College scouts

This is a good time for you. Start by making a list of colleges you might like to attend, find out the head coach's name, and write him a personal letter or email introducing yourself and your interest in his school and basbeall program. Invite him out to see you play, include a schedule if you have one. Go on their website and fill out a "Recruit Questionaire", (most sites have one of these), that will get you into their database.

Try to get on a good club team for the summer and play at as high of a level as you can. Send the same coach's this team's schedule and invite them to come to a game. This site has plenty of info for how to write one of these letters, believe me it helps.

Don't worry about being at a small school, if you can play, they will come see you.

One side note: this is the time for you start taking your SAT or ACT tests. They will be interested in your scores soon, get yourself set up and get the highest score you can (you can take them as many times as you like, the ACT takes the highest score per category each time and accumulates them). Get registered with the NCAA Clearinghouse, the coaches will also be asking about that.

if you have any questions at all, ask away, this site is loaded with helpful experienced people.

Good Luck!

www.leaguelineup.com/sdprospects

I was also wondering if AAu baseball helps you get noticed more. This year my 16U team will be going to Nationals and Junior Olympics and i was wondering what you think about scouts scouting 16 year olds, only being sophomores, who still have a few years left until college. Do you want to stay in contact with a college coach for a few years or is that getting too close to them too soon? Last year( on JV because coach's policy is to take "OK" Juniors over really good freshman because of seniority) I batted around .600 1 HR 4 triples around 7 or 8 doubles and between .600 and .700 on base percentage and also only 1 error at ss. Is that good stats? Thanks for the reply MatadorDad. I get A's and B's and all together have an average of around 84 to 86 between all my classes. Is it Junior year that they really start to look at grades or do they look at all four years of grades, (considering as you mature from a young freshman to a young adult senior)?

AAU will help of course. The Junior Olympics are highly scouted by both pro and college, it would be good exposure for you. In the world of college sports these days, recruiters are in a very competative market for players, you are at the right age to begin the process. Market yourself to the colleges you like, it works. They cannot really officially talk to you (scholarships, etc.) until the summer before your senior year (which is not far off), but you can get the ball rolling and get yourself on their "watch" list.

As far as your GPA goes, your overall GPA is only a small part of the story. Your "Core" GPA is what your eligibility is based on. Your school counselor can help you with what your "Core" classes are and need to be. It's different with each school, and sometimes for each division you'd like to play at. Requirements for D-I are not he same as D-II, NAIA or D-III.

One word to the wise though. D-I is nice but expand your choices to the other levels too, there are some fantastic colleges in every level, and it's very important for you to find a school that:

1. You're comfortable with if baseball doesn't work out
2. You can afford, scholarships are rarely 100%, most "big" scholarships are books, tuition, and some help towards lodging, the rest is up to you to pay.
3. A team that will give you a chance to compete for a starting job as a freshman, it's no fun to "watch" D-I games when you might be able to "play" in D-II or III.

There's more to come, but as a sophomore, this is about what you need to know for now.

www.leaguelineup.com/sdprospects

TRHit is a great source of information in here, especially for kids in your area. He runs a company called "College Select" and he specializes in helping kids get to college.

Drop him a note when you see him on, you'll be glad you did. His name is Tom Rizzi. He's very easy to talk to and I'm sure would be glad to help.

Good Luck, and keep those grades up!

Frank Coit
Head Coach
San Diego Prospects Baseball Club

www.leaguelineup.com/sdprospects

Class M does draw a few scouts.

Hey, Winamac, i was wondering if you were a coach or a person who can help my town get scouted over the next few years. We have lots of great kids on the team this year and a lot of good seniors and good potential in new and upcoming sophomores.

JO is a great tourney.
My son is 16 and played last summer on a travel team and went to a couple of showcases. He's gotten some interest from quite a few schools. The letters and questionnaires can arrive after Sept. 1 of your Junior Year (D-1), they cannot call you until after July 1 after your Junior year, but you can call the coaches anytime.
Yes they do scout 16 yr. olds because they like to look ahead.
You will want to keep your grades as good as possible, because they look at your entire HS GPA, and as stated before, your core GPA. Some coaches have told our son that good ballplayers with good grades are sometimes hard to find. So don't neglect the academics.
Also, start preparing to take those college exam tests. Take the PSAT fall of Junior year, This one can qualify you for Scholarships if your score is high enough. Then prepare for the SAT and ACT. Most schools require one or the other, but my son took both. Study for these tests, too, because different schools offer scholarships for good scores on these tests, too.
Get on some websites of schools you are interested in and find out about them.
Good Luck to you and best for the season.

one question guys.........when should you fill out a recruit questionare?

chicks dont dig the long ball, they dig the high heat.

Usually if the college wants info from your coach there will be a section for that--the player fills out the form in general--the coach his section

Make a copy for your files before you give it to coach to fill out his portion-- and follow up with coach to make sure it gets mailed

Good luck

TRhit

im sorry, i didnt explain it well. I meant like what year should you start your process of filling them out and calling coaches ETC....
Is it after your soph year?

chicks dont dig the long ball, they dig the high heat.

longball38 -
IMO, you should complete and return any questionnaire sent to you as they are received, don't wait. Sophomore year, go out to the online sites of the colleges you are most interested in. Most have an online form you can fill out. Get to a high-profile event to help get your name out there to colleges. Then, wait until the fall of your Junior year. Then, send intro letters to the schools you are interested in. Make this a broad list of schools, covering all levels. Let them know of your sincere interest in their program. Give them your last year stats and GPA info. Send with the intro letter a baseball picture of you, your school spring schedule, and let them know about any summer tournament/showcase plans. Fall/Winter of Junior year would be the time to make direct contact by phone or e-mail. Any earlier is too soon and would not be worthwhile unless you have already made a connection with that coach thru a camp or other situation. Good luck. You are on the right track by being on this site and asking questions!

sorry about all the questions, one more......about the online questionares, should I fill them out at the beginning of my sophmore year? and Most of them ask for my SAT and ACT test scores, what if I havent taken them yet?

chicks dont dig the long ball, they dig the high heat.

long...If you haven't taken them yet, say so.


I would recommend that EVERYONE take the ACT and the SAT as often as you can. There is no penalty for taking them several times; and, importantly, you might "dazzle" them during one of the sittings!

longball38 -
As BeenthereIL says, it doesn't matter if you cannot complete all the information on the profile, just complete what you can. Always be honest and give correct GPA's, stats, etc.

It is VERY important for athletes to start taking their SAT/ACT testing early. College scouts start making scholarship offers July 1st after your junior year and they need to first ensure that you qualify by getting your SAT/ACT scores. Having early scores can give you an edge. We have found that most schools recommend a student only start in the spring of junior year. In some cases this can be TOO LATE for baseball players as this will not give you enough time to get your results, schedule a retake if needed, and get the best scores out to college coaches before the summer.

Keep those questions coming. We are all here to help out where we can.

when is a good time to start filling out online questionares?

chicks dont dig the long ball, they dig the high heat.

Longball38,
I would also suggest scrolling back up to the top of the page. Over on the left is a green bar. Look for the recruiting time-line info and print it out. Bob has the most comprehensive list that details everything you need to know about the recruiting process.
To answer your question about questionaires, fill them out now. It can't hurt.