I have a question about how to overcome what most would consider a bad outing at a showcase. My son (08 RHP/3B) plays on a competitive summer team and will play in many collegiate showcases over the summer and has performed well. However, last week he attended his first official showcase (not as many scouts as promised thank God!) and lo and behold his shoulder was tight and sore. I was out of town and couldnt be there otherwise I would have told him to just bat maybe, but he went ahead and threw off the mound and took some at 3B. He knows his velocity was NO WHERE where it it or should have been. One college scout even told him in passing that he had seen him throw earlier and knew he had more in him.

What I want to know is this....yes...his outing was not where it could or should have been. Will that hurt him in the other showcases he plans on attending later in the summer, or will it give him the opportunity to perform at his peak (save a elbow or shoulder problem again) and the colleges that DID see him will know that perhaps we wasnt on his "A" game that day, etc?

We all know that you only have 1 chance to make a good "first" impression. But things do happen. He hadn't had ANY soreness or tightness at all until 5 minutes before he was to hurl! (talk about the odds going against ya!). He felt obligated to showcase since I had already forked over the money, and wasnt there to give him advise on what to do so I cant fault him there. He made a decision and Im proud of him for at least doing that!

Your thoughts...??

Younggundad


You bring up a great point about performance---we try to impress upon out kids the fact that if they have tightness in the legs don't run the 60---we can explain to the scouts---same with a arm for a pitcher---is it worth it to blow your future by trying to "air it out" for 10 pitches/ We do not think so


Show the skills a you can and the showcase people will explain the other situations, at least they should if they are worth their salt

it is your last impression that counts.

How ever I have seen lots of guys have bad outtings/seasons and get drafted.
Get over thye bad outting cause it won't be the last.