Ask Doug: Leaving School Early

Baseball Factory
October 2, 2009
By Doug Glanville
 

Doug Glanville is working with the Baseball Factory and Team One Baseball as a Special Consultant. He will be writing articles and looking for your questions and feedback. If you have a question for Doug, please email him at askdoug@baseballfactory.com

Q: There has been a lot of buzz lately about Bryce Harper and the fact that he is going to leave school early, get his GED and go to Junior College in the fall so he is eligible for the 2010 draft. Given his talent and overall situation, do you think this is a good move?

A: I understand that there is a lot of pressure when you are so talented to get to the pros as soon as possible. There is concern for injury, there is concern that the time is now, but in the long run, most of those concerns are not based on looking at the big picture. Every student-athlete is different and must be addressed on a case by case basis. I will say this, your education is timeless, but your body is not and no matter how successful a career Bryce may have, he will need to know about the other things in his life that interest him. My career was over by the time I was 34 with a life in front of me. My education allowed me to explore what other passions I would have in my life.
 
But it is more than just the classroom. You learn how to socialize, how to network, how to deal with life on the road from being semi-independent for years at school. So we have to ask, why the rush? He may be a “can’t miss,” but if he is, then he “won’t miss” two years from now or even four years from now with a college degree in his hands and more options for his life without the game. We have seen many of the greatest players in the game choose steroids as their way of dealing with the competitive environment. If they saw another way to make a living or another possibility for their future, maybe they make a different choice. The problem with putting all your eggs in one basket is that once one of them cracks, everything falls apart.

Republished from The Baseball Factory