Dilemma..Newbie with a drafted son?

First, welcome to the HSBBW and congratulations on your son being drafted! Unless there were arrangements made before your son was drafted I would say you have very little negotiating power. I don’t have the figures for anything higher than the 10th round in but the largest bonus for the 10th round in 2004 was $85,000.00 and the smallest was $2,500.00. It is a difficult decision, and the pro vs. college and will be debated forever. Each player and each situation is different. My son was 17 years old and went through the draft in ’02 as a high school senior and WE passed on 5th round money and opted for college. He’s 20 now and just finished his junior year of college and was drafted again this spring in the 6th round and HE made the decision to play pro ball. NO regrets.
Fungo

Congratulations and welcome to the HSBBW.

I will be a little more direct than Fungo.... if your son has a substantial scholarship and drafted in the 43rd round advise him to head off to school.
Good luck.

Thanks for the advice so far. I looked on Baseball America at some 2004 info. Not sure I understand it but some HS guys drafted in the low rounds got pretty good money, like 175K for a HS RHP in the 34th round, another got 130K in the 45th round and a catcher got 200k in the 41st round. I guess I just don't know the procedure. Bottom line I guess, is it possible for us to get 100K and college money guaranteed or are we just dreaming?

OBXER

First of all, they usually draft players who they think will pass on college. So maybe his grades are not that good?? What are the chances of him maintaining the proper grade point average to keep his scholarship? After all, what is it all about? Do we get excited about school?? No, of course not... It's all about baseball, and this comes from a teacher. Why not find out if a kid has got what it takes and send him to play professional ball? If it doesn't work out, he can then go to the local state commuter university which is relatively cheap, get his four year degree, and go to work like the rest of the male population who only WISH they had the chance to play professionally.

There was a local boy who was drafted here, 6th round, Bosox, RHP. He got good bonus $$$, $600K. He bounced around the minors for 3 years, realized he wasn't going to make it, quit, and got his four year degree, and now is part of the working establishment. So now he can get the girl, get engaged, get the ring, the car and the house and live happily ever after, knowing he gave it his best shot.

Does it really matter when you go to college, whether it is before or after baseball? Nowadays, you can do both - baseball starts in February and ends in September. So you can squeeze in some credits in a fall semester each year. All it takes is a motivated son.

My son who has a 96.5 GPA and a 2040 on the new SATs, if drafted, will sign to play professionally and will pursue his degree at the same time.

Sign...Go do it...Get baseball out of your system, whether it is the MLB's choice to cut you or your choice to quit should you not make it to the big show. Who really wants to sit in class so that they can play baseball at the end of the day? Why not just get up and play baseball instead? Don't worry about supplementing the $900 a month salary because you would have to supplement him when he goes to college anyway.

You may need to seek the advice of an advisor for your questions.
45th rounder amount was given after the college player performed well in the Cape last summer.

Thanks again. He is a very good student, great work ethic but probably not an engineer or doctor type so college will not make him rich fast. He really wants to sign and play ball. He is 6'4" and may have a shot but the bottom line is we cannot afford to lose the financial assistance. Do you think it is likely we could get 100k and have the college money guaranteed also or again, or we just dreaming?

OBXER

OBXER -
Congratulations to your son. I looked up the draft list but didn't see a RHP HS player from VA listed. But my advice is to listen to Fungo & TPM. The $$'s you've quoted from BA for low rounds are the very rare exception. To go pro or college is a very personal decision, but if the "pro bonus money" is going to be your deciding factor, the odds are not in your son's favor with a 43rd round pick. Good luck with your decision. Hopefully all of us are wrong!

How much can in-state education cost in Virginia? Here in NY, it's $7,500/year if you commute. So find a reasonably priced college in VA and let him play professionally and give him a chance to make millions, instead of the $30K he'll make when he finishes college.

obxer...43rd round rhp...should get about $1,000.00; plane ticket to a short season team; and, a couple of coupons for a McDonald's Happy Meal.

If they haven't talked with you and cut a deal with you already, the money is not going to be there.

Take the college experience and tuition now.

My son played at Mississippi State...couldn't wait to get drafted...got drafted in the 8th round...bounced around the minors for a few years; and, "blew off" the money that they had set aside for him to finish his college education.

In 1993, if you didn't start using your money within 2 years after you were released, YOU LOST YOUR MONEY!

Tell your son to go to college.

One of the websters, who is a Major League Scouting Supervisor, had a son who was drafted in the later rounds; and, he's going back to finish his senior year. No significant money in the later rounds unless you were passed by in the first few rounds as "unsignable" and for some reason you had a significant change of heart or your favorite team was now interested in you.

Take the "emotion" out of it....Send him packing to college.

Take a deep breath, enjoy the moment and wait for the offer.

If money is tight, take the scholarship money, multiply it by five, and if they offer isn't that much, go to college.

BTW: Is he going to a Virginia college?

OBXER,

First and foremost, I want to add my congratulations to your son and his family! There are so many successful baseball players represented on this site, both college and pro, that some might at times almost forget what a huge honor and privilege it is to be offered the opportunity to play pro ball. This is the dream of thousands of boys who are associated with this site, and hundreds of thousands of players throughout the country, and your son has the opportunity to make this wonderful decision! Enjoy it!
http://www.hsbaseballweb.com/inside_the_numbers.htm
http://www.hsbaseballweb.com/probability.htm

Secondly, you've surely noticed that opinions differ as to what your son should do, or what type of financial offer might make sense for him to skip college and go directly to pro ball. Many of the members posting their opinions have recent direct experience with this decision. I think bbscout was mentioned - he is an authentic pro scout whose son was drafted this year after his Junior year of college but has chosen to stay and finish his Senior year at UCLA. TigerPawMom's son was a high draft prospect last year out of high school, but he and his family made it clear that he was going to college, and he has had a tremendous freshman year at Clemson, with his team still in the running for the College World Series. Others have spoken from experience about the advantages of going to college first. Another well-respected member who hasn't posted on this thread is OnePlayer'sPop. His son was drafted in the 20th round out of HS a few years ago and had almost decided to stick with his college scholarship offer, when he made a decision to follow his heart and accept the pro offer. If you check around on this site, you'll find some stories about that player, Zach Duke.
http://hsbaseballweb.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/6616002781/m/6781088801
All of these players obviously made good decisions, decisions that were a good fit for them.

I noticed that in your first post you mentioned about your son, "...but he really wants to go ahead and take his shot at the bigs." Many will tell you that statistically, it's very improbable that he or most other drafted players will make it to the big leagues. They are speaking from experience and a depth of knowledge, and I applaud them for sharing their advice. But the other side of the story is, the odds weren't very good for your son to make it this far either, were they? Whatever decision your son and your family makes together, there will be some who agree and some who don't. Have fun with this wonderful problem, and very best wishes for success!

The 43rd doesn't make your son a priority. He does now have options, regardless of others opinions. He now has the option to negotiate. If you can negotiate college tuition under the the mlb college plan and your son wants to try pro ball, then he has an option. However, they may not want to give him college money at that round. My son went in the 8th round and he got a bunus and 4 years of college paid for along with books, room and board, etc.

He could choose to go to a junior college for a year and sign or get redrafted next year. He could choose to go to his d1 school and get redrafted in 3 years. He has options.

My opinion would be that the best bet is college. If the team has some interest, you MAY consider a juco. Sometimes college is not for a kid.

Now the reality is a 43rd rounder is not going to be a priority and most likely will be a roster filler. That is my professional opinion, but I am not professional. lol Low round guys sit ont the bench, play in b games and get very little time. It is a business. The more money that you get the better prospect you are. It is not always talent.

My son sat most of the first month while the money guys got all the innings. He just kept at it and didn't give up hits or runs and he got his shot and did ok. A 43rd rounder may not get that chance.

You can email me at Bighit15@hotmail.com and I will be glad to give you more specific information.

Also, don't close the door on negotiations. Play in a top summer program and keep an open mind. If he does awesome and a couple of higher round guys don't sign, then he might get a better offer later in the summer. He might get his wish. Ya never know. AT LEAST HE HAS OPTIONS! You can negotiate until he takes his first class.

We have no idea why your son dropped in the draft. They might have been scared off by the good scholarship. Who knows? Maybe, his talent level is top 10 rounds. We don't know. Be realistic and be careful about pidgeon holing based on round pick. Truth is scouts are not perfect and many mistakes are made.

Be careful when people make blanket statements about signing or not based on round only without knowing who the kid is and what his talent level is or why he did not go higher. Get all the advice you can and then make the best decision for your family. If things were black and white, you would not have to negotiate. jmo

Thanks for all the great advice. Obviously, for the next few weeks we must be discreet. We do not want to tip our hand to the team that drafted our son, nor do we wish to make the college coach mad. I am getting some great advice from experienced people on this forum. At least we do have options and maybe a little negotiation power. I guess the bottom line is we will wait for the offer. If it does not meet our minimum then we will counter offer. If no luck, he will go to college.

Thanks All,
OBXER

If you have a number in your head that you feel will make it work stick to it---if the offer is not enough he turns them down and goes to college. Also dont expect big dollars in that round

Was he drafted by the same team that was talking to you all along? If it is this shows good interest so I would wait it out for a few weeks and see what happens

Has the college coach been calling to get updates?

One last thing-- in reviewing the 43rd round picks I do not see a HS pitcher from VA drafted--have you got the correct round noted in your post or am I missing something here.

quote:

One last thing-- in reviewing the 43rd round picks I do not see a HS pitcher from VA drafted--have you got the correct round noted in your post or am I missing something here.

Flying under radar?

Thanks again. Yes, the same team drafted him that had interest all along and yes the college coach is staying very close to us. Yes, I do have to fly under the radar for a few weeks. I hope you can understand my concern in that respect.

OBXER

quote:

Yes, I do have to fly under the radar for a few weeks.

That's cool. Good luck. I would ask if the club is interested in a draft & follow situation for your guy. Assuming he does well he could get started toward the degree at a JUCO, get a nice bonus next summer, then turn pro.

At the very least he's eligble for the draft every year instead of just his Jr. year.

Just a thought.