Is the perfectgameusa showcase worth the cost? It isreally expensive for me but I wo

Welcome to High School Baseball Web! You certainly came to the right place for advise and answers.

Your son can never go wrong when dealing with anything concerning Perfect Game. They are second to none in showcasing young players and giving them realistic scores as to where they are.

Good luck

The answer depends on what you want to get out of the event. Early on, experience is the goal so the more the better. Local, lower cost events can do the trick. As time goes by and confidence has been gained and if you want to broaden the exposure, then graduate to a larger Showcase with Regional or National exposure. Could be, Junior wants to eventually play at a smaller school closer to home, then you may not need to invest in the "big boy" showcases. Could be it's different on the West Coast but plenty of good low and mid-level showcases in our area to cut your teeth on then move up as/when you see fit.

The answer depends on the individual. How talented is he? How old is he? What grade is he in? How are his grades? What type of program does his HS have? Does his HS coach help with recruiting? What are his target schools? Does he have potential to be a pro prospect someday?

He's a junior. gpa 3.6
target schools UCLA, Stanford or LSU.
Coach ??? yes, has potential to be pro

IMO if he is a good Junior and he posted good numbers in school (BA .350-.450)he has decent speed and defensively solid or a 80's pitcher IMO he should get into a Perfect Game Showcase whatever the cost. I will tell you why. First, if he has sub 7 speed he will get a good grade on speed. The colleges like speed. Second, if he swings the bat well he will be graded well in BP and that is good. Third ,if he is an outfielder and has a good arm (80-90mph) outfield arm speed he will grade well there. Forth, if he pitches and throws 80.s with movement and location as a Junior is great. The end result as was for my son in his two PG programs would be rated 8.5 to 9 and if he hits well in his games maybe a 10. What will the grade do for you? I have sent video to colleges with his PG grade and profile. The colleges know PG and staff. They know the ratings system of the PGcrosstracker program is for real. I know because my son is going into his senior year and recieved many offers. Also you can use the Showcases as a format in which other scouts and staff will rate off those stats and move your son up in region and state polls. The higher he is rated the more looks he gets. Be proactive on his behalf but beware of becoming a helicopter parent. Let your sons talent do the talking. Hope this helps. PG rocks and I do not know any of the staff personally or am I affiliated with the program. Good luck to you and your son and Merry Christmas and welcome to this great forum.

He plays OF prefers center, great speed also pitches, lefty

Even better! If he hits well from the left side and pitches lefty he will get an even closer look and review. IMO you need PG it will be worth it (if he shows well). Make sure he attends at his peak time of practice and on time, Not after Holidays and a 3 week break IMO.

Thanks, for your help

quote:

He's a junior. gpa 3.6
target schools UCLA, Stanford or LSU.
Coach ??? yes, has potential to be pro

Based on that answer, yes, it's time he attend a PG event. Welcome to the HSBBWeb, you'll find a ton of info on here about preparing him for the showcase. It's expensive, and he needs to be prepared to make a strong showing the first time, and not make mistakes in preperation that could've been avoided with some forethought and advice.

Deccabell,

Welcome to HSBBW. I was asking the same question a few mos back. I was aware of the site but did not check on it prior to the events. Early in the fall, Coach Jerry Stitt (former UA baseball head coach) gave a talk to parents and players at our school about the world of college recruiting and recommended PG highly due to its reliable and honest evaluations on top of probably the most respected resource in baseball recruiting. To make a long story short, requested an invite 2 mos in advance in the Underclass Session 1 in Mesa,AZ and prior to that to our pleasant surprise son got invited to play for PG Gold team in the PG national Underclass in Tucson, AZ where he did pretty well.

Now going to the showcase, I was having second thoughts if he was ready for this. As a parent/coach, I always thought that my son has some talent but we wanted an unbiased opinion of his abilities to know where he stands amongst his peers and help us determine what opportunities he may pursue in the future.

I had the pleasure to have some contact with AZALLAN
and he gave me some inputs from his previous experiences and also went out of his way to meet me at the showcase where his son was too and gave me some moral support. He showcased all his skills OF/IF/pitching in that particular order and had a good BP session. Velocity dwindled down from max OF (one of top velocities in the event), ok IF, lowest pitching but we kind of expected that possibly from some arm fatigue. We will prob limit to 2 positions next time.

Son had fun and got a respectable grade. I know he had some jitters but I think came out of the experience a better player. He is still working hard on his speed & pitching mechanics and looking forward to a great spring. Will probably do another PG Tourney in Tucson next year and another showcase during his Junior year.

So in summary, PG USA for us was worth the cost and the experience you will get out of it is priceless. He made some new friends/contacts and I am still in contact with his coaches during the PG tournaments. Now we have an idea on what potential he may have and we'll keep working at it. Like what AZALLAN said, it probably helped him in getting recognized in the state and be on the radar of colleges as well.

Happy Holidays to all HSBBWebbies! Let's play some ball!

RR23

quote:

Be proactive on his behalf but beware of becoming a helicopter parent. Let your sons talent do the talking.

Just want to comment on this briefly.I completely agree with AZALLAN about being Pro-active. However, I have witnessed this first hand how an helicopter parent may blow his son's chances. Over-promoting your son and bringing down others can backfire big time. Eventually family was talked to by coaching staff/AD for this unwanted negative energy. Hope they learned from it.