Exposure is...

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With try-out season upon us the buzz word of the day seems to be ?exposure?.
We are looking for a team that offers ?
Our organization is focuses on?
... is key at this age.

Ask 10 people for their team selection criteria and I?d be willing to bet you hear it in the top three of AT LEAST seven of them. Pry a little further and I bet you get 2-4 different definitions/expectations for what exposure is to them.

So, what does the collective define 'exposure' as? I?d like to hear from both the parent and team points of view.

 

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I define "exposure" as a "felony." Seriously though, what a prospective team can offer in terms of exposure to potential colleges is just a small step in the overall process. The player must make the contact with prospective college coaches, and facilitate that dialogue to the point of getting prospective coaches to come see them in action. If the team is being seen by Coaches for which the candidate has no intention of playing, then there is a disconnect. That being said, College Coaches do talk and will recommend a payer they may not have a need for to another Coach. So.............Exposure is a two sided coin. What Coaches will be watching the team (what tournaments does the team attend), and what is the player doing to help her own cause? Typically, if a player desires to play D1, national tournaments with a well known organization would be one avenue to pursue. I heard an interesting comment during PGF 18U finals. "80% of scholarship money in softball is awarded at D2 and lower."

 

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But also be aware of misuse of the word "exposure".

Back in the day, we had travel teams and travel team name + "gold" - which was organized to be an elite group of players that played only in elite-type tournaments. Then, a funny thing happened: coaches started using the term "gold" as a method of attempting to get Tier A players to show up at their tryouts, when in actuality, the teams was no more "gold" than every other team out there.

The same thing is happening now with "exposure" teams. Some coaches are thinking that, "Well, if the player wants to play in college, she must be pretty good already"...

There are many true legitimate "Exposure" teams in Ohio. As always, do you homework, to see how much exposure you're be getting.

 

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An exposure team is a team that goes to the tournies where the college coaches will be. It is up to the PLAYER to contact the coaches of the schools they are interested in attending. It is up to the COACHES to stay in good standing with the college coaches. It is up to the RECRUITING COORDINATOR to help get the college coaches interested in a player. It is up to the coach and the recruiting coordinator to keep it real with the players and parents.

Len

 

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An exposure team is a team that goes to the tournies where the college coaches will be. It is up to the PLAYER to contact the coaches of the schools they are interested in attending. It is up to the COACHES to stay in good standing with the college coaches. It is up to the RECRUITING COORDINATOR to help get the college coaches interested in a player. It is up to the coach and the recruiting coordinator to keep it real with the players and parents.

Len

It's that simple in my opinion.... good post.

 

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That's kind of what I posted except for:
A: You said it better
B. Your post made more sense
C. I have A.D.D.
D. I felt it necessary to inject humor
E. Your post was not dis-jointed

But also be aware of misuse of the word "exposure".

Back in the day, we had travel teams and travel team name + "gold" - which was organized to be an elite group of players that played only in elite-type tournaments. Then, a funny thing happened: coaches started using the term "gold" as a method of attempting to get Tier A players to show up at their tryouts, when in actuality, the teams was no more "gold" than every other team out there.

The same thing is happening now with "exposure" teams. Some coaches are thinking that, "Well, if the player wants to play in college, she must be pretty good already"...

There are many true legitimate "Exposure" teams in Ohio. As always, do you homework, to see how much exposure you're be getting.

 

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nac, another point is that if a college coach - at an exposure tournament - approaches the coach and says "I'd like to see Betty play at 2nd base for a while", and the travel coach says "ok", that's an exposure team. If the travel coach doesn't cooperate, then he/she has their own agenda in mind.