Father Needs Help

Your son is only 15, until he reaches his senior year, he may have to sit on the side lines for awhile.
I know of one player (pitcher) who played in the shadow of my son one summer (a year older than the player). He was just signed as the 47th overall pick in the 2005 draft.
Have your son work on his fastball, changeup, conditioning, and a good long toss program. He's not done growing yet.
If he is good, his time will come. You, as his dad, just have to learn to be patient.

It sounds like you are stressed out over the whole deal. Look your son is just 15 and will only be a soph next year. Dont worry about who else is on the team and what they are doing. He can only controll what he does. Things change all the time. As kids start to grow up and mature they can change very quickly. I sure wouldnt worry about how many innings he pitched in AAU or anyother team. Spend the off season working on getting bigger stronger and faster. Long toss hit the weight room and run run run. If your son truely loves baseball and it is his passion then everything else will fall into place. Relax and just enjoy watching him work at what he loves. Good Luck

Proud papa,
Thanks for you post and welcome to the HSBBW. Let me warn you there are many that will gladly take your money. TOO MANY! If I were you I would seek out a qualified pitching instructor and invest in a few lessons. If you don’t know any instructors, you can call the local college coaches and explain your dilemma. Many coaches give lessons on the side and/or can recommend an instructor. When you find a good instructor he can advise your son as to what throwing program your son should be doing. Typical drills might include long toss, therabands and some light weights. You should observe the lessons and you should be the judge of whether you are getting your money’s worth. Secondly, you and your son should seek out a fall team for this fall. These fall teams are usually low cost and are organized to provide additional games for players and some are effective exposure to college coaches. Start to seek out a summer team (for next summer) where your son can get some innings on the mound. I would explain to his current coach that your son needs innings and a move is in the future. He may offer a suggestion or a solution??? Find out what teams are available from other player’s parents and talk to those coaches and explain your son’s needs. I would even check the surrounding towns if you are willing to travel for lessons or games. Keep us posted and good luck.
Fungo

TPM and Coach May,
I'm surprised you suggest a parent be patient and to just sit back and watch for the next few years. "If he is good his time will come"? But he wants to get better? "If your son truely loves baseball and it is his passion then everything else will fall into place. Relax and just enjoy watching him work at what he loves." I was under the impression that no matter how much you love baseball and how hard you work, you still have to have proper instructions and proper exposure to get to the next level.????

...The Blue Dog methd.

You jsut have gotten your feet wet. Look at the bright side, he's a lefty.

Fungo

You stated that "there are many out there that will take your money too many".

Sort of tells you how things have progressed?

I have to agree with Fungo on this one.

He maight have to wait his turn, but that doesn't mean that he should be passive and not get him good instruction and get him some exposure.

Does your son also play a position? Why not find a team that wants him a a pitcher? If you can do this and not drop the level of competition, it may help. My son sat on a really good 14 year old team and did not play much. He just kept working hard and now is still playing the game at 19 almost 20 and enjoying it. Others are out of the game. 15 is too early to get discouraged, just become pro-active.

There are a couple of ways of looking at this situation. It is difficult to watch any kid be a benchwarmer and the only way to keep up his ability in a situation like this is hard work outside of the playing field. There are always teams looking for pitchers but teams need lots of pitchers to make it to the end of a tournament. How many tournaments we could have advanced in if we had had one or two more strong pitchers?
Sometimes I think an arm has only so many pitches in it before it starts to weaken. At least your son is not being overpitched the other thing that ends baseball careers. He has less of a chance of being hurt before college.
The stress level only increases from here on in. High School ball carries the implications of whether a kid may or may not get to play college ball let alone get any money for it. The competition in college is very intense and there are so many awesome baseball players out there looking to play and become better players. At times this intensity is what makes some kids stop playing ball. There is so much time spent conditioning and practicing there is not much time left over for fun for a college student. Especially he he is a pitcher that also plays a position and hits. That is three practices instead of a collective one.
Relax, find a good workout routine, avoid coaches that do not know what they are doing or are emotionally unstable or immature and go to the showcases. More kids get picked up through showcasing than scouted high school teams.
Showcase teams like Top Tier used to be is a fabulous idea and is effective as well. It is a shame that it is so difficult for a coach to make a living doing this time consuming job. It is very expensive to travel around and coach when you have to support yourself working full time.

Thank you for your replies. We would love to receive more.

Is he better off playing at a lower level of competition in order to get more innings pitching? Is fall ball a good idea? Camps in August, or shut it down? How frequently should he see a pitching coach, and how do we find a good one? Does anyone have a good workout routine that they could share?

proudpapa

We are in the same area--in fact we have pitching coaches on staff and one owns a pitching academy outside of Boston

Give me a call and lets see if we help you get going in the right direction

Tom Rizzi
http://www.collegeselect.org
800-782-3672

quote:

Is he better off playing at a lower level of competition in order to get more innings pitching?

You have received great advice in being proactive. Getting some innings to try out new mechanics and conditioning is important. Throw where you can.

Fungo,
Yes I am surprised I said that also.
TPM is allowed a mess up once in a while?
I sensed a lot of anxiety in the post, that was where I was headed.
By all means (and I maybe assumed others would suggest), find a good pitching coach in the area to work with. Your suggestions are most helpful.
The only thing I caution, 15 is a delicate age as far as where he stands with development, his weight and conditioning program should be monitored. It should be a gradual process. If he is good, his velocity will increase as his body matures. Mine was like 6ft 170 at 15, soaking wet and still growing. Now he is past 6'3" and 195-200, and still growing, letting him develop his pitcher's frame naturally. JMO.
Am I forgiven?

TPM, I think baseball is a game of averages and I think you're batting about .999. Not too shabby.

TPM we are on the same page and that is why I went in that direction. By all means dad you should jump in and help your son. Finding a good pitching coach and getting him started on a good strength and conditioning program right away is a good start. And talk to him. Let him know that you are in it with him all the way. Let him know that you care just as much as he does and you will be there to support him every step of the way. Good Luck

Fungo,
For clarification purposes, what does the translate into ERA?

Coach May,
I hear ya!