Players at Army must put their dreams on hold

Major changes are under way at West Point, where the Army has rescinded a program that allowed cadets who were athletes to swap out military service for playing professional sports after graduation.

The option had been available since April 2005, as the Army reasoned that its former West Point cadets could generate positive media attention—and enhance recruiting—by serving on athletic fields instead of battlefields.

The Pentagon, apparently pressured by athletes from the Naval and Air Force academies who did not have similar options available, reiterated that the Army fall back under the same rules, which require at least two years of active service after graduation.

That means the Black Knights of Army must pack up their bags at season’s end and return to West Point, where they could await possible orders that could ship them off to Iraq or Afghanistan after graduation.

Until the Pentagon reverses the policy, there is little that baseball teams can hope for in drafting a player from a military academy and then immediately seeing him in their organization. A possibility—though an unlikely escape hatch based on these players’ commitment to service—would be for players not to return for their junior seasons. Once a student starts his junior year, he is obligated to graduate and then fulfill his active duty requirement.

It’s unfortunate from a baseball perspective because the Army and Navy baseball programs have improved significantly in recent years.

Scouts will continue to keep an eye on the talent at military academies, however.

Among Army’s most intriguing names is shortstop Clint Moore, who dominated the Patriot League this season as a freshman. A former standout at Grimsley High School in Greensboro, N.C., Moore led the league in nine offensive categories and became only the third freshman in West Point history to earn first-team all-conference honors. He batted .350 with six home runs, 14 doubles and two triples, and he scored 46 runs and had 39 RBIs.

*****from Baseball America Magazine and check out more on Moore and other the young men from West Point at baseballamerica.com*****

8 thoughts on “Players at Army must put their dreams on hold

  1. Having visited Westpoint many times and having 2 partners that went there I hear about this all the time. It’s pretty straight forward. They offer a free education in return you commit to X numbers of years of active duty afterwards.

  2. Why should Clint worry about making a committment? He and his family can just manipulate the rules like they did to get out of Southeast and into the Grimsley baseball program

  3. I’m not going there. All I’ll say is there a big difference between Guilford County Schools and Westpoint and the US military. I don’t know Clint well at all but it says a lot about the young man just to get in Westpoint. And I’m damn sure not going to knock a man that will stand post for the freedoms I enjoy.

  4. Lee, thank you for your kind words regarding my son, Clint. There are more important things in life beyond high school and the game of baseball. I know Clint will serve his country well; in fact, both of my children will. His sister, Megan will join him at the United States Military Academy to serve her country, also. May God Bless!

  5. Sharon, my two partners are Westpoint grads. One of them does a lot of the initial interviewing in Guilford County. He just interviewed a person from Grimsley. He has met your daughter. His brother was a TAC officer there. We have traveled to Westpoint couple of times. I met your kids at GBC but I do not know them well. I also know your husband a little from GBC. My son worked out with your kids some at Carmine’s. Personally I appreciate the sacrifices your children have made. For Clint the baseball is secondary. Good luck in year 2. It does get easier. Many people don’t realize that Westpoint is not just an education. It’s a way of life.

  6. Lee, it is reasurring to know you are an individual who understands and “gets it”! Thanks again from the bottom of my heart! Best of luck to your son and his journey.

  7. Clint Moore is soldier, a fighter, and a leader.

    I’m glad to have him on the baseball field or the battlefield backing me up.

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