This past weekend I had the opportunity to hang out with 70 men up in Cave Creek, AZ for a retreat. The organization is called UPI (Unlimited Potential Incorporated) and most of the guys are current or former professional baseball players. We encourage each other and talk about our struggles as husbands, fathers and leaders.…
Two weeks ago, my sons and I climbed Camelback Mountain with two other families. We love to go hiking and it is even better when we have some friends come along with us. It’s a great time to hang out and eventually like most things in our family, it turns into a competition. Camelback is…
The fly ball. It can be a pitcher’s best friend in a spacious ballpark or their worst nightmare if they have guys playing behind them who don’t have a clue. One of the biggest mistakes I see as a coach is when a player takes a bad angle to a fly ball. It happens much…
On this Independence Day weekend I thought it would be appropriate to acknowledge Rick Monday and his outstanding act of patriotism in April of 1976. I believe it is our duty as coaches to teach our players about being proud of the American flag and what it stands for. It was always one of my…
As promised in my last article I am going to talk about the proper way to get warmed up. Too many players go out to the field and start playing catch before they get their bodies stretched out. Some of it comes from youthful exuberance and the fact that some look at stretching as boring.…
I tell my pitchers this all the time- “You are going to be so good with your accuracy that your mom will let you and your friend play catch in your hallway.” I almost always receive the same response- laughter from the players and rebukes from the parents. As much as I want them to…
Being comfortable behind home plate is essential for a catcher. It is also very important to know that during the course of a game, catchers will be squatting in different positions depending on the situation. Listed below are the three main positions that we have found to be the most effective. Remember, the catcher is…
You may laugh at the title, but how many of you coaches have sat in the dugout and yelled “Throw the ball!” to your left fielder as he pump fakes the baseball like he’s Kurt Warner trying to draw the free safety away from Larry Fitzgerald. That’s right, every one of you. Typically the coach…
In our last newsletter we discussed sacrifice bunt fundamentals (click here to read). This week I will give you a great drill that you can incorporate into your next practice. Bunting isn’t looked upon as an exciting part of our game, so when doing the drill make sure to make it a competition and involve…
Some refer to it as “small ball” and incorporate sometimes into their gameplan. Others do away with it completely and would prefer to not take the bat out of the hitter’s hands. Regardless it seems more often than not that the art of the sacrifice bunt is becoming extinct in modern baseball. I work with…