explanation. I know teams only get so many slots, but I wonder sometimes if coaches don't just give it out as more of an honor than as something that was earned. We kind of felt that happened to one of our boys, who as a sophomore had the best batting average on our team and second best in the conference, but the All Conference spots all went to the seniors - one who was not even a starter.

quote:

Originally posted by Stage Dad 9:
Bottom line, if he's going to make money off of showcases and camps. He needs to give up the Sun Times gig.

I used to think that way, but now I know there are several players in his top 100 that have never been to his camps or showcases.

Several? Are we talking 2 or 3, or 35 or 40?

I don't think he needs to stop writing for the Sun-Times. I just think the list should state the source of the information. The papers all repeat these lists (or variations of them) without crediting the source. Perception suddenly becomes reality.

Stage dad is correct. It is most definitely a conflict of interest ..no matter how many different arguments are put forth to defend him . It is what it is --conflict of interest . Of course he is going to have players on his lists that have never been to any of his showcases ..he would never hear the end of it if he didnt . From my own personal experiences in dealing with the tt/pbr conglomerate i can tell you for a fact that they try to use those lists and rankings as leverage to their advantage when

a) trying to get a player to play with tt

b) getting back at a player for leaving tt --i.e .blackballing

There are at least 4 major D1 polls published weekly. If you've ever looked at them you'd quickly see that they are so different, with a top 15 team in one poll not ranked in 2 others. This wouldn't be happening if each group employed a staff to go out and watch college games every day and night of every week, coast to coast. One poll has a west coast bias, another a SE bias. Bottom line is that they see what they can, look at box scores and then vote for a top 25. It's not life and death, just baseball.

I think the majority of the seniors on the list have a D1 scholarship. That's a pretty good source right there.

Please keep in mind that his integrity is on the line with the pre-season list. If half the list doesn't crack the starting lineup or make their team's starting rotation, he knows the list will lose it's credibility over time. His business depends on this list to be on target or his publication will become obsolete. Don't you think that is motivation enough to do some serious homework?

I did not say Ducan is dishonest. But let's be real. Does anyone believe that his being the baseball guy for the Sun Times hurts his showcase business?

quote:

If a kid isnt even considered to be one of the top 16 position players in his own conference ..as a junior .. --voted on by the coaches of that conference -- how or why should he be considered to be one of the top 100 in the area ?

I have one, RHP, ask Prairie Ridge if he is one.

So how does it happen Playball? So much talent that the kid just slides under the radar? Or did the boy improve greatly over the off season? I don't really even know how All-Conference players get chosen - do the coaches all vote, or do they tell a coach "you've got X number of spots - who are your picks"?

All-conference teams are selected in different ways. In most cases there is a maximum of players selected. In the case of the MSL, the team is comprised of 32 players. Players are listed as pitchers or position players or both if it supports their case. Coaches are provided an opportunity to speak on behalf each player. Personally within the MSL, I would like to see all teams have 1 automatic selection to the team and then discuss the at large selections. Some selection processess are based upon conference finish (ie: 1st place finish = 3 Automatic selections). There is no exact science the key to the automatic selection process is to make sure those bids go to most deserving or most obvious selections. Often times coaches who believe they have 5 all conference players, coaches will use their automatic bids for the least likely of the 5 and place the others into at-large forcing coaches to select them because they are all conference.

As far as how my RHP made his way into the top 100, hardwork.

Thanks Coach... sounds about how I figured it went.

And as for your RHP - good for him! Always nice to see the hardworkers do well!

As a follow up, the Tribune posted their Top 50 today and it looks very similar to the Sun Times.