Dugout Dish Baseball Recruiting Podcast powered by EMD Baseball

Velocity gets attention. But in 2026 it is no longer enough to get you recruited. In this episode of Dugout Dish, Andy and Keith share what college baseball coaches have been telling them directly this summer and fall about what they are actually prioritizing in the recruiting process right now — and the picture that emerges is one where defense, athleticism, and the ability to do multiple things well have become just as important as any individual tool or metric a player can put on a recruiting profile.

What we cover:

Most baseball recruits show up to a tournament, play their games, and hope a coach was watching. The recruits who get recruited do something different — they do the work before the weekend even starts to make sure the right coaches know exactly where to find them and they show up physically and mentally ready to perform at their best when it matters most. In this episode of Dugout Dish, Andy and Keith walk through everything a recruit should be doing in the days leading up to a fall, spring, or summer tournament to maximize their recruiting exposure and make th...

The college baseball recruiting timeline for the 2028 class looks dramatically different from previous cycles at this same point — and coming out of the Perfect Game tournament in Fort Myers, the evidence is impossible to ignore. In this episode of Dugout Dish, Andy and Keith sit down with Elite National’s Jonathan Grosse to break down exactly why college coaches are taking significantly more time in the 2028 recruiting process, what is driving that shift, and why the change is ultimately making the college baseball ecosystem healthier and more functional at every level from D1 all the way down to JUCO and...

The Save College Sports Act passed the United States Senate last week — and with it moving to the House for a vote, college athletics may be on the verge of its most significant legislative moment in the history of the sport. In this episode of Dugout Dish, Andy and Keith break down exactly what the bill says, why it matters, and what it could mean specifically for college baseball and the families navigating the recruiting process right now if it is ultimately codified into law.

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The college baseball recruiting landscape looks different in the fall of 2026 than it did just a few years ago — and the families who understand how and why it has changed are the ones who will navigate the next twelve months most successfully. In this episode of Dugout Dish, Andy and Keith break down two of the most important and most talked about topics in the college baseball recruiting world right now — the timeline for the 2028 class and what families actually need to know about the 5-for-5 eligibility rule now that it is in practice at the college level.

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The SAT and ACT are not just admissions requirements — for baseball recruits they are recruiting and financial aid tools that most families are not fully using to their advantage. In this episode of Dugout Dish, Andy and Keith break down how standardized test scores impact the admissions and recruiting process, why some schools are returning to test mandatory policies, and why getting a score on the books well before your spring baseball season is one of the most important and most overlooked steps in the entire recruiting process.

What we cover:

Most baseball recruits spend the fall and offseason focused entirely on what they are doing on the field — but the players who separate themselves between now and next spring are the ones who are also taking care of everything that happens off it. In this episode of Dugout Dish, Andy and Keith break down the non-baseball things every recruit should be prioritizing this fall and offseason to put themselves in the strongest possible academic, physical, and recruiting position heading into next spring and summer.

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Football and basketball recruits have been posting their offers, official visits, and commitment announcements on social media for years — and that culture is now making its way into college baseball recruiting in a significant way. In this episode of Dugout Dish, Andy and Keith take on one of the newest and most talked about trends among today's high school baseball players and offer their honest, candid, and sometimes differing opinions on what recruits should be sharing on social media during the recruiting process and what they should think twice about before posting.

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The youth baseball years are where the foundation of a player's relationship with the sport is built — and the decisions families make during those years, from travel teams and organizations to the conversations that happen after every game, have a lasting impact on whether a young player falls more in love with the game or slowly starts to pull away from it. In this episode of Dugout Dish, Andy and Keith have one of their most important and most personal conversations yet about youth baseball, parent mindset, and what it genuinely takes to help a young player develop a he...

Private coaching, facility work, and off field development have never been more accessible or more popular in youth and high school baseball — and the results show up in the numbers. Velocity is up. Exit velocity is up. Metrics across the board are trending in the right direction for more players than ever before. But there is a gap that separates the players who get recruited from the ones who do not — and it has nothing to do with their facility numbers. It is whether or not all of that work actually shows up in games. In this episode of Dugo...

Last week Andy told his story. This week it is Keith's turn. In this episode of Dugout Dish, Andy turns the tables on EMD Baseball Co-Owner Keith Glasser for one of the most personal and most honest conversations in the history of this podcast — his background in baseball, how he found his way into college coaching, what sixteen years on the sidelines taught him, and why every difficult moment along the way shaped him into exactly who he needed to become.

What we cover:

Keith's background in baseb...

The financial side of college baseball recruiting is one of the most confusing and most consequential parts of the entire process — and most families do not fully understand it until it is too late to ask the right questions. In this episode of Dugout Dish, Andy and Keith break down what financial aid packages actually look like at every division level, with a focused deep dive into D3 baseball where the absence of athletic scholarships creates a financial aid landscape that is widely misunderstood but often surprisingly favorable for families who know how to navigate it.

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Every week Andy Kiriakedes helps families navigate the college baseball recruiting process — but this week Keith turns the tables and puts Andy in the seat. In this episode of Dugout Dish, we get the full story of EMD Baseball Co-Founder Andy Kiriakedes — where he grew up, how he got recruited, what his college baseball experience was really like, and what eleven years of coaching at the D1 and D3 levels taught him before he walked away from coaching and eventually built EMD Baseball into what it is today.

What we cover:

Most baseball families enter the recruiting process with one goal in mind — get as many offers as possible. But the families who navigate the process most successfully understand something that most people miss entirely — the recruiting process is not about accumulating offers, it is about using every opportunity you have to create the right options for your son and making the best decision along the way. In this episode of Dugout Dish, Andy and Keith break down exactly what that distinction means in practice and why shifting your mindset around offers and opportunities could completely change how your son appr...

Before Ryan Forrest was named the 17th head coach in Princeton Baseball's 127 year history, he was building Boston College into an NCAA Tournament program and coaching Paul Skenes — the number one overall pick and 2025 Cy Young Award winner — at Air Force. Now he is bringing that experience, that pitching knowledge, and that recruiting philosophy to one of the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. In this episode of Dugout Dish, Andy and Keith sit down with Coach Forrest to talk about his coaching journey, how Princeton finds and recruits the right players, and how he thinks about pitching deve...

In this episode, we talk about the mindset surrounding the Division III and Junior College levels of college baseball. We can also argue that the NAIA level fits into this conversation as well because they are not "fall back" options if you do not get recruited where you like. Eight precent of high school seniors will play college baseball so there are limited spots and we dispel the myth that they are automatic options to call back to and not options that you must compete for.

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What does a program with 22 years of coaching experience behind it look for when recruiting players — and how do they make sure the fit is right for both sides before making an offer? In this episode of Dugout Dish, Andy and Keith sit down with Wesleyan University Head Coach Matt Reynolds, who is entering his first full season with his own recruiting class, to talk about how he and his staff identify and recruit the right players for their program during the summer evaluation period.

What we cover:

In this episode, we talk about how to handle committing to a college program and the do's and do nots of the commitment process. We talk who to call, when to post, and when you should be doing it.

New episodes of Dugout Dish drop every week.

Subscribe so you never miss recruiting and development intel that could change your player's future.

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Chapters

UCL injuries and Tommy John surgery have become an epidemic in baseball at every level — and one company has spent years chasing the science to find a better way to protect pitchers from the inside out. In this episode of Dugout Dish, Andy and Keith sit down with FlexPro Grip Co-Founder Adam Moreau to talk about how FlexPro Grip was developed, what the science actually says about UCL health, and why MLB teams, college programs, high schools, and individual athletes from 8 year olds to Cy Young winners are all using it to strengthen their arms, prevent injury, and recover fa...

Should your son play fall baseball — or is this the time to step back, recover, and develop in a different way? It is one of the most common questions baseball families face at the end of a long summer and the answer is rarely the same for every player. In this episode of Dugout Dish, Andy and Keith walk through every option available to players and families heading into the fall season so you can make the most informed and most personalized decision for your son based on his health, his development needs, and where he is in the re...

Building a Smart Fall Baseball Schedule — Maximizing Recruiting Exposure While Protecting Your Arm - Ep. 179

The fall recruiting season is one of the most valuable and most mismanaged stretches of the entire college baseball calendar — and the families who approach it with a clear, intentional plan are the ones who come out of it with real momentum heading into the spring. In this episode of Dugout Dish, Andy and Keith break down everything you need to think about when building your son's fall baseball schedule so you can maximize his recruiting exposure, protect his health, and m...

August 1st is one of the most emotionally charged days in the college baseball recruiting calendar — the first day D1 coaches are allowed to reach out directly to recruits. For the families whose phones rang, it is a day of excitement and validation. For the majority of families whose phones did not ring, it can feel like a gut punch. In this episode of Dugout Dish, Andy and Keith speak directly to the players and families sitting in silence after August 1st and give them the honest, grounded, and encouraging perspective they need to hear right now.

What does one of the Ivy League's sharpest pitching minds look for when recruiting a college pitcher — and how much does character matter alongside the physical tools? In this episode of Dugout Dish, Andy and Keith welcome back their first ever returning coaching guest, Yale University Pitching Coach Erik Supplee, for a wide ranging conversation about pitching, the college baseball landscape, and what it genuinely takes for a high school pitcher to make the jump to the college level at one of the most demanding academic and athletic environments in the country.

What we cover:

Most baseball parents have no idea that college coaches are evaluating them just as closely as they are evaluating their son. In this episode of Dugout Dish, Andy and Keith pull back the curtain on some of the most damaging parent behavior they have witnessed at games and tournaments over the years, how college coaches process what they see in the stands, and why the way a parent behaves at a recruiting event can quietly and permanently damage their son's chances of getting an offer.

What we cover:

What Andy and Ke...

Every baseball player works hard. Every baseball family sacrifices. But hard work and sacrifice alone do not guarantee a college roster spot — and that is one of the most important truths in the entire recruiting process. In this episode of Dugout Dish, Andy and Keith have one of their most honest conversations yet about the difference between feeling entitled to play college baseball and understanding it is a privilege that only 7 to 8 percent of high school seniors will ever earn.

What we cover:

Coach Kazlausky shares insights from his time in the Air Force, what he values in student-athletes, and the mission that drives Air Force Baseball. We also dive into the transfer portal, the challenges and rewards of coaching college baseball, and how he defines success both on and off the field.

New episodes of Dugout Dish drop every week. Subscribe so you never miss recruiting and development intel that could change your player's future.

Gloves - www.kaligloves.com

Diamond College Showcase Camps - www.diamondcollegeshowcase.com

Team Match Sports - www.t...

Mid-Summer Recruiting Reflection — How to Read the Market & Make the Most of What's Left | EMD Shorts

The middle of summer is one of the most critical and most overlooked moments in the college baseball recruiting process. Families are deep in tournament season, moving from event to event, and very few stop to honestly assess where their recruitment actually stands. In this episode of Dugout Dish, Andy and Keith walk you through exactly how to pause, reflect, and use what you know right now to maximize the rest of your summer and head into the fall in...

The talk across college baseball recruiting circles in the summer of 2026 is that this is the hardest cycle high school recruits have ever faced — but is the data actually backing that up? In this episode of Dugout Dish, Andy and Keith take a hard look at the conventional wisdom, push back on the narrative, and explain why the perception of a harder recruiting environment has grown significantly faster than the reality. They also break down one of the most critical and misunderstood concepts in the entire recruiting process — the difference between potential and production — and what each one means for ge...

In this episode, we talk about how the recruiting process should be about the process of eliminating options to find the the right fit - and not the process of accumulation of offers. At some point in your process you will need to start to eliminate the programs that are not a fit so that you can make the best decision for you to go to college and play baseball.

New episodes of Dugout Dish drop every week. Subscribe so you never miss recruiting and development intel that could change your player's future.

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The NCAA has officially passed the new 5-for-5 age based eligibility model — and the impact on college baseball recruiting, roster construction, and the pathways players take to get to the next level is enormous. In this episode of Dugout Dish, Andy and Keith break down exactly what the new rule says, how it works in practice, and what every player and family at every level of the process needs to understand right now.

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Major League Baseball has proposed some of the most significant draft changes in decades as part of the new collective bargaining agreement negotiations — and the impact on college baseball, high school recruiting, and minor league baseball could be enormous. In this episode of Dugout Dish, Andy and Keith break down exactly what MLB is proposing, why it matters, and what they believe is realistically going to happen as MLB and the MLBPA continue to negotiate.

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The 2026 college baseball season has officially come to a close with Oklahoma claiming the national championship. In this episode of Dugout Dish, Andy and Keith sit down to discuss their biggest takeaways from the season and break down exactly how each one connects to the recruiting process for high school players and families navigating it right now.

What we cover:

In this episode, we talk about what you should be doing to take ownership of your recruiting process. We talk about the time and effort it takes to be an active participant in your process with emails, videos, social media posts, and more. We also talk about doing more than the bare minimum and giving yourself the best chance to get in front of the coaches and program you are interested in.

New episodes of Dugout Dish drop every week. Subscribe so you never miss recruiting and development intel that could change your player's future.

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*Re-release of ep. 61*

The transfer portal has made it easier than ever to leave a program — but the families who navigate the recruiting process best are the ones who make the right decision the first time and never need it. We are rereleasing this conversation with St. John's University Pitching Coach George Brown from 2024 because it is as relevant today as the day we recorded it — and with St. John's coming off a super regional appearance in 2026, Coach Brown's insights on building the right culture and making the right recruiting decisions have never felt more time...

The NCAA has reworked the language surrounding the proposed 5-for-5 eligibility rule — and the clarification around when the eligibility clock starts is an important update every baseball family needs to understand. In this episode of Dugout Dish, EMD Baseball breaks down exactly what changed, why it matters, and how the updated language could directly benefit players depending on when their birthday falls.

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2026 College World Series Preview — CWS Picks, Super Regional Recap & the All-SEC Bracket - Ep. 171

The 2026 College World Series field is set and Omaha is ready. In this episode of Dugout Dish, EMD Baseball breaks down every super regional result, reacts to the weekend's biggest surprises, and makes their full picks for the College World Series — from opening game predictions all the way to a champion.

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Arm injuries in youth and high school baseball are rising at an alarming rate — and the pitch count rules designed to prevent them may be doing less than we think. In this episode of Dugout Dish, EMD Baseball pulls back the curtain on why current pitch count guidelines at the youth and high school level are outdated, how college programs actually manage and protect their pitching staffs, and what the youth baseball community needs to prioritize to start reversing the trend of rising arm injuries in young players.

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2026 NCAA Super Regional Picks, Regional Recap & The Velocity Revolution Reshaping College Baseball - Ep. 170

Regional weekend is done and the road to Omaha runs through eight super regional matchups this weekend. In this episode of Dugout Dish, EMD Baseball recaps every regional result, makes their picks for all eight super regionals, and takes a deep dive into one of the defining stories of the 2026 NCAA Tournament — the velocity revolution happening across college baseball and what it means for hitters, defenders, and recruits at every level.

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The NCAA 5-for-5 eligibility vote has been moved to June — and with significant support behind it, college athletics may be on the verge of its biggest eligibility change in decades. In this episode of Dugout Dish, EMD Baseball gives you the latest update on exactly what the proposed rule says, when it would take effect, and what it means for every player, family, and program navigating college baseball right now.

What we cover:

• The latest update on the 5-for-5 vote — why it has been moved to June and how much support it currently has he...

The 2026 NCAA Baseball Tournament bracket is set and the EMD Baseball crew is breaking it all down. In this episode of Dugout Dish, we go region by region through all sixteen regionals, make our picks for who advances to the super regionals, and give our honest assessment of what the selection committee got right, where we have questions, and which programs got left out of the field of 64 that had no business going home.

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