Underclassmen Showcases

www.impactbaseball.com

take a look at the schedule for next year. They are heavily attended every year.

Wow, there are sophomores making verbal commitments? Are these commitments one-way? How can a school commit to a kid that only has one year of grades and maybe a PSAT score?

LHPMom

tcw6, we just got back from the Blue Grey Battle of the States Underclassmen. Most of the players were from Florida, but there were several from other states, including Virginia. One parent I talked with was from Maryland, and this was the second year in a row that she had brought her son. It was a perfect first showcase for my 2011. The atmosphere was very relaxed and laid back, and there was some pretty good baseball played. Each player gets the same amount of exposure. Everyone hit, and they essentially alternated innings on defense, and pitchers pitched 2-3 innings at a time. It was fun. The scouting is mostly D2, D3, JUCO, and NAIA. And I think the JUCO and NAIA and D3 scouts aren't bound by the NCAA rules about contact - at least I hope not . I'm not sure how many scouts were there. But anyway, it was a good place for 2B to get his feet wet, get an objective evaluation, and now he's got some confidence going into PG Underclassmen later this month.

LHPMom, yes. One of 2B's summer teammates verballed to UF as a sophomore. He was actively pursued by UF, and I think a couple of other schools as well. The kid is a player - and a good student. If he's got a good freshman GPA and a history of doing well on the state standardized tests, I guess maybe that "projects" just like his baseball skills.

I got info from the Coach Maynard Showcases this summer but I think these are only emailed to some but I am not for sure. It looks like a great oppurtunity.

2Bmom & Coach May and others -

My son attended the Blue-Grey Battle of the States Underclass event in Tampa this weekend. Before I comment on this event, I would like to preface that my son has attended many showcases, college camps and tournaments. He plays at a pretty high level. His 6A high school team has won their conference and district for the past 4 years. I will tell you his travel team is ranked by Perfect Game as one of the top 50 teams in the nation (exact placement left out for anonymity) and includes players on Team USA and two players projected to be drafted in 2009 in the top 10 rounds.

I must say that the Blue-Grey Battle of the States Underclass event this December 2008 in Tampa was a disappointment and in no comparison to others he has attended. The overall quality of players there were sub-par. Having watched all of the teams play, I would assert that less than half could make my son's 6A varsity team and only a hand full would be able to play on his travel team. There were very few scouts/coaches there as I spoke to all of them. Based on my assessment of this event compared to others, which I will not mention here for fairness, I would not invest any more time or money in a Blue-Grey event and specifically, would not recommend this underclass event. Other BG events held at specific colleges or universities may be better, but I can only comment based on my personal experience.

I was happy with "Gus" who ran the event as he was very responsive and helpful prior to the event. I don't want to disparage him or his organization. I am just providing my observations.

BB4fun, welcome to the HSBBW. Speaking as gently as I can as someone who bumbled about as new member, and still continues to do so, here is a word to the wise. Be very careful when talking up your son and his team, and criticizing other players and theirs. I'm pretty sure you don't mean any offense to particular players, but this is a big board with a lot of members, that was a small event, and it's really best to avoid that kind of stuff. Many people on the HSBBW have players with the same credentials as yours, or better. At least one of those was at B-G and had a great time. There is definitely a time and a place to talk about your son's skills and accomplishments, but there are ways to do it without referring to other players as "sub-par."

At the same time, facts are fine. Team Orlando won the tournament with one loss, and 3 wins with lopsided scores. My son played on Team Orlando, so of course we had fun. I'll admit that I would have been disappointed if we had paid airfare just to get there and get pounded by the locals.

We didn't have high expectations for this showcase - in fact, we were looking for a low-pressure event and this was just perfect. I still think it's a good first showcase for young players.

2Bmom - Understood. Meaning of my comment may have been lost in the text. I have been reading HSBBW for years, but have never commented before yesterday.

Key points were to highlight to others that they need to research the various events and weigh their personal situation (skill level, cost, expectations, etc.) prior to making the investment in time and money.

Also, I must mention here that the advertisement information sent out by BG includes a long list of Florida D1 and D2 schools, to inclue their logos, and highlighted that they attend these events. Please let me know if you saw or met any of the coaches or staff from these schools at this event. I did not.

I reiterate that the BG staff was very responsive. I may have left out that my son and I had a good time. It was very relaxed and low pressure environment.

I will also say that there were several parents at this particular event (BG Battle of the States Underclassmen 2008) who were VERY upset with the outcome of Sunday. The coach for one of the teams apparently did NOT understand that the win/loss record from Saturday did NOT have any bearing on playing a 4th game on Sunday. The 3rd game played on Sunday was the sole determining factor on whether or not you got to play a 4th game. The coach did not realize this and did not have ANY starting pitchers throw in the 3rd game. That team lost. After the game, the director informed the coach and the team that dispite the team's 2-1 record, the team that just beat them (1-2 record) would play in the final 4th game. There were at least 6 parents who became very aggitated and then cornered the BG staff to express their dissappointment (explitives left out).

I have concluded that this event is not one that meets my sons needs. Others should make their own assessments.

I think it is a dead period now if I am not mistaken and coaches cant evaluate off campus that might be why there were none there.

quote:

After the game, the director informed the coach and the team that dispite the team's 2-1 record, the team that just beat them (1-2 record) would play in the final 4th game. There were at least 6 parents who became very aggitated and then cornered the BG staff to express their dissappointment (explitives left out).

I'll agree with you there. We would rather have played the team that was 2-1 rather than the team that was 1-2 (that we had already beaten like 15-0 in the first game). I was surprised at that turn of events.

We didn't get all the pre-tournament mailings because we were going on a credit from last year - we were supposed to go but 2B had an injury. Maybe they were just advertising the colleges that were invited, rather than the ones who had made the commitment to show up. A former coach told us we would do better to go to an upperclassmen event this year, but like I wrote earlier, we were looking for something low-pressure and fun, and that's what we got.

What age/grade do players start going to the underclassmen showcases? PG, BG, etc?

Regardless of class we like to see them at our events once they have become Varsity Contributors

TRhit,
Do you mean as soon as they make the JV or not until they make the Varsity team? Just trying to get clarification.

The following is just my personal view, and anyone is free to attempt to change it. If you're going to spend money on showcases shouldn't it be to play with the big dogs (17/18U players) regardless of the player's age? In a showcase environment I'd rather have my son take a beating against the best and understand where he stands in his journey, than compete against other 16U players.

quote:

In a showcase environment I'd rather have my son take a beating against the best and understand where he stands in his journey, than compete against other 16U players.

RJM, in a game/tournament environment, yes, I absolutely agree with you. Playing up makes players better, the game is faster, the competition is more challenging. But in a showcase environment, I think players should compete with the best in their graduating class, maybe one year older. Those are the players that they are going to compete directly against for spots at the next level.

Besides, that, there are some very, very good 16U players out there. They should provide plenty of competition at PG.

So just so I understand the showcasing classifications, the underclassman showcase is 16U and the upperclassman showcase is 17/18?

southpaws_dad

JV doesn't count except in rare occasions where the varsity coach tells us he kept the boy down to get REPS rather than sit on the bench----normally we want to the boy to be a varsity contributor

As for the young players being in with the "big boys" it depends on the player--this fall some of our regulars were 2010 grads---they fit in well and are getting a load of interest from college and pro scouts

Sorry, southpaws_dad. That was confusing. The way I understand it, in showcase terms, underclassmen refers to anyone not a senior, regardless of age. I just figured RJM was talking about 2011s as 16U. So this year's PG underclassmen showcase is the graduating class of 2010, 2011, and 2012, although I would guess that most of the players there will be 2010, followed by 2011, followed by 2012. So it goes more by class than age. My 2011 turned 15 in July. One of his teammates, who will be there with him, turned 16 in October, so they are 9 months apart. My 2011 played 16U last summer, but he was only 14. So it is really confusing!

So I'll try to do a better job to make my point. I'm a huge believer in playing up at every opportunity in order to find the best team and the best competition possible. 2B made varsity at 13, and played on a very competitive 16U fall and summer team at age 14. All that really helped him gain speed, strength, skill, poise and confidence. But when showcase time comes around, you want your player to be confident. Not cocky, but not intimidated, so he can relax and perform his best. Playing up and doing well gives him that confidence, so that when he is compared to others in his graduating class, those he will compete against come graduation, he's in a good position.

Then again, I am no expert! This is just the way I see it.

*Edit* - Everyone is different and advances at his own pace. Not everyone wants or needs to play up. But so far it is working for 2B, and he's happy.

Southpaw is 13 and won't be 14 until next August. He is a 2014 grad. He is on a 13U team but they played more 14U than 13U in the fall. We will play a lot of 14U in the spring/summer and also a 15U or two. The idea is to provide them the same experience you have been referring to, 2Bmom.

So most of my inquiry is around when to start him going to the underclassman showcases.

In that case, I agree with TR - as soon as he is a contributor on the varsity team.

If he's at a big school with a highly successful program like BB4fun's son, maybe that's different. If that's the case, I'd ask his HS or travel coach when they think he's ready. You have lots of time. Enjoy it!