Confused

Grant

Speakin of stuff--any phone calls???

Trying to get real here

Yea Ive talked to a few JuCo coaches but I dont really want to go to a junior college so how am I supposed to get noticed by a bigger college

You are a senior --am I correct?

If this is the case what showcases have you attended?

Did you play for a high profile travel team/

What you wnat and what is reality can be two different things? Do you have an honest evaluation of your talent?

May I ask--what is "showcases and stuff like that" mean?

I went to swingtown in Joliet,a showcase at Augustana college where we played against teams like the lakeside cardinals and lombard lightning,and Im thinking about going to Parkland for a showcase soon.No I dont play for a travel team because we dont have any big ones around here.I hit .430 as a Jr. with 2 HRs and 38 RBIs on a team that was 26-10-1(tied with O'Fallon at Busch Stadium)and I was the only starting Jr.Yea I guess I probably do suck like your saying.Thanks.

Where did I say you suck?

Just trying to get a handle as to why you are getting noticed as much as you would like

Grant -TR never said you suck. He is simply asking questions that he or anyone else on the board would need to ask if they were going to be able to give you any advice.

Saying that you hit .430 is nice, but really doesn't tell folks anything. There are many pieces to evaluating a player. Are there any scouts in your area or college coaches that have seen you play that you can discuss your ability or where they see you playing at the college level? If not, then I would suggest that you schedule a camp at one of the "bigger colleges" where you want to go - call and chat with that coach before you go. You can also schedule to work out with a couple of JUCO, NAIA/DII schools and see what the coaches have to say. Most college coaches are very honest in their evaluations and can tell you at what level they see you at, your strengths, and what they think your weaknesses are.

Also, if you haven't received any phone calls, you should be mailing out letters and calling coaches. No one will walk up to your door and offer you a LOI sight unseen. You might even want to call TR and discuss some of his questions a bit further. Best of luck to you.

Grant:

I don't think TR was trying to put you down in the slightest - just asking the question he or any of the other old timers/experienced people on this board would ask in order to understand your situation more fully.

From the information that you have provided, I would suggest that you need to be more aggressive in selling yourself to colleges that you are interested in. You need to be sending letters, attending camps and showcases, and playing with travel teams at major events where the coaches are. (Probably in that order of importance). Coaches will respond to letters and to a lesser degree to phone calls with at least a glance.

Unfortunately, high school stats don't mean much. They are too dependent on the level of competition and the official scorers.

Thank you guys for the advice and Im definately going to look into sending out some letters and making some calls.

Those schools that sent you info about their camps know you exist. They may not know anything more about you. Use this as an opportunity to tell them. My son was sent info for camps at schools accross the country that we couldn't afford to send him to. He was interested in the schools. We sent them a letter telling them that he was interested but unable to attend their camp. We gave them all his "credentials", baseball schedule, transcripts, SAT's, coaches to contact for references, and a video. If I had been a little more technically savvy I would have made a CD which would have been less expensive. They all contacted him and/or his hs and travel coaches. Some had seen him at West Coast showcases and the tape served as a refresher. One he did take an official visit to.

When his D-1 opportunities seemed to dry up we sent the same sort of package to D-2's and D-3's that he would be interested in and he got quite a bit of interest. Ultimately he did end up at a local D-1 and is a happy camper. You've got to be pro-active. You don't want to go through life thinking, what if...

Don't forget to look at the main page of this website for a sample letter as well as info on the various college camps...

Good Luck