Just want to play baseball in College

Actually just answered some of my own concerns by looking at

National Club Baseball Association(NCBA).

I saw several colleges on my son's list that have club teams In fact

we know a player who went that route and loved it.

Still have another showcase this weekend-so will see. There is suppose to be

a better mix of coaches there.

We have been through the process once (rising college soph) and are going through the process again (rising high school soph).

 

There is no "one way" or "right way" as you've probably gleaned from this site. 

 

The recruiting timetable here was invaluable for us, but as your son is a 2014, time is of the essence now.

 

I am happy to speak to you live if that would be helpful.  Please PM/Dialog me if so.

 

Unless your player is a top talent who is sought after by colleges or professional teams...subjective of course...this is a marketing exercise of engaging colleges that you initiate. 

 

The starting point for us (presuming both the player wants to play in college and the parents want to be of assistance) is to create a "realistic" list of colleges where the player desires to attend and could get accepted, that ideally intersects with where that player can play baseball.  It's not perfect...you're making assumptions and ideally working with coaches and counselors who help you.  But until you have that list, it's hard to create an action plan of engaging coaches.  As an example, our initial colleges list, vetted by a couple of scouts and high school counselors, was fifty schools.  Some kids had 25, some had 75.  There's no perfect science in the recruiting world.

 

Let me know if I can help in any way.  Just one man's opinion.  There are also tremendous resources already published on this site.  It's an incredible resource.

 

Good luck!

 

 

It's refreshing to see your honest assessment of his abilities.  You mention that his velocity is low, which it is even for a lefty (unless he is a sidearmer, submariner or similar pitcher).  How did he pitch this past Spring?  Was he effective on the mound? 

 

We were in a somewhat similar situation when my son was a Senior.  Although he had very effective Junior and Senior years (low eras, low hits against), he was not looked at by D1 colleges.  He wanted to stay within 5 hours and there wasn't a D3 or even a D2 that had either good enough academics or his major that also wanted him to play ball within that distance.  He was offered some nice scholarships by D3 schools for his excellent academics yet they were still well above what we'd pay for an in-state public university.  A month before he graduated he made the tough decision to go to the academic school(a D1) that he wanted and play club ball there. Adults in his life (coaches, etc.) told him it was an admirable decision.  His teammates told him he was nuts not to play "real" college ball.

 

Well, he had a different ending than most in that he was recruited by a D1 AFTER he graduated and after he'd made that tough decision.  Fortunately for him, the D1 that wanted him was also in his top 3 for academics, etc.  It was a crazy month of transferring records, unregistering and registering and notifying his roommate. Fast forward three years and he was their go-to pitcher out of the bullpen this year and even pitched in a Perfect Game Summer League All Star Game (a seven pitch inning!).

 

I mention his success, because if he had NOT been recruited late by the D1 he would have never known that he could be that successful.  He has told us that looking back, he should have focused on going to a JUCO and then transferring into an academic school once he proved himself.  If he didn't prove himself nothing would have been lost as he'd have gotten his core classes out of the way.

 

Someone else might know better than I, but I believe D3's and JUCOs often recruit much later than D1's.  Spring and even Summer after graduation?  Can he go to their camps and hold his decision until next Spring?  He can do as my son did and apply for his academic school and then once he gets accepted, they usually have until April/May of their Senior year before they decide.  Now this means that if he is liked by a D3 they will call him weekly which can get tiring. 

 

If toward the end of his Senior year it's evident that he has little chance to play at a school that has the academics, finances, etc., then club ball is an EXCELLENT choice.  Most get uniforms, and travel all while having a less rigorous schedule and being able to take advantage of other school options like going on exchange, etc. 

Your post is very refreshing to me.  My son is in a similar situation, by age he should be a rising junior but he's a rising senior.  Grew late and is still growing.  I have been told by a few scouts that he is one of the better players in the area.  But he's not a top talent by any means.  He just wants to keep playing, works his tail off to get better, etc.

 

The rub is that he can academically get into a top D1 academic school who will cover a lot of the cost but he probably can't play ball there.  I'm not about to crush his dreams yet but reality for me is setting in.  This late in the game I don't see much happening.

 

Not sure where you are at but I found a showcase in CA that was mainly D2, D3, & Naia schools that we went to this summer.  

A friend's son barely got on the mound through three years of high school and Legion. He was an all conference lefty his senior year. Three local d1s offered him a roster spot in June. He got scholarship money starting soph year.

My son has graduated getting his diploma with a GED as of January. He is a good ball player both in High School and travel teams. He is 6'3" 175lbs outfield/infield and pitches. We got a late start on recruitment and are just getting going. How can I help him get into a community college in Florida or nearby? 

You or your son?

I didn't realize her son only threw 74.  Forget the showcases and camps.  Spend the money on pitching instruction.  Work out and long-toss (that's free).  That fastball needs to go to 80+ even for Juco ball.  D1 85-86.  There's work to do.

Lets face it some kids don't have the skills for college baseball. (actually a lot, what is the number 5% of HS players ?) Obviously we're all focused with this on this website, but all of our sons played with a lot of kids who did not move on and doing wonderful things in their lives. Get a realistic evaluation from a knowledgeable (and honest!) coach who can give you an  opinion. 

Assessing the strengths and weaknessess of your player is so very important, at least it is if they love the game and wish to play past HS.

If you have a player that is short (I know there are exceptions) encouraging him to pitch, unless he has great velocity may bring a premature end to his run.

We encouraged our son to hit since he did it fairly well, and because we did not expect him to grow very tall (at 24 he is still 5'11). He loved the game, so we focused on fielding and hitting. He actually pitched his sophomore year in college (throwing 89-91) and was All Conference as a Pitcher and an Infielder.

But his future was not pitching.

I understand that it is difficult to see these things very early, but by his Freshman year in HS, it should be pretty clear.

74 is not going to cut it anywhere other than Club Ball, at least that I am aware of.

 

On limited finances I look toward the free part and little elbow grease.  lol

I even use a video camera for batting and pitching improvements. 

+1.  I would also add that he can always play inter mural ball.  It would be fun, and it won't interfere with his academics as much.

I would think that would be softball, probably even co-ed. 

If your son ends up around 80-ish, as a lefty he could very well be of interest at the D3 level to any number of programs. 

 

But another option you should look into is club baseball.  I know many players who found themselves having to choose between going to a D3 school they didn't like so much as a school, or that they worried whether they could afford (private schools), vs. going to the school they always wanted to go to without being on the college team because they just weren't of the caliber to get recruited there.  These guys discovered club baseball, went to their preferred schools, and had a wonderful time.

 

Some of those club teams are pretty darned good.  The main difference is that it's more social, less of a job, and less stressful as they go through their college years.

 

There's a web site for club teams that will let you know what schools offer that option.  Hopefully the school your son would like to attend has one. 

 

Of course, this won't help with admissions or with money -- in fact there's usually a charge to participate.  But it's baseball while in college, and lots of travel and fun.

They do have inter mural baseball.  Three of my son's teammates are now playing inter mural baseball at their D-1 School. They didn't want to play club, and all three could have played at a JC in a neighboring state. They didn't want too.  They just wanted to have fun.