Still recruitable while injured?

Much will be determined by how serious those DI schools were before the injury. Also, much could depend on your financial situation.  In other words, can you afford to be a recruited walk on for at least one year at those colleges? If I'm reading correctly and without knowing more, it seems like January is a bit soon for full recovery.  

It might seem nerve racking, but once he is healthy and assuming he can show DI talent,  it's always possible to catch on late at some colleges.  Once the college season ends and the June draft is over, roster spots do open up.  Players transfer, become ineligible,  get drafted, etc.  also recruited high school players get drafted and sign.  These things open up spots/money in the summer.

Tell him to hang in there and work hard.  Don't rush the recovery and set yourself back even farther.  Stay in contact with those coaches that expressed interest. Best of luck.

The level of recruitment will depend on how much of a stud he was perceived to be along with the level of interest created before the injury.

My son was considered to have D1 potential. But he was not a player coaches were banging down his door to sign. He showcased after soph year drawing some attention. But after filling out physically before junior year season he was a different player. He tore his MCL and PCL in his first showcase post junior year. Then when recovered he fell doing an agility drill and separated his shoulder (requiring surgery) in the fall. The world went dead except for local D3s. Tte best response he got was contact us after your rehab.

He took off the sling three weeks before his senior season started. He started as DH opening day and returned to the field in three weeks. For being physically weak he had a good senior year. But he wasn't physically showcase ready. 

His plan was to play Legion for reps in the summer after senior year and workout to gain back his strength, showcase in the fall and start college in January. He was fortunate to have a connected travel coach. The coach felt he was physically ready in late August. The coach got him in as a walk on at a D1 he had been accepted on his academics. He had to redshirt first year due to lack of a roster spot.

While in a sling my son did some rehab on his knee I would have killed him if I had known. He was snowboarding in the winter while wearing a sling. It was great rehab for his leg. I did ask him what would have happened to his shoulder if he fell. I got the smartass, "I didn't."

2014NE,

Sorry to learn of your son's situation.  I hope he is better soon. 

Given your situation, I think I would modify my recruiting strategy a little bit by adding more schools into the mix.  I'd try to reach out to other D1 schools that may have seen him in previous tournaments, camps or showcases, and expanding the geography to include more D1 schools that meet your son's requirements.  In addition, I'd consider reaching out to some D3 schools that recruit later in the process (as a safety).   Your son has some strong academics so that will give him some added options that you may want to leverage in the future.   A D1 coach may be interested but not willing to put athletic money at risk, thereby encouraging you to seek academic money. 

Also, I'd research some of the academic D3s up in your neck of the woods.  They play some pretty good baseball, and your son could be an impact player.  I know you stated that your son wants to play D1 baseball, but I'd look at all options.

Good luck!

Tough break on the timing for a 2014.

Be sure to keep communicating with target schools throughout the process.

Injuries are part of the game and coaches know that.

Were any offers (verbal or otherwise) discussed with these schools?

If these schools are truly interested in your son, and run good solid programs with integrity, they will appreciate the updates. This will also help you to stay in the loop with the schools and get a feel for their ongoing level of interest.

I can confirm what PG has to say about the surgery and recovery.

My 2013 son is going thru torn labrum surgery , throwing side,(Bankhart) rehab.

Surgery was in February.

Fortunately for him, he had already signed, and his school is standing behind their commitment.

Expect 6 months to be back to about 75%- 80%, up to 1 year to be 100%.

Also, with a goal to get to a D1 school, January is not a crucial date to get back on the field., it is a slow rehab process and do not rush it. he needs to get back on the field when HE is ready.

Good luck to your son!

I think it is necessary to look at this from a college coach's point of view.  No shoulder surgery has a 100% chance of full recovery, and the usual perception is about 30% make enough recovery to reach their previous level of performance.  By contrast, Tommy John is closer to 90%.

The player in this case may well have very good odds of an excellent recovery, but the coaches don't know that.  Most will prefer some other similarly talented but uninjured player until the injured player is able to regain and demonstrate his performance.  

Rushing to play again may seem like a good way to convince coaches, but unless the performance reaches the projected level the player would have had if hadn't been injured, recruiting interest will be less than before.  Try to find a recovery path that maximizes eventual performance, even if it means spending a year as a walk on or in a JC or at a lower level 4 year school.

Thank you all for your responses. The information is very helpful. He had no formal offers but a few of schools seemed close, coming to all of his tournaments.

He has kept in touch with coaches and a couple of them suggested either post graduate prep school or Junior college. I always thought of these for kids that needed to get their grades up or physically develop. His grades are already good and he is 6'2 185lbs.

If he went to junior college would he have to go for two years and get a degree before transferring to a D-1 school?

What about going to post graduate at IMG for a year?

If he went to IMG for a year he would then become a 2015 recruit instead of 2014. The baseball work they do there would be good for his game but with the 2015 class being recruited summer of 2014 this would be before he even started IMG.

Any thoughts?

If he is a qualifier at the time he graduates from high school, then he can transfer to a D1 after one year of JC.  Of course, he would have to perform well enough that first year to draw the attention of D1 coaches.  BTW, it isn't enough to have good grades and test scores.  Make sure that he registers and completes the Eligibility Center requirements, even it has already been decided that he will attend JC or post graduate.

The advantage of a post graduate year is the D1 5 calendar clock doesn't start, and he won't use a season of eligibility.  The disadvantage from my point of view is that he would make little progress academically while incurring a cost that exceeds nearly all colleges.

JC players are typically picked up by colleges at the end of the JC playing season, and it is normally based on the value the player can bring immediately.  By contrast, high school players are recruited usually a year earlier.  I don't know how post graduate players are viewed.

My HS shortstop had this exact scenario play out at about the same time, although his surgery was more complicated than the labrum.  Post surgery he threw harder, he was still recruited (but things changed). In college he was converted to pitcher, and has been the closer of his high D3 team for the last two years. He has had a fantastic college baseball experience and at the time of his injury he thought his career was over. 

With regard to recruitment please understand that your son is not being recruited until a coach calls your house and tells you so.  Try not to confuse interest with recruitment, the ratio is probably 10-1.  In my son's case we were talking to Ivy coaches, before the injury, about the applications, process, team dynamics, etc.  After the injury D1 coaches wanted to see either a PG boarding school year or they would holdoff off recruitment until they could see him throw again in the spring of his senior year.  In one typical post injury call, the coach said "We have to hold off until spring but wherever you are throwing, when you heal, we will make sure we are there to watch". 

Our son did not want to PG a year (I was a proponent of this option) and waiting until spring was too risky.  However, D3 coaches were less concerned about the outcome of surgery, they were very eager to have him, and my son found, through official visits, that he would enjoy D3 baseball more than D1.  He handled a difficult decision very professionally (although there were ugly moments) and it all turned out fantastically!  PM me for more.

I want to make one important point.  Recruitment is never ambiguous.  Post injury changes in status are also never ambiguous.  In cases where the injury had effected his status, the D1 coaches called our house to tell our son that the injury changed his "recruiting status" NOT their interest.  Again, nothing was ever ambiguous.  This is especially true at this time of year.  

Your son's situation can turn out quite well.  Its time to sit down with your son and look at this realistically, make a plan, and then go for it without ever looking back.  We were where you are.  I understand your confusion.  Silence is a form of communication.

I understand you are looking for ideas, and you've gotten some pretty good ideas and thoughts so far IMHO.  leftyshortstop has walked a mile in your shoes.  I would think real hard in terms of what he is sharing with you.   A PG year is not going to be cheap, and I'm not sure how many children you are helping through school.   It would not be an option in my house due to cost.

For me, it basically comes down to two things.   First, how much is it worth to your family that your son get an opportunity to play D1 baseball.  Notice I said "opportunity", because there will be no guarantees he remains healthy, and no guarantee he earns any  playing time whatsoever.  This is a lot of risk, and I'm not really sure about the reward at this point in the thread. 

Secondly, the number of offers your son receives will tell you everything you need to know about what the D1 coaches think.   Some may offer money, some may offer preferred walk-on status, and some may offer nothing.  Whatever they offer, it is out of your control.  He may be best served with some academic money (top 25% of incoming class) and a preferred walk-on status by the coach.  You'll need to figure out which schools he is qualified to receive academic money and a baseball coach willing to take a chance on him.   This is a situation where going where your son is most wanted (D1 or D3) may be the best advice, because you know they will be interested in his upside and health.  JMO.

2014NE,

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