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What are the options for my son to play in baseball leagues like the Perfect Game? He is a freshman in hs and wants to play year round baseball. He has the talent and would like to train with the best and be exposed to college coaches and not just at weekend camps.
Hello! It is my pleasure to respond to your query in providing you with recommendations on premiere baseball organizations that your talented baseball-playing son might want to join/attend.
In my research, I came across quite a few articles on the dangers of playing baseball year-round, mostly notably the immense strain it puts on the player physically. Experts agree that he will need at least some downtime between seasons to keep his body at its healthiest – and to help him avoid long-term damage from repetitive motion injuries, which is especially important if he’s a pitcher or catcher. The research indicates that it’s less important for him to play year-round than it is for him to play for specific top-notch organizations – and/or in particular regional and national tournaments.
So, to provide you with the most well-rounded response to your query, I’ve detailed a brief overview of the topic first. Then, I’ve given short case studies on the three (3) organizations you mentioned, the Perfect Game, the IMG Academy, and USA Baseball, as well as similar case studies on competing organizations that might be of interest to you and your son. As I did not have information concerning in which state you reside and you indicated that travel wasn’t an issue, I focused my search on the best and/or biggest programs across the US. I hope this provides exactly what you need!
TOPIC OVERVIEW
According to BaseballAmerica, talented high school players hoping to play college or professional baseball “are encouraged to play in particular regional showcases to be considered for prestigious national ones”. They report that the “tournament and showcase season starts as early as May and accelerates in June when school lets out, lasting until October”. They also discuss how expensive some of these programs can be, especially if a player is participating in more than one program, showcase, or tournament. There are training facilities hosting travel teams all over the country, as well as “events that invite individual players, mix them up on different teams and put them in front of scouts and college recruiters”.
So, to provide the best possible suggestions toward your son’s highest success, my research focuses not only on those organizations offering year-round programs (like boarding schools), but also those offering a selection of major showcases, events, or tryouts where your son would be most likely to be discovered by an agent. We’ll cover 10 of the most well-known and/or most successful of these in my detailed research findings below.
CASE STUDY: BASEBALL BOARDING SCHOOL
According to BoardingSchoolReview, there are 65 boarding schools in the US providing the opportunity for your son to play baseball. Without digging deeply into all of them, it is not clear which ones offer year-round baseball. So, to filter the list, I selected schools in locations suitable for playing outdoor baseball all year long, like Florida and California. I avoided military academy and specific religious-based schools since neither of these was mentioned as important. From the remaining list, I combed through each of them to see which ones might be best to recommend. My findings showed that most of these schools did not offer year-round training, did not focus on baseball or athletics, were too small to have sufficient training facilities, or were too focused on other things (like charter or magnet-type schools). I searched four sites worth of these schools, but found that only the one you mentioned – IMG Academy – was suitable for meeting your son’s needs.
So, I have detailed IMG Academy’s information for you below, including a basic overview, an outline of their facilities, their accomplishments, what they offer, and admissions information.
• OVERVIEW: This program “is the nation's premier program for dedicated baseball players who want to play at the next level. With a proven position-specific training program paired with our Performance disciplines that help athletes become stronger, faster, healthier and more confident, IMG Academy places student-athletes at all collegiate levels fully ready to contribute immediately,” according to their website.
• FACILITIES: According to their website, “Baseball athletes have full access to our professional 4-plex facility, including 4 game fields, 3 half fields, 12 practice mounds, 12 indoor and outdoor batting cages, as well as our 65,000 square-foot Performance Center with a 12,000 square-foot weight room and turf facility. All of our facilities are maintained at a professional standard to ensure the perfect training environment for every athlete.”
• ACCOMPLISHMENTS: Their accomplishments include: “17 student-athletes named to All-American teams since 2009,” “23 student-athletes or alumni have been selected in the MLB Draft since 2005,” “10 national tournaments won since 2009,” and “88 D-I commitments since 2012”.
• OFFERINGS: They offer year-round, summer, and winter 3-week-long Baseball Youth Camps (with availability showing January – December). Three levels are offered: Core, Total Athlete, and Game Changer. Programs specifically for pitching, hitting, base running, catching, fielding, and performance are offered. Additionally, IMG Academy offers a boarding school for multiple levels, including high school.
• ADMISSIONS: There was no publicly-available information about how to get admitted to either the camps or the boarding school. Parents are required to register for a brochure detailing this information – and to contact the school itself via the website or phone.
Now, let’s look at other options for your son – which might be even better than a year-round academy, according to experts.
CASE STUDIES: EVENTS / SHOWCASES / TOURNAMENTS
The following case studies detail specific organizations that offer potential opportunities for your son. Please Note: For these, as requested, I weeded out those organizations only offering weekend camps. These include locations, overviews of their programs and facilities, their major accomplishments (in some cases), and how to apply for admission. The case studies include: The Perfect Game, Baseball Youth, USA Baseball, Team One/Baseball Factory, and ProspectWire.
• OVERVIEW: BaseballAmerica reports that, “The leader in this space is Perfect Game, a company based in Iowa.” PG runs showcase events all over the nation, including three of the country’s largest: National Showcase (June – Minneapolis, MN); World Wood Bat Championships (October – Jupiter, FL); and All-America Classic (August – San Diego, CA). The article reports that, “Most of the top prospects selected for the All-America Classic attend PG National, which attracts every professional organization and most top college programs, or some other PG event.”
• FACILITIES: Varied (events all over the country)
• ACCOMPLISHMENTS: BaseballAmerica reports that, “Perfect Game has been so successful in the showcase business that it has outgrown its Iowa roots. The company is set to move to Georgia with its involvement in LakePoint, a massive development northwest of Atlanta that will include 16 baseball fields.”
• OFFERINGS: The Perfect Game offers multiple showcases, tournaments, leagues, series, and other events for all levels of athletes. They list 17 showcases from February to August 2017 and student-athletes need to get an invite via the website. They also list dozens of major tournaments from January to September 2017, many for which your son’s age/school level allows him to qualify. They have two leagues listed: National Indoor League (January – March) and Iowa Spring League (March – May).
• ADMISSIONS: To apply to the Perfect Game, this link requires the student-athlete to fill in personal information, like name, contact information, social media account names, GPA, baseball performance stats, past/current team information, and a description of the player’s abilities.
• OVERVIEW: Baseball Youth is the “nation’s largest youth baseball network”. It includes a magazine (print/online), website, social media platforms, TV shows, tours, and various events and showcases.
• FACILITIES: Varied (events all over the country)
• OFFERINGS: This program offers both National Tryouts and showcases. According to their website, “The Baseball Youth National Tryouts powered by Easton are for serious travel ball players looking to showcase their game and take it to the next level. Tryouts are hosted all over the country as Baseball Youth is looking for the best youth players to compete in various national events — such as the Baseball Youth All-American Games, Baseball Youth Future Games, Baseball Youth National Showcase, Baseball Youth Best of the Best, Baseball Youth All-Stars Weekends, and Baseball Youth Elite USA Teams.” For a list of tryout locations (from March – August 2017), please see the website. They also offer 12 showcases from December 2016 – September 2017.
• ADMISSIONS: National Tryouts are open to any student-athlete graduating between 2021 – 2027, with rankings and skill assessments being categorized by graduation class (rather than age division). Each of the showcases have different admissions requirements, so please refer to the website for each showcase event for specifics.
• OVERVIEW/ACCOMPLISHMENTS: According to their website, “Since 1978 USA Baseball has been the national governing body for amateur baseball. It represents the sport in the United States as a member of the U.S. Olympic Committee (USOC) and internationally as a member federation of the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC). Nearly every major national amateur baseball organization in America is united as a USA Baseball national member organization. As a result, USA Baseball governs more than 12 million amateur players in ballparks and playgrounds across the country.” They go on to say that, “Since 1999, USA Baseball has been selecting teams of professional-level Minor and Major League players to represent the United States in various international competitions, including the World Baseball Classic.”
• FACILITIES: National Training Complex in Cary, NC.
• OFFERINGS: The 2017 National High School Invitational is a great one for your son, however, it is for teams only – not single individuals. The National Team Development Programs seem like your son’s best bet; they offer several – based on age/division.
• ADMISSIONS: For the National Team Development Programs, most invitations to players come via the National Team Championships, however, some of the 26 athletes invited come from the recommendations of coaches and scouts (so be sure your son secures several of these, if possible). If he doesn’t make it in the first round, he can participate in events at the National Training Complex (Cary, NC) for possible identification for future events/programs. To find out more about admissions, you can email play@usabaseball.com.
• OVERVIEW: Team One Baseball is the “showcase and tournament division of the Baseball Factory,” according to the website.
• FACILITIES: Varied (events all over the country)
• OFFERINGS: The offer 11 tournaments, including the Under Armour Summer Tournaments at Wrigley Field in Chicago, IL. For this, BaseballAmerica reports that, “There is no fee to participate and hundreds of pro and college scouts are in attendance.” They also offer seven (7) showcase events where it appears, single players (not teams) can be invited. These seem to be your son’s best bets to get invited to the tournaments as his talents are showcased. Additionally, all student-athletes featured in both showcases and tournaments are entered into a recruiter database used by 1100+ college coaches and recruiters, so it would offer excellent exposure if he wanted to play college ball.
• ADMISSIONS: For the tournaments, a review of several showed that they all require a full team to register, not just one player, so this would not be the best option for your son as a single student-athlete. For the showcases, there is a $299 registration fee and players can request an invite via the website. Please Note: The website links for nominating a potential player/prospect and for registering for events seem to be broken, so you may want to use the general contact form to let them know – and find out how to nominate your son.
• OVERVIEW/ ACCOMPLISHMENTS: ProspectWire is an organization that offers training and showcase events for high school baseball players across the country. All prospects are entered into a database, which is “fed through Prospectwire.com and is viewable via the internet. Prospect Wire also works with colleges, and MLB Scouts to share information on prospects, help connect players to colleges, and to follow players as they progress through the different levels of baseball.” Their database includes more than 25,000 prospects and it is “one of the largest scouting services for high school baseball in America”.
• FACILITIES: Varied (events all over the country)
• OFFERINGS: According to their website, “PW runs a variety of showcases, tournaments, combines, camps, and more. From these events, PW generates thousands of scouting reports. PW events stay away from the traditional cattle-call, cookie-cutter style and they pay attention to details to make sure your son, or your team has the best experience possible.” Their list of 2017 includes dozens of events from April through October – for players of varying ages and skill levels.
• ADMISSIONS: Each event has a different set of requirements. Some have open registration, while other have waiting lists or require invitations. A deep dive into the site on those that would best suit your son’s needs is required to find out exactly what he needs to do to participate.
ADDITIONAL PROGRAMS / SHOWCASES / EVENTS
Additional offerings in which your son might be interested include:
• StudentSports (formerly Area Code Games)
• East Coast Pro Showcase
• Big League Baseball (Free Agent Program)
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SUMMARY
For year-round / boarding schools that focus on baseball, you can’t beat the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida. It is the nation’s premier program (backed up by significant success statistics), and provides a great jumping off point for any serious student-baseball player.
There are a wide variety of events, showcases, and tournaments available for top-notch high school-level players, with most programs running from January through October at the latest. These include selections from: The Perfect Game, Baseball Youth, USA Baseball, Team One / Baseball Factory, and ProspectWire, to name a few.
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Thank you again for your question, and I hope this information gives you what you need. Please contact Wonder again for any other questions you may have!