Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Speaker A: Foreign.
[00:00:11] Speaker B: Welcome to this week's edition of in the Clubhouse with EMD Baseball. I'm Andy Kirakidis, joined by my wonderful co host, Keith Glasser. How we doing?
[00:00:19] Speaker A: Great. How are you?
[00:00:20] Speaker B: Good.
We're going to talk about taking ownership of your process.
You know, we're in the, the latter stages of May are creeping up on the summer season, and I think this is a worthwhile topic to talk about here for a couple minutes. I think oftentimes families and players can let the powers of college baseball kind of navigate this for them, and I think that that's a big mistake in this process. There are some kids and some families who this process is going to go a lot smoother for, and maybe they're super talented or in the right place at the right time, and things start to fall into place for them a little bit easier. But the reality is with the level of competition that's out there, the number of players that you're competing with, that you got to do something to separate yourself, not just on the field, but off the field. And I think that that starts with having a plan and taking over ownership of executing that. Whether it's emails, leveraging social media, identifying the proper events.
I think it's a big mistake for people to just kind of let the process play out and they don't give themselves the best opportunity possible to get recruited and doing some of the more tedious stuff can, can play a significant role in this and the player needs to kind of lead the charge here and they need to have some ownership in this process. So just something, I think we need to kick the tires on here for a couple minutes. So I'll kick it over to you, Coach Glass, to get some, some thoughts on the topic.
[00:01:59] Speaker A: Sure. I, I think the, you know, first and foremost you need to sit down with your coaches or people you trust. And this is something that we've probably. I was just searching our list as we were talking about this, see if we've done this and we haven't. So we'll, we'll take a couple minutes. So you might hear bits and pieces of things you've heard over a bunch of podcasts. But, you know, you need to sit down with people that you trust, your coaches and have an actual idea of where you slot in from a athletic standpoint and divisionally. Right. You know, if you're not going to be a top end acc, sec, SEC guy, which, let's face it, it's, it's a small percentage of guys who are, then you're going to Be spinning your wheels and wasting your time sending emails to all of those coaches, hoping to get responses. You know, the most, the, the most likely outcome is going to be you' be invited to camp with 350 other kids.
So, you know, understanding where you fit in and, and having an honest conversation and getting that feedback of where it is and then developing a plan from there. And then obviously once you develop the plan, we, we need to execute the plan that you're putting together. You know, where do you fit in academically? Where do you fit in athletically? What type of major are you looking for? What schools have that major? How far do you want to go from home?
What, you know, do you. If you're a West coast kid and you want to be an engineer, there's a high likelihood that you're probably going to have to go east to get that education because there's only a handful of schools that have it on the west coast and they're all of elite academic institutions and some of them are Division one. And, you know, if you want that smaller school feel, the likelihood of you coming east is pretty high, you know, so are you willing to do that? Are you willing to, you know, go to college on the east coast for four years or five years, but also understanding that this is, there's a lot of time, energy and effort that goes into this because it's not just the athletic side of things. It's not just hitting, it's not just throwing, it's not getting pitching lessons or, you know, taking fungos and all those things.
You're going to have to set up an entire list of schools and then you're going to have to email those coaches. You're going to have to fill out questionnaires, you're going to have to figure out what type, you know, when are they having camps? Does that, how does that slide into your summer schedule? What showcases might they be at? Right, like they might be having camps and stuff that you can't make, but what type, what other camps or showcases or clinics will they be at that might be able to fit into it? You know, you have to figure out a way to get in front of these guys so that they can make a decision on whether or not they're going to fit in, you fit into their program.
And then from there you're going to get feedback from coaches as to whether or not you do fit into their program.
And you're going to, you're going to hear no from coaches, and that's okay. You know, realistically, you Just need one. Yes. At the end of the day, but you know, you're going to hear no from coaches like, hey, you know, we don't need a catcher in this class because we already have four of them. We're not graduating anyone next year. So, you know, we're not really recruiting any catchers right now.
Okay. Like that's okay. On to the next. Right. So, you know, I think it's there, it's multifaceted and there's a lot of things that, that layer into this that are not just athletic based, which I think a lot of people on the surface level think that, well, if I'm good enough, I can just end up anywhere. And that's not always going to be the case. Right. Like it's. You're going to have to fit into their roster, you're going to have to fit into their program, you're going to have to fit into what it is like their vision of where they see this program going. You're going to have to fit in athletically, you're going to have to fit in socially.
Right. You're going to want to go to a campus and visit it and meet the kids on the team and ask questions and see if they're going to like, if you fit into that program, you very well. And it happens every year where you go to some programs for a camp and you walk away and it's like, man, I don't know, I don't really think I fit in at this campus with this team. You know, I, it's just. And that's fine. You'd rather know in the recruiting process than after you get there and you're. Now you're entering your name in the transfer portal and you know, you're trying to go somewhere else. You want to know that beforehand because you want to discern as much information on the front end as you possibly can to make sure that you're making the correct decision for the next four or five years, you know, so it's, it's, there's so much more that goes into it than just the baseball end of it. And it's a lot of work. It is like it's, it's going and it's sending a lot of emails, it's responding to emails, it's being available to talk to coaches when they want to talk to you.
You know, it's being able to sit down and prioritize those things. And I'll be honest with you, like college coaches know when mom and dad are sending emails for you and it's like, we know it's not going to, you know, it doesn't shine a positive light on what's going on. Especially mom and dad email, and they're like, well, you know, he has baseball practice and there's school and then there's trumpet practice and there's. It's all these things that will, you know, it doesn't really get all that much easier when you get to college. Like, yeah, you might have a little bit more free time on some days, but you're, you know, you're going to be in the weight room, you're going to be at practice, you're going to be, you know, having to eat, you have to go to class, you have to study, you have to do all of these things while still being able to effectively communicate. You can't just get to college and just go radio silent and think that, you know, you not responding to coaches is okay because you're busy. It's. It's not how it works, you know, so being able to prioritize those things and honestly, it kind of shows up in, you know, how bad do you want it? Is really what it comes down to. You know, if you, if you really want to do it bad enough, like, you're gonna find the time to prioritize doing this stuff, to get questionnaires filled out, to get emails out to coaches, to respond to emails, to figure out a. A supplemental schedule. And supplemental schedule stuff doesn't have to be extravagant, right? Like, you don't have to go to every single showcase and camp under the sun, but finding some things that fit into your schedule to get in front of coaches that you want to be seen by, you know, and figuring that out, and that takes time and effort to do, you know, but you have to take ownership of that if this is what you aspire to do, you know. So I think, you know, in short, it's. It's making sure that you're doing everything that you need to do possible to get in front of coaches that you want to be seen by, and then doing your due diligence on that end of once you're getting recruited, that you're figuring out whether or not it's going to be the right place for you. Not only as a. From a baseball standpoint, from a coaching staff standpoint, from a social standpoint with the team, all of those things that when you get there, you know what you're getting into as best you can and not getting there and being like, man, after the first three months, like, I do not fit in at this school or with this team or this coaching staff. Like, I, I gotta, I gotta move on. Like, you want to know all that stuff on the front end.
[00:08:47] Speaker B: Yeah. And I've seen some people tweet some stuff out about, like, emailing doesn't work and all this kind of stuff. And I just think it's false. Right. I get text messages every day from coaches about players that have reached out to them via email.
Coaches check their email. Right. They might not get back to every single kid, but it shows that you've got some interest. It gives them an idea where they're going to be. And for a lot of these guys, they want to recruit guys who are interested in their programs. They're not just showing up to fields randomly to go recruit. Kids often, like, they. A lot of these schools, specifically at the Division 2 and Division 3 levels, they don't have the budgets to do that. They don't just show up, up at random games very often. They're there for a reason.
So getting, Getting your name in front of coaches, whether it's a questionnaire, whether it's an email, whether it's following them on Twitter, it's. It's tedious and sometimes monotonous, but it isn't an effective way. And at the end of the day, you're not trying to find 50 schools that like you. You're trying to find one that's a good fit for you. And if taking the time to send out 10 or 15 emails, you know, over the course of a week, you know, you're talking about sending three or four emails a day or three or four emails every other day, if that's too much work for you, then you're probably not cut out for college baseball. And that's really just the reality of it. And yes. Does it help to have people in your corner? Absolutely. But you're still going to have to do the work.
You're still going to have to reach out to these guys. You're still going to have to be proactive. You're still going to have to respond to text messages and emails and DMS on Twitter. Like, you have to do this kind of stuff in order to get your name out there and in order to get recruited. And it's important that a player buys in to doing these small things. Right. And I emphasize the player. Mom and dad, should you be there to help guide them? Absolutely. But the kid needs to sit down and write the email.
The kid needs to press send on the email.
It's got to be Done by the kid. They have to have skin in the game with this because if it's not important enough for them to do it, college baseball is going to be a tough road for them.
So, yes, be there to guide them like any good parent would do. But little Jimmy's got to sit down and send five emails on Monday and on Wednesday and on Friday to schools are on his list and let them know, hey, this is how I did last week, or this is where I'm going to be this weekend during my summer schedule. And here's my schedule for the weekend.
Asking questions like, hey, coach, I'm really interested in your program. Where are you going to be this summer? Are there any showcases or camps that you routinely attend that I can get myself in front of you by going to those particular camps?
And yeah, are you going to have 100 response rate? No, absolutely not. You might send 100 emails and only get 20 responses, but that's 20 responses that you wouldn't have got if you didn't send any emails.
And I prefer to look at it through that. That light because you gotta get your name out there and you gotta do some of this stuff. And it all comes down to taking ownership over what your process is and putting together a plan that you can try to execute.
[00:12:00] Speaker A: Well, the other thing, too is that you can use social media, which is relatively easy to use for, especially for the younger generation out there, where, you know, you can put things out that, you know, highlights of what you've, quick snippets of what you've done, highlights of what you've done over the last couple weeks, and then also tag, you know, accounts that retweet this stuff that pretty much get you in front of every college coach, too. Like, that doesn't take a whole. That takes minimal effort as well. And I think that, you know, a lot of it comes from the fact that you think that it's just like, you know, it's just the athletic side of things, you know, and like, in some regards, it is true, right? Like, there are guys that you and I recruited that we saw that when we played. Like, yeah, man, it's a. That's an easy one right there. Like, that kid's going to be able to play. He's going to get a ton of offers and be able to pick where he wants to go. But for the vast majority of people, you have to figure out where these coaches are going, what they're doing, and it's not as simple as just while we're playing in these tournaments, and coaches are there. Like, you don't know. Like depending on what term tournament it is, you might only get three, four or five coaches at a tournament, right? Like, you know, unless you're going to Diamond Nation on the reg or you know, going to Blue Chips or the Boston Open or down to Georgia and you know, even that is a little dicey nowadays, you know, but unless you're going to some of these bigger tournaments where there's a lot of coaches that are going to be there, if you're going to some one offs here and there run by some, you know, and not, you know, a non PBR perfect game type tournament, like you don't know what you're getting there.
And that's just the reality.
Like, you know, a lot of these coaches are operating on shoes, shoestring recruiting budgets. So they have to maximize their money and get their best bang for their buck on going to these tournaments and camps and clinics and stuff, you know, so you need to ask, like, where are you going to be? Like, here's my summer schedule. Are you going to be at any of these events? And if not, where, you know, where are you going to be? Because if you send me a list of tournaments that I've never heard of and I've, I'm not going to them, like, hey man, like I'm not going to be at any of these. Like, this is where I'm going to be. If you can make it awesome, I'll evaluate you and let you know what I think. But otherwise just keep me updated with video. And that's, that's hard to do too. But you got to know, you have to have an actual idea of what's going on so that you, you can get in front of some of the coaching staffs that you want to be in front of. And it's, it's not as simple as just following the blueprint of whatever organization you're working with and what team you're playing for and what tournaments they're going to, because again, they might not be at them. And the flip side to it too, and this goes a little bit more in depth and I'll wrap it up here first in a second, Andy. But some of these tournaments that you might be going to are during quiet and dead periods, during recruiting shutdown periods. No one's going to be there. And it's not the fault of anybody. But you know, if you're a Division 1 guy and you're going to a tournament during a quiet period where no one can, like no Division 1 guys can be at. You ain't going to get seen by them.
That's just the rule. They can't go out and recruit, you know, so having an idea of what that stuff looks like and, you know, being able to navigate that part, too, is. Is paramount in this process. And again, it's a lot. I get it.
But, you know, you have to do a little bit more than the bare minimum. And the bare minimum is just following a regular script of, I think I'm good enough and people will see me. And then you don't get seen by anybody, and you're left kind of wondering, like, you're hitting the panic button in August, being like, no one's called me. I don't know what's going on. Well, you know, I'm telling you now, and, you know, we're telling you now in. In May, like, get a plan together so that you. You can take ownership of this and get in front of the people you want to get seen by so that you have a fighting chance to be recruited, if you're recruitable, so that you get seen by coaches.
[00:16:12] Speaker B: Well said. I don't really have anything else to add. Just, you got to do. You got to do the hard stuff. You got to do the tedious stuff. I think that's probably the. The best way to close this out. And if you're not willing to do that stuff, then the recruiting process might not go as well as you would like it to go, unless you're one of those elite talents that it just kind of happens for.
So if you're not one of those guys, make sure you're doing what you need to do to get your name out there. Be proactive, take ownership of what you're doing, and put together an effective plan.
Anything else you want to add, Coach?
[00:16:46] Speaker A: No, sir.
[00:16:48] Speaker B: All right, thank you for listening, everybody. Tune in next week. We will talk to you then.
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