Very confused? please help

dophindan - Welcome to the hsbaseballweb.

As a freshman, your son has plenty of time.

Help him to do the things to get stronger, gain some weight in the right places and to improve his skills. Enjoy this year whether on JV or varsity. Don't put too much pressure on. Keep it fun and in another year (or two), you will begin to see whether college baseball is an viable option or not.

Relax, enjoy your son and help him to have fun.

Relax! Plenty of time, and it sounds like you have laid out a good approach.

Just remember to enjoy each and every day as they do fly by and do come to an end.

I had three boys playing at one time, now only one.

We worked on hitting with professional instructors but did not consider "exposure" before their Sophomore year.

The most important thing is enjoy every day and take a lot of pictures!

And, welcome to the Highschool Baseball Website!

quote:

Originally posted by dolphindan1:
.. 2015 is very interested in playing college baseball ...

Also He is in honors classes and slipped a bit on his first progress report so the hammer is down on that...I have explained that grades are the top priority for him right now.

I will expand a bit on this aspect... There is a strong likelihood that he will get far more college money for academics than for baseball. Also, if he has really good grades throughout HS, there will be lots more college baseball school options for him (assuming his playing level will also meet college standards).
Since he is very interested in college baseball, you may be able to use this info to help motivate him through his current academic bumps.
Sr son slipped a bit his freshman year and that is affecting his overall GPA, which we are finding is closing some doors for him, even though he has stepped it up since.
Welcome and best of luck.

quote:

Originally posted by cabbagedad:

quote:

Originally posted by dolphindan1:
.. 2015 is very interested in playing college baseball ...

Also He is in honors classes and slipped a bit on his first progress report so the hammer is down on that...I have explained that grades are the top priority for him right now.

I will expand a bit on this aspect... There is a strong likelihood that he will get far more college money for academics than for baseball. Also, if he has really good grades throughout HS, there will be lots more college baseball school options for him (assuming his playing level will also meet college standards).
Since he is very interested in college baseball, you may be able to use this info to help motivate him through his current academic bumps.
Sr son slipped a bit his freshman year and that is affecting his overall GPA, which we are finding is closing some doors for him, even though he has stepped it up since.
Welcome and best of luck.

Are Honors classes a must? or could college prep classes serve him better? He was put in a couple Honors like Science and Geometry but actually had a higher grade in English and they didnt put him in honors when speaking to his guidance counselot at orientation she thought it was strange and immediately put him in Honors...If he struggles in Honors would I be better off moving him to CP?

Also I think my rush is I just saw a fomer travel ball teammate of his a Sophmore this year just committed to a major D1 school...I mean the best D1 school for baseball...as a Sophmore..I am not saying that kid isnt deserving but man it just threw me off a little...

Others here will be far more qualified to answer your "Honors vs CP" questions. Of course, those questions go much deeper than just baseball considerations. I can tell you that a few of son's friends eventually scaled back to varying degrees on the honors classes in order to allow time for sports, other activities or an attempt to shift the balance more to an enjoyable HS experience. A few others continued full bore with Honors classes and will undoubtedly be rewarded for it down the road. Every kid is different. Every parent is different.

dolphindan1:

Welcome.

Sophomore "commits" usually involve two elements: (1) an exceptional player and (2) the player's "dream school." As such, they are still very much the exception. Please don't let an early commitment spook you or him.

You and your son have received some very good advice here. Academics and becoming better as a player every day ought to be at the top of his current to-do list. If he (1) ends up with good grades, (2) has worked himself into becoming the best player he can be by his junior year, and (3) has become visible to the schools that are appropriate for him, he will have done all he can do to put himself into position to play after high school.

Finally, notice that I keep using the word "he" rather than "you." This has got to be his "gig." His passion. His dedication. His accountability.

What has been outlined here requires a big commitment on his part; but, it pales against the commitment it will take from him once he gets to college. Applying himself now indicates that he'll have what it takes if he reaches his goal of playing after high school.

Best of luck to him!

quote:

Originally posted by Prepster:
dolphindan1:

Welcome.

(3) has become visible to the schools that are appropriate for him, he will have done all he can do to put himself into position to play after high school.

Finally, notice that I keep using the word "he" rather than "you." This has got to be his "gig." His passion. His dedication. His accountability.

I agree the advice has been great...but my concern is your #3...how do I get him visible? Is it showcase tourneys, camps, just playing on HS team...I guess thats what I am not grasping..

Trust me when I say its him...its his goal...Personally I think baseball is the most boring game in the world...I actually get bored watching him play...I hate to say that but its true...He plays year round travel ball and its all he wants to do..His travel ball coach recently asked each student to write down 3 goals they have...His was to go to college, play baseball, and get his degree...its all him...I tried to push basketball on him and he played 1 year on bteam but didnt care for it...which is fine

thanks for all the replies so far

Dolphindan 1

I have a 2013 who is getting quite a bit of interest from some major D-1's. When he was your sons age his first exposure come mainly from travel ball tournaments, now he is playing with a scout ball team and we have done one showcase. There is no perfect game plan for getting your son seen, but
bottom line is if your son can play he will be noticed quickly.

Also, be sure you son is able to excel in honor classes, I got second hand info from a teammates dad. Not all colleges weight honor classes equally. His son got a couple of C's in honors class and a D-2 college weighed them as 2.5 not 3.0. Thus, lowering his GPA.

Good luck, it can and will get crazy.

dolphindan:

I have had three sons go through this; it is amazing to me how simple it really is and how little I once knew.

Anyway, here are a few things to keep in mind:

1. If he is good enough, you have nothing to worry about.
2. If he is not good enough, you have nothing to worry about.

Either way, you will know soon enough.

The hard part is if he is good enough, at what level? I think that is very, very hard to tell. I believe it's good to reach for the highest level, but that also can bring disappointment because the competition is so tough and there are so many outstanding players and so few positions available (in relative terms).

The best thing you can do, I believe, is create opportunities where he can compete against tough competition under pressure. This will prepare him and also tell you almost everything you need to know. Keep in mind, people sometimes see the answer and don't want to accept it.

Keep in mind, too, down time is important.

If you are in an area with a wealth of talent (California, for instance), your son might have to go elsewhere for the opportunity. Maybe he is willing to do that, maybe not.

And finally, while college baseball is a great experience, college without baseball is also a great experience if you want it to be. If baseball is not ultimately in the cards, it is not the end of the world or, really, that big of a deal.

Hello, and welcome to HSBBW, you are getting some great info on this thread.

When you say grades are slipping, is it because the content is too challenging, or simply the sheer volume of work is too much? Ask you son what he thinks.

Also (you don't need to answer this I am just painting the picture) Are they slipping from "all easy As in middle school" to getting some Bs? Or are they dropping down to Cs? Most straight A middle school kids are sort of shocked in HS when they realize that their old methods aren't earning the easy As they had gotten used to.

Adjusting to HS means adjusting work habits, learning how to take better notes,learning how to study, and time management skills. IMHO they do NOT teach those skills to HS freshmen. Many top notch MS students are surprised to see a slip in early Freshman year.

To your questions about Honors classes. The most commonly asked question in a college info session is: 'is it better to take an honors class and get a lower grade or a CP class and get an easy A' The answer: it depends, but challenge yourself to the degree that you can still be successful. Right now your son is too young to have a feel for what level of college will be right for him, so I would tell him "don't sell yourself short." If they assigned you to those classes, they think you are capable, and you can step up to it. But if it feels like he might slip to a C, I would suggest honors might not be the right choice in that subject.

It is a good idea to seek the extra help from teachers, and if he finds Honors Geom to be a challenge in particular, I would find out who the best math teacher is in your town and hire that person for one-on-one tutoring (if that is in your budget.) Hon Geo is very challenging for some kids, (more so than Alg 2) and Geo is a big part of the standardized tests he will be taking in 10th and 11th grade. Math is the one track where you really need to be consistently in the higher track if your goal is to get to calc by senior year. Other subject areas, it is somewhat easier to 'step up' to honors in later years.


Finally, tell your son to look at the "Khan Academy" web site for help in math and science. It is awesome, and free! Bookmark it on his computer.

Good luck, and enjoy the HS years.

quote:

Originally posted by dolphindan1:
...but my concern is your #3...how do I get him visible? Is it showcase tourneys, camps, just playing on HS team...I guess thats what I am not grasping..

I’m sure you know but you can search by topic on this site. There is a ton of info regarding this topic. Also, I understand privacy concerns but sometimes it is good to at least state your general location. Sometimes this allows for more specific direction when you ask a question. For example, when you ask about showcases or travel teams, someone in your area is more likely to give you specific direction if they know you are in that area.
Jemaz states...
1. If he is good enough, you have nothing to worry about.
2. If he is not good enough, you have nothing to worry about.

I really like that (the rest of his advice was very good also). But I also think there are a ton of young players that are somewhere in between and those are the ones with the toughest challenge.


Some basic answers to your question (that I learned mostly from HSBBW)..
Budget and logistics allowing, you are going to want to start looking for a travel team that goes to the right tournaments. Start researching some of the various showcases. Some are far better for exposure than others. One of the great things about PG showcases is that your son will also get an evaluation that is widely recognizeable. That is not the case with most of the other showcase evaluations. And, this will also give your son a really good idea of where he stands at that point in time. He may want to go to a lower profile showcase or two his sophomore year and then a PG showcase junior year. This will get him comfortable with the format before going to a “biggie”. If/when your son starts getting specific ideas about which colleges he may want to go to, target the camps of those schools.
You don’t have to do all these things and once you start, you will get bombarded with various camp and showcase info. You will need to learn how to pick and choose.

Generally speaking, you will not get exposure from your HS team unless there is a highly regarded D1 prospect that everyone is talking about.

More importantly, make sure he is getting good instruction so that he continues to improve and has a chance to fulfill his dream. That can be HS coaches, local baseball facilites, private instructors, good friends that are qualified, etc. If funds are limited, creativity and determination can still get him there.

quote:

Originally posted by dolphindan1:
Are Honors classes a must? or could college prep classes serve him better?

quote:

Originally posted by dolphindan1:
I agree the advice has been great...but my concern is your #3...how do I get him visible? Is it showcase tourneys, camps, just playing on HS team...I guess thats what I am not grasping..

Hello and welcome to the forum.

The following is from a parent who got started very late in the game which obviously does not apply to you.
The best way for your son to be seen is probably a combination of the above, with HS ball being the least important. I say that because unless he is a stud for his age, most scouts outside the area do not travel to HS games to find people. Rather they are following up on kids they already have an interest in. Back in my day it was just the opposite, but now days most coaches looking for talent go to showcases/tournaments. The best one by far is the Perfect Game tourney coming up in Jupiter. There will be more college and professional scouts at that one tourney than most others combined. If I had to do it all over again with my son I'd say we would have started him going to that event in his Sophomore and subsequent years. You should also have your son try out for the best team he can make because the deeper the team goes in that tourney, the more chances he might be seen by schools he is interested in.
As to camps, I'd suggest you send him to a camp at a school he is really interested in attending. I say that because many different colleges have camps, but if he would not like to go there, little will be gained recruitment wise. Sure he will enjoy it, and hopefully gain some knowledge from the instruction. Additionally he/you should have an idea where he is projectability wise. Another words, sending him to a top 25 D1 camp might not be where he is likely to be recruited depending on his abilities.
I'd suggest you start getting an idea where your son stands compared with other top kids at his position. Find out what his deficiencies are and have him start working on improving them. There is no sense spending big bucks at this stage for exposure if he has a glaring weakness that needs to be addressed.

When it comes to classes/grades, make sure he stays focused because as others have said, there will be more academic money available than there will be limited baseball money in most cases. Some schools combine the two, while others (D3's) don't have athletic money. Also, weighted averages for Honors and AP classes are only as good as the schools reputation with some colleges. Now of course if he can take and do well in AP classes, then those are fewer credits he will need to take in college.
What tends to be more important with some colleges is his test scores(ACT&SAT). So having him take some prep classes will be important to get the best scores. My sons grades were very good, but his scores while good, were not reflective of his GPA. So a couple of schools that had interest in him baseball wise might not have been able to get him admitted. Others could definitely get him in, but with no academic money. Then again we were pursuing some high end academic schools. Others were able to offer good money because their admission requirements were not as high. So if your son could get a 28 on the ACT or a 1300(out of 1600) on the SAT, he could get into most schools. If he gets a 30/1400 few schools will turn him down. However keep in mind that to get academic money, his scores must meet the average of all students going there that receive academic scholarships. So the better the school academically, the higher the threshold for academic scholarship money.

The good news is you still have time. Don't get hung up on a kid who verbally committed to a D1 at an early age. Plenty can change between now and when it comes time to sign. Just focus on your son and all the things he needs to do to prepare himself for the next step. Coming to this forum is a good move on your part because the wealth of knowledge here is unsurpassed.

Good question, though I must admit I was irritated to see someone with so young a player already getting stressed out over the process. Hopefully you have seen that there can be some science to this, but luck, ingenuity, and perseverance all play a role.

To repeat what others have said, much will be determined by your geographic region, but I will leave that to other threads.

First off, as to Honors classes, my view is that this should have nothing to do with baseball. That is part of keeping academics first. Baseball will die off, intelligence never will. Our experience has been that it has been worth striving for admission to the honors courses and then working at them. We saw this pay off in our guy's GPA because of the higher weighting attributable to the honors courses. (And also at the end of the day, Admissions offices weigh GPAs against the quality of the schools. If they are strong in the college prep area, the HS GPA gets its own unique bumping with Admissions.) And why would we ever want to start teaching a kid in HS to aim low so as to 'beat' the system. So keep Academics first.

Showcases and Camps/Clinics: Some showcases are certainly more reputable than others but at the end of the day remember they were created to make money for their organizers. If your kid has a stand-out day by busting high 80s with his pitches, or going 4 for 4 at the plate, then yes, that lightning in a bottle will be noticed. Just remember that 95% (my estimate based on attendance at too many of these) of the kids at a showcase, any showcase, particularly the non-pitchers, will not get noticed. They come to the plate with little in the way of BP, they face 1-1 counts with umpires who are paid to speed things along, they don't walk, and a HBP only counts for an ouch. That's reality.

So I would definitely take it slow and enjoy the year without invoking all the stress that you will enjoy come Junior and Senior year.

And come those later years, in particular the summer between Junior and Senior year, spend your money on a travel team with a good track record of attending tournies in the region of the country you are most interested in so that the local colleges might come and see your guy. Also, pick a team with coaches who can contribute to training and not just baby sitting. (My personal opinion is that a travel team for a player in the summer between sophomore and junior year is only worth it if you have a true stud or if the team has outstanding coaches who can develop you further. All other times most local Babe Ruth, Senior Babe Ruth, and Legion teams are great ways to continue to work at your game without breaking the bank.)

And tilt your budget to stand alone college camps and clinics, but only after you have made contact with the coach and feel as though he will take a true look at your kid. Use some of that Showcase money instead on some lessons with a reputable former player. Go light on the Showcase route. That's a money pit to the nth degree.

The looks my 2012 is getting from D1s, 2s, and strong 3s this year has far more to do with his reaching out to them, either directly or via contacts from his coaches, than from them discovering him on their own and certainly not from Showcases and random camps that you show up at without some preliminary contact.

I must second the advice of RedSoxFan regarding college camps. The odds of making a lasting impression at a college camp when you just show-up are quite slim. Even if you hit and field very well - it is possible that the right people are not paying attention (the coaches cannot watch all players at once.)If there is a camp at a school you ar interested in - be sure you have made contact with the school and forged a relationship prior to attending. When junior arrives - have him introduce himself to one of the coaches and reference the prior contact.

In my opinion, don’t sweat the baseball so much at this stage!

While I understand everyone is in a different place relative to targets, and there are many layers to the college prep/admissions process, I can wholeheartedly say, reflecting back, the stress and angst our son, (and my wife and I) went through relative to the process of competing at a very high level academically and thus competing at a very high level in college admissions was of a magnitude 3X greater than the HS baseball/recruiting process.

Baseball is the fun stuff!

At his age, I suggest focusing on instruction and gaining weight/strength.

Unless he's throwing 90mph or hitting lots of HRs, what would he be showcasing?

quote:

Originally posted by SultanofSwat:
At his age, I suggest focusing on instruction and gaining weight/strength.

Unless he's throwing 90mph or hitting lots of HRs, what would he be showcasing?

AMEN!

quote:

Originally posted by SultanofSwat:
At his age, I suggest focusing on instruction and gaining weight/strength.

Unless he's throwing 90mph or hitting lots of HRs, what would he be showcasing?

What he said.

Thanks for all the great advice guys...I appreciate it very much.


@redsoxfan...You say to contact the coach if we decide on a camp. Do I let my son contact him or do I do it?...I may just send him to a specialty camp for pitching and let that be it for this winter...

again thanks everyone for easing my mind.

All contacts should be from your son, but that doesnt mean you can not help him by giving him a couple short notes on what to say, or to help him write an email.

Remember if you call the coach cnd he is not there the coach annot call him back. You will most likely get voicemail ( which may be a relief to your son) where he can leave his message about attending the camp and hoping the coach might have time to take a look at him to assess whether he sees something that would work in a program like his. And then be sure to send an email to confirm the contact attempt and say the same thing again. The coach will probably return the email with some pleasant comment.

Suggestion: set up an email account with your son's name and maybe class year in the address, like joe.smith.15@gmail.com, so it will be recognizeable eventually if he corresponds with a coach down the road. My son agreed to use the address just for baseball and to give me access to it so I could help him manage the growing volume as he approached senior year, alerting him to the difference between junk, scams, and real correspondence.

Good luck!