Multi-Sport HS Athlete Question

BOF, welcome to the HSBBW.
What does your son want to do?

I feel HS sport's is more then just playing the game.
It's memories you carry thru out your life.
At some point if a player want's to continue sport's after HS.
You must specialize, and or Train for your main sport.
The one that will allow you to continue to play in college.
Between sophmore, junior, and senior year, you will want to be in baseball shape even in the fall and winter, to take advantage of some of the Showcase tournament's during that time periods.
Good Luck.
EH

I've already been through this with the oldest and the youngest is a freshman. The oldest lettered in three sports. She made softball the focal point of the extra work. She now plays D1 softball.

The youngest was going to drop football and only play basketball and baseball. He found it hard to get banged up in football, then play baseball all weekend, then play football without resting his body. He was going to spend spare time working on his basketball shot. He got bored after coming home two days from school and went out for s****r (played travel before switching to football).

Here's the advice I gave my daughter and now him. If baseball/softball is your priority make sure you're getting in the work to make it a priority. If you're not going to make varsity in the other sports by junior year, drop them to spend more time on baseball/softball.

We had a stud athlete in our high school who graduated in 05. He was all-conference in football as a soph. He then quit football to play on a showcase travel baseball team the fall of his junior year. He was selected in the 7th round. He continued to play basketball through high school.

BOF,

I think that football is the real tough choice. If you play football - you will most likely be injured at some point.

The other sports are not that much of a concern IMO. Sure - you can get hurt playing anything.

But I think football is the toughest choice in high school - if you are also a baseball player with potential.

I think its tough to play 2 sports a season.
But if he wants to play different sport each season he should do it. He is a kid and should be involved in lots of high school activities. As EH says HS memories last a life time
My son played HS s****r in the fall,rollerhockey and indoor s****r in the winter. In the fall of his Jr yr he was invited to play on a scout team and had to make a choice between s****r and the fall team

BOF you have a PM!

There was a kid on my son's team who played HS football and baseball, and was offered D1 scholarships in both. He was the first pick of the 4th round in the 2006 MLB draft (Royals) and is doing very well in the minors. Another kid in our district played basketball and baseball, and was offered a D1 baseball scholarship, but went instead to the Phillies in the draft. So if you've got the skills and the desire, I say go for it!

I’ve always been a big believer in playing as many sports as possible. However, “its” mentioned something that has been alarming this year. It’s amazing how many potential early round baseball prospects have been injured playing football this fall. Shoulder injuries, leg injuries, broken collar bones, etc.

2bmom,

The player you referred to might have gone even earlier in the draft had he not had a football “toe” injury he dealt with his senior year. Being arguably the fastest runner in the entire country that year, the toe injury didn’t really help. Still, he truly was a potential All American football player so how could anyone keep him off the football field?

I have to agree with “its”… Getting through an entire football season without injury requires some good luck! Still, if a kid wants to play… He should play! IMO

My son decided to drop Football this year *junior year*. One of his reasons was wanting to be able to go hunting with his Dad. They're going elk hunting next weekend, then getting ready for pheasant season. He also enjoys fishing, and snowboarding.

One problem with doing organized sports all year long is that it makes it difficult to do any other activities. Because my son didn't play football this fall, we were able to take a family vacation after the summer legion baseball season. He is on a select baseball team this fall, and participates in the schools' fall baseball program. Both of these offer him a little flexibility.

He'll spend time during the fall and winter conditioning, working with his pitching coach, and hitting, but, there is more to life than organized team sports!

quote:

The player you referred to might have gone even earlier in the draft had he not had a football “toe” injury he dealt with his senior year.

PGStaff - You're absolutely right. What fun he was to watch. If he got on first, blink your eyes and he's on third. A rare, amazing athlete who is also a very hard worker and a fine young man. And the other one I mentioned also played football - maybe basketball, too - not sure.

See my bi-line.... ...the first one,
plus I have pm'd you.

And WELCOME aboard to the HSBBW!!!!!

I very much feel that kids should play two sports if possible. The problems with football are as follows:
1. In the South high school football is a big event (5000+ fans @ each game) and kids want to be part of that atmosphere
2. Injuries do take place and you just pray that they are not serious.
3. Even playing two sports the schedules overlap. High school baseball practice starts the first of January with the official games starting in March and the state tournament being the 1st part of June. Travel baseball begins the day after the high school season and goes until the first part of August. The day after travel baseball ends kids must report to football practice and the season is not complete until the middle of November.
4. This means no Fall baseball or showcases and often the players bodies are beatup from football and they spend November and December rehabing the injuries so that they are ready for January baseball practice. Due to their bodies needing a break they have little if any time to attend the Fall or Winter camps to be seen. It's nothing more than a cycle that is hard to break.

I agree with theEH here. The focus should be on what your son wants to do. My son played Little League baseball from the time he was 5. He played League basketball from the time he was 7 [second grade]. He loved both games. He went to a small combined elementary/middle school [K through 8] that provided only basketball as a school sport. He and the rest of the boys in his 8th grade class were recruited by the head football coach. After a long discussion, we decided to let him "try" all three. At the end of his freshman year, we discussed again. He announced he wanted to play baseball in college but he wanted to continue playing basektball and baseball for his high school. We made him fully aware that he could be injured severely enough [especially by football] that his dreams of playing baseball might be shattered. Knowing the risk, he chose to continue playing all three.

To make a long story short, his Senior year he and 8 classmates jointly captained the first Football team from their High School to ever go to the State Playoffs. That same year he and 6 classmates [4 of them also played football] became the first basketball team in the history of the school to ever make the State Regional Basketball playoffs.

The point I am trying to make is that he has those sports memories and friendships outside of baseball that will probably last a lifetime. Yes, he got injured [wrenched his right shoulder] his senior year and played hurt. The injury sat him back for both basketball and baseball his Senior year but he is fine now [freshman in college] and enjoying concentrating on nothing but baseball this fall.

We left the decision up to him and I believe he made the correct one for him.

TW344

Im in the play all the sports until circumstance prove otherwise....

In my sons case, he played baseball, basketball and s****r his Freshman and Sophomore seasons in HS......In the summer before his Junior season, his HS basketball coach said if he needed to dedicate himself to the summer league....but that interfered with summer ball.......He had already decided to not play s****r as the fall season keot him from playing fall ball and the winter indoor season cut into his gym time and he could not play the spring club season due to baseball........Whether it was right or not, the HS coaches from the indiviual sports put a lot of pressure on HS athletes to only play one sport nowadays.....

Baseball was and is my sons first love.....he made the decisions to focus on baseball only..........

Thanks to all for the advice both public and via PM's. Ultimately it will be his decision, but it helps getting perspective from others who have experience.

For now it is working, he is happy and doing well in BskBall while still keeping up his Baseball workouts and Fall Ball games. Most importantly he is keeping his grades up. As has been mentioned in some posts I think the conflict will come later when the BskBall coach will want him to play on a summer team, tournaments, etc and he will have to make the choice of prioritizing Baseball summer teams, combines, showcases, etc, etc.