Thank you for opening my letter!

I’ve been guiding high school (and junior college) baseball players through the recruiting process for three years now.

I’ve guided (or am guiding) more than 100 players.

As you might expect, I’ve improved as a guide through experience. I’m better now than I was when I first started.

I’ve refined my approach to the recruiting process over time to make it more effective and efficient for my players and their families.

Something I’ve noticed is that the foundational steps of the College Athlete Advantage process haven’t changed at all.

What I have adjusted is the best way to navigate through these steps, which differs from player to player.

This week, I’ll share the 12 steps you need to take to find your best fit for playing college baseball.

1) Build a profile

First, gather all the information college coaches need to start evaluating you and organize it into a baseball resume or profile.

This doesn’t have to be fancy.

Here’s what to include:

• Personal Information (height, weight, position, hometown, etc.)

• Contact Information (cell phone and email)

• Skills Videos (no more than 2 min. for each skill)

• Game Footage (capture a lot of game video and edit into highlight clips)

• Metrics (60 time, throwing velo, exit velo, etc.)

• Varsity Stats (slash line, ERA, etc.)

• Academic Information (GPA, test scores, etc.)

• References (coach contact information)

• Schedules (upcoming seasons)

Keep this information updated as you go through the process.

2) Get an objective evaluation

Getting an evaluation from someone you trust who will tell you the truth about your ability level is a critical part of the process.

An inaccurate evaluation will set you up for failure.

For pitchers, seek feedback on:

• Your fastball velocity

• The quality of your off-speed pitches

• Your command

• Your mechanics

• The movement/life of your pitches

• Your in-game stats

• Your frame

For position players, seek feedback on:

• Your defensive ability

• Your arm strength

• Your sprint speed

• Your potential to hit for average and power

• Your in-game stats

• Your frame

A well-done evaluation will provide feedback about your strengths and areas for improvement AND project what divisions of college baseball are most likely to show interest.

3) Rank order your important factors

Next, make a list of all the important factors you will consider for YOUR college search.

Here are some possibilities:

• Academics

• Playing time

• Facilities

• Campus life

• Location

• Cost

• Development

Brainstorm as many factors as possible, then define what’s important TO YOU about each one.

Finally, rank order the factors. Think through which is the MOST important, second-most important, and so on.

This can be a difficult exercise. Don’t rush through it. Talk it through with your parents and/or people you trust to make sure the list is accurate.

Your important factors and the way you rank them may change over time as well. Review your list every month or two to make sure it’s still accurate based on your current preferences.

4) Create a target list of schools

Based on your evaluation and important factors, come up with a list of as many schools as possible that COULD be a good fit.

I suggest AT LEAST 50, but more is better.

Aim for 15-20 schools for EACH division you have the ability to play at (based on the evaluation).

5) Send introduction messages

When the time is right, send introductory emails to the coaches at the schools on your target list.

If you’re a D1 prospect, do this between your sophomore and junior year of high school. Otherwise, wait at least until January of your junior year.

Here’s how to structure the email:

• Greeting (“Coach Smith,”)

• Introduction (include name, grad year, position, high school, and state)

• Reason for Writing (i.e., “I’m starting to search for my best fit for playing college baseball”).

• Call To Action (i.e., “Will you take a look at my profile and let me know what you think?”)

• Profile Link (include CAA link)

• Metrics/Stats (highlight your most impressive metrics and stats)

• Academics (include GPA, test scores, and academic interest areas)

• Closing (i.e., “Thank you for your time and consideration.”)

• Sign Off (i.e., “Sincerely, John Smith)

• P.S. (include names/emails/cell numbers for important references)

Send a shorter version of this message to any coach who follows you on X (formerly Twitter). Click here for detailed guidance on how to use X for your recruiting process.

6) Communicate effectively

Once you start sending messages to college coaches, it’s critical to communicate effectively with coaches who respond.

Here’s how the communication cycle works:

After you send introduction messages, work to move from email communication to phone/text communication. If a coach isn’t calling and/or texting you consistently, their interest level isn’t high (at least yet).

Once you’ve established phone/text communication, ask the coach if you can set up a baseball visit to the campus (the coach may offer this without you having to ask).

Receiving an offer is the next step, followed by you making a final decision about the college.

Click here for more detailed information about the communication cycle.

Click here to learn more about how to respond to common messages from college coaches.

7) Send second-chance messages

Just because a coach doesn’t reply to your introduction message doesn’t mean he’s not interested. There are several possible explanations:

• The email went to his spam folder, so he never saw it

• He forwarded the email to an assistant who hasn’t looked at it yet

• He doesn’t have a good system for processing email, so it’s buried in his inbox

• He may not be recruiting your grad class yet

• He may be on vacation

A week or so after sending the introduction message, send another message if the coach hasn’t responded to give him a second chance to evaluate your profile and reply to you.

Personalize the message like this:

• Greeting (”Coach Smith,”)

• Introduction (include name, grad year, position, high school, and state)

• Reason for writing (i.e., “I’m starting to search for my best fit for playing college baseball”).

• Reasons you’re interested in the school (i.e., academic program, winning tradition, location, etc.)

• Call To action (i.e., “Will you take a look at my profile and let me know what you think?”)

• Profile link

• Best recorded metrics and most recent varsity stats

• Closing (i.e., “Thank you for your time and consideration.”)

• Sign Off (i.e., “Sincerely, John Smith)

• P.S. (include names/emails/cell numbers for important references)

Send the email to ALL the coaches on staff at the school, not just the head coach.

Wait another week or so, then make a third attempt if desired. If you still don’t get a response after three attempts, assume the coaches aren’t interested (at least yet).

8) Narrow list to schools most interested

When you feel satisfied with your options, the time has come to stop promoting yourself to schools and start narrowing your list.

It’s difficult to take a deep dive into a lot of schools, so the goal is to narrow your list to 3-5 schools.

Start by ranking your options based on their interest level. Consider the following factors:

• Contact frequency (more frequent contacts means more interest)

• Contact types (coaches who text/call are more interested than coaches who just email)

• Language used during conversations (coaches will tell you they really want you if they have high interest)

If you’re not sure, schedule a call and ask. Don’t be shy about asking the coach about their interest level.

9) Narrow list to schools YOU are most interested in

If you still have more than 3-5 schools on your lists after step eight, continue narrowing your list of target schools based on those YOU are most interested in.

By this time, you will have had multiple conversations with the coaches at each school, so trust your intuition about which are likely the best fit for you.

10) Visit your top 3-5 schools

Once your target list is pared down to 3-5 schools, plan a campus visit to each one.

Ask the coaching staff to set up the visit for you.

Here’s what a typical campus visit looks like:

• Meet and Greet

• Campus Tour

• Athletic Facility Tour

• Meeting with Professor (in your area of academic interest)

• Meeting with Coaches

• Meeting with Admissions/Financial Aid

• Lunch

The order and timeline for these items will vary from school to school (plan for 4-5 hours).

Sometimes coaches will add:

• Meeting with Players (sometimes over lunch)

• Attend/Observe Practice/Game

• Meeting with Athletic Director

• Community Tour

If the agenda you receive doesn’t include something that’s important to you, ask for it to be added. This is YOUR visit. Don’t be shy about asking for what you want.

If the coach doesn’t or won’t honor your request, this is a red flag. (Note that sometimes coaches CAN’T honor your request based on circumstances outside their control).

Click here for more guidance about how to get the most out of campus visits.

11) Rank schools for each of your important factors

After you’ve visited each college, it’s time to work toward making a decision.

I recommend making a spreadsheet to compare and contrast your top 3-5 colleges.

List your important factors across the top row and the colleges down the first column. Then give each college a 1-10 ranking for each factor.

Here’s a video I made a while back explaining this process:

Comparing and contrasting the colleges like this will help you make your final decision.

12) Pick your best fit and commit!

This is the fun part!

When you're 100% convicted, call the coach and offer your verbal commitment. Ask about next steps (i.e., signing an LOI, application, housing, etc.) on the call.

DON'T post anything on social media until you CALL the coaches at the other schools. These can be difficult conversations, but they're necessary. Even if they're upset, they will respect you for calling.

There you have it!

Follow these steps carefully and there’s no doubt you’ll find your best fit for playing college baseball.

Thank you for reading.

Matt