their players, especially pitchers, and stay in close contact with the coaches back home.

At UVA, I can't recall a player who was injured other than in a freak play; a few pitchers might have aggravated something and been shut down proactively, but I have never seen one of them pushed by a coach -- if anything, it's the exact opposite. If they have any doubts about a pitcher, they'll shut him down and send him home before risking injury. Both leagues can pull from lower leagues to get players for later in the season, whether the players had to go home early because their schools start classes early, or there are health concerns.

It's great that VT is now getting incoming freshmen into the lower leagues like the Cal Ripken and Futures Leagues. That experience is invaluable. I remember seeing Nick Biddison and Kevin Madden play the summer before their freshman year at VT and I think it definitely helped both of them. Especially with confidence -- they were able to see over the course of a summer that they were at least as good as a lot of players who were rising juniors and seniors at D1 programs.