Can anyone provide some insight into being a redshirt player?
ex: If a team has 48 players in the Fall, I assume they will cut a few for spring and redshirt others? Because they have to get to 25 by Spring roster deadline, correct?
When you are redshirted, if the team has 35 active players are the redshirt players allowed to practice? What happens to athletic scholarships in these situations?
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This is a perfect question for 3FG, but since I haven't seen him around lately, I'll take a stab. D1 allows a maximum of 35 players on a roster. Teams can carry less than 35, and often do. The Roster is set the day before the first game in the spring.
Only 27 players can be on scholarship. Teams do not have to give scholarships to the full 27, and sometimes do not.
If a kid is on scholarship, he is for all intents and purposes on the Roster. He can still be run off during the fall, but unless the NCAA grants some sort of exception/waiver, he still counts as one of the 35. Waivers used to be dang near impossible. I have HEARD that is no longer the case, but I've been out of the loop for awhile.
Technically, a redshirt is a scholarship player on the roster who does not play enough to lose a year of eligibility. The term is often used for non-scholarship guys as well, but as I understand it, it is not technically the same thing.
The key to your question is whether the player is on the Roster. If he is, he practices with the team. If he is not, he cannot. However, like any other student, he can sometimes use the baseball facilities. If a non-scholarship player is cut in the fall, some people say he is a redshirt. He is NOT, and cannot practice with the team. Some teams have been known to say that such players are on the "practice squad." This is BS. There is no such thing under NCAA rules.
Hope this helps.
Not sure if all situations are handled alike but this was my son's team scenario last spring. Total of 41 players finished the fall on the roster..6 were informed they were red-shirting and did not return for practice with the team following the Christmas break which left the 35 roster players practicing following the return from Christmas break. 3 others including my son were informed mid-season they were also red-shirting. One additional player received 1 at bat in the spring and was informed at season's end he would be better off attending a juco this year. The 3 mid-season red-shirts including my son were informed at season's end they could return for this year but they would probably receive no more than 20-50 at bats and would be better off attending a juco this year although it was not presented quite that eloquently. Two of the three took that route including mine. Of the six players informed they were red-shirting prior to spring practice beginning two are on the roster this fall. In total nine players were red-shirted last year and three remain in the program which I believe is a pretty normal red-shirted player retention rate among D1 programs. I hope this helps illustrate what I think is a likely red-shirt scenario. Of the nine total red-shirted players (all freshmen) I know that at least four of them were scholarship players.
Redshirts count towards the 35. So if there are 41 that make it thru fall it is highly likely that the 6 that were redshirted were non scholarship players or else they would count towards the 35. Which means they were basically cut with the option to be brought back the following season; unless there was a waiver situation which I'm not entirely sure how that works but I believe it pertains to injury/grades. Once a player takes a single AB or throws a single pitch he loses a year of eligibility unless he gets injured doing it, then he can apply for a medical redshirt but there are cutoffs and deadlines for that too.
Redshirt isn't the end of the world if the pitching staff is loaded with draft talent or senior heavy or if the starter at your position is leaving after the season. But oftentimes if you're a freshman sitting behind a sophomore the writing is on the wall that you may need to get out.
MTH is right on the fact you cannot be a red-shirt without being on scholarship officially. They may call it that but you are just a college student who didn't play baseball. The biggest problem with a non-scholarship player that is called a red-shirt is the fact that they cannot officially practice with the team and many times cannot use the facilities. They are put on an island. The hope is that the good coaches tell them before they leave for Christmas break that their services will not be needed this spring and they can find a place to play. There are those who stick it out and work through it but it is a lonely world and hard to get any better when you are doing it all by yourself.
An official red-shirt which is a scholarship player just not playing that year and keeping an additional year of eligibility is they can do anything in practice since they are officially on the roster. They can pitch live bp in practice and get live at bats so they actually can get game experience without burning eligibility.
Hope that answers your questions. I am willing to bet the kid who was mentioned who had 1 at bat was put in as a medical redshirt of some form. The NCAA does not really question medically if there was minimal play when a team turns in a player for medical redshirt because their deadline is mid season. The participation has to be limited and in many determinations not impactful on the overall outcome of the season.
Why wouldn't it be a "red-shirt" if you are on the spring roster, not on scholarship and don't play an inning? If you don't play, then you are eligible to red-shirt correct? It is my understanding that the red-shirt cant actually be determined until after the season is over, although coaches may not play you with "intent" of red-shirting the player at year end. The way I am reading the thread is that the players in the fall are actually "cut" and not on the spring roster so no red-shirt.
I believe that we are all assuming OP was asking about D1 with roster limits. D2 I believe can carry as many players as they like and if you don't play or coach doesn't intend to play you, you can "red-shirt" and save that year of eligibility. The coach may even tell you he is "red-shirting" the player in the fall. In those cases the players can and do practice with the team, but dont dress for games.
The term red shirt is used separate from the NCAA word redshirt. The NCAA word redshirt means you count against a roster spot so you were put on the roster by the coach or you are on scholarship. The NCAA redshirt means you get an additional year on the roster spot. A player who was not on roster is never redshirted by NCAA they are just a student who has 5 years to play 4 years. It is a word thing but it is different. Not trying to be a pain but the word redshirt does not apply to a non rostered player. it can be used in a conversation but they are not officially redshirted.
It is no different than the term walk-on. A true walk-on shows up at the tryout date and is given a chance to earn a spot. Anyone who is guaranteed a spot on the roster and allowed to practice the entire fall is considered a preferred walk-on. Just semantics but important semantics when it comes to determination of the player's role with the school.
Words are thrown around which really do not apply. I hear all the time that so and so is a walk-on and they are actually a preferred walk-on or a player is redshirted when they were never on the roster.
Before rosters were capped at 35, it was pretty common for some programs to keep 50-60 players on the "roster" just so they could say they "played" at Big State U. Can't do that anymore. Then some programs came up with "practice squads" or "developmental squads." There never was such a thing in the eyes of the NCAA, but it gave a few kids (or parents of kids) that had been cut the illusion of playing with Big State U. Never mind that they couldn't practice or work out with team after the cut date. Haven't heard this term used lately, but there could still be teams perpetuating the fallacy.
People like using the term "red shirt" in reference to players that were cut because it makes it sound like they were actually part of the team. They weren't/aren't. They're just kids that tried out and got cut. Of course, the "5 to play 4" rule allows them to move on without penalty if they choose to do so.
A redshirt can be a non-scholarship athlete. A redshirt can also be a true non-recruited walk-on. The term "redshirt" simply means that a student-athlete did not use one of their four seasons of competitive eligibility during that season.
Yes, it can be semantics. Sometimes it's just "coach-speak." Just like how the term "preferred walk-on" only means whatever that coaching staff intends it to mean in their mind.
What happens if a kid goes to a D1 which doesn't stack academic and athletic money, and he chose academic money because it was more, then gets hurt in the fall and will be out for the year? He can't be a redshirt because he's not on athletic scholarship. Does this mean he's on his own to rehab and get back into game shape?
You can redshirt without being on athletic aid, however I believe in this situation, if the player projects to be out for the season. They may more likely be cut and not have to use redshirt status, thereby still retaining the year of eligibility. Not an expert, but I think the confusing thing about redshirt and scholarship status is that if a player is receiving athletic aid and is redshirted, they are still a “counter” toward the 27 scholarship players allowed for a D1 roster.
Kind of off topic, but earlier this fall, I saw a tweet from a local parks department (fortunately not the school's account) congratulating two of their local kids for making the club team at a D1. The last sentence said "this is the JV team for XXXXXXXXX University" 
I guess that really depends on a few things. Again, not claiming to be an expert here, but the status of redshirt athlete as whether they are receiving athletic aid is a large part of it. Only 27 players can receive athletic aid on a D1 program. Redshirt or not, those 27 players will be rostered in spring. Incoming (new) freshmen who are receiving athletic aid may know before the season starts that they will redshirt. Many don’t know until the season plays out and the coach makes the decision those players won’t see the field. So it’s a lot of moving parts.
