My 2025 son is a RHP. At what point is it appropriate to send intro emails? Without specifics, he had a good summer and appears to be on a d1 earlier commit type path. We don't have video footage beyond what was tweeted for PG and prep baseball tournaments. Can he just link to one or two of those tweets for video footage, and give stats and a link to his PG page? Does he need something better than that? Thanks!
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What is size/velo?
6’1 and sits mid 80’s, tops high 80’s.
Now would be a good time to start if he hasn't already. How is his travel team - what is his coach doing to get him in contact with schools?
His travel team is excellent. This summer he played in front of PG scouts and PBR scouts and gotten recognition. He played in front of several D1’s recently and ended up with some social media follows. We have not done any individual showcases so everything earned has been through tournaments. The follows on social media led us to think his time may be starting, with the next 12 months being important. He thought he would wait until he hits 90mph and thought next summer he would start reaching out. The last few weeks have me thinking the process may be reversed in our heads. Maybe he should reach out now so that by next summer his name is familiar. Then schools can decide if they want to follow him or make the drive to see him play.
@Northeastmom posted:My 2025 son is a RHP. At what point is it appropriate to send intro emails? Without specifics, he had a good summer and appears to be on a d1 earlier commit type path. We don't have video footage beyond what was tweeted for PG and prep baseball tournaments. Can he just link to one or two of those tweets for video footage, and give stats and a link to his PG page? Does he need something better than that? Thanks!
Yes that will work to get the ball rolling. Include his GPA in the email. For D1’s, make sure to send the emails to the Recruiting Coordinator, not the Head Coach. Possibly include the pitching coach in the email but the the RC is the main target. Cast a wide net and see what types of responses he gets
Good luck!
And as I said, we have no video other than brief clips from PG and the like. Would it be helpful for a coach to see a clip on Twitter or should film be longer?
@3and2Fastball posted:Yes that will work to get the ball rolling. Include his GPA in the email. For D1’s, make sure to send the emails to the Recruiting Coordinator, not the Head Coach. Possibly include the pitching coach in the email but the the RC is the main target. Cast a wide net and see what types of responses he gets
Good luck!
Thank you! Nobody can reply until September of his junior year right? So basically he will send emails but outside of that, he shouldn’t expect reply’s or contact for over a year? I know he is going to ask me why he’s doing all of this when nobody can actually talk to him. I assume it’s so next summer, schools that like him know there is mutual interest. Thank you for the help!
College coaches can talk to a player if the player calls them. At any age, a college coach can contact the travel coach, and say, "have Johnny call me on Thursday at 4 pm," and talk all they want. So, if you send emails, make sure to put the travel coach's contact info in them.
I'd suggest you read some of the recent threads about changes to D1 recruiting post-covid, such as these:
https://community.hsbaseballwe...58#74092072350997958
@anotherparent posted:College coaches can talk to a player if the player calls them. At any age, a college coach can contact the travel coach, and say, "have Johnny call me on Thursday at 4 pm," and talk all they want. So, if you send emails, make sure to put the travel coach's contact info in them.
I'd suggest you read some of the recent threads about changes to D1 recruiting post-covid, such as these:
https://community.hsbaseballwe...58#74092072350997958
Thank you, I’ll read them now.
@Northeastmom posted:Thank you, I’ll read them now.
Read them twice
@Northeastmom posted:Thank you! Nobody can reply until September of his junior year right? So basically he will send emails but outside of that, he shouldn’t expect reply’s or contact for over a year? I know he is going to ask me why he’s doing all of this when nobody can actually talk to him. I assume it’s so next summer, schools that like him know there is mutual interest. Thank you for the help!
Coaches can reply via email to express interest via asking for more information and/or asking for playing schedules. The ones that are very interested will ask for more video, too. You will get plenty of invites to attend school’s camps and you will need a trusted advisor (hopefully within his travel program) to decide if/when and where he should attend.
Just finished reading them. What the threads don’t answer for me is what to do with a kid like my son. It’s very difficult to advise your child in this environment. He’s a typical kid in that he loves baseball and wants to play. Soon he expects to hit 90mph. Junior year he’ll have a new goal and so on. The grind never stops because he looks at pitching as his craft.
Would he love to play for MLB? Sure. Does he expect to? No. He has an A average in honors classes and has a major chosen to lead to a career.
He wants to stay in the Northeast so juco down South won’t work. He also would like to make friends in college, not transfer 4 times.
So let’s say he hits 90 plus by next summer. Let’s say numerous d1 schools show interest. How do I advise a kid like that? I’d put money on him throwing at least 93-94 by senior year. He could go to the local d3 and be a stud, but looking at their rosters that isn’t the right fit. Maybe a low mid major? How do we know where a kid like that can get a (what used to be) normal college athlete experience without being burned out, forced to transfer, etc? He isn’t distracted by the shiny lights of big name D1’s. He wants normalcy for those college years. On the other hand he believes in himself and his work ethic. He will go to a higher d1 if he believes he can compete. As parents we can only advise but ultimately he will be making this choice. I want to advise well.
Northeastmom you have a pm.
If your son wants stability, is a good student and wants to stay in the Northeast I'd recommend looking at the Ivies. Because of their admissions standards they'll likely be immune to the new Wild West transfer environment. They were also quite competitive this year, with Penn and Columbia as two of the strongest teams in the Northeast.
@TPM posted:Northeastmom you have a pm.
Thank you, I replied!
@K9 posted:If your son wants stability, is a good student and wants to stay in the Northeast I'd recommend looking at the Ivies. Because of their admissions standards they'll likely be immune to the new Wild West transfer environment. They were also quite competitive this year, with Penn and Columbia as two of the strongest teams in the Northeast.
I’m not sure of the admission standards at Ivies. He is a good student but not valedictorian. It’s a path we will consider though, thanks.
He’ll need a 1250-1300 SAT for an Ivy and a solid, not perfect, GPA. The better the player the more flexibility they have. I have not heard of them going below 1250 though.
@Northeastmom posted:And as I said, we have no video other than brief clips from PG and the like. Would it be helpful for a coach to see a clip on Twitter or should film be longer?
More video. If you need it you have it. Having at bats against already committed or known studs can be helpful. A bullpen with the camera behind the catcher with a pocket radar and view showing movement could be helpful too.
Get a SAT/ACT scheduled and do at least some prep so your kid has the timing ok enough to finish most/all of test. Then you have a baseline to operate from. If he scores ok that can be a helpful piece to a R/C to know your kid is close or can get into their institution.
Consider doing something like PBR/PG or a private session with trackman that shows velo/spin/movement on different pitches that can be shared in recruiting process and be an opportunity to measure and improve as a P.
Patriot League schools would be a strong academic D1 options. They’re a step below Ivies. Also check out some of the Colonial (CAA) schools.
If you’re in the northeast schools by the name of Harvard and MIT overshadow other schools. Some people don’t understand how good they are. Northeastern (CAA) has a quality baseball program and great academics.
@Northeastmom posted:His travel team is excellent. This summer he played in front of PG scouts and PBR scouts and gotten recognition. He played ...
All that is great, but specifically what is his coach doing for him other than bringing him to these places? The tournaments and showcases are good to go to, but who is talking to the colleges about his makeup, his development, speaking to his talent and the potential he has, if he's coachable, what he does well, what he doesn't, if he learns fast?
Getting in front of schools is good. Getting in front of them and performing is very good. But these colleges are watching kids all day everyday throughout the summer. There are a lot of talented players they come across. The difference between your son and another player may just be the conversation the college coach has with a third party who can vouch for the other kid.
Who is the school going to take? Player A who looks good when they see him. Or Player B who looks good when they see him and has a reliable source who can attest to his ability to be able to play at his level.
Emails are a good place to start. But would coaches rather sift thru hundreds of emails a day or pickup the phone once and be handed a player for them to come watch on a platter?
The recruiting game has changed. Like I said emails are a good place to start, but unless there is some extraordinary size/talent, it's hard to stand out from the pack. Almost every kid that has been recruited to D1s in the past 3-4 year (that I know) has been linked to the school they committed to via a travel/instructor connection.
Send some emails. But if you're paying to play high level travel ball, they need to hold up their end of the bargain. If it hasn't been done already, it is definitely worth sitting down with the head honchos at the travel program and discussing the proper path to navigate with you asking what level/conferences they see him being a fit at and what connections they have to make that happen. It is better to know now than learn in two years whether his coaches can or can't pick up the phone and call programs your son may be a good fit at.
@PABaseball is spot on. The single most influential thing in recruiting is having an advocate with baseball credibility that will call college coaches on behalf of your son. This is more important than metrics, more important than looking good in front of PG & PBR representatives (they are not scouts), and way more important than social media follows. Which mean absolutely nothing. Find the most credible person that absolutely believes in your son. It may be a coach, a scout, or a private instructor. But he must really know your son and have legit connections. When you have found that person explain your plan to him and put it into motion.
Thanks to Adbono, PAbaseball, and everyone else who has replied or messaged me. Your advice has been very helpful. I am fairly confident my son’s coaches are having the appropriate conversations now. He hit metrics this winter but had not pitched an inning of high school baseball or played in one PG tournament. He was totally unknown recruiting wise and had to prove himself this summer, which I believe he did.
Unfortunately this is a kid who never thinks his stuff is good enough. He’s the kind of kid who could be ranked 2nd in the state at his position and would feel pissed off he isn’t good enough to be first. This makes recruiting tough because he doesn’t want to ask his coaches anything and appear cocky.
Thank you again. Your advice was invaluable and helps him get started. I’m sure I’ll be back reading and possibly posting as the process starts rolling.
Don’t assume anything with the travel coaches. Your son should know what they’re doing. My son’s 17u coaches were contacting college programs with his metrics before he played his first varsity game soph year. Then before each tournament or showcase the college coaches stated they would attend the travel coaches made contact before the event and updated my son.
@RJM posted:Don’t assume anything with the travel coaches. Your son should know what they’re doing. My son’s 17u coaches were contacting college programs with his metrics before he played his first varsity game soph year. Then before each tournament or showcase the college coaches stated they would attend the travel coaches made contact before the event and updated my son.
Thanks, this is a good standard to know.
@Northeastmom, you have had a lot of information thrown at you in a short period of time. By well meaning people that know what they are talking about. It can be a bit overwhelming. But remember one thing in particular. No two journeys are the same. When it gets right down to it there is only one person that clearly understands your son’s goals, dreams, and desires. And that’s not you. It’s your son. So communicate well and build a plan together. He needs to be a big part of the process. The more he buys in now the more likely he is to have a good experience in college.
NEmom …If your son believes at some point he’s a prospect for a top fifty or so program go to adbono’s profile and find his posts about what is happening to D1 prospects who aren’t top pro prospects since the Covid eligibility extension, transfer portal and not having to sit a out a year anymore when transferring.
The short version is if you’re a college coach do you take a transferring 20-22yo man who has proved himself in college ball or an incoming college freshman who hasn’t proved himself and probably needs to gain twenty pounds and strength.
@RJM posted:NEmom …If your son believes at some point he’s a prospect for a top fifty or so program go to adbono’s profile and find his posts about what is happening to D1 prospects who aren’t top pro prospects since the Covid eligibility extension, transfer portal and not having to sit a out a year anymore when transferring.
The short version is if you’re a college coach do you take a transferring 20-22yo man who has proved himself in college ball or an incoming college freshman who hasn’t proved himself and probably needs to gain twenty pounds and strength.
This post is very much guiding our process. Leading it possibly. We have no idea where he’ll end up overall. Maybe he tops out at 88 and can’t ever get beyond that. Maybe he gets injured. Maybe he hits 90 sophomore year and next summer the process kicks into overdrive. Right now he appears to be on a mid to high d1 track, but in my mind that’s low to mid d1 knowing the kind of experience he wants. Reading horror stories I want him no where near the top 50 blood bath. I don’t care if he’s sitting at 96 summer before senior year. It’s just not a business model he or I are interested in. Hoping the process changes and student athletes end up actually mattering again.
The higher up the D1 food chain a player goes in recruiting the more it’s about winning and academics becomes about passing more than the major and the student-athletes post college future away from baseball. The top coaches are paid a lot to win. They’re most interested in players who can keep them at the top. It’s how they fed their family and pay the mortgage.
I'm going to be the bad guy on emails.
Yes, my son did them summer after sophomore year. He didn't want to do them. "Do you know how many kids want to play college baseball? Do you know how many kids email coaches? It would be impossible for a coach to read them all." But, I forced him to do it.
We were very select. We didn't email any schools he wasn't interested in. And, we didn't email any schools where he had no chance of attending because of academics, expenses or playing ability level. Still, we had a fair number of schools that he emailed - Jucos, D3, D2 and D1. He also used a subject line on the emails that people recommended that he use to get attention.
I would say that the response rate was maybe around 10%, give or take. And most of the response rate was an invitation to look at their camp schedule and attend a camp. (In other words, we're probably not interested in you but we wouldn't mind taking some of your money.)
Two outcomes that I will always remember.
One was from a local D1 where the HC has a strong tie to our HS. He said he was very excited to talk more and would be calling directly the following week. But, he never called.
The other was an email sent to the recruiting coach at a D2. He never responded at all. This is the same recruiting coach who gave us a walking tour of the campus months later after the HC offered my son a scholarship to attend the school. Same school he will be attending this fall. (HC learned of my son via his travel coach who has a relationship with the HC.)
I'm not saying that emails can't work and I would never tell someone not to do them. I am just saying that they're more of a Hail Mary Pass than they are a sure thing. And, you shouldn't be relying on them to be what makes it happen - no matter how many times you hear a coach say "I open and read every email."
@Francis7 posted:I'm going to be the bad guy on emails.
Yes, my son did them summer after sophomore year. He didn't want to do them. "Do you know how many kids want to play college baseball? Do you know how many kids email coaches? It would be impossible for a coach to read them all." But, I forced him to do it.
We were very select. We didn't email any schools he wasn't interested in. And, we didn't email any schools where he had no chance of attending because of academics, expenses or playing ability level. Still, we had a fair number of schools that he emailed - Jucos, D3, D2 and D1. He also used a subject line on the emails that people recommended that he use to get attention.
I would say that the response rate was maybe around 10%, give or take. And most of the response rate was an invitation to look at their camp schedule and attend a camp. (In other words, we're probably not interested in you but we wouldn't mind taking some of your money.)
Two outcomes that I will always remember.
One was from a local D1 where the HC has a strong tie to our HS. He said he was very excited to talk more and would be calling directly the following week. But, he never called.
The other was an email sent to the recruiting coach at a D2. He never responded at all. This is the same recruiting coach who gave us a walking tour of the campus months later after the HC offered my son a scholarship to attend the school. Same school he will be attending this fall. (HC learned of my son via his travel coach who has a relationship with the HC.)
I'm not saying that emails can't work and I would never tell someone not to do them. I am just saying that they're more of a Hail Mary Pass than they are a sure thing. And, you shouldn't be relying on them to be what makes it happen - no matter how many times you hear a coach say "I open and read every email."
I have read that dm’s might be the better way to go. Then a coach can click your profile and see all of your Scouting reports, etc as long as you shared them. Maybe that is the better way to go.
@Northeastmom posted:6’1 and sits mid 80’s, tops high 80’s.
Those are elite metrics for a 2025. I don't know much about recruiting in the Northeast but in my area players like that are either committed or being heavily recruited.
The travel coach should be able to get the type of schools your targeting interested with minimal effort as long as he can throw some strikes.
Good luck and keep us posted!
@DaddyBaller posted:Those are elite metrics for a 2025. I don't know much about recruiting in the Northeast but in my area players like that are either committed or being heavily recruited.
The travel coach should be able to get the type of schools your targeting interested with minimal effort as long as he can throw some strikes.
Good luck and keep us posted!
Thanks, I think there could be more going on behind the scenes than I realize. i really appreciate the advice!
Don't forget about your son's academics; luckily, his early talent means that he really has a good chance of getting ahead of the curve. If he is interested in the Ivies, be sure to take an academic track that is acceptable there. Remember, he still will have to pass Calc I in freshman year at whatever HA college he attends, and everyone else in the class will be overly prepared. He should be as well.
If, on the other hand, he wants to attend highly competitive baseball program, he has the academic ability now to take a lot of AP classes to earn early college credit. This credit might be extremely helpful if he wants to enter the draft after junior year. If he is on track to graduate college early because of his advanced credit/standing, he will be free to do what he wants in the draft at that time. Sometimes scouts say players can leave the minors in September and finish a semester, but often that is not realistic for the player. Looking back, I'd even counsel taking some credit at a community college online in the summer during high school. There's often a lot of down-time on the tournament cycle with bus rides, etc. When your son is over 16 and earns this type of credit, it should be transferrable to public universities, so long as it is a "standard" gen. ed class (language, math, history, etc.). In short, he might plan now to finish college early. (This advice is not applicable to the Ivy league schools, btw, which often have strict residency and academic major requirements.)
Recruiting emails are an everything to gain and nothing to lose proposition. Any attention is one more than nothing. But the best way to be noticed is an advocate. The advocate is the travel coach or instructor with credibility and contacts. He makes calls to colleges coaches on behalf of the player. He presells the player before tournaments and showcases.
In a handful of cases the college coach told my son’s travel coach he remembers the email. The way to be remembered in an email is advertise any top level tool. For my son it was his foot speed. Stats are mostly meaningless. They’re relative to the competition.
I’ll play devils advocate a little. How soon does your son want to make a decision and how many regular conversations does he really want to have with coaches? Third question is l does he have an absolute favorite school that is NOT following him in some way? The reason I am asking is because getting actively/heavily recruited can be a lot for a younger player and your son still has time. Unless he’d like to commit early or has a dream school who is not pursuing him (I WOULD reach out to them), I would argue that you can consider postponing reaching out directly to schools for a little bit longer. Now might be a good time to do one or two camps of schools that he really likes to get him on campuses and in front of the right coaches. Despite what it feels like, you still have time… even for a high-level P5. And more time will give you a better sense of where your son might really end up. For reference, at around the same time in my sons journey we did one SEC camp and one ACC camp. And he starting putting his list together (and, nerd that I am, I started my spreadsheet). He did not do emails until the beginning of the next summer season.
I agree with everyone’s comments about the importance of a travel coach.
*full disclosure I have a pre-COVID position player but what I say about the crazy days of full recruitment is true. And I think pitchers always have slightly more time. Sometimes kids commit just to end it and not because they are ready to make the right decision.
@RHP_Parent posted:Remember, he still will have to pass Calc I in freshman year at whatever HA college he attends, and everyone else in the class will be overly prepared. He should be as well.
Good points, but one small correction: no school that I know (including very HA) requires all its students to pass calculus. Some majors require calculus, but not necessarily freshman year.
@Northeastmom posted:Thank you! Nobody can reply until September of his junior year right? So basically he will send emails but outside of that, he shouldn’t expect reply’s or contact for over a year? I know he is going to ask me why he’s doing all of this when nobody can actually talk to him. I assume it’s so next summer, schools that like him know there is mutual interest. Thank you for the help!
Sending emails is an invitation to get camp invites, which isn't necessarily a terrible thing. Summer after sophomore year we picked three camps — a D1, a D2 and a D3 — all at different size schools (small, medium and large). We went to each and toured campus, met professors and he went to the camp. It was a great chance for him to get a feel for the size of school he liked, the amenities he cared about and the subjects he was interested in studying. We didn't really know how good he was until at the D1 camp a coach asked where else he was looking and we said "we don't even know if he's a D3 guy, D1 or what" and he looked startled and said, he should be here — a big help for us figuring out where to focus.
Through that process, he also learned to carry on a conversation with adults about education and to talk to coaches about baseball, which all paid off when the recruiting started in earnest the next year. And I honestly was surprised later that coaches really tried to manage our campus visits. A couple seemed offended when I said we were meeting with faculty in his area of interest or he was sitting in on a class — shocked that we would set something up for ourselves.
A very well written email (with video) combined with a great subject header, that sticks out
can produce results..
@Northeastmom make sure your son has or is working on a twitter account that can be used for baseball (posting video, metrics, congratulating teammates/friends on commitments, etc. My son had success with targeted emails and twitter. Twitter is nice imo because coaches can follow without commenting and DM’s are a nice feature as well.
