New baseball commit

[RBritt]

What's the word in him? He's from California and friends with Aaron Dominguez.

[Jacksondevildog]

Found a video on YouTube of him pitching.

http://youtu.be/ZpS_ewiF-7Q

Let me know if it doesn't work.

[MsStateBaseball]

He is 6-1 165, LHP. Class of 2017 which means is a sophomore to be. Butch is going heavy into So California. Ripe for the picking.

[MsStateBaseball]

Owen was recruited (offered) by many of Ca teams. He is very good at 15 years old. Threw a CG shutout for his west coast USA team two weeks ago. Great job by Butch to get him early.

[MsStateBaseball]

This guy will by highly rated by PG. At least top 200 in the country. I really think this recruiting season (now until Nov) will be highly exciting for us fans. Lots of talent coming in.

[messageboardsuperhero]

I love us recruiting California- there's just so much talent out there. It's tough sometimes to get California kids to move here, but the good thing is that we have something that none of their local schools can offer- and that's a fanbase that actually cares about college baseball.

[Goat Holder]

I love us recruiting California- there's just so much talent out there. It's tough sometimes to get California kids to move here, but the good thing is that we have something that none of their local schools can offer- and that's a fanbase that actually cares about college baseball.

I agree in theory, and it's puzzling. I still can't believe we were able to get Gavin Collins to come to Mississippi State. That's not poor lil moo u attitude......it's simply a matter of geography and reality. Doesn't make much sense. Takes a level of maturity to move across the country to go to college that not all HS guys have.

[Eric Nies Grind Time]

I agree in theory, and it's puzzling. I still can't believe we were able to get Gavin Collins to come to Mississippi State. That's not poor lil moo u attitude......it's simply a matter of geography and reality. Doesn't make much sense. Takes a level of maturity to move across the country to go to college that not all HS guys have.

Well it makes sense if they are viewing it as an investment. Collins is the type of player that can play his way into a lot of money. We have good coaches, good facilities and they get to play against good talent for most of the season. Plus they will still have attractive college women.

[Todd4State]

I agree in theory, and it's puzzling. I still can't believe we were able to get Gavin Collins to come to Mississippi State. That's not poor lil moo u attitude......it's simply a matter of geography and reality. Doesn't make much sense. Takes a level of maturity to move across the country to go to college that not all HS guys have.

Gavin got hurt his senior year in high school. That was a big factor in him not getting drafted.

Sometimes you get lucky like we did with Collins. Sometimes you get unlucky like we did with Burdick.

[Todd4State]

I love us recruiting California- there's just so much talent out there. It's tough sometimes to get California kids to move here, but the good thing is that we have something that none of their local schools can offer- and that's a fanbase that actually cares about college baseball.

They're very well coached in general as well.

Those are the kinds of players that having an awesome facility makes a big difference with.

[Todd4State]

Here's something interesting about Owen- he goes to the same high school that Scott Boras sent his kids to.

Maybe Boras will start advising some of our recruits now.

[blacklistedbully]

I love us recruiting California- there's just so much talent out there. It's tough sometimes to get California kids to move here, but the good thing is that we have something that none of their local schools can offer- and that's a fanbase that actually cares about college baseball.

Get your point, but not entirely true. Cal State Long Beach loves their baseball team, and dropped football quite a while back, making baseball even more important to them. From "Stadium Journey"'s ranking report:

Fans 4
There is little doubt that the Dirtbags fans are some of the best in college baseball, as the team is an attendance leader in not only the Big West, but in all of college baseball.

It seemed that every time I passed by the souvenir shop, there were several fans picking through the wide assortment of Dirtbag apparel. While in many circles, the term "Dirtbag" may have a negative connotation, the players and fans embrace the nickname as a badge of honor and wear it proud.

The fans were certainly more vocal than I've become accustomed to at baseball games. There were bouts with the umpires, shouting matches with the opposing fans, and certainly a fair share of support for the home team. Even though the Dirtbags struggled with the bat early, the fans kept offering their encouragement.

Lastly, I have to give credit to a select group of fans who got their lawn chairs and set up on the sidewalk that sits above the left field home run fence. While it's a shame that they are not contributing to the program, you have to credit them for creativity.

They also care at Stanford, Cal State Fullerton, Fresno State. While none of these come remotely close to our attendance figures, few teams in the Top 25 of all-time attendance do. We should also consider that there is a helluva lot more to do in SoCal than there is in Starkville, MS.

[Goat Holder]

Gavin got hurt his senior year in high school. That was a big factor in him not getting drafted.

Sometimes you get lucky like we did with Collins. Sometimes you get unlucky like we did with Burdick.

Understandable, but how to you explain Dominguez and this new guy? From Cali, offers from Pepperdine and others. Dude just wants to come completely change up his lifestyle. More power to him, takes a lot of maturity.

I don't buy the fanbase stuff. That helps us in our region, but in California?

I think it has to be tireless recruiting and Cohen's reputation. No secret there.

[engie]

We should also consider that there is a helluva lot more to do in SoCal than there is in Starkville, MS.

This is not much of a negative for us with the types of baseball players we want to attract. Distractions are part of the problem -- and a lot of Cali guys are smart enough to see it and cut it out...

[blacklistedbully]

This is not much of a negative for us with the types of baseball players we want to attract. Distractions are part of the problem -- and a lot of Cali guys are smart enough to see it and cut it out...

I wasn't stating that as a "deterrent to players coming here", rather it was in reference to their fan-support as it relates to average attendance. They are in the Top 25 of attendance, but have a stadium that seats less than 3,300, and average a little under 1500 per game. We, by contrast, average 5 times that, but we, as fans, also have nowhere near the opportunities to do other things within miles of our campus.

The City of Long Beach is routinely one of the leading places where college grads choose to stay after graduation. It's a great place to live, with world-class beaches minutes from campus, a vibrant night-life, great food, etc, etc, and it's in LA's back-yard, for those who want to experience "big city lifestyle".

[maroonmania]

Understandable, but how to you explain Dominguez and this new guy? From Cali, offers from Pepperdine and others. Dude just wants to come completely change up his lifestyle. More power to him, takes a lot of maturity.

I don't buy the fanbase stuff. That helps us in our region, but in California?

I think it has to be tireless recruiting and Cohen's reputation. No secret there.

Well, you may not want to buy into the fanbase stuff but there is no doubt that the fact that we have a baseball fanbase that comes to games, are very interested and invested in the program and constantly talk about the program helps us with certain high profile kids that want to play in that environment. How pathetic do you think it made the UCLA team feel that they win a national championship in Omaha and they were lucky if they had 300 fans show up? I'm hoping our rabid baseball fanbase helps us with the Marrero kid who is visiting this weekend as well. He is from Miami and while that program has some tradition they have very little fan support.

[engie]

The City of Long Beach is routinely one of the leading places where college grads choose to stay after graduation. It's a great place to live, with world-class beaches minutes from campus, a vibrant night-life, great food, etc, etc, and it's in LA's back-yard, for those who want to experience "big city lifestyle".

My point is that all that outside "noise" detracts from baseball focus for some. Not that many 18-22 years olds can compartmentalize and consistently handle their business on the field, which for guys with 100% effort to be great actually rolls over to the rest of their life/lifestyle... I'd much rather our guys have a couple bars in the District and a couple of sororities as their primary distraction -- rather than a couple million distractions around them. But it really depends on the guy, and there are obviously plenty of them that go on to success through all the SoCal distractions. I've known several that dominated the minors when they were in a shithole town -- only to struggle when they got promoted to resort towns. That's kinda the point I'm making.

Dudy Noble is the best thing 99% of these kids will ever see/have the likelihood of playing in. You don't get that same intensity in minor league baseball...

[Goat Holder]

Well, you may not want to buy into the fanbase stuff but there is no doubt that the fact that we have a baseball fanbase that comes to games, are very interested and invested in the program and constantly talk about the program helps us with certain high profile kids that want to play in that environment. How pathetic do you think it made the UCLA team feel that they win a national championship in Omaha and they were lucky if they had 300 fans show up? I'm hoping our rabid baseball fanbase helps us with the Marrero kid who is visiting this weekend as well. He is from Miami and while that program has some tradition they have very little fan support.

Not sure you understood me. Of course having a rabid fanbase helps. But it's a stretch to think that it makes up the mind of a recruit in California.

Big fanbase or not, it's going to be tough to pull a kid out of California that UCLA truly wants, same for Miami.

[DudyDawg]

Gavin said somewhere that our presence in omaha was huge for him. I think it means more than you're acting

[maroonmania]

Gavin said somewhere that our presence in omaha was huge for him. I think it means more than you're acting

Exactly, no its not going to single handedly make up the mind of a recruit but if you have a kid that is already willing to go to a different region of the country to attend college it can be a huge factor.

[Harrydawg]

Can't tell much from these vidoe's but in Butch I trust......wake me when he is ready to sign (until then).......

Parents need to go ahed have pro active TJ surgery now.....both arms just in case

[KB21]

Can't tell much from these vidoe's but in Butch I trust......wake me when he is ready to sign (until then).......

Parents need to go ahed have pro active TJ surgery now.....both arms just in case

Parents should actually be more proactive by monitoring the work load their pitcher sons have during the summer months and make sure that there isn't too much full effort competitive pitching to prevent the UCL injury.