Big kids in baseball

Why? What's going on?

Wrong school....

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Those shoes? They're not both left footed are they?




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Tay,
You cannot teach size. This can translate to a plus power hitter. I would not worry to much about his HS situation, as we have experience similar. Have your son play through this issue.

Lefty..

It would appear he is wanted since he's on the HS team. While height can help to get noticed, it don't guarentee anything. Neither does playing all-stars or travel in little league. Are the players who start on defense a better option despite the size? If he's DH'ing, that means there's also somebody's kid's parent who may be wondering why their kid don't hit. So it's not just about one player. A HC job is to put the players in the best possible position to succeeed and this may be what he's doing.

Unless you have some reason to think that size is part of the issue I would focus on other things. Politics - seniority - depth of team. Size on its own does not say much about his ability to play in a positive or negative way.

Most coaches I know prefer kids to be 5'3-4" and 115 lbs....

In comparison to more senior players, how fast is he? Can he field better? Does he have good baseball IQ? Does he stay out of trouble and have a good attitude? Size is only one factor and without the rest is almost a negative.

Can he play football??????? Size matters quite a bit there.

We can't really tell you anything that's going on because we haven't seen him move, work out or play. He may have two left feet, others might be more agile than him and many other factors.

Here is what you can control - his work ethic, his grades, his attitude, work on his agility, work on his flexibility and his being a good teammate. Focus on them and the rest will take care of itself.

quote:

Originally posted by tayturne:
I have a 6'3, 6'4 in shoes son just turned 16 this month, started playing when he was 6. He has played travel, rec, all star, and now high school ball as a designated hitter only. Do High School coaches not want boys that size? Or am I at the wrong school?

So is he a freshman or sopmore, adn does he play varsity or junior varsity?

I noticed from your other post here that your son is a sophomore and playing varsity in Georgia. And he likes centerfield. From that, without seeing your son, I would bet that there are kids at his school that are maybe around 6 ft and can run pretty well, so they are the starting centerfielder. Chances are that the coach sees that kid as a better defensive player, but likes your son's bat in the lineup. Maybe the outfielders are older and he can see time out their his last two years. My son is in the same boat, but as a pitcher only this year and hopefully can start in the outfield next year as well.

And I wouldnt move to a different school over this.

He's a big kid, may just need a little time to grow into his body. Not many 6'3 220lb 16yo's are as quick as a 16yo who may be 5'11 160. As others mentioned they obviously like his bat, just keep working on foot speed and quickness along with defensive skills and hitting. Sounds like he's got some talent.

I've seen kids that size not grow "into their shoes" until their Senior year. Not their fault.

One I saw was Joey Henshaw who is now a Senior at West Point and is a beast. I am so proud of him playing ball all 4yrs and about to graduate as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Army!

That is a tall kid. What's his weight and how fast can he run the 60?

His baseball past doesn't matter. It's all about what he can do now. A sixteen year old is usually a soph. Is he on varsity or JV? What classification size is the high school? Describe the kid who plays first. Can your son pitch? If so, what's his velocity? How is his foot speed? How agile is he?How are his swing mechanics? Big doesn't matter without solid contact. The slower he is the more important he drive the ball for at least gap power. At 16 years old at some high schools your son would be fortunate to be on varsity playing any position.

I'm reading this "Big kids in baseball" post a little differently. Nowhere does it say his kid is clumsy, or growing into his body. Actually, it says his son has played all along, all star, etc.

So why do you think the coach doesn't want your kid because he's big? Did he tell you that?

I'm hearing a sense of entitlement due his size. That he should maybe be playing due to his size. Size has nothing to do with it. You can either play or not.

I think this guy should help the case of big players playing baseball

Frank Szczepanik

quote:

He has played travel, rec, all star, and now high school ball

At the risk of sounding stupid... I've heard it many times now and need to ask.

I know what travel, rec, and high school means, but what exactly is all star?

PG,
I think all star is the all star team from a rec league that plays for the LL or Cal Ripken world series. At leastt that's what it was to me 6 years ago.

So he is DHing, but not playing the field.

1. Maybe his logical position is filled by an upperclassman who fields very well and hits close to as well or better than the big fellow.

2. Maybe his logical position is filled by someone who is a lot faster and fields well enough and hits well enough to claim the spot.

I've seen some pretty big boys who were otherwise very good athletes struggle with parts of baseball like putting balls in play effectivley, or throwing enough strikes, let alone fielding grounders or making accurate throws across the infield.

If anything, sometimes being tall puts additional pressure on the kid because the coaches (and parents and teammates) expect a lot and aren't patient when it isn't there in a 16 year old.

quote:

Originally posted by PGStaff:

quote:

He has played travel, rec, all star, and now high school ball

At the risk of sounding stupid... I've heard it many times now and need to ask.

I know what travel, rec, and high school means, but what exactly is all star?

" All Stars" are the six coaches son's and six good players.

Have you considered the fact that maybe all he is is big?

When we talk about 5 tool guys, "big" is not a tool.