Does getting non-injury redshirted help or hurt a player?

This wasn’t freshman year. But a couple of recent posts have been about being told late about the player’s situation.

A travel teammate of my son was told on Wednesday before the season started junior year his services would no longer be needed. This is how cut throat college ball can be. The coach held all the cards and played them.

The kid said had he been told the likely situation the previous June he would have transferred. He thought he was going to be a frequently used utility player and pinch hitter. Being told a month into second semester junior year he decided his baseball career was over.

He stayed for the degree. He had a career .300+ BA in limited at bats. At least he walked away with the memory his first college at bat was a game winning pinch hit against a top ranked team.

@RJM posted:

This wasn’t freshman year. But a couple of recent posts have been about being told late about the player’s situation.

A travel teammate of my son was told on Wednesday before the season started junior year his services would no longer be needed. This is how cut throat college ball can be. The coach held all the cards and played them.

The kid said had he been told the likely situation the previous June he would have transferred. He thought he was going to be a frequently used utility player and pinch hitter. Being told a month into second semester junior year he decided his baseball career was over.

He stayed for the degree. He had a career .300+ BA in limited at bats. At least he walked away with the memory his first college at bat was a game winning pinch hit against a top ranked team.

Thank you for sharing.   I'm getting tired of all the x (formerly twitter) post complaining about the transfer portal.

Not perfect, schools using NIL as a carrot is a problem, but coaches not being as transparent as they could be is not good.

@RJM posted:

This wasn’t freshman year. But a couple of recent posts have been about being told late about the player’s situation.

A travel teammate of my son was told on Wednesday before the season started junior year his services would no longer be needed. This is how cut throat college ball can be. The coach held all the cards and played them.

The kid said had he been told the likely situation the previous June he would have transferred. He thought he was going to be a frequently used utility player and pinch hitter. Being told a month into second semester junior year he decided his baseball career was over.

He stayed for the degree. He had a career .300+ BA in limited at bats. At least he walked away with the memory his first college at bat was a game winning pinch hit against a top ranked team.

I'm sorry, but the kid should have blasted that all over the internet.  No way should that be allowed.  I mean, what if a kid did that to a school? Are they even allowed to do that right before a season (a recruit that is).   No way would I ever want my son to play for him. 

I think kids getting cut just before the spring season starts happens more than you realize. Not saying it's 600 times a year. But, it's more than just three.

@Francis7 posted:

I think kids getting cut just before the spring season starts happens more than you realize. Not saying it's 600 times a year. But, it's more than just three.

This usually happens to walkons, not to  players on athletic scholarship.

Coaches usually will not redshirt players unless they have been hurt because most don't have funds available to cover more than 4 years.

Redshirt players can practice with the team.

Also, coaches release players at the end of each semester, not before start of a season unless they violated team rules.

@TPM posted:

This usually happens to walkons, not to  players on athletic scholarship.

Coaches usually will not redshirt players unless they have been hurt because most don't have funds available to cover more than 4 years.

Redshirt players can practice with the team.

Also, coaches release players at the end of each semester, not before start of a season unless they violated team rules.

In a perfect world….

Cutting kids just before the season has gone on for a long time; there many stories on this site, here is Cleveland Dad's son from 2006:  https://community.hsbaseballwe...ings-didnt-go-my-way

To clarify:

- any player on the roster can practice with the team.  All scholarship players have to be on the roster, even if they don't get into games, i.e. redshirt.

- If a freshman is NOT on athletic scholarship and is told up front that he is being "redshirted", then he might not be on the roster, and would then not be allowed to practice with the team in the spring.

Some players on every roster don't have scholarships.

Great link, thanks!

@anotherparent posted:

Cutting kids just before the season has gone on for a long time; there many stories on this site, here is Cleveland Dad's son from 2006:  https://community.hsbaseballwe...ings-didnt-go-my-way

To clarify:

- any player on the roster can practice with the team.  All scholarship players have to be on the roster, even if they don't get into games, i.e. redshirt.

- If a freshman is NOT on athletic scholarship and is told up front that he is being "redshirted", then he might not be on the roster, and would then not be allowed to practice with the team in the spring.

Some players on every roster don't have scholarships.

Had a coach say at a camp that they have "Redshirts" and "Greyshirts". This was from a D1 Head coach.

Redshirts - are on the roster and practice with the team.

Greyshirts - are not on roster and can not practice with the team. Can not use any team services other then use facilities, when they are not in use by the rostered team (as I understood it). Would hate to be in this position. IMO they should be trying to find a new home. If baseball means a lot to them.

@TxballDad posted:

Had a coach say at a camp that they have "Redshirts" and "Greyshirts". This was from a D1 Head coach.

Redshirts - are on the roster and practice with the team.

Greyshirts - are not on roster and can not practice with the team. Can not use any team services other then use facilities, when they are not in use by the rostered team (as I understood it). Would hate to be in this position. IMO they should be trying to find a new home. If baseball means a lot to them.

Many (greedy) College & University administrators have learned that they can generate extra tuition income for their schools by offering the illusion of playing college sports to aspiring young athletes.  It occurs at all levels of college athletics, from JuCo to D1. In cases where a school isn’t fully funded this practice of over-recruiting is actually necessary for some sports to continue to exist. But that’s certainly not the case most places. The most important thing in today’s recruiting world is to be fishing in the right pond. This isn’t true in every case but IMO kids that reach for a program (ie; turn down a scholarship to a D2 or JuCo to walk on at a D1) are the ones most likely to end up with a redshirt or a grayshirt. It’s important to know your standing as you enter a program. Are you in their plans? Or are you a fundraiser?? Because whatever your role is when you enter is likely going to remain the same as long as you are there.

@adbono posted:

Many (greedy) College & University administrators have learned that they can generate extra tuition income for their schools by offering the illusion of playing college sports to aspiring young athletes.  It occurs at all levels of college athletics, from JuCo to D1. In cases where a school isn’t fully funded this practice of over-recruiting is actually necessary for some sports to continue to exist. But that’s certainly not the case most places. The most important thing in today’s recruiting world is to be fishing in the right pond. This isn’t true in every case but IMO kids that reach for a program (ie; turn down a scholarship to a D2 or JuCo to walk on at a D1) are the ones most likely to end up with a redshirt or a grayshirt. It’s important to know your standing as you enter a program. Are you in their plans? Or are you a fundraiser?? Because whatever your role is when you enter is likely going to remain the same as long as you are there.

Agree.

As a first pass, Student Athletes and families need to use data driven methods to understand the roster management strategy of their target school(s).  If you find some red flags, don't be shy with asking pointed questions.

Data doesn't lie, people do

Currently, 283 out of 305 NCAA-D1 programs have published preliminary rosters. we uploaded the majority between sept and dec, thus we will expect changes.

CBI goal was to provide some context as to how many players a school will normally bring in for the fall.

We've posted the fall rosters as 2024 projections

The free version provides a very limited view, there are some schools we've open for trial view

UCONN

Washington State

Nebraska

Ohio State

https://collegebaseballinsight...nover-insights-free/

Once a student athlete has done some due diligence, they should come to this forum to get the more nuanced answers.

@Dadof3 posted:

I'm sorry, but the kid should have blasted that all over the internet.  No way should that be allowed.  I mean, what if a kid did that to a school? Are they even allowed to do that right before a season (a recruit that is).   No way would I ever want my son to play for him.

Sometimes you have to look at the bigger picture. His older brother was a stud in the school’s primary sport.

My son (freshman catcher at a mid major) said he doesn't expect to play much or at all with 2 senior catchers in front of him.  But as the 3rd string catcher, he is on the roster and gets to travel with the team even if it's just to catch bullpens and as an insurance in case of injuries.  We discussed the possibility of red shirting, and if he would rather be red shirted than take a few meaningless at bats.  He initially said he would rather be red shirted.  But several months later he said he really doesn't care bec even if he red shirted, he intends to graduate in 4 years and get on with his life.  He is still passionate about baseball and enjoying the team and practices a lot.  He is excited about the team and the future even if he knows he doesn't get to play much this year.  It's just that he also knows that there is an end to the road and he will not go pro.  He might as well get started with life rather than hang on for another year.

@Dadof3 posted:

I'm sorry, but the kid should have blasted that all over the internet.  No way should that be allowed.  I mean, what if a kid did that to a school? Are they even allowed to do that right before a season (a recruit that is).   No way would I ever want my son to play for him.

Talk about blasting the news... this came across my twitter feed.

https://x.com/tromblybaseball/status/1752168169798856803?s=46