I found the radio silence to be one of the most stressful parts of the recruiting process. Coaches would tell our son to contact them, the conversation seemed to go great, and then…radio silence. Oh no! What could it mean? Are they not interested anymore? Did son say the wrong thing? Did they decide to offer someone else instead? Then months later, out of the blue, they were back in touch again. Then the whole process would repeat.
What we finally came to understand was that radio silence means exactly nothing. Some coaches love to chat about anything related to baseball and will stay in regular touch with a wide range of recruits, but it doesn’t mean they're planning to offer them. Others are quiet and/or extremely busy (this can't be overemphasized) and their lack of communication says little to nothing about their level of interest or likelihood to ultimately make an offer, especially if your son is still early in his high school career.
The best thing you can do is to be as persistent as possible while still being respectful. Do not stop sending updates even if you don't hear anything back - a coach could very well be watching and waiting. A small minority of coaches will tell you if they are not interested (a rare blessing). But the majority will not. What if your son eventually develops a 92+ fastball or they lose all their top recruits to the draft or another school? At that point, they will want to be back in touch.
Only the top recruits in the country will have the luxury of knowing exactly where they stand throughout the recruiting process. For everyone else, be prepared for episodes of uncertainty, including radio silence. As long as your son has done his homework and is targeting appropriate schools were he can make a meaningful contribution and succeed academically, the best thing you can do is try to relax and enjoy the ride. It will all work out the way it is supposed to in the end.
