Lets be honest, this Conrad hype is uncalled for. They have two good wins this year, maybe four if you consider Newark Charter who is decent at best. They play an absolutely horrible schedule compared to caravel, Saint Marks and sallies and that's why I just don't think they're going to fair well against another solid team in the postseason.
Conrad = Overrated! Possible early exit?
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Funny because they beat St.Marks and Sallies both this year. Newark Charter is better than "decent" too not sure why you think they aren't any good. Conrad has two wins over them and two decent wins over DMA and Archmere. Still have M-Town and St.George left who are both really good. Conrad beat a good Polytech last year during the playoffs and gave Caravel everything they had. Conrad isn't overrated at all by any means.
Have one of the best pitchers in state and a solid lineup why do you think they'll have an early exit?
I think Conrad winning the title is a good thing, good team and good for baseball. I enjoy seeing new programs compete and excel. Just saying
So, you can honestly say St. Marks is as good as years past? NO !!! They can't score runs and most of their wins are not good ones. Sallies, Same story different year. Need to get the right players on the field there to be a winner.
And....You can't talk about last year at all. So different this year and that is the scary part. You can't count out anyone. Just look at all the so called upsets in the last 2 weeks.
I never said St.Marks or Sallies was better than last year or anything like that. I said people are knocking Conrad's schedule I found it funny because Conrad beat both of them. Who cares dude Sallies and St.Marks can bring in whoever the hell they want Conrad can't. What does all that have to do with Conrad having success the past few year anyways?
What a stupid post. Conrad isn't overrated. Not guaranteeing a title but calling them overrated is just stupid nonsense.
Beat both Sallies and St. Mark's. That's more than most teams can say.
Beat both Sallies and St. Mark's. That's more than most teams can say.
I don't know what Conrad baseball did to the folks on this board, but 13-0 is 13-0. I'm almost rooting for them now just to hear the excuses on here.
The fact that you just compared Conrad to Caravel, Saint Marks and Sallies, speaks volumes all by itself! Though, not sure Sallies belongs in that list now, and Saint Marks is on their way down too, its been a good ride for them. Conrad deserves any hype they are getting. I respect the Caravel program, but would enjoy seeing a non private school take the title for a change.
Or do they have one of the best catchers in the state who makes an average pitcher look good? Either way, they play hard as a team, and win as a team, all put together, what they have now is working, and i wish them luck.
You must not know what Bradigan has already done through his HS career. He's 20-1 or probably even better by now but still some credit belongs to Nowell I agree there but Bradigan is above average. One of best pitcher & catcher duos in the state.
So I said in the beginning of the thread that they have two good wins, and your responses are that I'm wrong because they have two good wins? I'm glad another team is doing well too but sounds like some of you are a little too close with the Conrad bandwagon
Conrad might not win it all but I think they will. They have a great Coach and something a little special brewing.
You meant " public private" public paid private right?
Conrad is a well coached team. That's exactly why they are always in games. They don't panick, quit, fold in any situation. They're are reflection of their coaching staff! I'll be the first to say they're not loaded with "D1" talent players. But they play extremely well as a unit! Let's not forget, when it comes to playoff time the best TEAM wins, not the best individual player, or the team with the most D1 commits. Coaching also is a huge factor come playoff time! You will see some very talented teams fold in June simply because they're not prepared for the playoffs as a coaching staff. Who knows if Conrad will hoist the trophy? But if they don't, it won't be because they weren't prepared as a team! I'm willing to bet that! They're ran like a college club, and get the most out of every kid on that roster. Getting your players to believe in your philosophy can't be over looked! That starts long before March 1st. Good luck to all the teams that make the post season.
Nowell is one of the top catcher and Bradigan is one of the more consistant strike throwers however what would the record be if the strength of the schedule for the 4 years matched others?
From 11-2 in 2016 to 13-0 this year. Playing in the Diamond state conference, which is arguably one of the tougher conferences in the state. And have seamlessly played perfect this season. Either you haven't seen them play or you just felt the need to play devil's advocate. At the end of the day any team can lose early in the tournament if they don't come ready to play. And Conrad is the only team who has proved that they come ready to play day to day.
I just love how people call schools like Conrad, Newark Charter, DMA, and Wilmington Charter "public". Are they free? Yes. Are they technically public? Yes. But let's call it what it is. If those schools weren't around, most of those kids wouldn't be going to McKean, Dickinson or A.I., they would be going to Sallies, Saint Mark's, Caravel, St. E's or another private school. Look, I love baseball as much, if not more so, then ANYONE on this board, but to me, what this emphasizes is that baseball is becoming, or perhaps already is, at least in the US, and elitist sport that requires big money to do well at.
Your message makes no sense because it was created to talk about Conrad... You have no idea where kids would go if their school closed down or something. With how competitive baseball is in Delaware you could just school choice your son to a good public school up in that area anyways. Big money to be good in HS? In case you forgot this a Delaware HS baseball forum buddy nothing serious at all. Most kids don't play after HS anyways spend the extra money to see their kids go to bigger colleges not to excel in HS sports. I've never heard a parent say they'll pay extra money so that their son can be a HS baseball legend.
I'm a Middletown/Caravel guy who loves what Conrad does as a program. They get the most out of their players and win the way I believe is how you win in High School and lower levels of play. They bunt, steal, hit and run, pick runners off and play solid defense. Same thing I saw that still works at Caravel. They put the pressure on their opponents to make plays. They don't sit back and wait for the big hit. All of this comes down to, in my opinion, the coaching. And in Conrad's case Doug Nowell. Let's see if after his son graduates, and if he leaves, the culture endures. They also get solid pitching and have Nowell behind the plate. Without a good catcher it's hard to win at this level and he's better than good.
Public schools have been becoming more relevant over the past few years. Of course private schools usually dominate but more and more public schools are improving. You look at Dover big public school has made it to the semifinals the last few years. Conrad last year was impressive and continue their excellence again this tournament. You don't need to spend tons of money to be good at a sport. Baseball is all about perfecting your craft.
Love Doug Nowell and how he coaches! They REALLY teach it the right way.
I wasn't trying to demean these charter schools at all - please know that. What I'm saying is that if you really look inside the demographics of who goes to these schools, they are not "gen pop" schools like others. When I say money, I mean this - hitting lessons, pitching lessons, better bats. NONE of that trumps talent, but it sure helps. It also, by and large, requires involved parents or parental figures.
I don't think Conrad is overrated, they just beat Middletown 10-6, although Middletown never plays good teams tough (not including appo because they seem to be falling apart) but I really think Conrad can make a run
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It was 10-6 and much closer than you think. Conrad scored 8 in one inning. Middletown rocked Bradigan taking him deep twice. Maxwell looked better in my opinion. Conrad did what they do. Manufactured a bunch of runs on walks and stolen bases. Middletown outhit Conrad 12-7.
That's true for just about any team in the playoffs.
Been waiting for that opening haven't You? Today's loss will put a fire in the bellies of the boys that they would not have had if they entered the tourney undefeated. There are a lot of good teams competing for the championship of which Conrad is one.
Didn't say anything bad at all about Conrad they are a very good team with very good coaching just commenting on your statement of being 16 -0 . That's all that matters . That's not at all what matters it's how you play during play offs where Conrad will do a good job vs whomever they play !
