How seriously to take this coach email?

Sounds like a no-brainer the way you describe it.  Test scores and grades are they key. Go!

Checked most of the boxes of a serious contact, especially being from HC.  Make it work dad.

Go for it...no regrets...sounds like a Patriot League school...

Yep I was going to say that it sounds like a Patriot League school which is awesome.  If so, there is probably not much athletic aid available, but sounds as though the cost is similar to the HA D3s he is considering.  I'd do it if possible.  Best of luck!

Sounds like they want to get more coaching eyes on him.   This is exactly how my son's HA experience went before he committed.  He stood out at a large HA showcase, and the coaches saw rivals recruiting him as well.  They asked him to come to their prospect camp, and that's when he was offered.

Good luck!

PS..what are you waiting for, book that trip!

Chico, my son received a similar email with similar circumstances.  I sent you a PM.

As others have said it appears legit. Requesting academic information is a buying signal. Now for the word of warning ...

If this is the only D1 pursuing him do they see something everyone else is missing or are they going out on a limb? If the coach makes a mistake he replaces the player next year. If the player makes a mistake he could be out of the game unless he transfers down. So part of the decision has to be about rolling the dice and would he be happy there if baseball stops being part of the equation? 

But to start do the visit. Keep it in play.

Just to add a note of slight caution, my son also received a similar email from a Patriot League HC after Headfirst, he immediately replied by email that he was interested and would like to talk to them, filled out the questionnaire, and never heard from them again.  Coach did mention their camp, and said it was not necessary that he attend.  There was no phone number on the coach's email.  My suggestion is for your son to ask to talk to the coach about his interest, before committing to go to the camp.  If they are seriously interested, wouldn't they do this?

anotherparent posted:

...My suggestion is for your son to ask to talk to the coach about his interest, before committing to go to the camp.  If they are seriously interested, wouldn't they do this?

Yup, that's what I was thinking.

cabbagedad posted:

anotherparent posted:

...My suggestion is for your son to ask to talk to the coach about his interest, before committing to go to the camp.  If they are seriously interested, wouldn't they do this?

Yup, that's what I was thinking.

I suggested to my son that he ask to arrange a call. His take was that the coach isn’t going to tell him they aren’t really interested. True, but I do think one could make some judgements based on how the call went (though my teenaged son is admittedly not great at reading subtle social cues). 

I know that's not always easy for young teens to navigate but maybe, between the two of you, you can come up with a line of dialog that he is comfortable with.  Something like.. "Coach, I'm very interested in the school and would like to attend the camp.  My parents also support me going to this school and my grades and test scores should measure up.  But, my parents' guidelines for paying to send me to a camp are that I am a player of specific interest to a school.  Can you tell me if I am anywhere on your board yet?"  

This may feel a little forward but if it can't be answered, what does that say about their level of interest?  It appears there is some but is it just passing?  At least maybe this will open up some additional dialog prior to the camp.  Maybe that interest will increase or decrease once he throws in front of PC.  It just seems like it is worth while to know as much as you can going in.  As disclaimer, though, that is definitely my nature, sometimes to a fault.  

Chico Escuela posted:

cabbagedad posted:

anotherparent posted:

...My suggestion is for your son to ask to talk to the coach about his interest, before committing to go to the camp.  If they are seriously interested, wouldn't they do this?

Yup, that's what I was thinking.

I suggested to my son that he ask to arrange a call. His take was that the coach isn’t going to tell him they aren’t really interested. True, but I do think one could make some judgements based on how the call went (though my teenaged son is admittedly not great at reading subtle social cues). 

Yes, but he could learn (1) if the coach is willing to get on the phone with him and start to establish a little bit of a relationship; (2) how many pitcher spots they have remaining; (3) whether his transcript/test scores cleared the bar (assuming he has sent them already). Worth the time, in my view. 

My son had a somewhat similar late-breaking situation with a D1 school in New England that reached out to him in May of junior year. Hadn't responded to previous emails from my son, apologized for being so late, blah, blah, blah, wanted him to come to a camp in early June. Other side of the country for us. Not a cheap trip. This school has extremely high academic standards, so my son asked -- at my insistence -- the coach to take his transcript/test scores to admissions and make sure that they passed muster. Once we got word back that they did -- and, no joke, admissions reportedly said something along the lines of "they wouldn't if he were a regular student, but as a recruited athlete they do," lol -- I sprung for the trip. He didn't end up there, but I think it's fair to gather as much information as you can, beforehand.

Edited to add: CabbageDad beat me to it.

Davidson, maybe?

Have confirmed via PM that an RHP got a similar email after Showball from the same school. That player’s measurables sound a lot like my son’s. Also learned about a LHP who got the email—he is “projectable” though not throwing all that hard now.

I don’t think this coach is just trying to fill camp slots; but maybe casting a pretry wide net to try to find Ps who might have been overlooked.  Not sure yet what my son will do. If he wants to give it a shot, I’ll work out the travel.

Thanks to all for your thoughts on this—much appreciated. 

Do you know how many pitching commits they have already for your son’s class? This can tell you if this is B list recruiting to fill out the staff. If all your son’s other offers are D3 does he want to be a back of the staff pitching recruit for a D1. However, pitchers can change their destiny with one inning of velocity and success.

The coach is probably genuinely interested. But it appears it’s interest to the level of comparing your son with others before deciding who to offer. 

I think your son should absolutely call and get a feel if this coach "really" saw him and liked what he saw, or if this was a "fishing" letter to get people in camp.

With technology today, these generated letters are getting more and more personal to where it sounds like it is a "real" email.  For example, my younger son is a lacrosse player and was going to several recruiting tournaments and showcases.  For each of these tournaments, you provided your cell phone and email address.  He would get tons of emails that mentioned him by name, where they saw him, that they liked what they saw (some even got specific with things like "loved your off ball movement", etc.) but as you read them closer, you could tell they were generated....or as he would talk to friends he would find out they got the exact same email.  The kicker was when he got one of these "generically specific" emails that talked about him and finished with "you were one of the best midfielders we saw this weekend"....my son plays defense (with a long pole)....he just happened to get the generated "midfielder" email.

Anyway, if there is true interest I am sure he would be able to discern that by talking with the HC or RC.  Try to find out "specifically" what they liked about him.  At the very least, he could get a feel whether he "likes" the coach or not and would want to play for him (not all college coaches are created equal).

Good luck!

Based on PG, the school has only committed to two Ps (one L, one R) in the 2020 class, and lost several to graduation in May.  So they probably still want one or two more.

I agree that if my son wants to go to this camp, he needs to try to arrange a call.  (Not much time left for that, but he should at least try to have some further email correspondence.)  At this point, Jr. is leaning against going.  I told him he has to decide today (we'd need to leave town in a few days) and needs to reach out again to the coach if he wants to attend.

I also had the conversation with him (about this school and a few others that sniffed around him a bit in prior months) about being on the bench--or not making the roster--vs. being a bigger fish in a smaller pond.  The idea of being able to say he plays D1 still is a big lure for the boy.  Understandable, but I don't think it ought to be a factor in the ultimate decision.    

It's not the prevailing wisdom on this board, but to me if the PSA is realistic, truly understands his status, is ok with an uphill battle for playing time (or even making/staying on the roster) AND the school is a great academic/social fit regardless of baseball, I understand and have no problem with going for the sole DI offer versus being a "loved" D3 recruit.  It's not for everyone, but there are no absolute rules.  Go where you're loved of course is good advice generally, but in the right circumstance and if the player is mature and knows what he's getting into, why not go for it and pursue the DI dream???  These guys are young and at least will be able to say they gave it a shot.  They've played competively for years and have an idea of what they face.  Some truly would prefer being a bench player on a DI team that has a great budget, facility, travels to cool places, plays other great teams, etc. than be the stud on a D3 team.  There are plus and minuses for both options like any life decision.  But you're only young once (says the old guy at the computer screen) .

Qhead posted:

It's not the prevailing wisdom on this board, but to me if the PSA is realistic, truly understands his status, is ok with an uphill battle for playing time (or even making/staying on the roster) AND the school is a great academic/social fit regardless of baseball, I understand and have no problem with going for the sole DI offer versus being a "loved" D3 recruit.  It's not for everyone, but there are no absolute rules.  Go where you're loved of course is good advice generally, but in the right circumstance and if the player is mature and knows what he's getting into, why not go for it and pursue the DI dream???  These guys are young and at least will be able to say they gave it a shot.  They've played competively for years and have an idea of what they face.  Some truly would prefer being a bench player on a DI team that has a great budget, facility, travels to cool places, plays other great teams, etc. than be the stud on a D3 team.  There are plus and minuses for both options like any life decision.  But you're only young once (says the old guy at the computer screen) .

Those all are good points, and if my son wants to go the D1 route (assuming he has the option), I wouldn't kick about that.  I do have some concerns that D1 means an even bigger time commitment and that could affect his studies, but I think the boy can manage it and deserves the chance to try.  On the other hand, we're not talking about the chance to play for Vanderbilt or Stanford here--this is a D1 program, but nobody expects to see them in the CWS.  They offer a little more glamor than D3 HAs, I guess; but only a little.