Prospect Camp Invite Out Of The Blue?

Welcome to the site!  I really doubt a baseball team could have seen his transcript sent to state schools for academic purposes.

Is your son interested in playing in college?  If he were, surely he would have been doing something about it this summer.  Do you think the high school baseball coach might have sent in his name?  Does he have a travel coach who might have done so?   Can he ask them?

Since there are only seven D3 baseball schools in California, they are in high demand; the academically selective schools recruit nationally.  Baseball camps make money for the school's program.  Still, the only way to know for sure is for your son to call the coach and ask.

Is it a form letter or a personal letter?  If there's an unsubscribe option in an email, it's a form letter.  There is no interest in your son if it's a form letter.

Your son can also reply and ask where they saw him at or any other polite reply to see if the coach responds. No response, it's not personal. If it's not personal, his chance of getting noticed is pretty small unless he does something amazing.

You can also google the camp and see what people say about it. Some are well run camps that give good feedback that you might be able to use.  Some are money grabs for the volunteer coaches that provide nothing.

If it's cheap and close to home, why not do it and see how he stacks up.

If it's expensive and requires a hotel, I would pass unless they are really interested in him.

Baseballmom2024,

Agree with @anotherparent.  If he is interested, he needs to pick up the phone and solve the mystery.  He'll want to ask questions about the nature of the camp (recruitment or skills development).   Until he does that, I wouldn't take it seriously at all.

It doesn't take too much imagination to figure out which schools are at the top of the list of seven, given the acceptance rate you mentioned.  It may be worthwhile to check into the school a little more for this reason....my son was recruited and played for a university that I thought was private, but it turned out that it had BOTH a private and public charter.   We learned this during the application process but had no clue during recruitment, as it was never mentioned.  It also had a very low acceptance rate (7%) into his specific college (engineering) which we learned at orientation.   Due to the low acceptance rate, any talents also referred to as "hooks" (athletic, music, debate, etc...) your son can bring to the table to help his case is a positive.

Good luck!

Is this a place your son would want to attend college without baseball? Keep in mind he hasn’t even made high school varsity heading into senior year. And he’s “hoping” to make varsity senior year. Is the baseball program successful? Why are they interested in your son out of the blue? Keep in mind at some D3’s coaches receive bonuses for recruiting full paying students whether they end up playing or not.

Thank you so much, everyone, for your thoughts. My son has revealed, since getting this message (through the FieldLevel portal), that he *would* like to play baseball in college, even though he told us the opposite last year. The truth, he said, was that he had just assumed he wouldn't be able to. I think he based this on his perception on his ability relative to his peers, and counted himself out. And that broke my heart.
But we are where we are now.
Yes, I guess it's pretty easy to figure out that I'm referring to the Claremonts, and yes, my son has a 4.0 unweighted GPA. He has informed me that his grades are loaded into the portal per the direction of their HS coach.
The camp is $450 which, after a brief search, appears to be more expensive than most, but not all, camps being offered in September. So here's what the cynic in me thinks:
The assistant coach used the portal to select for grades. The camp is priced at a certain level to select for, as suggested by another commenter, full pay prospects. Maybe everyone with a GPA higher than "x" in a certain zip code got the invite.
My son has emailed the coach to ask (politely) "why me?" We'll see what his says, and I'll come back with the update.
Thanks for your input - it is much appreciated.

Sorry I'm late to this but a couple of comments:

1) The Claremont schools' (CMS/P-P) rosters are relatively small.  Admissions may be screening for full paying folks who fit their academic profile to admit overall but I kinda doubt if that fits into Walkenbach's formula for building a competitive team. These high academic baseball coaches and the schools they work for offer maybe 8 or so, on average,  admission slots to athletes each year.  So, if your son gets a commitment from Walkenbach after attending the camp then he's earned it on the field as well as the classroom.

Other schools with admission rates that the Claremont Colleges would consider stratospheric DO follow the path of admitting lots of paying players, and those rosters are much bigger. I can think of several SCIAC schools (and NWC schools, since that's the only other west coast D3 conference) where that happens.

Playing time at CMS will be just as hard to get, but the crowd of players storming the gates is much smaller.

2) You're way ahead on the money game, if this camp will be your son's first real recruiting experience.  And $450 or so for a two day camp isn't that bad when other schools are charging $250 for just one day. The camps are money makers for the coaches but this late in the recruiting cycle you son doesn't have a lot of options.

Is he committed to trying to stay in California?

Ah, so he had a Field Level profile, and a HS coach who was at least minimally aware.  I think that your evaluation of the situation is exactly right.  If your son did nothing regarding baseball recruiting until this message (did he play baseball this summer?), then he might ask his high school coach what he thinks the prospects of playing there, or anywhere, are.

HA schools offer their top recruits a boost with admissions if they apply Early Decision.  The HA timeline is that for the most part, these schools are right now deciding who their top recruits are (based on seeing them play or at showcases in the summer), and will be inviting them to campus in September - the top ones will NOT have to attend the camp.  So unless your son is off the charts at the camp, the best he might get is "if you get in on your own, we'd be glad for you to try out for the team."  That's not much of a return on $450, which strikes me as a lot of money.   And while their rosters are small, they do cut some of the walk-ons in the fall.  On the other hand, if he gets in on his own, he's at a great school.

As smokeminside said, these particular schools are not, in this case, trying to add more paying students.  It's true that they are trying to attract good baseball players who can pay for their schools.

If the school is a place he wants to go to college and baseball helps him get in go for it regardless of whether he ends up rostered. If the coach tells him get admitted on your own and you’re on the team be leery it’s about the coach getting a recruiting bonus. Unless your son likes hanging with baseball players and practicing there isn’t value in being player #25-35 on a roster.

@smokeminside posted:

Sorry I'm late to this but a couple of comments:

1) The Claremont schools' (CMS/P-P) rosters are relatively small.  Admissions may be screening for full paying folks who fit their academic profile to admit overall but I kinda doubt if that fits into Walkenbach's formula for building a competitive team. These high academic baseball coaches and the schools they work for offer maybe 8 or so, on average,  admission slots to athletes each year.  So, if your son gets a commitment from Walkenbach after attending the camp then he's earned it on the field as well as the classroom.

Other schools with admission rates that the Claremont Colleges would consider stratospheric DO follow the path of admitting lots of paying players, and those rosters are much bigger. I can think of several SCIAC schools (and NWC schools, since that's the only other west coast D3 conference) where that happens.

Playing time at CMS will be just as hard to get, but the crowd of players storming the gates is much smaller.

2) You're way ahead on the money game, if this camp will be your son's first real recruiting experience.  And $450 or so for a two day camp isn't that bad when other schools are charging $250 for just one day. The camps are money makers for the coaches but this late in the recruiting cycle you son doesn't have a lot of options.

Is he committed to trying to stay in California?

Yes, he would prefer to stay in California.

@anotherparent posted:

Ah, so he had a Field Level profile, and a HS coach who was at least minimally aware.  I think that your evaluation of the situation is exactly right.  If your son did nothing regarding baseball recruiting until this message (did he play baseball this summer?), then he might ask his high school coach what he thinks the prospects of playing there, or anywhere, are.

HA schools offer their top recruits a boost with admissions if they apply Early Decision.  The HA timeline is that for the most part, these schools are right now deciding who their top recruits are (based on seeing them play or at showcases in the summer), and will be inviting them to campus in September - the top ones will NOT have to attend the camp.  So unless your son is off the charts at the camp, the best he might get is "if you get in on your own, we'd be glad for you to try out for the team."  That's not much of a return on $450, which strikes me as a lot of money.   And while their rosters are small, they do cut some of the walk-ons in the fall.  On the other hand, if he gets in on his own, he's at a great school.

As smokeminside said, these particular schools are not, in this case, trying to add more paying students.  It's true that they are trying to attract good baseball players who can pay for their schools.

He didn't play ball this summer. He had to have a minor procedure on his foot, attend to the requisite rest period, and then he was off on a backpacking trip with his scout troop for two and half weeks.
That is among the reasons we were baffled at this invitation. No varsity record, no time in front of CMS coaches...
His high school coach told us that the assistant coach position at CMS might be unpaid, and filling camps might yield compensation for this coach. Regardless, he encouraged our son to give it a shot if he's interested in the school, so we'll be supportive, as well.

Baseballmom

have you evaluate Westmont in Santa BArbara? Now Div 2

Bob..

@Consultant posted:

Baseballmom

have you evaluate Westmont in Santa BArbara? Now Div 2

Bob..

We haven't, but I don't think it aligns with what he's looking for in a school. Baseball aside, he'd prefer a larger school, not religiously affiliated, and with a low acceptance rate (very competitive admissions). To be clear, though, I also don't think he's a competitive candidate for a D2 team. So, probably not a good fit for a couple of different reasons.

If you/he decide to attend the camp, you need to find an advocate for him to contact the coach before the camp. Travel coach, high school coach, some scout that the head coach will listen to.

An advocate can call the coach and talk him up before the camp and make sure your son gets more than a cursory glance.  Your son will go from needing to do something outstanding to get noticed to just needing to be really good because the coaches are paying attention.

Is his HS team better than this program where you got the camp invite? Being in California it definitely is possible, especially SoCal with schools like JSerra, ND, De La Salle, etc.

If he's not at some powerhouse HS that wins and has a logjam of talented players I wouldn't even be considering college baseball.

The prerequisite to being a college player is being a standout HS player. Respectfully, not only is he not excelling amongst his peers, he hasn't made the team yet.

Unless this school is CalTech or of a similar talent level to CalTech I would put the $450 towards a more memorable family experience before he goes to school.

@JETSR71 posted:

If you/he decide to attend the camp, you need to find an advocate for him to contact the coach before the camp. Travel coach, high school coach, some scout that the head coach will listen to.

An advocate can call the coach and talk him up before the camp and make sure your son gets more than a cursory glance.  Your son will go from needing to do something outstanding to get noticed to just needing to be really good because the coaches are paying attention.

He's going to check in with his coach today.

@PABaseball posted:

Is his HS team better than this program where you got the camp invite? Being in California it definitely is possible, especially SoCal with schools like JSerra, ND, De La Salle, etc.

If he's not at some powerhouse HS that wins and has a logjam of talented players I wouldn't even be considering college baseball.

The prerequisite to being a college player is being a standout HS player. Respectfully, not only is he not excelling amongst his peers, he hasn't made the team yet.

Unless this school is CalTech or of a similar talent level to CalTech I would put the $450 towards a more memorable family experience before he goes to school.

You're preaching to the choir, PABaseball. But we have decided to support his desire to attend as a gesture of confidence in his discernment.
He's a pragmatic kid - he was just as shocked as we were to see this invite come through the portal. To say that he is not overconfident would be complete understatement. He knows where he stands relative to the other players. In fact, to put a finer point on it, his hs coach pointed out that one of the students currently on the roster is a former multi-year varsity player at a nearby school who was player of the year in our league his senior year.
We're not going into this with outsized expectations.
I can't imagine this yields an offer for our son, but because stranger things have happened, we'll get him there. He's a hardworking, honest kid who has made more contributions than have been asked of him. He deserves out support.

As an aside, I did do my best to get him to email the coach at CalTech last year. I will probably go to my grave wishing he'd considered it. lol...

Sounds like you have a good kid. If he wants to do it just to say he did it it sounds like he deserves a fun opportunity. Best of luck, hopefully it works out. Not too late to shoot an email over to CalTech.  

@PABaseball posted:

Sounds like you have a good kid. If he wants to do it just to say he did it it sounds like he deserves a fun opportunity. Best of luck, hopefully it works out. Not too late to shoot an email over to CalTech.  

You know what? I reminded him of that after reading your comment. Thanks for re-planting that seed.

My 2025 received a message about the upcoming CMS camp through Fieldlevel that looked like this. Is this what he got? Or was it more personalized? 2025 is known to them through Showball, emails to them, prospect questionaire. I know they checked out his profile and video. But we view this as pretty generic and not really a sign of interest. Your 2024 sounds like he has the academic chops to get in without baseball so maybe if he wants to possibly be a part of a team he should check it out.

About the varsity baseball part ...  PAbaseball is correct. Almost every truly recruited kid is a standout, multi year varsity starter. Even at a D3 like CMS which is actually an upper tier D3 baseball school. We know a few kids from HS who were not starters and went NAIA, juco, D3 but these were lower level schools or huge rosters and they will never play.

@Dadbelly2023 posted:

My 2025 received a message about the upcoming CMS camp through Fieldlevel that looked like this. Is this what he got? Or was it more personalized? 2025 is known to them through Showball, emails to them, prospect questionaire. I know they checked out his profile and video. But we view this as pretty generic and not really a sign of interest. Your 2024 sounds like he has the academic chops to get in without baseball so maybe if he wants to possibly be a part of a team he should check it out.

About the varsity baseball part ...  PAbaseball is correct. Almost every truly recruited kid is a standout, multi year varsity starter. Even at a D3 like CMS which is actually an upper tier D3 baseball school. We know a few kids from HS who were not starters and went NAIA, juco, D3 but these were lower level schools or huge rosters and they will never play.

It's that same exact message. An it's correct to assume that our son is not a recruit by any definition of the word. This was - in case I haven't been specific enough - LITERALLY the first communication from any school he has ever received about baseball. It came out of thin air. That's the only reason I came here to ask about it. And I'm glad I did because, not only have the responses solidified our sense that it's a complete long shot, regardless, but this also seems to be the most chill, and affirmatively supportive social media feed I've ever encountered. What a breath of fresh air.

@Baseballmom2024 posted:

but this also seems to be the most chill, and affirmatively supportive social media feed I've ever encountered. What a breath of fresh air.

You've apparently not run into @IAmThatGuy... I'm still trying to figure out whose alter ego he/she is? lol! That being said, baseball is a very small world, and this has been a very positive and supportive community.

@Baseballmom2024 posted:

It's that same exact message. An it's correct to assume that our son is not a recruit by any definition of the word. This was - in case I haven't been specific enough - LITERALLY the first communication from any school he has ever received about baseball. It came out of thin air. That's the only reason I came here to ask about it. And I'm glad I did because, not only have the responses solidified our sense that it's a complete long shot, regardless, but this also seems to be the most chill, and affirmatively supportive social media feed I've ever encountered. What a breath of fresh air.

Hang around long enough and someone will get testy.  Kinda fun to watch when that happens.  Go back a few years and check out "The Elephant in the Room" thread.  Cataclysmic. But, actually, with good reason.  It was a stressful time.

@smokeminside posted:

Hang around long enough and someone will get testy.  Kinda fun to watch when that happens.  Go back a few years and check out "The Elephant in the Room" thread.  Cataclysmic. But, actually, with good reason.  It was a stressful time.

No way I'm going to read all 20 pages of COVID stress... It impacted me in some very personal non sports related ways, oddly, it may have actually helped my ballplayer, and I feel for every athlete and their parents that got hosed.

I think respectful conflict is the foundation of learning...

@JucoDad posted:

No way I'm going to read all 20 pages of COVID stress... It impacted me in some very personal non sports related ways, oddly, it may have actually helped my ballplayer, and I feel for every athlete and their parents that got hosed.

I think respectful conflict is the foundation of learning...

Aw, man. And here I thought I’d found utopia.

I think I’ll just remain blissfully ignorant.

More importantly you received some great intel here with some decisions to make with your prospect. Please support this site; i.e., financially and/or just participating. Yeah, the wheels have fallen off the threads many many times and contentious at times would be an understatement...I have been a casual witness to many and sometimes participant; I never ever would thought that I would get into a medical policy disagreement on a HS Baseball PMB, but I did, go figure. 

@JucoDad posted:

You've apparently not run into @IAmThatGuy... I'm still trying to figure out whose alter ego he/she is? lol! That being said, baseball is a very small world, and this has been a very positive and supportive community.

Hey, I am supportive! My alter ego is the problem.