Lineshot

The White Sox Academy 17's went to Myrtle Beach last year and won the national vs the Arsenal 18's from new jersey , we did not go to East Cobb.

Sweaty, why "NO wood bat"? If these players are going to play in college, then they most likely will be using wood bats during the "summers" of thier college years. "Takes away from the game"? What does it take away, besides cheap hits? I would have to disagree with you on these comments. Why then does Cape Cod, CICL, and many, many more college summmer leagues use wood if it doesn't make any sense!

Wood or aluminum, it would be great to get all these teams together?

If there is enough interest from the area teams I can get some fields. I don't care if we use wiffle ball bats. Good Competition and less travel sounds good to me.

Only problem is that teams are probably just about done getting there schedules complete.. Most weekends are shot already.

For the 18's I think something during the course of the week might work, but that would take out the 17's, because of the HS schedule, and thats who the Schools would want to see.

Any suggestions on the matter? Does anyone know when the Stevenson JR showcase that Harvey Foster puts on is this year? Or Plainfields? I know they are mid june, and those days would be no good also.
If there are coaches out there who might like this idea contact me at duecedoc24@aol.com , or call 630 546-3304 and let me know. If not, good luck to all. How about a fourth of July
Holiday College Showcase Tourny in our area?
I know there are a few good tournys at this time but if the right guys get in the mix this could turn out to be a good thing for the kids looking to play at the next level. We have the teams , and the scouts will come.
We will have to move quick so get busy coaches.

Deuce

Sweaty I was asking about last years 16's since I thought you were mainly talking about next years 17's

Mr. Lineshot,

I believe that Top Tier's 17U roster will be finalized by December 1. When it is available why don't you scrutinize it and let us know if you think that team could compete against the teams you highlighted. Thanks for the warning 'cause I'm sure they wouldn't want to be overmatched.

rosy, I didn't mean to knock any program or offend anyone that is associated with a program. I just asked about the results at the caba tournament which suprised me after reading all the things on this board. I did watch the tt team lasy year at bourbanais and I think Kenosha or racine. It doesn't matter if I think they can compete, I have no special interest in any of the teams. After looking at the results from caba last year I thought it was a reasonable question. It also brings us back to question that has been raised here numerous times, are the travel teams training or just spending time and energy recruiting. Thanks Mr. Rosy.

Coaches - I have a couple of players who you may want to take a look at for the summer. Send me a note and I can fill in the details if you are interested.

These summer travel teams always make everyone so touchy. The thing to realize is that there are too many good players around here to think that one team will monopolize on the talent. Add to that the fact that some kids are improving and some may have already reached their peak relative to others in their age group it is very difficult to predict ahead of time who will be stronger than the others.

Lineshot, having been around the TT Team a bit last year (my son played in 3 tourneys with them) I can tell you they will be very good, the disapointment at East Cobb not withstanding. There was a lot of talent there last year and my understanding is that more is being added. I also saw them at Bourbanais and even though they didn't play great baseball they still managed to win it. I also heard that the Hurricanes have lost some players so they may not be as strong next summer....but then again who knows what new talent they may bring in. I can also tell you that TT didn't just recruit they spend a lot of time in the winter working out and getting better. At least in the case of the TT 16's last year energy was spent on the players as well as recruiting.

fastball, Didn't try to make it a touchy subject as I just asked a question about results at caba. It seems like a lot of self promotion here from time to time. I do realize there are many good players out ther from many areas, I think I have named a few from time to time. As far as there workouts over the winter fball do they show up a a facility and softtoss each other and throw each other bp or are they working with coaches that watch what they are doing and have a specific plan to improve during the off season as this is one of the benefits of living in the great white north. I watched a practice last week that consisted of 1 coach with 15 players none of which were being corrected as one coach just couldn't cover all the players. Travel team, profesionally coached and all that. Again I think rosy took it presonally but I just was curious how the program was run, you never know maybe I will learn something even with my hard head.

Lineshot,

Fastballdad is correct. Here we are in November arguing semantics about teams that won't get together and play games until June. I can only speak for the team that my son played for last summer, and hopefully again this summer. Their workouts together during the winter months are very well organized and in a 2 hour period there is much accomplished. Lineshot, as for being accused of having a hard head, I'm right there with you.

fastball,

what players did the hurricanes lose?

Very well put FBDAD,

We have plenty of good kids in the area to put together all these good teams. The thing i would like to see is our Traveling coaches staying in our area so our Colleges and pro scouts can see them. The problem is getting good dedicated coaches to run the programs. Seems here in the past 2-3 years , we are getting it. Take advantage of it. Pick your spots when you must travel out, make sure its an event that is worth it $$ .
I dont think it should be about who is the best, we are in an area where it should be who is the best this year. Thats how close these teams can be. And most importantly , its for the kids on these teams not the coaches on these teams. Just look at the kids from our area on all these teams, the kids going on to school are going on to schools mainly in the midwest. That should tell you something. Certainly Perfect game events work because its another time that our Midwest guys see you. Plus the competition level is where the Division 1 kids should be playing agaist.
In my opinion, which means absolutly nothing, we as Summer coaches should realize that it would benefit the guys if we coaches started working together, and creating a good , competitive baseball environment, right here
where we live. Maybe everyone else likes spending a ton of money driving,flying, all over Gods creation to play the same game that could be taking place in our back yards. Not me.
Top Tier, White Sox, Norwood, Lombard, Orioles, Sparks, Magic, Playball USA, Kenosha, Seminoles, Cougars, Illinois Northstars, and on and on, lets get together and start making this area what it used to be in the Summer.
Whats better than a Oriole /Top Tier game, can't tell you because we are both busy running around playing out. I can tell you this, you take those two teams and you have what it supposed to be. Highly competitive and fun baseball. There would be a couple scouts there too.

Many of the comments are well documented. There is a ton of talent throughout the area that is now filtered to the many quality programs in the area. Coaches should band together and put their feelings aside. It is not about you, but it is about the kids. They are the ones who play the game and make the decision who and where they play for. Establishing relationships with the area colleges is a great idea. This is where a majority of these kids are going to play and what not a better forum for these kids to get exposure.

Does anyone know who has committed to the Blues program? I see all these list of players from the various elite programs, but nothing from that organization.

duecedoc:

You present some very good ideas. I've always thought that there is lots of high quality competition right here in our fairly large backyard of Northern Illinois.

You are correct in that most players, but not all, will remain in the region to play college ball and therefore strengthening the 'local' relationships is important.

Competing outside of the region is also important because some players are looking to play outside of the region. Nonetheless it is good to be exposed to competition and to receive exposure outside of our area.

What you propose makes alot of baseball and budget sense. Keep working towards this goal.

Gotwood,

We will definitly go out a bit. We will pick and choose and try to put the kids in the best situation. I just think some of the local coaches need to get on the same page and work to the same goal. We will lose an occasional player or even a handful of players every year to the South, thats ok and great for that kid, but the facts are the facts, our boys will for the most part be around here, (ILL,IA,IND, NEB,OH) Happens every year.

My son is years away but isn't it most important, to get the kids in front of college scouts? How does what you propose to do, compare against a Perfect Games event in terms of the # of college scouts attending, quality of schools represented, etc.? Additionally, I heard one of the best opportunities for our boys is to get them to a college's summer camp the summer before their senior year. Any comment on that as summer team coaches.

I can tell you as a father of a senior in H S those college camps to me were a way for the college coaches to raise revenue for there clubs and not much more. To me, they seem to invite the kids they want to look at and then everyone else. Missouri for sure did it that way in my opinion. It is a toss up on whether it is worth it or not. The funny thing is as you get those letters in the mail and you start to compare them the first thing that pops out is the COST. My lord they range from 50.00 to 250.00 it is a joke. I mean the field is free,they own it, and the coaches are already getting paid so....what could the major dollar difference be? We had 20 players drafted over the last 5 years, we had 16 players drafted in the first four rounds over 2 years and so on..... It is a marketing ploy for them to use to intice you and your son to go there. But, if your son is not getting enough exposure from his High School program then by all means do what you have to to get him exposure. It was the most brutal time in OUR families life over the last 6 months. It is a business for these people and you get played if your not careful. Be aggressive and be smart. Do your homework on the schools your kids are looking at. First thing to do is check the website and look at the rosters and see if they are concentrated from an area or if they are all over the map. I hope this little tid bit helps all who are frustrated and still searching. Good Luck and good baseball. Let the summer begin boys. It would be fun to see those boys together, we can use all our connections to get the word out there. Let's do it.

Tuzigoot:

I am not a summer team coach but what has been discussed recently on this thread is an attempt for area summer coaches to agree to schedule games or tournaments locally with good local talent instead of chasing all over the country...that can become quite expensive...right guys?

Travel outside of the area would certainly continue but the amount could be reduced and goals could be accomplished locally...the talent exists here. College scouts would seek out this collection of talent.

In regards to Perfect Game showcases and other events, including chosen college camps, no one has suggested that these go by the wayside...these are important now and will remain so.

sweaty:

Couldn't say that I disagree with anything you've said...I would add that some college camps are better than others but I would strongly agree with you that some (most?) really are intent on looking at recruits that they have already identified.

Doing your homework first on those schools you have an interest in is absolutely sound advice! Checking the website and roster can be very revealing.