As another exciting Summer Training Camp draws near here at Throwzone Academy, I wanted to give you some myths, facts, and solutions on the common perceptions of players who are looking to be recruited or even just make their high school teams.
Over the years—and I’m going on over 30+ years of coaching, so my experience and insights into families are strong—I often talk to families about their return on investment (ROI) regarding their son and his quest for a baseball scholarship. Like investing money in the stock market, a mutual fund, or property, you want to get the most “bang for your buck.” Many times there is what I call “fool’s gold” told to families by showcase companies (Perfect Games is the biggest one) with very slick marketing pieces about being seen by their specific company and their vast array of college and professional scouts who will see their son if they attend their showcase.
And many times, you will be charged $500–$700 for the showcase, then afterward, you’re left wondering what happened. There’s no real follow-up, no phone calls, nothing. This happens to 97% of the players who attend these showcases.
The ROI for these events is simply awful.
This is also the case when going to Arizona for USA Baseball Junior Olympics tournaments. Many players participate in this tournament and are, afterward, only left with a sunburn and parents asking themselves why they spent a week’s worth of money on a hotel, food, entertainment, tournament fee, and the coaches who need to be paid, too. Again, the ROI is not even remotely logical.
Here are just a few of the topics I get asked about:
Myth #1: I must play a lot of baseball games during the summer to get noticed by colleges.
Fact: If you do not possess a skill set, such as high velocity on your pitches, running faster than anyone else around you, or can hit like Mike Trout, then it’s a waste of time to go to showcases.
Solution: Training during the summer to prepare yourself for scout ball or your high school fall season is an ABSOLUTE must. Here at Throwzone Academy, we can train you to improve your throwing and pitching skill set by adding velocity to your pitches, creating better movement on other pitches, such as a breaking ball or changeup, and providing a roadmap to continue on your quest to pitch at the collegiate level and above.
Myth #2: If I go to a college camp that has multiple college coaches, then I will get more attention than if I don’t go to that camp.
Fact: College showcases are very expensive, usually anywhere from $500 to $2500. One of the biggest camps is the Stanford University camp, which has as many as 30 different university and college coaches in attendance. That camp is close to $2200. A good portion of the camp goes to paying volunteer assistants some stipend money. The coaches there usually get paid to attend the camp, too, as long as they wear their college polo shirt and sun visor and have a clipboard. College camps are 99% a waste of valuable resources that could be put into training with a coach or by investing in a weight training program.
Solution: Development and training are the most important things for a player to focus on to move onto the next level. By raising the bar on your own development, you are investing in yourself to throw the ball harder, get more consistent strikes, and gain the ability to recover from your outing and throw the next day. Our Throwzone summer training will ensure you improve enough to showcase yourself to coaches when the time is right.
Myth #3: If I throw a baseball at 85 mph, then I’ll get to pitch in college!
Fact: This is true if you want to pitch at a small D3 college in the middle of the country or farther east. However, if your goal is to pitch at a big university, then the magic velocity number is 92 mph for right-handed pitchers and 90 mph for left-handers.
Solution: Throwzone Academy guarantees that players will get stronger arms and add velocity if they are driven to improve and throw with the intent of a madman whose goal is achieving 90 mph and above.
Many of those desires to be seen by coaches can be addressed by what is always the top priority for baseball players: training and development. Training and development ALWAYS trump playing in games, especially after a long fall, winter, and spring season, where players practice every day and play 2–3 games per week. A baseball player’s body needs to get some rest, but then it needs to train. The body needs to get back in shape, and strength needs to be built. Throwzone Academy can and has always gotten players in peak shape and ready for the next season, for which many high school players are practicing as early as mid-August with no real breaks.
Our summer training camp is the perfect complement to getting into the peak shape needed to get noticed and attention paid to your skill set. Players have gained strength and velocity with our training camp. Coupled with a solid weightlifting program, the gains are noticeable, and then you can think about a camp at your favorite university or school that has shown interest in you.
But if all you do is play, play, play, then a player will never be able to get their best self on the mound and the field.
Contact Throwzone today about our summer training camp. Just click the following link for more info: https://throwzone.com/2023-summer-velocity-enhancement-and-arm-health-camp/.
I guarantee you won’t be disappointed!
Jim Wagner's ThrowZone Academy 