Struggling on college team

My son was ranked 9th as a freshman in college. HA HA! As a pitcher

he struggled against the metal bat.  He was lucky that he had a very patient pitching coach.  He got benched his junior season. He deserved it. He didn't listen.

Baseball is a game of failures and successes. Baseball is played differently at different levels.  Those that remain healthy and learn how to handle the ups and downs usually succeed. Being recruited and  committing is only the first of many steps along the way.

I know some here dont like my responses. Too bad!

I wish that the hsbbw as it is today was in existance when son was much younger.  I would have been smarter when it counted most. I would have learned to worry less. I would have enjoyed more.

I am glad that you brought this up now. Its the beginning of the season. Be patient. You listen and let them figure it out. Enjoy your sons for who they are and dont let it be all about the game.

Most of all enjoy the ride or try to anyway!

Yup, this is one of the few shortcomings of HSBBW.  There are an abundance of stories of college success but a totally disproportionate number of stories of failure.  Human nature, certainly.  But the lessons learned would be so much more complete if there were more personal stories shared about failure to make cuts, to earn PT, to survive the rigorous balance, to stay healthy, to live away from home, to make grades, to deal with new “big boy” coaches, failure to get recruited, to find the right school, to adapt to a new climate, a new culture, to get along with a group of guys under a lot of pressure to take your job, to find a girlfriend who understands, to keep the passion when it requires 6-8 hours a day of working at the game for sometimes little or no playing the game, and on and on. 

These failures are far more the norm for the average college baseball player than the successes we celebrate here.  More awareness of this side of things, as TPM alluded to, would help readers here a great deal.

Now that my son is committed one thing that I have done is watch as much of his future team as possible mainly so I know what to expect.

This year they are a top 25 team in at least one poll.  Very experienced group.  Only freshman position player to play in first 7 games is the backup catcher who has started one game.  No other freshman ABs so far.  Two innings thrown by freshman so far.

Another friend of mine has a son that went to a consistently top program in the Pac 12.  Highly ranked and sought after player.  Talked to my friend right before the first games.  Said son was hoping to get into a couple of games the first weekend based on feedback from coaches.  Two weeks into the season he has yet to see the field.

Son of course says yeah but those freshman are not me. LOL.  At least mom and dad will have some realistic expectations and be there for him when his world gets turned upside down.

playball2011,

At some point every college baseball player is going to go through something adverse....slumps, yips, injury, grades, etc...  Your son's teammate is experiencing what many thousands of people have experience before.  It is a long, long  list of players and issues.  If a player doesn't admit they had to overcome something, they are lying.  

By baseballs design, It is a game of failure.  The player can control the program & coach he selects, how he handles the issue, and what he does about the issue.  You want a Coach who is fair and will give the player opportunities for redemption through hard work, competiton and college summer leagues. Not every Coach will do this.  I'm not saying it is easy to overcome these obstacles, but you want a program that will give you more than a couple chances and work on these challenges.  JMO. .

Great message, playball. My only surprise is where you say:

"... really struggling w hitting! never had this problem before." 

For a good hitter to reach his sophomore year in college without ever having gone through a really bad spell at the plate before is pretty unusual. 

And like backstop, I'm seeing the same thing play out as I watch the school my son's committed to. The younger guys are on a much shorter leash when it comes to being productive at the plate: If they don't hit, they don't play.

Yeah it's tough to know how long a coach will let you go when your struggling with hitting vs benching you. Good idea to look at school ahead of time and see how it looks for other players.

Kids get caught up in name/level of a school, and need to find best fit for playing time. You may think you are a yr or two behind stud waiting your turn, then a younger better guy comes in and leaps over you. Everyone wants in the lineup and to stay there. Coaches may like you, but they keep their jobs by winning games.

This is a great thread for parents of soon to be college baseball players.

Our freshman son is not at a top D1 program, he is at a D2, but what he is experiencing is similar.  His team has played 10 games and he has been on the field for a total of two innings in the field (nothing came to him, so he still has a fielding percent of .000) two AB (.500, one double, one caught line drive) and one pinch run situation when our team needed to tie up the score to go into extra innings (he did, and we ended up winning the game).  From what we can tell by talking with friends who have sons that have gone to four year schools right out of HS, our son has been really lucky because he made the team/travel squad and has had a couple of opportunities.  Some of our son's friends have made the travel squad for their team but have yet to see the field at all.  We went into this knowing that our son is one of only two freshman position players on a team of mostly junior/senior JC transfers.  We were thrilled that he made the travel squad, and we are thrilled each time he gets an opportunity, but we do not go to the games expecting that he will play. We are there to support the team as often as we can be, and we are pleasantly surprised each time he gets an opportunity (and of course we hope that we will be there to see it).  It has been hard for him to adjust to not starting, but what he tells us is that he is going to keep working hard, and he will be ready for each opportunity that he gets.  I would think that the biggest adjustment for a player moving from HS to college would be the level of competition to earn time on the field.

I would also say that learning how to really use his time wisely has been a new challenge.  Balancing a tough major with a busy schedule leaves very little time for much else.   

I think if they went through old threads there are many stories of players struggling and parents coming here. Many of the old timers aren't posting as much as kids have moved on. I know TPM myself coach May CD and many many others have discussed how hard it is.

For a while some of the newbies (not all) didn't seem to want advice and would argue about anything  you said. Many times they disagreed with people they didn't know were  parents with players at the highest levels.Many old timers backed off because of the parents who really didn't want advice or didn't like the advice given  .

I think many go into it with rose colored glasses and think their own son Will be the exception. I have written many times how hard a four year school was and high level baseball and academics and play time etc. 

There are countless threads of players that left d1 for Jr and academic struggles etc. I think anyone that thinks it's easy is the exception.

Many may not write in the midst of it because it could hurt their kids . Coaches and scouts read these blogs.

I know over the last several years I have had countless private conversations with parents seeking privately that their kids were struggling. I am sure many other old timers have helped on the sidelines as well.

It is exciting to get that SchoLars hip no doubt but it's just the first step. Once in college you can't say a word. It is out of your hands and that's hard for parents who were involved as coaches etc. 

Sometimes it can be personal believe it or not and sometimes the player may not be in the coaches favor. For the most part the best players play . *

The work is hard in and out of the classroom and the optional practices aren't really optional. It's hard,. It's fun when it's going well.

We have had many dinners that after losing a series and a a two hour bi tch session from coach that weren't pleasant. 

It is not for the faint of heart. 

When it's going well and your son is playing and your sitting in sunken diamond playing Stanford and your son is 7/ for ten the food taste great and the drinks are fun, other times the drinks are needed to help   )))))

We do not regret any of it . My son is a better man because of baseball. When he was released after two seasons of pro ball he wasn't crushed. He was ready to move on and focus on other things.

MaNY  don't understand that either. 

Everyone is different. every player different. Injuries and set backs or slumps are all a part of it and it takes a lot of tenacity at any level to keep going day after day,year after year.

Mine loved it until he didn't love it anymore. But the time spent was  not wasted  it was a passion and he loved going after it. 

You will get knocked down, some don't but most do. It's the getting back up a and battling through it. 

Once they leave the game those traits carry them a long ways in life and it's  not just about baseball. It's about way more than that. 

Many don't see that while in the middle of it. 

That's why enjoy it for what it is   a game!!!!

How many players even make a college roster? How many on that roster actually see significant time? 9 or 10 position players? 8 or 9 pitchers? What are the other guys doing? When this season ends a whole new crop comes in. Non established players are on the ropes. If your son is a solid contributer and makes it from start to finish do you realize just how rare that is? If he just sticks from start to finish do you realize how rare that is? Go check the rosters and tell me how many seniors you see. Do you realize the perspective that those that have been there differs greatly than those who have not? You better love it. You better know how to grind. You better be mentally tough. Or don't bother. But it is the most rewarding experience you can imagine. 

Yes fanofgame, I remember the many discussions here that have been  about all of our kids finding out that college ball isn't even an extension of HS or that top travel team they played in during summers.

cabbagedad,

I have many times over the years made statements about the stuggle through college as well as in milb. For most, the road is a personal journey, so pretty much is hard to share on a messageboard, only after the fact can you really talk about some of it, but for those that know sons journey, it has not, like most, even as a prospect been an easy one. i just know that personally I am very glad that son went to college first, and it was not easy. 

2014Prospect,

The really weird thing about all of this is that its never easy at any level, so no one should have to feel that not attending a D1 would not be as difficult.  Its all relevant to the situation.  Time management alone is difficult for anyone to master.

As far as sitting the bench after being in the game, there could be many reasons why so we cant always assume its for non performance. 

But the topic is very timely and appropriate, in this game you can be up one day and down the next. 

With snow on the ground and more in the forecast, I happened to be running some numbers when Coach May's post came in -- because I was curious to see what kind of playing time freshmen non-pitchers actually are getting this year at Major D1's.

Because if it’s really true that some young men commit to big schools for the wrong reasons (prestige, for instance), these numbers might help steer them to making a better choice. At the same time, players who believe they can contribute to helping a major program win right away may find these numbers encouraging.

So different people will draw different conclusions, and clearly the sample size is to small to conclude a whole lot, but either way, I hope it’s helpful to someone out there.

I looked at freshmen at bats, using the same four Top 25-ranked D1 schools I looked at in a previous post. Here’s what I found through a combined 42 games these teams have played so far. 

Sometimes it is very difficult for people to understand what I would refer to as the "BPC" or the Baseball Progress Cycle...O.K. I am totally making that up but I think you will see why it makes some sense. 

At younger ages (7-14) physical athleticism is largely responsible for success in baseball.  This is not to say there are not some exceptionally talented ball players in this age group only that you can statistically succeed even with major fundamental holes in your game.

In the next age group, what I would consider HS varsity or 15/18U baseball you must have some basic fundamentals because the pool of players has decreased and instead of running into 1 great pitcher every 4 to 6 games and average to good pitching in the other 2 to 4 games you will now see 1 great pitcher every 3 games and good pitching in the other 2 games. As a result to maintain statistical success you need to still have athleticism but it needs to be coupled with decent (notice not great) fundamentals.  Glaring gaps will become more apparent and unless you are able to identify and make corrections the slumps last longer and the mental pressure grows. 

In high D1 college you will see great pitching every 2 out of 4 games and very good pitching the rest of the time.  To maintain statistical success you need athleticism and fully sound fundamentals but more than that recognize that every mistake is logged and every weakness identified.  In high school you may have blasted 3 doubles and a homerun in one game because the pitcher was not capable of adjusting location and pitch type to get you off your game. At the next level you must be able to determine the cause of both success and failure and make adjustments and corrections every at bat. 

At the pro level you need to be able to have all of the above but in addition understand your potential weaknesses, what the pitcher is trying to do to get you out and make adjustments on every pitch.  Once a book is available on a batter and weaknesses are identified pitchers will use that information until the corrections make the information invalid.  

The imaginary BPC is really just an acknowledgement that at each level of progress the skills and adjustments, physically, mentally and technically change.  Great coaching can help identify if a slumps and failures are due to a fundamental flaw or a lack physical capacity (strength, quickness etc.) or a player whose head is just not where it needs to be. 

Slumps will always be there and the opportunity to work them out while remaining in the lineup is usually reserved to proven players.  But the good new is coaches wanted you and you will get another chance so being able to work out the issues on the tee and in the cage and focusing on being ready the next time an opportunity in the lineup presents is what you can control and what your focus should be.

The bench is not a death sentence and should be viewed as an opportunity to build mental toughness and the appropriate work ethic.  Those things will benefit you both in and out of baseball for a long time to come.

+1

My son initial struggled in his first 25 Ab's his freshman year - going something like 3-25. He was part of a lefty/righty platoon with a senior for the starting RF job. His problem was recognizing and trying to hit a college level slider. Fortunately, for my son, the senior was hitting just about as poorly.

About 20 games into the season, something clicked and he started hitting on the college level, batting over .300 for the rest of the year and winning the starting RF job. Had the senior started hitting first he likely would not have been given what amounted to several chances. 

Pretty accurate description of the process, I'd say...and a very catchy addition to the lexicon!

I encourage people who visit professional Spring Training to pick one early morning and go watch what takes place on the practice fields. What you'll see is a bunch of above-average athletes in the midst of a few physically gifted ones. For the majority who are simply "above average," it takes extraordinary hard work and capacity to really learn the game to stay on the same field with the gifted ones.

Prepster;

Excellent idea. When my son was a teenager, we visited Spring Training and worked out with the SF Giants. The most interesting observation was need for "quickness" reaction, mind and body. Players were faster with quicker reactions.

When he played at U of Hawaii, the coaches had three good shortstops. To determine who had the best range, the coaches used a Atec pitching machine and hit ground balls to the infielders left and to his right [range work] on the Astro turf.

Two SS were shifted, one to 3b and 2b.

In a previous discussion I related to Bonds and Rodriquez [slow the ball] and their goals to quiet their mind and their body.

To increase reaction time - "quiet your mind and your body" Enjoy the game, the history have fun and relax. "It is only a game"

Bob