When it comes to college recruiting, high school baseball is mostly irrelevant

As a high school baseball coach I take no offense to what you said and I agree with you.  A LOT of HS baseball has become watered down with SO MANY schools.  Why would I watch a "guy" punch out 14 players, none who will play college baseball, when I can go watch him compete against other college bound players.  Not to mention time, as you pointed out, is a factor.  Below is where the colleges are erring......

Travel Ball Coach, Dad, and Transcripts can not speak for the make up for that kid.  What the college coaches need to do is call the HS Coach, the one coach that is around them day in and day out, to see what he is like.  Is he a good student?  Is he a good teammate?  Is he a hard worker?  Every coach that has made this call, has never regretted getting my players.  On the flip side of that coin I can think of 3 colleges that never made that call, and the player they were recruiting, I knew was not a fit, and the college regretted it.

OP is right about the Physical place of HS Baseball within the recruiting land scape.  However there is still a place and college coaches need to spend 5 minutes investing in that.

As a parent who went through this twice, I don't fully agree with you.  What you describe was true for our older son, who played in a weak HS program with little visibility.  He also had a lot to "show" in a showcase venue (velocity, size, etc...)

But for our younger son who played at a highly competitive HS program (and the same summer travel program as older son), he got to where he got (Pac12) mostly due to a great HS coach, program and performance.  He had moderate size (5-10) and velocity (84-86).  But he had a HS coach that college coaches relied upon and played in a program where there were regularly multiple scouts at every single game.

For him, HS baseball was considerably more relevant than the other stuff.

Know your situation - this is not a 'one size fits all' situation.

"When it comes to college recruiting, high school baseball is mostly irrelevant".....no can't agree.  If you were to say college "scouting" I could agree.  While I am totally with you that the days of college coaches coming to Nowheresville USA to watch a high school game are mostly in the past, a college coach would be a fool not to want to talk to a high school coach about a potential recruit.

Travel ball is very far removed from an average students world, and when you think about it these college coaches are suppose to be recruiting STUDENT athletes.  While travel ball may be the place the kid is noticed it shouldn't be where the recruiting ends.  If it was I don't think PG would ask each player to list the name and number of their high school baseball coach on their profile. After all, it is the High School coach that sees the player in a school setting, on and off the field, and the one that is likely to be emailed by teachers if their player is goofing off in class...and let's not forget, the baseball coach is also likely taking a tour of duty in the ISS class....which means he sees which players are in there a lot for causing problems in school. All of this is very helpful information to a college coach.

All good posts. That's why I qualified the topic with "mostly". My son had the benefit of both, a great high school program and travel ball team. Even still, I believe the vast majority of kids still need the benefit of these tournaments just from the huge concentration of variety of schools that may meet the needs of the young player particularly since baseball recruiting tends to be regional.  As a wise old teacher of mine said once, the game of chess is played in the center of the board and not on the edges. Gotta go where the action is for your best chance in winning. 

My 2017 had many conversations with multiple colleges before he committed. He visited 6 schools unofficially, did overnights with 3 and committed to one of those. 1 of the final 6 schools reached out to his HS coach, and of the other 9 or 10 (conversation type) only one of those reached out to HS coach. Based on my limited exposure 2 out of 15 cared enough about the HS process to contact the HC.

Everything went through his travel team first, then the kid then eventually to me...of course nobody wanted to talk to me until money got involved!

Maybe others have experienced different but that is what we found.

This is also determined by your level of play. There are plenty of players that could not or should not play in the tournaments/showcases you mentioned. Either they do not have the skill/money or talent. I agree with others, you have to know your situation, and skill level. This route may work for many, but others it will not. I know many coaches that would not go to these events, because they figure that if the athlete was invited to this event , they do not have a shot at recruiting them.

In Ohio there used to be an event put on by the Buckeye scout. My son was fortunate to be invited and participate. I talked to one D3 coach and he said he does not attend, because if a player was invited to that event, his chances of landing the player as a recruit were low. He felt his resources were better spent elsewhere, with a better turn on investment. I did not agree with him, My son actually almost went to this coaches school.

So know where your target schools look and go there. Just be realistic on who your targets are.  

Directly to the OP title, probably correct in a majority of cases.

But High School baseball sure looks like fun.  Can't wait until it starts.  It doesn't all have to be about getting recruited.  Son is in a big high school, old school and experienced coach, competitive situation, really good players coming into an already good program.  Can't wait. It's going to be fun.

Get a lawn chair and a floppy hat, I'll get the sun screen and iced tea.  Let's win the district, then go from there!

I offer our experience for the non-D1/pro ball players.  We had a good quality video of LHP throwing a bullpen.  Video included HS, GPA, SAT,height, weight, contact info, etc.  We emailed schools son was interested in with a personal email to each coach, 10 emails in all.  Through out HS season we would email next start and results from previous start on a weekly basis.  We did the same during summer travel ball.  He was also selected for our state's Junior class all star game and was invited to a pitching showcase put on by a high school coach from another town.  He also participated in a few PBR events.  His HS coach spoke to every college coach that came to see him play.

Between all of this, 11 schools from D2/D3 have reached out to him and he locked onto 4 of them and now has 4 offers.  All 4 are great fits both academically and athletically.  He has already been officially accepted into one of the schools.  We did early action on all four.

What we have learned so far in this process, after speaking with 5 of the 11 schools mentioned above: 1) college coaches appreciate direct emails that show the player knows something about their school and their program. 2) college coaches appreciate video. 3) if they like what they see in the video, they will figure out how to get to a game. 4) whether your player is dominating a weaker team or struggling against a good team, college coaches are projecting what the player would look like in their system, the player's attitude during the game, how they relate to their teammates, opponents, parents and coach.

Certainly, players who have D1 stuff and are likely draft candidates have different paths and opportunities.  For those players who love baseball and want to play in college, there are other paths and opportunities to help them get there.  As JUSTBASEBALL indicated, it's not a one size fits all.

mstonge posted:

I offer our experience for the non-D1/pro ball players.  We had a good quality video of LHP throwing a bullpen.  Video included HS, GPA, SAT,height, weight, contact info, etc.  We emailed schools son was interested in with a personal email to each coach, 10 emails in all.  Through out HS season we would email next start and results from previous start on a weekly basis.  We did the same during summer travel ball.  He was also selected for our state's Junior class all star game and was invited to a pitching showcase put on by a high school coach from another town.  He also participated in a few PBR events.  His HS coach spoke to every college coach that came to see him play.

Between all of this, 11 schools from D2/D3 have reached out to him and he locked onto 4 of them and now has 4 offers.  All 4 are great fits both academically and athletically.  He has already been officially accepted into one of the schools.  We did early action on all four.

What we have learned so far in this process, after speaking with 5 of the 11 schools mentioned above: 1) college coaches appreciate direct emails that show the player knows something about their school and their program. 2) college coaches appreciate video. 3) if they like what they see in the video, they will figure out how to get to a game. 4) whether your player is dominating a weaker team or struggling against a good team, college coaches are projecting what the player would look like in their system, the player's attitude during the game, how they relate to their teammates, opponents, parents and coach.

Certainly, players who have D1 stuff and are likely draft candidates have different paths and opportunities.  For those players who love baseball and want to play in college, there are other paths and opportunities to help them get there.  As JUSTBASEBALL indicated, it's not a one size fits all.

This reflects my 2017's experience, too, except he'll have to go ED to his top choice.  EA is not an offered option. Our net was cast a bit wider (20-30 schools) but everything else is about the same.

CaCO3Girl posted:

... a college coach would be a fool not to want to talk to a high school coach about a potential recruit.

Good point.  College coaches do, indeed, talk to HS coaches including opposing HS coaches.  They want to know what kind of teammate your son is, what kind of student he is, what kind of person he is...what kind of opponent he is.  In many cases, the HS coach is in a better position to know these things.

Again, from our two experiences, college coaches talked to both of our sons' HS coaches including the older son's, who was completely new to the area and a complete unknown to the college coaches.

I think the better team and district or level you are playing in HS, the more apt they are to visit and or engage the coach but definitely lots more action during summer at PG events and others since they are playing in the spring as well. 

My original post was not to minimize the importance of high school baseball because the college recruiting coach will call the high school coach for background info as it's been rightly been pointed out. From a standpoint of being seen by a critical mass of colleges, one cannot minimize the impact and benefit of attending national tournaments with a reputable travel team and particularly after contacting targeted college coaches that you want to play for to tell them exactly when you will be playing. Trust me, they will be there and they want to see your boy compete well against competition that he is likely to see at the next level.  Unless these desired schools are close to where you live, they just arent going to show up at your high school games mainly because they too are playing many times in the spring. Also, unless your kid plays in a very unusual high school league, the competition just isnt the same. It's easier for a college coach to project at a PG national event where it's ultra competitive and where he will likely have to overcome some level of adversity like he will at the next level. 

Dirk posted:

My original post was not to minimize the importance of high school baseball because the college recruiting coach will call the high school coach for background info as it's been rightly been pointed out. From a standpoint of being seen by a critical mass of colleges, one cannot minimize the impact and benefit of attending national tournaments with a reputable travel team and particularly after contacting targeted college coaches that you want to play for to tell them exactly when you will be playing. Trust me, they will be there and they want to see your boy compete well against competition that he is likely to see at the next level.  Unless these desired schools are close to where you live, they just arent going to show up at your high school games mainly because they too are playing many times in the spring. Also, unless your kid plays in a very unusual high school league, the competition just isnt the same. It's easier for a college coach to project at a PG national event where it's ultra competitive and where he will likely have to overcome some level of adversity like he will at the next level. 

I can totally agree with that.

justbaseball posted:

CaCO3Girl posted:

... a college coach would be a fool not to want to talk to a high school coach about a potential recruit.

Good point.  College coaches do, indeed, talk to HS coaches including opposing HS coaches.  They want to know what kind of teammate your son is, what kind of student he is, what kind of person he is...what kind of opponent he is.  In many cases, the HS coach is in a better position to know these things.

Again, from our two experiences, college coaches talked to both of our sons' HS coaches including the older son's, who was completely new to the area and a complete unknown to the college coaches.

Over the summer, when my 2017 was getting serious looks from some D1 and many D3 schools, I asked his HS coach how many college coaches he had heard from. As I'm sure the HS coach would give him an extremely strong recommendation I was disappointed when he said none. It's still surprising to me.

The attitude high school baseball is irrelevant to recruiting is arrogant and elitist. I hope you never repeat it around high school parents. I hope you never tell your son and he looks down at his high school teammates. Would your son have been as prepared for the travel season without school baseball in the spring? Who would he have practiced with? Did he learn how to balance academics and athletics playing travel ball in the summer? The high school coach knows a lot more about your son's character and academics than the travel coach. Sure, my kids were recruited from travel. But I would never be so arrogant as to say high school ball didn't play a part.

NTGson is playing D-1 college baseball. He was fortunate to play in a very well known national program and his high school is located in an extremely competitive baseball area which consistently produces D-1 players off each school's roster. 

The national program was beneficial to him in that he was exposed to a wide variety of schools and being in that program established his credibility. But his high school coach and coaches from schools against which he played in his district were equally instrumental in his recruitment. As the schools who were considering offering him exercised their due diligence in determining the fit of NTGson, they relied on assessments of him by not only his travel coach and high school coach but also several of the opposition high school coaches. I personally think the recommendations from other high school coaches carried as much weight as his own, high school and travel.

Our son's videos were from various showcases and actual high school games. Using analytics we found that the high school game videos were watched by college coaches at least 5 times as often as the showcase tapes. Those videos were inning by inning and were not edited within the innings.

One of his dream schools never saw him play other than on the videos and at the one showcase which dream school's head coach said he'd be and asked if the boy could be there. We made it happen. At the end of the day NTGson had his offer in hand.

At the top of my son's fondest memories of baseball before now are his high school's success his senior year, Cooperstown as a 12U, and the four years he spent in his travel/showcase program where he saw kids crumble under the pressure to perform and other kids rise to the occasion. He competed every weekend at the highest level and was exposed to others who worked as hard if not harder than he. His Mom and I think that the high school experience was the critical factor in his recruitment. Could he help make others better and could he deal with the issue of differing talent levels on his high school team? He did.

From what I've seen in our area, High School programs are an integral aspect of a player getting recruited or drafted.   The Travel Programs practice once or twice a week.   Players in High School programs practice every single day in season and include pre-season workouts led by captains & parent volunteers.  

Ben Rortvedt, from our area, was recently drafted in the 2nd Round by the Twins.  Multiple MLB teams attended his high school games and had him take extra BP and do measurables before games, all coordinated by his High School coach.   He did Perfect Game tournaments, too, but the high school program was essential to his development

My 8th grade son has been invited to attend the High School winter workouts.  The 2 Dad's coaching this are both former D1 players, and great teachers and communicators.   Both captains of the team are great kids and are getting recruited by D1's and D2's.   My son gets to do training with these folks 3 times a week from January through late March.  The cost?  Zero.  Absolutely free.   And as someone who has coached in prominent travel programs I can tell you that the high school instruction is just as good if not somewhat better.

The high school coaches have contacts at multiple colleges.   Then there is Legion Ball which gives players additional game reps in the summer, to supplement travel reps.

In some ways I think the OP has it backwards.  The Travel Programs are mostly irrelevent and in my opinion ridiculous in cost.   Just attend a few Perfect Game Showcases and bypass the $2500-$5000 costs of Travel Teams

Not true, my son had three college programs come out and watch him play during his HS season when they were also playing in season. 

With the amount of money some parents spend on travel teams, lessons & travel costs, they could just skip that, save the money and pay for college.  No need for a scholarship

The baseball that is relevant to college recruiters is whatever baseball he's playing when he first demonstrates the ability to help that recruiter's team win. 

3and2Fastball posted:

With the amount of money some parents spend on travel teams, lessons & travel costs, they could just skip that, save the money and pay for college.  No need for a scholarship

Maybe for some.

But it's also okay for parents to choose to spend their money and the precious little time they have before their player leaves the nest watching him do something he loves--even if the payback is memories and not a scholarship.

Swampboy posted:

3and2Fastball posted:

With the amount of money some parents spend on travel teams, lessons & travel costs, they could just skip that, save the money and pay for college.  No need for a scholarship

Maybe for some.

But it's also okay for parents to choose to spend their money and the precious little time they have before their player leaves the nest watching him do something he loves--even if the payback is memories and not a scholarship.

Absolutely.   It is not for me to tell someone how to spend their money.

I just don't think it is at all necessary.

I have read through all and I'm not sure how I agree or disagree. I have a senior and I will say this, we have gone the gamut of avenues and learned along the way no way is right or wrong even though we continue to read into each decision and question what we should have done or not! 

We too just got back from Jupiter glad our son participated but in a way its all just who knows where things will end up. I feel you will be chosen if it turns your way. college D1-2-3 or Juco what is the best? who knows do I play or sit my fist couple of years? Do I wear the shirt everyone talks about? I guess the fit is the decision where you really are striving for. We ended up going with a teacher and a playing situation to get better and move into a playing field.

Hs or Club it all plays into the situation.

3and2Fastball posted:

The high school coaches have contacts at multiple colleges.   Then there is Legion Ball which gives players additional game reps in the summer, to supplement travel reps.

In some ways I think the OP has it backwards.  The Travel Programs are mostly irrelevent and in my opinion ridiculous in cost.   Just attend a few Perfect Game Showcases and bypass the $2500-$5000 costs of Travel Teams

Regarding our son we simply did not have the funds to send him to any of the PG events.  His HS coach was very instrumental in getting a JuCo coach to visit and recruit him.  Yes, he played travel ball (regional) and Legion and did quite well - none of that mattered in getting a college coach to recruit him, but it did prepare his skills for college level play.

Fortunately, he was able to parlay his experience at JuCo into a nice D2 scholarship.

There are other ways other than PG events.

I won't totally dismiss travel ball, but one can easily spend more on travel ball than what will ever be realized in scholarship offers if they are offered.

I agree w/ a lot of what the OP said. And yes, recruiting has certainly changed with regard to RC's attending HS games. But it depends on many factors

My son ( 2016 D-1 freshman ) played for a travel team that was ranked #3 nationally by PG and conversely , he got a ton of exposure from that. But he also played on a HS team in southern california that was ranked # 23 in the US . So, go figure. He got a lot of looks in HS . We had plenty of RC's and MLB scouts in attendance weekly. Even after he committed the high school HC received calls on him.

So, i suppose my point is that while the OP makes a valid point, it depends on varying factors. Recruiting is regional. HS baseball in SoCal and Texas and in the South can be different. Especially at a powerhouse in that region.

What I tell kids or parents is that HS baseball IS important but don't count on that to get you exposure. You gotta reach out and play outside of HS . PG events etc.

RJM posted:

The attitude high school baseball is irrelevant to recruiting is arrogant and elitist. I hope you never repeat it around high school parents. I hope you never tell your son and he looks down at his high school teammates. Would your son have been as prepared for the travel season without school baseball in the spring? Who would he have practiced with? Did he learn how to balance academics and athletics playing travel ball in the summer? The high school coach knows a lot more about your son's character and academics than the travel coach. Sure, my kids were recruited from travel. But I would never be so arrogant as to say high school ball didn't play a part.

RJM I don't think they are the same and certainly don't think it is elitist or arrogant. In our experience it simply didn't happen. I know our Varsity HC very well, 25 years now, I used to play with and against him in men's leagues...we have talked. He has told me that very few college coaches ever contact him or the other coaches in the league asking about players. It just doesn't happen very often.

I happen to love school ball, it is played to win, nothing else. We bat 9 instead of 11 or 12, our PO's come to the games and cheer on the boys instead of showing up when they choose. I am the president of the booster club which is a total shit job, but somebody needs to do it. HS does help the boys with reps and getting and getting ready for the summer, I don't see where that has been dismissed.

With all the being said the title of thread is "When it comes to college recruiting, high school baseball is mostly irrelevant" and I think that is fundamentally true - again in least in our experience.

JCG posted:

justbaseball posted:

CaCO3Girl posted:

... a college coach would be a fool not to want to talk to a high school coach about a potential recruit.

Good point.  College coaches do, indeed, talk to HS coaches including opposing HS coaches.  They want to know what kind of teammate your son is, what kind of student he is, what kind of person he is...what kind of opponent he is.  In many cases, the HS coach is in a better position to know these things.

Again, from our two experiences, college coaches talked to both of our sons' HS coaches including the older son's, who was completely new to the area and a complete unknown to the college coaches.

Over the summer, when my 2017 was getting serious looks from some D1 and many D3 schools, I asked his HS coach how many college coaches he had heard from. As I'm sure the HS coach would give him an extremely strong recommendation I was disappointed when he said none. It's still surprising to me.

As with anything else, baseball is a relationship business.  Last year our program had nine seniors who are now playing college baseball.  I would say that the high school coaching staff had several conversations with the collegiate staffs where these kids went, in 6 of 9 cases.  Three of the six are playing at D1s.  1 of the other 3 where there was no interaction is also at a D1.

Point is, there are three primary coaches on the high school staff.  They all carry relationships with different college coaches.  (As a result of their playing days, or previous players, etc.)   Between the group, they are able to cover a respectable swath of schools. 

So, I see certain college coaches reaching out to certain high schools coaches where a trusted relationship exists.  And not so much, where one does not exist.  And yes, if the high school district is a competitive one...the college coach will be contacting several of their high school relationships to crosscheck one another.

If you read all of DIRK's comments (original poster) I believe the overall message is this: If you son is able to participate in a top level PG or similar type event, don't pass it up as the exposure & experience gained is far superior to a HS event. Hard to argue with that & I see not slamming of HS or anything even close. Just a reality of how things have changed.

GoHeels posted:

As with anything else, baseball is a relationship business.  ...

So, I see certain college coaches reaching out to certain high schools coaches where a trusted relationship exists.  And not so much, where one does not exist.  And yes, if the high school district is a competitive one...the college coach will be contacting several of their high school relationships to crosscheck one another.

As I said, with our older son who played for a brand new HS coach that no one knew - college or otherwise - yet still the college coaches called him to ask about our son.

For him, the questions were more like, 'What kind of student is he?' and 'What kind of person is he?'

For our younger son who played HS ball for a true veteran who had many kids go onto college and pro ball, there were more questions about his ability...as well as the student/person types of questions.  I do believe younger son's coach was a 'trusted source' for many of the college coaches as he had longstanding relationships with them.  I also know he has been contacted many times about opposing players - again, more to evaluate their abilities and demeanor during games.

But in both cases, the HS coaches (newbie and veteran) were contacted numerous times.

Our experience was different than some others have suggested.  I am a believer in HS ball and I do think it's important.  Both my sons do too.  It was a good experience and included a state championship for one and down to the final four teams in the tournament twice for both.  They also played high level travel at all the big tourneys.  Oldest one played at Jupiter twice.  In terms of college coaches calling our HS coach, we didn't see much of that.  Son had lengthy conversations with a couple dozen schools, visited several unofficially, one on an official prior to committing to a different school.  Our high school coach had contact with maybe three schools.  One on the phone, two other who visited to watch him play in season during the spring.  The two I'm referring to were both Power 5 conference schools, one of which is about 800 miles away from us, the other about 1200 miles.  And it wasn't to witness high level high school ball competition.  My son's class was about 75 kids, meaning a total high school population of around 300 or so.  In a snowy northern state.  They are lucky to get in an 18 game schedule, many of which is played in 40-50 degree temperatures.  You can assume what the general quality of the play is, and you're right.

Given the size of our community, as well as the general lack of high level baseball talent, I'm not surprised nor did I expect the HS coach to get many calls.  He is experienced, probably been at the job for 20 or more years with a couple state titles.  I know the guy.  He coached both my sons in both baseball and basketball.  My kids were both team captains.  We live in the same small town.  I saw him all the time.  When he had contact with colleges, I knew about it.  It just didn't happen much.  My point is I think every situation is different.

Whether or not high school baseball is relevant may depend on the coach. If the coach played college ball, then worked in baseball he has many contacts. Before becoming the head coach at our high school he was an assistant at a perennial powerhouse. He made a lot of contacts on player's behalf just to get the recruiting momentum started. 

This, in my opinion is based on the region you live in.I get it if HS baseball in a short season is the only opportunity some coaches get to see kids where you live. That's just not the case where I live. PG events are expensive but I live within an hour of Lakepoint. How can you not expose your kid to that many tools to measure his performance and give college coaches the opportunity to see multiple kids in a day? We went Headfirst in LI and it was amazing. HS is fun, but none of the kids on his team got noticed at a game. School pride is great, but in the end there are too many good players in the South for coaches to visit school after school. 

The only time I've seen a kid get looks at a HS in if he was a pro prospect and there have been plenty of those over the years. We have 22 players on his Varsity squad . 15 have offers to play college baseball. Runs the gamut , Power 5, D2, JUCO ,D3etc.

I have yet to see a single college coach attend a game. 

Son had 5 coaches who came to see him play during his HS season.  Four of the five schools were also interested in a pitcher on his team. The specific days were based on which day the SP would pitch and not play 1B. These HS "watchings" his JR HS season helped him move his standing where he was on their "board," and generate interest to following him in showcases and Legion Ball over the summer. As it turns out, son and his teammate pitcher ended up at rival schools in the same conference. So I can't say that high school ball was meaningless in his HS recruitment, even though more emphasis/offers were generated from showcases and American Legion.

NTGson HS coach has been on the job 34 years. Never coached elsewhere. Is respected by the college community but does not reach out to any schools unless specifically requested to do so by the player and his family. He was questioned by a few of the coaches involved with NTGson on academics, effort, leadership, game and practice demeanor. His contact information was always provided to every coach with whom NTGson communicated; that information was also on NTGson website as was info on his Travel coaches and long-term pitching coach.

There were other players in his class on his HS team who were definite, IMHO, college players beyond the two who are playing D-3 now. But those kids and their families did not pursue opportunities by contacting schools; did not attend any showcases or college camps other than the few available locally; and did not ask the HS coach to reach out to any schools until late in their senior year just as the season was beginning.

We had learned early on in the process that the boy had to reach out to the schools in which he had interest, and keep them and his high school and travel coaches informed of his continuing interest in each of the schools. His mother and I stayed out of the process other than occasional reminders to him to send out revised schedules and we had discussions with him of what was occurring and what his intentions were.

The baseball recruiting process is completely and astoundingly different from NCAA football and basketball. Unless your player is an absolute top 5% stud, you and he have to "market" his academics, athleticism, skill set and experience to the schools in which he has expressed interest. To do so does not take a whole lot of money, especially today with the internet and all the information so readily at hand.

I think one also must consider the number of recruits that schools have (number differs). Those schools with fewer  recruits per year, can make fewer mistakes and may make the HS visits, if geography and time allows. 

DrUGA Dawg posted:

This, in my opinion is based on the region you live in.I get it if HS baseball in a short season is the only opportunity some coaches get to see kids where you live. That's just not the case where I live. PG events are expensive but I live within an hour of Lakepoint. How can you not expose your kid to that many tools to measure his performance and give college coaches the opportunity to see multiple kids in a day? We went Headfirst in LI and it was amazing. HS is fun, but none of the kids on his team got noticed at a game. School pride is great, but in the end there are too many good players in the South for coaches to visit school after school. 

The only time I've seen a kid get looks at a HS in if he was a pro prospect and there have been plenty of those over the years. We have 22 players on his Varsity squad . 15 have offers to play college baseball. Runs the gamut , Power 5, D2, JUCO ,D3etc.

I have yet to see a single college coach attend a game. 

We attended Showball 2015 on Long Island...that too was an incredible scene and generated an offer for the boy. NTGson was fortunate for four years to play or pitch HS ball versus MLB prospects in our area. It was not unusual to see 15 or 20 scouts and cross-checkers behind the backstop with their Stalkers, pads and pens when those guys were on the mound. Of course there were some college coaches in the mix but in reality most of those were local out to see a good game and rub shoulders with the pro guys.

NTGson committed in August before his Senior year. His school's coaches came to at least two or three of his starts against the better teams in his conference;  to check on his progress and look at other kids on his and the other team.

I think there is a difference in recruiting HS players whne your kid is a pitcher. Much easier to evaluate. He has the ball and directs the action. If your kid plays MIF he can get opportunities to display his skill. But sometimes recruiters watch a game and there is not much action in the outfield. How can they recruit your kid if the ball never gets hit in his direction?? The only thing they have to go on is his ABs. Therfore , the recruiter would have to watch more than one game if he was trying to evaluate a non pitcher defensively, who didnt see much action in the first game. In my opinion , yes, that woul dmake Showcase and National Tournaments where your son gets to play in more than one game, much more desirable.

If your HS coach has run a good progrma and has "contacts" then you are way ahead and find yourself in a good situation. HS can be pivotal if your son is in that type of program. It is essential to aid with development for sure , and if your kid is like mine, he is having the time of his life playing baseball  with some of his best friends who may or may not have the type of ability or the finances to play on an elite travel team.

Where I'm from our school baseball team is ranked nationally in the top 10 and college coaches do  call and attend games to see a player that they are interested in.  I don't think HS baseball is irrelevant but there are others ways out there now to get your kid noticed. I personally think we have gotten away with from the fun of playing sports. What happen to the times when winning a state championship for your school was something to be proud of. I get it! We all want our kids to be recruited but let's raise up a group of men who can learn so much about life when playing this great game that we are so passionate about.

Grindneverstop posted:

I personally think we have gotten away with from the fun of playing sports. What happen to the times when winning a state championship for your school was something to be proud of.

That time is right now.