What should I look for in a good baseball showcase?

Spartanab,
A very good question. Some think a showcase is nothing more than a vehicle to exposure your son to college coaches and pro scouts. They do provide exposure but showcases should be used for more than just that. As a parent YOU need to be able to effectively evaluate your son. Trust me that can be VERY difficult! You need the opinion of informed baseball people to help you make that evaluation. Not unlike selling a home a car (or any product) you become his marketing manager as he goes from hs to college. You need to know what you have in order to effectively market your wares --- in this case your son. Everyone has their house appraised before selling it --- they should do the same with their son. Once you have a good evaluation you can use that evaluation to assist him in making the right decisions on colleges, summer teams, pro vs. college, or even future showcases. The first thing I would look for in a showcase is “reputation”. If the showcase promoter has a good reputation one can assume he is honest. Secondly you should choose a showcase that provides exposure to college coaches that you “predetermine” your son can attend. Small local showcases normally draw local colleges. Next you should look at the geographical location of the showcase. If your son plans to attend college in the Southeast I wouldn’t send him to a showcase in the Northwest. If you are operating on a budget you want to get the most for your dollars spent. Just because a showcase cost more doesn’t necessarily mean it is a good buy for your son. Lastly I would attempt to determine the caliber of the other players that are attending the showcase. Some will argue this but if your son’s talent “fits” at a showcase I think his benefits would be greater. Combine all this together and you can make the best decisions. I might add that while all showcases provide some benefits, many parents spend lots of money for unnecessary and redundant “benefits”. I took my son to two small showcases with plans of attending some larger more expensive showcases and it became evident by the early interest he was getting, his goals would be met without additional showcases. We didn’t attend the “big” showcases. Doing more would have been waste of money in my opinion. I’m different than lots of parents. I looked at showcasing as a business event ----- not an ego trip.
Fungo

Spartanab, you have received some great advice from one of he best people on the board.

Great advice Fungo!

First of all your son has not played varsity ball yet, so there is no reason to be showcasing him anyways right now. As for travel ball, if you got a check book you can play travel ball these days. I would advise sending him to some pro tryout camp first before hitting any showcaxes and get a reality check how good your kid really is. As for showcases there are a many in GA run by colleges. Young Harris College, Middle GA, South Georgia College. Piedmont College, Berry College, GA Tech and others all run HS Showcases.

others running HS showcases in Georgia
Team One
Southeastern Baseball Showcase
Georgia Dugout Club
North Atlanta Extraganza
Perfect Game


As for scouting report on players . I have seen players told exactly what they need to show to at a showcases. Fall way short and the dads are like so do i get invited to this event. CLUELESS.


As for showcases duties. Their goal is to increases exposure to the colleges and MLB scouts for the players. If the players cant play , there is not much anyone can do for player.

As for FUNGO:
Josh got most of his exposure at East Coast Pro Showcase(Rockies) and WWBA World Championship. IT is amazing what happens when you play in front of 400 colleges and MLB scouts, esp if you do well.

Thanks for the feedback.

Additional informtion: My son has played competitive travel ball previously so he has been evaluated against others in his class and performs well. He played Varsity at the end of last season (Called up from JV) and did well defensively and offensively)There are definitely some things he needs to work on.

I am also interested in the skillbuilding component of the showcases and also want to let him see ho much other talent is out there so he can see that he'll need to cotinue to work hard to meet his goals.

Frank - In your opinion are all of the showcases you mention on the up and up and give good exposure. My son is interested in attending school in the Southeast, possibly an ACC team. Some of the showcases you mention are ones that he is considering.

Andy, He did attend East Coast Pro but didn't attend WWBA. Besides, East Coast Pro should not be considered in the showcase mix because of the selection process. East Coast Pro used to be called a "combine". Not sure why it is now called a showcase or what the difference between a combine and a showcase is --- maybe someone with more knowledge could help out here. I will disagree and say the vast majority of my son's exposure came from playing three years for a very good summer team, the 18u Dulin's Dodgers, and by playing against very good teams the likes of East Cobb, Bama Bombers, and Bill Hood etc.

quote:

I am also interested in the skillbuilding component of the showcases

Showcases do not build skills --- they display them.

FUNGO,
Sorry but there is never the amount colleges and MLB scouts(400 plus) at any travel team game as there is at East Coast Pro Showcase. The most I have ever seen at one game 90 college and MLBS at East Cobb and down in WWBA. Plus one big problem at both east cobb and WWBA world champhionship with the exception of the stadium, there is not enough seating for colleges and MLB scouts behind home plate.

And sorry but East Coast Pro Showcase got him on the map.

Can even tell you he ran a 7.4 60 YD. threw 1.91-1.92 and showed warning track power with good batspeed there.

Prince Fielder hit a bunch of balls over the scoreboard in BP.

MLB players
Prince Fielder
Brian Mc Cann
Brandon Moss
to name a few

quote:

Originally posted by spartanab:
Thanks for the feedback.

Additional informtion: My son has played competitive travel ball previously so he has been evaluated against others in his class and performs well. He played Varsity at the end of last season (Called up from JV) and did well defensively and offensively)There are definitely some things he needs to work on.

I am also interested in the skillbuilding component of the showcases and also want to let him see ho much other talent is out there so he can see that he'll need to cotinue to work hard to meet his goals.

Frank - In your opinion are all of the showcases you mention on the up and up and give good exposure. My son is interested in attending school in the Southeast, possibly an ACC team. Some of the showcases you mention are ones that he is considering.

You can also just go to a few high profile showcases and watch what the talent level is.....

Andy, I KNOW East Cost pro is an excellent venue for exposure (probably the best) but I purposely excluded it for the reasons I mentioned earlier. But East Coast Pro is not what put my son on the map. I don't know how else to say it but I happen to be the resident expert it comes to my son's exposure and I know the path he traveled during the recruiting ride.
Fungo

quote:

Originally posted by Fungo:
Andy, I KNOW East Cost pro is an excellent venue for exposure (probably the best)

Fungo, not to change the subject, but since both you and Frank seem to have experience with the East Coast Pro event, I was wondering if either of you also had any experience with the Area Code event. If so, which do you feel would be the most beneficial to a player if he were given the choice of playing in both events? And, if the option were given to play in both events, would you recommend doing so or is playing in both a waist of time and money (travel, hotel, etc.)?

The biggest difference in East Coast Pro and Area Code is East Cost Pro is on the East coast and Area Code on the West coast. East Cost Pro is unique in that there are no try outs, no web site and no “organization” so to speak. Scouts from different MLB teams select the best players in their area (can be multiple states in the eastern US) and create a team that competes against other MLB teams that has done the same. Area Code Games does much the same except there is an organization and they do have Area Code “camps” which are fee based instructions camps open to any high school player. In most cases players wanting to play in the Area Code Games are required to tryout in their region of the US prior to being selected to the games. The games and the tryouts are free but the camps are not. Don't get them confused. One can make a connection between the camps and the games but should not in my opinion. Bob Williams, the founder of Area Code is a frequent poster on the HSBBW so I’m sure Bob can correct my mistakes and answer any questions. Living in the eastern section of the country my son declined the invite to the regional tryouts for Area Code. In his case the regional tryouts were waived with an invite to go directly to the Area Code games. This was also declined only because of the distance and we felt it would be redundant exposure and exposure leaning toward the west coast schools of which he would not attend. Of course professional scouts are in large numbers are at both events. Both events are top drawer and are great exposure and free (just expenses). However if a player is depending on ECP and AC for exposure they could run into a problem if they aren't selected.
Fungo

East Coast Pro Showcase and Area Code Games have the same format, both teams from different areas coached by MLB scouts. Some players get automatic invites and others go through tryouts. And yes some east coast pro showcase teams run tryout camps. It a good way to prevent, so and so got invited because he related to some coach or MLB scout which happens and cant play.

ECPS goes from Illinios to the east coast. Area Code Games draws from the whole country, but alot of players just attend one or the other, because pretty much the same colleges go to both.

Both draw about 400 colleges and MLB scouts.

I think that mentioning these two events, East Coast and Area Codes, in a showcase discussion can be very misleading to those looking for a "normal" showcase. It is like saying the PG Jupiter event is a "normal" tournament which it is not


These events are the "creme de la creme" of their ilk

Sorry TRhit, you're probably right.

Fungo and Frank, thanks for the replies.

Thanks for all of the input. Fungo, some showcases at least say they are instructional, but I agree that even if that is the case it is not the main focus.

I called one tournament director who said his staff consisted entirely of major league scouts, and said that other pro scouts and college programs would be at the showcas. That is what go me wondering about this question. When I asked him for what colleges or pro organizations were represented he never did give a straight answer and talked about how he was going to send the information to hundreds of programs across the country.

That is one showcase I plan to steer clear of.

quote:

When I asked him for what colleges or pro organizations were represented he never did give a straight answer and talked about how he was going to send the information to hundreds of programs across the country.

Isn't that pretty much the standard response regardless of what program it is?

Everytime I've heard people ask that question, I have yet to hear a straight answer or a definite list from the organizer. Maybe I've just been in the wrong place at the wrong time though.

Some showcases will post or publish this information - or at least tell you who was represented and their camp last year. These are mostly showases put on by 'instutitions' - colleges as well as the most well known showcases.

Other showcases seem to use questionable practies - BUT are there year after year (at least for 3 of r4 years, anyway) and they have very good websites publishing what happened to people who attended their camps - seeming to take credit for it. I'm sure some credit might be due. But I agree, I wish they would be straight up about who they expect to be present.

I would just send your kid to a HS Showcase and find out how good he really is.

As for how good any HS Showcase is? What percentage of the players that attend their HS Showcase go on to play college or pro baseball?

Some may not want to see this, but we are actually in the process of doing an article that provides information on the results of the top Showcase type events. I'm fairly certain that the recruiting and scouting world would say the top three showcase type events (not including tournaments) are Area Code, East Coast Pro and Perfect Game National.

Please understand, we had nothing to do with how talented the players are and it is very possible that the players drafted would have been without ever attending any of the three showcases. It simply shows which of the top events the players did attend! Nothing more... Nothing less!

Here are the results from the 2007 draft.

High School Players Drafted from the three top showcases.

First Round Picks
Area Code – 14
East Coast Pro – 12
Perfect Game National – 17

Second Round Picks
Area Code – 8
East Coast Pro – 7
Perfect Game National – 12

Third Round Picks
Area Codes – 3
East Coast Pro – 4
Perfect Game National – 9

Fourth Round Picks
Area Code – 2
East Coast Pro – 3
Perfect Game National – 8

Fifth Round Picks
Area Code – 2
East Coast Pro – 3
Perfect Game National – 3

Sixth Round Picks
Area Code – 0
East Coast Pro – 3
Perfect Game National – 2

Total for top six rounds
Area Code – 29
East Coast Pro – 32
Perfect Game National – 51

BTW, It's been pretty much the same way for the past seven years. It's just that all people don't know it. The MLB Scouting Departments and top colleges do know it, though.

Sorry, if this sounds a bit braggedocious. It's just posted because we work very hard each and every year to find the most talented players in the country.

Everyone, will be able to see the statistics on this and much more when we release the article. The best part is we don't have to stray from the truth!

PG

Is there duplication in those numbers ?---is it possible that a drafted player was in all three events ?

Yes, there were duplicates. A few did participate in all three. While others were in two. Then there were some that only attended one of the three.

Thanx

Based on PM's and emails I guess something is confusing.

The Perfect Game National Showcase mentioned earlier in this thread is NOT a tournament. It is a showcase with individuals rather than teams. In past years it has been held a few times at Tropicana Field, once at Turner Field, and some at top college fields.

Seems some have confused that event to the PG WWBA and BCS tournaments that are National type tournaments. Some call them Showcase Tournaments, we call them Baseball Tournaments that are very highly scouted.

How many players attended each of those showcases? The number of players drafted isn't as "important" as the percentage of players drafted.

CADad,

I must disagree as to what is most important. I would think the number of players drafted would be more important than the percentage drafted. But I do understand what you're getting at.

I'm within a player or two on the Area Code and ECP, and exact on PG National. You brought up an interesting point so I figured out the percentage of those drafted in the first 6 rounds, below.

Area Codes – Approximately 220 players/13% were drafted in first six rounds. Total 29 drafted in top 6 rds.

East Coast Pro – Approximately 150 players/21% were drafted in first six rounds. Total 32 drafted in top 6 rds.

Perfect Game National – 223 players/23% were drafted in first six rounds. Total 51 drafted in top 6 rds.

Still think the more top 6 rounders at one place at one time, is more meaningful than the percentages. You could have a 6 player tryout where 3 were drafted in the first 6 rds or 50% of those who attended. But it's still only three players!

How much overlap is there? I mean, if a kid went to either Area Code or the East Coast AND the PG National, how was that counted in your figures? What percentage of the total number of players attending each is represented by the number drafted?

Do you have similar info re: how many players got offers from colleges?

interested mom,

The Perfect Game National is held in June every year, right after the draft. ECP is held late July/Aug and AC is held right after the ECP.

The draft picks that went to all three events (there weren’t that many of them) were counted as a draft pick from all three events. If he went to two of the events, he was counted as a draft pick for the two events he attended. However, in every case excluding a player who attended ECP or AC as a underclassman, the player attended the PG National Showcase first. BTW, many of the ECP and AC scouts also attend the PG National, for the obvious reasons of finding top players for those events. And of course they do!

There are players who attend only one of those three events. Otherwise, the number of draft picks would be identical. But, even though the numbers are higher from the PG National, there are still players who attend ECP or AC who did not attend PGN. Like wise, there were players who attended PGN, but did not attend either ECP or AC.

Regarding the top 6 rounds, the percentages are in the post right before yours. As far as AC and ECP we have not researched the entire draft yet. (all 50 rounds) However we do know that 112 who attended the PG National in June of 2006 were drafted in June of 2007. That percentage is slightly more than 50% of all the players in attendance.

I’m fairly certain that nearly all, if not 100%, of the players from the PG National get college offers, most from the top college programs. I would think AC and ECP would be the same way. After all, those three events get most of the top players in the country and are very selective. In fact, by the time August rolls around, many of these players have already “committed” to a college.

Not sure if that was the information you were looking for.

Just to be clear, the only reason for posting in this thread is because many always mention the top two events of this nature being AC and ECP. We are absolutely in agreement as to the importance and quality of those events. They are run by MLB scouts, have great talent, and they are free of charge except for travel and lodging. They are run back to back, so personally I don’t feel that attending both is a must. However attending one or the other is a must IMO if invited. Nothing wrong with attending both either.

The PG National is in June, so a player attending PG National and one of the others in August just makes more sense, and several players do just that.

Also, remember that the AC has been around a long time, originated by HSBBW poster Bob Williams who now is involved in the Goodwill Games and international baseball. Years ago, when Bob owned the AC, it was by far the number one event for producing high draft picks. It is still a very highest level scouting event, it’s just not the only one anymore. The entire scouting and recruiting community owes a big thank you to Bob Williams for getting all this higher quality stuff started. Then again, the unfortunate side is that there is now thousands of showcases all over the country that really don’t care about finding the most talented players.

One last thing... Both AC and PGN select players from the entire country. The ECP very seldom will have even one player from west of the Mississippi River. So if we are talking about players just from the Eastern part of the USA, the ECP is the best. We try hard to help them in any way possible, not that they need our help, because the people/scouts involved with running ECP are among the very best in the business and most all of them support what we do. We have never heard of a scout involved with ECP who has ever said a bad thing about PG.

ECP and AC, they are both great events. That is why we scout them every year. There's also a reason that they scout our stuff too.

Can we go back to the original question thast started this thread--WHAT SHOULD I LOOK FOR IN A GOOD BASEBALL SHOWCASE?

Somehow we morphed into discussion about the showcases for what I term the ultra elite players in the country

Not every kid who wants to play college baseball is a super elite player but they may be the very normal, above average, player with a desire to continue playing the game he loves at the college level.

Many good showcases can put this player in front of schools that might have an interest in him due to his academics and baseball talent---this can make a difference in this player gaining admission to a college he has a desire to attend--his baseball talent gives him an advantage

All showcases do not have just the "ultra elite" but many excellent players who can use baseball to gain admission to excellent academic schools where he can continue to play the sport he loves, Baseball.

If the showcase you attend is putting you in front of the level of colleges you want to attend then it will work for you---one must do the research---the majority of HS players with college baseball desires are not going to get invite to the "ultra elite" type showcases but they can get invited to events that will help them get where they want to get at the college level.

There is a place for both types of events . Players and parents just need to do their homework ---call the schools you want to see you and find out if they will be at the event you want to attend---that is the surest way to make sure you at the right event

Folks there are a load of excellent players in this country who have that desire to play at the college level.We attend Jupiter regualrly and we go with players from our "College Select Family" and we are more than just competitive every year and I think PG Staff will agree with me on this.


Just a few thoughts on my part

I have a question on East Coast pro.. I understand that you receive invitations to attend by attending one of their regional tryout camps.. Does anyone know where and when these tryout camps are held? or a link to a website with this info?

Thanks.

I believe the tryouts are also by invitation. I would contact area scouts and see if you can get an invitation. The ECP is totally run by MLB scouts.

It is one of the very best events in amateur baseball for the most talented players in the eastern part of the USA.

ECP does not have a website.

TR and Jerry;

Thank you for the kind words. When I started the Area Code games in 1987 with the support of professional baseball, I never realize that there would be the multitude of this style of baseball events.

My reasons were simple.
1. To select players to compete against the National Team of Japan and Korea and Australia.

2. To show our American players that need to "work harder" or they cannot compete in the World of International Baseball.

During our 25 years in International Baseball our players have played against 45 players who appeared in the recent "World Games". Now we are placing our American players in the Australian Goodwill Series with wood bats to play 12 games
in 15 days next December.

Players and parents need to ask questions as to
the objective of the "showcase", the total cost, the names of college coaches who have attended
previous events. When I visit SSU #2 ranked Division 2 games I noticed a increasing # of players who have transfered from Division 1 schools. Why?

TR and PG you rate players; do they listen?

Keep up your good work and best wishes and good health for 2008.

Bob

Consultant

If you are asking if they listen when we advise them to where we think they will best fit for college baseball the answer is yes for the majority of them.

Bob,

We answer questions but do not advise players. The best fit for them absolutely needs to be their decision.

It's kind of like being asked if they should sign a pro contract or go to college. Better to just state both the plus and minus, if asked, and let it go. Any advice could turn out to be the wrong advice! We are not smart enough to see into the future.

College recruiters indirectly answer most all the questions regarding where a player fits in college. MLB scouting departments dictate where a player fits regarding professional baseball.

Bob and Jerry

I think it should be made clear that PG sees many more kids than we do and they also do not have a team that that plays every weekend from late August to late October. The team allows us to have a much more closer relationship with a small group of kids and parents which affords us the opportunity to discuss college options with them. We develop a close knot "family".

I am not judging others who have the kids best interest in mind. However, I do know how all our people are instructed.

Just to be perfectly clear. We actually do have teams and players who have played on those teams for a long time, 4 or 5 years. The players include Ryan Sweeney (Oakland A’s), Jeff Clement (Seattle Mariners), Joel Hanrahan (Washington Nationals), Jeremy Hellickson (Rays), Matt Macri (Twins), Brad Nelson (Brewers), Zach Schreiber (Braves), Jon Gilmore (Braves), Zach Hammes (Dodgers) and many others. Those players and others have signed with Baylor, Notre Dame, Southern Cal, LSU, Duke, Nebraska, Oregon State, etc. We’ve also had kids on those PG teams who have gone to DII, DIII, JC, NAIA schools.

We have been extremely close to all those players and their families and still are with most of them. Not once did we ever advise any of them as to which college they should attend or whether they should or should not sign a professional contract.

Our advice has always been…. It is your decision, ask questions, if we know the answers we will tell you, but we will never tell you what to do or where to go. That is your decision!

Example: Zach Schreiber played on PG teams and worked out in our building for 5 years. If I gave advice, I would have advised Zach to go to a DII or DIII college to play baseball, instead he decide he wanted to attend Duke, so we called them on his behalf. He ended up going there originally on a small academic scholarship. He and his family were elated because he was an outstanding student and they cared more about education than baseball. He ended up developing into their top pitcher and now owns a degree from Duke. Out of Duke he was drafted and is now knocking on the door for the Atlanta Braves in Triple A. Today, I’m very happy that I did not tell him what I thought he should do. Because I would have been wrong!

I just look at trying to help someone by giving information as being completely different than telling someone what they should do.

That said, we did get a phone call recently from a player who was unknown until late this past fall. He wanted to know if he should sign with a certain college who had contacted him. They wanted him to be a recruited walk on. We did tell him that if he was happy with that, he should do whatever he wanted. However, we also added that we think if he was patient there would be other colleges that would offer him a scholarship. No more no less! He decided to wait and now has four scholarship offers from good DI programs. Guess some would call that advice. I look at it as just giving information. That one was simple... If they offer nothing now, you have nothing to lose, they will still be willing to make that same offer later.

PG


I think we are saying the same thing in different words but again you deal with a vastly huger number of kids than we do so the scenario is a bit different

TR and Jerry;

With the success of your programs I think we should have a conference with you both at a central location in the USA. Parents need to learn from you "face to face".

My 1st city is San Francisco, since I know the area and can offer side trips to Pac Bell or Oakland. We can include the A's and Giants players. Many questions can be answered.

What is your opinion? This can be filmed for distribution to parents and players.

Bob