Catcher position and College recruiting

Well the numbers are not with u at catcher. I see lots of schools add a dozen pitchers, 4-5 MIF, but 1-2 catchers.

As a MIF and pitchers of course we loved the numbers game. I would certainly play 3b if I could.

That's what I'm learning.  Maybe he should change gears and work on pitching - lol.

My son is a catcher at a mid D1 school.  Here's my take on the recruiting questions you asked.  First, he's doing the right thing by playing with a top travel program and with top-level players.  And no, it is not too early to be thinking of this, in fact, as a sophomore he's heading into the sweet spot of D1 recruiting next summer.

Regarding positions... no clear cut call on this, but any catcher in the D1 mix is going to be a terrific athlete and coaches know this.  My son was a catcher and he split time on his travel team behind the plate but he was always in the line-up (OF, DH, 2B, 1B).  But he didn't promote this, his travel coach cautioned against promoting yourself as a jack-of-all trades, master of none... he felt it hurt his case as a top-tier player at his position.  You get extra playing time when you hit, hit, hit.  Several times when his eventual college coach came to see him play he was playing OF or DH, go figure.  In college when he's not catching he DH's and works out in the OF and 1B.

Also, consider a team's travel roster of 27... 13 pitchers, 5 OF/DH/PH, 5 IF, 1-2 1B, 2-3 C.

I wouldn't say it is holding him back, but pitchers outnumber hitters by almost 2/1. As long as he can mash coaches will find a spot for him. If speed is not a strength then he will be limited to corners, pitching, and behind the dish.

What level is he targeting? ACC/SEC and other power 5 teams have locked up their 2024 stud players for the most part. Other D1 teams are actively recruiting 2024. Ivy schools and D3 schools won't start on 2024 until next year. This is just what I'm seeing with my son's friends and teammates.

Thanks for the replies and input.

Smitty28 - similar situation with my son.  If not catching on his travel team he is almost always in the line up as DH, etc.  Doesn't really play other positions (i.e. 3B), although he can, as they have other players that almost exclusively play those positions as their primary.  Does pitch a little (strong arm) to eat a few innings in pool play once in a while (we have and continue to be very careful and diligent with the pitching, pitch counts, not catching same day, etc.)

TerribleBPthrower - D1 in the Southeast to include ACC / SEC / Sunbelt and others (wherever he can find a good fit academically and with baseball).  Hit the College Camp circuit this Fall with some success and positive feedback.  Schools at the top of his list don't currently have 2024 Catchers committed (with the exception of 1 which has 1 2024 C committed) - almost exclusively Pitchers and Short Stops which is promising I guess (for the moment).

What is his travel coach doing for him? Have they begun to reach out to schools yet? As I'm sure you'll see a lot here, having a connected travel coach reaching out to colleges on his behalf is going to be very important in his recruiting process.

Welcome!

His odds go up dramatically if he is: 1) LHH and 2) Can Mash

Yes Sir.

Up until this fall not a whole lot.  New age level (16U) coach has been good and has reached out to some college coaches in advance of son going to their camps with good success.  Son was given a warm welcome and pulled aside to talk with the coaches at those in addition to getting some positive feedback from them during the camps.

BOF -

Out of luck on LHH unfortunately (Oh how I wish I would have pushed / taught him to hit from the left early on.  Catching wasn't on the radar at that time although LHH would probably have been preferred regardless.

Doing pretty well on #2

HI C:

Eddie Murray did not switch hit until age 18 and one year of pro baseball. Where is your son's dominate eye.

If you son was a football player would he be a QB, linebacker or Offense lineman?

Bob

@Hi C, The best of luck to you and your son.

Does your son physically look like a catcher? What is his travel coach doing to promote your son to college programs? What are your son and you doing to gain exposure?

If he’s not fast enough to play in the middle of the field he needs to be a masher. If you hit you play somewhere. When a friend’s son was at Vanderbilt there was a recruited catcher at C, 1B, LF and DH. They could all hit. The catcher had gap power. The others had homer power.

Thanks for all of the replies and advice.

Bob - left eye dominant, would be LB and/or TE.  He plays around in the cages hitting from the left sometimes but it is U-G-L-Y.  Could probably pull it (LHH) off over a long haul but I'm not sure there is enough time to dedicate to it at this point and be good enough within 1 year or two?

RJM - Yes, looks like a catcher - 6'1" and a muscular 198 at 15 yrs old.  New age group (16U) and travel coach this year and the coach has been proactive in contacting college coaches in advance of son attending camps this fall.  Coach has college connections in the area son wants to play (Southeast) so recruiting help from the travel coach seems promising at this point but we'll see.  Son is emailing his list of colleges and coaches regularly with updates on grades, game schedules, and attending their camps when he can.  Has been successful in getting a handful of schools and coaches out to watch some games this past summer at WWBA, PG WS, PBR NPI, etc. (probably helps that his team is full of Dudes that they are also watching play).

I agree with everyone in that hitting seems to be the key so we'll continue to work on that religiously.  Son currently has gap and warning track power and is banging them off the fence with the wood bat so hopefully this year will be when a few start sailing out.  On that note anyone have a 33" or 34" VooDoo One bbcor they would like to part with?

My son was in much the same position.  Played C on travel team exclusively, but luckily, in high school for his junior year (lost senior year to Covid), they had another D1 C on the team.  So, he split games between C and SS.  This allowed him to stay active and be seen both as C and MIF.  Signed with a mid-major as C/MIF.   Played 37 games as a freshman, didn't play C once, instead played DH, LF, 2B, and ultimately started last 20 games at 3B.  Was contracted early on to play summer ball as a C, but coaches told him near end of season he needed to play 3B in summer ball.  Caused him to lose his summer spot, but luckily they found him a spot with just two weeks to go in spring season.  The rest is history.  He is now the 3B.  Bottom line, if you hit, they will find a spot for you, so being versitile allows the player more opportunity to find a spot in the lineup.     

Needs to get some time at 1st and 3rd.  The problem with 3rd in SEC/ACC is the leftover SS's play 2nd and 3rd.  1st is the place for Catchers who don't catch and need to play the field.  Hitting is the #1 way to find the field.  The metrics of catching is important to some but not to all.  Many want them to look good in receiving, be able to throw decent, and mash.

You will also catchers moved to right due to their arm if they’re mobile enough to cover ground and left if they’re not mobile enough.

Great info and advice everyone.  Thank you.

HS coach (new this year) has told son he will primarily play 3B this season with a little bit of catching (other catcher is a Senior) which will be good.  Current starting HS 1B is also a lefty pitcher and his backup at 1B (when he pitches) graduated last year.  I'll nudge son to ask HS coach if there may be an opportunity there to practice and work in at 1B some.

We will work on some corner outfield defensive work on our own and I'll prod son to ask his coaches if there may be some opportunity to get some field time there periodically.

Hi C-

Hang tight on the Voodoo One- my 2024 broke the end cap on his a week after he got it.  I sent it back two weeks ago and they said they will send me a new one but they were out of stock.  But, they were supposed to start building more the week of Dec 13 which is this week obviously,   I would check DeMarini website daily to see if they are back in stock.