IMG Academy Baseball: A Comprehensive Overview of Programs, Training, and Recent Controversies

IMG Academy, located in Bradenton, Florida, is a world-renowned boarding school specializing in sports education. Founded in 1978, the academy offers a unique environment where dedicated student-athletes can pursue their athletic dreams while receiving a high-quality academic education. The baseball program at IMG Academy is particularly notable, with a history of developing student-athletes who go on to compete at the collegiate and professional levels. However, recent controversies regarding tuition payments have also brought the academy under scrutiny. This article will explore the various facets of IMG Academy's baseball program, including its training methodologies, facilities, coaching staff, and the recent OFAC violation.

IMG Academy: An Overview

IMG Academy is a co-ed private boarding school located in Florida, USA. The school admits a limited number of students annually from a large pool of qualified applicants. The admissions process is tailored to meet the unique needs of student-athletes, offering rolling admissions with main enrollment periods in the Fall and Spring semesters. IMG Academy offers 19 AP courses and a wide range of subjects, including English, Math, Science, Social Studies, World Languages, Fine Arts, and Electives.

The Student-Athlete Tuition Package provides academic, athletic, and personal development support. While IMG Academy offers scholarships, it has limited financial aid available. The Women in Sports Committee Scholarship Program provides female student-athletes with more opportunities to pursue their dreams of playing collegiate sports.

Baseball Program Highlights

IMG Academy's baseball program offers student-athletes an environment to succeed. The program has a proven track record for guiding student-athletes to success as they compete at the highest levels. Over the last five years, the program has seen over 180 baseball student-athletes find their right college fit, including over 100 Division I placements.

IMG Academy’s baseball program offers a holistic methodology for developing the total student-athlete. Players gain access to state-of-the-art equipment and facilities, unmatched coaching, guidance, and support, along with a community filled with passion and motivation. The program prioritizes each student-athlete's development, ensuring growth is comprehensive yet individualized. Experienced coaches tailor their focus to each player's position, needs, goals, and current level.

Teams and Competition

IMG Academy baseball offers several teams to accommodate student-athletes at various levels in their development and high school playing careers:

National Team: Competes against some of the nation’s top programs and gains exposure at national tournaments. Many past National team student-athletes have committed to top D1 programs, while others have received draft interest from MLB organizations.
Varsity Teams: Compete against regional and national programs while also participating in regional tournaments.
Junior National Team: Provides 9th and 10th graders with an opportunity to compete at a high level against Varsity teams both locally and regionally. This team prepares student-athletes for the Varsity and National team through a full competition schedule, internal scrimmages, position-specific instruction, and developmental opportunities.
Junior Varsity and Freshman Teams: Provide student-athletes with the chance to develop and prepare for their progression towards the National, Varsity, and Junior National teams, exposing them to high-level skill development and training that builds a foundation for incremental growth opportunities.
Post-Graduate Teams: Competes against regional competition, including Division II and III, NAIA, and Junior Colleges. Showcase events allow student-athletes to gain collegiate and professional exposure. Post-graduates do not jeopardize their NCAA eligibility while preparing for their next steps at the collegiate level, with a dedicated college placement advisor and academic staff.

Training and Development

IMG Academy baseball student-athletes have access to coaches and trainers focused on more than their on-field performance, including vision training, strength & conditioning, nutrition, and sports medicine. The Athletic Development team integrates into the program's larger support system, ensuring that each student-athlete feels confident and prepared off the field, so they understand what it takes to succeed in college and in life.

Strength & Conditioning: Helps student-athletes reach their potential.
Sports Medicine: Educates and helps student-athletes keep their bodies healthy during demanding training and competition schedules.
Nutrition: Fuels student-athletes' bodies to meet their high-level lifestyles and sport demands.
Vision Training: Focuses on enhancing visual skills for improved performance.

Camps and Training Programs

IMG Academy offers various camps and training programs throughout the year:

Fall, Holiday, and Spring Training Camps: Combine small group training with position-based drills to complement offseason training and schedule availability. These camps offer the ideal option for any youth player, whether they’re aiming to compete in college, make their varsity team roster, or seek to learn from coaches with MLB experience.
Camp schedules may vary slightly by season, total participants, and availability. Campers receive their official schedule during camp check-in.
All Total Athlete and Game Changer programs include training specializations that can be changed for each week of the camp. Athletes seeking to hone their skills outside of sport-specific training will benefit from these unique training specializations.
Campers have a daily ESL course with weekly themes such as Inspiring People, Extreme Sports, the Endangered Planet, or Entrepreneurs. Instructors focus on communication skills, vocabulary development, conversation, short videos, grammar, and test preparation.

Coaching and Leadership

IMG Academy baseball camps are anchored by expert coaches with years of playing and coaching experience at the highest levels. Dan Simonds, a former collegiate and professional player and coach who most notably spent eight years as Miami University’s head coach, is a proven leader with a history of developing student-athletes to reach their full potential. Adam Eaton, Arizona Diamondbacks outfielder, and a student-athlete of Simonds at Miami, said, “Dan has a great understanding of what it takes to get to the next level.” Joe Girardi, former New York Yankees Manager, and former teammate of Simonds with the Cubs organization, said, “I’m excited about Dan…as Director of Baseball at IMG [Academy].”

Boarding Life and Support Systems

To maximize the IMG Academy experience, campers are encouraged to choose the boarding option and stay in a campus residence hall. Campers can make a roommate request, upgrade to a private room, or get assigned a roommate.

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The rec area between the residence halls includes a resort-style pool (with lifeguard), sand volleyball court, basketball courts, turf sport court, and table tennis.
All boarding campers can access breakfast, lunch, and dinner at The Servery, a buffet-style eatery.
Each residence hall has residential mentors, supervision, and curfews to ensure campers feel safe and supported.
IMG Academy partners with Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital (JHACH) to deliver health services on campus. JHACH provides on-site nurses to address any health issue that arises.
IMG Academy offers additional support and oversight for 8-9-year-old campers.

IMG Academy has four dorms designed to give student-athletes a comfortable place to call home. Each room has bunk beds, desks, closets, and private bathrooms. There are also study areas and laundry facilities, plus 24/7 Wi-Fi access throughout the campus. Student-athletes have an exceptional team of Residential Mentors who provide support in the dorms. The Health Services Center is staffed by nurses from Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital. IMG Academy’s airport transportation services provide reliable transportation to and from the campus.

Academics and Personal Development

IMG Academy is committed to academic excellence and personal development.

The school offers a wide range of subjects, including English, Math, Science, Social Studies, World Languages, Fine Arts, and Electives.
They provide specialized programs for students who want to improve their academic, athletic, and personal profiles before college. The High School Year program is designed to enhance academic and athletic skills, while the University Year program allows students to earn college credit through a partnership with the University of South Florida.
IMG offers students the chance to explore diverse educational paths that align with their interests and aspirations. Students can earn prestigious awards such as the Seal of Biliteracy by demonstrating proficiency in French or Spanish, indicating their bilingual competence.
IMG Academy provides students with a dedicated academic support team that is committed to helping them succeed. The team offers comprehensive support, including SAT/ACT preparation, accelerated college placement opportunities, and personal development guidance.

IMG Academy's on-campus community supports each student-athlete's goals, creating an environment supported by a 4:1 staff-to-student ratio.

Recent OFAC Violation

In February 2026, it was revealed that IMG Academy had violated the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) regulations. OFAC announced that on 89 occasions from 2019 to 2025, IMG Academy accepted tuition, lodging, and other payments from parents who were listed on OFAC’s Specially Designated Nationals list for providing financial support to a sanctioned Mexican drug trafficking organization, a violation of the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act.

According to the agreement, IMG Academy entered into yearly tuition contracts with third-party individuals and received payments - including wire transfers and credit card transactions - routed through non-designated third parties, primarily located in Mexico. If balances remained at the end of a school year, IMG Academy rolled them over to subsequent academic years.

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OFAC stated that the conduct was “not voluntarily self-disclosed” and that it had already initiated an investigation when the academy later notified authorities. The students attended the school between 2018 and 2023.

One parent enrolled their child at the academy for five years until the student-athlete graduated in spring 2023. The parents’ payment obligations to IMG Academy ranged from $47,026 for half a semester to $98,867 for a full academic year. The second parent enrolled their child into an academy program in July 2020 for two years until the student-athlete withdrew in June 2022. The parents’ payment obligations ranged from $100,549 to $102,235 for each academic year.

In a statement to The Athletic, IMG Academy said it didn’t have an OFAC sanctions compliance program in place to prevent, detect, and report the violations. The school said it therefore entered into tuition enrollment agreements and collected fees from individuals who were “unknowingly on OFAC’s Specially Designated Nationals” list. IMG Academy stated, “IMG Academy is committed to maintaining the highest standards of compliance and integrity in all aspects of our operations. Upon becoming aware of their status, we disclosed the matter to OFAC and fully cooperated with its investigation."

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