Graduate or Not/Eligibility

Welcome.
Here are the rules you can pass onto your friend about their son. You can contact MLB or a MLB scout for clarification.

http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/draftday/rules.jsp

http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/draftday/faq.jsp

I would strongly suggest he concentrate more on graduating HS.

The more talent and options the player has, the more $$ he might be rewarded.

It would be great if he can graduate, but my question is, what if he can't meet the requirements? Does that mean he cannot play baseball in the pros?

Eligibility to play major league ball should not have anything to do with whether or not someone can remember all the chemical elements on a test! It should have to do with athletics only.

My question is, theoretically, if a player is picked in the first round or two of the draft, will the pros not offer any bonus money because the player does not qualify to attend college?

Thanks for any advice.

A couple of things here:

If he is a not a NCAA Qualifier he can go JUCO

As for the draft if he is a first or second rounder and they want him bad it will happen for him with no penalty. Unless of course, they feel they can get him in a later round for less money because he has no other option-- It all depends on his baseball talent

if he truly has a learning disability, have him evaluated and documented. he can then get the help he needs academicly. then it is a real thing, some parents say their son has a ld.

as tpm say's the more options the better. like it or not school is important. when looking for a job employers want/like at least a hs diploma. that isn't to much to ask of any child, weather they like school or not. how will he figure his bonus money?

get the boy evaluated/documented/motivated.

You do not have to meet NCAA requirements to get drafted. The more options you have the more you have as leverage to negotiate your signing bonus.
You mentioned he might not even be able to graduate. Teams bring in foreign players that never attended school in latin countries but as a US citizen you have other requirements for the draft.
There was a player around here who was a very high prospect, a very good pitcher who could not play high school ball due to GPA eligibility. Unfortunate situation, the parents fought it, but the rules were you could not play sports unless you maintained the proper GPA. Although not a requirement to play HS ball to get drafted, scouts were not interested that he didn't have the GPA to remain eligible for HS.

Pro baseball is a profession and although you do not have to be a rocket scientist to play, there are requirments just like any job has requirements. That is why I suggested that your friends son concentrate on school. Though you feel it has to do with athletics only, I am not so sure I agree with that statement 100%. There are many mental challenges that go along with the game as well. If he needs help, I agree with 20dad get him help to get his diploma.

You have to understand the draft and how it works, which is difficult. Your friends son might be the best in his class, but with no leverage why pay him anything if they know he's going to sign and not go off to college instead? The highest paid HS drafted players get millions not only because they have mega talent, but because they also have large scholarships to college.

Good advice. I will pass it on. Thank you.