Again, my opinion on this might not be objective since my son plays Juco. But, here goes...and keep in mind this comparison is just these two particular schools and obviously things can be different if you used different schools.
My son started out at a D2 4-year school that is always ranked in the Top 20 Nationally (for a very long time now) and often sits pretty high in the Top 20. After one semester, he realized the school wasn't what he expected or wanted and he transferred to Juco.
The Juco that he's at has made the World Series 27 times in the last 32 seasons, reached the championship game 15 times (out of 27 appearances) and has won 9 National Championships.
So, both schools that he's been at have strong baseball programs.
The D2 program worked really hard and being a player there was almost a full-time job. But, I would say that, at his Juco, they probably work harder and it feels like a full-time job with overtime. So, in this respect, Juco is just the same as being at a 4-year college (maybe even more intense).
Both HC have been at their programs a long time and are the top of the class in terms of recruiting talent. At both the D2 and the Juco, before committing or transferring there, my son was approached by other HC in those conferences and they were disgusted to find out he was was leaning towards the schools where he landed. So, in this respect, Juco is the same as a 4-year school in that the competition for talent is a war.
As far as "after the umpire says Play Ball," both HC (4-year and Juco) would make Billy Martin and Earl Weaver proud. Opposing HC and umpires better be at the top of their game because these guys are locked in and see all and know all. So, in that respect, there's no difference between Juco and the 4-year experience.
Now, I won't fib. Overall, the field facilities were nicer at D2. At the Juco level, my son's played at some crap fields. And, don't even get me started about the streaming of games. It was A LOT better at the 4-year schools in terms of remote viewing. But, it's not a golden rule. There are some D1 and D2 4-year schools near me that don't even have their own field and have to use public parks for their home games. So, that said, it's not like only 4-year schools get nice fields and that makes them more "college" than Juco.
The only thing that's the difference between the two is the age. I did ask my son, when he first started practicing with the Juco before last season "So, if [current Juco] played [former D2] right now, who would win?" And, he said, without hesitation "You have to remember that most of our guys are 19 and 20, and, most of their guys are 21 and 22, some even 23, and that's a big deal." So, the age/competition level between equally ranked Juco and 4-year schools is real.
But, I don't think that makes Juco not be "college baseball" when you look at how much time is required from the Juco player and how serious the coaches are about the sport.
Of course, there's always going to be terrible programs at every level which make it seem like apples and oranges if you tried to compare the difference between Juco and 4-year using one of them.
However, personally, seeing a top D2 and a top Juco, up close and personal, I don't see much difference and would have a hard time accepting that the Juco isn't "college baseball."
That said, if someone wants to say I am biased because my son plays Juco, I cannot fight that claim because he does play Juco.
