Question on baseball scouts...

[11thEagleFan]

So yesterday I went to the C-USA tournament in Hattiesburg. USM threw their ace (Cockrell), but due to lingering injuries I'd assume, he didn't last long. When Jake Winston came in to replace him, I noticed about a dozen radar guns go up in unison, and guys scribbling notes after every pitch. Lucky for Winston, he had a good outing and his velocity was there. I know next to nothing about pro scouts. Are these local guys that scout freelance? Do teams fly them in (conference tournaments seem like a good place to scout)? Does each organization give them a list of prospects? These guys were not interested in the aces for USM or Old Dominion, but they were all over Winston. I just thought it was interesting.

 

[engie]

It's pretty similar to how football recruiting services work honestly. Just with a lot more manpower. They already have books and decisions made on all the draft-eligible aces in d1 across the country most likely.

Depends on the level of the scout for their actual job description. Base level guys have a certain area and drive to games every day/live out of hotels. They see as many people as they can and report on those guys. They are employed by individual teams, not "freelance" persay. The ones that move up quickly are the ones that find the Hunter Renfroe type player and sign him in the 5th-10th round in high school.

If a guy has a significant velo discrepancy between starts, teams will see it as a sign of arm trouble and shy away in a hurry. State has a JUCO signee now that's 95-96 one start and 88 the next. 2 months ago, there was pretty much no chance he came to school. According to my buddy that is scouting him, the pros have backed off with fear about his shoulder, and he'll probably be at MSU. Seems like a boom or bust candidate.