Playing BB in college without playing in HS

Who is Larry Bowa?

 

Larry Bowa didn't play in HS. 

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_Bowa

This topic comes up from time to time...

 

It's not necessary to play for one's high school team to play pro ball or in college.  Though a kid who does so may miss out on a wonderful experience with their buddies.

 

My 2012 played in high school, then did an extra/gap year due to his very young age.  He played in a Spring league that had a number of kids drafted and a number of others going off to play in college, none of whom were playing high school ball as they were in this alternate league.

 

Does a kid have to play at all in high school or in a gap year?  No, not as long as they have the tools to play at the next level, get exposure, etc.  But I would imagine that path would be very difficult and raise some questions as to why the kid wasn't playing in high school.

Lorenzo Cain started playing baseball as a sophomore in high school.  Not exactly what you're looking for, but darned amazing story.   Was drafted out of JC a few years later in the 17th round.  

 

http://jimrome.com/2015/05/13/...n-the-jim-rome-show/

Almost.   Daniel Nava did make his HS baseball team as a junior, but just barely.  And every step the rest of the way to MLB was a struggle.  If you don't know his story this is well worth a read.  Heck, even if you do it's worth it.

 

https://www.bostonglobe.com/ma...Y0OPsBs4O/story.html

 

I haven't seen it, but then again I don't live in Florida, Georgia, Texas or California. I could imagine a kid who has the talent to play DIII/NAIA baseball not making his 6A high school team that happens to be loaded with DI (and MLB) prospects. One thing I would know for sure about the player who continues to play all through his HS years without making his HS team... the kid loves baseball.

 

Mark Buerhle was cut from his HS team freshman and sophomore years of HS.

My son plays in TX.  Even here I have yet to see it happen where a kid who has the skills to play in college can't make his HS team.  Not saying it has never or won't ever occur but I think it would be extremely rare.  In fact in our metro area of almost 2 million people the top 2 or 3 summer teams get watered down really quick to the many many HS teams in the area.  

Larry Bowa, Daniel Nava and Mark Buerhle would be three out of how many million? The odds of not playing high school and playing college or pro  very small. I don't know Buerle's story. But I'll guess it was the same as Bowa and Nava given he was cut from high school twice. They were extremely late physical bloomers. 

I really appreciate all of the points made. I know my son loves to play baseball, he is undersized for his grade and he does not throw 78 mph(that was one of the primary reasons for the high school coach cutting him in the fall). I also understand that my son does not tryout well (nerves maybe?) but he is extremely smart and when the summer coach called for a hit and run, he was able to execute.

 

Again Thank You for all of the comments I always try to temper what I say to my son so that he knows he has to work harder but that I am very proud of who he is becoming regardless of what happens in one part of his life.

Happens in GA all the time.  Family makes a choice of letting the kid sit on the bench while the 8 D1 commits and 4 draft likely players have fun on the field, OR, the player can choose to do a showcase/travel team during that time.

 

For the kid who is just tiny and didn't make his HS team here is the story of a local guy that I heard about it and looked it up to double check:

-2009 Graduated from local high school with a very decent team, he did not make the HS team, he was 5'9 and 170#'s.

-2010 he attended a DIII school, and was a relief pitcher for over 20 games

2011 he attended a D1 school, pitched 10 games

2012 he attended a different D1 school where he pitched 11 games and then received a medical red shirt

2013 and 2014 he played for that same D1 school, graduated at 6'1 and 200#'s

Drafted in the 26th round but didn't sign due to injury, now he coaches and does lessons locally.

 

So, yes, it can happen, but I imagine this guy worked his tail off to get these chances.

Have 1 kid that I know of here in our area who is not playing HS ball.  Not going to go into the reasons why here on a public forum, but it has nothing to do with his skillset.   He does play for one of the higher level travel teams in the area.  He just committed to a D3 school in the area.  

 

It can be done but the kid still needs to have the toolset to play at the next level.

I would say it's really rare if you just speak of guys that couldn't make their high school team.

 

I think it will become more common over time with guys who choose not to play for their high schools.  Not that I think it's a good thing, I just think it is going to be more common.

 

My son's summer team had a few kids that were "home schooled" for baseball reasons, not academic ones.  There is a kid in my son's school that touched 90 in tryouts, then decided not to play for the team.  (Well - he's not playing for any team because his father is nuts, but that's a whole other topic.)

 

Upon hearing my son wasn't planning to play this spring, a local NAIA coach reached out to me to see why.  I told him everything that was going on, and that my son really wanted to focus on other things this year.  He told me that he wasn't really concerned about the spring, but if my son wanted to play in college to focus on staying in shape and play for a good team in the summer.

 

Of course this is a coach that is familiar with my son, and it is a small NAIA program - I don't know if I would have gotten the same message from a bigger school.

Sons age/yr?

just because he was cut once doesn't mean HS is out for good. If hes young  always chance to try again.

use the time to find hitting/pitching coaches in area if u can afford it. 

Playing on Summer team will help.

Hows his speed? Work on that too. The goal is to be good at something the team needs. 

Did he ask if he could help be student manager and show work ethic there? One cut does not have to be end of "career" if he's willing to work hard.

size a factor but even smaller guys can make it w talent. Apparently Harrera who hit 100 last night is listed as 5'10".

good luck

I keep wondering when High School baseball will go the way of soccer.  All the pieces are in place to make it happen, but it really  hasn't happened yet. 

 

The two best recent male soccer players from our HS -- one a d1 commit, another current starting at a D2 -- played not a lick of HS soccer.  The both played or play with elite academy teams and just skipped HS soccer altogether.

 

With all the elite travel ball teams/show case events etc in place, you could easily see this swamping HS baseball.  But it hasn't.  Perhaps  the main difference is that in soccer MLS perceives itself in having an interest in developing soccer talent and so it has kind of stepped in.   Can't see MLB baseball doing that here in this country.   But still even without a push from MLB,  seems like it wouldn't take much of a push to turn the page and make HS baseball a secondary route to college and/or the draft. 

 

Plus you know there is probably serious money to be made if that happens....

 

It can happen. It happened to my son. Instead of staying to go to local public high school, he attends a Catholic School on LI. Over 60 boys try out each year from freshmen to seniors. Highly competitive program. Made freshmen team, cut from JV, cut from Varsity as junior. He would be number one or two pitcher now as a senior at local high school. Instead he will have to battle out to make team at Catholic School as a senior.

 

The long and short of it, he has committed to a terrific DIII school in PA as a pitcher only. Played very competitive travel baseball past three summers, great exposure, and travel team reputation helped him and attended targeted school camps and struck lightning. Never once in all conversations with college coaches has high school ball ever come up. Other than the experience of high school teammates competing against rival schools, it never held him back from the opportunity to play at the next leve.

thanks that is something that he will need to consider.

Cut from his HS team every year.

Played Legion ball.

Walked on at UMass as a Soph.

Drafted to Orioles.

It happens.

 

http://www.masslive.com/umass/...ennis_torres_ov.html

 

He just turned 15 in late July but is a sophomore and taking AP courses, he is a fast runner and on his summer team he was always chosen to run for the pitcher or catcher. He is varsity on the cross country team as sophomore and will run track in the spring

High school season won't start until next March, right? How can the kid be cut before tryout? If there are specific issues with one or two of his 5 tools, it may not be too late to start training in the Winter and strengthen those tools. Who knows, he may make a big improvement and make the team in the spring.

 

My son is also young for his grade. He just turned 15 two weeks ago, but is already a soph. A lot of freshmen are older than him. Kids at this age go through a lot of growth and a few months can really make a difference.

You will not believe this, the school opened this year with freshmen and sophomores,

so the total enrollment is something like 850 kids. We scheduled him in the fall baseball class.....he was cut from the class....after 4 days....the hitting portion of the "try out" consisted of hitting off of a tee.

Okay since no one else harped on this I will....did he do anything else on his summer team other than run fast?  Was he a valued member of the team that played more than 75% of the time, was he in the line up every game? 

 

I have seen coaches that specifically allow a kid on their team because he's still small and can run very fast...but that is all they really use that kid for.  Maybe the occasional token play here or there, maybe lets him bat during the last rotation...etc., but that isn't going to improve a kids baseball skills.

 

If your kid wants to play baseball in High School he should be on the highest level team he can where he still gets significant playing time so he can learn ...SIGNIFICANT being the operative word.  Being fast is a skill, but a kid needs more than that to make most high school teams. Please make sure his Summer coach is using him appropriately.

jawaters1, welcome to the site.  Your son doesn't have to play HS ball but does have to play enough somewhere to allow his skills to develop properly.  Making a college squad is generally much tougher than players coming out of HS (and their parents) think.  It takes lots of work in all phases - skills, conditioning, academics, experience, etc.  If he is with a good summer program and making progress equal to or greater than those playing HS ball (and in most cases, and summer ball), than it won't be a factor.  It comes down to skills and ability to perform at that level along with the right recruiting plan that matches the player's school interests and skill level.

 

If he makes enough progress over the summer, he should be able to come out and try to make the HS program again.

Thank you those are excellent comments and questions.

He was in the line up every game and working his way up the batting order and in fact he was the youngest member to the team to see playing time until he broke his hand. (HBP).....got a single off of it. The coach of the summer team commented that when he was out that he needed to get him back in the lineup asap. While my son is not going to hit home runs he is what I call a "glue" player.....he sticks everything else around him and together it is better.

This is a very interesting thread. Good question. There are probably different ways to look at it. Here in Florida there are probably many large 8A schools that cut lots of great players who play travel ball competitively. I doubt those players are left behind in any way if they are with a reputable club. My son and many of his teammates, who are all currently doing fall season with their high school, would love to just do travel ball during spring because their high school allows dads to assist and the dads are influencing the whole thing into daddyball, like flashbacks of little league, ugh. The boys are ready for a change. It's good to know that's a viable option. So much talk about switching schools just to get a fair shake. It's probably not necessary.

Has your son, not you, not your wife, not his sibling, not a friend, but your son, gone to the HS coach and asked him what he needs to work on to make the team next year.  Not "why did I get cut" but "what can I work on to make the team next year".  IMO there is actually a difference in these questions.  Yes they may give you some of the same answers but asking "what do I need to do" shows that your willing to put the work in while asking "why did I get cut" says to me "I think I have the skills but you don't".  

Also, you may want to have your son check with the coach about open gyms and other off season workouts.  In my kids school open gyms and offseason meetings and workouts are open to everyone.  There are many kids there who were cut previous years who are trying to make this years team.

This is an interesting thread for a couple of reasons.  There  are few tidbits in here that are hard to overlook.

 

Your son is running cross country and track.  CC is a fall sport and track is a spring sport that conflicts with baseball.  If, as you mention he will run track in the spring, is he choosing to do so over playing HS baseball with the thought that he can run track in lieu of baseball and try and play baseball in college?  If he is good enough to play ball and is choosing track over it for some other reason, then fine, but if he wants to play ball in college, but is choosing track over baseball as his spring sport, If this is the case, I’m a bit baffled.

 

He plays on a AAA team, but where?  Trip A can significantly vary in talent by state.  AAA in FL is likely much stronger than AAA in Maine.  My reason for asking is that it may be meaningful as a predictor to any current skills or future playing level.  To be clear, this cuts both ways in that it certainly doesn’t guarantee or exclude any possibility of him playing at the next level, but clearly, playing on the highest level teams in hotbed talent states (CA, TX, GA, FL, etc) is likely indicative of a higher talent level.

 

You mention he’s now a sophomore.  Did he try out as a freshman?  If so, I assume he didn’t make it.  If not, why not?

 

Finally, you state that he loves baseball.  That said, does he want to play in college or are you just asking about the realm of possibility?  Is this a recent development that he has realized he wants?  As other posters have mentioned there are a lot of talented and dedicated (read trying out for and making varsity HS teams) who can’t land a spot playing in college.  It isn’t easy by any means for die-hard dedicated players, let alone someone tinkering with it as a hobby unless that player has some SERIOUS God given talent that is undeniable.

 

As many others have mentioned, if a school is talent rich, there likely are players who don’t have the talent to make the varsity squad but have enough talent (or are late enough bloomers) to find a college team.  Those players are most likely to be a role or bench player, perhaps a starter, but on the team, nonetheless. 

 

There are many examples of players who haven’t played HS ball and are able to make a college team.  My son’s HS has one such player who could not make varsity at his position (1b/P) and has been invited as a walk on for a small school.  No guarantee that he’ll make the spring roster, but he has been given and is taking his shot.  This is a kid who aspired to play on the HS team but simply didn’t have the talent to do so.

 

Obviously I’m reading between the lines quite a bit on your posts, but with what you’ve posted, if he really wants to play in college, he needs to focus on trying to make the HS team first as I haven’t read anything here that would lead me to believe your son would have any realistic shot of playing in college if he hasn’t cracked his HS team.  Not trying to be negative, but trying to give you some honest perspective.  Have any of his travel coaches even suggested that he has college potential?  Clearly the HS coach has made his thought on the topic known.  For your son, the next level is HS JV.  Then his next level is HS Varsity.  College is the next level after that.  I’d really look to focus him on his next level first, not two levels beyond.  Encourage the dream, but achieve what you immediately are able.

What the heck is baseball class and how do you get "cut" from a class?  Did they have tryouts for the spring team yet?  

Nuke,

 

Good Points,  so he is running track because he does not have an opportunity to play baseball. His cousin was on a partial athletic scholarship for cross country, so that may be in his thought process, but his cousin was also an academic all American.

 

He did tryout last year at his previous high school (rezoned) the coach only put kids on the team that played on the summer team pre 9th grade.

 

We live in the Ft. Worth/Dallas area. He would rather play baseball than run track, but track will keep him in top shape for when summer ball starts.

 

The coach himself mentioned the high level of talent to my wife when he spoke to her about removing him from the fall baseball class.

 

I never told my son that he is the most talented or the star of the team, I tell him that it takes great dedication to become better. Then when baseball is not as central as it is now the advice will still be valid. 

 

I have also had the discussion about being on JV with the mostly 9th graders and my son has no problem with that especially since he one of the youngest in his class.

 

 My wife and I have always stressed academics over extra curricular activities and the

the more I learn on this site and others is that baseball does not really have that many scholarships to give so your GPA is going to be very important for whatever school is chosen. With all of that said he just wants to play for his high school, everything else is icing on the cake.

 

 

 

Baseball class is offseason baseball, no official tryouts yet.

I certainly don't know about TX, but around here offseason baseball is "unofficial."  That means they must take all comers.  Basically, the head coach gives his varsity captains a plan and tells them to execute the plan -- hitting, fielding, etc.  Coach is there to make sure nobody gets hurt, things get cleaned up, etc.  And only players who aren't playing another sport can attend.  Tryouts are then in the spring. 

 

So how/why would he be removed from offseason baseball?  Assuming TX offseason requirements are like most places, that doesn't make sense.  And since official tryouts aren't until spring, is it guaranteed he won't make the team? 

 

What I would do is focus on baseball this winter to be a "stud" at tryouts.  If it doesn't work out, then join the track team - track is usually a no cut sport so he can probably join after baseball tryouts (at least that is how it was at my school). 

not sure what events your son is participating in on the track team, but if you are thinking this is going to help with baseball playing you maybe a little misguided.  Im not going to get into all the details because I am not an expert in this area but do a google search on aerobic exercise and pitching or aerobic exercise and baseball.  You should be able to find a lot of info.  In general if you are aerobic exercising you are not training for explosiveness.  Explosiveness is what is needed for baseball.  

 

 

+1 same thing at our HS.

True, but try teaching that to some coaches....

 

My son even tried with scientific articles.  Got to run some extra poles for his efforts.

poles and general jogging have their place.  Especially after pitching.  Increases blood flow to the muscles which helps in healing.  Long aerobic runs do not.  But I do agree with you the old school coaches still seem to like their running.

Yea - my son was trying to get the coaches to go with more shuttles and interval type stuff rather than just having pitchers run poles every day as "conditioning".  Coach said it's the same thing...

My son was cut many times and didnt make HS team until senior year... by then he had offers from 5 schools (D3s, but still cool), and funny enough was approached 3 times by pro scouts from dodgers, cardinals, and twins over the summer and fall...he benched most of his senior season, and although team made state semi finals for 6A, he nevered saw the field except to pinch run. 

He is now a freshman in college and they converted him from an outfielder to a shortstop where he started in fall scrimmages.  He is undersized at 5'9 158, but has all the tools including HR power, above average htf. And a strong arm.

Anything is possible if you have tools and dont give up...

He

Thank You, do you mind if I ask what part of the country you live in?

Sorry for the late reply to last question...but north Texas region.

I wont bore everyone with long stories but currently a young college freshman

87 from OF last summer
Now learning to pitch and play SS
HR power in a small package
3.6-3.7 best HTF on bunts (RHS)
Squat 2.5-3x bodyweight
Above average base stealer

Barely saw field in HS...thats in the past now and scoring high grades in pre-med...wants,to play as long as possible, then be involved in sports medicine