What steps should be taken in sophmore year?

[StowBulldogStaff]

Hello and thank you for reading my post, I have a question on getting the search started for down the road for college baseball and the search. My son is a sophmore at Field. 3.9 to 4.0 accum. GPA from freshman to 2nd quarter of this year. Looks as if he may be playing varsity this year. Is it to early to start the process? Or should we just let things develop on there own. The more advice that is productive will help me with kids i am coaching at my school. Looks as if there are a few on here that have been through the trials and tribulations.

[tapNeo]

My best advise to you would be to have your kids begin putting together a baseball resume and begin to formulate a list of colleges that they would like to attend, once their high school career is over. At this point, their list of schools can be lengthy. Of course, most kids will start by listing the top programs in the nation, but they also need to be encouraged to list some of the top programs in the Midwest and Ohio. As a coach, you would be wise to have a contact list of college coaches, especially locally. I'm sure you could begin by talking to a few local college coaches and ask them if they can give you a few ideas on what your kids should be doing right now. It's early for them, but setting the groundwork prior to their Junior year is critical. After your kids complete their baseball resume, they should create a cover letter that will be addressed to the respective schools where they submit their information. This is much like a job application process. On their baseball resume, they should list key information such as:
Full Name, High School, Class (i.e., Class of 2010), Date of Birth, Height, Weight, Bats/Throws (L or R), Positions, 60 yd Dash time, If a pitcher, velocity of fastball and curveball, High School Baseball Coach contact info, GPA, SAT, ACT Scores, Significant accomplishments to date, Community Service awards or achievements, hobbies, High School baseball stats, Summer Baseball Contact info, such as coaches name, email address, phone number, summer baseball stats, off season training information, such as facilities attended, contact phone numbers of trainers, etc. Personal information (Name, address, phone number, email address, social security number, parent names and contact information (phone and email), etc.

This baseball resume will serve as a focal point for the student athlete. It makes the college coaches job much easier, as your kids will have all their information listed on one or two pages. Have your kids put this together with a cover letter (not too lengthy), address the cover letter to the schools of their choice, and then have them mail this to each coach on their list. Then have your kids follow up with a phone call to the coach to make sure they received it. Of course follow all NCAA guidelines with regard to contact periods, etc.

It's all very logical, but this is something that your kids can do to give them a slight edge. Of course, these boys still need to have the talent on the baseball field, and if you have a 6'5" Left Handed Pitcher, throwing 90mph+, well he won't need to do much at all, because the college coaches and scouts will find him. But all kidding aside, even the gifted players, including teh 6'5" LHP should go through this process.

Good luck and let me know if you need anything else. THere are also plenty of others on this forum that have great advise and can offer additional perspectives.

[BENSPAPA8]

Below is an excerpt from a website. The new NCAA rules really put a premium on kids who can qualify for academic monies excluded from the team equivalency, so keep up the grades to create more options.

Sophomore (10th grade)

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Continue to "hit the books" hard your grades this year count as much as any other year.

Follow the same off - season schedule as last year.

Meet with your high school guidance counselor -- tell him/her of your desire to play college baseball ... you want to be "on track" with the required core courses, as well as other needs, such as foreign languages.

Follow the same spring and summer schedule as last year.

Play as many summer baseball games as possible ... the more you play the more experience that you will get .. and the more you should improve.
July - August


Attend a Pro Try-Out Camp in your area -- these will be listed in the message section of your daily newspaper's sports section.

Start learning about Showcases and make contact with several of the directors -- find out if they may be interested in including you in one of their events.

Check out the High School Baseball Web's Showcase Table for a listing of showcases around the country.

Also visit the High School Baseball Web's Showcase Calendar for a listing of showcase dates and locations.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Junior (11th grade)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

September


Send out your first contact letters --

Ask your high school coach to write letters to a few preferred colleges

Include a copy of your fall schedule (if available)
SEPTEMBER 1


Written contact by college coaches is allowed

Register with the NCAA Initial - Eligibility Clearinghouse (your high school guidance counselor should have these forms)

Register for the fall ACT / SAT standardized tests ... most students take these tests at least twice ... try to avoid the spring dates, as they may conflict with your high school season Request that your ACT/SAT test scores be sent to the NCAA Clearinghouse (there is a box on the application form that you check for this)

Find more information about the NCAA Clearinghouse follow this link

Continue the fall and winter schedule as you did for your freshman and sophomore years
DO NOT LET UP ON ACADEMICS

http://www.hsbaseballweb.com/recruit_timeline.htm

[OHHS2]

My best advise to you would be to have your kids begin putting together a baseball resume and begin to formulate a list of colleges that they would like to attend, once their high school career is over. At this point, their list of schools can be lengthy. Of course, most kids will start by listing the top programs in the nation, but they also need to be encouraged to list some of the top programs in the Midwest and Ohio. As a coach, you would be wise to have a contact list of college coaches, especially locally. I'm sure you could begin by talking to a few local college coaches and ask them if they can give you a few ideas on what your kids should be doing right now. It's early for them, but setting the groundwork prior to their Junior year is critical. After your kids complete their baseball resume, they should create a cover letter that will be addressed to the respective schools where they submit their information. This is much like a job application process. On their baseball resume, they should list key information such as:
Full Name, High School, Class (i.e., Class of 2010), Date of Birth, Height, Weight, Bats/Throws (L or R), Positions, 60 yd Dash time, If a pitcher, velocity of fastball and curveball, High School Baseball Coach contact info, GPA, SAT, ACT Scores, Significant accomplishments to date, Community Service awards or achievements, hobbies, High School baseball stats, Summer Baseball Contact info, such as coaches name, email address, phone number, summer baseball stats, off season training information, such as facilities attended, contact phone numbers of trainers, etc. Personal information (Name, address, phone number, email address, social security number, parent names and contact information (phone and email), etc.

This baseball resume will serve as a focal point for the student athlete. It makes the college coaches job much easier, as your kids will have all their information listed on one or two pages. Have your kids put this together with a cover letter (not too lengthy), address the cover letter to the schools of their choice, and then have them mail this to each coach on their list. Then have your kids follow up with a phone call to the coach to make sure they received it. Of course follow all NCAA guidelines with regard to contact periods, etc.

It's all very logical, but this is something that your kids can do to give them a slight edge. Of course, these boys still need to have the talent on the baseball field, and if you have a 6'5" Left Handed Pitcher, throwing 90mph+, well he won't need to do much at all, because the college coaches and scouts will find him. But all kidding aside, even the gifted players, including teh 6'5" LHP should go through this process.

Good luck and let me know if you need anything else. THere are also plenty of others on this forum that have great advise and can offer additional perspectives.


i am a 6'4" LHP i hit 86-87 in winter but i throw avg. 83-85 ... u think they will find me ? or do i need to break the line of 90+??????????

[NEWZIP]

You got a PM

[OHHS2]

idk wat tht is lol

[NEWZIP]

Benspapa, you got PM too

[OHHS2]

wats a PM?

[StowBulldogStaff]

wow very very informative. Lots of things to take in here. I am hoping i can help some of the juniors and seniors in any way also. I value this info. I also have the challenge of trying to watch a few of my sons varsity games as well as coach my JV team. I might have 4 or 5 dates where that is possible.

[111411]

wats a PM?

A private message. It's one of the features of Yappi.

[itsgone]

Sounds like your son is a good student!

Talk to your son about what he wants to study, what he would do if baseball weren't an option (for making a living as well as playing in college). Then depending of what he wants to study, make a list of all colleges and universities in the country that have good programs in that area of study. There are any number of references on the web that will make this trivial.

Then have your son look at the colleges on this list and choose 15-20 that both look like a place he would like to study, and that have baseball programs that he might be interested in. Once you've narrowed it down, contact the admissions office at the schools and have them send you all the literature they can about the school, academic programs, and athletic programs. Getting on the right list academically is just as important, particularly in the case of good students like your son.

You are allowed to contact college coaches now, so for these same schools send a letter or email introducing yourself, tell them that you have already contacted admissions, and request information on any camps that they run in the offseason. They are allowed to send you that now. It will get you on another list.

Now hit the books, play baseball, continue appropriate contacts (take a look at info on the clearing house, ncaa, and other sites) and prepare for the next level. Each level includes hitting the books! Summer before Junior year depending on the program you're with you might get some looks, might not, but try to get to the places where there's more chance to get a look. A lot of the profile places are for profit to some extent, some are not, you'll have to make your own decision on what and how much to spend, but getting onto lists increases your chances.

Kids with a gpa over 3.5 offer some advantages to college coaches, so hit the books and keep hitting the books, while at the same time letting those coaches know that you are interested in their school for more that baseball and have made the contacts to back that up. When you have an advantage, use it.

My congratulations to your son, whatever his baseball future holds, his hard work as a student will benefit him greatly.

[OHHS2]

i think i got one . i look at the top left corner of my screen and i see private messages

[StowBulldogStaff]

Guys I never thought I would get this much information and help. I appreciate the kind words towards my son and beleive me I am taking all of this down. I am so greatful of the opportunity I have been given at Stow, that I want to see these boys excel as well as my son.

[StowBulldogStaff]

NEWZIP did i respond to your PM correctly? I sent email just checking.

[NEWZIP]

StowBulldogStaff,

You did it correctly and I sent you the information on the seminar, best of luck!

[BaseballRepresent]

tell your son basically what benspapa said because benspapa, and i salute you sir, is probably one of the authorities on how to oversee your son's high school and future college career the right way. He let his boy's natural talent play out on the field and apparently pushed him to focus on school. Klafcynski will fit it nicely with Kent's baseball team and i will be lookin in the papers with anticipation to see how he and others from the local area fare on Kent's program this season.

One thing i would add would be to tell him to believe in his ability. Encourage him every step of the way.

[BaseballRepresent]

I also like tapneo's comment. I watch his posts with great interest. I have to admit, his banter back and forth with the tallmadge folks, as are all his posts, entertaining while being insightful at the same time.

[Small ball]

There is a website called totalstudentathlete.com . It was created by Michael Kostoff who has coached football at the highschool and college levels for about 17 years. There you will find out how to get a copy of his four year step by step recruiting manual called "Win the 4th, Win the Game". My son is a Freshman right now who wants to play baseball at the next level and we just recieved our copy and I can't believe how helpful this is going to be. It takes you through the entire recruiting process from Freshman year to Senior year. I highly recommend it to anyone who has a child who wants to play at the next level. Very informative.

[earholem]

Hello and thank you for reading my post, I have a question on getting the search started for down the road for college baseball and the search. My son is a sophmore at Field. 3.9 to 4.0 accum. GPA from freshman to 2nd quarter of this year. Looks as if he may be playing varsity this year. Is it to early to start the process? Or should we just let things develop on there own. The more advice that is productive will help me with kids i am coaching at my school. Looks as if there are a few on here that have been through the trials and tribulations.

are so important, especially early in fresh. & soph. years.Start high because it
takes forever to get them up with a slow start.

Next, get them extra ACT/SAT trainning, the higher scores means more $$$
and more options(D3).

Get them on high profile summer teams that are going to the right tournaments.Select top showcases out of the area like South, West and East.

Make sure your group has a spokesperson to build them up.

Unless they are a pitcher, weed out schools that have young starting talent
when your a senior.

Trainning year around to develop passion and desire.(Defense & offence)

It's never to early to get to college websites and start communication with
baseball coaches.Fill out online information to show interest, maybe offering
video.Get summer & high school coach to provide resume of youth.

[pnthrz4life]

School winter camps are also useful tools early in high school. You get the benefit of getting better at baseball and meeting the coaches to see if the program would be a good fit for you. Also, the coaches may become interested in you.