Dugout Dish: In the Clubhouse with EMD | Why Evaluating High School Hitters Is Difficult in Today’s College Baseball Recruiting Landscape
by Keith Glasser on Jan 20, 2026
In this episode, we break down why evaluating the high school hitter has become one of the biggest challenges in today’s college baseball recruiting landscape. We discuss the key factors that make it difficult for college coaches to get a true evaluation of high school position players, including the level of competition hitters face, recruiting calendar timing, limited in-game exposure, and the lack of reliable data on at-bats and opposing pitchers.
We also dive into how the transfer portal has shifted the timing of high school recruiting and why the data now available to college coaches makes evaluating college hitters far easier than evaluating high school hitters. From advanced analytics to larger sample sizes, we explain why college hitters often present less risk in the recruiting process.
This episode covers the many variables impacting high school hitter evaluations in 2026 and is designed to educate players and parents on why the recruiting process can feel challenging—and what that means for hitters trying to get recruited.
