Underclassman that verbally commit early

basically a 3rd party, usually TB coach gives kid the coach's number. The player can see the facilities if they attend a camp.

As NYCDAD indicated, schools communicating with freshmen and sophomores is typically done through a 3rd party, such as the HS or travel ball coach. 

The coach relays the message to the recruit and the recruit can then initiate a phone call to the college coach.  Unlike softball and many other Division I sports, D1 baseball coaches can accept an incoming call from a prospect at any time.  

However, D1 coaches aren't permitted to provide a written scholarship offer to a recruit, directly or indirectly, until August 1 of the recruit's senior year.  

I think there is a huge misunderstanding about what the no contact rule means.  The coach cannot contact the player but the player can contact the coach all he wants.  If a player calls, a coach can answer and talk as long as they want about pretty much anything they want.  So a player is asked to call a coach at 4 PM on Tuesday and the player calls the coach.  The coach says I watched you this weekend and throughout the summer.  We like what we see.  We want to offer you a scholarship for 28.5% of tuition, room, and board plus we will buy books.  The kid says let me talk to my parents.   The coach replies call me back next Tuesday and we will stay in touch.  I know you have a lot to figure out. 

Better question is how those underclassmen know whether to accept an 'offer.' I would guess that lots of decommits/transfers/bad situations have their roots in hasty, relatively uninformed decisions. 

There are now 36 or so catchers committed in my son's year ('22). Many committed as freshmen. 

Considering the previous comment from OSKISD, I'll add this about those early commits. 

Often, when I'm having a consultation call with an athlete or parent to help them navigate a transfer to a new program, one of my questions will be "what other schools offered you, or showed strong interest and might still be interested?"  The following is a fairly typical response:

"I didn't receive/consider other offers because I committed to this school when I was a freshman/sophomore so wasn't receiving other interest."

I realize that recruits can be in a tough spot, especially if coaches are pressuring them to "commit now!!"  But accepting interest from other schools and keeping those lines of communication open as long as possible may allow that recruit the chance to create/increase relationships with more coaches that could potentially benefit him later on at some point.  

There should be major penalties for any kind of communication either way before summer of rising junior year. So many kids entering senior year don’t know what they want for a college major. How in the hell are they supposed to know in 8th grade or freshman year? The reality is most colleges coaches don’t care about academics as much as they make you think. Their only concern about academics is players remaining eligible. 

I went through early recruiting with a softball playing daughter. Girls physically mature sooner. Recruiting starts and ends sooner. She started receiving offers the summer after freshman year. By spring of soph year a top choice pressured her. They threatened to take the offer off the table. They said they could see other prospects in the upcoming summer. So she verballed. In girls sports waiting can cost the player several options. 

She stuck with the major she knew she wanted freshman year of high school. I was surprised. I thought she watched too much CSI. I warned her it’s not as glamorous as on tv. She went to law school and became a prosecutor.

i remember a comment posted about a fifteen year old kid asked if he knows what he wants for a college major. He responded, “I’m fifteen. I haven’t even figured out what I want for lunch.”

Agree with you RJM but verbal commit is nothing more then a verbal commit. The player can, and I have seen this happen locally, de-commit and open recruiting back up. Definitely not an ideal way to go about it, but again, I have seen players find a new home. Regardless, still comes down to parents doing their absolute best to learn about the recruiting process and providing guidance to their child. That is why this this board so incredibly valuable. 

In addition, I would always caution parents to watch out for any program/coach who is pressuring a player to sign. IMO, nothing wrong with a coach being honest in stating that any athletic scholarship may be unavailable at a later date but completely different when coach is doing it in an attempt to prevent the player from looking at other options.

Do these early offers come with the offered financials?  Pitchingfan mentioned above that they might.  Is that common for all?  I always wondered how that worked. How the heck can you commit before you know what it will cost?    

Even if the offer comes with a financial offer no one is signing anything. It’s not official. It’s also a verbal. There are situations where the coach comes back to the player senior year before the NLI signing to tell him they don’t have the money they thought they would have. 

Although the rules just changed,  basically our travel team organization based in mid-Atlantic states had a good association with many colleges. As we played in the big PG tournaments in Lakepointe and Fort Myers the travel coaches would let colleges know what/who they have and when playing. As you know most of those big tournaments most of the East Coast colleges have their RC in attendance. If they like what they see on the field they will contact our travel coach and (at time) have son call college coach at a certain time to chat. As this goes on it seems more colleges get involved and start having you come for unofficial visits. I know son and I left Lakepointe one tournament and hit 3 campuses on drive home. After the visits to a dozen campuses during his Freshman and Sophomore years it became a little bit crazy thth summer,  he had half dozen Power 5 schools making verbal offers. It's hard, I mean 16 yr old making decisions like this...absurd.  He eventually decided to take a second visit to 3 Schools and one he really fell for. Everything about it. Campus, Facilities, Academic Advisory staff, Coaches. So after hearing all the offers he decided on the one he loved. Although it wasn't the best of the Offers and was the furthest away from home. We talked it over and over a conference call with Head Coach he verbally committed to his SEC favorite. So by the time he started junior year in high School he knew what was ahead. He just finished the fall season and he's never worked so hard in his life! Parents- it is an insane amount of work they do daily plus classes. There's up, downs and everything else. I don't know how these D1 baseball players do it. Bottom line work your tail off, play for a good travel organization and GRADES WILL MAKE IT EASIER AND CHEAPER!!!

Spunker22 - Thanks for sharing.  You seem to have a great handle on this.  Based on your son's story and timeline it sounds like he was in much demand for top echelon college baseball programs.   Since the thread title is underclassmen that verbally commit early....I'm curious why did he commit when he did?   Were the college coaches pressuring him directly or indirectly through the travel coaches?  Could your son have held out a while longer to look at other options (due to his demand) or was the "market" telling you it was time to pull the trigger?  

Agree with you that there can be an insane amount of school work especially junior year in high school.   I kept telling my son that he hadn't seen anything yet, and I was right.

Thx.

Starting this thread has actually come full circle for me. My son, a freshman, received an offer from a P5 school a couple of weeks ago. He is talking to a handful of other schools right now, so not just yet jumping on anything.  But now I see how the whole process works before schools are officially allowed to contact players directly. 

ARCEKU21 posted:

Starting this thread has actually come full circle for me. My son, a freshman, received an offer from a P5 school a couple of weeks ago. He is talking to a handful of other schools right now, so not just yet jumping on anything.  But now I see how the whole process works before schools are officially allowed to contact players directly. 

Congratulations to you and your son.  Going back to your other thread about what questions to ask, I will reiterate a focus on the coach’s willingness and track record of honoring that commitment.  If you accept the offer, most other doors get closed, yet, coach can back out any time over the next 3 years.

Otherwise, truly promising and impressive your freshman son got an offer so early.  Congratulations!

CTbballDad posted:

ARCEKU21 posted:

Starting this thread has actually come full circle for me. My son, a freshman, received an offer from a P5 school a couple of weeks ago. He is talking to a handful of other schools right now, so not just yet jumping on anything.  But now I see how the whole process works before schools are officially allowed to contact players directly. 

Congratulations to you and your son.  Going back to your other thread about what questions to ask, I will reiterate a focus on the coach’s willingness and track record of honoring that commitment.  If you accept the offer, most other doors get closed, yet, coach can back out any time over the next 3 years.

Otherwise, truly promising and impressive your freshman son got an offer so early.  Congratulations!

Thanks! Oh yea, coach's track record is definitely something that is on our mind and will play a huge rule in when he decides on a school. Right now we are just kind of soaking it all in. 

Another issue to consider for early commitment is will the coach still be there freshman year? Is his seat getting hot from not winning enough? Is his current job a stepping stone to something bigger. 

To use a recognizable name Urban Meyer started at Miami, Ohio. Then Utah before Florida and establishing his top shelf reputation (let’s save the character comments/ I have a few).

fenwaysouth posted:

Spunker22 - Thanks for sharing.  You seem to have a great handle on this.  Based on your son's story and timeline it sounds like he was in much demand for top echelon college baseball programs.   Since the thread title is underclassmen that verbally commit early....I'm curious why did he commit when he did?   Were the college coaches pressuring him directly or indirectly through the travel coaches?  Could your son have held out a while longer to look at other options (due to his demand) or was the "market" telling you it was time to pull the trigger?  

Agree with you that there can be an insane amount of school work especially junior year in high school.   I kept telling my son that he hadn't seen anything yet, and I was right.

Thx.

As far as committing early, there was absolutely no pressure/timeline vibes coming from the Colleges. But I guess every ballplayer wants to commit. Maybe a badge of honor? Relief of some kind that you found a home? I  know at the time he did  quite of few area and travel teammates had been committed by then. Even though it was a few years ago...jeez,  that is what most kids were doing. Committing early. A side note,  after he decided on the SEC School he's at but didn't give staff the answer we went on one more follow up visit to a Big 10 school and were flat out told what amount of scholarship money was left and were offering it to 3 pitchers and the first 2 that agreed were "our guys". So waiting in that case would have been less money offered. One more thing....academics will help more than  just athletic . Please have your son take the ACT PSAT multiple times to get the highest score and more scholarship dollars for parents. Unfortunately , although my son got a Fantastic deal, when NLI arrived he lost @ 5K of scholarship money because he didn't reach the score we were looking for.  So Mom and Dad now pay 5k more a year for his ....@%%$#!!!!. Enough ranting. Any help I can be please don't hesitate to ask,  it's a stressful run then starts again when you're on campus! 😉

Thanks Spunker22.  I was asking more for the benefit of our board members than myself.  Your son's story is similar to many recruits I knew 10 years ago when my son was going through the recruiting process.   All his travel teammates played D1 baseball and half were ACC or SEC recruits.   Definitely a "badge of honor" thing as you described.   There was a lot of peer or market pressure to verbally commit back in those days.  I agree with you that it was much easier to be recruited for those that had their academic house in order.   My son got recruited as an afterthought (academic money only) after South Carolina had lost one of their committed recruits to law enforcement.  It was very flattering but my son had his mind made up about a different direction.

Thanks.

ARCEKU21 posted:

Starting this thread has actually come full circle for me. My son, a freshman, received an offer from a P5 school a couple of weeks ago. He is talking to a handful of other schools right now, so not just yet jumping on anything.  But now I see how the whole process works before schools are officially allowed to contact players directly. 

You have received some great answers to your original question. Rules have changed but recruits still have opportunities to speak to coaches.  The rule was changed for a good reason, to slow down the recruitment process as well.  In some ways it hasn't necessarily slowed down,  especially with specific top programs (not all).

Recruits are still committing early, early would be before junior summer. Most of these early commitments happen within P5 programs. Why, IMO, because some programs know how to make recruits and their families believe that there will not be enough money  left to offer later! Hogwash!  Coaches from these top conference programs offer early for a few reasons, #1  being because they can!  It's easy to make an offer to a freshman with projected talent, a few years later an injury  occurs or other factors come into play, and they  than tell you to go look elsewhere.  They need your promised money.

Once you have committed, you can't talk to another program. There is no rule that says you can't, but baseball is a small world. Very small. 

I am NOT a fan of early commitments. Rick has it right in his scenario that he posted and it happens all of the time.  Read it again. 

Dont take yourself off the market so early!

Good luck to your son and most of all enjoy the ride!

Edited from original post.

TPM posted:

 

Recruits are still committing early, early would be before junior summer. Most of these early commitments happen within P5 programs. Why, IMO, because some programs know how to make recruits and their families believe that there will not be enough money  left to offer later! Hogwash!  Coaches from these top conference programs offer early for a few reasons, #1  being because they can!  It's easy to make an offer to a freshman with projected talent, a few years later an injury  occurs or other factors come into play, and they  than tell you to go look elsewhere.  They need your promised money.

Once you have committed, you can't talk to another program. There is no rule that says you can't, but baseball is a small world. Very small. 

I am NOT a fan of early commitments. Rick has it right in his scenario that he posted and it happens all of the time.  Read it again. 

Dont take yourself off the market so early!

Good luck to your son and most of all enjoy the ride!

Edited from original post.

 

Yes, very small World. At UNC Forbes was talking about don't shop offers or try to get recruited after committing. They do talk and they'll call someone up and tell them so. There are other programs like Florida or Florida State and they poach.

I did find it odd to see committed players at other school prospect camps. That was just weird to me.

You also have to worry about coaching staff changes. Coach leaves, so do the verbals and you're released (or can and probably will be). We knew someone who committed to Pitt in 8th grade (Why I have NO IDEA) but coaching staff change and he was released. Notre Dame staff was wiped clean this past summer. Other coaches here in Texas on are the bubble and are risky.

Forbes (UNC) also made a great point ACC coaching staffs are more stable than SEC, given the SEC pays waaay more and expects wins. If you don't get them they change.  Longer Tenure in ACC of coaches and staffs.....

You also want to check to see if they have a real pitching coach (for pitchers). Some schools do and others say they do. Do your research.

Shinny new facility? How are the academics? There is life after baseball and you want a degree and alumni network you can count on.....

When my son got to high school I started attending college games and asking questions. Most parents open up when asked about their kid’s talent and recruiting. 

A pro scouted chatted me up after he gunned the starter he came to see. He was waiting for the closer to gun. He handed me the program with one team’s roster face up. He asked me what I thought happened. 

There were twenty-six first year players on the roster (freshmen and transfers). It wasn’t hard to figure out. The program stunk, a new coach was hired and he cleaned house. 

The scout warned me to be leery of unstable programs. Your kid can get left without a team and have to transfer if he wants to continue playing. This coach released a senior all conference player since he didn’t see the team winning in his remaining season. 

This is a great thread with alot of helpful information.   My son is a freshman who's received a national ranking and has been named a starter for high school varsity.   His measurables are at the top of his class.   Despite all this he's only generated interest from several P5 schools but no offers yet.   Needless to say he is not enjoying the process and frustrated and I keep telling him it's early.  Meanwhile we know a kid who was committed to his dream school for two years just to be told by the coach two weeks before signing his NLI......."sorry we over recruited".   I'm thankful for the information and this is definitely a topic that should be discussed more often.

4arms posted:

This is a great thread with alot of helpful information.   My son is a freshman who's received a national ranking and has been named a starter for high school varsity.   His measurables are at the top of his class.   Despite all this he's only generated interest from several P5 schools but no offers yet.   Needless to say he is not enjoying the process and frustrated and I keep telling him it's early.  Meanwhile we know a kid who was committed to his dream school for two years just to be told by the coach two weeks before signing his NLI......."sorry we over recruited".   I'm thankful for the information and this is definitely a topic that should be discussed more often.

Definitely early. We were in the same boat. Son was a starting pitcher (top 2 or 3 in rotation) on a 6A Varsity team in TX. Maybe handful of other kids could say that in TX. He even struck out multiple D1 committed Juniors & Seniors and Brett Batty, as a freshman.  It wasn't as big of a deal as we expected it to be.  We were shocked!

That summer things started to happen and then didn't blow up until Sophomore year summer and fall with WWBAs.... Good to be ahead of it, informed and prepared.  

If he keeps working it will happen. 

4arms posted:

This is a great thread with alot of helpful information.   My son is a freshman who's received a national ranking and has been named a starter for high school varsity.   His measurables are at the top of his class.   Despite all this he's only generated interest from several P5 schools but no offers yet.   Needless to say he is not enjoying the process and frustrated and I keep telling him it's early.  Meanwhile we know a kid who was committed to his dream school for two years just to be told by the coach two weeks before signing his NLI......."sorry we over recruited".   I'm thankful for the information and this is definitely a topic that should be discussed more often.

My son is in the same boat as yours. He started to generate interest from colleges after the PG 14u National this past summer. Then he got on this past fall with a nationally ranked showcase program and interest really started to boom. He was talking to a handful of P5 schools. But offers did not come until he actually went to camps at a couple of the schools. Shortly after the camps, offers came. Like your son, my son does not enjoy the recruiting process either. He is people pleaser and his thought was that he didn't like developing relationships knowing that he is going to have to tell all but one of them no at some point. 

4arms posted:

This is a great thread with alot of helpful information.   My son is a freshman who's received a national ranking and has been named a starter for high school varsity.   His measurables are at the top of his class.   Despite all this he's only generated interest from several P5 schools but no offers yet.   Needless to say he is not enjoying the process and frustrated and I keep telling him it's early.  Meanwhile we know a kid who was committed to his dream school for two years just to be told by the coach two weeks before signing his NLI......."sorry we over recruited".   I'm thankful for the information and this is definitely a topic that should be discussed more often.

Players have to be very careful with dream schools. During recruiting they have to be sure they’re hearing what is actually being said rather than stretching it into what they want to hear. They need to be sure the dream school loves them as opposed to seeing them as insurance. 

One of the best lines I ever read on this board applies to early offers and decision making ...

A poster’s 15yo son was asked by a college coach what he wants for a major in college. The kid responded, “If fifteen. I don’t even know what I want for lunch.”

RJM posted:

4arms posted:

This is a great thread with alot of helpful information.   My son is a freshman who's received a national ranking and has been named a starter for high school varsity.   His measurables are at the top of his class.   Despite all this he's only generated interest from several P5 schools but no offers yet.   Needless to say he is not enjoying the process and frustrated and I keep telling him it's early.  Meanwhile we know a kid who was committed to his dream school for two years just to be told by the coach two weeks before signing his NLI......."sorry we over recruited".   I'm thankful for the information and this is definitely a topic that should be discussed more often.

Players have to be very careful with dream schools. During recruiting they have to be sure they’re hearing what is actually being said rather than stretching it into what they want to hear. They need to be sure the dream school loves them as opposed to seeing them as insurance. 

Agree! One of the offers my son received was from one of his two dream schools (so much gear sitting in the closet). But after sitting down and thinking about the offer, thinking about the situation, it was less ideal than other offers he received. I know he was torn but I think he understood. Ultimately it comes down to "go where you are shown the love". 

File this under lessons learned.

So, one of the reasons underclassman commit early is they get an opportunity to go to a dream school.   Just this week, my wife and I ran into a friend at the grocery store we hadn't seen in a while.   She came to us years ago about college recruiting for her son.   Her son had an offer from a US Service Academy.   Certainly an opportunity worth considering for most recruits that want to lead, serve our country and get a great education.   My wife and I suggested that her son strongly consider verbally committing as a sophomore only IF it is a dream school, BUT, he needs to stay in touch with other coaches in just in case something happens in his recruitment to the Service Academy.   According to her, he ended up verbally committing his sophomore year, however never kept in touch with any coaches and the recruiting marketplace.   He had checked out of recruiting.   Then he got hurt junior year and that injury lingered for some time.   The Service Academy pulled their verbal offer in November of senior year.   He had no idea this de-commitment was coming.   He had no recruiting momentum, no detailed information about potential colleges and baseball openings.   Covid-19 hit and now he is trying to walk-on to either a local D3 or transferring and walking on to a D1 P5....certainly tough sledding for anybody.

It is understandable that recruits get hurt.   Looking back, I think the mistake made was disengaging from recruiting  (as an early commit) and thinking everything is great and ready to go at the Service Academy.  So, the lesson learned is to stay in constant contact with coaches, improve your skills if healthy, and reach out to the verbally committed school every now and then to check in.   

This story broke my heart, but I hope it helps somebody out there.

Did they have to pull the offer because he couldn’t pass the physical exam?  Had a friend’s son almost lose his AF offer because of a non-sport related injury. He wasn’t going to be able to pass the exam even though he would be fine and able to play his sport within a few months.  (I think he didn’t want to go unless he was in the actual academy not the adjacent CC). In the end it worked out, but I remember it being a source of stress for the family.

@LousyLefty posted:

Did they have to pull the offer because he couldn’t pass the physical exam?  Had a friend’s son almost lose his AF offer because of a non-sport related injury. He wasn’t going to be able to pass the exam even though he would be fine and able to play his sport within a few months.  (I think he didn’t want to go unless he was in the actual academy not the adjacent CC). In the end it worked out, but I remember it being a source of stress for the family.

LL - Good question.  My understanding is no.  He overcame the injury and was healthy by mid-summer as a rising senior.  My question to her was "can he still go to the Service Academy without baseball"?  Her response was "no" that he didn't have the grades as a regular student.   Which further begs the question why didn't he stay on top of this knowing that baseball was his only way to get in.   That is a lot of risk to assume in my opinion.

@fenwaysouth posted:

File this under lessons learned.

So, one of the reasons underclassman commit early is they get an opportunity to go to a dream school.   Just this week, my wife and I ran into a friend at the grocery store we hadn't seen in a while.   She came to us years ago about college recruiting for her son.   Her son had an offer from a US Service Academy.   Certainly an opportunity worth considering for most recruits that want to lead, serve our country and get a great education.   My wife and I suggested that her son strongly consider verbally committing as a sophomore only IF it is a dream school, BUT, he needs to stay in touch with other coaches in just in case something happens in his recruitment to the Service Academy.   According to her, he ended up verbally committing his sophomore year, however never kept in touch with any coaches and the recruiting marketplace.   He had checked out of recruiting.   Then he got hurt junior year and that injury lingered for some time.   The Service Academy pulled their verbal offer in November of senior year.   He had no idea this de-commitment was coming.   He had no recruiting momentum, no detailed information about potential colleges and baseball openings.   Covid-19 hit and now he is trying to walk-on to either a local D3 or transferring and walking on to a D1 P5....certainly tough sledding for anybody.

It is understandable that recruits get hurt.   Looking back, I think the mistake made was disengaging from recruiting  (as an early commit) and thinking everything is great and ready to go at the Service Academy.  So, the lesson learned is to stay in constant contact with coaches, improve your skills if healthy, and reach out to the verbally committed school every now and then to check in.   

This story broke my heart, but I hope it helps somebody out there.

I think it is really hard to keep in contact with other coaches once you commit.  They all talk and word travels fast.  I think it is good to keep going to invitational events, so you stay relevant but I think talking to other coaches would be called out.  When my son was committed, the future HC would reach out to him anytime he did anything (event wise) asking why he was doing it when he was already committed.  It was clear he didn't like it.

This begs the question  -  What's the point or advantage to a kid verbally committing to a school early in the process???   I'm failing to see the advantage from the player's point of view. 

@ReluctantO'sFan posted:

This begs the question  -  What's the point or advantage to a kid verbally committing to a school early in the process???   I'm failing to see the advantage from the player's point of view.

I’m sure that others on here can give better reasons, but I believe that the reason this happens is due to insecurity.  All parents and players that are part of this “race” are wanting the same thing, to play at the next level.  But how do you know where you stand?  There are indirect signals, like making an elite travel team, hitting some measurable, performing well in a national tournament, the list goes on forever.  But none of these signals really say, “yes, you have succeeded and reached your goal.”

Except for one, and that is the commitment.  It might be fools gold but it does tell you that you have reached your goal.  That is the biggest benefit.  It silences the fears and worries for a period.

I heard a pod cast of an SEC pitching coach that said that recruiting is the one race that if you finish too fast, you lose.  He was speaking from the player and school perspective.

@ReluctantO'sFan posted:

This begs the question  -  What's the point or advantage to a kid verbally committing to a school early in the process???   I'm failing to see the advantage from the player's point of view.

Look, all of these warnings and anecdotal stories have great merit.  But, on the other hand,  one needs to remember several basic things...

Committing can only come with an offer.  P5 schools tend to recruit early.  Top schools are competing to get the best recruits first.  While offers can be retracted, they are given with the intent to honor them.  There are only so may slots, so many scholarships available.  Once a class/position is filled, the school will back off of their recruiting efforts.   

So it is a fine line.  If a good player gets the early offer from a desirable school, does he take it or risk that spot not being available later?

@ReluctantO'sFan posted:

This begs the question  -  What's the point or advantage to a kid verbally committing to a school early in the process???   I'm failing to see the advantage from the player's point of view.

My daughter verballed early. It’s how D1 women’s sports work. She received the offer after post freshman year travel season late July. She verballed in May of soph season. The real studdettes start getting offers in 8th grade.

It was the #1 choice academically for her major. She felt she could compete at a middle of the pack major conference program. Had she waited until after the soph travel season she might have been out of luck. She wasn’t a “have to have” player. She was a “she fits here” player. Plenty of candidates fit her mold.

One thing that won’t change is girls physically mature much sooner than boys. But boys recruiting for D1 is approaching the same early recruiting process. The program has everything to gain and nothing to lose. They hold the chips (the offer). It’s the player who loses out if senior year the program decides the kid is no longer a fit.

If you’re a pro prospect stud hold out you have nothing to lose. Everyone wants you. But for a lot of D1 prospects it’s “next prospect up.”

@cabbagedad posted:

Look, all of these warnings and anecdotal stories have great merit.  But, on the other hand,  one needs to remember several basic things...

Committing can only come with an offer.  P5 schools tend to recruit early.  Top schools are competing to get the best recruits first.  While offers can be retracted, they are given with the intent to honor them.  There are only so may slots, so many scholarships available.  Once a class/position is filled, the school will back off of their recruiting efforts.   

So it is a fine line.  If a good player gets the early offer from a desirable school, does he take it or risk that spot not being available later?

How good is the player? How early is the offer? How big is the offer? In terms of baseball talent, how good is the desirable school?

Of course he takes a risk of that spot not being there later. Big risk? Small risk? That's hard to know even if you have "scout abilities", know the kid, school and all the details.

The only purpose of these discussions are to open up parents and players minds to make their own decisions. At some point, the player must roll the dice. There is risk in every turn a recruit takes. At the end of the day, (hopefully) a kid is at a baseball tryout on a college campus.

My son committed to a top 5 school April of Sophomore year in HS.  He is now at his school's "tryout". He's one of 26 pitchers at the tryout. He's all in, and has never had a plan B. I don't know what's going to happen and neither does he. No one does.

(not really a reply directly to cabbagedad, just continuing the thought)

I would add that money factors into it as well. Since baseball scholarships are not fully funded, there is a real risk (or fear depending on your perspective) that you will get less of a financial package the later you wait because the money was doled out to other recruits. That is not a worry for basketball players, for example. They only have to worry about whether the offer is there but not about how much money is “left” so they often do not commit until the summer or early fall of their senior year.  Just my thoughts after going through the process with both sports. We felt much more pressure with baseball to decide (he committed early fall of his junior year and she committed early fall of her senior year. Both P5).

@PTWood posted:

I would add that money factors into it as well. Since baseball scholarships are not fully funded, there is a real risk (or fear depending on your perspective) that you will get less of a financial package the later you wait because the money was doled out to other recruits. That is not a worry for basketball players, for example. They only have to worry about whether the offer is there but not about how much money is “left” so they often do not commit until the summer or early fall of their senior year.  Just my thoughts after going through the process with both sports. We felt much more pressure with baseball to decide (he committed early fall of his junior year and she committed early fall of her senior year. Both P5).

I would not consider fall of junior year early.  At that point coaches can contact you and you can go on a paid visit to campus.  I would consider early commitment when an athlete can not take advantage of full communication and campus visiting privileges.  I’m sure others might have other definitions.

@Around_The_Horn he committed a couple weeks before officials were possible but we went on campus three times before deciding (regular student tour, camp, and a game where we just bought standing room tickets). But the difference between the two processes (basketball and baseball) highlights why people might commit early. There were definitely people who thought we were “behind” in terms of timing and that “there wouldn’t be money left.” He might have missed a few opportunities with a few teams but we were unwilling to rush. I can still see how families feel pressure to make an early decision.

The other reason I thought of is driven by college coaches. Even though they can’t call players, they can call the HS/travel coaches and ask the players to call. What is exciting at first can become overwhelming and time consuming for the player. This is where parents and coaches can step in and let coaches know that the player won’t be deciding for a certain period of time. Otherwise a kid might want to decide just to get it over with...

I am not a fan of committing too early. It takes you off the market. If the player is a real prospect, there will always be an offer on the table.

JMO