Class of 2021, I am sorry. In my opinion y’all have been hit the hardest. Younger guys at the high school level still have time on their side. College guys, for the most part, will be granted an additional year of eligibility. So for them, this shutdown really hasn’t been the worst thing in the world. College seniors and super seniors who will not be taking advantage of the additional year definitely get some empathy from me as they did not get to dawn their jerseys one last time with their loved ones in attendance. The unexpected end certainly hurts, nevertheless, it will always be special to them.
The high school class of 2021 gets caught in the middle. They lose out on a potential breakout year during the high school season, and they have been hit even harder during the summer. Coaches throughout collegiate baseball — specifically those outside of the top 50 RPI D1 schools — use the summer to primarily target rising high school seniors. Regardless of this year’s oddities and obstacles, I have developed a few strategies in order to navigate the 2020 summer and recruit the 2021 class effectively.
First, I want to put to bed a myth. I have heard from some concerned high school coaches in my network that some collegiate programs are planning to overlook the 2021 graduating class all together. I cannot speak for everyone here, however, by no means is that the case for us or for any coach I talk to regularly. Given the dead and quiet periods, things may be happening a bit more slowly than in past years, but I can guarantee that those who can play will be identified one way or another. Just give it time.
“Just give it time” probably can be claimed as an overarching theme from my article this week. Although the 2021 class may feel like the clock is working against them, speaking from experience, college programs have no problem making their final decisions on high school players deep into the spring, and in some cases, even into the early summer. Some of that is dependent on a college’s division, conference, competitiveness, and needs. Also, there is no bonus prize to signing guys early, besides giving them the opportunity to peacock around school a little bit or maybe getting to shut the door on recruiting a bit earlier in the year.
That said, shutting down recruiting early goes against so much of what we preach as college coaches. Whether you are a “1% better every day” type of guy or a “tortoise and the hare” fan, long term development seems to be a commonly preached theme in dang near every clubhouse in America. This leads me towards the type of guy I like to target, especially in this 2021 class. Obviously I am not going to give away recruiting any leads, but in my role I want to know who is doing what and why they are doing it. That “why” becomes my favorite thing to recruit.
I do not discount metrics. There are velocities or times that I use as somewhat of a recruiting floor, but if a kid can tell me he is on a specific development plan and take me through his set of attainable goals, I do not want to throw that kid aside. When I look at this more “project” type of recruit, I will have in depth conversations with him regarding what he views as his flaws or greatest potential areas of gain and how he plans to work through them. If a rising high school senior can specifically tell me why he is performing a certain exercise or drill and describe how it will help him, that is a kid I know will take ownership over his career. I will always take that in my program.
I believe these types of potential student athletes have taken full advantage of the shutdown. Instead of treating the spring and summer as a break from the grind, the athletes who understand their “why” have continued to improve and push themselves to new heights. Without a tournament every single weekend, these guys have set their sights towards the metrics, results, and body types coaches look for as opposed to once again showcasing something that is not ready to be showcased.
So, with my adamancy of giving late bloomers time to develop, video has become my best friend. As a result, I have more or less flooded my own inbox as I request as much video as possible from all of my recruits. Whether it is batting practice, bullpens, defensive work, pull downs, game footage, or workout videos, video updates allow me to get a peek into each athlete’s work ethic, tendencies, and development over time. It allows me to get a better feel for common mistakes in their actions and gives me an idea of how I would help the athlete work on them if he eventually comes to our program.
On that same note, perfect video is not always preferred. Swings and misses, misread balls, missed pitches, etc. enable me to see where and how things break down for a player. Following the above theme, I can then determine our coaching staff’s ability to work with that problem. Additionally, I can have an open discussion with the potential student athlete about the issue, which brings us full circle back to his specific development plan. If a kid has the ability to think through how he can fix the problem or make an adjustment, I know the kid has a fantastic understanding for his overall plan and his body’s movements.
Obviously, I have stressed the importance of giving development focused players in the 2021 class time to reach their peak. That said, I do not want to discredit or disparage those who are ready to rock right now on the diamond. Like everyone else, I sadly cannot go watch anyone play or workout at this time. Consequently, much like for the development guys, video is king. I will admit that live streams don’t do it for me. The streams generally are not high enough quality or set to pick up intricate details. I am not complaining. I know they are set up to capture a game, not a specific player. This is why clips of at bats or an edited clip of an inning on the mound show enough to capture what I need. By compiling video from multiple games and tournaments as the months roll on, a player’s video on file begins to tell a story. I can analyze tendencies to see what a season does to a player. Does it help them improve or does it pose a challenge? I would love to be going to games right now, but there is no way I could collect and run through the videos I have compiled without virtual recruiting.
In review, I stand by my claim that the class of 2021 has been hit the hardest. During what is normally their major summer of showcasing, college coaches cannot attend. However, I do not think it is such a bad thing. I recognize the unwillingness of any program to commit to a kid without seeing him first – we certainly tend to fall into that same boat. However, I do not believe time is the enemy here. It may actually be our friend. By looking at summer and maybe even fall as a data collection period, rather than an offering period, the diamond in the rough kid may be ready to shine. The Covid-19 shutdown has allowed some of the smartest, most driven players to become completely engulfed in their craft, creating a whole new crop of college ready prospective student athletes. To gauge progress of either developing players or those who are already showcase ready, consistent video updates are a necessity. Building a video library for each recruit allows for trend analysis and a deeper look into tendencies. Recruiting during the 2020 summer certainly looks different than any other year, but after stepping back and looking at the 2021 class from a macro level, a plan and some patience will go a long way.
Adam Moreau, MBA, CSCS
Director of Player Development and Recruiting Coordinator
Eckerd College
419-250-7243
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