Current Sophomore Looking To Play D1 Baseball

Athletic Recruits
1

Hey everyone,
So its been a dream of mine to play D1 baseball for a while now. I’m a sophomore in high school and I really have no idea where I would like to play ball or what a good school would be for me. I’ve looked around and all the colleges that I like either seem to advanced academically or too elite athletically. Basically, I’m just here for some recommendations in terms of what schools (or kind of schools) I should be targeting.

I would ideally like to play D1, but D2 would still be fantastic. I’m not really interested in D3 unless there are some pretty legit academics. I’m interested in engineering. Here are my stats:

Athletics:

  • Pitcher Only, right handed
  • 5’9" 145 lbs (in process of gaining weight)
  • fastball is 81- 83 mph (max 85) <----- this is up from 62 mph beginning of freshman year and still increasing pretty quickly
  • curveball is around 71 <---- This is my best pitch
  • splitter is about the same, maybe a little slower <----- still working on this pitch
  • I’ve only played on my freshman team so far (1.50 era per 9 innings)

Academics:

  • 92 UW GPA out of 100 (Hope to get up to 93.5 by end of junior year)
  • PLAN test predicted a 32 ACT (Gonna study a lot and hope for a 34)
  • Decent EC’s other than baseball (eagle scout, NHS, etc.)

So all I want is recommendations and some tips on how to go about the recruiting process and getting noticed. I know this sounds a little bit like a “chance me” thread and I really hate those things but I’m just looking for a little bit of advice and really have no idea where I stack up (am I aiming too high?).

Thanks in advance :smiley:

2

I think the first place to start is to get an idea of the level of baseball you are at. Essentially, that is what most D1 programs are about. In short, if you don’t meet their athletic requirements they are not interested. For a D1 RHP (with multiple pitches) that is a minimum of approx. 88mph to become part of the conversation. Which leads me to my second point which is that that you need to understand (other than labels) exactly what level of play is needed for D1, D2 and D3 and all of the sublevels within each. Lastly, I would seek to understand how difficult it is to be an engineering major and play baseball at any level. Trust me, this is no easy task and it is not something you want to take on willy-nilly. Use this website and others (HSBBWeb) to learn as much as you possibly can about situations that will give you the best chance for success. This is what my son, wife and I did many years ago. We found the D1 Ivy, D1 Patriot, and D3 NESCAC schools to be the best fit for my son’s situation. Your mileage may vary.

Until you actually take the ACT or SAT it won’t mean much to a prospective college coach or admissions officer. In addition, what matters most for prospective recruits is the level of travel baseball. If you are playing at the top levels or decent competitiion they will follow you. I would urge you to look into HeadFirst and Perfect Game Academic Showcases and let those coaches know you will be there. Continuously follow up with milestone achievments to keep the conversation with the coaches moving forward. Never give up if this is something you really want.

Good luck.