Ivy League gets 13 drafted

And it's good baseball, too. Conference RPI for 2017 had the Ivy League as 14th out of 31 D1 conferences, so it is squarely a middle-of-the-pack D1 conference.

This has probably been asked many times before on this forum, but, what does a kid need to bring to the table in terms of academics and athletics in order to be in the mix to pursue Ivy league baseball?  

What steps should be taken to begin the process (e.g., emailing the coach, Head Start showcases, camps, etc.), and when do you take these steps?  

Our son is an incoming freshman; he's a strong ballplayer and student.  I'm hopeful that he might have a chance to have both the academic and baseball resumes; we just don't know exactly where to start.   

My son was talking to some Ivys over this past winter.   He was told that his SAT scores needed to be at least 1350 so the coach would not have to use his "silver bullet" to get him in (my kid is a 2018). 

Our process was that my son talked to his travel team coach (who has good relations with a lot of the Ivy coaches), and that was about it.  Pretty sure the coaches saw my kid at last years fall WWBA, where he had a good showing.

LSMF, 

First, Google "Ivy league academic index." This provides a very rough approach to the combination of scores and grades needed for an athlete. Read various blogs about how the AI is used. There is a small degree of leeway if your kid is a super stud - not much, but e.g., the schools can get a kid in with a 28 ACT under perfect conditions (extremely rare).

Basically, for academics a player should take the High School's most rigorous cirriculum offered. (Begin looking at that now - reach out to the HS guidance counselor for help, if needed.) If the HS doesn't offer a full range of APs, don't worry because kids are viewed through the prism of what the HS offered. But, take the most challenging cirriculum that your kid can dominate. (On college tours, one question always asked was should a kid take an honors class and get an "A" or an AP and get a "B." The answer was always, take the AP and get an A.)

Work on the baseball skills. Here, you have time because the whole system is geared to recruiting a kid as a rising senior. This doesn't mean don't get on the radar earlier - just the Ivy rules are written and clear. (Google "Ivy league recruiting" and go to the actual Ivy League website. You'll need a law degree and a week to diagram the rules, but it can be done and understood.)  The time to get viewed and get placed on the "follow list" is as a rising junior; additionally, if you're traveling and looking at any Ivy, and he has a year or two of grades (and maybe a score or two), drop in on the coaches with that transcript. The transcript is the weed out - so that is the first thing a coach will look at. 

Returning to baseball skills, some Ivies recruit only middle infielders and only rarely outfielders (Yale which believes every HS SS can be an outfielder); but, every player recruited could have headed to multiple other D1s, so an extremely high level of skills is needed. Playing on any particular travel team will not make a difference (though some travel coaches can call an Ivy coach with a heads up, so connections are good) - individual baseball skills make the difference.

I don't know where the Ivy coaches now congregate during the summer, but during our era, it was Stanford and Headfirst. Son did both as a rising junior and rising senior. It was a goldmine of schools which academically fit our consensus needs.

A broad generality: 32 ACT + top baseball skills will get a serious look.

If you have specific questions, feel free to PM.

"My son was talking to some Ivys over this past winter. He was told that his SAT scores needed to be at least 1350 so the coach would not have to use his "silver bullet" to get him in (my kid is a 2018)."

If the coach was referring to bringing in the super-stud, there is some validity. Ivy football specifically allows for a lowering of academic standards for 1 - 2 players per year. There is something similar (limited to one player) in baseball - 28 ACT is the lowest I've heard.

If the coach was referring to the process in general, that is not the way it works. A coach gets a predetermined number of Likey Letters the administration will issue (6 - 8 per year); absent the kid obtaining that LL, the kid runs the admissions gauntlet as a regular student. With an admission rate of roughly 3% for unhooked students, it's a bad risk. The LLs are issued by admissions, following the submission of a totally completed application (essay included, although the quality of that essay is debatable). No LL, no athletic admission.

So, if the coach was referring to that single player who almost makes it, there is a small degree of academic leeway; otherwise, the coach needs to use that silver bullet (LL) for every player. (Son's team had a true walkon every year. That kid who made it through admissions without coaches support. Those kids were really really bright.)

sorry for this add on to the initial post.

Last week, six players graduated out of seven who began (that was the single kid leaving over an eight year stretch). All in four years. Majors: mechanical and aerospace engineering (with high honors), one history major, one political science major, three economic majors. 

Goosegg posted:

Each year the Ivy League brings in roughly 56 players; while the majority of players moving into proball are drafted as seniors, roughly 12% of Ivy players move on to proball.

http://yaledailynews.com/downt...-the-2017-mlb-draft/

The overwhelming number of the remaining 88% move on to very, very high paying jobs. The seniors from my son's alma mater (none were drafted) went to employers such as Bain (consulting), MacKenzie (consulting), JP Morgan (investment banking), Citi (IB), IBM (consulting), etc. Every single one got good, challenging jobs; and those jobs will enhance their resumes over the next few years.

(In another thread, it was explained that large numbers of players transfer from their initial college for one reason or another. Over the past 8 years at son's alma mater ONE player left - out of roughly 56.) As I have banged this drum many times: for the few who have the combination of academics and baseball, look over the horizon to the next 40 years and chose wisely if an Ivy comes calling.

 

As usual Goose, you are spot-on.  In regards to this year's draft specifically, I believe there were 10 seniors, 2 juniors and a sophomore drafted.  Four of the 13 are from Penn, including one junior and the sophomore.

GOOSEGG - All I can do is to give you my experience - kid is good, but not sure if he rates as a super stud (unless you ask him of course!)  RHP sits 88-90mph...   Also it helped that for the one specific school I am talking about, there was a lot of legacy on both sides of the family.   Kid eventually decided on a non-ivy school, so that is about all I can add.

2019Dad posted:

And it's good baseball, too. Conference RPI for 2017 had the Ivy League as 14th out of 31 D1 conferences, so it is squarely a middle-of-the-pack D1 conference.

One site has the Ivy conference RPI at 13th -

http://warrennolan.com/baseball/2017/conferencerpi

The linked article in the OP has a nice bonus...it links to a spreadsheet that is packed with Ivy baseball stats...would be a serious tool for anyone trying to understand current strengths and weaknesses of Ivy teams.

Two.

when additional variable are added - in this case serious legacy connection - you can't speak of the player as strictly an athletic admit. Additionally, only in hindsight does a coach know if the player has matched his projections (so coach could project that all-American and bend that last spot, but the ultimate results won't bear out the initial opinion). Perhaps the best player to EVER graduate from son's AM was 86-88 and a 2-way player in HS. Coach saw something; coach was right. I've never seen such a fierce competitor. The kid was possibly the best the Ivy ever produced.

If a kid is 88 - 90 in HS, that kid may (or may not) sit 92 in college (at least coach hopes). Sitting 92 - as a SP - will qualify him as that super stud.

9and7 -- sorry about that, it was 14th last I looked, but Yale's wins in the regionals probably bumped it up.

For Longsufferingmetsfan, Goosegg provided a fantastic overview. You can also go to PerfectGame, look up the college commits to the Ivies and it will give you some idea -- e.g., you can often get an idea of the velocity required for a pitcher, perhaps the PG grade of position players, etc. 

Twokids, a pitcher sitting 88-90 -- which means he likely touches 92 or 93 on occasion -- qualifies as a superstud, at least in terms of velocity, at all but the highest-level D1 programs. In the research I did, a documented example of a HS RHP touching 92 or 93 as a rising senior (or senior fall), and headed to a mid-major, was pretty rare:

http://community.hsbaseballweb...-at-certain-schools?

2019 - hope you didn't take my post as argumentative.  I thought perhaps there was another RPI listing that placed the Ivy at 14th.  13th or 14th, doesn't matter - was just wondering if there was a differing source with a different value. 

Goosegg's son and my son came into the League at the same time and we've been following this for a while.  I don't recall this many Ivy players getting drafted....not even close.  So, some of the credit goes to the Ivy coaches who are seeing these guys in high school and projecting their draft talent 5-6 years down the road.  Possibly the coaching and player talent is at a level it has never been before or possibly it is a statistical anomaly.  The other explanation is Ivy coaches are putting more emphasis on young men (with great academics) who want to be MLB drafted.   From the players perspective, it is great to have options.  I believe a couple of the draft picks are juniors which makes their decision a little more complicated.  

JMO.

What a great year for Ivy baseball!

On college tours, one question always asked was should a kid take an honors class and get an "A" or an AP and get a "B." The answer was always, take the AP and get an A.

Great response!

fenwaysouth posted:

 I believe a couple of the draft picks are juniors which makes their decision a little more complicated.  

JMO.

What a great year for Ivy baseball!

 

Any advice for the father of the drafted Ivy League sophomore?

One of my son's friends will be playing baseball for an Ivy next year.

Academically he has a weighted GPA around 4.8-4.9 and an SAT around 1300.

Physically he's 6'7 and about 240, left handed pitcher/1B . Velocity wise he sits 88-89. He's a plus defensively and hits for power.

Another friend of his will be playing football for an Ivy next year.

He's got a 4.3 GPA and a 29 ACT.

He is 6'3, around 200 lbs.  Averaged something like 250 yards passing and 100 running as a quarterback, and led his school to multiple state championships.

So, even though the Ivy schools are primarily academically focused - the athletes they get aren't necessarily slouches either.   

9AND7DAD,

Sending you PM.  It is kind of a unique situation.  I forgot your son is sophomore but the draft board listed him as a "draftable junior".   

9and7dad posted:

fenwaysouth posted:

 I believe a couple of the draft picks are juniors which makes their decision a little more complicated.  

JMO.

What a great year for Ivy baseball!

 

Any advice for the father of the drafted Ivy League sophomore?

My words of advice to you:  "He should definitely sign; he'd be crazy not to."

My thoughts as I type the above:  "Get him out of the Ivy League.  Better for Yale.  We'd rather not face him."

Congratulations and good luck with the decision.

Just curious - in general terms what would make a sophomore draftable?

(and congrats to 9 and 7 Dad's son!)

9and7dad posted: 

Any advice for the father of the drafted Ivy League sophomore?

Please forgive me in advance, but is this facetious? 

Ha...pretty cool about the Ivy's... Separately I noticed 8-9 kids from D3's...two from MIT, one from Pomona...

Gov posted:

Ha...pretty cool about the Ivy's... Separately I noticed 8-9 kids from D3's...two from MIT, one from Pomona...

I posted in the draft thread that one of the MIT kids was drafted by Seattle, and before being drafted he had secured a front office position doing analytics for the same club. So he would probably be in a position at some point to release himself, or at least make the recommendation to his boss that he be released.

Gov posted:

Ha...pretty cool about the Ivy's... Separately I noticed 8-9 kids from D3's...two from MIT, one from Pomona...

Actually 12 were drafted:

http://www.d3baseball.com/nota...2017-players-drafted

This has been pretty consistent number going back a number of years and especially since the draft was reduced to 40 rounds.

joemktg posted:

9and7dad posted: 

Any advice for the father of the drafted Ivy League sophomore?

Please forgive me in advance, but is this facetious? 

No forgiveness required, he's mine.

Age allows a soph to be draft eligible.

9and7dad posted:

joemktg posted:

9and7dad posted: 

Any advice for the father of the drafted Ivy League sophomore?

Please forgive me in advance, but is this facetious? 

No forgiveness required, he's mine.

33rd rounder, correct? Clearly the answer is no, as Detroit was taking a flyer. However, it says that he's a draft pick next year, and if you don't already have an adviser, get one.

Congrats to these Ivy kids!  And same for the D3 guys!!

With two sons playing in college, I've had the good fortune of seeing a lot of these boys play. 

When I was a parent of high school players and in the youth travel ball and LL years before that, I really didn't understand what it takes for a young man to make a college roster.  Or make one at a high academic college.  And I certainly didn't understand what it takes for a college player to be successful and be drafted.

We have a lot of threads on here from time to time about what velocity a pitcher needs to have to play at a certain level or exit velocity / bat speed or running speed or ACT or whatever...I used to think that it would be "easier" for my guys to play at an academic school or in D3.  Ha!!!

The reality is there is tremendous talent at all levels of college baseball.  Tools matter.  Test scores and grades matter.  Training gets better and better.  Work ethic matters.  Players are getting bigger, faster, and stronger.  A lot of kids throw 88 mph or run a 6.7 or are 6'2" and 195 lbs. or have a 30 ACT.  The competition for roster spots is fierce.  A kid has to want to play at the collegiate level and has to want to do the work to make that happen on and off the field.  And they have to be seen by the colleges on their vetted (academically and athletically) list of schools.  There's no magic; there's no silver bullet.     

Kudos to these young men!

Branson Baseball posted:

Congrats to these Ivy kids!  And same for the D3 guys!!

...

The reality is there is tremendous talent at all levels of college baseball.  Tools matter.  Test scores and grades matter.  Training gets better and better.  Work ethic matters.  Players are getting bigger, faster, and stronger.  A lot of kids throw 88 mph or run a 6.7 or are 6'2" and 195 lbs. or have a 30 ACT.  The competition for roster spots is fierce.  A kid has to want to play at the collegiate level and has to want to do the work to make that happen on and off the field.  And they have to be seen by the colleges on their vetted (academically and athletically) list of schools.  There's no magic; there's no silver bullet.     

Kudos to these young men!

You got that right!   You can have enough talent,  but if you don't have the drive to maximize the talent,  you'll still never ever make it.  Speaking from personal experience,  I'm still 100% convinced mine had and has the talent.  And in HS,  it sure seemed like he had the drive, given all the crap he persevered through.   But once he got a clear eyed look at what it  takes to succeed at college baseball, even in a top drawer D3 program, (one that finally won a D3 World Series) while trying to be a successful student,  he decided enough was enough and hung up the cleats.  Those guys that stick it out, and push themselves to succeed, have done something truly special.   Especially if they do it at an IVY.  I mean, wow!

Great to see what  transpired with the Ivy League on Draft Day!  Especially happy with the position player selections.

joemktg posted:

9and7dad posted:

joemktg posted:

9and7dad posted: 

Any advice for the father of the drafted Ivy League sophomore?

Please forgive me in advance, but is this facetious? 

No forgiveness required, he's mine.

33rd rounder, correct? Clearly the answer is no, as Detroit was taking a flyer. However, it says that he's a draft pick next year, and if you don't already have an adviser, get one.

This is a no brainer. Don't sign, continue onto junior year in hopes for a better slot. 33 rounder gets nothing as a bonus, and they are not going to pay for 2 years of an Ivy education. If that team likes your player they will be watching.

You don't need an advisor at this time. 

JMO