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Never found the "strength" of the HS program to mean much, at least in the SoCal area, except for the "strength" that may come from the coach having a few contacts and perhaps, more importantly, being there to take their own free time to answer calls and questionnaires, etc. which my son's coaches did for him and for which we are most grateful.

In terms of won/lost type strength, his program was middle of the road at best. Besides, if there is an issue here, I think the strength of who you are playing may be more important than the strength of who you play for.

at the bottom line, college coaches are "working" during the same time as the HS season and so they RARELY get out to see local HS games in my experience. My son and his peers were seen at various camps, showcases, etc. Where they went to HS, HS stats, honors, etc. seemed to mean very, very little.
A high school team that has just one player on the radar of college coaches and/or ML scouts will benefit in that all of that players' teammates will get some exposure. I was just told a story about a D-I assistant coach who was sent to watch a high school shortstop. The coach went to see the kid and came back to tell the head coach that the catcher is they guy they should recruit. That catcher earned a D-I scholarship, then played pro ball and had a very good major league career.

Sometimes certain high school programs have great reputations, and recruiters will be curious as to who their 'new' prospects are.

Scouts and coaches go to see good players, wherever they are playing and with whatever team they are playing for.
Tough to get much visual exposure when the HS team is playing .250 ball over the last 2 years with only a single legit prospect over those 2 years. Also tough to be a pitcher when the team makes 33 errors in your 5 starts and half of the hits are by batters who should have never gotten to the plate, and you lose a CG 7 hiter, a CG 6hitter , and a CG 4 hitter, all to teams that went to districts. Have to rely on coaches checking out the opposition and hope Junior gets noticed with his excellent command, mound presence and composure in the face of having infielders behind him that more closely resemble hockey goalies.

A weak team hurts you in terms of additional exposure - means you have to do even more on your own. Unless a coach figures that maybe their is something to a kid that is 1-9 over the last 2 years but has 8 CGs - but how do you get him those numbers??
Last edited by windmill
Our HS program stunk before my son got there (5-20 freshman year). Got better while he was there finally winning a league championship his senior year (1st in 15 years...19-7 last year) and has stunk since he left (5-20 again). Didn't seem to matter a bit, except for the frustrations that come with playing in a weak program. He always looked forward to and liked summer ball better.

Another D1 player will be coming out of there this next year...again, he's also in the same good summer program which has helped him immensely. Without the summer program(s), I'm not sure either kid would have found out how good they really are.
There are pros and cons in many situations.

A strong hs program - means your kid may not start until his senior year - limiting his exposure. This will drive parents nuts.

A weak hs program - means your kid gets lots of playing time, a great opportunity to show how he handles adversity, but limited post season exposure. Thiw will drive parents nuts.

In both cases showcases, camps, summer teams, etc. all take up the slack.

A gem hidden away in a weak program will be seen by lots of other coaches (they do play other teams you know).

And remember - coaches do TALK. When folks are impressed by something they see (especially when it is in a spot they least expect to see it) they tend to talk about it.

No - all is certainly NOT.
My son's team did not make the playoffs this year and probably will not next year. Not enough boys working hard enough to make it happen.

Yet, because my son plays for a high quality club team and works his butt off, he is being recruited by several major schools. Their team was in Georgia last week and Notre Dame saw him. They have now gotten on board and have ask him to submit academic info.

The weak high school team hasn't stop him, but he did have to go outside to receive the notice that he has now earned. Once a coach sees him play, they don't even care about the bad high school team.

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