PBR and Area Code Games

I would say it is 99% a money grab.  The Area Code Games is really upper echelon.  MLB Scouts don’t miss completely (as in having no idea they exist!) on 99.9% of top prospects.

There are far better ways to get on the radar for the Area Code Games.  First and foremost is to be really phenomenal.  Do you run a 6.6 60?  Throw 95+?  Hit Bombs off of pitchers that throw 90+?  Do you have the Top Travel Teams competing with each other to have you on their team?  Are you getting invites to Perfect Game National?

I know players from our area who check all those boxes, and are P5 commits, ranked in the Top 10 by PBR in our state, who STILL did not get an Area Codes invite.

So yeah.  Huge money grab.

It looks like what AC/PBR are offering is a multi-step process where you first have to go to the AC ID Series (for $299-499 a pop) and THEN you possibly "earn" an invitation to an AC try out which I assume also costs money (but that's not clear). But then if you read the fine print, it says this is an: "additional layer to Area Code Games prospect visibility" which means that Area Code maintains its integrity by not requiring you to go the PBR route or any other route--if a scout wants to see you at the AC games, they will make that desire clear and you will get invited to a try-out with or without this PBR route. IMHO it looks like there is definitely an element of a PBR money grab that is using the draw of the Area Code games to get more kids in their system. Especially since the first set of try-outs or evaluations or whatever you want to call them happen in the dead of winter (Dec - Feb) where some pitchers may be shut down and other players are feasibly playing other sports or enjoy a couple of weeks away from baseball. Not necessarily the best or healthiest time to showcase.  It doesn't mean that it might not be a great opportunity for some talented players but something about it makes me a little sad. There was something really nice about ECP and ACG being completely separate from the big showcase/travel ball scene. 

LOL...or what @3and2Fastball said without mincing words.

PT;

when I sold the AC games, I placed the "protection" clause that no fee for the tryouts and AC games. This was my promise to the scouts, since 1987 our 1st year at Zupo Field in Lodi, CA

Bob

Bob, I knew in my bones that had to be the case! That small print is your legacy. Thank you so much for what you have done to protect youth baseball.

I’m not even going to attempt to sugarcoat this. Area Code tryouts are by invitation only. Players that receive that invitation are established players that are already well known and don’t need to be “identified” by PBR -  or anyone else for that matter. Very good players get left off the Area Code teams every year. IMO this “partnership” is just a money grab by PBR.

My 2023 son got invited to the AC tryout this year for the Underclass games. It was a great experience for him even though he didn't make it. Great exposure to the talent that is out there and what he needs to do to continue to compete against the best.  When I saw the announcement about the PBR process now, it kind of felt like the mystique and uniqueness behind getting the invite lost some of it's luster. Interesting though, they don't have a tryout listed for the state of Texas. Hoping like others have said above, that there is still the old route of getting an invite without having to go through this preliminary round.

A lot of people have good experiences with PBR. I'm indifferent.

I will say that they really dominated the potential college prospect social media market and as a result I think they get a little more credibility than they deserve. Pairing with an organization like AC helps add to that, but anybody in the know understands that a lot of what they do are money grabs. This included

Does this mean that the local PBR scouts are picking area code teams? 

@KennieProton posted:

Does this mean that the local PBR scouts are picking area code teams?

No. It means that PBR has figured out a way to profit off of the Area Code games by holding preliminary “tryouts” before the actual AC tryouts. A substantial portion of AC are selected by reputation before the tryouts actually take place. The PBR events may identify an occasional outlier that isn’t well known but he would still have to perform well at AC tryouts to make the team. PBR deal is straight up money grab designed to attract hopefuls.

I hope you are right.  Some of our state's  Futures Games picks have been real head scratchers over the years,  and as you know that's a huge opportunity for prospect s and can make or break their recruiting path.  The idea of our local PBR Staff picking area code teams too would make me sad.

I know the local boys by me who went were bonafide studs. They were known commodities so there was no need for a pre-lim tryout. I think it is a money grab.

Same as futures.  Related showcases are a money grab.  They take who they take.

@KennieProton, I agree but I think the marketing is very deceptive and it bothers me for all those parents/kids who are going to misinterpret it.

Has anyone's son received an Area Code invite yet?  (AC posted on Twitter a couple of days ago that invites were being sent out.)  If you did receive an invite, had your son attended a PBR Area Code ID Series?

Our region is one of the first Area Code tryouts, but PBR did not host an ID Series in the area.  I have yet to hear of anyone receiving a tryout invitation.

@IKETBD posted:

Has anyone's son received an Area Code invite yet?  (AC posted on Twitter a couple of days ago that invites were being sent out.)  If you did receive an invite, had your son attended a PBR Area Code ID Series?

Our region is one of the first Area Code tryouts, but PBR did not host an ID Series in the area.  I have yet to hear of anyone receiving a tryout invitation.

I believe your son is a 2024 - which means he would qualify for Underclass Area Code Games. However, the underclass rosters for this year would typically be heavy on 2022s with a few of the best 2023s included. I know it varies by region but I think you are a bit premature. I would be very surprised to see many 2024s get an invite. It used to be a requirement of an invitation that the player had to be recommended by a local MLB scout and invitations were pretty exclusive. That may have relaxed somewhat with involvement of PBR.

My son went the ID Series basically just for fun, something to do, a chance to see some of his buddies from other teams, and, of course, to add to his t-shirt collection. He didn't embarrass himself, posted his usual good numbers, etc.

That being said, one of the AC coaches/scouts told the players straight up before the workout even started "We already have our roster set and there's probably nothing anyone of you could possibly do today that is going to change anything."

My guess is that this is the case at most of these. I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for any invites, etc.

For me, we were fine. My son got exactly what he wanted out of it.

Me? Maybe a bit pricey for a work out, some verified metrics, a nice short video, a t-shirt and a chance for my son to chew the fat with some of his other buddy baseball players from the state.  But, I've wasted money on stupider things. It was a day out with the kid. Just another shared experience that we will remember (hopefully?) when we are much older.

I may be off by a year and U/C rosters would be heavy on 2023s

And I will also echo what Francis said about rosters being formed beforehand. Rosters are predetermined based on a players reputation and past performance. It literally takes an act of God for whatever happens at the tryout to mean anything.

where does a kid make his reputation, though?  around here, it seems like its through PBR and NCTB (the local tournament association who has formed a showcase org with teams made of hand picked players from the area. if you're a stud who doesn't play in those events (my son doesn't but i dont think he's that level anyway...it's a hypothetical question), how do you get an invite?

@mattys posted:

where does a kid make his reputation, though?  around here, it seems like its through PBR and NCTB (the local tournament association who has formed a showcase org with teams made of hand picked players from the area. if you're a stud who doesn't play in those events (my son doesn't but i dont think he's that level anyway...it's a hypothetical question), how do you get an invite?

IMO a player makes his reputation by in game performance - both in HS games and in travel ball tournaments. Players that excel in game situations are talked about in coaching and scouting circles on a regular basis. What a player does in game situations means much more than whatever measurables were posted at a showcase.

@IKETBD posted:

Has anyone's son received an Area Code invite yet?  (AC posted on Twitter a couple of days ago that invites were being sent out.)  If you did receive an invite, had your son attended a PBR Area Code ID Series?

Our region is one of the first Area Code tryouts, but PBR did not host an ID Series in the area.  I have yet to hear of anyone receiving a tryout invitation.

My son (2023) received an invite email about 2 weeks ago. His good buddy and summer teammate received one around the same time. I don't think they have the PBR ID series in our area. Both were invited last year also, and his buddy actually made the underclass last year.

Area Codes and PBR Future Games are legit opportunities that open a ton of doors.  

Invite received and followed upon when we had not responded in a week (we were waiting to make sure that he'd be healthy by then).

And yes we know that the rosters are pretty much set before we go.  He killed it last year at the UC tryout (top 10 60 time for OF, top 10 velo from OF, and a great round of BP........unfortunately none went over the fence), and didn't even get invited to play in the evening game.  It is what it is, but this year w/ recruiting being just opened up a couple of weeks earlier, I would expect that there will be a few people of interest in the stands.  Plus he gets to hang out w/ a lot of talent, have fun with some of his buddies, and get a cool T-shirt that most kids don't get a chance to earn. 

@adbono posted:

IMO a player makes his reputation by in game performance - both in HS games and in travel ball tournaments. Players that excel in game situations are talked about in coaching and scouting circles on a regular basis. What a player does in game situations means much more than whatever measurables were posted at a showcase.

This is true, to a degree.  But it’s difficult for position players to get scouted at games and travel ball tournaments, without already being on the radar.   That comes through a push from a travel program’s director and also putting up great measureables..  

@3and2Fastball posted:

This is true, to a degree.  But it’s difficult for position players to get scouted at games and travel ball tournaments, without already being on the radar.   That comes through a push from a travel program’s director and also putting up great measureables..  

Position players get on the radar (of scouts and coaches) by doing something in games that catches the eye of a baseball guy. Then the talk begins and other people that hear the talk show up to watch. Position players do not get on any radar by posting measurables at a showcase. Pitchers can get on the radar by posting a good FB velo. But it doesn’t work that way for position players.

@adbono posted:

Position players get on the radar (of scouts and coaches) by doing something in games that catches the eye of a baseball guy. Then the talk begins and other people that hear the talk show up to watch. Position players do not get on any radar by posting measurables at a showcase. Pitchers can get on the radar by posting a good FB velo. But it doesn’t work that way for position players.

It simply doesn’t work that way for a vast majority of position players, certainly not in the Midwest, and most definitely not for the players that end up at D3’s and D2’s in the Midwest.

You could play a thousand travel ball and high school games and never have a college scout or “Baseball guy” pay the slightest bit of attention to you.  There are too many games, too many travel teams, too many tournaments.  And too many athletic players that all fit that criteria of doing things in games that would normally “stand out”.

I get that you coming from a perspective of a college coach and scout.  I’m coming from the perspective of a former high school and travel coach that has watched the recruitment and development of a 100+ players from our area.  None of those kids, literally zero, got recruited or drafted based on doing something in games and then the talk started.

Your experience is different than mine. What I’m describing are how D1,D2 & JuCo position players get noticed (and subsequently recruited) in my part of the country (TX, OK, KS, AK, LA). I would argue that it’s similar across the country for players at that level. It usually involves a personal recommendation, video, and watching in game performance. D3 is another animal and D3s may place more emphasis on showcase results since they typically don’t have a big budget for recruiting. I don’t interact with D3 coaches near as much as I do coaches at other levels. But I can assure that when D1, D2, & JuCo coaches talk to me about a position player there is hardly ever a mention of showcase performance or measurables. It’s all about what they can do to help win a game.

@adbono posted:

Your experience is different than mine. What I’m describing are how D1,D2 & JuCo position players get noticed (and subsequently recruited) in my part of the country (TX, OK, KS, AK, LA). I would argue that it’s similar across the country for players at that level. It usually involves a personal recommendation, video, and watching in game performance. D3 is another animal and D3s may place more emphasis on showcase results since they typically don’t have a big budget for recruiting. I don’t interact with D3 coaches near as much as I do coaches at other levels. But I can assure that when D1, D2, & JuCo coaches talk to me about a position player there is hardly ever a mention of showcase performance or measurables. It’s all about what they can do to help win a game.

Gotcha.  Around here, the Kids that go D1 or D2 get a recommendation from a travel ball director to a school.  Inevitably there is an expectation from the schools that the Kid hits certain 60 time and throwing velocities.  Nobody really cares about Exit Velo.

Then, after a kid gets that push, they get looked at in games.  

I work the press box for our HS.  Recently had an umpire asking about a freshman that started for our varsity team.   Baseball is a small world and people talk.   Word travels about players who stand out.

We knew all the top kids from invitation showcases.  We saw the same kids at the showcases, USA tryouts and at the Area Code tryouts.  The same kids who have the top velo, top exit velo, top 60 times at the invites are the guys you see everywhere.  By sophomore/junior year the circle gets smaller and smaller and most of the guys have either played on a showcase team together or know of each other.

Thanks all.  I understand these rosters are seemingly pre-determined.  Our area didn't even have a tryout last year (due to Covid), but they definitely sent teams to the games with kids from the area.

Travel coach says the kid should get an invite, and we have now seen posts from other regions of guys getting invited.  I guess he'll just have to keep checking email and spam folders daily to wait and see if the coveted invite shows up.

And those t-shirts are definitely a high commodity.  There's a story of a kid rooming with some guys at a PG event.  Gets home and his Area Code t-shirt is "missing".  6 months later he sees his buddy from across the country wearing it in a SnapChat picture.

@IKETBD posted:

Thanks all.  I understand these rosters are seemingly pre-determined.  Our area didn't even have a tryout last year (due to Covid), but they definitely sent teams to the games with kids from the area.

Travel coach says the kid should get an invite, and we have now seen posts from other regions of guys getting invited.  I guess he'll just have to keep checking email and spam folders daily to wait and see if the coveted invite shows up.

And those t-shirts are definitely a high commodity.  There's a story of a kid rooming with some guys at a PG event.  Gets home and his Area Code t-shirt is "missing".  6 months later he sees his buddy from across the country wearing it in a SnapChat picture.

That is funny because my son's AC shirt from last year's try out is also missing. We also think one of his teammates picked it up after pre game BP when they were changing into their uniforms.

@ARCEKU21 posted:

That is funny because my son's AC shirt from last year's try out is also missing. We also think one of his teammates picked it up after pre game BP when they were changing into their uniforms.

To add to the shirt theory : my middle son (who never got an AC tryout invitation) has taken my youngest son’s AC t shirt and run off with it.

@adbono posted:

To add to the shirt theory : my middle son (who never got an AC tryout invitation) has taken my youngest son’s AC t shirt and run off with it.

How does the shirt look? Anyone have a photo of it?

Here you go.

@adbono posted:

To add to the shirt theory : my middle son (who never got an AC tryout invitation) has taken my youngest son’s AC t shirt and run off with it.

Oldest has done the same here............but youngest wears all his college gear that he traded summer teammates for during summer ball. 

I'm sorry but...Teddy Cashman the son of Brian Cashman makes the Yankees Area Code team?

He's an old (reclassified) 2022 whose primary position is 2B, runs a 7.2, throws 72 and his top exit velo is 83.

Com'on Area Code...SMH