Baseball: Playing Outside the Lines - Softcover

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Ray is a respected writer and speaker on the topics of mental skills training and college recruiting. He holds a master of science degree in Sport Psychology from Florida State University and has worked with the FSU athletic department, the Houston Astros and many High School teams. He received an undergraduate degree from Hamilton College where he was captain of the baseball team. As a coach his experience includes two seasons with the highly regarded Florida High Seminoles (Tallahassee), Little League, Babe Ruth, and several other youth and high school programs.

In 1997 Ray wrote and published Baseball: Playing Outside the Lines - A Guide for College Bound Baseball Players, their Parents and Coaches. In 2000 the book was revised and updated. Now, after 1,000 sales, the 2004 updated and revised edition is now available with more content and exciting, in-depth interviews.

Past publications and organizations where his work have appeared include Golf Illustrated, The Boston Sports Journal, PONY Baseball, National High School Baseball Coaches Association, All-Stater Magazine and High Wired Sports Magazine. His past works include The Athlete's Advisor Newsletter, a subscription based publication for high school athletic and guidance departments and several contributed articles. In 2001 he was the web producer for HighWiredSports.com, a national high school sports web site covering 60 markets via a network of 300 local sports writers. Currently, Ray runs Athletesadvisor.com which provides educational information for parents & students regarding training, nutrition, college recruiting and has also authored over 100 articles on college recruiting, student athletics, and mental skills, and done extensive interviews with personal trainers at the professional & college level. In addition Ray consults privately for families in the middle of the college recruiting process.

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Overview the Recruiting Process and Recruiting Timeline. This book is about reaching your potential as a student athlete with the hope that you find a great match for yourself as a student/pre-professional and a college baseball player. For a select few this process will lead to a life as a professional baseball player, most likely a few cups of coffee in the minors, and a fraction will sniff the majors. Either way, the recruiting process follows a general format which is outlined for you in this chapter. At some point your realized college baseball is a realistic goal.

Depending on whom you are and your background, being a professional ball player might have been your dream since the first time you played T-Ball. Most l players understand that the odds of being a big leaguer are slim, yet we hold onto that dream in some fashion as long as we are playing.

Eventually, the dream of pro ball is delayed when we think of going to college and playing ball (then we can go to the pros)! Surprisingly, few high school players see themselves going to college for baseball. You never know what triggers the mind to think it is a realistic goal. For one player, Greg Robbins of Westford (MA) Academy, it was a summer camp at UCLA, attended out of convenience to a family vacation, where he was first told "You can play somewhere in college if you continue to work hard at it." Today he is preparing for his senior season and has an early acceptance to attend and play for Kenyon College (OH).

When you have the goal, the natural inclination is to work towards achieving it. Hence the process begins to take more shape. Determine Your Talent Level Where can you play?

Being the "American Pastime," baseball is a popular sport on our campuses. There are about 1,500 colleges that sponsor programs in the NCAA, Junior College and NAIA ranks. The level of play varies dramatically at all levels. You will fit in somewhere, definitely at more than a few schools. The question is which level are you most suited for? Where do you stand the best chance of competing for playing time. Where can you play and also find the right academic environment?

How do you determine your talent level? A few suggestions: - Compare yourself to former teammates and opponents who are now playing. Where are they, how are they doing and were you competitive with them? - Ask your coach to evaluate you (summer and high school). - Ask an opposing coach what he thinks. - Ask a professional scout for an opinion on your level. - Go to a college summer camp and ask them for an evaluation. - If you have a private instructor, their experience with other players over the years gives them a comparative idea. - Attend showcases or tournaments with players from other areas to see how you match up. Ask these players where they are considering. There are more ways, but hopefully you get the point.