HS Freshman Showcase

That all depends if you can afford it or not. It would not be a totally bad idea for him to go to experience a "showcase" style work out. The least it will do is show him where he needs to improve and what to expect for future camps. Good luck

FWIW: we took our 2016 to a one-day D1 event in Dec, 2011 just to provide him with the experience as well as context. It was about 2 hours away, and the event itself was 6 hours at a relatively low cost (it was on a Sunday, so I got to go to a close-by TGIF's and watched uninterrupted football). Well worth it: it opened his eyes to the whole process, and he came away with a frame of reference that will set him up for the forthcoming challenges.

I would say a lot depends on his size. If he hasn't begun to develop and it would be a huge physical mismatch as well as a skill one, maybe hold off a year. I am sure this same opportunity will be available year after year.

Now if he's already developed, a little exposure may not be a bad thing. As the parent of a kid who really didn't develop until his senior year I would say the earliest exposure he had became something he had to over come as he was simply too little for the level his skill allowed. He could play but to garner the same attention he had to play way better to overcome his very average size. By the time he was a senior his strength was apparent and there were plenty of opportunities that came his way.

Each kid is unique. It's a very long process if you start it as a freshman. Let him play without the pressure for another year and simply focus on himself rather then how he relates to others. Doesn't matter what his current time is, whatever it is he has 4 years to get better His competition is himself at this point.

We didn't do it. I would not advise doing it.

Sounds like you would be going into it with the proper expectations… i.e. zero. If the cost is not an issue for you (would those $$ otherwise go into the college fund?), then I think it could be a positive experience for your son. However, as others have said, that really depends on your son.

I’ve seen two things happen. Mostly I’ve seen young players gets their eyes opened to a new level of play and get inspired to work hard and not be complacent just because they are a top player in their age group. They also get an early appreciation for how important the measurable skills can be. I would say this is definitely a luxury, but it could give your son a slight advantage over kids who don’t go.

I’ve also seen younger players get totally over-matched and lose their confidence, but that’s the exception and may be a foretelling of things to come anyway.

Calisportsfan brings up a good point about size, and I’m not disagreeing, but I did see a small/young kid at a showcase who emerged as a crowd favorite because he played with a lot of confident and enthusiasm, even though he was clearly not ready to play at that level. I’m sure he had a great time, and probably couldn’t wait to get bigger and go to the next one.

In terms of recruiting, I would think that there is almost no chance that any schools will look at him at that age… unless he’s the next Mike Trout or Dylan Bundy.

What position does he play? Are his skills such that he can hold his own against older players.

I wouldn't do it. His focus should be on making his high school team. No real benefit to thinking about college.

My son went to his first showcase his sophomore year. If I had it to do over again, I would have waited until the following summer.

Well we decided not to do it mainly because he just turned 14 and didn't feel comfortable doing it alone without anyone he knew. This was a smaller school mostly for serious prospects but at $65.00 thought it would be worth it. But no sense in forcing him to go as he was just starting with a new team at East Cobb and that's enough pressure as it is just impressing a new coach.

The only benefit to attending a showcase this early would be the experience and knowing what to expect when it counts. However, if your son is not physically developed and could get overwhelmed by bigger, stronger, older players it's not a good idea. Unless your son is an early jaw dropping, gotta have prospect it's not going to help his recruiting.

Hi Joel, I did not see nor did my son experience any negative impacts from attending a one-day camp when he was a freshman. He did do well as a pitcher when compared to the older boys that day. Then again, he always played up for his age (i.e. 14 playing with 16u team, 16 with 18u). He caught the attention of the RC running the camp who was floored when he discovered he was a freshman. Then after that year the coaching staff changed and we had to start all over with respect to the new coaching staff at that school. So, IMHO, you need to weigh pros and cons of going during freshman year and try to understand how your son might react if he does not do well or measure up against the older boys at the camp. I believe the experiance is a benefit if he can handle the outcome, good or bad.

Hi Joel,

My son (14 and HS frosh this year) attended a show case over the summer at a Calif University. It was a great experience for him. He wanted to visit a college and play in a camp environement, while we were out on a family visit. The coach convinced us that he would be better suited for the show case than the camp and he was right. It was three days of great instruction and ball playing. Calisportsfan and MidAtlanticDad bring up some good points. Physical and emotional maturity should be taken in to consideration. My son matured at a young age and fit in fine with the rest of the players. Truly was a great experience for him.

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Originally posted by Joel:
Just found this site recently. Has really opened my eyes. I have already read a ton of stuff. Great stuff. I understand my 2016 son needs to focus on grades and playing as much as posible. I see that its really too early to go to showcases. There is a school nearby that has a showcase and its relatively inexpensive. Would it serve any purpose in going? My thoughts are it would give him unbiased, accurate times so he knows where he is at. Also it would give him an early taste of what it is like. But obviously even though he is skilled he's not anywhere near the juniors and seniors who will be there. So I guess I am really asking would it do more harm than good or be a waste of money?

IMHO, I don't see it doing any harm, but I don't see it doing much good either. Therefore, it's more a waste of money to do it at this point in time. But. . .if it's close by as you say, I'd take my son over to just take a look and see some of the players performance and see how that showcase is run. Then, if it looks like a well run, well attended showcase by coaches and scouts, you can make plans to attend in a couple years.