Your baseball budget

Both my guys are in college, My baseball budget has become my VEGAS budget!

I would not use the recruiting service and I would spend that money on private lessons

Fungo,
Using your budget as a model, I cannot breakdown costs because I do not know what they are these days.
So I will do in percentages, based on our own budget set.

55% Summer travel leagues
20% Select travel team
10% Tournament fees not covered under the above
05% College camp
10% Showcase (individual)

We placed more on a good summer program as the fees included playing on college campus' throughout the country, unofficial visits,summer woodbats tourneys, regional championships (Connie Mack)travel and two trips to the CWS as a spectator.
One 75 dollar investment produced an all expense paid week trip to Houston for USA tryouts, a definite bargain.
It was not how much we spent but how we spent it.
Budgets should reflect geographical location. We live in a highly visible state, whereas someone else may need to get out of state for the exposure and their percentages would be different due to travel,inc.

I only wish our son's National Showcase only cost #700.00. It costs $495.00 to participate, then add in Air Fare from Los Angeles to Atlanta, hotels, food, rental car, etc, I only Wish it was 700. Most of the costs seem a little on the low side, but I could be wrong. Anway, I would ditch the recruiting service, mail out stuff on your own and use the 1,500 on private lessons.

I wish I had 3000.

Fungo…Great concept…

If the goal truly is exposure as you say, not fun, not development, not fun game play but the greatest exposure for the buck… it looks like this to me…...didn’t total because I think it really depends upon what happens during the process. Players and parents have to adapt to a dynamic situation.

Regional showcase................ $400.00 – a lot of money, better be really, really good and for this price a player had better know his skill level pretty clearly.

Small local showcase............. $100.00 – Could be a good value but really depends upon who attends, and if they are your college choices.

Recruiting service............. $1,500.00 - Only for the rich, or those with no time, and/or no interest in handling their own affairs.

Legion summer team............... $700.00 - Great fun little exposure

Select team.................... $1,200.00 Great fun, some exposure, expensive for the amount of exposure – to some extent depends upon the coaches connections with recruiters. IMO get more bang for the buck in exposure from showcases.

College camp..................... $250.00 – Careful…Only if specifically invited.

5 private lessons................ $200.00 – yes, yes, yes, craft development.

Fall showcase ball--per toury..... $75.00 absolutely, colleges get hungrier toward the end. The later the better. Do a couple. Best value for the money in terms of hungry exposure

Pro tryout camp................... $50.00 – Buy a lotto ticket, it’s cheaper. Little help to the college chances.

Postage for mail-outs to colleges. $10.00 – A way to get on the mailing list, and inexpensive.

Un-official visit................ $100.00 – maybe a couple at the end, if I don’t get a visit.

Now, Fungo… I gotta know. How did you spend yours, as you were successful, right?

Select team $1200
National Showcase $700
Regional Showcase $400
College camp $250
3 Fall showcases $225
Un-official visit $100
2 separate mail-outs $20
___________________________
$2895

This is basically the way we allocated our monies for junior year of high school. A select team can be invaluable, especially if it is a visible team that has put together a strong summer schedule. (Be leary, however, of rosters that have over 25-30 members...remember you want playing time.) The key is exposure in all of these venues.

Great question!

Observer44,
My son did about what eaglefan did. He did the select team, one regional showcase, one national showcase, two fall ball tournaments, 2 college camps, 1 small local showcase, two pro tryouts, and about 10 private lessons.

We had already declined all the national showcase invites but an invite to East Coast Professional happened (as you put it “adapt to the dynamic situation”) and I felt it was too good to pass up. (The cost was minimal, about $200.00)

I had four goals...#1, play with the best...#2, be seen by as many coaches as possible....#4, get as good as you can....#5, pay my house note!

I did most of the planning but the decisions were my son's too.
Fungo

Really value your concept of having your player involved in the decision making process. Think we could all take a lesson from that advice. All too often parents make these decisions.

Fungo,

I think your budget is both reasonable and illustrative at the same time. In the other thread about minority participation, one theory is that money is an important reason why baseball may not be available to everyone in this day and age. In only the last few years of your son's hs career, for example, thousands of dollars were spent. I am willing to bet several thousand more were spent getting him to his hs sophmore year via team participation fees, equipment, travel expenses, and/or private lessons. I am making no judgment about this - only an observation on the way things have become financially speaking.

To get back on point, sometimes collegiate success is based on who your son's teammates are. My son played on two high-profile high school teams who went deep in the state play-offs and he got excellent exposure there. Cost of participation zero. Two summers ago he got excellent exposure in the CABA high school world series. Cost - again zero since it was as a member of his high school team.

Of course, your point is that you wouldn't want to leave it just to chance of being seen at some tournament and thus your budget reflects a reasonable plan to get a player into college.

ClevelandDad,
I always appreciate your point of view and I agree with you. While I do believe that money can play an important role in the recruiting process, it doesn’t HAVE to. I do know players that are playing professionally that never showcased. I know college players that never showcased. I don't know any "stud" players that didn't get a look from a college coach or a pro scout. If the truth be known, the major difference between minorities and white population when it comes to recruiting is the white population is guilty of squandering way too much money on exposure to insure that their son can play at the next level when they would have anyway. But like the most of us, I would rather spend the money and MAKE it happen than spend little or no money and HOPE it happens.
Fungo

Fungo...great observation. Totally agree. The true studs don't need exposure.

It's on the fringes that matters.

Have seen this happen over and over.

Cant agree with you observer44 there are some parts of the country that dont get alot of exposure,and even the studs have to showcase themselves

Before I add my budget (which looks a whole lot different than many I see) I would like to ask an important clarification.

How many years does this budget cover -

Iss this travel ball all the way through hs. -
Is this Jr and senior year
Or is this senior year only ???
Or somewhere in between ?

AParent,
Good question , my answer was for 3 years in HS, one reason I couldn't stick to the $3000 budget.

NJBB...I stand corrected. My population center bias, sorry about that. I should know better originating in the sticks as I did...

On the other hand a country boy without a "rep" can create quite a sensation quickly once he is discovered.

AParent and TPM, basically the summer after his junior year of high school.

quote:

We’re going to spend this money on his baseball during the spring, summer and fall during, and just after, his junior year of high school.

We spent a lot less than your budgeted amount.

Fall and spring scout leagues 1,400
colege camps 50
private lessons 40
pro-try out camp 50
postage etc. 40
unoffical visits 150

(disclaimer - we live in Iowa where they play summer hs baseball).

Our theory was, the money spent on showcasing etc. would be better off spent on tuition.

I no longer believe that.

Being recruited and scholarship money while inter-related are not the same thing. You need the showcase route to get recruited even if you don't need the scholarship money. (and unfortunately what you Need can change from hs to college)

Fungo,
Got ya.

So the bulk of our expense took place during junior summer and senior summer.
I blew the 3000.00 dollars on summer travel for two summers.
This included all room and board, travel by plane, travel by bus, two wood bats for PG and numerous tournies throughout the state, GA and a side trip to memphis for Connie Mack southern regionals. His travels included twice to Omaha for the CWS and tournament play. Three trips to Atlanta (East Cobb showcase twice and once for PG) and fall wood bat in Jupiter (we live here so expenses were minimal for that one).His exposure on the field included home field at FAU, play at Nebraska, Auburn, Stetson, UF, georgia Tech, USF, UM and a few more smaller D1's. While in Nebraska got called for PG national. The best venues were East Cobb, PG and play out in Nebraska (during the CWS there are TON of scouts and coaches there). As a bonus, coach always made certain coaches knew in advance the team would be there.
No need to visit camps (he did do one) due to play at the schools where the coaches were there. I messed up on that one. Find a really really good summer travel program with variety.
So for us, we got a lot of mileage out of the 3000.00. And I certainly would do it all over again and not spend a dime on anything else.
Area code, we didn't feel he had to travel to california when most everyone saw him in the east here, something parents need to consider, geographical location.

So here is my revision:
summer travel $3000.00

Hey guys,

This is a great post and hit's home for me. I've been lurking for quite a while now and this is my first post.

I have a question for you. I hear a lot of talk about getting on "Select Teams". What's the best way for me to find out, or how do I find out about these teams in my area?

I would like to get my son involved with such a team, or at least try out for one (if that's how they go about it), to get more exposure.

He is a 2007 grad and I'll need to start getting the ball rolling here soon. He has played "Fed ball" locally, and this past year competed in the CABA World Series 15U tourny. I'm sure he got some exposure there, but not sure how much.

Thanks,

Rob

Rob,

I don't know your area at all, but here's how I learned in my area (and I was pretty green on this):

* I asked everyone (HS coaches, youth baseball league administrators, coaches at the local academy, friends who loved baseball) I knew that might know who/where to go for a tryout. Some didn't know, some thought they knew, but the correct answer came out over a relatively short period of time.

* I read our local paper every week for announcements about tryouts for travel teams...then asked everyone I knew (see list above) who might know what they knew about each and every team.

* I asked some of the local JC and college coaches where to go.

* I surfed the internet and soaked up everything I could.

* I asked on THIS website, most especially in my state's forum what to do, where to go.

* And most importantly, I listened to EVERYONE (right or wrong) and filtered and asked more questions

Start with your HS coach. But don't be afraid to ask people you don't know either.

Good luck!

Fungo,

Back to your original question.

We started the summer with 2 invitations to 1 major showcase and a regional showcase and a place on a very good travel team. That was about all we expected.

As the summer progressed, more and more opportunities opened up. Each event/tournament seemed to spawn an invitiation to yet a more prestigious one. It was hard to say "no" to each new one. Costs did mount, some self-inflicted (gotta travel to Curacao on short notice to watch him pitch for USA!...and drink a few margaritas too ). But then there was Area Codes? Can't miss that...and then Jupiter...surely I (ME) wants to see that. And so on.

So we started with a budget...but ended up spending more. I'm not wealthy, but we could stretch to find a way. I cannot say I regret one penny of it...memories for a lifetime!

So I know you wanted to discuss HOW to spend your money, but I just want to add that you probably only get to do this once...so why not extend your lifestyle a little and enjoy it? I would do it all again and yes, we're still paying for it.

Justbaseball said:
"I just want to add that you probably only get to do this once...so why not extend your lifestyle a little and enjoy it? I would do it all again and yes, we're still paying for it."

Sounds like our philosophy regarding college baseball.

It will all come back to you tenfold! My son wants me to take some of his signing bonus and trade his “college” Ford Explorer in on a “pro model” black Z-71 Tahoe.

Rob,

Contact Perfect Game and find out who has the best select teams in your area and talk to that coach. He will know them all.

Justbaseball....great stuff. informational, human and real all at the same time....

Fungo - While some numbers may be off, depending upon who you talk to or where you live, I REALLY like what you were getting at with the budget. Like a few people noted, $1500 for the recruiting service is rediculous, especially since there are many other "recruiting service alternatives". I know of one that only costs around $100!!!
I have spoken to too many parents who complain about how much it costs to have their kid play ball and try to college ball, but they never took the time to PLAN for it!
My wife and I live on a very strict budget ourselves, but we plan for the future of our kids by saving now and not waiting until they are ready for college. That is why we will not be one of the majority that is surprised or complains about the costs.
By the way, I have not seen any replies by TR on this matter.

I do believe TR is away for a showcase.

TPM- You believe correctly

My TR comment was meant with sarcasm, knowing Fungo and TR's history, to which I always side with Fungo.

quote:

Originally posted by Bighit15:
Rob,

Contact Perfect Game and find out who has the best select teams in your area and talk to that coach. He will know them all.

Thanks Bighit15. I'll give that a try.

quote:

Originally posted by ILBaseball1:
My TR comment was meant with sarcasm, knowing Fungo and TR's history, to which I always side with Fungo.

Say what?

Quote from the Movie....


"Budget's? We don need no stinkin' budget's!"

As a young boy we had a budget. We would show up at the field chip in to buy a ball and played till the cover came off. when it did we got some tape and played on.

this is the order i spend my baseball money in
1. personal coach (the help you so much if you find a really good one that it is the single best thing to improve)
2. showcases (colleges cant recruit you if they dont know you)
3. high school team ball
4. summer ball
5. fall and winter ball
4&5 is just the more you play the better you get