Exciting times ahead

Just looked at the Stanford site and it looks like they have changed things up a bit (though it's confusing as info is spread over 2 sites).

So now they have a camp specifically for Frosh and Soph?  And no more resident option.

Hmm.... that may change how we look at it.

As for your question, I have not been to the camp, but I know the area, and I guarantee that you will not run out of things to do nearby Stanford.  Looks like your second camp is in Rocklin (Sacramento area).  I would find it a  good bit harder to keep myself entertained there.

they have the resident option for 11/12 (comes as an option through the process). the 10/11 probably would have been best for us but the dates did not work out.

I wonder if the Frosh-Soph camp gets a similar number of coaches in attendance.

EDIT:  actually, I looked at the site again and it's fairly clear that the Frosh-Soph camp is more of an instructional camp than a showcase camp. Stanford coaches teach, but there is no promise of other colleges being there.  We are nearby, so we'll consider the Prospect Camp, but I want to see how his first year of HS ball goes before making that investment.

Kuaai Dad,

Great choices ! You can't go wrong with either of those showcases.

My son attended The Stanford Future Stars Camp after his sophomore year, and The Stanford All Star Camp after his junior year.Both camps were excellent ! The Futures Camp did not have the overnight dorm option so my son stayed in our hotel room,The All Star Camp had the dorm option and he opted to stay in the dorms.

When you arrive at Sunken Diamond on the first day your son will check in,receive a schedule,Stanford jersey Cardinal or White with his last name on the back,and get his team and coach info.Every player will be on a team that is coached by one of that school's coaches. At the Future Stars Camp, my son was on Team Columbia led by coach Dan Tischler .The following year at the All Star Camp he was on Team Stevens Tech coached by Kristaps Aldins.

The teams will play 3 games during the camp.When they are not playing, the players will be doing infield/outfield, pitching, or catching drills depending on your son's position. The coaches that ran the infield drills were Coach Nietz of Bucknell,Coach Law of Lafayette,Coach Myers of The University of Dallas,and Nate Trosky The players will be filmed fielding sometime during the 3 days. You will receive a copy of this and it's a good tool to have..My son was with the infielder group and here is what the clip looks like :

http://sportsboard-win.com/video/54255

The players will also do some speed and strength tests like run the 60,and throw the medicine ball. The times/distance will be recorded.They will also visit one of the weight rooms on campus and get their weight,height, vertical jump,and some other stuff.

Hitting instruction and drills are conducted each day in the cages.There are about eight hitting stations and the players rotate through them.At some point, each player will be filmed in the cage. Here is what it looks like :

http://sportsboard-win.com/video/53621

My wife and I hung around Sunken Diamond and watched/followed my son as he and his group went from station to station.A number of parents did the same especially those who came from out of the area (we are from San Diego). You'll end up meeting quite few cool people.In fact,we met a guy and his son from Honolulu at The All Star Camp.They were with 2 other players and their families that all traveled together from Hawaii.Aloha Wear some gear from your son's high school.That's a great conversation starter.

The boys will be kept busy for the 3 days they at Stanford.Every team( there were 24 last summer)at The All Star Camp will play 1 game at Sunken Diamond.The other 2 games will be at nearby high schools or community colleges.My son played at Sacred Heart High School,Palo Alto High School, and Sunken Diamond.The games begin around 8:30 in the morning and the last game of the day is at Sunken Diamond at 7:30 pm.If your team is fortunate to play the 5 or 7:30 game at Sunken Diamond there will be a lot of coaches watching. In fact, EVERY coach officially attending the camp will be at the evening games.So will a bunch of college coaches who are not "officially" attending the camp.My son was lucky since his team played a 5 pm game and there were a lot of coaches watching.He blasted one over the fence at Sunken Diamond during that 5pm game. After the game, he checked his phone and there were a couple of texts and 4 or 5 emails from coaches that commented on that shot and the rest of his at bats

My son stayed in the dorms so my wife and I stayed in a hotel in Santa Clara.We like Indian food and Santa Clara has a ton of Indians that live there.There are many types of Indian restaurants up and down El Camino Real.We tried 3 different places and they were all very good !

We also paid homage to Neil Young by visiting the legend's adopted hometown of Half Moon Bay.There was a 5 hour gap between my son's morning drills and his 5pm game at Sunken Diamond.It was 95 degrees that day in Palo Alto, So my wife and I decided to ditch the heat and head to Half Moon Bay. We were searching for "Sugar Mountain" and the iconic singer himself. Sorry FenwaySouth, we could not find Neil anywhere.However, my wife has skin the color of a "Cinnamon Girl" and she does have a "Heart of Gold" All was not lost though.We ventured down to the beach and had a great lunch and enjoyed the ocean breeze and perfect 72 degree temp for a few hours.

Of course, you'll want to take your son into San Francisco.Check to see if the Giants are in town.Even if they are not bring your son there and take some pics.Hit all the usual stuff like Coit Tower,Golden Gate Bridge,Twin Peaks,ChinaTown,Russian Hill,Alamo Square,Haight Asbury,Cable Cars,Alcataz,Bay Bridge over to Oakland,Lombard St. etc.I let my son drive down Lombard St.while I filmed him.That was fun for all of us Lots of food and drink choices in the city no matter what your budget is.Parking can be a challenge at times.

If you have time you can check out colleges in the area.We visited Santa Clara,Stanford,St.Mary's,University of San Francisco,Menlo College,San Francisco State,UC Berkeley,San Jose State.

My wife,son, and I absolutely enjoyed every minute of the Stanford Futures and All Star Camps.A lifetime of memories were created because of our involvement with these camps,Sure, the baseball aspect was awesome, but so was all the other stuff we did.

BTW, the school that my son committed to watched him play at both of these camps.

Let me now if you have any other questions.I'm more than happy to help !

KauaiDad,

I think bobbyaguho has given you everything you need to know, and then some.  While my son and I didn't go to the Stanford camp, I felt like we did as bobbyaguho (and others) have generously shared their experience with me.  Looking back, I wish we had made time to go to Stanford camp but honestly I'm not sure when we could have done it coming from the East coast.  From my experiences with HSBBWeb, I've determined there is nothing like the Stanford camp for the East Coast.  HeadFirst was a extraordinary experience for us.  It did lead us to many options and where my son he will graduate this year.  You've picked two good showcases. 

Good luck and please let us know how it goes.

wow. Thank you so much. This is a fantastic explanation as to what to expect, perfect post. Thank you for taking the time to post.

I remember Headfirst Rocklin had a couple different sessions where they invited all the boys and parents to the gym and several college coaches gave a "spiel" for their schools. Time was then provided for boys to meet and connect with any coaches they hadn't had a chance to interact with yet. It was POURING rain one of the days while we were there so not sure these meetings are standard or they were trying to fill time. Either way, it was a valuable opportunity for information gathering and a really good chance for son to become more comfortable talking to coaches. BTW make sure you email the coach of every school your son has even a little interest in! It will make the in-person intros easier for your son bc he can have at least one thing to say, i.e. did you get my email (Son was very bashful at first so this was helpful.) Also, they might pay a little extra attention during the games if he piques their interest with his emails!

Stanford camp was amazing too, and definitely have your son stay in the dorms; he will love getting to know kids from all over the country. You will see an unbelievable number of college coaches walking around (the "official" list represents a fraction of the total number in attendance); we ran into several at breakfast in our hotel! If you need a hotel recommendation, the Sheraton right by Stanford is convenient, and we LOVED the Zen hotel on El Camino Real ( a little cheaper). 

Good luck and have a great time. We really enjoyed our experience at both events.

thanks, he is indeed staying on Campus for the Stanford camp, ill need to find a nice hotel  thanks for the suggestions. hoping for good weather, but regardless im sure it will end up great. Should be a great 3 weeks, Headfirst, Stanford, SF vs Cincy,all the sightseeing, and then a nice drive to Vegas for a few days of relaxation. After that trip he is going to want off of this rock in the worst way    heh

Less than a week away before we leave for the camps, saw some discouraging news this morning though. We have tickets for the SF / Cin game the night of the 27th, checked weather and the low is expected to be around 55?  wtf its almost July for gods sake. Last time i experienced anything below 70 was more than 10 years ago. lol

It will be even colder in AT&T Park.  Wear layers.   Great place to watch a baseball game though. 

I am looking forward to hear your take on both of these events, and which your boy enjoyed more, and which you think will help him advance his goals.

As for SF Giants weather.  Well, 55 is not bad.  Just be glad they are not playing  at the Stick. At ATT for a night game it's all about the layers.  Watch BP  in a  tee, move on to the long sleeves when the game starts, and put on the hoodie when the sun goes down. At the Stick you'd need a ski parka.

And especially don't let the weather you experience on the Peninsula, where Stanford is,  fool you into thinking the weather will be similar in SF.  This area has micro climates.  The city, especially in the summer, is MUCH colder than the Peninsula -- which is basically bathed in sunshine all summer.  Subtract 10 degrees at least whenever you head into the city. 

Dad,

AT&T is one beautiful park. We celebrated Father's Day there and it is a favorite place for us.

The Summer weather won't be confused with most of Hawaii, though.  You might compare it with being on Lanai, near Lanai City. Usually nice during the day but the fog comes in around 4-5pm and the cool down begins.

The extent to which layering is needed at AT&T depends on seat location, in our experience.  In the bleachers or along right field...layer.

If you are in the stands, any fog/wind will blow above you unless you are in the top level, near the top. Watching a game from along 1B or 3B in the field level is just great and the weather with the crowd will be warmer than you are reading.

My guess is you and your son will also want to walk around the entire stadium so a fleece is usually very comfortable and all you need.  Also, you will want to check Willie Mays Plaza and his statue, McCovey cove beyond RF and his statue and the Marichal statue  just outside the stadium near the Giant's dugout store on 3rd Street.

You can take the train from Palo Alto and it drops you off one block from the park. The challenge is there is only one train after the game and it stops everywhere so the ride home to Palo Alto can take close to one hour.

Don't they run an express back to the Peninsula after Giants games?  I thought they did.  But it's been awhile since we took the train in. 

We have 1st row tickets next to 1st base dugout (section 106 i think) (glad Votto is back in time), really looking forward to the game. Hoping for a Cuerto / Freak matchup.  Thinking about heading up early for the Stadium tour, just need to find out of we can kill 5 hours after the tour and before game.

Mico climate in California is an understatement. first part of trip in Sacramento has temps expected around 98, Stanford area looks to be in 80's and then SF down into the 50's at night.

Since i don't have a car at that time there apparently is a train that leaves after the game and has a stop right behind out hotel at Stanford. 

I believe that both events are going to be great for him, both seem to be very conscientious on how they have put everything together. I think the Stanford camp will come out the winner based on the length and the fact that my son will be staying in the dorm allowing for some relationships to take hold. but we shall see.

You can walk over to downtown SF via the waterfront between the tour and the game or cab/bus it over towards fisherman's wharf/marina area for the Exploratorium http://www.sftodo.com/exploratorium.html etc....

CPNM, the Exloratorium has moved from the Marina to the Embarcadero. It's now about a half hour walk from AT&T.  Since KD's boy is a STEM guy that might be a pretty cool way to kill some time.

If you don't take the tour, be sure to take a long walk straight up behind your seats to the 1st base side highest cheap seats while it is still light out for an amazing Bay view.  Hopefully the weather will cooperate.

You could kill 5 days easily, so 5 hours should not be hard, except for picking just a couple things to see. There seem to be plenty of NorCal and Bay Area people here so you won't lack recommendations. Having no car limits some choices. OTOH, the cable cars are an attraction for a reason, and they'll give you a great feel for the city and get you close to a lot of cool stuff. If your son has never been to SF, I would definitely hop the Powell line near Union Square and take that to Ghiradelli Square.

Infield,

Celabrated fathers day at AT&T as well. Great weather, couple of long balls, terrible out come for a Giants fan.

Kauai,

There is plenty to do and see around the city. We were at thepark for a day game and the temp was 65, but felt like 75-80 in the sun. As recommended , layer up. PO jr did Stanford camp summer after junior year and loved it. Good luck!

Hey KauiDad:

You and your son want a study in contrast while you are here.  Go to the beach and stick your feet in our part of the Pacific Ocean.   You want to talk about cold and very unHawaii like?  Now that's it.   The water temp vs here and there -- well,  that's a contrast for you. 

im not really a water guy (prefer the links). seems every time i go in the ocean something dramatic happens. Last week im down in Poipu maybe 20' out snorkling, all of a sudden a shadow covers my whole body from above (pretty sure i pissed myself at that point), hauled ass to shore as fast as i could.  turns out it was a big sea turtle minding its own business

Wasn't it Mark Twain that said "the coldest winter I ever spent was a July in San Francisco"?  Layer up!  (You WILL see folks in down and hats).

I love that city and am heading there in August from the east coast for the second time this year.  About my 20th trip!  Probably won't see a baseball game this time, but I have seen games at both AT&T and Candlestick Parks.  Enjoy!

Yup, that's SF for ya and actually typical for summer temperatures to fluctuate a lot and be rather cool compared to the rest of the Bay Area and can even expect cool fog in the summer.  But . . .keep in mind that because the mico-climates around there is not very predicable any more than 48 hrs. in advance.  So, you just won't have a good idea until Wed of next week what your game weather might be like.   In any case, I've made it a rule to never go the The City without a warm jacket. It's too easy to go there and it's really nice only to have the weather quickly change and have the fog move in and freeze you butt off.

Though it doesn't help you now, the best weather in "The City" and the local coast line is in the Fall (like Sept.) when it tends to be more consistently nice.

After more than 30 years in the Bay Area, I recently moved . . .but, I'm heading back next week and will be at the game on the 26th.  I sure miss that ball park . . . and of course seeing the Giants live.

Yes, taking the train is really a good way to get to the game and back.  A lot of people use it from as far away as San Jose or maybe even further.  So, expect to see a lot of Black and Orange.

The train into The City as you probably know ends very close to AT&T Park and you can even walk to down town (like Market Street) from there or from the park too.  It's not a short walk, but it's not too long either.

Enjoy!