Switching Showcase Teams

You ask a very good question and one that should cause us all to reflect on our own priorities. Should a 14yo ball player every be "blackballed" in the first place? The obvious answer is a resounding "NO". Does it happen? Of course it does. I wish there was a clear cut answer to your question. I live in a large state, but like anywhere else, the baseball world is very small. Heck, rub a few people the wrong way around here and the blackballing process can begin at age 8. [rant ends here]

Since you are looking for advice, I'll do my best to give my opinion on the subject. At age 14, your son is only beginning to make the transition to the high school game. That being said, it's your job as a parent to put him in the best situation based on his playing ability, desire to play at the next level, and the quality of coaching, playing opportunity, etc offered by the team(s) you are looking to make the switch to. If your son has the ability to play at the next level, there's no showcase coach or organization that can prohibit him from moving on. Make a decision that you're happy with and best of luck to your son.

Not that my opinion means much but here it is.

I dont think too many college coaches really care too much about where players played pre-high school ball, so the jumping around there shouldnt matter at all. There are just too many factors that can lead to team jumping at this age.

I think as you get into high school and start either swtitching high school teams or travel teams it could throw up a red flag. It would be one thing to play for one team for a year, then move on to a different team and stay there for three years. But something different if your son moves to a new team every year.

But it sounds as if you found a good team for your son. If you picked the right one then you would have no reason to move on again.

Here's my two cents:

I wish we have focused more on the quality of coaching when my son was 14.

There's is something to be said for expanding your son's network beyond one set of coaches.

My 17 year son plays 3 seasons each year, and has changed teams several times. Only once did we feel the team/coaches took it personally. He has gone back to teams in subsequent seasons twice when it made sense, and was received warmly.

Good luck. It will all work out in the long run.

Welcome to the High School Baseball Board as a contributor!

I'm in complete agreement with others here on a couple of points:

(1) It won't make any difference to college coaching staffs that your son made this switch or that it involves an out-of-state program.

(2) I agree especially with twotex's observation that the quality of the coaching is a very important consideration. Try to go with the program that (a) consistently refines his skills as a player, (b) plays quality competition, and (c) brings with it a coaching staff that conducts itself in a way that you'd like to see him emulate both on and off the field. The combination can be a tall order to locate at times; but, it's well worth it when you find it.

Best of luck to him!

pink lady welcome to the site. Stick around I think you will really enjoy the HSBBW. First of all I have coached hs baseball in NC for several years. I coached for several years with the Dirtbags and also the Carolina Cubs. What you have posted has been asked many times before. It is a situation that many find themselves in. A kid comes along and is IDed as a very talented young player. He comes on board with a showcase program. Other showcase programs see him and want him in their program. They offer things they say the other ones don't. They may or may not offer a better situation than he has. It happens all the time. I have seen players move from team to team many times. I have seen kids stay with the same program for several years. Each situation is different and every players situation is different. Being from NC and having coached HS baseball for several years as well as being a former coach of the Dirtbags and Carolina Cubs I can tell you your not going through anything that many go through all the time.

You have to do what YOU feel is best for your sons development as a player. You have to do what YOU feel is the best situation for your son. I have had so many phone calls I can not count them over the last several years. My son wants to come play for you guys but he is afraid his showcase coach is going to black ball him for moving. My son wants to switch to another team because he thinks he will get better exposure. My son wants to switch to this program because they offer ____________ . The list goes on and on.

If you have researched this opportunity and YOU feel this opportunity is best for your son thats what you should do. If your son played for me and you told me that and I was really concerned for your son and what was best for him why would I have a problem with it? If I did that would speak to my lack of character. If I called a college coach and tried to sully his rep for a reason such as this it would also speak to my lack of character and credibility with the college coaches.

College coaches understand that players move to other teams for many reasons. They could careless to tell you the truth. They are evaluating a players ability to play the game and if they can play for them. They will check into what type of kid the player is and they have many ways to do this. But switching showcase teams is not a conern for them. They understand its just part of the game.

So do what YOU feel is best for your son. Dont worry about this black ball stuff. Its bogus. Any coach that would do it has no credibility anyway and why care about what someone like that feels anyway? Find a program that offers you great coaching, great team mates to play with, great exposure and a team he enjoys being on. Then sit back and relax and let him develop as a player and have some fun doing it.

Good luck to you. And understand its not going to stop. There are programs that will constantly try to pry him to their team. Constantly talk smack about the program he is in and how they can do this and do that for him. Find a good situation and then let it go and it will work out just fine. I have never recruited kids that were on another programs roster. If they called me and asked questions I was honest with them. But it happens a lot and its petty at best. Redbird would tell you the same thing he coaches for the Canes and they are an outstanding program. He also posts here. Good luck

Welcome, PinkLady--I wish I could go back in time and experience what you're experiencing all over again.

There's not much to add after Coach May's definitive post, but....

The world is full of jerks of all stripes, so I don't think you can totally avoid vindictive coaches. But, if you do your homework about the team and coach beforehand, there'll be fewer surprises regarding anybody's expectations.

I think being open and direct goes a long way toward determining your options. You can (and probably should) keep your intentions close to the vest, but if you mislead or downright scr*w a coach or organization, there'll be some cleaning up that'll need to be done.

You don't have to tell them everything that's going on and what options you are considering, but it IMO it always pays to follow Ed Norton's advice: "Be kind to the people you meet on the way up--they're the same people you meet on the way down."

13U, 14U and 16U teams are neither elite nor showcase teams. Coaches and scouts don't watch these levels. If a kid is that talented at a young age he's playing 17/18U. Therefore it doesn't matter where he plays or how often he jumps teams. When it's time for showcasing find the most visible, elite 17/18U showcase team he can play for.

Great post, K!

"Coached a few years?!" lol

My best to you and yours.

My best to you and yours as well Prepster. I am looking forward to catching back up with you one day at a ball game. Those were some great times and I will always cherish them. Take care and my best to Robert this coming season.

Thanks for the words of encouragement and advice. I found this wonderful site full of information this summer, and it is a great place to read about those who have been through all this before. Hopefully the boy can keep doing his job in the classroom and keep having fun on the field and we can continue to enjoy this crazy ride.

quote:

Originally posted by RJM:
13U, 14U and 16U teams are neither elite nor showcase teams. Coaches and scouts don't watch these levels. If a kid is that talented at a young age he's playing 17/18U. Therefore it doesn't matter where he plays or how often he jumps teams. When it's time for showcasing find the most visible, elite 17/18U showcase team he can play for.

I suppose that the baseball environment varies according to which region of the country you're in. Within my experience (limited to mostly California), pretty much all of the above quote is not the way it works.

Here, the most talented kids are definitely being watched by college coaches at 16. In fact the kids are fielding verbal offers at 16 and were of course being seen before that. Nor do these kids "play up". Instead, they join a top level (sometimes termed "elite") team made up of players in their own age group (and typically of the same graduation year). This offers a number of advantages, not least of which is the likelihood that college coaches will come see the team, even when the players are 15 or 16. Take for example the USA Baseball 16U Championships. The top programs in CA send 15U teams to Arizona, and college coaches definitely attend their games.

Regarding no 13U, 14U, or 16U team being elite: Take a look at the rosters of East Cobb 13U or 14U teams from earlier years, and see where they ended up. You'll find that those teams were, in fact, made up of top level players. The same is true of some other baseball programs, at least in California. I suspect it is true in other areas of the country as well.

For players who are perceived as somewhat less talented, the recruiting timetable starts later, and the summer after the junior year is the important time. So it depends on the level of the player. The tricky part is that we parents generally can't accurately evaluate where our players fit in.