New 2015 Baseball Commit

[Todd4State]

What is the max scholly we could conceivably throw out to someone like this? 75%? More?

We can give someone a 100% athletic scholarship if we wanted if you are talking in terms of max amount. It's very rare of course, just because of the amount that the NCAA allots teams.

In a perfect world, if you are Cohen you are hoping to find a guy that is a five tool dual position guy that gets a Schillig Scholarship or whatever they call it now.

[KB21]

There is a better chance of me getting a beat writer job at Alabama than there is of him ever playing baseball at State.

And there is no chance that LSU gets Mac Marshall on campus.

[MsStateBaseball]

We need to sign 18 every year w 3-5 high draft picks. Get one to campus. The high end player makes such an impact. Bunch them together and you have a great team.

[maroonmania]

Unfortunately, that's how it goes in the business of baseball. And it is a business at some point. I don't like it because I think it's outdated and I think it hurts baseball players as far as long term education goes, which you need nowadays more than ever and the money is less and less life changing than ever. If it were up to me, I'd have it so that the only guys that went pro out of high school were guys like Bryce Harper or Mike Trout- have an advisory board from MLB that tells these players their draft stock and if you aret a first or second round pick you can choose college or pro and the rest go to college. I'd also have it so that college players play for four years instead of being able to leave after three.

That said, I don't think Burdick misled our staff or anything. Cohen is really good about monitoring players signability, which is one reason why we haven't lost a lot of guys while he has been here. I think Burdick really wanted to come to MSU IF he went to college and we granted that wish- and came pretty darn close to getting him just from the standpoint that he almost went undrafted.

But for every Dale Burdick, there's a Hunter Renfroe, a Reid Humphreys, a Dakota Hudson that were drafted and came to school. Or even a guy like a Cole Gordon and a Jesse McCord that were draftable prospect that didn't sign.

It seems to me though that the new thing to do is just sign as many high end prospects as you can and then hope that a few come to school. I think the idea is, they won't come if they aren't committed. KB21 mentioned LSU as kind of an example of that, and I think North Carolina had the same philosophy and came out with a couple of high end players of their own. That may be what we start seeing Cohen do as well- with Riley, Padgett, and now Pickett.

Oh I totally agree that you can't stop signing the high end guys. That was a fatal mistake that Polk made years ago because he lost a few players in the 80s to the draft and our program went downhill because of it. And I have no problem with losing guys going in the top rounds but I don't like losing players that look like they will pretty much sign with any half way decent offer like Burdick. If that's their attitude our staff needs to guage that and focus on some other players of like ability that have a better attitude toward college.

[maroonmania]

He was completely honest w our staff in the last 3 months. He wanted to sign.

Being honest with our staff 3 months before the draft is not very helpful. Per the Tennessean article he's been wanting to sign professionally for a long time.

[State82]

We can give someone a 100% athletic scholarship if we wanted if you are talking in terms of max amount. It's very rare of course, just because of the amount that the NCAA allots teams.

In a perfect world, if you are Cohen you are hoping to find a guy that is a five tool dual position guy that gets a Schillig Scholarship or whatever they call it now.

Yeah I know we COULD possibly give a full athletic, but would we ever do that for a guy like this? I want to say that the largest we gave recently was Easley and that was not full by any means. Just not sure.

[Homedawg]

Being honest with our staff 3 months before the draft is not very helpful. Per the Tennessean article he's been wanting to sign professionally for a long time.

We knew when we took his commitment he was a draft possibility. This wasn't something that came out of left field. It's part of their job.

[KB21]

You can't avoid recruiting players because they are draft risks. Maybe you don't build your entire class around 4-5 guys, but you have to recruit these guys to be able to get them on campus. Look at Vanderbilt's recruiting class. They have already lost Touki Toussaint, Cody Reed, and Justus Sheffield to the draft, and Dylan Cease is reportedly close to an agreement with the Cubs. That's a big ding to their class.

[bulldogcountry1]

Once a player commits in baseball, how much time and effort does the staff continue to devote to said player until signing day? I was just curious because, if the staff is able to back off and devote time elsewhere, then it's definitely worth it to go after guys who have a good chance to go pro.

[Homedawg]

Once a player commits in baseball, how much time and effort does the staff continue to devote to said player until signing day? I was just curious because, if the staff is able to back off and devote time elsewhere, then it's definitely worth it to go after guys who have a good chance to go pro.

It's not like football recruiting. You stay in regular contact w them because they have a future in your program- hopefully. Not like football, where you are in a 24 hr baby sitting surveillance. It doesn't keep you from going after and evaluating other guys.

[Homedawg]

The last time we lost 4 guys in the draft of signees was 90. We lost 4 that year and 4 in 89. Then we went more conservative for the most part. Of course we were lucky in the class of 94 where we were able to hang onto dubose, piatt, freeman, and hauswald. But none of those were first rd guys.

[KB21]

The last time we lost 4 guys in the draft of signees was 90. We lost 4 that year and 4 in 89. Then we went more conservative for the most part. Of course we were lucky in the class of 94 where we were able to hang onto dubose, piatt, freeman, and hauswald. But none of those were first rd guys.

There was a year under McMahon where we lost Aaron Capista, Brennan King, Dustin Krug, and I believe Kyle Freeman. I can't 100% remember if that was one year or two separate years. We also lost Matt Butler and Derry Hammond to the draft under McMahon. There were probably others. McMahon was a very good recruiter.

[maroonmania]

We knew when we took his commitment he was a draft possibility. This wasn't something that came out of left field. It's part of their job.

Well, you are the one that talked about the last 3 months, not me, but now you are saying since we took his commitment. Look, I don't have a clue what was said between our staff and Burdick nor do I have a clue that you do either. I do say that if our staff knew that he could be offered that little and sign from the very beginning that we should have gone after another middle infielder.

[maroonmania]

The last time we lost 4 guys in the draft of signees was 90. We lost 4 that year and 4 in 89. Then we went more conservative for the most part. Of course we were lucky in the class of 94 where we were able to hang onto dubose, piatt, freeman, and hauswald. But none of those were first rd guys.

So what is the highest drafted guy that we have hung onto? Can't remember exactly where Clark and Palmeiro were drafted out of HS but that was a little before the money blew up so big. Since the mid-80s I don't know that we have ever held onto a guy drafted in the Top 3 or 4 rounds. Woodruff I believe was 5th round and he may be the highest.

[bulldogcountry1]

It's not like football recruiting. You stay in regular contact w them because they have a future in your program- hopefully. Not like football, where you are in a 24 hr baby sitting surveillance. It doesn't keep you from going after and evaluating other guys.

To me, that makes it defintely worthwhile to go after these guys. Eventually, we are going to get some to campus, besides, you never know what might happen this far out from the draft with injuries and such. A guy could break a pinky toe playing grabass during the season, and we're golden.

[Homedawg]

Well, you are the one that talked about the last 3 months, not me, but now you are saying since we took his commitment. Look, I don't have a clue what was said between our staff and Burdick nor do I have a clue that you do either. I do say that if our staff knew that he could be offered that little and sign from the very beginning that we should have gone after another middle infielder.

Yes. I said the last 3 months. Because that's when it gets a lot more specific w players and scouts and more so w him and us, concerning what he wants to sign. The writing was on the wall. The part about him being a draft possibility was always the case, from the day we took his commitment. And burdick probably wasn't going to play mid inf for us based on convos I've had. We signed holland it's his spot to lose.

[Homedawg]

So what is the highest drafted guy that we have hung onto? Can't remember exactly where Clark and Palmeiro were drafted out of HS but that was a little before the money blew up so big. Since the mid-80s I don't know that we have ever held onto a guy drafted in the Top 3 or 4 rounds. Woodruff I believe was 5th round and he may be the highest.

Clark went in the 4th out of hs. I'm racking my brain and he and woodruff are the highest I remember.

[Esmerelda Villalobos]

Wasnt dubose or maholm drafted really high out of HS?

[Homedawg]

Wasnt dubose or maholm drafted really high out of HS?

Dubose went in the 6th and maholm went in the 11th, if I remember correctly. However, maholm told teams he wasn't going to sign or he would have gone much higher. He still turned down a lot of money.

[Todd4State]

Yeah I know we COULD possibly give a full athletic, but would we ever do that for a guy like this? I want to say that the largest we gave recently was Easley and that was not full by any means. Just not sure.

Possibly, but probably very rarely.

We use academic aid a lot. I have no idea how the staff actually allocates the scholarship money, but my guess is that they try to get our players as much academic aid as possible and then spread it out from there and as the NCAA makes them spread it out. Becasue tuition and etc. is essentially the same for a guy like Pickett or Austin Riley as it is for a walk-on, the staff doesn't have to necessarily "see" them as different in terms of value as related to scholarship money. Now, if a guy like a Mike Trout came along and wanted to go to MSU but had a C average and couldn't get any academic aid, I suspect that would be a case where a full scholarship would potentially be worth it.