Better Men, Better Ballplayers

95 - Frank Leoni: Mt. St. Mary’s University (MD)

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Bio

  • Current HC at Mt. St. Marys (MD)
  • Former HC at Marymount
    • four seasons of 20 wins or more
  • 2021 Atlantic East Conference Championship 
    • NCAA High Point Regional.
  • Atlantic East Coaching Staff of the Year award.
  • 6 years in a row won ABCA Academic Excellence
  • Former HC at William & Mary
    • averaged 28 victories a year with a top mark of 36-21 in 2008. 
  • 14 players were drafted by Major League Baseball clubs,
  • Former HC of Rhode Island
    • took the program from a two-win team in 1994 to back-to-back 30-win seasons by the end of his tenure
  • 2010 inductee into the Rhode Island Baseball Coaches Hall of Fame
  • 2015 Martha Vinyard Sharks (Futures Collegiate, now New England)- Co-Manager of the year, League Champs
  • Leoni has led three programs to a combined total of 596 wins
  • Servant leader and builds communities up!

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    Notes

    • Interviewed every returning player - get to know, thoughts on program
  • We do not want our guys to be devalued as a person!
  • Give each player the fair amount of attention, returning and new
  • Peer reviews at the end of the fall - survey the entire group of players and coaches
    • Rank each person according to our values (ACCGL)
    • Rank each position (hitters, position, starters, relievers, etc)
  • Pick cy young, mvp, rookie of the fall, and top 3 captains
  • ACCGL Core team values (values represented in the principles)
    • Meetings to talk about who they want to be?
  • How can you make core values more tangible?
  • Need to understand what is most important, before we have that conversation with the team
  • Team core principles (action statements)
    • Process before results, quality over quantity, everything with a purpose, always compete
  • Get better as a person and the results follow
  • Overall theme is servant leadership - servant mentality
  • Merit system to help quantify behaviors
    • Excel sheet for each player
  • Earn and lose points
  • Everything is tied to playing time
  • 7 or more points to be able to play in the game
  • 3 ways to earn points
    • Academic performance
  • Service hours (2 hours - 1pt)
  • Positive cultural experience
  • Lose points
    • Late
  • Bad grades
  • Bad behavior
  • Send a copy of the points to the team
  • Its about catching them when they do good! Gives kids opportunities to do positive.
  • Guys that do not play all the time, it gives them a value in a program
  • 7 days of service inspired by the book Leaders in the Locker Room
    • You need leadership in every level of program
  • 7 different team community service events - team split up between the 7 events, and all ages are part of a team as they plan, organize, and run event
  • Off season break up into 4 teams and compete in all non-baseball competitions
  • Teach about leadership during the competition - be ready for when adversity strikes
  • We are in a people business!
  • The more I have focused on culture and people the wins take care of themselves
  • X’s and O’s will only take you so far
  • If a player does not invite me to their wedding, I feel I had failed them
  • Culture through practice
    • Throwing progressions and players leading each other 
  • Skill work - baserunning
    • Conditioning through baseball work, not running poles
  • Hitting - swing practice and hitting practice
  • Team defense - 3 line pitching
  • Hitters - can we add value to that guy? 
  • Game changers - its how we play the game on the field
    • When we win game changers we usually win the game
  • Any 2K hit, rbi, Homeruns, leadoff batter, base hit bunts, HBP, positive team contributions
  • For every 5 GC they get stickers, 10 stickers for pitchers and they get pitcher BP
  • QPA - Quality plate appearances
  • End of every week in the spring we talk about the cool things we did and write on a cookie and put it in the jar
    • Bring the jar to the game and put it next to the helmets
  • Whatever you deem important you will get better
  • Email [email protected]
  • Twitter - @coachleoni, @msm_bsb

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