USF Baseball Tryouts Oct. 8

[Who'sYourData?]

Touche........but I'm guessing you played HS ball.  I remember the kids that played Little League and stopped after that.  There is a reason  they stop playing baseball.........

Yeah, like maybe they were playing football, or basketball or had to work to support their family.

A truly top notch athlete could still get a look.  A guy with a strong arm or speed can always be used in a late inning role.  You're making a huge generalization.

Besides, it'd still be fun to spend one more day on the baseball field.

[Bull Dozer]

The open tryouts started last year under the new coach.  Cardieri never had open tryouts just invited some players to tryout.

Pretty sure this is true as well.  One of my good friends was a very good high school player in Vermont and contacted the former regime several times in his tenure at USF (now in pharmacy school in Ga) about trying out/walk on try outs and was pretty much told "If you were good enough our staff would have found you/we don't do open try outs".  Sad part is dude could rake (many trips to the batting cages together where he would drop numerous bombs in the "expert" cage and just rip the ball in general) and played a few games in a adult league in tampa where he quit because the time he was devoting to it wasn't worth the competition that was there.   

[JoeB]

Touche........but I'm guessing you played HS ball.  I remember the kids that played Little League and stopped after that.  There is a reason  they stop playing baseball.........

Yeah, like maybe they were playing football, or basketball or had to work to support their family.

A truly top notch athlete could still get a look.  A guy with a strong arm or speed can always be used in a late inning role.  You're making a huge generalization.

Besides, it'd still be fun to spend one more day on the baseball field.

Check back in a few months, and if there is a guy on this team that didn't play HS ball that actually contributes to the team, I'll buy you a beer at a USF Baseball game.  How's that?  I'm one of the few on this board that actually goes to the games, so I think I might have a little cred on this subject. 

Wags was, I believe one of the few walk ons last year.  Checking my USF Baseball Media Guide, it says he was a 3 year letterwinner at Geoge Jenkins High.  So he played 3 years in HS, and sparingly played as a walk on, but you think a guy that hasn't played since age 12 in Little League could play Division 1A Baseball?  Talk about green and gold glasses. 

Look at all of the players that are not on the team from last year.  These are players with experience and they were let go by CLP.  Do you think he's really going to keep a kid with literally NO Organized Baseball Experience?  Have you been paying attention at all with what he's trying to build here? 

I have some swamp land to sell you if you're interested too.............

[BJ]

Is Angelburger still around? I played little league ball with him.

I wish i was good, but alas, baseball was never my forte  ;D

[Wags]

Actually I was the only non-recruited walk-on, the only one to come out of walk-on tryouts last year.

With regards to Joey, as far as I know he's still with the team. Something like 11 returners from last year out the for "40-man" roster at the moment. Friends on the team have said that CLP and Lazer plan on trimming the 40 down quite a bit after fall.

[USF Colby]

Oh I played after I was 12, theres little league after that you know. I basically played until 10th grade, but had essentially given up in 9th. I may have made Dunedin High's baseball team but I broke my arm before fall ball, healed before spring tryouts but never got a look one of my mistakes was I tried out as an infielder instead of an outfielder because at the time I had a negative perception of playing in the outfield but really my talents were more suited for that. Then in 10th I went to Tarpon and again let my ego get in the way, I would have made the team as an infielder or outfielder but I insisted on being a pitcher because over the summer that is what I worked on and I spent money getting instruction and I didn't want to have wasted my money.

I know it sounds like a bunch of excuses and i'm sure I wouldn't have much of a chance because i'm not that good of a hitter so really the best I could be is a late-inning defensive replacement. I do miss the baseball field though, sometimes I go out with my friends and just throw and hit soft toss just to relive some of my old memories. And there really isn't anything i'd lose by trying out but my chances of making it are virtually zero.

[BULLfreak]

I was one heck of a T-Ball player can I play

[Ruger7mmmag]

I was told the same thing, "We would've found you."  He said that before he even knew who I was!  At that point, I knew I didn't want to play for the guy.

I was a 4 year letterman in HS in 5A, was a .350 hitting second baseman/SS, all district/all county and also had an ERA around 2 and anyone whose played 5A Florida Baseball knows that's nothing to sneeze at.  Not too mention I had hit the game winning HR in back to back years to win the district championship for our team showing I could hit in the clutch as well. 

Yet Coach C said, "If you were good, I would've found you!"  lol  I saw a ton of scouts, pro and college at our games since we were a pretty good bunch, but not once in my 4 years of playing did I ever see the first USF scout.  Pretty sad considering we usually had one pro scout a week at our PRACTICES due to some of the guys we had at the time.

OH well, I'd love to come back, but no way I could do what I used to and I know that.  I could glove it and throw it with the best of them still as I've kept those skills sharp playing 3rd base on a tournament softball team where you get rockets hit at ya all game, but no way I could hit for average anymore after being away this long and with the extra weight, I think my basestealing days are long gone!  lol

Anyway, I hope the baseball team does well this year as I follow them all year from afar here in Bama country.  If USF wants to grab some good players, they need to keep an eye on a team here in Mobile, AL, Baker Highschool.  They're solid and most of their guys end up playing either pro out of hs or for good college programs.