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College coaches on wood v. metal

RJMRJMHSBaseballWeb member since 2007
From Yahoo Sports:

Bat choice for top college coaches
By The Associated Press
Jun 16, 5:40 am EDT

The Associated Press asked coaches from the 24 U.S. college programs that have won 1,000 or more games since 1985 for their preferences on the type of bats used in competition. The results:

Aluminum (17):

Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn

Clemson coach Jack Leggett

Dallas Baptist coach Dan Heefner

Florida State coach Mike Martin

Georgia Tech coach Danny Hall

LSU coach Paul Mainieri

Miami coach Jim Morris

Mississippi State coach John Cohen

North Carolina coach Mike Fox

Notre Dame coach Dave Schrage

Oklahoma State coach Frank Anderson

Rice coach Wayne Graham

South Carolina coach Ray Tanner

Stanford coach Mark Marquess

Texas A&M coach Rob Childress

Tulane coach Rick Jones

Wichita State coach Gene Stephenson

Wood (5):

Cal Fullerton coach Dave Serrano

North Carolina State coach Elliott Avent

Oklahoma coach Sunny Golloway

Oral Roberts coach Rob Walton

Texas coach Augie Garrido

Other (2):

Arizona State coach Tim Esmay (did not participate)

Florida coach Kevin O’Sullivan (no opinion)



Coaches comments on aluminum and wood bats
By The Associated Press
Jun 16, 5:40 am EDT

Some comments from coaches at top Division I college baseball programs on aluminum vs. wooden bats:

“Playing baseball with a wood bat is the way the game was made to be played. But it isn’t going to happen. It isn’t our mission to prepare players for pro baseball.”—Texas coach Augie Garrido.

“You’ve got to remember that I’m the pitching coach, too, so I would like to see the game played with wood bats. But the thing that probably gets unnoticed is the bat manufacturers that have put so much in finances into helping the college game. That would go away.”—Cal State Fullerton coach Dave Serrano.

“A basketball is a basketball and a football is a football. Every other sport uses the same equipment. But in ours we have aluminum and wood bats. It would make sense to use wooden bats, but the aluminum bats are big business. I don’t know what kind of act it would take for us to change.”—Oral Roberts coach Rob Walton.

“Our game has never been healthier, never been more popular. I take some pride in the fact we’re the highest level of aluminum-bat play.”—Tulane coach Rick Jones.

“Aluminum is better for our game because we don’t have players that can handle the wooden bat well enough to make our game as exciting as it needs to be.”—Oklahoma State coach Frank Anderson.

“Now that the bats are toned down from when they got a little bit out of control, I’m a fan of the aluminum bat. It separates us from the summer leagues and minor leagues.”—North Carolina coach Mike Fox.

“Unless Major League Baseball ever made a decision to say, ‘We’re going to underwrite college baseball,’ I don’t think it (wood bats) will happen.”— South Carolina coach Ray Tanner.

“I like the game the way it is right now. It’s pretty popular and our attendance is growing. The game is pretty balanced offensively right now after we went through a little spell there where it wasn’t.”—Notre Dame coach Dave Schrage.

“At least with the aluminum bat, you know everyone has the same tool in their hand. That’s why I have to be totally in favor of aluminum.”—Wichita State coach Gene Stephenson.

“The aluminum bat still makes it a game that the little guy can play.”— Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn.

“It’s all financial. When you start talking about what bats, there’s probably several mid-major and smaller programs around the country that can’t afford to have wood bats.”—Texas A&M coach Rob Childress.

“Anything that needs to be done to reduce offense can actually be done with the ball. What did baseball do in the 1920s? They came in with a live ball because they wanted more runs, more home runs. Well, if you want less offense, change the ball. It’s not rocket science.”—Rice coach Wayne Graham.

** The dream is free. Work ethic sold separately. **

Last edited {1}
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P PGStaff10,000+ posts
Nothing surprising there except for some of the explanations. If they took a survey using 24 professional coaches I think it would be 24-0 in favor of wood.

It would be interesting to take a survey of 24 of the top amateur players in the country. After all, the game is mostly about the players.

I find it hard to believe that there are kids at those schools that can only play there because of the metal bat.

That is quite a list of coaches. Many of them will be at Tropicana Field this week watching high school kids that they will recruit. Those kids will be hitting with wood.
Coach_MayCoach_May10,000+ posts
To be honest with you some of those responses tick me off. I bet if you took a poll of the top players playing college baseball it would be 90% or more in favor of wood.

It strikes me as very quirky that they want to evaluate hitters using wood bats but don't think they should be using them in college. Or they can't play the game at their level unless they have a metal bat in their hands.

I guess it just makes their job a little easier to coach metal bat hitters so they are in favor of it.
coach2709coach270910,000+ posts
Yeah what the OK State coach said surprised me. They have some of the best baseball players in the country - teach them how to hit with wood. They will learn.

I can understand why they are all pretty much in favor of metal because it's job security. If you can get great hitters with metal bats that are more forgiving than wood then that leads to more runs, which lead to more wins, which leads to more fans, which leads to more money. Wood bats changees things.

I see why Coach Garrido said that it's not his job to prepare players for the pros. His job security is based on how many wins he has and amount of money he can bring in. That's a lot to worry about to add on player development.

If you ask the players I bet the smart ones will say wood because they know that's what will get them to the next level. They want to use the tools that will get them there so if college went to wood they would love it.
fenwaysouthfenwaysouth10,000+ posts
I'd like to know how many of these 24 coaches with 1K wins (that prefer aluminum) are former PITCHERS?

As a side note, I think the hub-bub isn't about aluminum vs wood it is...the force or velocity of the ball coming off today's aluminum bats. It is a reaction time and safety issue for pitchers plain and simple. I have no objection to aluminum as long they do something to the material that limits the ball velocity coming off the bat, and gives the pitcher the same amount of time to react as if it was a wood bat.
RJMRJMHSBaseballWeb member since 2007
quote:
It strikes me as very quirky that they want to evaluate hitters using wood bats but don't think they should be using them in college.
I had the same reaction. While discussing the article with a friend I asked, what's the purpose of playing wood bat baseball on the path to college ball? I wonder how many responses were politically correct for the purpose of not upsetting the manufacturer of the team's bat contract.
RJMRJMHSBaseballWeb member since 2007
quote:
Originally posted by Strike 3:
So are they saying that Louisville Slugger, Easton, Demarini, Mizuno and others who all produce wood bats would end their funding of NCAA baseball if aluminum bats were banned? Why? Wouldn't they still sell a heckuvalot of wood bats to college teams, etc?? They do break ya know?
They don't sell them. They provide bats as part of a sponsorship deal. The bat makers might not offer an unlimited number of wood bats.

The profit margin on metal bats is HUGE. The bat makers don't want the metal bat market to die. If college stops using metal the trend back to wood could start, killing the metal bat era.
Last edited by RJM
C cbg500+ posts
If the college game were to make the change to wood bats, would it change the type of players now being recruited? IMO, you would see the game go back to kids that may be smaller in size but that could hit for a high average & have a high ob%. The day's of a big kid hitting the homerun off the handle or end of the bat would be over. The "small ball" game would be in vogue once again. You would also see the pitchers learn to throw inside without any fear of a poorly hit ball flying out of the park.
birdman14birdman141,000+ posts
College coaches must take the general public as a bunch morons. They can't be serious with some of those comments. Some of them would actually be quite disturbing if they truly believed what they are saying. Of coarse we know they don't believe a word of it, just fighting to keep their sponsorship deals it tact. Also, where else it the world can you sell a $10 item for $300+. Most of us would be fighting for that too, if we could get away with it.
1baseballdad1baseballdad100+ posts
I wonder what would happen to a lot of these programs if the sponsorship money dried up? My guess, with budget crunches they way they are these days, the results wouldn't be good for many of them.

That being said, I don't understand why these same companies couldn't continue to sponsor the teams if they went to all wood. In addition to that, I would also be willing to bet the price of wood bats would go way up if metal went away. Many of the higher end maple bats are already in the $100.00 to $130.00 range as it is. Supply and demand I guess.

I would love to hear what a typical D1 sponsorship deal consists of since I really have no idea. What about the rest of the gear? Do the companies kick in for that as well? Uniforms? Cleats, etc? Also, do D2 and D3 programs get sponsored or is that just for the D1 ranks?

I would also love to know what a company like Nike or Louisville Slugger budgets for their overall spending on College Baseball.
B baseballgiyMember
I think college should use wood. But I also thing if you are going to go to wood then the ball should change to the pro hardness baseball.

Lost in all the bat nonsense, Aluminum are going to show they are just as safe and it is a non issue, is the fact the High School and youth level baseball are do not have the same core and therefor the same hardness of a Pro Baseball.
S snowman100+ posts
quote:
Originally posted by Strike 3:
So are they saying that Louisville Slugger, Easton, Demarini, Mizuno and others who all produce wood bats would end their funding of NCAA baseball if aluminum bats were banned? Why? Wouldn't they still sell a heckuvalot of wood bats to college teams, etc?? They do break ya know?


I'm always fascinated by the wood vs aluminum debate because a third viable option is usually left out...the composite wood bat. Price wise these fall between wood and aluminum, closely mimic the performance of a standard one piece wood bat and...don't have nearly the breakage problem of one piece wood.
1baseballdad1baseballdad100+ posts
quote:
I'm always fascinated by the wood vs aluminum debate because a third viable option is usually left out...the composite wood bat. Price wise these fall between wood and aluminum, closely mimic the performance of a standard one piece wood bat and...don't have nearly the breakage problem of one piece wood.


Great point. My son has broken quite a few ash and maple bats. He has a bamboo bat that he has used for a couple of years for bp and it is still going strong.
BOFBOF10,000+ posts
quote:
Originally posted by greenmachine:
Composite bats are the worst of both worlds...I can tell you the players would never support that. I agree with Coach May: the general sentiment of college players is favorable to wood.


I think greenmachine did not fully understand snoman's post. "composite WOOD bats" Baum, Demarini, etc. My son uses a Baum and wood bat all summer/fall and actually prefers his baum over the wood. Great bat, almost unbreakable for $150.
Coach_MayCoach_May10,000+ posts
Why? Because thats what the guys swing that they aspire to play with and against. Would HS basketball players want to play on a 9' foot goal instead of 10'? Because the feeling of accomplishment when you square one up with wood for a hit far exceeds the feeling of getting a metal bat hit. To these players wood bat baseball is real baseball.

You can excell at the college game with metal bats by doing things that will never allow you to excell at the game with a wood bat in your hands.

When I hear a college coach say its not his job to develop players for the next level I wonder if he is telling that to his recruits?
coach2709coach270910,000+ posts
quote:
Originally posted by Coach_May:
Why? Because thats what the guys swing that they aspire to play with and against. Would HS basketball players want to play on a 9' foot goal instead of 10'? Because the feeling of accomplishment when you square one up with wood for a hit far exceeds the feeling of getting a metal bat hit. To these players wood bat baseball is real baseball.

You can excell at the college game with metal bats by doing things that will never allow you to excell at the game with a wood bat in your hands.

When I hear a college coach say its not his job to develop players for the next level I wonder if he is telling that to his recruits?


Completely agree - players want to play and they want to play at the highest level. If that means playing with wood then they are going to play with wood. If for some reason the situation was reversed and MLB plays with metal and amateur plays with wood then players would want to play with metal. That's just human nature overall. Yeah I'm sure there are some people out there who get off on the outcome of what they do with metal but they probably will never make it.

I understand why a coach would say it's not his job to develop talent but I don't agree with it. I could easily say it's not my job to develop kids for college but it's my job to win games. Any coach at any level could realistically say that - but they are wrong. Part of coaching is teaching and you got to teach the game in order to reach the next level. I try to teach my guys to produce as a college player would. Why do I do that? Two reasons - 1) it helps me win games and 2) it gets them ready to play for the next level. I love teaching the game and with that comes the responsibility of making your players better which results in getting them ready for the next level.

I highly doubt he says that to his recruits as well.

I agree with the wood composite topic. I've had my teams use these bats in the past and the perform very close to real wood bats. Overall the adjustment from wood composite to real wood would be much easier than metal to wood. Wood composite would be the best choice economically and performance wise for baseball.

But how do you get into that market that aluminum dominates?
Last edited by coach2709
B brute66100+ posts
The above-referenced AP article is a pure propaganda piece and should be disregarded; the title says it all.

These coaches annually receive 6 figures from an industry who trots them out to publicly confess who's their daddy?
Some poll.

My favorite is the coach who claims metal bats level the playing field because they prevent some teams from competing with superior wood bats. This is as ridiculous a remark as the NCAA statement saying that maximum BBCOR performance levels are set higher than wood is capable of in order to ensure that wood bats will still be legal for D1 competition. What a joke.
Last edited by brute66
1baseballdad1baseballdad100+ posts
quote:
My favorite is the coach who claims metal bats level the playing field because they prevent some teams from competing with superior wood bats.


So is there really no difference between the wood bat you can buy off the shelf at the local sporting goods store vs the wood bats the pro's swing?

On another note, to show how truly complicated this issue is, just look at the debate in MLB concerning "wood vs wood". It is every bit as heated as the whole Aluminum vs Wood debate.
ClevelandDadClevelandDadHSBBWeb Administrator
quote:
Originally posted by 1baseballdad:
quote:
My favorite is the coach who claims metal bats level the playing field because they prevent some teams from competing with superior wood bats.


So is there really no difference between the wood bat you can buy off the shelf at the local sporting goods store vs the wood bats the pro's swing?

On another note, to show how truly complicated this issue is, just look at the debate in MLB concerning "wood vs wood". It is every bit as heated as the whole Aluminum vs Wood debate.

Curious why you only ever make an appearance on this one issue and always on the side of the metal bat?

You appear to have a conflict of interest and I have come to that conclusion from the bias that appears in your posts (i.e., only posting on this one issue, always defending the metal bat).
wraggArmwraggArm500+ posts
Show me a poster out here claiming he has no conflict of interest, and I'll show you a liar (or somebody with absolutely no interest).

If 1baseballdad works for a metal bat company (I assume that's what you're insinuating), then good for all of us who are involved in the debate. At least the the guy taking that side of the argument would know a few things about that side of the argument.

Its not like he's out here peddaling Instructional Videos or Player Ranking Services...
Last edited by wraggArm
1baseballdad1baseballdad100+ posts
quote:
Curious why you only ever make an appearance on this one issue and always on the side of the metal bat?

You appear to have a conflict of interest and I have come to that conclusion from the bias that appears in your posts (i.e., only posting on this one issue, always defending the metal bat).


ClevelandDad,

For some reason you have decided to personalize this issue. I honestly have no idea why that is. Perhaps you just aren't used to someone disagreeing with your opinions but since I lack the capability you seem to posses as far as gleaning such detailed information from a one dimensional message board, I will leave it up to you to say why.

Now I thought the whole idea behind this message board was to read and perhaps even post on topics that interest you, which is exactly what I have done. Now you go and tell me I am supposed to post on topics that don't interest me. Forgive me as I am still trying to learn the rules. BTW, if you check, you will see I also post in the Virginia section. Why? Because it interests me.

As for what I do for a living, if you PM me, I will be happy to tell you exactly what it is I do and who I do it for. I will even tell you how long I have done it and how I got into this line of work. I hate to disappoint your theory but it has absolutely nothing to do with baseball, baseball equipment nor any material that goes into anything dealing with baseball. I did get a chuckle out of your "epiphany" though so I appreciate that.

Again, I am sorry you felt the need to personalize this but I am not the boogie man you want me to be. I am a regular guy with a son who plays baseball and someone who happens to have a genuine interest in the topic. Can I assume you make and sell wooden bats since you are so diligent and biased in your opinions of wood bats? Can I assume Alcoa fired you or you lost big money on their stock at some point? Is that your "conflict of interest" that drives your opinion and dislike of aluminum? Yeah, that would be pretty silly to assume that, don't you agree?

Also, please show me where I have defended anything in this topic? I posted a link to an article that talked about all sides of the issue and I said both sides made very valid points. How you extrapolate that into me "defending" metals bats is beyond me. I could give a rip about what material the bat my son uses is made of. I have been very clear on that point. I love wood bats and can't wait to get to East Cobb in a few weeks to watch the game played with wood.


Lastly, have you ever considered what posts like yours do to lurkers or newbies like me who may want to post opinions on conversations but dare not? After all, who wants to stick their neck out by voicing an opinion, only to be demonized and trashed by those that might disagree.

I would be willing to bet that isn't what this site is supposed to be about. Not everyone is going to share your opinion and not everyone is going to share mine. That is actually a great thing and not something that should be personalized. It's ok to agree to disagree and it isn't a bad thing when it happens.
B brute66100+ posts
quote:

So is there really no difference between the wood bat you can buy off the shelf at the local sporting goods store vs the wood bats the pro's swing?

On another note, to show how truly complicated this issue is, just look at the debate in MLB concerning "wood vs wood". It is every bit as heated as the whole Aluminum vs Wood debate.


So Division 1 coaches will be reduced to scouring the shelves at Dick's for x-out grade wood bats?

I seriously doubt that. Manufacturers will scramble to supply branded equipment to colleges even if cocktail weenies were mandated for use as bats, much less wood or wood composite.

The entire breakage/durability argument is a canard. Fact is, bats with wood-like performance qualities are being produced today that FAR outlive the metal bats being supplied to colleges these days. The fact that MLB takes the best natural grain lumber is 100% irrelevant.

The industry would do much to reduce the "truly complicated" nature of this issue by simply admitting that this is, for them, all about maintaining a significant performance advantage over wood.
ClevelandDadClevelandDadHSBBWeb Administrator
quote:
Originally posted by 1baseballdad:
I could give a rip about what material the bat my son uses is made of.

Maybe that is the issue. Pitchers are being maimed and you don't give a rip about it.

I didn't personalize the issue at all and could give a "rip" whether you disagree with me or not. What seems out of place here is your obsessiveness with the issue and I think the casual lurker here should be made aware of it. We are talking safety here and since you seem concerned about lurkers it seems fair game to ask you about it. Nothing personal at all.

You have made your points over, and over, and over, and over again and no one is challenging your right to your opinion. You have the right to do that but please don't take it personally when it comes across like you have a vested interest in all this. I have no clue what you do but you don't argue a point like a typical member here. Maybe you run an elite travel team with a bat contract - I don't know. What I do know is that you have made 179 posts to this website and roughly 120 of those posts are directed soley to the bat issue. If you were posting as Easton_Bats, I wouldn't have raised the conflict issue. Since you are posting as little old baseball Dad from Virginia, I think it is fair game to question motives. It is a credibility issue and since safety is involved and the frequency at which it has been obsessed over, it is fair to raise it imho. Nothing personal.
Last edited by ClevelandDad
1baseballdad1baseballdad100+ posts
quote:
Maybe that is the issue. Pitchers are being maimed and you don't give a rip about it.

I didn't personalize the issue at all and could give a "rip" whether you disagree with me or not. What seems out of place here is your obsessiveness with the issue and I think the casual lurker here should be made aware of it. We are talking safety here and since you seem concerned about lurkers it seems fair game to ask you about it. Nothing personal at all.

You have made your points over, and over, and over, and over again and no one is challenging your right to your opinion. You have the right to do that but please don't take it personally when it comes across like you have a vested interest in all this. I have no clue what you do but you don't argue a point like a typical member here. Maybe you run an elite travel team with a bat contract - I don't know. What I do know is that you have made 179 posts to this website and roughly 120 of those posts are directed soley to the bat issue. If you were posting as Easton_Bats, I wouldn't have raised the conflict issue. Since you are posting as little old baseball Dad from Virginia, I think it is fair game to question motives. It is a credibility issue and since safety is involved and the frequency at which it has been obsessed over, it is fair to raise it imho. Nothing personal.


You keep accusing me of doing things that just aren't taking place instead of staying on thread topics. I would say you make it personal.

I ask you again, where in this thread did I say anything positive or negative about metal or wood for that matter. To me, this is an entirely different discussion than the previous ones on safety. I knew at some point, someone would drag it in that direction and quite frankly, it has been beaten to death and I wasn't interested in rehashing any of it.

If you want to continue with your paranoid delusions of who you think I am or what I stand for, have at it. Just understand you couldn't be more wrong or judgmental.

BTW, all you would have to do is PM me and ask. Instead, you take the route of "calling me out" as some sort of bat rep. I am not and there are people who post here who know that to be the truth.

Might I suggest that if you can't discuss bat topics without going paranoid and thinking people who don't share your opinions all work for bat companies, you might want to stear clear of them.

After all, if you can give me advice on what topics I can or should post on, turnabout is fair play, right?

And yes, if my son pitched I have no doubt I would let that emotion creep into blurring the facts, as you have done. That is simply human nature. I am also sure that if my son was a third baseman and was struck and injured by a wood bat that just broke, I might have jaded opinions on wood bats. Neither is the case however so I try to stick with the facts.

Again, hear me loud and clear. Personally I could care less what they swing (from a safety standpoint) because I understand there are inherent dangers of both. I wish you could understand that as well but then again, that isn't what this topic was about. It was about college coaches opinions and the subtle and not so subtle politics that drive what they actually do swing. It was about people making valid points on both sides of the isle...period.

I hope I cleared that up for you.
TPMTPMHSBaseballweb Member since 2003
1baseballdad,

FWIW, I am not sure why you are getting ripped because you showed up for a discussion in this topic. That's your perogative to do so and you haven't insulted me with your opinions (as a pitchers parent) and who cares who you work for. I may not be in agreement with all that you say, but you are entitled to your say.

I am sure that you have concerns over the safety factor, as I do and many others as well. The bottom line is that anything can happen at anytime, whether you play with wood, metal whether you are a pitcher, position player or coach.

I have no issue with metal bats in college, I happen to agree with many statements made by the coaches too. I beleive in wood because that is how the game should be played, but after watching milb for a few years and the adjustments even the best hitters have to make, it takes a long time to adjust, LONG TIME for many and many of the first round hitters have HUGE adjustments to make as they go from level to level, league to league. Your college players would not get better using wood, because IMO many college hitting coaches can't even teach them how to hit properly with metal! So if you stress over him not hitting well in college and sitting the bench, imagine what would happen with wood?!? And just because he does learn to hit with wood, it doesn't translate into becoming a pro hitter.

As a parent of a pitcher who threw in the 90's during college and faced monster first round hitters, often, I have always had concerns but he was taught well to protect himself upon landing properly and sinks the ball and keeps it low. He pitches inside but that wasn't as often against metal. That's dangerous. The comebackers in college and now are with very low velocity coming off the bat. Perhaps if some coaches did a better job at instructing young pitchers, there would be less injury and leagues set limits for the type of bats used for all players there would be less to worry about. I actually am more concerned with the bats shattered while in pro ball with pieces flying everywhere than I was in college or HS with metal.

Yes the injuries will always be more devastating with metal. 14 years ago, husband at a game standing watching batting practice before a milb game, the ball deflected from the cage, spun around hit him in the eye and cracked the orbit and he suffered facial fractures, has minor retina damage.

I am concerned, but as you can see, anything can happen as a spectator, player or coach. I hope that doesn't make me a bad person for those reading.

My son didn't hit in HS much and never in college, so we never had to buy the best and latest version of a metal bat for success as most parents do. But I do find many folks who oppose metal, have probably in the past (or present) spend lots of money on those super duper rocket launchers.

BTW, son struggled many times in college against metal, he actually has the advantage now with wood, if those guys handled wood all though college, not sure if he would have the advantage. That's coming from a pitcher's parent.
Last edited by TPM
1baseballdad1baseballdad100+ posts
quote:
One trick pony...wears you out after a while.


Exactly why I said I had zero interest in rehashing the whole safety factor. I didn't start it in this thread and made zero comments on it until I was told I didn't care about safety.

I was trashed for just posting on a bat thread....apparently it didn't matter what I said.

Now back to the original topic, I find it interesting to see the comments coming from both sides since they covered some issues I personally didn’t consider. Clearly, money is also a motivating factor as it pertains to the coach comments. You can’t really say for sure if they were sincere or not with their comments but 6 figure contracts from bat manufactures can tend to make you tow the company line.

Personally, I still don’t see how things would change that drastically if they switched to wood as it pertains to the money involved in the sport. If College moved to wood, that sure would put a lot of pressure for HS to follow suit.
rz1rz15,000+ posts
quote:
Originally posted by Coach_May:
When I hear a college coach say its not his job to develop players for the next level I wonder if he is telling that to his recruits?


I see where you're coming from Coach. However, personally I hope he's telling his potential recruits that his institution will provide a great education and at the same time provide an opportunity to play the game at the college level. For the record, I'm for wood at the college level. As a realist, if you remove the top 30 programs in the country and look at the big picture of college baseball, the % of players that are drafted is disheartening. Any coach that would would sit in a living room and say he is their ticket to a pro career deserves the golden shovel award. I'm not speaking for the 5% that may be drafted, I'm talking about the 95% of college players across the board who will never sniff a pro contract because they just don't have those god given pro tools. JMO
Last edited by rz1
1baseballdad1baseballdad100+ posts
RZ1, you bring up a great point. Might be a good thread topic but since you put it out there in this one, I will use your comments as a springboard, if that's OK with you.

To me, this journey (son working his tail off to play baseball beyond High School and me having a blast watching him play) is more about opening doors to get a good, sound College education and to perhaps have some fun playing baseball while doing it. As I see it, anyone lucky enough (they worked their tails off to get there) to play ball after HS is already ahead of the game. We aren't "working towards a pro career". We are working towards getting him into a College he is comfortable with and one that will provide a solid education. Is that not the right way to approach this? Isn't that really what the vast majority of parents and kids are doing as well?
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