Our family is considerng a move to the Metro DC area, and we are looking for schools with top baseball programs (Coaches, Player Development, College Exposure). We have heard some great things about a number of schools. Can any of oyu please offer your thoughts on the Pro's & Con's of an aspiring Position Player & Pitcher growing up in the following programs:

Saint John's College High School
Paul VI High School
Robinson High School
Oakton High School
Madison High School
Langley High School

Thank you for your thoughts

Can't go wrong with St. Johns. They have the top staff in the area and will have the best facilities next year with a clubhouse and a turf field. Also a great academic school!

You should add St. Alban's to that list.

southpaw dad.....I've sent you a PM !

You would not go wrong with any of those schools or baseball programs. You have a mixed bad of public and private schools on that list:

Saint John's College High School
Paul VI High School
Robinson High School
Oakton High School
Madison High School
Langley High School

Among the schools here, Langley is simply great, as it offers superior baseball while at the same time being the best school in Fairfax County.

Another great public school in this area is Yorktown. Very good baseball but also very good academically.

I would also add Westfield HS to the public school list AND don't forget the Prince Wm Co schools like Osbourn, Osbourn Park, and Forest Park--all exceptional baseball and public schools.

Of the private schools, PVI and St. John's are on top for baseball, and both are fine academically. Each will cost you $15K per year when all is said and done. These are top-of-the-line baseball programs. So much depends on talent and how a kid fits. High risk but great reward if successful.

That said, a really good player capable of playing at PVI and St. John's will do just as well, baseball-wise, at Oakton, Langley, or James Madison.

I would caution you, finally, on expecatations. Don't expect these programs to be traditional HS programs. Many of these schools, public and private, are cut-throat arrangements where 60 kids, all thinking they are the next David Wright, compete for 16-20 spots on a varsity team. It is rough competition, and nearly every one of these kids plays the best summer ball he can, works out when not playing, and gets all sorts of offseason instruction. Be prepared to be disappointed. Yes, your son is probably a stud ballplayer--but there are alot of stud ballplayers in these programs.

Thank You All,

This is all very helpful. When categorizing my son, to paraphrase my good friend, he is not going to be the best athlete on the field ... but he is a great ball player. He has to work hard on the ahtletic side, which has helped make him a better ball player than many players who are more naturally gifted.

He is smart. He loves the game, and loves learning how to play the game well. He works hard, and has risen up to every level of competition he has faced. Today, he is making a contribution to a good Varsity program as a Freshman. He has played at the top levels on regional travel ball, and with national trave lteams as well. He is not the flashiest guy on the team, but when the dust clears, he is consistently one ofthe top players on the team.

Where will he top out? There is no way to say at this point. Our goal is to get him into a program that excels at developing young players. If they will teach, he will learn, and his top end could be very high.

We are trying to sort out which schools do the best of developing players; teaching sound fundamentals; emphasize off-season training & conditioning; emphasize playing with a high level of character & sportsmanship; and try to prepare kids academically, ahtletically, and as people for opportunities to play at the collegitae level.

We'll take all the input we can get. Thank you.

It may be worth talking to the various coaches. Ask them flat out who is coming back at what positions and where those kids stand. Ask about current JV teams (you will find that most of these schools have very good JV programs, too, and those kids will be rising to Varsity level next year).

While PVI and St. John's get alot of press, some of the best baseball in this area is played in Prince William County. OP is a great baseball team that will continue to do well. Look at the entire area, not just Fairfax Co. Take a look at Gonzaga College HS (son will need good grades)--they are in a rebuilding year and play a frosh at SS and some young kids every game. Many of these teams will play mostly juniors and seniors. Figure that out, too, if you talk to the coaches.

Someone mentioned St. Alban's--very expensive but very good baseball. Georgetown Prep is another great school for academically gifted kids and costs alot of money but normally has good baseball.

Does you son play any other sport. You should consider that. If he likes basketball, keep in mind the WCAC is one of the best basketball conferences in the nation. And Good Counsel and Dematha are always good in football--Div I talent good. Some of these public schools are great in other sports, too.

There is just so much to look at and so many options--it depends on what you really want out of the school and the experience.

St. Albans has a good program, very expensive (as stated above), but the academics can't be beat and we are losing 8 of our 9 starters after this season so it would be a good year for some new kids to come in and play

Madison has a great coach in Mark Gjormand, Oakton's Scott Rowland is good too. PVI is probably your best bet though.

Again, you cannot go wrong with any of those mentioned here. My two cents--if going public, I like Oakton, Madison, Lake Braddock, Westfield, South County, Osbourn Park, Forest Park, Stonebridge, Langley, and Yorktown. If private, I like St John's, PVI, DeMatha, Good Counsel, Gonzaga, St. Albans, Georgetown Prep, and St Stephen's/St. Agnes.

My recommendation--save the $ you would spend on private school and pay the premium to live in McLean or the Yorktown district of Arlington and go to either Langley or Yorktown. If there are great public schools in the area for academics, sports, extracurricular activities, and good learning environmnet, these two top the list (along with Thomas Jefferson, of course, and George Mason HS in Falls Church). But if you want private, the two best programs right now are St John's and PVI.

Thank you -- This is great feedback. Our son aspires to one day play at the D1 college level; so we are looking for a program that will prepare him both academically and athletically to succeed on that level. It sounds like you have recommended some good schools.

He is developing as a pretty good Pitcher, and we are looking for a program that has a good track record for developing Pitchers -- teaching sound fundamentals, leaving the natural arm slot alone, tracking and abiding by prescribed pitch counts, following proper rehab and rest guidelines ... basically, looking out for the kid, as well as looking out for the team.

Any experiences here?

I would seriously talk directly to the head and pitching coaches at whatever high schools you are looking at. Coaches have their own ways of doing things and you will have to find one that will work with you, as a parent, to do what YOU believe is best for your son.

When all is said and done, these programs are nearly equal (some do some things better than others while others do other things better than others). You should really look at the schools, talk to the administration, talk to the teachers, and most of all, if baseball matters to you and your son, talk to the coaches. Try to get someone to make a commitment on playing time if possible. Many of these schools are loaded year in and year out, so it can be tough, especially for a new kid, to find playing time. But talk to the coaches.

quote:

Originally posted by isaacvanwart:
Try to get someone to make a commitment on playing time if possible.

Isaac, I agree w/ a lot of your thoughts and comments but I doubt you'll get this from any coach! I know I certainly would not promise playing time to anyone, period.

Thanks, j2h6--I agree that 99.9% of coaches would not want to do this, but if the kid is a real player, Southpaw Dad may find a coach willing to make that commitment.

Southpaw dad--recommend you read the thread about "DC baseball" on this forum--it is usually near the top as it attracts interest daily. Great entry there concerning how great the StJ program is, and has been. I did not realize how good their nonconference schedule is. For them to win out in that California tournament is big-time stuff. Also, one program that I doubt any of us want to sell short on there--Bishop Ireton. Sure, they are .500 this year and historically have been down. However, they have a great young head coach. He is totally dedicated to building BI into a WCAC contender. He runs the Dominion Baseball Academy and the team works out there in the offseason. The players at BI are committed to winning and have turned around the entire outlook at that school. Remember, they beat PVI and it was not a fluke. They play on the same field as the new Virginia Aces (who play in a college wood bat league in summer) so you know the facilities are only going to get better. Coach Gallagher and BI is on the way up, and it would be worth a look.

There is still no doubt that the other programs mentioned are still many rungs above most other schools, including BI, on the ladder of baseball success and prominence. But you may want to explore some of these other rising schools.

I would also check out Lake Braddock High School in Fairfax County. The coach is Jody Rutherford.

As a player from the same town as BI, I beg to differ with the previous quote. The field that they play on, although it is a Cal Ripken League field, is terrible. It gets almost no attention from the city grounds crew and the lights haven't worked for two years. Also, while I think Coach Gallagher is a quality coach, many people are turned off by his coaching style.

tcw--have you been to Cora Kelly/Four Mile Run lately? Wow. It is a premier ballpark and premier field. Within a year it will be even better. Most kids would kill to play on this field as their home field.

Also, Coach Gallagher has turned BI around IN ONE YEAR! He was selected as WCAC Coach of the Year. He has taken a perennial loser and made them into not just a winner, but a team that beat nationally ranked PVI twice in two weeks. He has made his players into better players, his team into a highly competitive team, and his program into one of the up-and-coming programs in the area. His success will breed success. Kids will start going to BI now to play baseball. Style? What, he doesn't hug the kids when they commit errors or strike out? Seriously, ask any kid on that team if they would prefer to have had last year's coaching regime this year over this year's coaching regime--I GUARANTEE you they will tell you they prefer THIS year's coaching regime. If you had seen the pure elation they displayed after beating PVI in the WCAC Tournament, you would know that Gallagher's "tough love" style is the leadership that was needed to turn around a moribund program. Those kids are the happiest baseball players in all of Northern Virginia right now.

BI is going to be a power in baseball for years to come provided they can keep Gallagher as coach. He is a winner, as he has proven, and the good players who want to win and get a chance to play in college prefer his "style" to the run-of-the-mill coach who collects his paycheck but cares little about winning. Do you think Billy Emerson is all touchy-feely with those 2008s? Heck, my guess is that every one of those kids has been through his wringer many times--and they have come out the better for it.

Southpaw Dad--believe me, BI is a school and program to take a look at. It is going up--way up--in the next few years.

southpaw_dad - i moved here from colorado before my freshman year. here's what i've learned...

curve balls break more here.

the dc area is not a hotbed for baseball. basketball, football (and even lax and s****r) rule. but, the top tier baseball talent can play with anybody in the country.

if you prefer the public school system, montgomery county, md and fairfax county, va are strong academically. howard county, md also has some excellent schools (for example long reach hs/ baseball coach tim o'brien is among the best) and that area seems less congested than the other high profile counties.

if you have $, there are plenty of private schools that will help you spend it.

you listed st johns and pvi, but really every school in the washington catholic athletic conference (wcac) has outstanding (and in many cases, legendary) educators and coaches. don't sleep on our lady of good counsel in olney, md -- they just moved into a brand new, huge campus. all of their athletic programs, including baseball, are on the upswing. for national recognition and championship consistency across ALL sports, year after year, decade after decade, there is only one school that can lay claim to this distinction -- dematha chs in hyattsville, md.

2deuce/southpawdad--Good Counsel offers a great option if you wish to move into Maryland. The brand new school facility is state of the art. Few public schools could match Good Counsel's new setup. Also, GREAT football and up-and-coming baseball. GC, DeMatha, and Gonzaga will all be near the top of the WCAC in baseball next year.

Sir,

Should you want to hang out with the Rugby guys and help your kid at either the public or private baseball environment may I offer the following:

a) Try across the water into Maryland (checking out the housing near or in the city (Chevy Chase, Northwest) or the burbs (North of Olney is a buyers market)

b) As for schools, there is only one private school with a private education in the entire DC Metro. (all others are private schools with a public education). That would be St. Albans (in DC).

Yet, the new private HS in Olney, (ie Good Counsel HS) is start of the art, equipped with advanced technology, and has sports facilities better than many DII and DIII colleges, it must be considered (or at least looked at.) Also mention to baseball Coach McGowen, Bear sent you.

Good Luck, Keep us informed
You may decide on the spot!

cheers
Bear

postscript:

Should the AP, IB and Cambridge participation be a part of your metrics and indicators of HS efforts to challenge students and prepare for college, take a look at the following and excellent public HS:

Winston Churchill HS - Potomac MD
Walter Johnson HS - Bethesda MD
Walt Whitman HS - Bethesda MD
BCC HS - Bethesda MD
Wooten HS - Rockville MD
Richard Montgomery - Rockville, MD
Blair HS - Silver Spring MD
Yorktown HS - Arlington VA
H-B Woodlawn HS - Arlington VA
George Mason HS - Falls Church VA
Washington-Lee - Arlington VA
McLean HS - McLean VA
Langley HS - McLean VA
Clarke County HS - Berryville VA
Lake Braddock - Burke, VA
Woodrow Wilson HS - DC

These are all a part of recent and Top 100 nationally ranked HS, given the above mentioned metrics.