<p>My son is in 7th grade and we live in the Middle East. We are looking for a US boarding school for 9th grade. He loves baseball and is an outstanding player. He would like to make baseball a major component of any school selection. He is also strong academically, so we will be looking for a school with good academics as well. On this website and others there are many opinions regarding academic ranking of schools, but how do I find out about the strength of a school's baseball program? Any suggestions would be appreciated.</p>
<p>Baseball has taken a back seat to lacrosse at many prep schools. Lacrosse, a very hot sport nationwide, is attracting a lot of the top athletes.</p>
<p>Several schools still produce good teams, these come to mind:</p>
<p>Salisbury -- 20-0 last year, two players taken in the MLB draft, one in the 1st round.
Deerfield -- impressive considering the caliber of their lacrosse.
Cushing Academy
Andover
Exeter
Trinity-Pawling
Avon Old Farms
Lawrenceville
Blair
Gunnery</p>
<p>I understand that being a recruited athlete can help with the admission process. Is football included in the sports for which boarding schools are looking for athletes.</p>
<p>Depends on the school.</p>
<p>In the ISL, the day schools produce the best teams --Belmont Hill and Nobles.
Governors Acad. clearly looks for football players. The rest not so much.</p>
<p>Among the others in Northern NE, Holderness comes to mind.</p>
<p>Among the big independants, Andover, Exeter and NMH will give a football player a look, but they have the luxury of numerous PG's.</p>
<p>Western NE schools that clearly give a potentially good player a second look include Trinity-Pawling, Deerfield, Kent, Salisbury, Hotchkiss, Avon Old Farms, Choate. These schools also have PG's but league rules restrict them to 4, with the exception of Choate.</p>
<p>Thanks Fun is Fun. I didn't know Lacrosse was so hot. Do you know anything about Mercersburg's baseball program?</p>
<p>In the post above, what is a PG? Do the schools you mentioned for baseball also help for athlete admissions?</p>
<p>PG = post graduate</p>
<p>A PG is a post-grad student (another year of high school after high school graduation). A lot of strong athletes do a PG year at a prep school to develop their sport AND their academics (and also to grow and get stronger). It can frequently help a great deal in the college recruiting process.</p>
<p>St. Stephen's in Austin (St</a>. Stephen's Episcopal School) used to have a baseball academy as part of the school. While it no longer does, they do usually send several kids to college programs. That said, I would NOT recommend this school for a boarder. It is overwhelmingly a day school and has some real issues in the boarding community.</p>
<p>I am sure you have been to their website but if you haven't:</p>
<p>"Baseball and Mercersburg have been linked for decades. In the glory days of baseball, legendary manager Connie Mack brought his American League champion Philadelphia Athletics to campus for an exhibition game. Since that time, baseball and success have been synonymous. Over the last decade, the Blue Storm has posted a 70% win-loss record and has won five league championships and four state independent school championships. Many graduates of the program go on to play at the collegiate level. </p>
<p>The school offers both junior varsity and varsity programs. Coaches Karl Reisner and Brent Gift have each taught and coached at the school for more than 30 years, providing a level of stability few schools can match. The season is highly competitive and the home-field facilities are second to none."</p>
<p>Link [url=<a href="http://www.mercersburg.edu/athletics/interscholastic_teams/Baseball/%5DBaseball%5B/url">http://www.mercersburg.edu/athletics/interscholastic_teams/Baseball/]Baseball[/url</a>]</p>
<p>Impressive and interesting -- if you're interested, check out The Gunnery's baseball history on their website.</p>