College Fall Ball 2015

I got you both beat by a mile.

Last 8 are:

1. Another flood warning.

2. ya

3. Giving my teacher crap about the dodgers. Big dodgers fan

4.  Yeah that bat flip was unreal

5. "Celebrating" in the room of depressed Dodger fans.

6.  1-hopped the 375

7.  had beast of a round.

8. Nice! 

Fall ball is over at my son's school. He performed well and will be on the roster when they start up again in January. I've never seen him work as hard at anything in his life. He's coming home for the first time this weekend. I don't expect to see much of him.

Homecoming this weekend in which the ball team will play their 3 game series. This will put an exclamation point on their fall season. Looking forward to seeing my son. He's having fun and working hard. It will be fun to finally watch some games, its been too long.

LOL

GRACIAS

NOTES-please print

9:30

AM

Bump on Thursday

So so

He likes me

Yes

Yes, please

Good

At least you guys are getting actual words. I get emojis most often that I have to get one of my other kids to decipher for me.

So far so good.  

It's a little hard to get the full picture out of him, but  piecing it all together from the random snippets that he's communicated I infer that  he's been playing well --  putting up some tough  AB's even when he strikes out,  driving the ball with authority and displaying his speed on the bases  (except for a caught stealing), while  playing very strong defense. 

Final cuts have been made and the kid is still standing. So are all of his roommates. They are a quad of happy campers.  (Would have been awkward if some got cut and some didn't.)  He guesstimates that the roster was trimmed by 25-30%, roughly,  with some number of guys basically self-cutting. 

He and his roommates have  been assigned the responsibility of showing some guys coming on a recruitment visit a good time this coming weekend.  Hope they don't do anything stupid! 

Final couple of weeks are  where jobs for the Spring are won or lost!  So the real test is just beginning. 

I have been waiting to post until fall ball had officially ended for fear of jinxing anything. Freshman son had a really good fall.  We were worried going in because he had an minor injury and was shut down from the end of July through all of August. Coaches were aware so he only got to throw 12 innings.  In those 12 innings he had 21K's, no walks, and 1 infield single.  I know he really worked hard to get back to normal and even managed to increase his velo a bit. The coaches seem happy with him but he's a freshman at a d1 with 15 more pitchers on the roster (only 2 freshman) so it remains to be seen what if any his role will be this year.  He knows he did the best he possible could have and he's happy with that, and he said he will continue to do whatever they ask of him.  Oh and bonus, the coach makes them get mid semester progress reports signed by all of their professors.  So far straight A's!!  Oops, hopefully I didn't jinx that.

Well, our son completed his fall campaign this past weekend. He did end on a high note, as he finished the series going 3 for 9 with a double. Made some nice plays on defense and threw 2 innings of no hit/no run ball. His team prevailed taking the series. A nice way to end his fall freshman season. It was fun spending time with him as he stayed off campus with us. Now to keep grinding in the classroom these last 6 weeks, tough work.

It's great to hear all this Fall Ball stories, Takes me back to my son's first 2 years of College. Still does not text back much going to his Senior year but talks about his experiences more during our skype sessions and when he is at home during breaks. Really enjoyed our last family weekend where Senior parents threw the first pitch to their sons before the Red and Black Scrimmage Game. It was a close game won by the Black Team 1-0. No errors which is great for a fall game !

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uFxdIcLxikA

P.S. @younggundad Hope your son is still recovering ahead of schedule !

"My nightly call home to offer my parents a filtered report of “life at college” that first fall became part of the pattern. “Life is good, class isn’t bad, everyone is nice,” I would respond, giving less detail each week as I got more comfortable."

The first fall season is difficult for most players entering into such a new environment. 1 out of 10 freshman are primed and ready for an All-Freshman run, but most need some adjustment time. That includes both on and off the field. I thought I was keeping my parents in the loop but reflecting back it was certainly a filtered version. This wasn't done maliciously, but was instead difficult to express everything going on around me.

My first fall was a bit of a reality check. I saw players get cut, curve balls break like they hadn't before, a new assistant coach come in, a whole new set of friends, and  lectures with hundreds of students in them. This all took time to adjust to and even more time to form words around that could be communicated to my parents back home.

http://goingwiththepitch.com/

"Going with the Pitch: Adjusting to Baseball, School and Life as a Division I College Athlete" (Second Edition)

Faced live batters for the first time since July 2014 (shoulder, surgery in Jan. 2015).

Up until a week ago, he was still in so much pain, he had pretty much quit throwing bullpens. Velo was in mid 70s (note, he was at 98 last season). Goofing around, he decided to throw side arm since over the top was killing him...grad asst. said, that looks pretty good, let's throw a bullpen. Well, now we are a side-armer...no pain, everything was in the zone and velo was right around 90. They made him live for the weekend.

So, back to the outing...three batters faced (all he was scheduled to see)...one ground ball through the 6 hole. Second batter ground out. Third batter, took him to 3-2...batter fouled off several before finally drawing a walk. I know it doesn't sound like much, but it is a victory. And reinventing himself could possible, put him where he needs to be. He was very positive about the weekend and feels good about his new delivery.

Fall Season went well for Ryno.  He will mostly likely be the 2 or 3 starter for his JC, and it looks like he will DH when he is not pitching.  PC said he will never play 1B, because they want his arm to only pitch.  Too much wear and tear to do both.  The most exciting thing is that he says his mechanics have improved to the point where he is 87-88 consistently.  Before he would hit 87-89 in the first couple of innings, and then drop down to 82-85.  He has also hit 90 several times this fall, so a lot of positives.

School wise, he is doing great in every class but one.  He is having a hard time with Business Stats. He currently has a High C, and he'll have to work to get a B. He has all A's in the others.

We text regularly, and when we talk on the phone, it feels better.  It seems like he actually wants to talk to me when he calls, and that is really refreshing.  He's come home several weekends with a few of his teammates, and that has been great too.

Go Tigers!!!!!

Good luck to your son. Sounds like he's gained a ton of confidence with this new opportunity he has come to find. Shoulder surgery for pitchers is quite un-nerving not knowing what lies ahead. Wish him well.

Fall is a grind.  My junior is in the mix to start at 3b/2b. The weights, runs, swings, are all going well. But over the last 3 seasons it is clear that this is not something to take lightly.  If your player isnt fully committed then there is nothing wrong with being a student. But if he really wants it then the payoff in a fantastic college experience is worth the effort.  

The kid was home for Thanksgiving. First time back home since school started.  He spent a lot of time visiting his old haunts and catching up with other friends who were also home for the holiday, but we did get to hang out a fair bit. I actually threw him BP one day.   Felt like old times!  

Unfortunately. sounds like it's going to be very tough for him to get much playing time this year.  OF is by far the deepest part of his team and there are many upper class men ahead of him on the depth chart.  Even a number of the returning OF guys  will be in dogfights  for PT, it seems.  Still the kid is not discourage, since the coaches seem really to like his skills and see him as part of the future.  He's  definitely working his tail off  and actually seems to be having the time of his life so far.

I feel your son's pain, although its not really pain at all but instead unavoidable experiences of being a freshman. I was recruited thinking I was one of two new OF recruits. On the first day there were 3 others also vying for the same spot, including a JuCo.

The competition is a good thing, but some frustrations do stem from positions already filled with great players. My only advice is to keep in mind that things change quickly and opportunities open up, that is a gurantee. (It is only after a long time where things aren't changing that it may be a sign to look for another home.)

Amazon: Going with the Pitch SE

Author of "Going with the Pitch: Adjusting to Baseball, School and Life as a Division I College Athlete" (Second Edition)