Son received an email after Area Code from a pro team asking him to fill out a questionaire, which included questions like interest in going pro v going to college. I assume that this is to see whether it is worth while to put effort in kid to see if draft worthy, if he mostly has mind set to go to college. Anybody have any insights beyond my assumptions?
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Aleebaba,
You are right.
My experience is these forms fill two purposes. This allows 1) the local area scout to punch his ticket that he did his job so his boss is off his case and 2) allows the scout / team to get the most basic insight into your son.
Regardless of what you put on that form, if the team/scout has a real interest, they'll call you and set up a home visit so you can skip some of those questions and/or be elusive if you are uncomfortable with them. Most scouts I spoke to said it was really a formality they had to go through.
One option is to say your son is interested in MLB (which I am sure at some level he is) and then hope for a home visit from someone. It's a learning experience for all and this is part of it. I would not recommend 30 home visits for the 30 teams, but a few teams make sense. Good luck.
Some area scouts who left and were replaced by new scouts had us go through the process all over again, so whatever you do, save a copy of your paperwork. Amazing how many of these will get lost/misplaced, etc...
Got carded...sweet!
While we were BIG proponents of our sons going to college, I would not close any doors at this point in time.
You may intend for your son to go to college...maybe even at the 90%+ range...but you still do not know...what you do not know.
Down the road, if your son/you decide 100% for sure he's going to college, communicate that information at that time. At this point in time, leave all doors open.
Just the beginning, enjoy. As JBB said keep all doors open. At at this time his first prority should be to obtain a college scholarship, the key is having options.
FWIW, my son filled out questionares from almost all 30 teams and never got drafted out of HS. His commitment to college was too strong.
