Longshots Baseball is committed to the year-round development of our players; including Major League Baseball recommended shut-down periods for certain activities. We offer skill development for players who treat baseball as a primary sport. We don’t demand that players make baseball their exclusive sport, as many of our players are multi-sport athletes. We believe other sports can offer great physical and competitive development opportunities that compliment baseball skills. But here, baseball must be respected and pursued as a primary sport.
Our coaches also develop year round, continuously learning from each other and from other travel programs, and from professional scouts and college coaches, as well as MLB instructors. We coach across the age groups so all players benefit from the knowledge and experience of the entire staff. Our work is program focused, not just team-focused.
Tryouts: Tryouts are held throughout late July into August for the various age groups. All our ages hold open tryouts. Every year, every player here tries out again. Every year, new players join us. We believe strongly that players need to earn their place here. In our program, we talk about the goal for every 17U player and below is to “make next year’s team”. When players accomplish that consistently, really good things happen for them here as they chase their “next level”.
Our Senior Division coaches are involved in player selection at all levels.
Fall Program: The Fall Program is designed primarily to concentrate on skill development and physical development, with some high level competitive play and specific (age-appropriate) exposure mixed in. There is a high degree of focus on building exceptional fundamentals, while also base-lining players’ current state measurables in order to gauge progress over the year.
For HS-level players, we will mix in some competitive play such as Perfect Game tournaments in Iowa and Florida, as well as playing at several colleges and universities. We have exposure opportunities for those who are ready for it and at the levels that are appropriate to the players’ needs.
For younger players, we spend the majority of our time developing and improving skills, in order to grow players’ competitive levels. We don’t just “throw the ball out and play games”. We believe that is better suited for recreational travel baseball teams. The Fall Program runs through late October.
Winter Skills Camp: Coach Rob Rooney directs a weekend skill development camp in November and December, run by Longshots Baseball Camps. This highly respected camp focuses on the development and integration of the basic mechanics of baseball skills and baseball-oriented physical development. Players of all levels and ages, and from numerous travel programs, typically improve their skills dramatically in a short time, as they understand how and why each skill is performed to maximize efficiency and reduce injury risk. As the camp progresses, positional skills are taught for Middle Infielder, Third Base, First Base, Outfield, Pitching, and Catching. This camp fills to capacity each year, so inquire early.
Winter Workouts: Beginning in December, and running until high school ball or our spring/summer schedule begins, our winter workouts concentrate continued skill and physical development, while getting our players ready to compete for their upcoming seasons. There is a strong emphasis on pitching/catching, hitting and positional play, as well as getting players arms and legs ready for their high school season.
These are intense, age-appropriate development workouts for serious players.
Spring/Summer Schedule: Our schedules are built to specifically take players along their developmental paths in baseball skills and competitiveness. We work to plan for challenging, yet successful experiences that will help our players enjoy the game, be proud of their accomplishments and prepare to “make next year’s team”.
For Senior Division players, we will play a significant amount of our play against other top programs in the Chicago Scouts Association’s I-94 League. We work to expose players to college coaches and pro scouts as they are ready. The summer season for HS players runs from the end of the high school season through the beginning of August. The summer season culminates with the selection of teams to compete in the Connie Mack World Series regional qualifier.
Showcases: Our players at age and skill appropriate levels participate in select, high-profile events – some as invited individuals and some as invited teams – in order to gain the proper level of exposure at the correct time in their careers. Typically, our players will participate in invitation-only events. We work to customize exposure for all our players. We do not believe in over-exposure, as it hurts players rather than helps. We work closely with other members (teams) of the Chicago Scouts Association to partner for our mutual players’ success. Based on our track record, we believe it is a proven formula for assisting players to get to their proper “next level”.
