FHSAA baseball changes spark local backlash

COTTONDALE, Fla. (WMBB) – A new FHSAA proposal to change the baseball playoff format and move the regular season forward could be a cause of concern for Panhandle coaches and teams.

The proposal calls for a playoff format with a best two-out-of-three series between teams instead of single elimination, which is a change most local coaches are in favor of.

However, for a lengthened playoff the regular season will need to start more than a week earlier and the regular season will end two weeks earlier than this past spring.

Teams were not informed of the potential date change until this summer and some Panhandle coaches have already begun making their 2025 schedule, but that is not the biggest reason for their concern.

Baseball season will now further overlap with winter sports like basketball and soccer, keeping some dual sport athletes whose teams reach the playoffs from joining their baseball team until well into the regular season.

For some larger high schools, it might not cause much disruption but Cottondale Head Baseball Coach Skylar Davis said it could force his dual sport athletes to choose between playing one sport or the other.

“You know, here we got dudes that play all three sports (football, basketball, baseball), multiple guys,” Davis said.” “It’s hard to go whenever you’re missing one or two starters and in a sport at school like this. At a big school, you can just plug somebody in and go, but here it’s built around a small core. There’s not a huge group of kids to pick from.”

Another concern with the date changes that Coach Davis pointed out is the safety factor for pitchers joining the team late.

The FHSAA’s proposal would move up Arm Care Conditioning to January 6, but if that pitching is preoccupied with another sport, they could be shorted as much as two whole months of preparation.

Davis ran into that issue last season with a starting pitcher playing basketball. He said further overlapping the two sports seasons could put coaches in a situation to progress a player’s pitch count at an unsafe rate.

“A kid is missing an opportunity to build up his arm to be able to hit 105,” Davis said. “Last year, the first time one of my guys went to 105 was the week after spring break, and that would be the first week in April I guess now with them getting out of basketball a week late. You’re looking at kids not being ramped up to safely get to 105 until district tournaments.”

This proposal has not yet been passed by the FHSAA. They are expected to put it to a vote in September.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to mypanhandle.com.