Lexington Catholic shortstop Will Hurt will pass up a chance to play college baseball and instead jump right to the pro game.
Hurt, who signed with Coastal Carolina last fall, was taken by the Minnesota Twins in the 16th round of the major league draft this week.
After weighing his options, Hurt decided to turn pro. He'll sign with the Twins on Saturday then head to Fort Myers, Fla., for rookie ball in two weeks.
"I'm trading three years of college ball for three years of pro ball experience," he said. "This is something I've always wanted to do, so why not get started on it early."
The 5-foot-11, 175-pound Hurt said the Twins like his glove and his speed, and project him getting bigger and stronger.
"They figure they can put 20 or 30 pounds on me, develop all my tools and hopefully get a lot more pop in my bat," he said.
Hurt, who played at Henry Clay as a freshman before transferring to Lexington Catholic, hit .303 this season with 38 runs, 33 stolen bases and 19 RBI.
Read more here:
http://www.kentucky.com/2012/06/08/22177...rylink=cpy
Dusty, you like or dislike the choice?
I'm not Dusty, but I'll throw my 2 cents in on it, if that's OK? 16th round? He needs to go and not think twice about it.
I talked to Chase Mullins of Bourbon Co. at the beginning of the year. He had already verbally committed to UK, but Chase was done with school in his mind. Great kid, but he really did not want to go to school any longer. Thus, had he been drafted in a high round, I would have expected him to go to the Majors.
I don't know Will personally, but if school was not an option for him right now, then yes, I support it. In his contract, he will have money put aside for him to go to college. I would anticipate he will take classes and at minimum play four years in the Minors. If baseball is not in his future at that point, he will still be able to finish college.
College is not cut out for every kid. Yes, Will would miss out on the college experience, but if you do not want to go to school then you will fail anyhow.
I had this same conversation with Aaron Goe who played for me. He was hung up on where to go to college. My question directly to him was what do you want to get out of college? If his answer was "Baseball", then we would have had another conversation. But he wanted to get a degree in Pharmacy. Morehead St. was not the best choice for Pharmacy, but the kid is getting his education 1st, and gets the enjoyment of continuing his education. If Will was only going to college to play baseball, then we get the same result as the 1 and done college basketball players who have zero interest in going to classes and only do it long enough to ensure they stay eligible for Basketball.
I support Will's decision, but truthfully I am supporting is because of some assumptions.
Stardust Wrote:I talked to Chase Mullins of Bourbon Co. at the beginning of the year. He had already verbally committed to UK, but Chase was done with school in his mind. Great kid, but he really did not want to go to school any longer. Thus, had he been drafted in a high round, I would have expected him to go to the Majors.
I don't know Will personally, but if school was not an option for him right now, then yes, I support it. In his contract, he will have money put aside for him to go to college. I would anticipate he will take classes and at minimum play four years in the Minors. If baseball is not in his future at that point, he will still be able to finish college.
College is not cut out for every kid. Yes, Will would miss out on the college experience, but if you do not want to go to school then you will fail anyhow.
I had this same conversation with Aaron Goe who played for me. He was hung up on where to go to college. My question directly to him was what do you want to get out of college? If his answer was "Baseball", then we would have had another conversation. But he wanted to get a degree in Pharmacy. Morehead St. was not the best choice for Pharmacy, but the kid is getting his education 1st, and gets the enjoyment of continuing his education. If Will was only going to college to play baseball, then we get the same result as the 1 and done college basketball players who have zero interest in going to classes and only do it long enough to ensure they stay eligible for Basketball.
I support Will's decision, but truthfully I am supporting is because of some assumptions.
It's like you said Dusty, there will be money set aside for college if the minor league experiment fails.
College experience. Way way way over rated, IMO. It becomes an all time consuming job at that point.
Case in point here. High school teammate of my sons goes to EKU. During his sophomore season he has to go through Tommy John surgery. He sits out a year and comes back his junior season and hears scouts all season long tell him he will be drafted. Never happened. Now he comes back his senior season and has a remarkable season and is named the 2012 OVC player of the year throwing consistantly in the low 90's, finishes the regular season with a 9-0 record and a 1.51 ERA. You would expect that the player of the year was a shew in to be drafted, right? Still didn't happen. Here is the reason why. He has a late 1988 birth date. Go through all 40 rounds of this years draft and see how many kids with an '88 birth date were drafted....Answer, there was only 1. He would have been the oldest player in the nation to be drafted if chosen, at 23 years of age. As good as this player was he was considered to be over the hill, draft wise. My point is that you are more than likely going to get a couple of years in the minor leagues to prove if you are worthy of being given a legitimate shot of going through the system. Now if you are drafted out of high school and decide not to go that route that means you are not eligible to be drafted again until after your junior season. If you truley are wanting a shot at the bigs then there is IMO just too many things that can happen along the way to derail that chance. Take it when you can. I used to think differently but I have changed my views on it. I have seen more than one player be put in this scenerio, this is just happens to be the most recent.
Give it a shot, and if it doesn't work out then go to college for free. Chance are you are not going to get a free ride going the other way anyways. It's still the better of the two deals.
^ AWESOME story Bob, really puts things in perspective! You have much more experience than I, so I will defer to you. But the whole college prep experience is not what it is cracked up to be. I was fortunate that I was able to help/share in the experience before my own son was of age. For all that work and perceived glory, it winds up being a pretty big disappointment once you reach that goal of being a college athlete. It's taught guys like Bob and I very valuable lessons that hopefully we can use to get through to the parents of kids that have yet to reach High School. Don't get me wrong, I am not for bursting bubbles, but with experience, I hope to convey another side of the "Dream"!
Stardust Wrote:^ AWESOME story Bob, really puts things in perspective! You have much more experience than I, so I will defer to you. But the whole college prep experience is not what it is cracked up to be. I was fortunate that I was able to help/share in the experience before my own son was of age. For all that work and perceived glory, it winds up being a pretty big disappointment once you reach that goal of being a college athlete. It's taught guys like Bob and I very valuable lessons that hopefully we can use to get through to the parents of kids that have yet to reach High School. Don't get me wrong, I am not for bursting bubbles, but with experience, I hope to convey another side of the "Dream"!
This is the best advice I can give a kid and their parents is to enjoy every second of the high school experience, because there will never be another 4 years like it again. Work hard to be the very best player you can be, but dont take it so seriously that you worry every minute about trying to impress every perspective college coach that sees you walk on the field. What ever happens, happens. Dont force the issues and ruin the most fun 4 years of your basball career.
Parents: Let your sons have fun and enjoy the game. Dont make it miserable on them by always demanding perfection and put unnecessary pressure on them to perform at an unreal level in front of college scouts. Again, I want to emphasize, it's not what you think it's going to be.
I've learned it all the hard way, by the way.
What kind of a signing bonus do u get for the 16th round?
I would like to hear much more on this subject - and, I also believe it is a subject that interests many. In Kentucky in particular - what is the best way to get a kid seen by the big league scouts. I don't think my son will have any problem playing ball in college somewhere BUT how do they get seen, particularly if they are not some "well known about" pitcher? - Thanks in advance.
^ Throw 90! Live in Lousiville or Lexington! Make it to the State Tournament! Other than that, it's a rarity, and it is not exclusive to Kentucky! If you don't get advertised by your school at the state level and make every attempt to get them listed as a State All-Star (which comes from your school, not others) then you better hope to go to a Major League open tryout, which still occasionally happens, and wow the socks off of someone! If your summer team is not playing in the Nationals, then there is no recognition at all!
Stardust Wrote:^ Throw 90! Live in Lousiville or Lexington! Make it to the State Tournament! Other than that, it's a rarity, and it is not exclusive to Kentucky! If you don't get advertised by your school at the state level and make every attempt to get them listed as a State All-Star (which comes from your school, not others) then you better hope to go to a Major League open tryout, which still occasionally happens, and wow the socks off of someone! If your summer team is not playing in the Nationals, then there is no recognition at all!
lol...Yeah that's pretty much it, especially if you are a right hander. Helps to be 6'5" too.
Lol - kinda figured that would be what you would say - any thoughts on the value of showcases - are they a waste of time/money?
robeyeshua Wrote:Lol - kinda figured that would be what you would say - any thoughts on the value of showcases - are they a waste of time/money?
IMO, they are more usefull if you are a pitching prospect. For the most part, at a showcase they are all interested in one thing, and that is the reading on the radar gun. They might watch to see what kind of off speed stuff you have, but that is all secondary. It's all about the gun.
For a postion player, I wont say they are worthless, but it's pretty close.
Bob Seger Wrote:IMO, they are more usefull if you are a pitching prospect. For the most part, at a showcase they are all interested in one thing, and that is the reading on the radar gun. They might watch to see what kind of off speed stuff you have, but that is all secondary. It's all about the gun.
For a postion player, I wont say they are worthless, but it's pretty close.
Okay I will say they are worthless! LOL
Seriously the Radar is all that really matters along with projectibility. You have to be seen in your sophomore or junior years because by the time you are a senior they are looking at next years class only.
Dusty, you are correct gotta live in Lex or Lou to even be given serious consideration unless you throw 92 on a serious summer team such as Midland. This philosophy has worked out really well for Morehead over the last few years,LOL. Talent is talent, I dont care if they come from the head of a hollow or the inner city.
So how do position players get seen - by their hitting numbers?
robeyeshua Wrote:So how do position players get seen - by their hitting numbers?
My experience has been if the summer ball and high school coaches will evaluate and call on the appropriate college level, they can get some one on one workouts for the players. The most important part is determining what level they should be at and then only contact those coaches. Other than that get them on a good summer team that plays in the bigger cities and set aside money and attend the showcases and cross your fingers.
That's good information. Can you or anyone else who may be reading identify a list of these "good" summer programs. I am aware of the Kentucky Baseball Club but as good as it is - thats just too far away to even consider. On a side note, I may be closer to some programs in Tn. I am 45 miles from Nashville. Two hours from L'ville and 3 from Lexington. Thanks again.
robeyeshua Wrote:That's good information. Can you or anyone else who may be reading identify a list of these "good" summer programs. I am aware of the Kentucky Baseball Club but as good as it is - thats just too far away to even consider. On a side note, I may be closer to some programs in Tn. I am 45 miles from Nashville. Two hours from L'ville and 3 from Lexington. Thanks again.
Owensboro had a team by the name of Oilers that was very good. I can possibly find some information on some of the Nashville teams we have seen in the past. One place to look would be the Perfect Game website. I am sure some teams from your area have played their. I will look back in some of my old files and see what I can find out for you.
That info and any further very much appreciated
From what I have seen, being a part of the perfect game showcases is a major advantage of being seen by scouts. Also, just like AAU in basketball, summer baseball is really taking over. Being on traveling summer teams like KBC (Kentucky Baseball Club) is huge in getting noticed.
As far as Will, he has all the raw tools to make it to the bigs. I think the experience in pro ball outweighs college in his case. Good luck to him as he is a good kid.
If you are that close to Bowling Green The Louisville Baseball Club has players from thre Bowling green area. One other way for your son to get noticed at a showcase is for him to run a 60 in under 7 seconds on a laser. Showcases a OK but unless he's got an extremely live arm or is under 7 on a laser in the 60 I wouldn't reccomed the larger showcases. Smaller show cases have smaller schools and this may be for your son. Be realistic about his skills. Pick a few schools and go to there summer and fall camps but again be realistic on those schools.
Commanche Wrote:Owensboro had a team by the name of Oilers that was very good. I can possibly find some information on some of the Nashville teams we have seen in the past. One place to look would be the Perfect Game website. I am sure some teams from your area have played their. I will look back in some of my old files and see what I can find out for you.
I played against the Oilers a couple of times from age 12-15. Looked like a well run program. Good team, but had a good amount of sponsors according to a sign that they carried with the team and would hang off fences in games that they played in.
Bob Seger Wrote:lol...Yeah that's pretty much it, especially if you are a right hander. Helps to be 6'5" too.
OR be a lefty. It's amazing how much scouts drool over a left handed pitcher. Unfair to us right handers in all honesty.LOL
robeyeshua Wrote:That's good information. Can you or anyone else who may be reading identify a list of these "good" summer programs. I am aware of the Kentucky Baseball Club but as good as it is - thats just too far away to even consider. On a side note, I may be closer to some programs in Tn. I am 45 miles from Nashville. Two hours from L'ville and 3 from Lexington. Thanks again.
Try American Legion Baseball. Here in Lexington, there are atleast 2, maybe 3 teams that travels local and occasionally sometimes out of state.
FBfan4life Wrote:Try American Legion Baseball. Here in Lexington, there are atleast 2, maybe 3 teams that travels local and occasionally sometimes out of state.
From experience American Legion Baseball is where I played the best competition I've faced yet. You'll do a lot of traveling, but it's well worth it in the end. I was fortunate enough to be able to play for a Legion that went above and beyond for our players and I can honestly say it was worth every penny spent. You won't be restricted to playing only AL teams either which is a positive. We made many trips over into Huntington and played the Hounds (our big rival during the summers). I strongly recommend it.