Need some help with making this decision. My RHP/LHH wants to start online school so that he can weight train/practice with his pitching coach more during the day. He would probably not play hs ball his senior year either. He does have a top travel team going into this summer and will play at USA/Fall Classic/Jupiter and others for exposure. He's my only child so I don't have previous experience with this at all. Thank you!
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Is he committed yet? What is his college coach’s opinion?
My son didn’t play for his high school team, instead he played in a regional spring league and had a blast. And now he’s playing College Baseball. It certainly can be done
I would not recommend this. He would miss out on precious time with his friends. There’s no way of getting that time back. Also, everyone’s time playing baseball is limited. Play as many games as you can. Anything can happen. My sons career took many twists and turns including major surgery on 3/4 limbs. He would never trade a minute on a baseball field for anything.
In NJ - Home schooled kids are still eligible to participate in extra curricular activities at the school. I think this is also the case in FL (see Tim Tebow).
Check the state laws - you may be able to have your cake and eat it too.
On the other hand, there is no guarantee the coach will select him for the team and politics may come into play ... but thats a different issue.
He wants to skip senior year with his friends and all that entails?
I'd forget baseball for the moment and start by making 1,000% sure that he is mentally and emotionally ok. See what's going on at school. Talk to him. Talk to other people. Turn over some rocks if you have to.
You bring up a very good question. On one hand he could miss out on high school practices, live reps in real games, and time with friends. On the other hand, he could dedicate himself to working on his skills and getting in the best shape possible. Hmmmm....
So, in thinking this through I think your son needs to be mature beyond his years to get the work done, and the situation with the pitching coach/strength and conditioning coach has got to be top notch...as in they've done this before and had success. Without hesitation, I can tell you most high school seniors would not be able to handle this responsibility on their own.
As for the online education that needs to be considered in this equation too. People's learning styles vary between Visual, Auditory, Read/Write, and Kinaesthetic. The Covid learning experiment our kids went through a couple years ago set some kids back, and they are still recovering. Knowing the type of learner your son is probably the most important aspect to this.
Then there is the social aspect to this. Listen, I'll be the first to admit my two oldest sons didn't have the greatest high school baseball experience. I'd say it was average with all things considered. However, there is something to be said for being part of a school team with everyday practices. We always looked at it as a prelude to the spring/summer travel season where my son was crisscrossing the country. It is an opportunity to work out things, try new pitches in a less stressful setting.
As always, JMO. Good luck with your decision.
PS... @JCG brings up a great point above as this may be a red flag for something else going on.
There's a lot more to pitching than just throwing great bullpens. I think playing (and having fun playing) is as important as velo/hitting your spot. I vote "play on the hs team!" Plus, how many lessons per week can he really have. .. two? (One lesson, one bullpen?). Working with different catchers, getting experience with different game or weather situations, practicing a pickoff move -- those all count in getting outs. You have to win the game as well as throw the ball.
My 2024 RHP son brought this up a couple weeks ago. It seems that all of his committed friends are having the same "issues" with respect to their high school coaches/teams. All of them are thinking about skipping their senior school ball season.
I told him bullpens don't even come close to replicating the pressure of in game AB's against other kids. This season has helped a ton how to react to consistent errors, controlling what you can control etc.
OP's son is on a "top travel team" and will go to Jupiter, but is not yet committed? If he is D1 material, will he not commit this summer? What are the travel coaches doing about that? Do you have a plan with them? What do they think his path is?
Once he commits, the college coach will have a say. Even if he's aiming for the draft, I assume he needs a college commitment.
I agree with others, whose idea is online schooling? If your son's, is he uncomfortable at school or on his school's team? You need to figure that out. If his HS coach is over-pitching players, that's a legit concern for not playing HS ball. If it's his pitching instructor's idea, you need to have a better idea from that guy what would be accomplished, where he sees your son's future and how he proposes to get him there.
@RoadRunner posted:He would miss out on precious time with his friends. There’s no way of getting that time back.
That was not my son’s experience. Sure, he didn’t see his friends during lunch hour at school, or in between classes, but other than that he spent just as much time with friends as any other
(my son graduated a semester early and between that and online classes wasn’t in the physical school for the last 1.5 years of high school. Granted part of that was due to the pandemic)
Not enough information. Please provide more information about his future to give insight. If this is to get higher draft status that is one thing but if he is not committed to college it is very detrimental. The school stuff is an individual thing. Sons only went to one class a day on campus and all three hated senior year. 2 of 3 did not go to prom and that stuff. Different for each child.
I thought about this for my son. High school can be limiting. My son only needs to take 4 classes next year to meet graduation requirements. He would prefer to take just the classes he needs and be dismissed early. The school allows only 90 minutes in early dismissal, so basically they're saying he has to take 2 more classes from their school that he doesn't need or have any interest in. Why not let students use their time more efficiently, especially if you can prove that the student has a job, or a class (not affiliated with the HS), or training to go to?
Another time suck is our son's commute. Yeah, the school system has us zoned for a school that's further away (an extra 30-35 minutes of sitting on a bus, wasted)...smh.
Look at having him do work study and see if he can intern with his facility. I know a kid that made it work. The school agreed after many discussions.
Some of the programs making offers called my son’s high school coach. They weren’t interested in his high school coach’s opinion of his baseball skills. They asked what kind of kid is he? Does he get along well with teammates and classmates? How well does he handle academics with sports?
I’m not sure “He quit on us senior year” would be a good answer.
@RJM posted:Some of the programs making offers called my son’s high school coach. They weren’t interested in his high school coach’s opinion of his baseball skills. They asked what kind of kid is he? Does he get along well with teammates and classmates? How well does he handle academics with sports?
I’m not sure “He quit on us senior year” would be a good answer.
I said the same thing to my son, "What college team would continue to want a kid who thinks he's too good to play for his high school team?"
@3and2Fastball posted:That was not my son’s experience. Sure, he didn’t see his friends during lunch hour at school, or in between classes, but other than that he spent just as much time with friends as any other
(my son graduated a semester early and between that and online classes wasn’t in the physical school for the last 1.5 years of high school. Granted part of that was due to the pandemic)
I am talking about precious time on the field with friends. No way my kid gives that up.
@RoadRunner posted:I am talking about precious time on the field with friends. No way my kid gives that up.
Gotcha. That completely makes sense.
Every situation is different. None of my son’s closest friends were on the high school Baseball team.
Beyond baseball - this does not seem like a good social/developmental decision. Unless there are learning disabilities or some sort of extreme bullying taking place I can't think of a good reason to do it unless he's a first round pick. Even if he goes to HS and doesn't play for the HS team - still go to school.
I would imagine he goes to school from 8-2/3. What is he doing from 4-9 that would prevent him from training?
Everyone has different opinions of HS. My son cared nothing about going to HS his senior year and went only to play basketball and baseball. He took no more classes than he had to and didn't care about the social stuff. But we moved into the school his junior year. Others love the social stuff, or sometimes their parents love the social stuff, so it is a big deal. If son had to make a choice between school ball and showcase it would have been showcase 100%.
There are very few HS seniors who would go to classes if they didn't have to. Isn't it our job as parents to have them do things that are good for them even if they don't see it? You can usually take photography or video classes that might actually be useful someday, as well as fun - and they are free! There might be a weightlifting class. A coach/teacher at our school offers a class on the culture of sport - easy but thought-provoking, especially for athletes. Why would you not take advantage of free educational opportunities? Unless you have a job or internship that will help in different ways (and at our schools, seniors can enroll in internships for half a day if they want).
@anotherparent posted:There are very few HS seniors who would go to classes if they didn't have to. Isn't it our job as parents to have them do things that are good for them even if they don't see it?
Everyone has their own way of parenting, and it’s an individual choice of course as the family dynamics are different for everyone. Not everyone feels it’s a good choice to “make” a 17 year old or 18 year old do anything mere months before they are out on their own
For some, Senior Year is a great time for the helicopter to be landed while the kid still lives within the safety of their home, with guidance and advice from their parents as they begin to navigate the many choices of the real world
The local university has a program where a HS school student can take a class for $25/credit hour. The HS however, only recognizes 3 courses for student's to earn both college credit and HS credit at the same time. I think it's better use of time for a student to take a college course if they've already completed what they need for HS graduation requirements. Next year my son has to take an additional 2 HS courses beyond what he needs to graduate. I'd prefer he'd use that time toward an asynchronous online college course, but they don't allow that. HS weight training class unfortunately does not allow the flexibility for him to work on what he wants to work on and they don't have nearly the equipment of the gym he's a member at. So as much as I do appreciate the free courses that HS provides...sometimes it's not necessarily the "best" option.
Whichever you/your son choose to do for his senior year, make sure he's taking the proper courses from the school to be qualified for NCAA eligibility. Also, make sure the online school is registered with the NCAA Eligibility Center.
