Currently we have a "coach" encouraging some very talented 15 year olds to continue playing with his travel team instead of playing high school baseball. He promises more exposure and better chances of being scouted for both college and pros. Would love some views on this topic!

I'm afraid you'll find few quality teams to play during the high school season as most high school ball players are playing for their high school teams as they should be! Not to mention that most college coaches will be busy with their own seasons during this time.
Now other than the obvious I stated above, it seems to me that these players who think they are above playing for their high school teams would appear to have little of the "team first" attitude that they will need to have in order to succeed at the next level. Even if it's not necessarily the case, it just might come across that way.

If you are talking about HS FALL Ball, then I'd say at age 15 you could decide on your own depending on which offers the best playing options. We did travel last fall rather than our HS team because the HS team had a few practices and a few low-key games that were not coached by the HS coach due to HS rules, while the travel team played in 5 tournaments and had more practices and real coaching.

But, if this travel coach is trying to tell you to skip spring HS ball, then he's delusional. Very few travel teams above the age of 14U play in the spring with the assumption that players are playing on their HS Freshman or JV team. There won't be many competitive tournaments or pick up games to be found until the end of May. Additionally, college coaches aren't scouting in the spring and rarely scout 15 year olds.

Fall is optional HS ball depending on your school's program, but Spring is a must for HS.

quillgirl,

I’m sure glad you added the caveat: Fall is optional HS ball depending on your school's program!

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quillgirl,

I’m sure glad you added the caveat: Fall is optional HS ball depending on your school's program!

State of Illinois there aren't a whole heck of a lot of schools that have fall baseball. I'm pretty sure if the school has football, then the school can't play baseball in the fall. Rightfully so..

Why would any hs aged baseball player not play hs baseball? First of all all the other kids are playing hs baseball at this time who are they going to play? Why would you want to miss out on playing hs baseball? When your a senior if your a pro prospect how are the pro scouts going to scout you if your not playing during the spring leading up to the draft in June?

Playing the game is not about getting exposure and being seen. Playing the game is what you do because you love to play the game. The exposure and being seen is a by product of the fact that you are doing something you love to do and you just happen to be good at it. If the only reason you are playing is to be seen and get exposure then you are only about yourself.

HS baseball is about playing for your home town , your home community and with your friends you have grown up with. Its a once in a lifetime opportunity that you will cherish the rest of your life. This "Coach" is a clown for even expressing this type of view imo.

Great post Coach May!

Absolutely agree with Coach May. Why would an athlete want to miss the comraderie of playing with his high school friends? My son played high school ball and lots of travel ball, made great friendships from both but....you can't compare the high school friendships with the travel ball friendships. High school is seeing your teammates daily, hanging out with them at home, getting to know their families, having teachers and your principal come to your games. It's a great sense of community that is irreplaceable.

There is a place for travel ball and showcases- thats what summer is for.

That coach must be the stupidest coach alive to even suggest that.

He may see something special about this group, but if he is really talking about not playing high school during the spring, he does not know what the youth baseball seen or he is just trying to make some money off these sets of players.

High school baseball, besides the fellowship, provides an avenue to work out in the fall and winter to get into condition and to workout every day at school in the spring.

As others have stated there is no one for them to play during the spring and college coaches and scouts, besides not looking at 15U players, are busy in their own season or scouts looking at seniors and college guys to draft.

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some very talented 15 year olds to continue playing with his travel team instead of playing high school

first of all I can get 15 kids who pay their money and call it a travel team.

High school ball for the most part is in the spring. All this travel stuff for the most part is in the summer . ?????

i agree that hs ball is important, friendships, represnting your community etc.

college is school, hs ball shows coaches you can manage your time. baseball/school.


hs baseball is so very important for so many reason's. the least of which is actually baseball.

20dad that is a great post. The baseball part is probaly the least important I totally agree with that.

First of all when a player is drafted the pro team reports what HS or college you played for. Secondly, these summer ball, fall ball whatever tournament chapionships are over-rated. Tallahassee has two teams in the BABE RUTH world series, one in 14 and one in 15 and if they win thats great but what does it really mean-NOT MUCH. High School baseball on the otherhand in most places is a maturation of four years of work by the players and the staff at that school. They have rules in place concerning eligibility and such. High School coaches in most cases are some of the most important people in the young players life. He sees the player everyday at school because he to must be at the school everyday, he most likely monitors the kids grades, and monitors the kids sense of well being and work ethic on a daily basis. The high school coach for the most part is a person that is sacrificing HIMSELF financially and time wise to help these young people. I'm a big believer in the value of all HIGH SCHOOL sports but I'm blessed to live in an area that has some of the very best football teams in the state (Madison, Lincoln, NFC) and some of the best baseball teams in the state (NFC, PACE,) And all of these coaches are tremendous role models and help mold their kids on and off the field on a DAILY basis.

The only reason some kids won't play HS ball is the low competition level, especially for some of the class 2 or 1 HS. Compare to the prospect team, those HS teams are looking very "recreational".

My son played for the Dirtbags two years. He loved every minute of it. He played with some great players and against some great players. Its was a great baseball experience.

Nothing can compare to playing HS baseball for your High School team and representing your home town playing with your life long friends. This game is not about getting showcased and being seen. This game is about playing a game that you love to play because you love the game. Its about the desire to compete against other players with your team mates.

Getting seen and being recruited to play at the next level is secondary to playing because you love to play the game. I get sick and tired of hearing folks so wrapped up in being seen and getting noticed that the game itself becomes an after thought.

So what if the hs team is not as good as the showcase team. So what if the competition is not as good in the spring as it is in the summer. The game is still the same game. Your playing because you love to play the game. If its all about getting exposure to you then why play on any team? Just go around to showcase events all year and worry about yourself. No need to be a team mate.

Just last week, we were looking through photos of (weekly) h.s. team brbqs, team parties etc.

Teammates, from the neighborhood, naturally hang out with each other. (What a surprise....)

The travel ball photos we found showed sunburns, motels, truck stops, trophy posing, pizza joints and airports.

I think everyone has made any point that I would try to make regarding the value of HS vs. travel during the HS season.

As I reflect back on my son's last four years in high school I can't imagine why/how anyone could pass that up. The high school years are over all too soon. Cherish each moment, it's not about exposure, it's about playing the game and creating experiences you will remember forever.

Yes, it rarely happens for most of the kids (skip HS ball). But you will often see some young Studs move out of thier small Home Town HS and play for another city's HS. I am not sure they really enjoyed any "Home Town" pride except beat their hometown HS teams to death if they ever meet each other. Those are the "traitors" that we always talk about.

Some kids skip their "Home Town" college team who they wrote a NLI to and sign a filthy rich minor league contract. They missed all the college experience and the comraderie. I don't see anybody has problems with it.

In most of the cases, play HS ball is the best choice for most of the players, but there are some exceptions, you never know if it's a good choice or not......

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Originally posted by kbat2012:..Some kids skip their "Home Town" college team who they wrote a NLI to and sign a filthy rich minor league contract. They missed all the college experience and the comraderie. I don't see anybody has problems with it.

How can you equate the college experience with the HS experience? Talk about apples and oranges.

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In most of the cases, play HS ball is the best choice for most of the players, but there are some exceptions, you never know if it's a good choice or not......

There will never be a choice you make in your life that you’ll blindly know for absolute sure that it’s the right one. But, there will sure be a bunch of them that you’ll have a darn good idea about because there will be a lot of information about them available.