I'm a sophomore LHP (only one on JV or V). My 9th grade year I chose not to play baseball for personal reasons. Halfway through I missed it, but couldn't join the team so late. This year as a sophomore, I was slated to be the 1st or 2nd starting pitcher, but broke my pitching hand thumb a week before the season. I've been out until now, with only three games left and chances are I'm not going to get in playing shape for the season.

I'm now focused on next year, and I'm wondering whether the coaches will leave me down in JV for a year to gain me some experience. I'm going to work hard with a pitching coach in the off season, but it still leaves me with 3 or 4 good pitchers ahead of me. As a coach, would you leave me on JV as a starter or move me up with not so much playing time on Varsity? Do you recommend me telling the coach to keep me on JV? Would this hurt my chances of playing in college?

I'd recommend working as hard as you can to try and make varsity and leaving the decision on where you play up to the coach. It is important to keep working hard because even if you stay down on JV you want to be a starter. The advantage for playing varsity is seeing better competition. The advantage of being on JV is innings. If you aren't starting on JV you won't get enough innings to make it worth not facing the stronger competition.

Good advice by CADad. Remember you are basically two years behind the other guys because of not playing and being hurt.

If I was your coach I would watch you closely in preseason and evaluate you there but probably be leaning towards two or three JV starts before making a decision on if you pitch varsity.

Then maybe have two or three relief appearances against varsity teams and if all that goes well then let you start varsity.

Speaking for myself I am not going to put a guy out there in a varsity game that I haven't watched closely in a JV game.