Couldn't agree more lezgo...this Cortland team is average at best!  That offense is anemic...just take a look at those gaudy statistics LOL!  WOW...that's a potent line-up if I may say so.  7 team jacks?  .300 team batting avg.?  Geeeeeez...other than their top three starters, that staff barely has a pulse.  That cupboard is barer than a the employee breakroom at Fukushima.  One run ball game after one run ball game against some sub par programs?  A win is win yes but nothing they should feel good about.  Other teams in this region should be licking their chips because this is as good as it gets IMO.

Well said Scuba...my nephew played in the Orioles organization and he experienced exactly what you speak of.

One more thing if I may...people on these boards are all smart and know the game?  That is the most ridiculous statement I think I have ever heard.  If you only knew what it truly means to "know the game" I think you may retract that but maybe not.  I'll take my questionable kid-like character all day and minus karma points while you walk through life eating granola, listening to Dan Fogleberg and praying for the day they give out medals for a tenth place finish!  Having some fun...lighten up and laugh a little, it's good for you!   

In all actuality, I blew you out of the water cuz the bottom line is you have a very limited perspective on how the draft process works as well as the intricacies of that world.  You choose to focus on the regional aspect of this debate and I'm telling you that although part of it, there's a great deal more that goes into the process of evaluating professional talent.  Throw numbers out the window, it's about projection, makeup, tools and things of that nature.  You must remember that the draft is really geared for the top 5-10 rounds and clubs know the vast majority of their major league talent must be correctly evaluated in those rounds. Yes, there are exceptions to every rule and every year mid to late round picks as well as free agent signings "make it".  Rounds 15-50 represent a lot of turn over in the minor leagues as well as bodies to get their prospects experience in the minors against.  All players at that level are talented but more than 3/4 of the players selected are considered icing on the cake should they help out their parent club someday.  So for me personally, a region or particular college certainly plays a role in the process but the beauty of professional baseball is there's so much opportunity and if you're a good enough player I'm willing to bet you'll be discovered regardless.  Now the draft process is an inexact science but these guys are on more often than not. Of the major sports in our country, baseball is the only one whereby your professional career is not out of the question should you fail to secure a division I opportunity.  I apologize for being offensive or disrespectful but I try to tell it like it is.  Just tired of reading and listening to misinformed people who only fuel many of misconceptions that are so prevalent regarding professional baseball.  Kids now a days think everyone owes them something and if they don't get drafted then someone  must have done them wrong.  Should have gone D1, should have gone down south, if I was only taller.  How about 32 teams don't think you're capable of playing at that level.  No one owes you anything and your numbers don't mean squat.  Get over and get on with your life...it's a tough game!                     

I also love this AJ and his father story...$5 million smackaroos if the kid was only 6 foot tall instead of 5'1".  How absolutely comical!!  Ever heard of Paul LoDuca?  He's an absolute monster...go check out his height.  How about Craig Biggio, who was a catcher when he first came up.  Check his height out too.  There are plenty of catchers who are under 6 feet tall that have played in the big leagues.  "Pop time" schmop time...do it in a game!!!  The difference between this AJ and $5 million bucks is his ability not his height.  Good for him that hits a whopping 89 on the gun...throw and locate strikes and hopefully he has another pitch or two cuz 89 gets laced all day, even at the DIII level sir!  I'm sure the kid is a very good player but his dad needs to get out of lala land and get over the inch of height being to blame for his son not getting a chance to be the next Jason Varitek.  Oh wait a minute...Ivan Rodriguez is 5'7".  Ask his dad if he's ever heard of him.  CLOWNS!!

more scouts so therefore a better chance of being drafted?  That is a fallacy first and foremost...going down south where the talent pool is greater only lessens one's chances due to being a "small fish in a big pond" ideology.  Some people on here and in general absolutely crack me up!!  No idea WTF they're talking about...ha!  You're talking about a young man who, if he had any chance, is only hurting himself and here's why.  Let's say there's a scout per say, who has been following a player since high school with interest.  This player is not seen as being a draft pick out of high school but this scout wants to further evaluate him in college.  This same player just so happens to go to a college where the same scout can now evaluate him in college because the player is in the same scout's regional coverage.  This scout doesn't deem the player a junior draft pick but wants to see him play his senior year out and possibly sign him as a senior sign for example.  Uh oh, what's this.  The kid has left and is now in a different scout's area of coverage.  Reports can travel but the human intangible does not.  Get a clue people as to how this works before some of you spew off nonsense! 

My apologies for misquoting you Reddragon...I realize you wrote "bucks' and I wrote "big bucks" but nonetheless I believe you get my point about the round and the corresponding amount(s) of money usually negotiated.

"Big bucks" is when you're negotiating in the top three maybe four or five rounds.  In the 14th round there are no "big bucks" or life-changing amounts of money involved.  In that round the there's very little room for negotiation and no more than 5-10 grand in either direction is gained or lost.  To suggest that the head coach intentionally attempted to hurt Tone's leverage for selfish gain is simply ridiculous.  The bottom line is that young man walked away with a nice chunk of change and his schooling paid for.  People mistake drawing out the negotiation process to benefit the kid for the head coach in this situation must be deliberately steering him in a selfish direction. 

Very well said magicman...I like that! 

To be honest, I really couldn't care less...hope things work out for all involved.  However, I simply don't like to see the Cortland program portrayed negatively in this whole scenario.  Not every program is well-suited for every kid and that's reality.  My question is, how do you stay somewhere for three years if you're being done so wrong?  All of a sudden this isn't the place for you?  I hear that the kid did the same thing in high school...transferred from one high school to another for his senior year due to conflict with the head coach.  I don't know the young man personally but what lesson is learned from running away when the going gets tough?  Shoes like that are NOT tough to fill in my opinion.  The real shoes that are tough to fill are the Gardner's and Nickel's of the world who are as much men as they are great baseball players.  The leadership they exhibit is what allows the Simone's of the world to thrive without needing to be held accountable behind the scenes.  Numbers don't mean squat...a player can easily do as much harm to team dynamics as good when it comes to statistics.  However, these are things that cannot be measured and everyone simply looks at numbers and bases their value to the team on that.  Bottom line is that program doesn't normally lose kids and in fact, I challenge anyone to find me the name of the last TALENTED transfer out of Cortland within the last 15 years.  In my opinion, this should tell anyone outside of the program itself a little bit about the truth of the matter.  As a parent, I don't enjoy bashing kids per say but the entitlement factoe does bother me tremendously.  

My son knows the young man and this decision comes down to professional baseball...the kid believe that he is being sabotaged by the program plain and simple.  Solid player of course but a team player he is not.  Unfortunately talented kids are given a bit of a pass when it comes to tolerating things that less-talented players are held far more accountable for.  I'm willing to bet that the head coach won't miss having to coddle this young man.  Any kid who thinks that a program(especially DIII) would deliberately hurt a  young man's opportunity to play pro ball is absolutely ridiculous.  My son knows this to be fact.  His abilities aren't worth putting up with his pre-madonna attitude and his exit comes as somewhat of a relief in some regards I would have to imagine.       

The Simone kid leaving won't make a huge difference...that program is not built on any one player especially one with a poor attitude and me first motivation.  The kid is a midget who has the arm of a tee league shortstop...word is he thinks he got shafted by not getting drafted and it's the program's fault apparently.  Geez, guess all those Cortland kids who played pro ball got shafted too...what a joke!  So many cases of kids now a days who can't look in the mirror when they fail and must blame everyone and/or everything around them for their failure or disappointment.  No loyalty and it's really unfortunate.  In my opinion, the Cortland program desrves more respect than this young man has shown and I say good riddance!  Kids now-a-days believe the program owes them something and that's a travesty.  That warning track power will fit in nicely down south.  It's a simple case of addition by subtraction, mark my words!   

Scouts may love tools and often times may draft a guy based on a tool or two that grade out above average on the 20-80 major league scale but it doesn't necessarily take a scout to recognize a "showcase" player...there are plenty of them in this country let alone the international scene.  Upper echelon scouts have an eye for intangibles and are able to project success in a way that is somewhat amazing.  Best of luck to the Dimino's or anyone else on a scout's DIII radar!

For all you Cortland homers, the left side of your infield plays extremely poor defense and until that situation improves, which it won't, this team is going NOWHERE.  The head coach is an infield guru...one would think that infield defense would be their strength but every game the same guys make error after error...hmmm

Not so sure I'm too excited about the Cortland IC matchup tomorrow although these two teams always seem to battle and Brown just tries to beat his mentor into a pulp...best of luck to both teams weather permitting!