Late to the process

Welcome to the site!  There are many previous posts that can be searched.  There's also a recruiting timeline that lists some typical steps in the process.

In college baseball recruiting, tools matter not high school stats.  Targeting academically oriented, four year colleges as a RHP with velo in the low to mid 80's as a 2018 puts your son squarely in the mix for academic D3 colleges IMHO.

The first step should be to create a vetted list of colleges where your son could potentially be admitted and potentially play baseball.  A decent first barometer is to look at the 25%-75% window of ACT/SAT scores at potential colleges.  If he's within that window, then this school is an academic possibility.  For baseball, low to mid 80's should be in the ballpark at most academic D3's. 

The list can be sliced and diced some more.  Geographic location, majors and minors offered at the school, student body size, potential for merit scholarship in addition to need based financial aid, etc. etc.

This Summer 2017 is the primary recruiting season for a 2018 RHP targeting D3 academic schools.  Once your son has his list (at this stage, maybe 25-35 colleges) he must begin to demonstrate interest to those colleges, both to his Admissions rep at each school and to the Head Baseball Coach (typically target the Head Coach at a D3 and the Recruiting Coordinator at a D1).

What does demonstrated interest look like?  Complete the online Admissions and baseball forms.  Email directly the Admissions rep and the Baseball Coach.  Visit campus.  Send an edited baseball recruiting video to each Head Coach.  Meet the Admissions reps at college fairs and on his high school campus.  Etc. Etc.

And showcase his skills this Summer by attending college showcases and camps where the coaches from the schools on his vetted list will be.  He should communicate to those coaches in advance.  Introduce himself when he's there.  Follow up with the coaches afterwards.

There's a lot of things to do.  Timing is now to make in happen! 

We are all here to answer any questions.  Good luck!!!

Great info from Branson...

My add... 

Once he has developed a target school list, he will need to carefully map out that showcase/camp schedule.  He will need to be aware that most schools will gladly take his money and have him attend camp, so, sending video and asking the right questions to determine genuine interest on the part of the school will be very important.  Otherwise, he can find himself having attended 1/2 dozen college camps with no real interest or direction.  If he narrows things regionally and is able to go to a credible multi-school event with several schools on his list, this can be an effective path.  Again, prior communication and gauge of reciprocal interest is key.

Another "awareness" note - read up here on D3's.  There is no athletic $ but typically a good amount of academic and other $.  They are also typically fairly high academic, smaller private schools.  So, the result of this combination is often that there is motivation to recruit lots of players (to bump enrollment $ coming in) even if there is only modest interest in the player's baseball skill set.  So, when the time comes, it is important to know the right questions to ask to determine exactly where the school sees the player fitting into the baseball program.  That information can be found here.

Oh, and this may be challenging since he just moved but try to figure out good credible resources/connections to help him identify where he belongs and maybe put him in touch with the right people, events, travel programs, etc.  This can be travel coaches, instructors, HS coaches, scouts, etc. that are familiar with him.

Agree with everything that has been posted. Go to d3baseball.com to get a feel for the various programs and schools. There are tons of high academic schools in the SEast: USA South Athletic, SAA, UAA,  and a bit farther west SCAC. 

Get an independent opinion on the level your son can play at and then match his academic wants/needs/majors with the competitiveness of the baseball programs. 

Consider Stanford Camp and Headfirst camps for this summer. 

Good luck. 

41/3 K to Walk ratio?   That's an amazing number.  Would your son be interested in being a pitching coach?   

Lots of good advice above, and I second the recommendation on Stanford, and particularly Headfirst. But probably even more important is figuring out what schools he would like to attract and where can he be seen by those. Also, both HF and Stanford will sell out, if they have not already.  I'd figure out if they are a good match and if they are, book ASAP.

Thanks for all the great feedback. You reinforced things I thought were the right things to do.  

He is hoping for D2 so that he can benefit from some public school options to avoid debt after school.  D3 in this area are all private.  

As for the K/BB ratio.  He has always been around the plate.  In the past he has pitched primarily to contact getting a bunch of weak ground balls.  There have been some defensive struggles behind him this year so he has worked on getting more Ks.  The down side is he has also given up a few bombs this year because he refused to give in to a batter and got too much of the plate. Win some/lose some. 

Every family's situation is different but for a lot of people private schools end up being less expensive than public.

JCG posted:

Every family's situation is different but for a lot of people private schools end up being less expensive than public.

I second this in a big way.  Privates, most often, come up with $ from various buckets that publics don't have, particularly if your son does well academically.  Typically, there is still a gap but it is almost always surprisingly smaller than you may initially think it would be.

Regarding giving up bombs..

Better now than later.  If he goes on to play in college (and/or high level travel and high profile events this summer), he will get hit hard at times.  He needs to be able to deal with that.  His apparent ability to locate and mix will be a valuable tool that will allow him, to a degree, to pick situations where the heart of the plate is worth the risk.  And, knowing it will happen will better prepare him for the situations where he doesn't have much choice... and to be better at avoiding those situations to begin with.  Sounds so easy 

DADINTHEBOX,

I'll echo JCG.  I have a 2016 playing in the Southeast.  And his older brother just transferred from a D1 and looked at D2 and D3 programs in the South and West. 

I agree with BOF on conferences/schools.  Many of the schools in conferences BOF recommended offer generous merit awards in addition to need based financial aid.  We were blown away that strong D3 academic schools were often less expensive than public colleges (D2 or otherwise).

It's possible that low to mid 80's will fly for a RHP at a D2, though most of what we've seen is higher velocity than that.  And many of the D2's we looked at were not at the same academic level than the D3's.  Those that are in the ballpark (e.g., FL Southern) typically had very strong baseball programs with RHP's throwing much faster.

1. The top academic D3's have varying ACT expectations:  Amherst may require a 32, Grinnell may require a 30, then CalTech saying you'll need at least a 33 but good luck through admissions because the baseball coach can't help (?).   Having a sense of ACT requirements could help balance expectations when your son builds his college target list.  There a number of parents on this board with their son's playing at or accepted at Tufts, Amherst, Claremont McKenna, Grinnell; they may be able to chime in about what ACT's "may" be needed to get admitted.  
2. While it's early in the HS season, fine tune his mechanics from a top pitching instructor to prepare for the club and showcase season.  
3. Also, Headfirst was mentioned above, make sure you look at their website for dates that will work for your son and family logistics because certain dates can sell out fast.  Showball Camps and Top 96 are two other venues you may want to look into. 

Good luck. 

Not that I know much about this but have you looked into NAIA schools?

CaCO3Girl posted:

Not that I know much about this but have you looked into NAIA schools?

We are open to NAIA.  But have the same issues as D3 - most are private and would have to really be the right fit financially and academically.  

DadintheBox posted:

CaCO3Girl posted:

Not that I know much about this but have you looked into NAIA schools?

We are open to NAIA.  But have the same issues as D3 - most are private and would have to really be the right fit financially and academically.  

Our local NAIA seems to give money for everything and the kitchen sink!  Taking this major, here is 2K off, live in this county here is another 1K off....etc.  I think until you start talking with coaches you won't know what the financials actually are.  Also keep in mind that NAIA's do have scholarship money and academic money and they live by a different set of rules than NCAA schools.

All the suggestions above are spot on. If you live in an area that provides a lot of choices in terms of pitching coaches, find a pitching coach that has connections/contacts to colleges. In my experience, if your son has a solid level of talent (and it appears he does) a reputable pitching coach can make a huge difference from the standpoint of making a connection to a a college or two....or perhaps more.

Branson Baseball posted:

Welcome to the site!  There are many previous posts that can be searched.  There's also a recruiting timeline that lists some typical steps in the process.

In college baseball recruiting, tools matter not high school stats.  Targeting academically oriented, four year colleges as a RHP with velo in the low to mid 80's as a 2018 puts your son squarely in the mix for academic D3 colleges IMHO.

The first step should be to create a vetted list of colleges where your son could potentially be admitted and potentially play baseball.  A decent first barometer is to look at the 25%-75% window of ACT/SAT scores at potential colleges.  If he's within that window, then this school is an academic possibility.  For baseball, low to mid 80's should be in the ballpark at most academic D3's. 

The list can be sliced and diced some more.  Geographic location, majors and minors offered at the school, student body size, potential for merit scholarship in addition to need based financial aid, etc. etc.

This Summer 2017 is the primary recruiting season for a 2018 RHP targeting D3 academic schools.  Once your son has his list (at this stage, maybe 25-35 colleges) he must begin to demonstrate interest to those colleges, both to his Admissions rep at each school and to the Head Baseball Coach (typically target the Head Coach at a D3 and the Recruiting Coordinator at a D1).

What does demonstrated interest look like?  Complete the online Admissions and baseball forms.  Email directly the Admissions rep and the Baseball Coach.  Visit campus.  Send an edited baseball recruiting video to each Head Coach.  Meet the Admissions reps at college fairs and on his high school campus.  Etc. Etc.

And showcase his skills this Summer by attending college showcases and camps where the coaches from the schools on his vetted list will be.  He should communicate to those coaches in advance.  Introduce himself when he's there.  Follow up with the coaches afterwards.

There's a lot of things to do.  Timing is now to make in happen! 

We are all here to answer any questions.  Good luck!!!

This post saved me a lot of typing. When he (if you do it make it look like him) contact college coaches ask where to get in front of them. One place will be Head First. Make an email address just for baseball recruiting. My son's was FirstnameLastname.HighschoolYear@gmail. It makes his email easily identifiable to the coach. It creates one email for all contact for him. 

In the email include vitals like height, weight, velocity, unweighted gpa, what level if academics (honors, gifted, AP courses, etc) and SAT or PSAT scores. 

If he's projected to have additional significant growth add the information. If he's 16 and 6' and you're 6'3" say so. 

His pitching record is not that important. But not irrelevant. Baseball coaches will be looking at velocity, mechanics, composure and potential upside. 

Good luck.

Buckeye 2015 posted:

41/3 K to Walk ratio?   That's an amazing number.  Would your son be interested in being a pitching coach?   

Several years ago I was at a Tufts-Trinity (CT) game. It was the year Trinity beat Hopkins for the pionship. I was watching with the Trinity parents. One was a friend. 

When Tim Kiely walked a hitter his father said, "It couldn't go on forever." I asked my friend what he meant. It was his first non intentional walk that season in 97 innings. Kiely made it to AAA. Even though he played D3 he was the second pitcher drafted that year promoted past short season A ball.

Do not be scared off by a college's sticker price. I know a kid who played at Tufts. His father didn't think he was going to be able to afford it. The average financial aid package is $42,000.

what size? LHP or RHP? how much velocity has he gained in the last year? is he young or old for his class?

If he is mid 80s now he could be anywhere from mid 80s to low 90s by next year. Seems like he can throw it where he wants.  if he has good secondary pitches and upper 80s velocity he might very well be a DI possibility.  Maybe not the highest level DI but maybe a step or two below.  BTW, many pitchers continue to develop in college. Is he Ivy League academic type? I would get someone knowledgeable that you trust to get a good look at him.  They should be able to give you a good idea regarding his future potential.  All low to mid 80s pitchers are not the same. Just like all 90 mph guys aren't the same. Body type (not just size), arm action and ability to control the ball are very big separators. 

PGStaff posted:

what size? LHP or RHP? how much velocity has he gained in the last year? is he young or old for his class?

If he is mid 80s now he could be anywhere from mid 80s to low 90s by next year. Seems like he can throw it where he wants.  if he has good secondary pitches and upper 80s velocity he might very well be a DI possibility.  Maybe not the highest level DI but maybe a step or two below.  BTW, many pitchers continue to develop in college. Is he Ivy League academic type? I would get someone knowledgeable that you trust to get a good look at him.  They should be able to give you a good idea regarding his future potential.  All low to mid 80s pitchers are not the same. Just like all 90 mph guys aren't the same. Body type (not just size), arm action and ability to control the ball are very big separators. 

 He is RHP 6'3" 185 and hasn't stopped growing yet. But I assume he will soon.  He is a January birthday so I assume that is right in the middle of his class.  

He is very serious academically but wants to stay in the south east for college.  

There are a couple of pitching coaches I have heard of that I will try to connect with to see if they can give an opinion of where he stands.    Thanks for the feedback -

Go to Headfirst in Long Island. Its a must  for pitchers and if you live in the SE , I would strongly recommend him looking at the East Cobb Patriots. They have kids from literally all over the world on the team. Japan, Singapore represented over the last three years. Its an academic very competitive team. My son played three years on the team and had over twenty D3 academics hot on his heels regularly. PM if you want more specifics. High academic D3s in the South are limited to only a handful of schools, but the coaches follow this program closely because it s a team of bright kids.

In the three years on the team, there were multiple Emory ,Rhodes, Tufts,Johns Hopkins, Sewanee, Berry, signees as well as Georgetown,Northwestern, Swarthmore, Grinnell and Duke kids.

Like Tufts, Emory University  in Atlanta is a high academic that gets good grades in financial aid and they are in your preferred geographical area. When my son was looking for different schools, he went to the NCSA website and they have a tool on their site where you can search by geography, type of school(public/private) , division, even how competitive the school is in baseball and academics, etc and it will list them.  You have to setup a free account to have access.

DadInTheBox,

 I love the screen name, and I'm familiar with that "DadInTheBox feeling" when you have multiple kids in college at the same time.  This is the last year I will have two kids in college at the same time, and it is a huge relief.  I'm not sure what your financial situation is, however finances have always been a major part of our decision.  My kids know they will have skin in the game to pay off some loans at graduation.  My oldest went to a private University and had his loans paid off in 6 months while living at home.  Then he moved out.  My middle son will be doing the same thing after he graduates in May from a public University.  He's already made plans to move in with a friend in Nov/Dec after his loans are paid.

 So, I take a much different viewpoint about college academics and college baseball than I did initially when my oldest son was being recruited by D1 and D3 schools.  College baseball is fleeting for all kinds of reasons; no matter the level.  You spend anytime on this site and realize most people are unhappy with the day to day struggles in D1, D3s, JUCO than happy.  Yet, those that graduate after 4 years of college baseball will tell you it was worth it. The baseball level doesn't matter….it is the same message.   With that said, I'd spend 100% of my time focused on the schools that want me for both academics and baseball that you can afford rather than looking at a universe of a 1000 schools.  College Navigator (https://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/) search engine can help you qualify the financial and academic requirements.  As others have mentioned, I'd get a third party evaluator about your son's upside for potential college baseball.   Go to the showcases that are looking for recruits like your son.   So, my point is to focus on those schools that your son wants to attend and you think you can afford.  Typically academic scholarships are award to the top 25% of an incoming class.  Use that information as a stake in the ground when looking at schools to evaluate academic, financial and athletic fit in that order if you determine that is order right for you.  Just my two cents….

Good luck!

This is a great thread full of fantastic advice. My 2018 is also looking at academic D3's and I found this thread golden with lots of note taking opportunities.

Thanks for all the great feedback.  It really helped the sit down discussion son, wife and I had the other night.  We now have a plan to get started on.

The other thing to consider is what are your sons goals in college? Is he more academic oriented or is playing baseball a priority? His major in college will have a lot to do with what college coaches will support while playing baseball. As in my sons case I always knew that as my son was applying to high academic schools that at some point he'd  might have to make a choice between accepting admissions from a high academic college in lieu of playing baseball. The best scenario is that he gets accepted into his academic choice and play baseball, but if not I would carefully consider turning down admissions to a strong academic college just to play baseball. I know this has been said many times here. Go to the school where he would be happiest, with or without baseball. Good luck!  

standballdad posted:

The other thing to consider is what are your sons goals in college? Is he more academic oriented or is playing baseball a priority? His major in college will have a lot to do with what college coaches will support while playing baseball. As in my sons case I always knew that as my son was applying to high academic schools that at some point he'd  might have to make a choice between accepting admissions from a high academic college in lieu of playing baseball. The best scenario is that he gets accepted into his academic choice and play baseball, but if not I would carefully consider turning down admissions to a strong academic college just to play baseball. I know this has been said many times here. Go to the school where he would be happiest, with or without baseball. Good luck!  

His is currently saying he wants to major in Business and then go on to law school.  He is currently #2 in his class and has a 33 on the ACT.  So he is very focused academically.  He is pretty realistic about his goals.  He knows baseball is fun but it is not his overall future.  He wants to explore the chance to play so see if his goals and those chances line up. 

Sounds like a bright kid. My son also scored a 33 on the ACT and had a very strong GPA (sure your kid does too). That test score will provide many opportunities for your son. Hope he finds the perfect fit of academics and baseball. 

I don't think anyone has mentioned The College Board's Net Price Calculator yet. You may be pleasantly surprised by some schools. Well worth the time it takes to complete the online forms.

https://professionals.collegeb...articipating-schools

I second the above about going to Head First and Stanford. As a pitcher he may benefit from some other academic showcases as velo will always get you noticed  especially by academic d3's. Strongly consider the academic and senior fall classic in phoenix next fall. let his target schools know.  

As he (or any player/parent with potential college athletes) narrows his/her schools down look into majors offered and if there will be any conflicts with baseball and classes. Some D1's make a STEM nearly impossible while playing as a couple of friends can testify to. Also inquire as to whether or not the schools allows playyers to miss class without penalty. I personally know a professor at a top academic D3 near me that grades an athlete/band member etc  down if they miss a test or assignment for their sport/game or other school sponsored extra cirruclular activity. and her son was a decent HS ball player!; whereas my my older son's academic D3 has practices after class/labs and the professors sign off on schedules inorder to approve the athletic time, and a player is not punished by the coaches if he needs to miss a game for academic purpose such as seminar or such that they are required to attend. 

Finally if  finances may play into it, think long and hard about locking yourself into a school before you know what the overall cost will be. You do not want to commit to a school or go Early Decision only to find out you may not be getting enough financial assistance.  This happened to a friend of mine. Accepted into a top 10 LAC in California but paying full price. They can afford it but it is a stretch.