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Does the right high school help with recruiting

T Tech11165Member
My son will be going to high school next year. He turns 13 in two days. Like all kids his age he want to play college ball and beyond. We live in Maryland and have access to local private high schools that has a strong baseball program (Calvert Hall).He is an honor roll student and a great baseball player. He has opportunities to go to a great Magnet High school (free). Do college recruits look at school or talent. He plays Metro-travel ball(which is one of the highest levels to play in our area). We could swing the Private school cost but it would be a struggle. We probable could not afford all the baseball camps or special training or even travel ball for summer or fall. The Magnet Schools have an OK sports program but we likely rely on travel ball to see strong competitions. I don't know what I should do. Education wise the public and private schools I am looking at are very respectable in the field of education.Education is our first priority. They have private schools that cost even more so the ones we are looking at are at the lower range. Does talent get looked at or the school? Thanks
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coach2709coach270910,000+ posts
Tech welcome to the site and you've asked a great question. Overall when it comes to the list of things you need to do to get seen by college coaches high school baseball is on the list but not near the top. My list would go....

1A. Good grades / SAT scores - nothing happens without this. Super important to take care of business in the classroom.

1B. A very good to great summer team that plays in the big tournaments (PG, East Cobb, Jupiter to name a few).

2. Showcases where you know the college coaches will be.

3. College camps if there is a certain school(s) that your son really, really wants to go to.

4. High school baseball because it's a chance to represent a community and learn good baseball if you have a good coach. I think there are more of the better HS coaches out there than what people realize but there are a lot of clowns too.

5. Recruiting profiles and other things like this. I can't say they don't work but if this is all you do then you're probably not going to get seen.

6. YouTube videos - see above

I think if you take the top 3 and find a combination that works for you (factor in the finances because camps / showcases aren't free) then you maximize your ability to be seen.

One thing you have to realize about high school season is college coaches are playing at the same time so it's difficult to get out to high school games and scout. It does happen and they do follow the big names but overall it's very difficult to do.

Hope this helps some.
RJMRJMHSBaseballWeb member since 2007
There are high school programs that help. A bad one won't hurt if a kid plays on the right summer team. If your son can start at Calvert Hall it will help his journey. It also won't hurt to get hooked up with the Blue Jays travel team like many of their kids do.
Last edited by RJM
fenwaysouthfenwaysouth10,000+ posts
Tech11165,

Welcome to HSBBWeb

It is really hard to project what baseball situation is best for your son at this point in time. It is even harder to project if your son wants to stick with baseball at age 13. A lot changes in 5 years as you will learn on this site by talking to different people.

What isn't hard to project is education. From the scenario you laid out, the magnet schools are awfully appealing. My two oldest son have attended magnet schools in our County. It has been a fantastic educational experience. My oldest son did very well for himself and received both baseball & academic scholarship offers. He is playing college baseball right now. My middle son is a junor, and doing very well too. The magnet school and travel baseball scenario can work for you, but it requires talent and some planning on your part to include training, exposure, and an understanding of the baseball recruiting process. We faced a similiar decision a bunch of years ago, and we went with the magnet school because we knew college was not going to be inexpensive.....that is a cold hard economic fact. I think I would hold my money back on private schools right now given the economy unless there was an earth shattering reason. Just my opinion.

I think it would be worthwhile to review your options again in detail, and map out a plan. Nobody know your situation better than you. Best of luck, and if you have questions please post them to the board. There are a lot of smart folks here that have walked in your shoes.
Last edited by fenwaysouth
W wogdoggy500+ posts
quote:
Originally posted by Tech11165:
My son will be going to high school next year. He turns 13 in two days. Like all kids his age he want to play college ball and beyond. We live in Maryland and have access to local private high schools that has a strong baseball program (Calvert Hall).He is an honor roll student and a great baseball player. He has opportunities to go to a great Magnet High school (free). Do college recruits look at school or talent. He plays Metro-travel ball(which is one of the highest levels to play in our area). We could swing the Private school cost but it would be a struggle. We probable could not afford all the baseball camps or special training or even travel ball for summer or fall. The Magnet Schools have an OK sports program but we likely rely on travel ball to see strong competitions. I don't know what I should do. Education wise the public and private schools I am looking at are very respectable in the field of education.Education is our first priority. They have private schools that cost even more so the ones we are looking at are at the lower range. Does talent get looked at or the school? Thanks


always think education FIRST and baseball as an after thought and I think you'll end up doing the right thing in the long haul.

act scores GPA and class ranking will PROBABLY get you more money when attending college then a mediocre academic record WITH a partial sports scholarship.
with the right academics he could probably go to an elite private d3 school chaeper than he could attend a div 2 school with a partial sports scholarship and mediocre grades.GRADES and ACT are everything in my opinion..if your kid is good they will want to come after him for his grades and his sports talent
VectorVector1,000+ posts
quote:
Originally posted by coach2709:
Tech welcome to the site and you've asked a great question. Overall when it comes to the list of things you need to do to get seen by college coaches high school baseball is on the list but not near the top. My list would go....

1A. Good grades / SAT scores - nothing happens without this. Super important to take care of business in the classroom.

1B. A very good to great summer team that plays in the big tournaments (PG, East Cobb, Jupiter to name a few).

2. Showcases where you know the college coaches will be.

3. College camps if there is a certain school(s) that your son really, really wants to go to.

4. High school baseball because it's a chance to represent a community and learn good baseball if you have a good coach. I think there are more of the better HS coaches out there than what people realize but there are a lot of clowns too.

5. Recruiting profiles and other things like this. I can't say they don't work but if this is all you do then you're probably not going to get seen.

6. YouTube videos - see above

I think if you take the top 3 and find a combination that works for you (factor in the finances because camps / showcases aren't free) then you maximize your ability to be seen.

One thing you have to realize about high school season is college coaches are playing at the same time so it's difficult to get out to high school games and scout. It does happen and they do follow the big names but overall it's very difficult to do.



Hello Tech11165 and welcome to the forum.

I quoted coach2709 because you are not going to get much better advice on this subject than what he posted.

I will PM you with a few personal observations so check your inbox soon.
birdman14birdman141,000+ posts
Tech - Welcome as well to HSBBWeb. You will find tons of valuable information here and plenty of people willing to help out with their experiences.

I was faced with a very similar situation when my son was about to enter HS (2010 HS grad). More then half his 14U travel team went to 3 area parochial high schools, 2 of which have been nationally ranked recently. The combination of playing on a good summer team and with the local HS worked out well for us. Having the ability to "play" and getting summer exposure is more important then the HS he attends concerning baseball. We also felt the public HS he attended was a better academic situation for him.

The cool thing was, he ended up pitching against the three area "power schools" and against his friends during his senior year. He upset 2 of them and lost to the third 2-1. Very satisfying for my son...
Last edited by birdman14
MizzoubaseballMizzoubaseball1,000+ posts
quote:
Originally posted by Aleebaba:
I have a hard time believing that high school ball is anything other than a place to practice prior to Summer ball. A good HS coach can help teach and get your son prepared, but it seems like the kid's capabilities as a ball player will be the factors looked at by scouts, not the school he attends.


I agree with this, but I will state that I find high school ball more enjoyable and like watching that team play more than his summer team. I am a big fan of playing for your school pride and getting together with the boys you grew up with and all that stuff that goes with high school ball. While my son's coach is a real hard ***, I think he is a good baseball guy and does well by the team and players. I think his style will get players ready for what they will see in college, maybe.

With that said, I dont think he will do much for getting my son looks for college, but how can he. The seasons are the same time so how many looks can he get in the spring anyway. That is where the summer team comes in. He gets his looks there, and he sends emails and such to contact coaches, etc.

My opinion is that people are crazy to pick a high school based on baseball only. The best kid in our area may play for one of the high schools the next two years. I dont think it will hurt his recruiting, or draft prospects.
BOFBOF10,000+ posts
You never know. My son's friend is pitching at a top 15 college this year because of his HS coach. He is a former college coach and is very connected and goes out of his way for his players. The player was injured in his Jr summer and he would be pitching at a local JC had it not been his HS coach. A good HS program and coach CAN and WILL make a difference, however I would not move or pay to attend a HS with a good program. You are selling yourself (and your son) short if you just think HS baseball is a warm up for summer baseball, it is much more than that. The last thing I would want is my son thinking it is just a "warm up" for the summer. It is a sure way to develop and arrogant, self-righteous attitude. My son came out of a **** py HS program and I know for a fact that it hurt him at one college.

A player will be practicing 5-6 days per week for 5 months in HS and will never get anywhere these kinds of reps in a summer team, and in fact most summer teams are just show up and play. So please do not under estimate the importance of a good HS program. It is not the end all, but it makes a difference.
CADadCADad5,000+ posts
BOF brings up a very good point. One of the key factors in choosing a HS program is the quality of the practices. Coaches can help a lot in recruiting but the player's ability is more important as long as they recognize how much the HS coach is or isn't going to help with recruiting.

Traditionally the players coming out of our HS have gotten very little help from the coach and some top notch players have gone the JC route because they didn't make themselves known outside of the HS program.

An example is an upper 80s pitcher with tons of pitchability, great deception and great desire to win who graduated in 2011. He was headed to a JC until he just happened to be in a conversation with a coach while his girlfriend was on a visit to the school she was being recruited by. When the coach heard that he was one of the top pitchers in one of the top HS leagues in the country he called around to the other coaches in the league and the kid ended up with near to a full ride, from what I've heard, at an east coast D1.

Based on our experience I wouldn't be surprised if the HS coach gave this kid good reviews then qualified them with something about his being good if he holds up physically. The kid did have some injuries but played through them and from what I saw came back way too early from a risk standpoint in order to help the team.

Bottom line is that the HS coach can be a great help but don't switch schools for that reason. If the coach runs a quality program and doesn't actively discourage participation outside the program then a player can still get plenty of exposure even if the coach isn't a big help.
Last edited by CADad
birdman14birdman141,000+ posts
quote:
Originally posted by CADad:
BOF brings up a very good point. One of the key factors in choosing a HS program is the quality of the practices. Coaches can help a lot in recruiting but the player's ability is more important as long as they recognize how much the HS coach is or isn't going to help with recruiting.

Traditionally the players coming out of our HS have gotten very little help from the coach and some top notch players have gone the JC route because they didn't make themselves known outside of the HS program.

An example is an upper 80s pitcher with tons of pitchability, great deception and great desire to win who graduated in 2011. He was headed to a JC until he just happened to be in a conversation with a coach while his girlfriend was on a visit to the school she was being recruited by. When the coach heard that he was one of the top pitchers in one of the top HS leagues in the country he called around to the other coaches in the league and the kid ended up with near to a full ride, from what I've heard, at an east coast D1.

Based on our experience I wouldn't be surprised if the HS coach gave this kid good reviews then qualified them with something about his being good if he holds up physically. The kid did have some injuries but played through them and from what I saw came back way too early from a risk standpoint in order to help the team.

Bottom line is that the HS coach can be a great help but don't switch schools for that reason. If the coach runs a quality program and doesn't actively discourage participation outside the program then a player can still get plenty of exposure even if the coach isn't a big help.


Might be some regional differences here in the Northeast vs. Southern CA. I think this needs to be considered. The amount of "connected HS coaches" in our area is limited at best, even at the better baseball type high schools.

I'm just reporting what worked in our case.

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