New Balance Future Stars Series, it’s not a showcase and that truly is the best thing possible.

I know what you’re thinking, aren’t showcases supposed to be a great thing? The answer is yes they can be, but in this case the last thing anyone needs is for this event to be is a showcase. I know that can be a little confusing but here is what a mean when I say these things. 

Showcases are meant to show off players skills in the best way, they go into it with a mindset knowing they’re already so good at these certain skills they’re about to show off and the events is tuned for them to do that. The Future Stars Series is not tuned for that, it’s made for these players to work on their craft, get better day by day and work towards always improving their game which is exactly how these boys will get better and move on into the highest stages of this game. 

I got to walk around and listen to President of Operations Jeremy Booth. Booth is a former 1B and Catcher. Jeremy has worked in the industry ever since being an MLB Analyst, an Author and on ESPN Radio. However he is now the Operator of the FSS for New Balance Baseball and you will truly not find a more caring, genuine, and empowering individual in this industry. He speaks with power and conviction, and every player and coach listened to what he said with respect and admiration which is hard to come by these days. The only Gain Jeremy sets out to accomplish in these events is doing what’s best for these kids. From the Coaching Staff, Travel, Management and all around care he puts in to this event you can tell it makes a difference when the players talk about him, the coaches and even the parents. It’s truly one of the best events in the game. 

What Booth and the entire Staff at FSS engrave into these kids is each day is a chance to work on something and as I’ve stated before “Excellence is the Expectation”. What this kind of series does is it allows all these coaches with different backgrounds to evaluate these players and help them get better day by day and event by event. It puts the needs of the kids above anything else, you won’t see kids pitching 80, 90, 100 pitches in these, it’s a disservice to the kids and can put there bodies and future’s in harms way and that is the last thing they want here. We heard numerous times from sponsors that the level of care they give at the Future Stars Series is unmatched and honestly after getting to experience it front and center I could simply not agree more. 

I got to have a conversation with one of the Bench Coach’s for the event Coach John Hampton. When asked about the toughness of having to figure out the best way to coach these players he’s had so little time with, Hampton stated “these kids all learn in various ways, but from Little League to the Pros they all struggle with the same things in this game it’s just 1a matter of what level they’re doing it at. Not every player is going to take information the same so you have to learn how to say the same thing 6 to 7 different ways because while it may work for one player, it won’t register the same with the other players In the group so having to learn how each one digests the information is the toughest part because we want these kids to be as good as they can be and it’s our job to help them” 

As a Baseball Parent, Coach Hampton also stated how having events like these where they’re not overworking these kids and set them up with 1 or 2 things to improve on in between these events can really do a lot and constantly give them a goal and task to work towards when they’re not training at these events. 

It just goes to show truly the amount of effort it takes from both sides and always having a learning mindset as a coach and as a player can help you exponentially not just in Baseball, but in life. The personnel they had out there was a testament to that where each coach was not only learning about these kids but also learning from each other, coaching techniques, ways to get points across and learning overall just how to become better at their craft just like the players. 

This event is unlike any other I’ve been apart of and as I stated it’s truly not a showcase and that’s the absolute best compliment I could ever give. I know this is going to grow into an even bigger even than it already is with the likes of Jeremy and Renee at the helm of this ship and I hope to be apart of the event and cover it when they’re in town for years to come. My time was unforgettable and I can’t wait to see all the new talent rolling in year after year as this event should become the premiere event with how much care they give to these players. I hope plenty more players see this event, take notice