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[quote=Anonymous]It is extremely rare for anyone from this area to make it into MLB.  Matt Bowman and the Sborz brothers are pitchers who came out of MD and NOVA (Bowman pitched at Princeton and for the Cardinals!).  Brandon Snyder and Justin Bour came out of NOVA.   A few more get drafted and play minors.  Thus, calculating the percentage of DMV players who go on to play in pros will not give you a meaningful number. It's just that difficult.

The % of players who get D1 commitments is easier to calculate.  Stars runs about 5-6 teams for 15U, so it's about 70-80 players.  If you look at their 2021 D1 commits (e.g., the seniors), they have 24 D1 commits.  Accounting for players that go in and out of the program during high school, that's still a good success rate.  You do have to discount the rate a bit because Stars, Canes, US Elite, and Richmond Braves have pitcher only players who only come in for tournaments (e.g., the kids who are 6'2", 180 lb 15 year olds), driving or flying in from WV, PA, NC and even NJ and further away, and the programs claim those kids as their own.  The pitchers are the ones who usually get early commits.  D1 baseball always needs pitchers because of arm burnout and the MLB draft.  If you look at the Canes 2021 commits, you will see 2021 D1 commits going to Miami, Alabama, UCLA, Texas, etc., but Canes has teams at the national, regional and state level, so the numbers and types of commits are affected.

The better teams will have a good combination of development and exposure, and they will help at the margins.  However, baseball is, like any other sport, dependent on the natural ability of the child.  You can't teach speed, or hand-eye coordination, or height (for a pitcher).  However, in baseball people think that Dad, the LL coach, HS coach or travel coach can develop a player all by himself  because of the sheer diversity of body types and backgrounds in this sport.  Where else can Jose Altuve (without trashcans mind you) and Aaron Judge  both play at the highest level?  In American football you pretty much have to look like Aaron Judge, in basketball you have to be tall (and increasing bulky) and in hockey you have to look like Ovechkin.  But in baseball you can look like Ichiro, Jose Altuve, or Mookie Betts or Randy Johnson or Frank Thomas. That's why everyone thinks their kid could play MLB, which is part of baseball's magic. But high school (if not middle school) is where the talent kicks in. The best you can hope for is that your son's individual coach can help with development, and that the team opens up some doors. But the rest is up to your son and his God-given talents and his own motivation.

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