My son is a 16yr old junior, born August 2000. He is a 3.8 student and made Varsity Baseball this year. My concern is that he always had to compete a bit more than his peers who are 1yr older than he and in same grade. I feel that if we held him back, he would have more offers and be a bit more mature ready for college. He is a better than average Baseball player, a lefty starter, but, physically he does not match up with those who are in same grade and 1yr older. He plays in a DIv1 Baseball program against Top 100 Baseball programs in Nation, most of these players he plays against are 1yr older. I’m just a bit frustrated knowing that if he were a sophomore this year like most of his aged 16yr old peers, he would definitely benefit his playing time than just pitching, He is also an above average hitter and outfielder, and is not getting the opportunity to perform as a hitter and outfielder because those positions are taken by those 1yr older juniors. I just would like some opinions on this matter.
Concerned parent…
You are considering holding your kid back becasue he isnt getting enough time playing sport at school? Are you hoping he will be recruited for college sports if you do this? Personally, I think this is a crazy idea. He’s a junior, he has a 3.8 GPA, and he’s on the varsity team. If he really wanted to play more, he should be on the JV team. I am sure he could have requested that.
Does your son want to repeat a year? And if he was going to be recruited wouldn’t that process have started last year? All I am reading here is that the parent wants to see his son get more play time. Unless it’s bothering your son, leave it alone. By your own admission, he is not spectacular. He is above average. Being a year older isn’t going to make him better.
I have heard of (and know some boys) who repeat a yr in order to put them in a better position for college recruiting. But usually this occurs as a post-grad year (big for hockey), where a kid may do another yr after senior yr at a boarding school, or it happens in 9th, where a kid applies to a new school after 9th, but then re-does the 9th grade year. But if your son is a junior and is not starting on his varsity team, it doesn’t sound like he is a stand-out recruit. Kids that are recruited, even for Div 3 colleges, are usually stars at an early age.
Age and physical development make a difference to a certain extent in middle school. After the boys have hit puberty, however, the physical differential goes away. There could be a psychological disadvantage if he thinks the reason he is not playing is because he is young for his grade, however I am not sure that it would be cured by having another year in high school.
In fact, I would take a close look at the negative connotation of repeating a year in high school when you have a 3.8 gpa. Ice hockey aside, the primary reason that most kids take a post grad year (or a community college year) is because they don’t have the grades or board scores to get into the college they were recruited for. What message is conveyed to an adcom (let alone your kid) when he is academically ready for college, but opts to repeat a grade in high school.
If starting is a significant concern, I think your son should speak to the coach and ask what he needs to do to get more playing time. This should not be a “I should be starting rather than Joe” conversation. Rather, it is a “what should I focus on to improve” conversation. Maybe he needs a good lifting program, particularly if he does not match up physically with his peers. Maybe he needs to work weekly with a hitting coach. If he is dead set on pitching, maybe have a lesson once a week with a pitching coach to develop game ready pitches. Conveying desire, setting goals and working toward them at this age is far more important to a kid’s head than placing the blame on his birthday.
I understand your concern as intelligent kids can manage to do equal or better in academics but it’s hard to beat physical and social advantages of older peers.
However, I doubt that a public school would allow a healthy student with 3.8 GPA to repeat junior year. You may have to transfer to a private school. I’m not sure if it’s worth it, you may regret meddling in his life.
My son is also a 16 year old junior - even younger than yours - September birthday.
My son made the baseball team and is a pitcher hitting low 80s on the gun.
He certainly would be a stud with a chance to develop to 90 mph in high school if he was only a sophomore right now.
BUT the decision was made 11 years ago. Sure it could have been adjusted IN GRADE SCHOOL if he didn’t keep up academically but apparently your son excelled there.
There is NOTHING you can do now except take comfort in that He has good academics and will get into a good school on his merit.
Also realize that baseball scholarships are partials and can be taken away for no good reason.
They also lock him into giving up many hours in college for practice no matter what his playing time there. I wouldn’t worry about them.
One solid plan could be for your son to take his time in college. Redshirt as a freshman then hope play years 2-5 with the team
While I do empathize with your situation, I agree with everyone else. My son is young for his age too and mentions that many kids are older especially at private schools where many kids are held back at an early age. My is were he should be academically and athletically and it sounds like yours is too. If he decides to be held back, I would have him switch schools. A friend of mine held his son back to repeat sophomore year for basketball. Most people think it was a dumb idea that was more his fathers wish and not the boys.
Before you do this, make sure he’d be eligible to play a 5th year in high school under your state rules. Many do not allow it. The NCAA also has rules for counting the classes (pesky academic rules), a school might have rules about accepting ACT or SAT scores taken after the date he should have graduated, etc.
My daughter was in the same situation, with a Dec birthdate. I should have made a different decision when she went into kindergarten. Didn’t. My nephew’s are in the same position with Sept birthdate and they are playing some sports with kids in lower grades. In high school, they’ll be back to playing with same grade classmates.
I’d also suggest a post grade year if you feel he’d have a better college experience by waiting a year, but again check ncaa rules about ‘5 years to play 4’ after high school grad date.
Not saying that repeating junior year would be a good idea, but if you are considering going that way, you might want to check your state’s athletic eligibility rules. In some states, a kid is only eligible for 4 years starting their freshman year. Thus, even if you and the school still called him a junior, he wouldn’t be eligible to play senior year. I know of one student who left the country after freshman year due to visa expiration. The family returned a year later and, after what basically amounted to a gap year, enrolled him as a sophomore. Come senior year, the state high school athletics association did not allow him to compete in any sports as it was his fifth year. He was still recruited based on junior year and club performance, but the extra year did not benefit him at all. I have no idea how your state would handle your proposed situation.
My son’s finished his senior football season at 16. He is still growing and we probably did limit his potential athletically based on his position, but academically he would have been bored. At 15 he was already taking classes at a local University.
Focus on academics at the next level and get engaged with the top schools.
Agree that this likely won’t be an option due to rules about 5 years of high school eligibility. However, with a high GPA and test scores you should have him attend one of the Headfirst Baseball Showcases this summer (on either the west or east coast). This showcases are specifically for baseball players with good grades and test scores. All of the high academic schools are there - you can see a list on their website. Because many players without good grades are not eligible to attend your son should be able to stand out! PM me if you want any more info and good luck!
I know plenty of parents who have made a similar decision for similar reasons, but they have done it earlier, i.e., held the kid back in kindergarten or in eighth grade. Once a kid starts high school, NCAA rules for Division I require that he graduate with his high school class, that is, after eight consecutive semesters. My understanding is that the eight semesters is to actually graduate high school, not just to satisfy NCAA eligibility rules.
You could look at a gap year, though–the NCAA permits athletes to take a post-high school year during which the athlete competes with his travel team or something similar, and the gap year does not count against college eligibility.
You also could have your son make sure college programs know his age; a lot of coaches will take into account unrealized potential due to late entry into a sport, age, a late growth spurt, etc.
Do not hold him back. The kid has a 3.8 GPA. If he really feels development time is necessary for his sport(notice I said he, the kid) then he can take a gap year. He should talk to some coaches of places he is considering for college and get their opinion of a gap year too.
Yeah not sure this helps but boys are held back regularly (here in TX) prior to starting kindergarten if they have March - September birthdays when they will turn 5. They basically start kg at 6.
I’d be surprised if your kid would be on board with this idea. Most high school
juniors would be mortified at the idea.