Great thorough response here. I would add one thing. At the end, the poster indicates, "there is not an argument to be made that it gets you ready for college better than the top club programs". From a performance standpoint, I agree. But from a lifestyle standpoint, HS ball mimics collegiate ball way more than travel ball ever can. This means daily workouts; get some work in before class in the morning, head out to the field/fieldhouse after classes, midweek game/scrimmages, double headers most weekends. The college schedule can be a shock to many strong players who do not embrace the grind of their HS years. Taking a year off to have fun will definitely cause most college coaches to be concerned but you can go get that feedback from your prospective coach. But have fun now and grind next year, that's the dangerous part, you can't just throw the love switch on and off. Good luck!