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PG Select Baseball Festival | General | 8/31/2024

Becoming a Shouse-hold Name

Hannah Jo Groves

Photo: Carter Shouse (Perfect Game)

14-year-old Carter Shouse sat in the dugout, decked out in red Perfect Game gear watching batting practice. Even in the blistering, Florida heat, through Shouse’s sunglasses, you could see his excitement to be attending his first PG Select Festival.

“I knew it was gonna be a really cool experience coming into it,” Shouse said. “And then when I got here, it was just surreal.”

Though it was just Day 1, Shouse described all of the experiences he’d had already - from being in awe after walking into a room full of new PG gear, to hanging out with everyone in the player lounge and competing in a video game tournament of “EA Sports College Football 25,” all the way to coming out to the fields to warm up, take BP and do a home run derby.

In terms of how things were going up to that point, Shouse shared it was “probably the coolest experience I’ve had in my life so far.”

‘28 OF/LHP Carter Shouse (OH)#PGSelectFest @PG_OhioValley pic.twitter.com/kP6HAnVTJZ
— Perfect Game Select Festival (@PGSelectFest) August 31, 2024

Alongside Shouse at the 2024 14U Select Fest are players from across the country, some even from the Dominican Republic, Venezuela and Puerto Rico. Many are returning Select Fest players with high national rankings - and while Shouse’s ranking matches those of the returners among him, he’s still considered new on the scene.

Earlier this year, during the Prospect Gateway showcase, his elite performance shot his ranking all the way up to the No. 2 spot. In March, people were buzzing about “the Shouse kid from Ohio,” his velo and his talent. He won MVPitcher awards in the same month - one at the 2024 Houston Super Regional NIT and the other at the 2024 14U PG Mid-South Select Championship.

“It was definitely surprising to me to see everybody have their eyes on me after I came out of nowhere,” Shouse explained. “But I just worked my butt off and I wanted to see that progress. In March, I saw the progress coming my way and I just knew I couldn’t stop there.”

Now that he’s at the 2024 14U PG Select Fest down in Fort Myers, Florida, Shouse said his goal is to learn as much from the coaches and former MLB players as he can - but not just about mechanics and technique.

“I feel like the mental side of the game is the most important,” Shouse said. “You can be the biggest, strongest guy out there, but if you can’t control yourself mentally, it’s not gonna work out.”

As he gets settled in at Select Fest, Shouse said he wants the people he’s meeting or who may be hearing his name for the first time to know that he’s not just a good athlete.

“I’m a good ballplayer and a good human being. I’ll be there for anybody if they need it. Anybody here, if they need anything, I’ll always be there for them.”

PERFECTGAME.TV

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