Changed positions...

I was playing shortstop for about 4 years and was pretty good at it. I got on a new summer travel team and they moved me to center field. I really like it and am probably better at center. I bat leadoff as well. I am 14 too. What a coincidence haha.

I think it is a great thing that your son is getting an opportunity to play another position! It will only make him a more well rounded baseball player in the long run. Also, it will make him much more marketable as a college and/or pro prospect. But, make sure he is also getting some extra work at shortstop outside of practice so he can continue to develop at a middle infielder as well.

As in regards to the statement you made about center fielders not getting scouted by colleges, I find that information to be way off. College coaches tend to look at players that play up the middle (Catcher, Pitcher, 2nd Base, Shortstop, and Center Field) in youth and high school ball since they tend to be the best athletes on the field. And of course college coaches are going to recruit guys who can play multiple positions, especially if the can play multiple positions up the middle.

Being a current college player, one main thing I can tell you to keep in mind is that versatility is HUGE as you move up the ranks. For instance, if he and another shortstop of similar caliber are being recruited by the same school, one main thing they will look at is their versatility. So if you son can play multiple positions, and the other player cannot, then your son will be in a higher demand.

Being scouted is about tools and projectability, not what position a kid plays. One of the high school teams in our area was a top ranked team this year. They have six recruited shortstops in their lineup. You play where the team needs you. Any spot on the field is better than any seat on the bench. My son's 16U travel team has six very good shorstops. They're playing all over the field.

Since you're new to the game, first welcome aboard. Second, be careful describing your son. There are many posters here with very accomplished sons. Not just 14yo players. But, all-conference high school players, college players and pro players. Fourteen years old is a long way from pro ball. I'm sure he's exceptional for his age.

My son was recruited for his travel team as a shortstop. He's played 2b,ss,3b,cf and rf. He can pick it in the infield and go get 'em in the outfield (he's played outfield before). He's not worried about being noticed. He jokingly complains he has to check the lineup card to see what glove to grab. It is a lot of extra work to practice. Aside from team practice, he takes grounders, flies and works on turning two from all three infield positions. Did I mention he pitches? He has to do bullpens too.

quote:

He just started playing tournament baseball and has been put in center field. He is definitely better than the current short stop, but for some reason, he's out there. Granted, he's doing an amazing job as well and possibly the only one on the team who can make those hard diving catches. But he feels a tad slighted. He doesn't understand why he's out there when he's better than the current SS. Not to mention, people have told us that colleges don't scout center fielders and that's a big reason why he even wants to play.

This topic comes up at least once per month here at the hsbbweb. For starters, I would shut down the tad slighted feelings and replace them with a tad grateful feelings. It is an honor to bat lead-off for starters and your coach is showing him tremendous respect by putting him in center.

My son is a shorstop and I used to get my feelings rattled a bit when I felt he was the best shorstop on the field and not getting the opportunity there. I never let him feel that way however. For him, I always reinforced the idea that the important part was to play and have fun. The more positions your son plays the better player he will become imho and I am speaking from experience. What often happened in my son's experiences is he ended up playing shortstop in the long run because the other kids were exposed in the long run. Along with shortstop, mine has played third base, second base, and center. Huge blessing for college players to play multiple positions. Look at this as an opportunity for growth and most importantly have fun.

One other thing....

I would avoid being critical of the other shortstop. Avoid body language like rolling your eyes, shaking your head, or mumbling under your breath when the other kid makes an error or does not make a play you think your son capable of. All kids make errors and are not perfect on every play. Encourage your son to have fun with his current lot and let the other things (coaches decisions, who plays where) take care of themselves.

Hi!
Welcome. You have a tremendous opportunity right now to teach your son the most important skill needed for success in baseball and in life...the ability to make adjustments. The baseball road is full of twists and turns, most of which he will not be able to control. If he can learn to remain focused and look for the positives in every situation, he will not only be more successful, but happier.

Our job,as parents, is to help them stay focused and positive. Point out the benefits of learning a new position, especially CF. It is definately scouted by both colleges and the pros. Model good sportsmanship by encouraging his teammates, especially the new shortstop. Teach him respect for authority by supporting his coach.

You have a great opportunity to teach him some pretty important lessons at an age when he'll still listen to you. Make the most of it.

My son is also in a similar situation. He has always been a SS. He has played some at 2nd, 3rd and some center. This year, they have moved him to center as well. Part of the reason is that the two regular CF's are out and he is the fastest on the team, so he is the logical choice. Other SS is good as well, but son is probably at better at center than he would be.

He continues to fill in at 2nd, SS and 3rd when needed. All I tell him is you gotta play where the team needs you. I agree with the other posters that a well rounded player will have the best chances in the long run. Most teams are looking for the best athletes and those are usually the SS's. Can't have 6 SS's playing at the same time, but what you can have is 6 great athletes playing on the field at the same time. Not a bad thing.

Believe me, when he gets to HS, if there is a senior SS, he will be playing. If your son can hit (sounds like he can), they will want him in the lineup. If he has experience in other positions, it will help him a ton. I have seen a number of natural infielders playing the outfield in HS because that is where they are needed.

Keep positive and good luck.

I too would like to welcome you and will echo what the others have said. As your son begins to showcase be sure and showcase him at his "primary" position ---- which by the way may change. I can remember my sons position(s) changed a number of times during his 20 some years of actively playing baseball. Scouts and coaches quit asking me what position he played when he was about your son's age.

quote:

Originally posted by ClevelandDad:
Along with shortstop, mine has played third base, second base, and center. Huge blessing for college players to play multiple positions. Look at this as an opportunity for growth and most importantly have fun.

I agree with the next comment from Cleveland dad 100%...."For starters, I would shut down the tad slighted feelings and replace them with a tad grateful feelings. It is an honor to bat lead-off for starters and your coach is showing him tremendous respect by putting him in center."

In my sons college career....he has played SS, 3rd Base, SS, 2nd Base, First base, catcher and pitched..........you play where the team needs you...each year, the team dynamic changes, new kids come in, seniors graduate...players transfer, players fail out, players get hurt....if you want to play...be humble....be versatile...

where you are recruited is no guarantee you will play there....but if you make it clear that is the only place you will play...........you will miss out on a large number of opportunities.....

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quote:

Originally posted by TxMom:
Hi!
Welcome. You have a tremendous opportunity right now to teach your son the most important skill needed for success in baseball and in life...the ability to make adjustments. The baseball road is full of twists and turns, most of which he will not be able to control. If he can learn to remain focused and look for the positives in every situation, he will not only be more successful, but happier.

Our job,as parents, is to help them stay focused and positive. Point out the benefits of learning a new position, especially CF. It is definately scouted by both colleges and the pros. Model good sportsmanship by encouraging his teammates, especially the new shortstop. Teach him respect for authority by supporting his coach.

You have a great opportunity to teach him some pretty important lessons at an age when he'll still listen to you right now. Make the most of it.

WOW!...couldn't let this go by without kudos!

jwls....
Check the draft today...If I remember our showcasing days correctly (it was a long time ago)...Brett Jackson OF Cal, projected to go in the first or second rounds today...showcased very successfully as an infielder.

44
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Thanks for all the responses and the warm welcomes! It's great to have a place to go to, to talk baseball.

Firstly, I want to apologize if I came across as saying my son is the best ever, etc. I mentioned what the coaches/umpires have said about him going pro just to stress how well he did there. In no way am I banking (pun intended ) on that right now. I am really not 'that' mom.

Secondly, I do agree with all of you who said that playing multiple positions is very important. He started off years ago at 2nd and then was moved over to short, where he stayed for 5 years. This past year, his main position is center, but he also pitches, plays 2nd, short, and 3rd. He is a well-rounded ball player. He really enjoys center when there's action. Unfortunately, there isn't always. But he does love making those diving catches and out there, he has more opportunity for it.

Lastly, please know that I would never show my feelings in regards to my son being better than the current short. All the kids on his team are great kids and all try so hard. And my son isn't perfect, so I wouldn't expect anyone else to be either.

I was mainly just wondering how scouting works for colleges and if what I was told was correct. That made me a bit nervous. His high school is known for their baseball team so scouts are always at their games (college and professional). I just wanted to make sure that he would be okay.

Taylorfrosh - are you my son...???

Playing baseball and staying on the field is like competing in a funnel. Every year the spout gets narrower and narrower. Fourteen years old is when the spout starts to really get narrow. Kids are now in high school. They no longer compete by age. They compete with eighteen year old (sometimes nineteen) high school seniors. Then at eighteen and nineteen they compete with twenty-one and twenty-two year old college men for playing time. Not playing short isn't an insult. The insult is not getting in the lineup. I'll bet every righthanded kid on my son's 16U travel team was a shortstop at one point.

Beware: bragging moment ... If my son was only playing short he wouldn't have had the thrill he experienced this past weekend. He saved a game taking away a walk off homer. It's the most excited I've ever seen him after making a play.

Thanks, TxMom! And congratulations to your son!

I feel much better after getting all the feedback I've gotten here. My son has so much potential that I really think he could go far. And if CF (and his versatility) is the position that gets him there, then great!

Welcome also to the board,
As many have already stated, changing positions is not that uncommon. My son was a catcher for 10+ years. Always an all star and was all league in high school for 2 years. He was injured his last year of high school(not catching but sliding into second) and had surgery last Sept. He red shirted for his first year of college and his college coach had him work as a pitcher. His college coach had him sign up with a travel team for the summer with a former pro pitcher. After the first 2 weeks and 2 touraments, the summer coach informed him that he was now the closer for the team. He has gone 6 innings, 1 hit 6 ks 0.00 ERA.
My point is, you never know where your son may end up playing on the field. My son was recruited as a catcher and now looks likes pitching is his forte.
Good luck to your son, enjoy the ride!!

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2009 MLB Draft, Round #1...

Pick #2...Center fielder...

Pick #3...Center fielder...

Who wants to be a SS?

44
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Thanks, observer44.

Let's just hope they don't move him back to SS!

Last night his coach told him that his speed and instincts are the reason why they need him out there. And actually, my son is starting to enjoy it more. The more he plays, the more he enjoys it.

I just need to make sure I come here to verify the truth to what other people tell me (like when that father told me center fielders don't get scouted).

First round:

centerfielders drafted: 9

shortstops drafted: 2

Disclaimer: Every year can be different based on the strengths of the draft

quote:

First round:

centerfielders drafted: 9

But were they scouted. The scouts came to see the SS....(just kidding) .

Interesting that the notes on these guys talk about what good hitters they are and the fact they play CF is secondary...

I would take that to mean that if you can hit, it really doesn't matter where you play....

Here's an article that emphasizes the benefits of being versatile:

Rays' Zobrist Puts the Power in Utility
Posted Jun 08, 2009 10:28PM By Ed Price (RSS feed)

NEW YORK – At 4:45 p.m. Monday, Ben Zobrist checked the lineup card in the Rays clubhouse at Yankee Stadium.

He found his name fifth in the order, playing shortstop.

Cool.

Then, about 45 minutes before game time, Tampa Bay had to scratch Willy Aybar from the lineup, because of a migraine, so Zobrist became the second baseman.

No matter. He didn't even have to change to one of the four other gloves he had in his locker.

"I don't even have a second thought," said Zobrist, who went 1-for-2 with two walks and played flawlessly in the field, even starting a double play.

While Zobrist is hardly the only utility player in the majors, he's the only one who provides serious thump in the lineup.

And the Rays might be buried if it weren't for Zobrist, a 28-year-old switch-hitter.

"He's just picked up the slack where we needed it," teammate Evan Longoria told FanHouse. "You can't put a price on a guy like that."

Tampa Bay has lost second baseman Akinori Iwamura (knee) for the season; shortstop Jason Bartlett (ankle) has been out since May 25 and won't be back for another two weeks; and Longoria, the third baseman, returned to the lineup Monday after missing six starts with a tight hamstring.

As a result, Zobrist has started 15 straight games – eight at second, three at short and three in right field. He has also played third base, center field and left.

"He's a great weapon to have on a team," manager Joe Maddon said. "Wherever we put his name in, and the number after it, position-wise, I am very comfortable."

He should be.

"I always looked at other guys my same size or smaller than me that were hitting bombs and [wondered] why can they do it and not me?"
-- Ben Zobrist Zobrist has a .660 slugging percentage, which would rank second in the AL if he had just a few more plate appearances.

What makes that number, and his 1.076 OPS, even more remarkable is that no one who had played the same six positions as Zobrist in one season has ever slugged better than .584. Or had an OPS above .997.

Tampa Bay got Zobrist from Houston in the July 2006 deal that sent Aubrey Huff to Houston. When Julio Lugo went to the Dodgers a couple of weeks later, Zobrist got a chance to be the regular shortstop. But he batted just .224.

The next year he hit .155 in 31 games over two call-ups, so over the winter the Rays decided to turn him into a utility player. They had traded for Bartlett, moved Iwamura from third to second and had plans for Longoria to take over at third.

Meanwhile, at home in Tennessee, Zobrist went about retooling his swing.

He consulted with Jaime Cevallos, a hitting coach in Nashville, and Daniel Heefner, his brother-in-law and a former teammate at Dallas Baptist University who is now the head coach there.

Zobrist, 6-foot-3 and 200 pounds, knew he should be more than just a singles hitter. But in 340 career minor-league games, he had only 19 homers.

"I always felt like [the power] was there," he said. "But I always felt like I knew in the minor leagues I was not getting the most out of my body. I knew I could hit the ball harder than this. I always looked at other guys my same size or smaller than me that were hitting bombs and [wondered] why can they do it and not me?"

So instead of "feeling" for the ball, just trying to make contact, while slapping with a downward swing, Zobrist began using more arm than wrist and swinging at at upward angle.

"I just decided I was going to swing hard, swing for the fences," he said. "Because I had never done that in my career before. "

Sad Maddon: "He probably got a photograph of Stan Musial at some point and decided to set up like Stan the Man."

When Zobrist got to spring training last year, he noticed the difference. And he didn't fight the decision to make him a utility man.

"I was like, I'll do whatever I've got to do to be on the team," he said.

"I think if you pigeonhole yourself as a player and say, 'This is who I am. I am a shortstop,' you're just losing out on opportunities."

Zobrist opened last season on the DL with a broken thumb and then went down and up four times. By September, that power stroke started to show, and Maddon nicknamed him "Zo-rilla."

Since Sept. 25, Zobrist has hit .321 with 15 homers in 159 at-bats, for a .723 slugging percentage and .420 on-base percentage. Over that same span, only Albert Pujols has been more productive with at least as much playing time.

And since Aug. 29, about 3 1/2 months of games, Zobrist has hit four grand slams, most in the majors.

"I'm not taking any kind of credit for knowing he was going to hit like this," Maddon said. "But as he began to hit like this, then he became even more intriguing. Now you have this guy who plays all these positions and is an offensive force at the same time."

Zobrist is carrying five gloves with him: a first baseman's mitt, a middle-infield glove, a glove for third base, an outfield glove and another middle-infield glove he's breaking in.

Sometimes Maddon gives Zobrist a heads-up the day before where he will be playing, sometimes not.

It doesn't matter to Zobrist. If he's in the lineup, he'll work on his fielding at that position during batting practice. If not, he'll move around the diamond for his pregame work.

"I think it's fun," Zobrist said, "to see the game from all different perspectives."

No one sees it from more perspectives than he does.

quote:

Rays' Zobrist Puts the Power in Utility

Great article. The key to staying up however is that he 'retooled is swing' and now is hitting for both average and power.

One more thing....1-2 with two walks

Again, if you can hit, they will find a spot for you.

Jwls, let me first say this post is not to "pop your bubble". My son did amazing things at 14, many said he was one of the best. In the four years since than, he has gone on to many big BB events. Yet now he is just another good HS player with no chance of going MLB. A lot can happen in four years, girls, video games, etc, etc. The ones that get picked by the big show, started early on to reach that goal and work at it almost every day. If your son has these goals and work at them, he has a chance.
Best wishes for his future.

pop

It is scary with all the negative vibes around you---my sons didn't go pro--BUT they have degrees and had fine college experiences and college baseball careers--no crime in that

It really must be scary in your house !!!

I agree with Hawk, anyone that can hit with power they'll find a spot for you.

popup

You don't even need to hit with power---if you can simply flat out hit you will play

Jwls,

Another "Welcome to the HS Baseball Web!" from this corner.

I just wanted to mention one other thing...

Sometimes when new folks ask questions here, they might wonder about the backgrounds of those who are giving them advice. After all, it's good to know who has "been there, done that", as it adds some confidence factor.

Doggone though, many of our members are so modest that they fail to mention that their sons have played for some of the top college baseball programs in the country, and quite a few of them have gone on to play pro ball (several of our members' sons now in MLB and many in MiLB).

So I'm going to tell a little secret about one of the great pieces of advice you have received here.

ClevelandDad said:

"My son is a shortstop and I used to get my feelings rattled a bit when I felt he was the best shortstop on the field and not getting the opportunity there. I never let him feel that way however. For him, I always reinforced the idea that the important part was to play and have fun."

ClevelandDad (or CD as he is often affectionately known here) hates it when people make a fuss over him or his son.

But the son who he modestly mentioned above, was written up in some recent articles on college baseball for having switched positions several times at a top DI baseball program, to help his team.

"After playing both third base and shortstop as a freshman in 2006, (Tyler) started all but one game at shortstop in 2007 and 2008. But he moved to second this year, allowing (a talented freshman) to fill his shoes, and then moved to third after (3B'man) was injured midway through the season."

And the most exciting move of all happened today, when Tyler was drafted, and now moves on to become a pro baseball player. Being willing to take his exceptional talent to any position needed by his team worked out pretty well for him!



Julie

Pop up - I agree, there are still many years before anyone really knows how far my son can/will go. It would be great if he played in the MLB someday, but I am more concerned about college. Though, he does go to a D1 school that is always ranked in state, so there are plenty of opportunities, but also plenty of good players. And hopefully, as he gets older and more involved in the program, he'll be one of the few that stands out opposed to blending in. I guess only time will tell though. He does practice a lot, but I am finding out that this is when 'real' baseball starts and way too early to determine if he has a future in baseball or not.

Thanks for the info, MN-Mom. It's nice to know that I have come across a forum of other parents who have already lived what we are experiencing. I had no idea what kind of site this was when I joined, just hoped I would get some insight and WOW - I've hit the jackpot!

I really appreciate all the warm welcomes, the tips, the advice, the encouragement, etc! I have a feeling I will be on this forum for a long time asking questions, sharing stories of my son, and hopefully one day passing on my wisdom.

Yes, TR is right, even pop up hitters are coveted.

I did not say "pop up' hitters---WOW--it amazes me how people can change things to fit their needs

Incidently my son was a SS going into HS--they had another SS but needed a CF---thus my son became the CF as the others SS did not have CF potential-my son loved it and got a D-I scholarship as a CF

quote:

my sons didn't go pro--BUT they have degrees and had fine college experiences and college baseball careers--no crime in that

No sir, there is no crime in that at all. A college degree is most likely will support them in the long run.

Hah Hah TR, got you!

Enjoy your day big guy.