hi. I'm in 8th grade, averaging around 81 MPH, and maxing out at 83-84. I'm 6'1, 160 pounds. I was wondering how hard I need to throw to go division 1 from this point. Also, how soon should I begin to look at colleges? I'm still young, in 8th grade.
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Here you go: http://community.hsbaseballweb...r-at-certain-schools
Good luck!
RHP or lefty? My son is at a mid-major D1.....there are plenty of guys throwing 85-86 on the teams he's played against over the past two years. 90+ will get you noticed by some bigger schools....especially if you're a lefty. Keep in mind velo isn't the only thing.....college umpires seem to be tighter with their strike zone than HS, so being able to control the velo is probably just as (if not more) important than just throwing hard. If you're at 83-84 as an 8th grader and have reasonable control....I'd say you've got a pretty good shot....that's easily the upper end of what 8th graders are throwing velocity wise.
Harder than you are throwing now. 8th grade doesn't matter. How hard will you throw as a senior in High School? Will you work hard to gain velocity? Will you stay healthy? Will you still play? Can you pitch? Do you have a "plus" curveball, changeup, slider? Can you handle game pressure? How do you handle setbacks? Can you make grades? Are you a hard worker? Time will tell. What can you do to set yourself apart from all the other hard throwers? Keep working at it.
There are several questions rolled into one.
First, velo at D1. D1 has roughly 300 baseball programs, ranging from the SEC down to a few teams which are unaffiliated. At the tippy top, roughly sitting 90+ gets notice. At the lower end, a RH starter may sit 85 - 88. LHP can throw a few miles slower. Unique pitchers (e.g., sidearm) are considered separately.
Second, what do YOU want to do? You are way ahead here (being in 8th grade), but it's never too early to think, learn, and develop a goal. Ending up in a program depends a lot on: grades/scores/courses, baseball skills, luck (the type of luck you can influence through hard work and planning). Recognizing that your tastes may change as you get exposure to options you've never heard about, do you want warm weather, big school, rural, city, engineering, close to home, far from home, etc? Of those 300 programs, there is a wide variety of answers and the match of baseball skills and academic achievement can open lots of doors.
You can do a lot now to figure out what you like and don't like; if there are colleges in your area, visit; on family vacations, visit whatever colleges are convenient. Take a college tour (regular student). It may seem daunting in the beginning, but you'll get used to it and will soon be seeing colleges with an eye to you being a student there. Also, speak with your family about their financial condition - colleges can be incredibly expensive (well over 250k for four years) and finances play a huge role in college selection.
Third, your velo. There are so many variables, it's really too early to predict whether you'll top out at 99 or 82. Some guys your age, height, and weight, are on their way to 6' 9" and 280; others are full grown in 8th. Injuries derail players, lack of development derail players, lack of interest derail players. All you can do is continue to work, finding coaches who can develop you, mentor you, and take care of your arm.
Just keep working (hard, constant, dedicated) and enjoy HS.
Gavin crowley posted:hi. I'm in 8th grade, averaging around 81 MPH, and maxing out at 83-84. I'm 6'1, 160 pounds. I was wondering how hard I need to throw to go division 1 from this point. Also, how soon should I begin to look at colleges? I'm still young, in 8th grade.
Size & Velo sound really good for an 8th grader. Keep working hard, but just as importantly, work on your GPA & ACT. They will factor in BIG TIME!
You seem like you are well on your way. Keep up the good work, and keep us posted on your progress!
Buckeye 2015 posted:RHP or lefty? My son is at a mid-major D1.....there are plenty of guys throwing 85-86 on the teams he's played against over the past two years. 90+ will get you noticed by some bigger schools....especially if you're a lefty. Keep in mind velo isn't the only thing.....college umpires seem to be tighter with their strike zone than HS, so being able to control the velo is probably just as (if not more) important than just throwing hard. If you're at 83-84 as an 8th grader and have reasonable control....I'd say you've got a pretty good shot....that's easily the upper end of what 8th graders are throwing velocity wise.
I agree with your control assertion. Biggest difference this year for my son, was his control improvement.
Gavin crowley posted:hi. I'm in 8th grade, averaging around 81 MPH, and maxing out at 83-84. I'm 6'1, 160 pounds. I was wondering how hard I need to throw to go division 1 from this point. Also, how soon should I begin to look at colleges? I'm still young, in 8th grade.
Gavin, are you on a good travel team? When I say good I mean are they playing in high profile tournaments? Do they have a good history with connecting players to colleges? Are you with people of similar skill?
My son is 14u, he played in a PG event this past weekend that had one starting pitcher in the high 50's and another in the low 90's! There is a huge difference in this age. Make sure you are on a team that is going to get you ready for high school. Then when you get there you can talk to your travel coach and high school coach about what level college you should be looking at, and how to get in front of them.
Right now low 80's as an 8th grader is very exciting, keep your innings per year below 100 and get with a coach who can instruct you on shut down periods and which muscles to strengthen in your body to be able to keep yourself as healthy as possible.
Good advice here to which I will add:
TAKE CARE OF YOUR ARM!
The summer going into highschool, my son's team had 4 pitchers who could throw 80. Three of them are going to be pitching D1 next year, and the other will be at a solid D2. So, I would say your velocity is on track. As seniors they sit around 90.
As has been said you need to keep working hard and improving. It's a big jump from 80 to 90, especially if you are already close to physically mature.
Most importantly - grades. Every one of those pitchers is a good student, and one is going to an Ivy. There is way more academic money out there than athletic.
Great position to be in with current velo. BUT, because of that velo at your age, your Coaches will be looking to pitch you as much as they can get away with... Get your pitching instructor to help you define appropriate pitch count limits per game per week etc. Get your parents on the same page of those pitching limits so that they can help manage the health of your arm. Then talk about the limits with your club coach in a way that he's a partner in taking care of your arm. (He also wants to make sure you're healthy, but sometimes it's hard for a coach to manage limits when a game or tourney is on the line.)
Get seriously dialed into your arm care program (pregame and post game). As a pitcher your arm is your value, preserve it.
As Ryno mentioned above, get equally focused in the classroom. College coaches like good grades, they can say a lot about a players work ethic. Players with bad grades become roster issues; coaches don't want the headache. Good grades offer athletes more options. (better academic college possibilities, more scholarship dollars etc.,)
Good luck to you.
(Edit: typo)
As detailed in the thread I linked to, assuming you are a RHP, in the next 3 and 1/2 years, you need to add about 5 mph for mid-major -- sitting 86, touching 88-89 would match most of the kids. Probably about 8 mph for the very top Power 5 schools -- sitting 89, touching 91-92.
Your velocity is great for your age. How tall are your mother and father? Given where you are now if it's affordable your parents and you should look into the New England Ruffnecks.
Pretty cool to have a 14 year old asking these questions on his own behalf. I would imagine that you'll get some very good information from people here. I will add: pitching becomes a 7 day a week proposition, it has to be approached as a job. There is something within your program to do every day and when you have an "off" day it is to be OFF. Rest and recovery are as important, if not more important than chasing velocity. Learn how to locate, learn to command the changeup. Devote time to working on your moves to bases, have as many in your pocket as possible. At the right time, the right guy will appreciate that ability. Be the best at fielding your position and throwing to bases. Learn how to control your emotions, good and bad. Have the best body language while being a great teammate.
I know this response didn't answer your question, but with all of these characteristics you will so much more attractive when it's time to concentrate on pitching in college. Velocity will matter to a significant degree, especially if your a RHP, but a polished pitcher stands out and you have absolute control over the type of pitcher you want to become. You're velocity will be whatever it is. Good luck kid and throw strikes, unless you're trying to get them to chase.
Gavin, hope you've read this far. Don't let the questions scare you! You have time, and you have a nice start. Impressed that you shared here, and I hope you can find a smart coach who will help bring you along.
Watched Maryland vs Illinois on BTN the other day both pitchers in the low to mid 80s
Ditto on control. Gaining control doesn't mean pitch slower, though. We have just in the past couple of days had RC's express concern over his high school stats (and they always told me schools don't care about the high school stats) - 19 BB's in 19 IP. Not to mention the 7 HBP's. It's definitely been far worse than normal due to his early season injury and struggling with both arm slot and arm action changes, but it was a red flag for them.
Did the RC's see him pitch and express concern using the stats as justification? Or did they not see him pitch and just cited the stats? The latter would be pretty weak...
It doesn't surprise me, Root.
I believe that it is entirely rationale to discount good HS stats -- who knows the level of competition -- but that bad high school stats can be a red flag. So the hitter who is batting .500, well, it might mean nothing. But the batter who is striking out in 45% of his plate appearances is a bad sign, even if he is playing at the highest level of high school competition.
Baseball-Dad posted:Did the RC's see him pitch and express concern using the stats as justification? Or did they not see him pitch and just cited the stats? The latter would be pretty weak...
They had seen him in the past, but this year has been rife with speculation. He didn't pitch early because of the back pain and, while he didn't avoid anyone who asked what was wrong, he also didn't go out of his way to explain. So, at one point, I was warned by someone we know that many schools were speculating that he had an arm injury. With that also cam a lot of speculation concerning his somewhat unconventional mechanics, etc. Now that he is healthy and on the mound, they look at stats and start speculating again. The line is interesting. 19 IP, 19 BB's, 28 K's, 7 HBP and only 4 hits allowed. ERA went from 1.21 to 2.95 from his last outing - a very bad 1.2 IP.
It's also interesting how timing works in recruiting. Last year, at WWBA, he got his first start at Lake Point against a very good team (Twelve). He struck out the first two batters and then ran into control problems. There were probably 50-60 recruiters there including every school where there was interest either way, and I mean every single one. He looked bad and only topped out at 86. Really disappointing performance. Four days later, off site, he's sitting 87, hitting 88 consistently and mowing through the lineup with control. Nobody around. That's just the way it works, sometimes.
