Talent Level Reaching its Pinnacle?????

Kent was talking about the difference between the 2004 and the 2005 class. The 2004 class was the peaked group he was referring.

The 2005 class is not that strong in the eyes of scouts and college coaches. The 2006 class will be up again.

Kent wasn't talking about all baseball in general, but should be noted is that he didn't think the 2005's work on their skills like the 2004's did.

There's no doubt that the class of 2006 has some fabulous talent. Only time will tell whether this class, as a whole, equals its predecessors.

2005 has some very good players as well.

From my uneducated view, the classes of 2003 and 2004 seemed to be very strong across the state. The 2004 class had a lot of talent in the East Tennessee area. I didn't follow high school ball that closely in prior years, so I'm reluctant to make comparisons with earlier years.

Kent has been involved with these age groups for a number of years. Therefore I would consider him qualified to make a statement on the subject.

I have had the pleasure of watching a lot of the 2005 talent over the years, especially around the Knoxville area and I think there are many talented baseball players that will be sought after by college Coaches.

Knowing how much a player at this age can improve over a one year period, I find it disturbing that someone can "predict" the talent level next year. It seems contradictive to being a good scout. Will there by another Kyle in the 2005 class?, no way. A player of Kyle's ability is a rarity in high school baseball (especially in Knoxville since he is the first to EVER be drafted in 1st round out of high school) however that fact doesn't mean that the talent "pool" will suffer.

I also think it is an insult to say that the 2005 class does not work as hard therefore they are not as "talented" as the 2003 or 2004 class. The article in the Knoxville paper sounds more like a sales pitch than the truth and is an insult to all of the players who can be seen on a nightly basis at the high school batting cages.

Why would anyone want to putdown high school players by making general statements like that especially on this website!

Personally I think the talent level is continuing to increase year after year. I don't see it as being cyclical but rather an upward sloped ramp. Kids are getting better coaching at a younger age and the baseball schools are also getting better by learning how to reach and teach more kids in a more effective manner.

I would have to say WOW, if the 2005 class is weaker than 2004. I have coached against some studs from the eastern and western TN areas. I find it interesting that these experts are so knowledgeable about teenagers because I have yet to figure them out. Depending on what their perception is and the benchmark they are using, I wouldn't doubt that some 2005's surpass their expert predictions. TN is an excellent baseball state with quality programs, organizations and parents.

First let me apologize if anyone took any of my comments in a bad way. I don't want parents to read more into them than what was meant.

Basically, There are 2005 players that are very good and will play at the next level, but what most scouts see is that the depth of the class is not that of the 2004 class. Sure players will continue to work and improve their game in the coming year but also look at accomplishments like the 2004 class winning the junior Sunbelt tournament and the 2006 class winning the sophomore Sunbelt tournament while the 2005 class finished in 4th place in this summer's junior sunbelt tournament.

No one has given up on this group and I for one will continue to promote the 2005 players just as hard as any other class. For those of us who follow college signings and the draft each year, that will also give us a gauge by the numbers signed in the fall or drafted in the spring.

The state of baseball in Tennessee is very good and it has been noticed, I hope all the numbers are up each year.

Okay .... I'm going to jump in here:

Let me preface my comments by saying that Kent Mathews is friend of mine, so I may have a better understanding of where he is coming from and what he meant when interviewed. And of course my view will be slanted as well.

First - Kent is a baseball guy and not a polished speaker, or a person used to being interviewed.

The question asked of Kent was if the 2005 team was as good as the last couple. Kent answered honestly that it probably wasn't. He did not say that the players on the '05 Thunder team were bad, or that they could not play. As a matter of fact he was elated that the '05's went thru the UT tournament undefeated!

I'm not sure about the context of the question asked that led to Kent's response that the talent has peaked in Knoxville. I'm betting that he did not say exactly that.

Kent is aware that the 2006 class in the state of Tennessee has a chance to be very good.

I have spent the past 3 weekends on the road watching Tennessee players and teams. It is the general consensus that the 2005 high school class will be a little down when compared to the last few years. This is after listening to comments from both college coaches and pro scouts. Predicting the talent level next year? Kent's analysis matches many of those in the Tennessee baseball community. Maybe the last 4 or 5 years has spoiled us.

A couple of weeks before the draft this year I asked an aquaintance of mine, who is a national cross-checker for an MLB team, based in California (he is not the team) how the talent level was in California this year. His comment: "The weakest that I have seen in many years." Did he mean that there were no draft picks in the state of California? No he meant there were fewer than normal.

Does this mean that few if any 2005 Tennessee high school players will receive college baseball scholarship offers? Or that no Tennessee high school player will be drafted next year? Of course not.

High school baseball and high school athletics in general are cyclical. Kent understands this.

Knoxville had 3 high school players drafted this year and then add in Matt Spencer from Motown and that makes 4 in our area. Name the last time that happened!?

As for players not working as hard in this latest group when compared to recent groups .... from Kent's perspective this is the way he sees it. I know that in the 2002 - 2004 groups he had kids that he had to run out of his facility or they would have stayed all night! The current group does not seem to be that way, in Kent's opinion.

Sales pitch? Here's my perspective .... Kent Mathews runs Thunder Baseball School. Between Hal Bibbe and Kent Mathews they have done more to advance Knoxville baseball than any others since the O'Brien family in Fountain City! With the addition of the Yard and training facilities in Oak Ridge and Maryville, the opportunities have improved greatly for our area kids. My opinion.

Did you know that at least 4 area high schools will call Kent and schedule the cages to hit on days when they are rained-out and cannot use their own facilities? And what are they charged? -0-

I wonder if the Farragut teams would have been as good without the support of Thunder baseball? And the Mathews boys played at Powell!

Kent gave up a successful insurance management position to get back into baseball. He has spent thousands of dollars of his own money to help kids attain their dreams. Did you know that he takes a van full of kids around to various college campuses each year -- just to see the schools, meet the coaches and get a flavor for college life -- all at his time and expense? Do you know who the founding member of the UT Baseball booster group was? When Rod Delmonico came to Tennessee there was no type of support for the baseball program. If you guessed Kent Mathews you are right.

Kent set up the early pre-season UT baseball banquets and was the President of the booster group for many years. What did he get for all of that? -0-

I know of many many players that get to hit and throw at Thunder free of charge because Kent is aware of the family economic situation, for that player.

The Thunder baseball programs are not set up to win championships. They are focused on gaining exposure for the kids.

Will Kent do anything differently for his '05 group than he did for the '04's and others? No -- In fact he is working even harder for these guys.

Now the in-state and area '06 group. This group has a chance to be special. I have commented that I know of six (6) potential DI shortstops in the '06 group! This is across the state, not Knoxville alone. And the '07 group, while a long ways off has a chance as well.

Peddler -- I have no doubt that you watched some very talented 12 year olds. Let me offer this. I once had a 12 year old team that lost the AABC World Series final. (way before there were so many alphabet organizations - like now)

That group would have been college seniors this year. From that group of very talented 12 year olds only two (2) played college baseball to completion. Many things happen along the way from 12 to 21/22 years of age.

Finally -- In wanted to speak to the comments made by Kent Mathews and the interpretation here. Kent is an honest man, one of my best baseball friends and I feel that many of us owe him a heart-felt thank you for all that he does for Knoxville area baseball.

I wonder what players like Todd Helton, Chirs Freeman, Jose Vasquez, Chris Burke, Eduardo Figueroa, Michael McKenry, Shay Horseman, Jeremy Hall, Chuck Hargis, Andy Howdeshell, Kyle Waldrop and many others would offer about what Kent Mathews has meant to their baseball path?

I'll bet that I know.

Bob,

Excellent post! There is not much I can add to it but I will share just a little of how important Kent and Hal, and Thunder Baseball, have been to Kyle.

Kent took a chance on an 11 year old he didn't even know when putting together the first 12 year old Thunder team. Hal told him he should give Kyle a chance to tryout, and he did. No promises, just a tryout. He wasn't the biggest or strongest, but Kent saw something in him and selected him as one of the 12 team members. We were thrilled. That team won the Knox City, Knox County, State, Southeastern Regional AABC Championships. We went to the World Series in Puerto Rico where we finished 3rd. Final record of 61-9. It was a fantastic team made up of very good players, exceptional for their age. Kent did a great job with them and it was a special summer. How many of those do you think went on to play in college? This year there were 2 in JUCO and 2 in D1. Kyle would have made a total of 5. Now that is probably a much higher % than you would normally find, but it shows that, as Bob stated, that just because you have a great team at 12, or 14, etc., that most of them will not continue to play through college.

We have been very blessed that Kyle had people like Kent and Hal watching over him these last few years. Thunder has provided him and many others the opportunity to work with quality people who are interested in more than just winning games. This family owes these men a great deal and we are grateful for all they have done for us.

And you can bet that Kent wants only the best for the upcoming players and will do whatever he can to help them realize their dreams.

I just don't think it is right to discourage an upcoming class who in many cases has lived in the shadow of the very good 2004 class. It is their year now and I think we should wait to see how much they progress and develop before we start saying that they are not talented. Give them a chance to prove what they can do. If you hear some negative comments from scouts and coaches I would encourage you to not post it on this site where the players can read it. It serves no purpose but to discourage the players and I don't think that is the intention of this website. At the end of the season you can all make all of the critical comments and comparisons you want but to do it now is not right or fair. IMHO

I apologize if somehow my original post was seen as a negative comment toward Kent or Thunder. My question was and is to this group, do you agree the talent level has peaked???
In fact, I emailed the KNS writer and asked him what the intent of the piece was? His comment back stated that it may be a while unitl we see another Waldrop, Iorg and Kirkland.
My comment - Could be a year??....how bout Catapono, Delmonico, Lockwood and Larson??
I don't know and it will probably take many years to know, I just think in light of the fever pitch of baseball currently in this area, we have far from peaked!! IMHO
Of course we have to be "careful" because in discussing players abilities we sometimes slide into that slippery slope of "which" school, "which" summer team they play for, et. all. The competition between the people wanting to take credit for various players is getting a tad silly!!

peddler,
I didn't take it as a negative post toward Kent or Thunder and think I muddied the waters when I tried to explain that it was just the 2004 class he was referring to with the depth and quality of that class. I agree that baseball in Tennessee is very popular right now, I was watching 23 14U teams compete that same week you saw the Germantown/Yard game. There were a lot of potential high school players in town that week.

I'm glad we didn't get into a discussion on particular positions available in a class. I don't think the board is ready for that. It's done all the time by scouts and also by the MLB clubs when the draft rolls around. For instance they didn't think there was a good supply of catchers available for this 2004 draft. They would even say it was cyclical.

It would be nice if all the schools worked together, but I will add one think about Kent. My son never played for a Thunder team and Kent called him when he was putting his trip together to take players to the various colleges for a visit, I thought that offer was above and beyond what a normal person would think to do.

Peddler -

I am in agreement with your comment about the competition for credit regarding various players.

I enjoy sitting on the fence when it comes to the various high schools and training facilities / summer teams.

I want all of them to do well. It results in more opportunities and exposure for our players.

As for whether the talent has peaked ..... I sure hope not. What I can offer is that the talent level in the Knoxville area has made a huge leap in the last 10 years or so. The credit for this goes to the summer programs.

Where do we go from here? Maybe we get get some of our area players in the Tennessee baseball program that are on scholarship!?

It never hurts to wish.

I had the opportunity to receive instruction at Thunder since its first day of business.
At Thunder, Kent and Hal provided me the exposure and information that I needed in high school and to sign with a D1 college and continue my journey.
Kent and Hal also provided information not found in a book but by only playing the game and coaching it. "They are real baseball people."
Who else could you find that in the middle of a business deal or on the phone that would stop and throw BP before a game or fine tune your catching skills.
As a player I suggest that you take the time to get to know these guys and you will find that their interest is truely in the players.
After reading the news article I believe Kent's interview has been taken out of text.
For the guys in 2005 and 2006 I wish them good luck for they have the same opportunity that I had thanks to Kent and Hal.