Summer Ball Team Choice

Do they only offer an 18U team, not a 17U?  IMO, he needs to be where he will get both exposure and play time.  It's great to be on a team that gets lots of looks, but if he isn't playing what good does it do.  On the other hand if he plays on a team that gets few looks, what good does that do?  It's tough to find a good balance.  I like a team that is able to practice together versus just showing up here and there for games.  make sure the coaches have the connections with places you son is interested in.

The majority of the guys on this team are 2015s, with I think only 2 or 3 that are 2014s.  We are just now starting to look at colleges, so I can't say exactly who he is interested in at this point.  Both programs have pretty good practice schedules, so I am not too worried about that.

You hit the nail on the head about balance.  My guess is that he'll play at least one complete game more with team 2 versus team 1.  What the value of this is, I'm not sure.  It's a tough thing to figure out.

I was going to vote "hands down" Team 2 until you said only 1 full game difference in playing time.  4 at bats, etc....more is not a difference maker in terms of needed reps.

May want to ask yourself if his ultimate contribution somewhere in college ball is at his primary position or as a utility guy?  That may mold your decision.  Sounds like both would be good fits and you have done your homework.

Thanks 4baseknock. When you think of just one game, it doesn't seem that different. But, when it is playing 3 games out of 4 versus 2 out of 4, that's a good percentage more baseball through the course of a summer. 

We are having some good conversations about what he wants from a school. Hopefully those will guide us in the right direction.

thanks again for the input.

Thanks for the clarification.  From your previous post, it appeared as one game total over the season.  If it is one additional game per every 4, that is a no brainer.  Team 2.  Good luck!

KC Dawg, forget about predicting innings played.  It will depend on your son's performance.  In the end, that's what it's all about.  Your son should be doing intensive plyometric and weight training in the offseason to increase his strength and explosive power.  He can do that on his own:  There are many sports clinics and junior colleges that offer sessions.  I know Bum, Jr. did two, one which was baseball-specific and one which was more general.  As a pitcher, he also took bullpen lessons with a D1 college coach in the offseason.  Your son can similarly take hitting lessons.

I choose team one and here's why:  Team one seems like it is attracting the better players.  Shoot for the moon.  Even if your kid plays less, he will get better just playing with these guys and, I'm assuming, against better competition.  It also looks like the coach is more successful placing guys.  Exposure is key.  College coaches come to look at the better teams.

The "bigger" competition should challenge, not discourage your kid.  Size is an excuse you should not let cross your mind.  My player's only 5'9" and he ended up state player of the year in h.s.  Develop a training plan for your kid and it means a proactive one.. next year is a huge one for your son to attract college attention. 

Thanks for the input, Bum. Just a couple of thoughts on what you wrote.

The description of my son was my realistic view of who he is at this point. Though small as a description may be subjective, it is pretty apt as it applies to my kid at 5 foot 9 inches and 131 pounds.  That said, he doesn't care that he's on the small side, and he certainly doesn't play that way.  As one coach described him recently - "KCDawgjr is small, but he plays big."

When KCDawgjr isn't in the midst of the season, he attends training at a local sports performance clinic geared toward strength/explosive power.  He continued it into the fall season until pre-season basketball practice started and he started doing that four days a week.  Now here's the rub - he lost 7 pounds in the three weeks of basketball.  He just can't keep the weight on with all the running, no matter what he eats.  We have him on shakes/extra meals/etc. but still can't get there.  Basically he has to eat more than 3,000 calories just to maintain his weight.  That's tough for him to do.

(Just as an aside for playing big.  He played point guard on the JV last year.  He took more charges over the course of the year than the entire rest of the team combined.  He's not afraid to mix it up with someone larger.)

We sat down and discussed the pros and cons again last night and he made the decision to play for Team 1.  He likes the idea of some one-on-one worked into their training program along with the group practices.  He starts his first lesson in November.

Thanks to all for the input.