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First time here in a few years...I have a 2024 RHP touching 90 as a jr. with a 70% strike percentage and IVB on par with MLB pitchers for his off-speed. 6'1 195 and plus 4.0 with AP and Honors classes. Of course, apparently in-state universities don't go by weighted scores I've been told. My son is not focused on social media and right now I feel like it's to his determent with being scouted. My big question is when/where do we get an advisor? We need someone to help with the recruiting who has experience with elite athletes. Thank you!

Last edited by Beisbol Life
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Hello Beisbol,

I must admit, in initially reading the post I thought this was clickbait or one of the posters that's always pulling everyones legs - maybe it is... A highly academic junior touching 90 with an exit velocity above 100, should already have some buzz assuming they've been impactful on the field.

As for advisors, the kid was sitting 92-94 as a juco freshman and I had no idea what an advisor was (your future agent and someone who's going to get 5% of your kids signing bonus is what they are - but it's a handshake agreement). When the kid hit 97, that's when people started showing up, asking to be an advisor and wanting to help.

I think some college coaches have advisors they will recommend, but it's always best to get lots of references. My son's agent, is his former 10u hitting instructor - it's a small world, and before you think that's silly, he's also Judge's agent and really great person.  

Last edited by JucoDad

Do you have a travel coach?  He should be your first advocate, that's part of what you are paying for.

As a note, some state universities (Arizona, maybe CA) do ask applicants to input all their unweighted grades, and only looks at core classes.  Many other state schools (and privates) just take the school transcript with whatever GPA is reported (my son only reports weighted).  Regardless, they are going to look for AP and honors classes.

Thanks for your response, JucoDad. No, clickbait. That was funny to read. Exactly!  You would think there would be a lot more buzz with these metrics. This is why I'm glad that the Area Code tryout metrics are public knowledge. That should be enough verifiable information to get more buzz started. Plus heading to AL in July for a top PG tournament. We need to pick up on a team for Jupiter since our travel team can't leave the state to play since they're associated with a university and something about an NCAA rule. Not sure on that one. I'm hoping his guidance counselor at school can offer some help since his gpa is so high.

Thank you, anotherparent! Almost everywhere I turn everyone keeps saying grades, grades, grades. That's great because my son has A's with Honors and AP and has been in a self-contained highly-gifted classroom from 3rd - 8th grade. Then I hear, well in-state schools don't care about Honors or AP just the regular GPA - and yes we're in AZ. It's just frustrating because I really don't see much of a benefit with baseball and high grades. Maybe I'm missing something, I'm just not sure what it is.

Don’t compare a high school player with anything MLB unless you expect him to be a top draft pick out of high school. Now, that we’re past that are you looking for an advisor for college? Or pros? 90 isn’t elite relative to pros. It’s expected for better D1 college programs.

More often than not a paid advisor for college recruiting is a waste of money. You can learn everything you need to know on this site. Ask questions. There are plenty of very experienced people. Most important, there are many people experienced with the effects on recruiting with extra Covid eligibility, the new transfer rules (instant eligibility) and the transfer portal.

Your son’s first point of reference/advisor/advocate should be his travel coaching staff. Every program my son communicated with started with his travel coach contacting the college coach and telling him he had a player he believed would fit their program that should be checked out.

Colleges as a whole don’t recognize weighted gpa because there isn’t a national standard. GPA can vary from state to state, even district to district. The better academic institutions will ask about the level of courses. If your son is that academically inclined he should attend high academic showcases like Head First.

Showing up at a PG event to throw spaghetti off the wall and see what sticks is not a good idea. Your son needs an advocate to presell him. Many D1’s are mostly done recruiting for 2024 unless they’re overwhelmed by an available talent.

Good luck.

Last edited by RJM

PitchingFan, actually both. We have a few top choices, and this past summer at LakePoint my son was hitting homers and had a no-hitter against a top team with several D1 commits. Our coach told us there was interest from Kent State, Louisville, and some others, but we didn't know what to do going forward. We didn't really know that coach because it was a national team with boys from all over. He has this year and next year left for hs, and I have no doubt he will be sitting low 90's routinely which is where high school draftable players are at according to BA. Yes, he's high academically, but all he wants to do is play baseball. He would go straight from hs if you could especially since the money is there if you decide to go to college later on from what I've been told.

The advice (my opinion) is free, but milage will vary... You should never consider the draft out of HS unless your kid is going to receive life changing money.  What is life changing money, I guess that depends on your perspective. Figure half the signing bonus goes to taxes and agent's fee (somebody needs to negotiate with the teams). So you get $1M signing bonus, and immediately it's around $500K. The average time it takes a HS player to get a shot at the MLB is 6 or more years, figure a burn rate of about $30K or more per year (training, tools and good nutrition cost way more than the $1,200 before taxes in the minors) and you've got about $250K left after 6 years - that's assuming no large "I got drafted!" spends. Is $250K plus interest life changing if he doesn't beat the odds and make the MLB, when he only has a HS education?

If you have a high achiever academically, (and you're not a top 3 round player) why not leverage that to get a diploma at a school that means something? Is Stanford too much of a stretch, I don't know but if it's my kid I'm going to find out. There's are a ton of opportunity in the Ivy league schools and 90 as a junior should at least open the conversation.  

My son was not the academic type, his plan B was to join the Coast Guard if the baseball thing didn't work out. He had no recruiting interest beyond JUCO (he attended their camps / tried out), but he got his AA, transferred to a D1, did one year and then was drafted. I feel he likely got to the MLB in about the same time he would have if he'd had an opportunity out of HS (7 years from HS), except he has an associate degree, a year toward a bachelors, and 3 less years of burn on his signing bonus.

Last edited by JucoDad

There’s a huge difference between interest and being recruited. When a player is being recruited there is ongoing conversation between the player and the coach in charge of recruiting. There’s also a huge difference between Louisville and Kent State. Louisville is one of the programs I mentioned that is likely done recruiting 2024’s unless they’re overwhelmed by a talent.

Your son doesn’t have two years left. He has next summer. After that, in most cases the only thing left is whether or not he gains acceptance to an Ivy if it’s a route he takes.

Thank you, anotherparent! Almost everywhere I turn everyone keeps saying grades, grades, grades. That's great because my son has A's with Honors and AP and has been in a self-contained highly-gifted classroom from 3rd - 8th grade. Then I hear, well in-state schools don't care about Honors or AP just the regular GPA - and yes we're in AZ. It's just frustrating because I really don't see much of a benefit with baseball and high grades. Maybe I'm missing something, I'm just not sure what it is.

Yes, you're missing this: with a 4.0 in honors and AP classes, your son will potentially have the following opportunities:

- admission to a top academic school - Stanford, Ivies, Duke, etc. - some of those give athletic scholarships, but all give need-based financial aid (on parental income) to everyone who is admitted.

-  a hefty academic scholarship to many state schools.  That matters because college baseball scholarships almost never cover 100% of the cost of college.  If the student's GPA is above a certain number (3.5?) then you can use academic money in addition to (stack with) any athletic scholarship, potentially covering the full cost of college, and making the college coach happy because you are easier to support.

AZ state schools have weird applications, but most states are not like that.

Re: advisors, I agree that you do need advice from someone knowledgeable.  You can get lots of information from this site, but no-one here knows your son.  If a travel coach this summer told you that Kent State and Louisville were interested, you should follow up with that coach, and ask him where things are now for your son.  Surely you could also ask the in-state travel organization coaches for advice?

@adbono posted:

IMO you should substitute I am That Guy for Beisbol Life and then this thread starts to make sense.

That was my initial take, but who knows maybe he is as clueless as I was when my kid was nearing 90 as a junior (actually, I'm not sure anyone could have been more clueless than me) . It's Christmas, I'm going to follow Ted Lasso's lead and "Believe"...

If you're looking for a little baseball sarcasm, try this: https://twitter.com/coachcasey13u - the best part is the tweet responses that think this guy is serous - #BeElite

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Last edited by JucoDad

I never thought about taking my son going straight to the pro's until @PitchingFan recommended the option of heading to the Dominican Republic.  Also I never claimed my son was an elite athlete but rather stipulated the obvious to all that have seen him play, he's a top tier SEC level player. Beisbol life is one step ahead of me.  I am spending Christmas with our new advisor, Domingo Ayala.  We will see if he recommends a similar path to pro's for us.  At this point given the refusal of any D1 to formally offer him the pro's seems like the logical choice.  Genius really.  

** I am not Beisbol Life

Last edited by IAmThatGuy

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