Question about senior season

Maybe I'm wrong in this but I would think it would hurt a players draft possibilities if he is on any scouts radar. Have a monster senior season and it could mean getting drafted or not.

Good point about the pro guys, I was thinking of maybe finding a travel team inthe Atlanta area that I hear has showcases during the high school season

bacdor;

 

Do not play the Senior season and then you will learn from the experience.

 

The Coach has nothing to do with a player's success. It is the player responsibility to focus on his goals "single oriented or team oriented". Teach yourself.

 

Bob

Hey Bacdor,

No, of course a player of this caliber does not HAVE to play his senior HS season.  Though, he may likely have to answer to his prospective college coach why he didn't.  I suggest he use a different answer than the one you stated.  JMO, as a parent, I would welcome a HS coach who holds teaching values high on his priority list.  I suspect there are also some college coaches who may raise an eyebrow if that is the reason a player chose not to play.  I know, based on some of your previous posts, that you don't necessarily feel that way and that's OK.  But he might want to use another reason.

 

For what it's worth, if I have any regrets regarding parenting and coaching, it is that I may not have taken every single possible opportunity to teach my children and my players  proper life values, particularly during those "last chance" HS years.   

 

Our baseball program's track record says we did more than fine with teaching them to become better players.  I just can't help but think I could always do more with what is really important when put in such an influential position.

I think playing for your HS is important and in most cases a lot of fun. If the player already has a D1 school, why not help his HS team. You can do a lot of things to work on your game yourself. My son always saw his hitting coach and worked out with a trainer in the off season.During the season he actually met his varsity coach at the gym three mornings a week and worked out.

 

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Not to single anyone out, but it seems that the D1 or college school is all anyone cares about anymore. My sons four years of HS ball were some of the best times we ever had as a family and he as a player.

 

And working on  being a better person is a good goal ,some kids need that outside of their own homes.

 

I know there are horrible HS situations but many are not.

 

JMO for what its worth

 

 

thanks for the responses, it seems that for this player it's a nessasary evil. Maybe an example would help to explain.  The day after a game in which the player pitched, he runs, he likes to run and feels it helps him. 

 

Well on this particular day it was raining.  While all the others players were leaving ( coaches as well) said player hopped the fence and took off running. The coach called him back and said "what are you doing it's raining let's go home"  Player said I need to run, and the coach said well I have to stay here until your done and I want to go home.  This to me is not the type of coach you guys are talking about.  This coach is young, has young children and lives a hour from the school.

 

He is just not a good fit for the program....

 

But if the concensus is that it will do more harm than good with college coaches then I guess he will learn to deal with it.   I just thought if it was not going to be a huge issue with the college guys he could do somthing else that would benifit him more. 

 

By the way his brothers like HS school baseball and I am fine with that as well . But this particular player does not.

Just my 2 cents, but senior year was the best year of my son's life (so far!) and the friendships in the dugout meant the world to him.  Leadership, life lessons, helping your teammates, picking them up after bad at bats, keeping the dugout on their feet, encouraging the younger pitchers, etc.. I guess I am feeling sentimental since it all just ended after a great run, but he would not have traded this year for anything, and I know he matured by being there. And, it was probably more fun than junior year, because he knew he already had a D1 commitment.

 

A top player leaving to play 'better ball' is missing out on one of those very special years, IMHO. And, some might say he is abandoning his team.  If he can help the team get the Ws and have a better season, he should be there for them. Play for the love of the game, and play for the team.

 

Try to encourage him to look at this in a different light. Not an 'evil' to be endured.

^^^^^^^^^

+1

  The assistant coaches asks him to be the team captain and I am trying to explain to him that if he does that and really tries to help the younger players it will in turn help him. 

 

I told him when he is pitching and the sophomore makes an error to pick him up and brush him off.  Use the fact that the others look up to you as an opportunity to show recruiters that you are trying to help your teammates.

 

He's is just not there yet.... maybe it's too early to talk about next year.

 

bacdorslider,

 

You’re story about the player running sure sounds like a huge selfish pantload to me. If it was a nice day and everyone was sticking around, that coach evidently wouldn’t have any problem, so it comes down to this kid being so selfish as to force the coach to stay just so he could do something there he could have just as easily done at home. Maybe the kid simply didn’t understand that the coach had both moral and legal responsibilities, and if that’s the case, his parents should have a little sit down with him and explain real life to him.

 

To tell the truth, it sounds more like that kid isn’t a good fit for the program than the coach. The more I think about it, the more I feel he should just not play for the team and then try to explain it to scouts and prospective coaches. He better be pretty hot stuff if he’s gonna overcome looking like a selfish little snot who has no regard for others.

 

Now I suppose its possible we haven’t gotten the entire story, but that’s what happens when you start telling stories about other people’s children.

You are an idiot.  And the running cannot be done at home... 

I first just wanted to know if playing the sr season was all that important.  And to some it is important for relationships and lessons etc... I understand that... and I agree.

 

Secondly, I wanted to know the repercussions from college coaches for not playing.... the advice giving is to take a bad situation and make it as good as you can and by continuing to play the sr season he will not have to explain why he did not.

 

I also felt that playing in a different league might be a benefit as well.  exploring all options.

 

I'm trying to get him to take it a step further and be the leader,  in hopes that he feels some sense of ownership about the team.   and yes of course , so that he will learn that the benefits  of this will help not only his teammates but himself...

 

But given the climate he is in it's tough and I don;t know for sure that even if he takes the high road it will work out due to the coaching situation.

Bacdorslider,

 

I’m an idiot because I say a kid doesn’t have to run on school grounds? ROTFLMAO!

 

You haven’t shown the coaching situation to be anything other than “normal”. You can certainly take it on yourself to advise the boy’s parents/guardians as to what you think is the proper course, but what’s going on is really none of your business. You’re the poster boy for why coaches refuse to talk to people about players not their own children.

 

 

High school baseball is vitally important for completely different reasons than summer ball.  In high school, you have to learn to work with what is there.  You cannot pick and choose things to your personal likings as in summer ball.  The coach in this thread sounds reasonable so I am not even sure why that is an issue.  

 

The "D1/national" prospect here needs to learn how to become part of a team and ideally lead it to something meaningful like a district title or a deep playoff run where the whole community is behind it.  Only special players can do that - rally a team of players who are not going to play past high school and get them to play above themselves.  Can't learn how to do that when you are off running laps by yourself.

 

Lastly, it is a guarantee that he will not see eye-to-eye with everything his college coach does.  What's he do then?  Follow the advice you are giving him here now?    

My two cents.....At this point in the young man's life, decisions get more important, complicated and may have possible consequences. 

 

If baseball means a lot to him (or his future) he needs to play and adapt to the new coaches way of doing things.  I totally agree with Consultant.  It is the players responsibility to focus on his goals and team goals.    It certainly is not going to be lollipops, rainbows and unicorns at his next stop whether it is college or beyond.

I'm going to be perfectly honest with you - even if I lived next to the baseball field I would tell him to stop running and go home.  Seriously; how hard was it raining because if it's a light sprinkle then the game / practice needs to continue.  If it's raining hard enough to stop a game / practice then you don't need to be running in it.

 

I'm an Athletic Director at my school and as an AD you can't let this continue because if the rain is hard enough to stop practice / games then there is a chance of some sort of liability issues going on.  Without being there I cannot say for certain but if I find out an athlete is out running in the rain while everyone else is leaving I'm going to have a conversation with that coach about what was going on.

 

I'm sorry but so far you've not shown anything where this coach is "not a good fit for the program".  Getting kids out of the rain and trying to teach them to be better people are things we should be looking for in our coaches in all sports.

 

There is more here that we're not getting.  First I believe this is your son and not sure why you're not referring to him as such.  Maybe I'm wrong and maybe I'm reading more into your responses but I think this is your kid.

Looks like a life lesson coming here. 

Stick it out and help the team out, it will show his true character. 

Raining hard enough to not have practice on the field, I never thought of the liability issue. Can you explain the liability issue?  I have seen soccer and football play in the rain which seems more danergous than a single player running in the outfield.

 

This was one example of the coach cutting practice short for any reason. Basically practices were 2 hours in length.  I don't understand why I cannot have an opinion without being attacked?   Could it be that I am right and this coach is incompetent?  Or are there so many coaches and AD's here that the forum has become slanted?

 

I have said many times that I have no issue with coaches trying to help student/athletes and teaching them life lessons, but that is only part of coaching. If you are a baseball coach should not add a little baseball teaching to equation? 

 

I was merely asking how important it was to play the sr year in high school.  and if other options would be better.  Then the post morphed into coach bashing, then parent bashing.   thanks for the responses.

 

"I was merely asking how important it was to play the sr year in high school.  and if other options would be better"

 

I think you got answers based on peoples experiences. Take it with a grain of salt and your family will make its own decision. I think sometimes its about giving back to the game,not always taking from it. I think that's what people might be trying to convey. Maybe not all did it in a way that you thought appropriate but its a public board and people will say how they feel. Hope your son has an awesome college career.

To be perfectly honest the chances of a liability issue is slim but people sue for crazy reasons all the time.  Without actually being there it's hard to say.  When there is rain hard enough to stop practice then there could be a chance for lightening to pop up suddenly. Saturday I was at the football field cutting grass when this random guy showed up to run on our track.  I had to turn him away because we don't have an open facility to the public.  When he asked why I had to explain our insurance will not cover those who are not affiliated with our school - students and personnel.  Now let's be honest - nobody is going to get hurt running on the track.  But there is a chance he might drift too far inside and roll his ankle on the edge of the track and break his ankle.  Sometimes it's hard to find reasons why not to allow something but at some point there will be a reason.  I'm sorry but if it's raining hard enough to stop practice then I don't see the purpose of allowing someone to run.  Yes football and soccer will continue in rain but the nature of those sports aren't overly affected by rain like baseball is.

 

One thing I don't understand is you said it was raining hard enough to not have practice on the field but then say this is one reason to cut practice for any reason - so what else do you want him to do?  Do you have an indoor facility?  Do other programs use the facilities - was the gym occupied by other sports since it rained or did the softball team have the indoor hitting facility? These are things that could stop practice because you have no more options.

 

I don't see where anyone attacked you on here. Disagreed or curious for more info but not attacked.

 

You could very well be right and this coach is wrong.....you just haven't posted any examples of where this guy has done wrong.  Now you've used the word incompetent to describe him yet nothing here says he's incompetent.  You've got to give better examples than this.  Does he teach them to throw wrong footed?  Does he teach them to hit opposite handed?  That is incompetent - not what you've put.  As an AD if you came to me as a "concerned" parent with this stuff I would be courteous and listen to what you have to say.  Then politely tell you that if that is all you have then we are finished talking and if these were things you couldn't tolerate then maybe both sides would be better off parting ways as amicably as possible.

 

There's no way in the world this board is slanted towards coaches / ADs.

you have a pm

Bacdor, you have a PM.

Sounds like the kid could use exactly what the new coach has to offer. If I were scouting the kid and I found out he didn't want to play because a new coach wanted to add some class and discipline over technique and fundamentals, I would have an issue with that. I have been in that exact situation on the coaching end, where I coached with the HC who really didn't put a lot of "work" into developmental practices, however, me being the assistant, I DID!

Also... ALWAYS have a backup plan in case of bad weather. Calling it a day should be last resort (weight rooms and gyms are full, and can't sit in a class or locker room and do some mental practices on chalk/dry erase board. SHOOT! Watch an old College/MLB World Series game and examine it.)

 My son learned a lot about life and about himself by playing for coaches who weren't his favorites. He learned it is all about the game, not the coach.

 

My son had tough sophomore and junior seasons. He hung in there and had an amazing, fun senior season. 

 

The risk of not playing...if he gives an honest answer as to why he didn't, he may not be perceived as a team player.  Might be seen as not mentally tough. I'm not saying these things are true, just that some coaches might see him that way. Just look at the responses in this thread. There is at least some risk that a coach might feel the same way.

 

Bacdor -- is this your son? I think most of us believe it is. I looked up your previous posts, and it really looks like this is your son.

I believe the HS player in question is indeed bacdorslider's son?  He pretty much admits it in his second post of this thread.  FWIW, my son had a blast his senior year and loved playing with his high school friends that he grew up with.  My advice to bacdorslider would be to make sure that his son ultimately makes the decision and does so by comparing all of the pros and cons.  Best of luck!

Thanks for the replies lots of good comments and advice and gives me a lot to chew on.   My gut tells me he will play and make the best of it.  And from reading the post maybe he will  learn from it and become a more well rounded player .   It's not easy that's for sure .

Thanks for the replies lots of good comments and advice and gives me a lot to chew on.   My gut tells me he will play and make the best of it.  And from reading the post maybe he will  learn from it and become a more well rounded player .   It's not easy that's for sure .