Carthedge College

Carthage is a very good school with a very good baseball program. The coach has been there forever and is very highly respected. The baseball facilities are very very nice.

The school is gorgeous and sits on the shores of Lake Michigan. The town of Kenosha is friendly, and both Chicago and Milwaukee are near enough for excursions if your family is looking for diversions.

equipman....

Great school and baseball program. The academic money sounds good.

Knowing that your son is of some interest by Carthage, and the money sounds good, is your son looking at other schools in the area? DIII, DII, DI? Do you think your son can make the team at Carthage, or is he a DII or DI hopeful? Does he want to play right away, or maybe sit for a year or two, especially at a DI school?

These are tough questions that have to be "honestly" answered. All kids want to play DI, but the key is "playing!!" I know you didn't mention anything about DI, and if his focus is on Carthage, by all means pursue the opportunity. Their baseball program speaks for itself. If he is interested in a DIII school, Wisconsin and Illinois have some very good academic/baseball schools to choose from.

Also, look at what position players are graduating for your sons particular field position. Look at their stats to see how your son matches up to those players. Regarding transfering, go to the NCAA website and look-up the information about "Transfers." The rules changed this season so you need to do further research in that area. What position does your son play? My son is at a DIII school in New York. Always looking for good players and the academics are great at his university.

Best of luck to your son and to your family in the search. Once he decides and then goes to that school, and then plays baseball there, what a great feeling you have as a parent.

Thank you for the responses. We have been looking at several other schools both in michigan and georgia. I am not sure whether he would be able to make a DI or II school team. He wants to study athletic training/sports mgmt. Central Mich has one of the best athletic training programs in the country, but I don't think he could make it on the team right now. We have been thinking of getting him into a good JUCO to start. He is having some confidence issues in regards to his HS coach right now. He is not in the coaches eye although he has traditionally been a local powerhouse in regards to hitting and pitching on his travel teams. He struggled in his first couple of plate appearences and so far has only had 12 PA's out of 18 games. Yesterday was a non-conf game with free subs and he was the only player that wasn't put in somewhere. Today he asked the coach why and the coach told him they just forgot. Pretty sorry coach. Anyways we are always looking for the best prgram that will suit him academically as well as athletically. He loves baseball. He is a junior and is 6'2' and 225lbs and he ploays his summer ball for a team that is coached by the head recruiter for Wayne State Univ in Detroit and the home field is the college field. Pretty cool for a player who can't hit. HA HA

equipman....

I may have missed it in your post, but I'm going to assume that your son is entering his senior year. Get him some exposure, immediately, for this summer. Contact TRhit on these boards who runs College Select Showcases in New York and Conecticut. That showcase helped my son!! No, your son doesn't have to go out east to school, but there are schools that attend from your area or at least close by. Get in contact with Perfect Game for another showcase experience. These types of situations should help him be "seen" by coaches looking for players.

Your sons coach sounds typical of many who have their own best interest in mind. Some are clueless!!

Boomer, sorry, he is a junior this year. He is set up for a big showcase hear in Michigan in Aug.Our summer team is playing in several tournys this summer in Michigan and I am taking him to a college camp this summer at central Michigan Uni. Also looking at another showcase put on in the Detroit Tigers AA teams stadium by the head coach for Grand Valley State in Michigan. I have been looking at the PG in Marietta, GA this Sept, but the cost of the showcase plus the flights down may prohibit that one, I am debating that right now. I know those are good, but he is working on his speed with a Sparq class and I know that his 8.1 60 will kill him. So I don't know if I want to spend $1500 for that trip this year. May wait until the spring.

Also, forgot to mention he pitches, 1B, 3B, catches and has played the OF

equipman....

Sounds like you have a full schedule for this summer. I know the cost of gasoline is on the rise, again, but maybe going to GA by car would be the way to go. You and your son get to "bond" more, plus the experience of seeing and particpating in a Perfect Game event can't hurt, even if he is a junior.

His size, the fact that he can play 3rd, 1b, and catch could get him some opportunities. Have him work on his catching skills, i.e., blocking, framing pitches, foot work, throws down to second, etc. To me schools are always looking for good catchers nad that can swing a bat! As far as his 60 time, well he needs to get that down to at least 7.1.

Carthage is among the best D3 programs in the country, and plays in a very strong (at least the top 3-4 teams) conference. They play and beat D1 and D2 teams. You might want to consider whether your son wants to play or just be on the team. Carthage tends to carry a large roster (40+ players), though they also have a JV schedule. Go to the Carthage website and take a look at the stats page. See how many players get meaningful at bats, innings pitched, etc. That is true for any school you are considering.

When considering D3 schools, don't be scared off by the "Sticker price". Although they don't give athletic money, most D3 schools are private and are very generous with academic money, even to average students.