I subbed for a HS Spanish teacher the other day and when I took attendance I recognized the name of a pitcher on the team. He's a junior: I asked him if he's sending out letters to potential colleges and he replied that "they're coming to me". Is it me or would this attitude be a turn off for most scouts and/or coaches??
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If he has the magic 90+ fastball it just doesn't matter.
I can't tell how is attitude is simply from saying coaches come to him, but it's true if your good they will follow you around, catch dad on the way to the john, and phone the summer coach everyday. I know a bunch of kid's in Jupiter right now that have never sent out a letter.
I wouldn't read too much into it. Maybe he wasn't comfortable having this conversation with a substitute spanish teacher he didn't know.
Wish my junior player could say that with a straight face.
Hope u don't share this conversation w other parents on team or your son .
Maybe kid felt uncomfortable talking about his business w u, and ESP if it could be overheard by classmates.
Hope u don't share this conversation w other parents on team or your son .
Maybe kid felt uncomfortable talking about his business w u, and ESP if it could be overheard by classmates.
Agreed.
Why would someone ask that anyway, its none of their business. Sounds like a reply indicating just that.
I asked him if he's sending out letters to potential colleges and he replied that "they're coming to me". Is it me or would this attitude be a turn off for most scouts and/or coaches??
CoachJackE - No doubt you wanted to help, as most educators do. Some young folks are willing to talk and others think they've got it covered. So be it. This brings a song to mind....
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_xwnb3cymc
"I wish that, I knew what I know now, when I was younger"
I asked him if he's sending out letters to potential colleges and he replied that "they're coming to me". Is it me or would this attitude be a turn off for most scouts and/or coaches??
CoachJackE - No doubt you wanted to help, as most educators do. Some young folks are willing to talk and others think they've got it covered. So be it. This brings a song to mind....https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_xwnb3cymc
"I wish that, I knew what I know now, when I was younger"
No doubt, I have learned quite a bit over the past year and a half because my son has a 2016 going thru the recruiting process. And I've learned that many quality players were making a mistake, waiting for their HS and travel team coaches to handle their futures. The pitcher I talked to topped out at 86 (not the magic number). The conversation was not just about one quick question.
Sarcasm does not come through the internet well, and substitute teaching is a very honorable job but.........
"too" = tambien
to = a
Boy......tough crowd.
Most kids over rate themselves.
Some just done know the process....why would they really?
My son has a friend who's parents were always told me that he was getting letters from this school and that school and was being recruited by all these schools. Once he brought up the name of several Pac-12 schools, I asked to see one of the letters. They were just form letters to go to a prospect camp. These are fundraisers for the most part. I tried to gently explain what was going on....if you have to pay them, they are not that interested. But, he and his parents thought they were all interested.
At some point parents and kids need to see the reality of where they are. If you are 5' 8" and hit with little power in high school (like my sons friend) why would a PAC-12 school have any interest in you as an outfielder? If your fastball is coming in at 78 mph there is no need to worry about going to D1 camps.
Some of the funniest stories on this site involve "camp recruiting" - like the guy who got his dog recruited. I would hazard a guess that for 95% of newcomers that visit this site either already understood the process somewhat or quickly realize what real recruiting looks like. That alone ought to get this site rave reviews but the info just keeps flowing. 2017 seems to have found a good fit and I am sure the process would have been far more anxious and confusing if I had not stumbled upon this site. The one piece of information I still find confusing is the true number of target schools a kid should initially identify. I've heard numbers in excess of 100 and find that rather daunting - I think once you get past two dozen you would have a hard time truly appreciating each school's pros and cons.
The attitude that "If you build it, they will come" is I think a bit risky for very good players. I think only can't miss studs should consider that approach -- and even they should do so advisedly.
I ran into the dad of a very good player on my son's former HS team, a 2016. He's got a lot of skills. He's a left handed power hitter who can really rake. He's a plus defender at 1B, And best of all, he's a lefty pitcher. He's got a mid 80's FB and great secondary stuff of which he has considerable command. He really stepped up last year and became the team's go to guy on the mound. CG after CG. This year I expect him to really dominate. He's got a PG rating in the top 1000 from various tournaments that he's played in with his top shelf travel team (has done no showcases of any sort, though). He's also 4 year starter, with great work ethic, who keeps getting stronger.
Thing is, his dad says he has gotten zero interest from anybody so far. The dad is mystified. Well, I'm not really, We talked about this a while back, Dad said at the time that he thinks showcases and camps and the whole routine are a waste of time and money and that they were determined not to waste time and money.
Instead, he believed that his highly connected travel coach -- and he is highly connected -- had the kid's back and that that would be sufficient to get the kid recruited. They basically put the kids future in the coach's hand.
What is true is that the kid does play on one the two best travel teams in these parts. And it is true that through that travel team, he's been noticed by PG. Though he's attended no PG showcases, the team has played in a number of high profile PG events. The kid has done well in them. Thus his national and state rankings. Which are strong. But even with that degree of "exposure" the kid is coming up blanks, at least so far.
In my view, they weren't nearly aggressive enough in getting the kid out there and noticed. Not saying the kid is an absolute, can't miss prospect -- biggest weaknesses are that he has pretty marginal foot speed and could use a couple of more mph on that fast ball. But there is no denying that this kid is a really, really good ball player. He can really rake. and he can really pitch. And he has worked his tail off to get better over the years.
They just took a way too optimistic marketing strategy and relied too much on the travel team coach to do the legwork that they should have done themselves.
The kids is probably going to find a place at the next level -- though not at the level he might have originally targeted. If he does, it will not be because of their "if you build it, they will come" approach, but despite it. Or so it seems to me. That's not the right approach even if you a very, very good ball player.
Some of the funniest stories on this site involve "camp recruiting" - like the guy who got his dog recruited. I would hazard a guess that for 95% of newcomers that visit this site either already understood the process somewhat or quickly realize what real recruiting looks like. That alone ought to get this site rave reviews but the info just keeps flowing. 2017 seems to have found a good fit and I am sure the process would have been far more anxious and confusing if I had not stumbled upon this site. The one piece of information I still find confusing is the true number of target schools a kid should initially identify. I've heard numbers in excess of 100 and find that rather daunting - I think once you get past two dozen you would have a hard time truly appreciating each school's pros and cons.
As in many things recruiting there is not one size fit all when talking about target schools. The list depends on many things.
What level can he play at?
How far away is he willing to go?
How long is he willing to wait for playing time?
If an Athlete wants to stay regionally and can play at the D3 level and has the academics to make a school affordable, then if you live on the East coast or the Mid west you have a larger number of target schools then if you live out West.
No one can answer that for an athlete. The number of target schools depends largley on too many questions.
>And best of all, he's a lefty pitcher. He's got a mid 80's FB and great secondary stuff of which he has considerable command<
Whats his GPA, 1.2 or is he like 4' 11"?
It's just that my experience is that if you're left handed, can throw it kinda hard, somewhere around the plate, You'll get noticed.
>And best of all, he's a lefty pitcher. He's got a mid 80's FB and great secondary stuff of which he has considerable command<
Whats his GPA, 1.2 or is he like 4' 11"?
It's just that my experience is that if you're left handed, can throw it kinda hard, somewhere around the plate, You'll get noticed.
He's a very good student and a physical specimen. Has been working hard in the gym since freshman year. (Used to share a hitting coach with my son, so Dad and I have compared notes a fair bit over the years).
I think that's what the dad thought -- that the kid would get noticed. i would say that he has definitely gotten "noticed" -- at least by PG -- as his PG ranking has climbed over the last three years from follow, to high follow, to top 1000 on the basis of his tournament play. What he hasn't been so far is "recruited." Somehow I think being more aggressive on his own behalf would have helped. But that's more of a guess than certain knowledge.
>And best of all, he's a lefty pitcher. He's got a mid 80's FB and great secondary stuff of which he has considerable command<
Whats his GPA, 1.2 or is he like 4' 11"?
It's just that my experience is that if you're left handed, can throw it kinda hard, somewhere around the plate, You'll get noticed.
Not always true...I have a teammate that is somewhat like this. 6'3'', 225 lbs. (Big, athletic kid).28 ACT, 3.7 GPA. Lefty, topped at 83. Above average changeup, average curveball. Best offer so far is a walk-on spot at an average D2...and he plays for a team where they have about 8 kids already committed to various D2-D3 schools.
In this kid's case, I'd say it was more about the situation than the answer. Even then, as long as this attitude doesn't translate to his game/work ethic, can it really be that bad? I definitely wouldn't have this attitude, but if he's a hard worker and can back it up, I don't see it being that large of an issue.
