Summer Prior to College

9and7dad posted:

There seems to be four schools of thought on summer between graduation and freshman year.  All four probably have merit depending on the kid, the position he plays, and the program where he's headed .  As mentioned above, some schools want the guys on campus during summer taking a couple of classes and working out with teammates.  Gives the players a leg up academically and gets the group together in what I assume is a much lower pressure environment yet starts to set the tone for the program.  Second is for kids to play in a collegiate league that takes pre-freshman players.  Gives them a taste of what baseball at the next level is going to look like, but can be a grind with a heavy schedule and often away from home.  Third is to play for their travel teams on a reduced schedule or maybe play Legion with their buddies.  Fourth is to stay home, work out and be rested - ready to report in great physical condition headed to fall.

I think all four have their pros and cons.  For my two boys, my oldest who plays D1 got placed on a summer collegiate team.  He's a pitcher and as it turned out, he experienced a little discomfort as his senior season came to a close.  It was decided he give up his summer team spot and do option four - rest, be home, work out and get ready for fall.  My youngest is a D3 player - he played Legion with his buddies and had a lot of fun.  Probably not the best option from a baseball perspective, but kept him active on the field so it served a purpose.

Good Summary 9 & 7. Son's coaches did want the position players to play summer ball and get many ABs.  Many questions from players about conditioning or drills to do over summer. To those the answers were always--we'll work you out..just come to school HEALTHY!

CollegeParentNoMore posted:

"I'd argue that while seeing high level pitching over the summer can't hurt there are other things to consider. Stressing out about grades, new coaches, teammates, surroundings, etc doesn't make for ideal condition's to excel on the field."

My advice is based upon experience, and will vary by location and talent....to a limited degree.

Not being able to hit college level pitching in the fall "tryout"  is a serious stress "inducer" and potential career ender (or makes for a redshirt year).  If your son doesn't look ready to hit college level pitching, he'll get fall ab's against the walk-on pitchers when the coach isn't watching.......  

 

I do understand what you're saying. Have been told same by other people.

Peoples opinions I have talked to about the workload a student will face in collage varies. Some say no big deal, some say difficult. My wife was a good HS student but struggled somewhat at college. Her little brother barely made it out of HS but breezed through college. Then you have the extra workload of being a student and playing. I guess I'd rather error on the side of caution and have the kid red shirted than ruled academically ineligible.

Pius everyone at the school said the kids who do the summer bridge have a much easier time come fall than the ones who don't. They didn't say we had to do it but all one had to do was read between the lines.

After running a college development program for 16 seasons, I have some strong feelings about rising college freshmen playing baseball prior to starting college.  Simply put...

They all need to keep on playing!

Nearly always, the players we have that are moving on to play in college are encouraged by their college coaches to continue playing with us one last summer.  A few here or there, almost always guys who are drafted out of high school, are taken to play in a collegiate league, but that is usually a ploy by their college program to keep the team that drafted them from having an easy time scouting the player before signing deadline.  That has happened to us 3 or 4 times with Pac-12 schools.

I think it would do every rising freshman well  to follow the advice I give to all my graduating senior players.  I tell them "Go spend some time watching your freshman team and see how they compare."  I always get puzzled responses and the player inevitably says something like "They're just freshman, coach.".  Indeed, they're just freshmen.  Just like every rising college freshman is about to be compared to the guys who are going to be his new teammates.  Just like the high school senior sees the freshman, so will the college junior or senior see your freshman son.  They need to understand that dynamic, as the guys they'll soon be playing with are MEN.  Some are married, some are fathers, some are both.  When your son shows up to compete for a role on his future college team, he'll be competing against teammates who have been around the block in ways your son can't yet understand if he doesn't grasp the concept about being 'that little freshman'. 

I've found that the players who have the toughest time adapting to college baseball are the ones who take the summer off after high school graduation.  They show up to college not ready to compete at that level.  If your son expects to show up ready to compete in college, he needs to keep playing baseball between high school and college.

O6 catchers Dad,

great words. Also Military veterans. Remember the "one of three" rule.

as a Fresman look to your left and to your right, they will not on your team next year. Be ready to play now! Can you?

Bob

2015 played on 18U team, 2016 played on 19 incoming Frosh.Soph college team. 18u  was better because more play time. against many of the same age you played in incoming frosh team. What did help most was summer conditioning program sent by college coach.  Came to practice first day in shape and ready.