Is high school ball enough? New here

my2boys,

Welcome to the HSBBW. I think the answer to your question could be addressed by many here, with a good variety of advice given. But maybe it would best be answered by someone in your own area. Fortunately for you, living in the great state of Iowa, you have perhaps the greatest single resource for high level amateur to pro baseball in America nearby in Cedar Rapids. He also happens to be a distinguished member of this great little online community. Send a PM to PGStaff (Go > Personal Zone > Private Messaging) or shoot an e-mail to Jerry Ford at Perfect Game. Good luck.

my2boys...

What spizzlepop said....

Wholeheartedly!

And welcome to HSBBW!

Just remember that PGStaff said he had been very busy as of late and had a lot of unanswered PM's.

I am sure he has - just looking out - making sure we are doing the right things for our kid.

http://www.worldwoodbat.com/teams.aspx?division=2

Here is a link to the World Wood Bat Association website that shows a number of Iowa teams.

This may be a place to start. Go to page 10.

Also, to answer your original question...the answer is NO. Other than that welcome aboard and I know there are other folks around here who will have some knowledge of baseball in your area.

Welcome:

Read through all of the material on this site. The most important is the timeline.

http://www.hsbaseballweb.com/recruiting_tips.htm

You timing is perfect as next year is the year to start looking beyond HS IMO. I would try to find the highest level of baseball your son can compete at during the summer.

Some recommendations for next summer are the USA baseball 16U championships. (probably the best 16U tournament in the country) I think there is also some tournaments connected to the CWS in Omaha also. PG also has a bunch of stuff going on in Iowa as someone has mentioned.

Good luck!

Play whatever ball is the highest level of competition in your area. In some places that's still Legion. Then selectively play some showcase ball and participate in targeted college camps from fall of junior year through fall of senior year.

Hi,

We are also in Iowa, with a rising freshman baseball pitcher. Yup travel ball dries up once the boys hit 15U because high school ball plays at the same time as travel. Our high school lets the boys play high school and travel concurrently as 8th and 9th graders. Once you hit Sophomore or Varsity, travel is done.

That said, there are some fall baseball leagues run in local communities. Also Perfect Game runs a fall wood bat league for high schoolers. Our local community will also support a high school spring wood bat league for surrounding schools. The only other option is to join a travel team in a neighboring state. Not a bad option if you live close to the state line. But you still run into the conflict with the high schools.

One good point is that there may be a little less wear on a pitcher's arm over the years. Hope you are able to find what your son needs. Welcome to HSBBW!

Being from a small school, kids playing tourney ball during the season is certainly not an option. Our season runs into the end of July and the HS team plays just about 6 days a week. M-F with 'tournaments' on the some Saturdays.

I will have to find out if there are opportunities in the Aug/Sept time frame. We usually 'put the ball down' from November to December for wrestling season and to regroup.

Not saying I am right or wrong but in my opinion if you boy wants to play at the next level and maybe get some scholarship to do so then HS ball is not enough. It doesn't give him enough exposure. I know people say "if he is good enough they will find him" but I don't believe that is true. The more he is seen in other venues the better chance he has of someone wanting him. Kind of like advertising.

It has been mentioned here in the past by PGStaff and others that Iowa plays HS baseball in the summer.

Two question. Why, and is this the only state that does this?

Also, I believe you can be "found" by colleges if you only play HS baseball but you will have more schools aware of you if you play on a travel/tournament team.

My guess as to why we play in the summer is because of weather. It RAINS a lot in Iowa in the spring.

HI,

I have never heard a reason that Iowa plays in the summer other than that is when the Iowa Athletic Union says that we play. It was that way many moons ago when I played high school softball in Iowa also.

I also played six on six basketball in Iowa. We were the last state to switch to 5 player ball as well. I think our union moves SLOW...

As I said, it is just my opinion. Yes, a player can be "found". Mostly if they are one of those top 3 or 4 in the county that scouts seek out. While they are there it is possible to see other players at those games that may interest them. However, the more eyes on a player (as in a showcase or camp) the better the chances of generating interest.

What months do other states play in? With all the rain outs we get - I can't imagine moving too much earlier

In FL, practices start mid-January, and we're done in May. I'm guessing that would be hard to do in Iowa!

We have had pro scouts and college recruiters come to our practices in the past, but that was only after certain players showed something special at a PG showcase.

In Georgia, tryouts are in beginning of February. Regular season goes to early May. If you go to the finals in the playoffs, it is early June. In fact, I believe the regulation in Georgia is that all regular season games must be completed on or before May 1.

Must be real tough going in HS season thru July. Most travel teams wrap up their summer season end of July - maybe 1st week of August here. Tryouts for next summer start beginning to middle of August here. If you are not on a team by then for next year, you better be a super stud to get on a good team, or play on a lower level team hurting for players.

Certainly scouts in Iowa must realize what the deal is and maybe handle things a little different. Wish I could be of more help.

In South Florida (or at least in my son's school) games start early February. Kids already on the team will be out at the field or in the cages practicing (on their own of course) at the end of the first day of school.

In New Jersey and Pennsylvania practice starts first week of March and playoffs end early June.

It is cold in March and we had a very wet April/May this year, with 6-7 rainouts, but I would guess that the kids would rather play in spring than in summer. With travel BB and other distractions in the summer I think it's the best way to go.

Central California the practices officially start the first Monday in February and the championship games are normally Memorial Day weekend.

Having said that, unofficial workouts start in September and end in late January.

Wow..we are in the dark ages here. Keeping in mind that we can have snow into April for sure.

Pitcher catcher starts in February. First game this year was the last week of May. State is the week of July 24th!

Our coach is from a southern state and thinks it's nuts....now I know why.