Simply Unbelievable

I agree.  There is a lot of bad info out there.  It is based on misperception.  We see the college Football and Basketball empires played out everyday.  People tend to think that those "full rides" trickle down to all of the other sports.  Truthfully, I had no idea when I started reading this site several years ago.  I go back to my own "recruitment" 30 years ago and wish there was a place like this.  I would have been able to do things so much differently.  Kids these days don't know how good they have it. 

youngun - thanks for mentioning me but you are correct, the collective contribution here is enormous.  The collective IQ of the site is un-measurable compared to the knowledge that any one member may have.  Thus, depending on the issue, you are likely to get the best advice possible to make a decision.  All the best to you and your son in the future!  

Any time a kid goes to college to play a sport, it is assumed by most outsiders that the kid received a full ride scholarship. Even if the kid walked on or is at a DIII.

I know a lady whose daughter is a good Track athlete. Within a four year span, two of the runners from her daughter's track club were world class and received full rides to top programs. This set up the expectation that full rides were fairly common in collegiate T&F. I was telling her about partials and she brought up the example of the two runners on full rides. I had completely discounted those two athletes as anomalies, and assumed others would too.

younggun,

That was a great post, thank you. Sometimes I get down about this place, but then posts like yours helps to make me realize why I do come here. Mostly it is to give back for what I learned when I first came here.

By the way, the creator of this site is Bob Howdeswell and went online in 1998. Its all there in the welcome info. On HSbaseballweb.com.

I met a mom this season who is a die hard baseball fan (Yankee). She had a son, just like so many of us could hardly wait until he was old enough to play.

Unfortunetly her son was diagnosed with autism.   She could not bring him to a game because he feared the noise at the park.  It broke her heart. For what our kids take for granted he couldn't understand. Little things like being fearful the lights were on in the daytime.  Little stuff our boys would not think twice about  

She began to bring him to the local independent ball team's games.  He began to respond to atmosphere, the players, etc. Now entering HS he will be helping his HS team as a manager. She will be able to attend a HS game as a "parent".  She is so overjoyed.  She said it was a miracle.

I actually met her because she is a freelance photographer and takes pictures/video for the players, and for the team.  She told me it was her payback for what the game and the team did to help him to  develop a  love for baseball.  

Although these were not all of her words, you get the picture.

So younggun now it is your turn to give back. Instead of looking down at those that really have no clue,  its time to EDUCATE.  How you will go about doing that, you will figure out, but remember that there are many out there just as clueless as most of us were at one time! 

Enjoy the ride!

Wow TPM, what a story.  You are so right that we all take so much for granted.  I will give you a story of my own.  Several years ago when Buster Posey was a senior in high school, there was a kid his age I think that was bound to a wheelchair.  I am not exactly sure what caused his particular disability, but he was always present at the youth fields and the high school games.  This kid really LOVES baseball.  In the youth leagues, they would give him a bat and the coach would pitch him a ball underhand.  He would hit the ball and one of the coaches would roll him down to first base.  All the kids on both teams would cheer for him.  It was really an awesome site.  Anyway, Buster's senior year, the kid was sitting in his normal spot right behind home plate.  Buster is on deck and walks over to the kid before he steps in the box.  He leans down and says, "This one is for you."  The first pitch he gets Buster hits it out of left center field.  I sat there with a tear in my eye and my jaw on my chest.  I couldn't believe I had just witnessed what I saw.  All I can say is God is great and He loves baseball.  Hollywood couldn't dream up a script that good.

By the way, this kid is a HUGE fan of the school my son committed to.  Guess who was one of the first to congratulate my son on his commitment?  You guessed it!  My son went over to his house for some photo ops.  The kid is so excited and told my son he can't wait to make the 8 hour trip to watch my son play.  Unbelievable!!

No doubt about it, this is a special place.  It is really cool to read what people think from coast to coast and everywhere in between.  It is amazing that so many people are willing to share their experiences in order to help others.  

I know this is a baseball site, but it is so much more than that.  It is a site about kids and parents.  I know some quit being involved here once their son is done playing baseball.  That is too bad, because there are more important things than baseball.  I would be interested in hearing those stories about what has happened after playing baseball ends. That could be important to many, considering everyone will experience that at some point. 

Jerry,
I agree 100%.

I had an off-line conversation with one of our members on exactly this subject yesterday.  This is a member whose son had an excellent college career, but was not drafted.  However, he did earn a degree and landed a good job related to his major.  Baseball played an important role in the successful launch of a well-adjusted adult, and we need to hear more stories of this kind of success on this site.

Agree with what TPM said, but I would add that there is also other aspects of life during baseball. My son is a 2016 and even though he loves baseball he has other focuses in life such as academics and music. This site helps me keep everything in perspective.