Showball Northeast/Southeast D1 SHowcase Camp (25 Division I Schools)

Isn't that the same time as Area Codes in Long Beach? Most of those college coaches will be at the Area Codes which will have much better players. Something doesn't add up about those 25 colleges working the camp unless you are getting volunteers from those colleges.

Perhaps 10 or 15 years ago, I would have agreed with you, but times have changed and so have the area code games. You are correct, there is probably much better talent at the area code games, but we're not professing to have better talent. In fact, the area code games are for high school kids who are most likely pro prospects out of high school. We cater to the other vast majority of high school baseball players that are not. Most of us need a few years of college to develop and mature into a potential draftable player. In addition, I live out here on the west coast and can tell you that many schools simply DO NOT attend the area codes anymore because of the above stated reasons. Most if not almost all of those players are already committed to a program by that time. There is no disputing that. The coaches that do attend are there to watch their already committed players or perhaps the slight minority that are still undecided. In addition, most of those players will never step foot onto a college baseball field. TO answer your question, a lot of the schools on our list will not be attending the area codes and we always guarantee 100% attendance at our events. Even if we do have some volunteers working, they are still coaches and highly respected at their programs. It's not like they're some stiffs off the street volunteering their time. These are former collegiate and PROFESSIONAL players who are an integral part of the recruiting process. As a former professional player myself, I've formed many relationships with all of these programs and coaches over the years and am honored to have them as a part of our camp. No matter how you slice it, this is an unbelievable opportunity that no other organization will provide.

SFGiantdad

Just noticed that’s a lot of we and ours for someone who has posted the things you have. My question was to SHOWBALL the person who started this and then you came in. Who are you trying to pull one over on. All your other posts are about showball except they were coming from a dad who was talking about how great showball was for his sons. Great testimonials you gave coming from a dad.

March 4 2008 you posted

All in all, my son has went from not being on these schools recruiting radars to now having several offers. Ultimately, some of his college will now be paid for and I have to thank Showball for that opportunity. I would recommend this camp to anyone and everyone. Well worth every penny and then some.

May 26 2008 you posted

My son attended their last event at Dodger Stadium and my youngest is signed up for their At&t Park event. I can only say that my son had a wonderful experience. It was well organized and well run. To answer a couple of your questions, all schools were there as advertised. For my son, the most important thing was to make sure that the coaches had a chance to watch him play. Since the event took place at 1 field, he had a fair shake. Pricey at $650? Remember, your son is going to play on a major league baseball field with schools watching him. I think you have to do what is best for you and your son, but i believe showball is a class organization which i would recommend to anyone. Go Giants!

May 1 2009 you posted

My son has now been to 3 events (dodger stadium 07, at&t park 08" and dodger stadium 08). I really can not think of a better event. In response to Rob's comment about the coaches and volunteers, my son was at At&t park and of the 12 coaches there, only 3 were volunteers. I've been to a lot of other camps and the majority of the coaches there are volunteers. with 9 of the 12 coaches being there top assistants, i'd say that's pretty good. Anyhow, my son was recruited by the nevada wolfpack as a result of that event and recently committed to them. It's always been his dream to play Division I baseball and until then, only DII's had showed interest. If it weren't for that event, he would not be playing Division I. Everybody has an opinion and that is to be respected. I can only tell you from my experience how worth going it actually is. Good luck!

October 13 2009 you posted

My son's have attended 3 showball events in the past and there is indeed an instructional element to their events. If I remember correctly, the instruction took place on the 1st and 2nd days with games on the 2nd and 3rd days. At 1 of the events, they played 2 games on the 2nd days. I highly recommend trying out one of their events. Well run, organized and they deliver on eveything they promise.

November 9 2009 you posted

The bottom line is that they put you in front of 15 schools and give you an opportunity to play on a major league baseball field. While there may be 2 or 3 volunteers present, I've learned that even the volunteer assistants are extremely influential in the recruiting process. Nonetheless, I can proudly say that my oldest son received a scholarship to Nevada after one of the Showball events. Before that event at At&t Park, my son had never even heard from them or received any interest whatsoever. Even though I'm a little bias because of my son's sucess, I would recommend Showball. One last thing I learned during the recruiting process. Your chances of playing college baseball increase when more schools watch him play.

April 12 2010 you posted

Showball Baseball's Northeast/Southeast Division I showcase camp with 25 schools in St. Petersburg, FL Aug 7-8. I'm debating on whether to send my son. He's been to several of their west caost events and is now a 2011 Grad. I was thinking this might expand his opportunities of playing? Is it worth sending him with 25 schools? Any thoughts or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

That gets us to your last post April 22 2010

Perhaps 10 or 15 years ago, I would have agreed with you, but times have changed and so have the area code games. You are correct, there is probably much better talent at the area code games, but WE'RE not professing to have better talent. In fact, the area code games are for high school kids who are most likely pro prospects out of high school. WE cater to the other vast majority of high school baseball players that are not. Most of us need a few years of college to develop and mature into a potential draftable player. In addition, I live out here on the west coast and can tell you that many schools simply DO NOT attend the area codes anymore because of the above stated reasons. Most if not almost all of those players are already committed to a program by that time. There is no disputing that. The coaches that do attend are there to watch their already committed players or perhaps the slight minority that are still undecided. In addition, most of those players will never step foot onto a college baseball field. TO answer your question, a lot of the schools on OUR list will not be attending the area codes and WE always guarantee 100% attendance at OUR events. Even if WE do have some volunteers working, they are still coaches and highly respected at their programs. It's not like they're some stiffs off the street volunteering their time. These are former collegiate and PROFESSIONAL players who are an integral part of the recruiting process. As a former professional player myself, I've formed many relationships with all of these programs and coaches over the years and am honored to have them as a part of our camp. No matter how you slice it, this is an unbelievable opportunity that no other organization will provide.

Now we see that you are showball! Whats up! Do you really think that showball is the only place that has 25 DI coaches. Don’t talk down the Area Codes that would cost you credibility. Why with all your background and contacts did you need to have your sons attend any event. Better yet, why didn't you know which events have the most coaches and scouts. A turnout of 10 to 25 coaches is not anything special.

I hate it when people are dishonest and try to pull the wool over unsuspecting eyes. Unless there is something I don’t understand, you sir, are a fraud. No matter how good or bad showball might be it no longer matters if you are involved.

The Area Code Games is perhaps one of the finest showcases in the Nation. I do not believe anyone should talk down about them. They have a proven track record. Results do not lie.

Wow! perhaps you were reading a different post because if you read mine carefully, I did nothing but compliment the area codes for the quality of the players that they put out every year. As a matter of fact, I'm SURE i said that they were catered towards pro prospects. And i'm SURE I said that the showball event was NOT catered to attract that quality of player. If you read carefully (which apparently you did not), I referred to many of the programs not attending area codes for that very reason. Those players are so good that many of them will not step foot onto a college field. I'm not quite sure why you interpreted it the way you did, but that's okay. Nonetheless, I wanted to make sure that parents understood the opportunity that Showball provided for the typical high school baseball player.

Son just received invite letter from them today. Sure glad I found this post! Long live HSBaseballWeb!!!

Speed got his yesterday.....DITTO!!!!!

2014 got the letter yesterday. I went to the website and saw that they have listed the coaches planning on attending. My son is interested in several of the schools so I will be doing research on the coaches attending to see if they are worth our while. I do agree with others on this website that a lot of volunteer and assistant coaches can be great to get the recruitment process started. The most important part is to get the e-mails or letters out to those schools ahead of time to make sure they know you are interested. My 2011 had a lot of success of at least getting looks at showcases when he sent out advanced letters to coaches. Good luck this summer with all of your showcases and camps.

Be careful with Showball.....they put the incorrect graduation year in my son's data at their St Pete Showcase in December 2010.

Showball listed him as a 2011 and he is a 2012. The player only found this out when discussing his evaluation with his coach at the end of the Showcase.....Coach's reaction was, " wow, I have some interest now that I know you are a high school junior. I had no interest when I thought you were a 2011."

I emailed the Showball people and they said they would email each College coach in attendance to properly inform them. I will let you decide if you think that actually happened.

My son got one too. He is only a sophmore. Is it a waste of time for him?

quote:

Originally posted by luebs:
My son got one too. He is only a sophmore. Is it a waste of time for him?

The OP hasn't stepped up to respond to several posts here. So if you have read the other posts, you decide.

Yes, glad I found it also.

My son attended a west coast Showball event a few years ago when he was in the middle of recruiting. Three of the programs he was interested in were attending, so we did it.

I found that the organization is trying hard to give value. They had some extras - like college finance seminar for the parents and players. I knew most of that stuff, just because of the stage we were at in the process, but I am certain many of the parents found it helpful.

The showcase itself I thought was a bit lacking. The big problem was that it seemed the coaches there were mostly volunteer assistants, and did not seem to have much real recruiting interest.

It seemed to me that the strategy was to get a lot of college programs attending the showcase by giving spiffs to the volunteer assistants for their help in running it.

I just don't think that strategy provides much value to the customer, because volunteer assistants (or even interns, which was the case of one of the programs) often do not have much of a role in recruiting.

Just my experience. I am sure there are programs where this is not the case.

Uh oh....I see a post from infielddad in the near future.

quote:

Originally posted by 2013 Dad:
Uh oh....I see a post from infielddad in the near future.

I think Rob's post is very informative.
To me, it illustrates what invitees and their parent should know: (1) a number of volunteer assistant's attend, (2) that they are probably being paid by the showcase for services they are performing, and (3)that their role is pretty limited. It would be a pretty clear overreach of the by-laws of the NCAA for a Division I volunteer assistant to be (1) off campus at one of these functions with a view toward (2)recruiting or (3)evaluating talent/potential recruits.
For me, one major reason Bob Howdeshell started and MN-Mom continues this board is to provide solid, reliable information on the recruiting process supported by accurate and factual observations and experiences. Rob did a real nice job, in my view.

I agree it is an infomative post. Was just joking around based on the other thread, that's all.

I find this all very interesting as well.

Thanks guys this is helpful and timely info, as my son and his teammate both got the invite also. It does conflict with PG UNderclass up here in CT.


So my question for this group is: Perfect Game underclass showcase is that same weekend, and both boys (my son and his teammate) have signed up for that. My instinct says PG will be a better showcase this summer (they are both 2013s), to get the PG rating /into the database etc. Am I on target?

Next question, mom of other player and I want to know what coaches tend to go to PG showcases, vs this Showball? Are there all 'volunteer' level coaches watching PG underclass also? Or a mix? I know at PG they don't 'promise' certain coaches because they are not hiring them as staff as is the case with Showball and other showcases like that. But is the coach attendance at PG underclass strong?

Thanks for any input. And: Disclaimer! Nothing I said above was intended to criticise, show off or otherwise offend any HSBBW police. Don't want to start another duel.

quote:

Originally posted by BaseballmomandCEP:
Thanks for any input. And: Disclaimer! Nothing I said above was intended to criticise, show off or otherwise offend any HSBBW police. Don't want to start another duel.

Don't worry, very few on this site are actually like that.



I cannot speak to which level of coaches attend the PG underclass events because I have never been to one. However if my experience with their huge event in Jupiter this past October is any indication, the coaches who show are decision makers. I suspect since it is one of the premiere events most coaches know the talent pool will be worth attending.



That said, let me be clear that some of the Showball coaches were also decision makers. The same goes for the Top 96 events. So while I rate Perfect Game as the best event for exposure based on the sheer number of coaches in attendance, the other events I mentioned do provide some value.
Personally I think the Showball organization is getting mischaracterized based on the earlier post.
If SFGiantdad is connected to Showball, he might have been guilty of exaggeration or overzealous promotion of his event. Still it does not take away from the fact that they do have X amount of schools/coaches showing up at a particular event.

My suggestion would be to contact PG for information regarding who will be at the showcase if this is a big concern.

Not understanding the constant comparing of a wood bat tourney to showcases and camps, they are completely different things. There is really nothing that compares to Jupiter, is there?

Thanks, I will contact PG I think. Or maybe PG staff can chime in about who is coming and the exposure value at the PG NE underclass in August, if that is appropriate, since this has come up and there might be others reading who are researching the issue as well.

The boys are very excited about the schools listed in the Showball, many are on the top of their radar screens, and it sounds like a good program.

However, looking at costs, convenience and valuable exposure both 'live' at the events and in the PG database, I am leaning toward keeping the PG Underclass this summer. I think we are lucky to have one in our own back yard so to speak, instead of travel to FL. (Much as I love to travel to FL, 2x in one summer would break the bank).

As far as "comparing of a wood bat tourney to showcases and camps, they are completely different things" you are correct. I hope I am clear that I am comparing apples to apples with a PG showcase and a Snowball showcase.

Hopefully he will get to Jupiter this fall with his team or by joining another...sounds like that exposure is top notch. (Assuming he is at that level where it is justified of course.)

Thanks again, this is a helpful topic for many of us trying to make sound judgment calls on these expensive events.

BaseballmomandCEP,

Obviously I would be partial. We never know who is going to attend any event we have.

I think people should ask around, do the research, and do whatever they feel is best. If that is not PG, so be it.

Results are what count. Unfortunately, no one knows the results ahead of time. I will say that if a player has talent, PG is a proven legitimate choice. If the player doesn't have talent, there aren't any good choices.

It's just difficult to come on an open forum titled as this one is and start talking about us. I don't participate here with the goal of talking people into anything. If the boys would be happier and excited about going to some other event, I have no problem with that.

I don't want to sell you on anything. I sure can't promise you anything. I hope everything works out well for your boys no matter what they do.

Hope you understand.

My comment about comparison wasn't directed to you.

As mentioned it is the same time as the area code, no matter what the area code has evolved into, that is where the D1 coaches go before their players report to school. So as far as attendance for the showball, just might be many of those volunteer assistants. These types of showcases are geared towards instruction, not necessarily for recruiting (see Rob Kremers post). So if some are not geared towards recruiting, why would one expect the decision makers to be there?

I see that they have UF listed I will ask the coach who attends the showcase for them. I know he's in CA for area code.

I have no dog in this fight, nothing to gain, or lose, however, if I had limited funds it would go towards a showcase where I know that I will get proper evaluation to use for recruiting. These organizations are businesses, and for most that means they are going to make money. In that case, I would go to who does their business the best, that's for sure.

Keep in mind, for any event, make sure that the coaches that will be in attendance are from schools that are good fits for your player.

baseballmomandCEP,
I was going to stay out of this. Maybe I should. I can tell you and your son are working very hard on these decisions and looking for some input to use in the decision making.
First, our son has never attended a Showball Showcase as a player or coach. I know nothing beyond what I am reading and have read for a few years from the SF Giants poster in LA.
It is clear our son is a volunteer assistant at a DI program.
His school compliance office will not permit him to attend any off campus showcase in his capacity as a college coach/representative.
Here is a cut/paste of the NCAA by law:
"11.01.5 Coach, Volunteer. In sports other than football and basketball, a volunteer coach is any coach who does not receive compensation or remuneration from the institution’s athletics department or any organization
funded in whole or in part by the athletics department or that is involved primarily in the promotion of the institution’s athletics program (e.g., booster club, athletics foundation association). The following provisions
shall apply: (Revised: 1/10/92 effective 8/1/92, 4/26/01 effective 8/1/01)
(a) The individual is prohibited from contacting and evaluating prospective student-athletes off campus or
from scouting opponents off campus and may not perform recruiting coordination functions (see Bylaw
11.7.1.2). (Revised: 1/16/93, 1/11/94, 5/26/06)"

For you and your son, it isn't just the schools who are attending which should be important. In case you might not be aware, the NCAA limits college baseball to 3 paid coaches and they are the ones who can recruit off campus and evaluate off campus. As is being described, who is coming from the school is what makes a difference, along with the type of camp,i.e., instructional vs talent evaluation.
There is no jeopardy to your son if he attends and a volunteer assistant is sent and exceeds the NCAA limits on recruiting or talent evaluations.
But, as TPM emphasizes correctly, in my view, DI volunteer assistants are, perhaps, more likely to be there for instruction and as Rob noted, may well be paid for the instruction by the showcase.
Look, if your son is a significant talent, your knowledge and research and his skills are going to get him seen and recruited. From your posts and skills and knowledge, that is very clear to me.
If your son is like our son and many sons, a very nice player who does not jump off the skill/tool charts, it is very prudent to invest your hard earned money wisely.
I can tell you the Stanford Camp has 70-80 coaches attending and more who hang around. The 70-80 are all paid college head coaches or assistants who are there to evaluate and recruit.
If it were me and my son and my $$$$, I would want to know this type of information. Stanford does not post this in advance, but experience from many attendees and posters over the years is a solid foundation.
If you feel a 2013 like your son should showcase this Summer, I would continue your research on this board. If TPM, or others, can provide the assurance that the coaches at this type of Showcase are other than volunteer assistants, that should be helpful.
If the bulk are volunteer assistants, hopefully that will also be helpful, based on the by-law, in knowing what to expect, and whether it is what you want to achieve.
Good Luck. I hope you get your answers and make solid decisions with your son for his baseball future.

Thanks everyone for good perspective on this topic.

PG staff, didn't mean to put you on the spot, I really wasn't asking you to "Sell" your program vs. another. In hindsite, I realize my question seemed to do just that. My bad! It would be inappropriate in this kind of a forum.

All the input above simply helps parents and players consider factors they may not have known about. FYI, my question wasn't posted just to help my kid and his buddy, I think many folks out there are sorting through all this mail and wondering how to best spend the time / $$ and energies this season.

And --- up here we haven't even had a chance to start HS ball! Tryouts still happening, and we have more snow coming tomorrow and Thursday. Jeez! We are jealous of "all y'all" down South and out West who have been playing for a month.

Happy spring ---

quote:

Originally posted by BaseballmomandCEP:

As far as "comparing of a wood bat tourney to showcases and camps, they are completely different things" you are correct. I hope I am clear that I am comparing apples to apples with a PG showcase and a Snowball showcase.

I only used the Jupiter event as a means to say how the PG event was run, and the amount of decision making coaches at that event. My son also attended a PG showcase which was run in the same manner. The only reason I did not use it for a comparative analogy is because there were only pro scouts at that event. So despite the need by some to point out how a wood bat tourney differs from a showcase(which should be obvious), I would recommend a PG event over the Showball event, given a choice.

quote:

Originally posted by BaseballmomandCEP:

PG staff, didn't mean to put you on the spot, I really wasn't asking you to "Sell" your program vs. another. In hindsite, I realize my question seemed to do just that. My bad! It would be inappropriate in this kind of a forum.

---

Fortunately for anyone who sells a quality service or product, word of mouth from satisfied customers is the best advertisement. So despite PG Staff being humble and not wanting to promote his service directly, you can see by my posts I think PG events are top notch.
I do not have any affiliation with them, I am just a satisfied customer. Since I have seen a poorly run event, I am happy to report on the ones that are a value for people looking to expose their sons.

Good luck to you and your son this coming year.

Just a follow up, regarding any showcase promoter that advertises who will be at their showcase.

If there is a particular school you are interested in that you see on that list, contact them and ask if they will be attending and who on staff will be there. This should avoid any questions and no one has to place blame on anyone (oh yeah they were supposed to come but they didn't show up).

Take personal responsibility in knowing what you will be paying for at an event, by asking questions and gon't be afraid to ask.

Just some advice given to me to share and hope that this helps.

I was going to stay out of it but looks like these posts keep mysteriously getting off the subject of the thread and get pushed in the direction of Perfect Game. I felt like I had to chirp in after I saw the typical dogging of camps on this website. My Son attended Perfect Game in the Summer of 2010 & Showball winter 2010.

To be fair to Showball, this website is overrun with fulltimers on the Perfect Game Staff. Pumping their product. Small camps don't have a chance anymore. Why is a staff member of Perfect Game posting on a thread that is supposed to be about Showball? Perfect Game is a huge company with tremendous advertising power. Have you seen their advertisment on Wrigley Field? Or how about the fact that - PERFECT GAME IS THE MAIN SPONSOR OF THIS WEBSITE THAT YOU ARE READING! (That being said I'm sure this will be removed).

Anyway, sorry for my rant. Lets get down to business. The Perfect Game camp was worth the money. I like the staff as they were very polite and helpful through the whole process. It was a professionally run event. There were plenty of staff there to answer questions and I liked the evaluation process. Of course I wanted my son to be rated a 10 but according to them he's not even close. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder right? There were a few college coaches in attendance but as the gentleman stated above they did not guarantee coaches. For the cost and the fact he's now on the online database that coaches can search is a plus...(without his evaluation I hope, lol.) it's good value.

Showball puts on a good camp. What struck me is all the coaches actually attended. I was a little leery at first because I haven't heard of these guys before. It was a pretty impressive line-up of D1 Schools. 30 Coaches at once watching my Son take BP was a great experience. These coaches have to see him play before anything happens so why not "kill two birds with one stone". Again, the staff was polite and ready to answer any questions. I would rate it a very good bang for your buck. Priced the same as most camps but a lot more exposure.

Before the Showball camp I read a few things on this board and decided to call one of the college coaches listed on their website. I called Sammy Esposito from University of South Carolina to get a better feel for the camp from a Coaches perspective. Sammy had a lot of good things to say about the Showball organization. Seeing they just won the College World Series and he's been working with them for the last three years I took his word on it.

To get any reliable information on any camp here I would do my own research outside of this website & constrains of the main sponsor.

Question is - will this post get removed?

I sure hope your posting is not removed because all it shows is how little time you spend here. The PG poster is extremely professional and a valuable contributor. The praise of PG is earned. Perhaps you are more than a little miffed by the less than perfect rating they gave your player??? Your comment on SHOWBALL can be helpful to others but you lose credibility by ranting about site contributions by PG.

quote:

Originally posted by Rounder:
Before the Showball camp I read a few things on this board and decided to call one of the college coaches listed on their website. I called Sammy Esposito from University of South Carolina to get a better feel for the camp from a Coaches perspective. Sammy had a lot of good things to say about the Showball organization. Seeing they just won the College World Series and he's been working with them for the last three years I took his word on it.

To get any reliable information on any camp here I would do my own research outside of this website & constrains of the main sponsor.

Question is - will this post get removed?

You should go back and read over the entire thread and the other as well. I do beleive there were a few here who claimed they attended and did not feel they got value for what they paid, and they are not employed by PG.

You called Sammy Esposito, the volunteer assistant coach. Why not call Ray Tanner the HC. What does winning the CWS have to do with it? If Sammy attends the showcase see infielddad's post above, he, as an assistant coach can NOT evaluate off campus.

If you read above I made a suggestion. Anyone can take a college logo and post it on their site, in fact, I understand if they do not attend, this can be considered as false advertising and they SHOULD NOT unless they have absolute certainty that program will be coming (and who will it be).