What Do Scouts Look At

Question: What Do Scouts Look At?
I have played softball for 9 years, and we moved to travel ball 6 years ago because we thought that that is what scouts and recruiters would look at. But recently a parent has told us that scouts look at your high school ball more. So, which one do scouts concentrate on when it comes to recruiting?

Answer: What Do Scouts Look At?

In general, your friend is incorrect in saying college coaches look at HS ball more. While it's impossible to generalize, most coaches will tell you that they look at your travel ball experience first. They tend to scout much more at travel tournaments, and they usually consider that to be the more consistent experience for players. This is not to say coaches never look at high school teams or players, because they will occasionally go to state championship tournaments for high school or watch players on high school teams that are among the best in the state or region.

But as a rule, if a player wants to focus on college ball, she should try to be picked up by the very best travel team she can--one that attends large regional or national tournaments where college coaches are likely to scout. If you have any doubts about this, ask some Div. I or top Div. II coaches in your area where they scout. And visit web pages for the major national showcase and championship tournaments, and you'll see lists of the many coaches who attended. Hope this helps. Good luck!