Verbal Committment Question

Trust your gut.

My questions would be: would you want a player who goes back on their word, the baseball community is small, another question is would you want to play for a coach who questions your desire to play for their program, and the last question is, would the coach want a player who does not have a total commitment to play for his program?



Lastly, why is it so important to commit before the weekend for the coach?

You are absolutely right Homerun04 about giving your word. That's why I have a problem with giving a verbal and not sticking to it. And the answer to your question about why before the weekend, the only thing we can figure is my son's JUCO team plays in a showcase for lots of scouts and recruiters at the school who has offered him. Maybe they want him locked in before he plays. I could be way off base though. No pun intended.

Well you don't want to Baulk and make the wrong decision, is the offer from the school he wants to spend the end of his college career at or is it just about the money?

If it is "the school", then why wait the weekend? If is not, then it does not matter as much and he can find the school he wants to play at and finish is college career at the right fit athletically and scholastically.

Baseball is a difficult sport to play and attend school, coaches once they have you on campus, they own you and they make the line-up, you don't want to go into a situation with questions.

Good Luck, enjoy the ride!

quote:

Originally posted by Homerun04:

Lastly, why is it so important to commit before the weekend for the coach?

It may be so that they have time to move on and scout other people if he declines the offer.

Most offers come with a timeframe for when they expire for that reason.

While I agree that your word should be your bond, we have to remember we are dealing with 17-18 year olds.

Just make sure that before they give their verbal, that YOU know the reasons why they chose that school, and reinforce those.

Trust me, a coach would rather have a kid renege on the verbal than to come to the program next Fall without a 100% committment that he made the right choice!

As for the timing thing.
My Son has been asked to commit on an offer before Jupiter. Obviously, they don't want other schools to talk to him there.

2007baseballdad - I really don't think there's a 'right' answer to your question. I like the advice, "Trust your gut." My "gut" often gives me very good advice! Too bad I don't listen to it more often.

Some of the good points have already been made, I'll add a few more:

* The most likely reason they want a commitment before the weekend is that they don't want competition after the weekend, however...

* ...that shouldn't deter you if its the 'right' school and offer.

* Is this the only school showing interest? If not, why not contact (meaning your son) the others and ask about their level of interest? That might help put things into clear focus.

* How about asking the coaches themselves why they want a commitment before the weekend? Not in any confrontational way...just tell them you're curious (because you are!).

BTW, put me in the camp of "keeping your word."

Good luck. Tell us how it plays out.

Whatever the final result is I will post it here. Thank you for all your input. He had 2 recruiters that flew in for a few days to watch him and he did great. I got the chance to get to one of the games they were there. He went 3-5 with two doubles and a homer. All three, opposite field and threw out two runners. They really liked him and then no contact since. We'll see what happens. Neither one of the schools that came to see him are the one that has made the offer. He was really hoping for something from one of the two that flew in to watch him.

quote:

For some reason, can't put our finger on it, don't have a real warm and fuzzy feeling. Not a bad feeling, just ...............something.

To me, if you don't have a warm and fuzzy feeling, then that is the answer - don't sign.

How would you feel if they backed out of their offer after you accepted? You probably would have some harsh things to say about them if anybody asked your opinion in the future. Just reverse roles in this case. If you verbal and back out, and your son's name ever comes up in the future with those particular coaches, for example with a pro scout who is reseaching his background, what do think they might say?

As I said earlier, I absolutely agree with you. So does my son by the way.

I found this article in the archives from '06 at PGCrosschecker.com

Hopefully this link will work. If not, click on "Crack of the Bat" and then "Read the Columns" under PG Scout. There are other good articles there as well.

http://www.pgcrosschecker.com/crackthebat/blaine_clemme..._verbal_commitments/

sportsfan5, very interesting article. I am puzzled about the verbal commitment thing. I have a 2010 son and we are just beginning this process and I read more and more each day about players in his class already committing. My son was recently ranked in the top 15 by PG Crosschecker in the state of Texas and we have received letters from some top programs, but nothing close to being asked to commit or anything else. Are these kids that are verbally committing more than likely going in the MLB draft rather than going to college? Just curious as to how they are able to commit so soon? I know this is a little different question than what 2007baseballdad asked but curious all the same.

I certainly wouldn't want to be pressured into taking the first offer w/o knowing what else is out there.

My son, a JC player, ended up taking the last offer he got....in May. Although, one of the schools he told "no" in May came back in June with another/better offer. I guess I am saying if your son is a good prospect, don't feel compelled to take the first offer, especially if you have reservations in your gut -- as its still pretty early for JC player commitments.

The same school might (or might not) come back with a better or same offer later in the year depending upon whether or not they have been able to fill their needs. In the meantime your son will have likely learned a lot more about other programs and his own needs.

quote:

Originally posted by chipperj:
sportsfan5, very interesting article. I am puzzled about the verbal commitment thing. I have a 2010 son and we are just beginning this process and I read more and more each day about players in his class already committing. My son was recently ranked in the top 15 by PG Crosschecker in the state of Texas and we have received letters from some top programs, but nothing close to being asked to commit or anything else. Are these kids that are verbally committing more than likely going in the MLB draft rather than going to college? Just curious as to how they are able to commit so soon? I know this is a little different question than what 2007baseballdad asked but curious all the same.

Good question. I wish I had an answer. My '10 is also starting the process. He has already received 1 offer. We have 3 visits set up for November and have been told that at least 2 of those will result in offers........It's still way too early in my mind for a 16 yr old to be able to make such a big decission...........I guess this is the way things are heading. Lock them up earlier and earlier.

quote:

How would you feel if they backed out of their offer after you accepted?

You mean like some of the schools that over recruit and cut you and send you to a JC.... (I won't list the ones I know about)

Yet they don't seem to get a bad rap...

All I have to say is the NLI is totally in the favor of the school and not the athlete... Once signed the Athlete has no out... Coach can leave and athlete is still committed to school... and with the new transfer rule, that uses up two years...

But the school still holds the trump card.... you have to be academically eligible... or they can negate the offer... so if you are border line on grades.... they can very easily claim your grades are not good enough and presto... you're searching for alternatives....

That said.. most coaches uphold their word... and I've taught my son his word is the one thing that really tells people what kind of man he is... so if you say something... stand by it....


Finally.... chipperj D1 schools are not allowed to contact you until July 1 after junior year... That includes offers.... however... YOU can contact them and tell them you are very interested and that you would commit early if offered.... ******X and they can agree to it... So if youR SON has a favorite school and think the coaching staff likes him.... CALL them....

Even before July 1 between JR and SR years, you can communicate as follows:

If you telephone and they answer, you can talk to your heart's content. (However, they cannot call you, and so if you leave a message they cannot call back.)

If you e-mail, they may reply. This is the most common way to start a conversation. It may even involve setting up a specific time when you should call them to talk.

If you are on their campus, they can talk to you as much as is mutually desired. This includes camps, unofficial visits, etc. If you're high on their lists it's not unusual for e-mails to arrange an unofficial visit and that may conclude with an offer being made.

From the increasing prevalence of early verbals, you can imagine a whole heckuva lot of this goes on.

quote:

Originally posted by SDBB:
You mean like some of the schools that over recruit and cut you and send you to a JC.... (I won't list the ones I know about)

Yet they don't seem to get a bad rap...

One of the reasons they don't get a bad rap, is that people won't tell you who they are. A vicious circle that protects offenders instead of victims.

University of Georgia is the prime offender. There are threads all over this site about them.

I think Arizona State is another. They are also the kings of making big offers to freshmen, then cutting %'s at the end of freshman year. The country has long been littered with ASU transfers, but these days they have to sit out a year if they do. Thank you, NCAA!

I am very familiar with the ASU program and some of what you say is absolutely true. Fall workouts are more competitive then many of their spring games. There have been JUCOs in the area that could count on getting starters every year from kids that were recruited to play at ASU and who did make it in the Fall. They also have made liberal use of the grey shirt.

Consider that ASU always has one of the top recruiting classes, many of whom never come to school. Also, such a high % of his Jrs are drafted that he his turnover is high and uncertain. Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, I believe that it is a misconception that ASU sells kids on one thing and does another. Most kids that play there will tell you that it was clear from the get go that if they succeeded on the field they would prosper. If they were not cutting it, there was someone that would be playing ahead of them and a new kid brought in next year. Problems seem to arrive when a kid does not hear the truth that he's playing from year to year.

The new rules regarding % of ships, AGPA, roster limits and transfers will force a lot of changes. It will be interesting to see how a program like ASU will handle them.