Camps and tricky comminucations challenge

I would go with honesty. The coaches do talk. Explain you feel you should honor your first commitment (the camp). But it is not an indication of preference and you’re currently open minded about all the programs you’re having communications. 

Im with RJM honesty.  Let them know you already committed to the other camp.  Also, let them know that you are in no shape to throw effectively at this point.  They will understand if you let them know you are coming off of shutdown and only have done light throwing a this point. 

If they are truly interested they will let you know where they are going to be and ask where you plan on being throughout this season.  They will attempt to find a way to have you get in front of them.

Yes, Honesty is the best policy. Also, with back to back camps , let camp day 1 know in advance that he will in fact be attending the camp of a rival the following day and that he will be limited to only 1 inning of work in any intrasquad camp games. Regardless of the fact that he'll be catching on day 2 . That's just proper arm care. They'll respect that. Also, it makes it crystal clear your son knows what he's doing regarding arm care

Thanks to all.  He spoke with the coach and they both agreed on a plan to visit at a different time, when he can be ready to show up well for that program. As always,  I appreciate the perspectives

I would have to ask the question: are ANY of these schools actually recruiting your son? All this communication may fall on deaf ears if your son isn’t on their board. I think going with the camp where you have hs more serious communication is the best course of action in my opinion. 

Chicago - They are both actively recruiting him.  That is the fundamental challenge.  The original plan was to  visit and tour multiple schools where he was engaged in ongoing conversations.  The difficulty comes from the fact that it would be odd to visit school #2 on a day when they are having a camp and not pitch, or not attend the camp at all.  While that might help the boy understand and get a feel for the school, it would be either a strange dynamic with the coaches - "why would this kid we are talking to come all the way to  the east coast and not play for us/show us his best stuff?" - or it might be a wasted opportunity from our side - "why did we fly all the way to the east coast and not spend time with the coaches at school #2".

In the end we figured being up front about the whole situation was probably the best path and if school #2 is truly interested they will hopefully respect that and he can see them later in the year

ALF648 posted:

Thanks to all.  He spoke with the coach and they both agreed on a plan to visit at a different time, when he can be ready to show up well for that program. As always,  I appreciate the perspectives

I agree that the honest dialog was the correct path.  Not sure if you are saying you are not even going to visit the second school at that time.  I would certainly still do the school visit though (without pitching) if you are coming from across the country and in the immediate region, particularly considering there is active recruiting and mutual interest.  There is plenty to learn and see without the camp element and this may save another trip later or reinforce the necessity of one.

Since you're making the trip out there anyway, there's nothing to keep you from checking out the other school(s)....even if you're not attending the camp.  You can just go walk around and see the place....the coaches don't have to know.  I don't see a problem with doing that.  Being that you're from California I'd suggest not wearing his "Los Angeles High School" letterman's jacket as it may stand out a bit   

I guess I'm the only one confused by this statement:

"It is very early in the season, and he will have played catcher and thrown a bullpen on the 13th. "

Is he ready to throw at a college camp?  If he is then why would he be toast after 25 throws and one days rest.  If he isn't ready why are you going to a college camp in the first place? 

I'm sure if you asked my son he'd have a different answer than I might.  For me it's a balance of short term vs. long term value as well as long term health. In addition, you can add in all the discussions in the forums on the pros/cons of winter camps.

He's ramped up for 6 weeks and he's ready to throw.  The goal for the camp on the 13th is to show that he's ready to play at the next level.  As a primary catcher, he'll be doing all the basic camp stuff which I assume will include ~20 max effort throws in addition to catching bullpens.  However, these schools want to see him pitch.  My assumption is that that adds on as you say another 25 throws.  And a 16 year old in that situation is going to want to light up the gun.

So not a huge workload and he's ready for that.  The issue is that if he were to attend camp the very next day he will face the exact same scenario. There are lots of negative opinions about winter camps, but one of the most common reasons to attend is if the kid can make a great impression on the staff.  My - likely over protective - opinion is that he probably could get it done, but he'd try to light up the gun again to impress and that's an opportunity to get hurt....perhaps not that day but the season starts soon and it's probably a bad idea to start a 4 month season with an arm that's hanging.  And it's likely that he'd probably not be as sharp pitching on day 2 which might defeat the purpose of showing as well as possible.

Sorry for the length of that response

 

We are just honest.  Most coaches understand.  My son is attending a camp on the 13th and told them that he just started back and will throw one inning and he is attending another on the 15th...same thing.  Better to not get hurt. The first school has seen him throw and told him he didn't have to throw at all if he didn't want to, he could just tour the facilities and hit if he was more comfortable.  A lot of kids have been off and are just starting to throw again.

If the coaches are looking at him as a pitcher, that is his primary position.

i would remove catcher from the camp and save the legs and arm for the position he's being recruited for. 

Odds are that as a pitcher (SP or R) he will never see a game from behind the plate.

Parent/Player desire may not rate versus the HC decision. 

DON'T CONFUSE RECRUITERS, ITS TO EASY TO MOVE ON TO THE NEXT JOEY.

PS  My son attended camps at Dartmouth, Duke, & Brown along with pro tryouts as INF/P/OF which he played in HS and summer ball. 

He was told to stay in OF since that was the position they projected for him. 

Of course they were correct; We had a desire and they fill the positions.

 

Good Luck-Stay Warm, it's chilly here

 

 

 

 

 

BaseballBUDDY posted:

If the coaches are looking at him as a pitcher, that is his primary position.

i would remove catcher from the camp and save the legs and arm for the position he's being recruited for. 

Odds are that as a pitcher (SP or R) he will never see a game from behind the plate.

Parent/Player desire may not rate versus the HC decision. 

DON'T CONFUSE RECRUITERS, ITS TO EASY TO MOVE ON TO THE NEXT JOEY.

PS  My son attended camps at Dartmouth, Duke, & Brown along with pro tryouts as INF/P/OF which he played in HS and summer ball. 

He was told to stay in OF since that was the position they projected for him. 

Of course they were correct; We had a desire and they fill the positions.

 

Good Luck-Stay Warm, it's chilly here

 

 

 

 

 

BaseballBuddy sending you a PM

What's your HS Grad yr?

if you need any help, we've gone through it 

I guess I missed this before but I agree with baseballbuddy.....the catcher / pitcher combination isn't something that I'd even consider at a showcase because it's not a combination that's ever going to happen in college.  College catchers are busy all the time...in addition to regular practice they are also catching bullpens.  There's no way a catcher is going to have time to throw in addition to all his other responsibilities.   I guess at this point if you have one school looking at him as a pitcher and another as a catcher....throw at one and catch/hit at the other.  That way you're showing the schools what they want to see...and saving some wear and tear on his arm.

He’s a 2019 C/RHP. Just started pitching this past summer but he’s created
a lot of interest.

Where did your son/s go?