First, I did NOT like this time in my son's life. There was a lot of pressure placed on him and he is not the type who enjoys that. Yes he had many letters and calls and visits, but many of them were not from the right places as he later realized and you will find that out after the dust settles. Because he got a call from a school doesn't mean that school would be right for him. He very quickly narrowed his choices down after he did his research from the schools calling and only attended two official visits senior fall. We wanted him to understand that his decison where he attended school and played basball would most likely be one of the biggest decisions he would have to make, because we felt it affected his future as far as his goals and dreams. My sons attitude in the beginning was that he was going to go wherever he got the biggest offer but that changed after he began some serious homework.
Second, it's not about the number of letters you get or the number of calls. That really doesn't mean much, because what does mean something is the RIGHT phone call and the RIGHT offer. It is about making the right choice and everyone has different choices and reasons why they make those choices. I remember getting a pm from a parent about his son not getting too much attention. It was very distressing to hear about others getting call after call (or claiming to) here. In the end, his son was recruited and accepted to a fine school with a very good baseball program. Sometimes it takes a bit longer for others and that is ok because that is the way it is meant to be sometimes.
Third, I have seen others post it doesn't matter where you go to school as long as you get to play baseball. I don't beleive in that. The place where your son decides to go to school is very, very important. That is the place where he may met his future mate, get his degree and form relationships that will last a lifetime. Without being happy at school, it's very hard to be successful on the field. One player who transfered from a different area of the country to southern Clemson had southern culture shock, he was not happy. We all know that northern players wish to play in warmer climates, never really considering these important factors in their choices.
Fourth, do your homework dilligently. With new rules in place, your son will have difficulty in transfering. It's great to get recruited and attend one of those schools who continually get to Omaha, but from my experience that doesn't always mean you will end up there with the team, or you will be happy. Someone mentioned here that one school they looked up had 7 catchers. 7 catchers? What school needs 7 catchers? Most use only one, and another for back up. Most schools will carry 3, 4 if the are not all healthy. For position players, most often you will NOT play the position you are recruited for, things change according to the team needs. So if you are a first baseman not willing to play the outfield, know that this happens. For pitchers, watch pitching stats closely. We steered clear of programs that relied on freshman to carry the load. I don't care how good you are, 100 innings freshman year can turn to disaster later on. I have seen lots of pitchers my son pitched with have awesome freshman years as the ace, by junior year they were struggling. Ask the coaches about their philosophies. The good programs will seldom overuse a freshman, because this is their future. Many programs bring in JUCO pitchers. If they do this because they lose so many in the draft and have to replace with experience, that is ok, but some just bring them in because they don't have the time or the effort to develop their staff. I don't care what some say, these days most college pitching coaches take pride in developing their pitching staff, for their future and the programs success.
Fifth, it's your son's choice in the end, but you do have a right to ask questions, especially since you will be the one writing the checks.
And understand that no matter how good you think your son is compared to someone who might get more $$, everything is relevant to the situation. Coaches recruit on needs and budgets. He doesn't need two top shortstops in the nation on his team. And NEVER, NEVER (if you bump into a coach) drill him on why he didn't recruit your son. Coaches will call and tell your son he is interested in recruiting him, but that does not mean that he will offer. That doesn't make him a liar. He's just doing his job, trying to form relationship and opinions about your player. Sometimes his decision is not just based on your sons talent, but if he feels a player will gel into the chemistry of the team. You'd be surprised how many players DO NOT fit in.Sixth, best of luck, try to enjoy and come back if you have questions, we are always willing oto help.
44
