Better Men, Better Ballplayers

Better Men, Better Ballplayers

By Trey CobbSportsHealth & FitnessMental HealthEducationSelf-ImprovementBaseball
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Better Men, Better Ballplayers episodes

  • 103: Tom Griffin - Carson Newman University

    Bio

    • HC Carson Newman University
  • Over 18 years guiding the Eagles, the New Jersey-native has coached five Major League Baseball Draft Picks and 22 total professional players. 
  •  38 players have earned All-SAC honors, 15 have been named to all-region teams and seven have taken home All-American honors.
  • Griffin is considered one of the premier catching minds in the game authoring an instructional catching baseball video, "Catch It, Block It, Throw It" 
  • featured speaker at the American Baseball Coaches Association convention in Orlando, Florida in 2007 and Anaheim, California in 2012.
  • He has compiled an overall record of 421-321 and a conference record of 187-165 at Carson Newman.
  •  He is 605-489-2 in 30 seasons as a college baseball coach. (1 year in high school)
  • Griffin, ranked second among active SAC coaches, becomes the 37th active skipper in Division II to win 600 games as a head coach

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    Notes

    • Am I getting better at communicating?
  • Am I getting better at helping the players get better?
  • There is a greater purpose than the wins and losses
  • The purpose in coaching, and it helps us reflect
  • Coaches have a ton of content to be able to reflect and learn from so much of that good content
  • Help run camps!
  • This is more than just camp, this is lesson in life and how to play the game the right way
  • Be a constant learner
  • Learning when to say things
  • Find out about your kids and what makes them tick
  • Learn to communicate with kids either as a group or individually
  • Have a feel, common sense, street awareness
  • How do we get instincts?
    • Experience, have awareness of what is happening, watching the game,
  • Variety in our training
  • Different drills create athlete as catcher
  • The body get used to the training it is under
  • Catchers Gear only comes off when they hit
  • Ask our catchers how their legs are train accordingly. This is after you get to know them so you know who to push and who to put the brakes on
  • Different stances during each commercials
  • Nothing better than catching bullpens for a catcher
  • Top Gun competition - different test for every aspect of competition
  • The more you can have some competition for receiving, blocking, throwing
  • Spending more time on hitting might not allow you to get in the lineup
  • Working on balls out of the zone to learn how to handle it. 
    • Gives the pitcher more confidence
  • Keeps the run game in order
  • Dry work, shadow drills, specific area, simple to complex
  • Pushup to catch - help the body organize it and help when the skill is les complex
  • Training needs to be a higher level than the game so the game becomes easier
  • Visual training, verbal training, and have a lot of tools in the toolbox to help kids get better
  • We are teachers trying to get players from point a to point b
  • We all have opinions and no one is wrong
  • If i am passionate about something and i can get my players to buy in then do it!! 
  • Skid mark on a movement object
  • Listen to the umpire (quit moving)
  • Its got to be something you believe and you are passionate about it and what works for you
  • What works for you!
  • You have to have some core principles
  • When you go shopping, bring a small cart
  • The key is getting the players to buy into what you are teaching
  • Servant hearts - when we develop our catcher we need to develop leaders!
  • The catching position is the leadership position
  • Pitching calling, umpire relationship, leading pitching staff/team relationships, 
  • Classroom, video, we talk about it, show examples of leadership
  • If we don’t have them, we need to learn them
  • What are the traits of a good leader?
    • Teach, talk, and practice it!
  • Get feedback when they do it!!
  • Remind them of the time we missed it
  • Specific feedback 
  • Intentional about finding wins everyday!!
  • Pick up on things from a recruit during a visit and how they handle conversation and speak to parents
  • Can we change this mans life?? Why not us??
  • Never forget where your heart is and what your purpose is 
  • Need someone to tell you the right thing and hold you accountable
  • Need some sort of pitt stop and check in to slow it down and take moments to spend time with someone to make sure you are 
  • Any relationship starts with HELLO!
  • We don’t come to watch game, we come to learn!
  • Life is about relationships and learning from others!
  • You gotta see everything 
    • Bullpens to outfield - catch the good and catch the bad - want kids to know they are always being watch - everything matters
  • Stretching, weight room - i need to evaluate the player to know you are going to our guy
  • Want players to take ownership of that eventually
  • 90% is being encouraging and 10% is correcting and holding the standard
  • Practice variety - plan it like the game (from offense to defense)
  • Baserunning, team defense, batting practice
  • Creating mass hysteria!!! Help make them make decisions in those chaotic times
  • Be a constant learner
  • Find a mentor
  • Find a servant heart
  • Help the game grow
  • We want a generational kid!
  • Program built on developing the generational player
  • https://catchblockthrowit.com/
  •  
    • 1 hr 21 min
  • 102 - Ryan McGinnis: Kimberly HS (WI)

    Bio 

    • Current HC and AD Kimberly High School  (WI)
  • Former HC at Oshkosh North 
  • Former AC at Xavier University (OH)
  • His teams have won 9 FVA - Fox Valley Association Conference championships 
    • First ever baseball Conference championship at Oshkosh North 2005
  • 9 sectional championships at Kimberly
  • two state championships at Kimberly (2007, 2017)
    • Runner up in 2008, 2014, 2015
  • Over thirty players have garnered Academic All-State honors
  • Served on the Wisconsin Baseball Coaches Association’s (WBCA) Executive Board from 2009-2015 and was the President for two years
  • 2022 American Baseball Coaches Association’s (ABCA) Ethics Awards Winner
  • ABCA National Convention speaker
  • District Coach of the Year three times
  • WI State Coach of the Year twice
  • ABCA’s Regional Coach of the Year twice
  • Former USA Baseball staff member 

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    Note

    • Unity council - group of guys once every 3 weeks in fall to winter, once a week after 1st of year
      • Returning varsity guys that choose to get more of their experience 
  • More reflective, more leadership skills, 
  • Players own it!
  • Staff has to hold council accountable
  • What do we want to do? Experiences
  • Its more than baseball!
  • You need to have both, quality school/people and quality baseball experience
  • A ballplayer is also a man!!
  • It is the competitive environment that we bring to the program
  • Attitude of gratitude - we do it everyday so we live it!!
  • When you watch video you have to say good first, before you say anything critical
  • Who you are as a player you need to overcome as a coach.
  • Everything we do in practice is aligned and should make sense. 
    • Being a champion, being a ballplayer - you are a grinder, you take championship reps 
  • Be your own best coach - know yourself, take your reps, and know what you need
  • The game slows down when you know what your doing
  • Pressure happens when you don’t know what’s happening
  • Food is a great barrier breaker
  • Get on the same store, same section, same shelf, same book, same chapter, same page, same line, same word
  • Common vocab - what does it mean to “hustle”
  • A whole number of words - give them the definition and what it means to us
  • Unity council create core values each year
  • This is your definition of ___ do you want to be apart of this?
  • Its not you, its your behavior
  • You have to be good when you don’t feel great. It is consistency!
  • We can have fun without looking in the other dugout
  • When the shampoo is rinsed out, its time to move on (good or bad)
  • Blue Collar shirts!!! 
  • Each core value becomes a day, so we make it part of what we do
  • During throwing we do and talk to kids about the person
  • This guy listens, this really is our class
  • My goal is that every single day is to make you want to be here!
  • Learned in practice, didn’t learn, 
  • Defensive checklist - ownership of what we need to work on
  • Live, what question, who do you feel exhibited, who is not exhibiting it, 
  • Defining arm soreness - scale of 1-5 and be clear so we can help your arm so we can use it
    • Helps us support the kid and becomes more positive
  • Anything we can do to help build a positive relationship, we need to do
  • When we are here, this is sacred time, it is special, and we don’t want anything to get in the way of it
  • Am I practicing what I preach?
  • There is part of practice for your personal development and parts that are team development
  • Don’t have an identity crisis - you need to know who you are, and help me understand you better
  • Here is how we improve certain metrics - 
    • How do those metrics help me be a better player
  • Credible info for college coach to get recruited
  • What is the best fit? Checklist for what you value?
  • Excited about, looking forward to, and worried about
  • If you are courageous enough to put signs down, then you better be courageous enough to make a mistake
  • Cell phone - 920-570-3369
  • Its is the process, it is the journey that is the heart of what we do
  • Never should we anchor
    • 1 hr 21 min
  • 101: Chas Pippitt - Baseball Rebellion

    Bio 

     

    Chas Pippitt is the founder of Baseball Rebellion and creator of the Baseball Rebellion Hitting Methodology. A combination of his unique ability to breakdown the swing to hitters of all ages and his understanding of the importance of technology in training, Chas has amassed over 25,000 one-on-one lessons during his career. Chas has aided in the development of hundreds of travel ball all-stars, dozens of scholarship-level college athletes, and 25 MLB draft picks. In addition to his in person training, Chas does remote training with elite high school, college, and professional baseball players and fly in training with nationally recognized college programs.

     

    Chas has also invented four hitting products, the Launch Angle Tee, the Drive Developer, the Rebel’s Rack, Rack Bat, and the Bat Drag Buster, currently used in all 50 states and internationally in over 12 countries. When he’s not doing lessons or working on new products, Chas is writing and developing content for www.baseballrebellion.com and its social media pages, and author of “Learn the Turn.” 

     

    Notes 

    • Technology can bring more accountability to the coach
  • What the teacher knows fails in comparison to what the student does
  • Not everything I say will work for every player
  • If you are not measuring what you player is doing you are stealing from them
  • Restaurants use thermometer to make sure chicken is not under cooked, use your phone, pocket radar, sensor, pitch ball
  • Put money back in the program to help your players
  • 10-15 degree hard they hit 800 as a team (reward the window)
  • Style of hit, style of swing can be built with hit trax to where the defenders will be in a game
  • We train to hit the ball where defenders are not, hit the ball harder, and pull the ball in the air straight (no hook)
  • Rotational skill acquisition
  • Turn faster with good posture, vision
  • Train from the great optimal level so when you go sub optimal it is easier
  • Harder more often, pull the ball more in the air, turn faster
  • Turn faster (chest to camera to away from camera, or how fast barrel goes from start to contact
  • “Proving improvement”
  • Not all players have the time. They have 1 game to get 1 at bat, and then 2, and then 3.
  • It doesn’t matter what I think of them, it matters how the players USES them (not understand, but use)
  • Work while you wait
  • If you assume just cause the player plays at a high level we are doing a player a disservice
  • Associate speed with hitting, not getting a hit with hitting
  • You can’t control getting a hit
  • Give yourself the best chance to turn fast with balance on time while you look at the ball
  • Confidence comes from trusting your preparation
  • A turn that they can control 
  • Elevate the floor of their performance, anyone can hit a ball hard once a while
  • You don’t have anxiety of the history of past performances, but excitement for the task at hand from the training you went through
  • Know the rotational movements - Posture, balance, hip hinge, 
  • Flare backside - stand up during turn, and head going forward
  • Assess and address
  • Every player benefits from practicing rotational movements
  • Disciplined through rules of rotation
  • Look fast and delay the turn to hit off speed (work on hesitating turn)
  • When they ask how to hit the off speed, they are ready to hit the off speed
  • The player is searching for feels that feel good 
  • A movement solution that can work when he feels broken
  • He is the guy in the arena, and what works for him is great
  • You can apply rules of rotation to any swing
  • Maximize the opportunity. 
  • Better posture, vision and timing
  • Game sense for vision testing
  • Head lamp swinging - head lamp and keep head on ball
  • Rack turns with multiple people on both sides, “Waterfall turns”
  • Work on rotational work like we think of sprint work and weightlighting
  • Contact Chas at https://baseballrebellion.com/
  •  
    • 1 hr 44 min
  • 100 - Chan Brown: Parkview HS (GA)

    Bio

     

    • 19th year at Parkview HS (GA) 18th as HC
  • Former HC at Elbert County HS and  AC Northwest Whitfield HS
  • 2018 HOF class of the GA Dugout Club
  • GA Dugouts Club Ethics Award winner in 2021
  • In his tenure at Parkview the Panthers have:
    • 3 national championships (2012, 2015, and 2018)
  • 6 GA state championships
  • 12 regional championships
  • 14 guys drafted since he has been at Parkview
  • Over 200 players in college since he has been HC at Parkview

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    Notes

    • Travel program starts at 8 and ends at 14 
      • 12 weeks with each team - 6 offense and 6 defense to train coaches and players
  • August - july 1
  • Dad coach with paid assistant that goes to practice with them
  • 11U and 12U paid HC and AC
  • Mostly parkview kids
  • Helps train the parents 
  • Learning the terminology 
  • Develop arm strength 
    • Educating and taking care of your arm
  • Defensive series taught to all ages 
  • 10-13u practice at least 1 practice together
  • Blend a family atmosphere because they will eventually be on the same team working to win a state championship
  • Parent meeting with the tradition, expectation, ladder system (freshman taking spot of sophomore and building their expectations).
  • Head coaches only meeting to set expectations
  • All coaches meeting to set expectations
  • Baseball class that gets all baseball guys 1:30-3:30 everyday
    • Weightroom, speed and agility, leadership class
  • Be a great person, great student, great teammate, and the player will take care of itself
  • Leadership class
    • Every wednesday and go into meeting room
  • Hour-hour half
  • 2022 seniors is first class to get class all 4 years
  • Book study
  • Discussion from each class member, break up into different classes
  • Seniors took ownership of what they want out of the class/team
  • During season do NG3 - mentor program (no coaches)
  • Every 2 weeks we meet with each class and air out and see what is going on
  • Player of the day and get them to talk in front of people (1 or 2 depending on schedule)
    • If you get POD you have to speak about someone who made an impact in their life or a situation that made an impact on them
  • Everyday first hour and 45 minutes practiced together (pre practice bunt and mechanic work, stretch and warm up, and defensive skills)
  • Trust the process, look at the bigger picture (perspective)
  • Consistency from all the levels to hear the same message
  • We take what is there and work with it
  • You might think it is the best idea in the world but you have to tweek it to put it in your system
  • Infield throw around - each position has a bucket and make every throw during a game (charted)
  • White series - game like throws (on the clock) with catcher, infielder, and pitchers
  • Practices so fast that the game is slower
  • Everything we do we are trying to compete in a in game situation
  • 21 outs everyday
  • Intersquad to make them compete under pressure
  • Let your guys coach!
  • You are going to have good practices and bad practices, learn from them and see what the coaches had to do with it
  • The player part should be easy
  • Don’t get lost in this game, don’t let the scoreboard run you! 
  • Teach the game in life
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    •  

    1 hr 7 min
  • 99: Lance Spigner - Univ of Arkansas Rich Mountain

    Bio

    • Current HC at University of Arkansa Rich Mountain
      • In his first season (started the program brand new) he led the bucks to a Plains district championship runner up
  • 3rd season, recruited 2019-2020, played 2020-2021, getting ready to start “playing” year 2
  • 2021 ABCA Ethics Coaching award winner
  • Former Horatio HS HC (28 years) - top of 2A and bottom of 3A
    • HS Teacher of the year 
  • 3X ABCA region 6 COY
  • 18 conference championships
  • 10X regional championships
  • Final four in the state 14 times
  • 5X state champion
  • Over 500 WINS

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    Notes

    • When the people around you set the bar high and help you do the right thing the ethics come naturally
  • Coaching is a relationship game (umpires, coaches, working on the field)
  • Treat everyone with respect, and the way you want to be treated
  • You can’t fool players now
  • Everything now needs to be modeled or you won’t get the buy in
  • Fine line between leading by example and sometimes you need to speak up
    • If you don’t speak up you are condoning the behavior
  • Same player just a different version
  • 1 year of experience 30 times, or 30 years of experience
  • We take days off when it is time to take days off
  • Always thinking long run and we need to be fresh at the end
  • You need to be able to read you team and play for the end game
  • Variety is a big deal (the mind of an adolescent), get as much variety and competition as possible
  • Better bunt game - pair up players and compete with a better bunt game
  • Validation BP - swings in a round, if they get a hit, they have to validate it with a bunt and score a point
  • Turn 2 game - 2 deep on infield, everyone else at home on the tee, run full speed to 1b, infielders try to turn 2 before runner gets to 1b, 
  • Owes a payback - jumping jacks
  • Bridge activities - something that gets us to get to team d
    • Live baserunning - 3 lines, and front guy actually goes live
  • Push out or drag out - coach pitch
  • Team defense
    • Fundamental drill - 4 rounds, PFP, ground ball on infield (time on the clock), pickoff, ball to outfield
      • Added a catcher play and timed DP (6 rounds)
  • Add stop watch to outfield
  • Practice binder with game situation script
    • Game situation for team defense with live runners or vs air (time)
  • Team offense
    • Game situation scripts
      • Runners at each base, yell out situation of each pitch
  • Don’t train the same
    • Production point BP
      • 2 teams (could use more if you like) 
        • Rbi, dirtbags, runners - execute specific skills based on who they are
  • Barrel, Barrel, Wall, Wall, Barel, wall - wall is it needs to get to the wall or get over the wall
  • Train guy specifically to their skills
  • Pair up pitchers on different groups (nasty boys)
  • Horse bullpens as you match up pitchers
  • Technology makes it easier to compete!
    • 10% of your Max EV, with certain velo or spin rate
  • Test max EV off tee
  • Average EV on front toss, sitting down, over top, to imitate what they will see in the game
  • You have to think about the level of baseball you are talking about in terms of playing the short game
  • 28-32 ft from home plate painted on the field (kill bunt)
  • Deer point game
    • Rectangle painted 10 ft wide parellel to baseline and split it in half
      • Pitcher side bunt 10 points, foul line side 20 points, on the line 30 points
  • Goal is to make it through 10 rounds and should be 100 points minimum
  • Infield ball handling - 10 reps and raise ball in the air for winner
    • Around the waist
  • Around the knee
  • Figure 8
  • scissor
  • 25 ball drill - 2 groups, 90 ft apart, 25 in a row, and then go 25 run downs, miss it, start back at 0, 
  • STAR drill - throw the ball back and forth 25 times in a row, never turn your back to the baseball, and can’t throw it to your immediate left and right.  
  • Find a mentor or as many as you can to help mentor you
  • Reach out to coaches, and don’t be afraid to reach out, 
  • Lifelong learner - keep growing, keep learning
  • If you are not reading, you are missing out!!
  • Twitter - @spigner23 
  •  
    • 1 hr 15 min
  • 98 - Kyle Watson: Central HS (TX)

    Bio

    • Head Coach Central HS 6A (TX) - 2016
      • Began as AC (2014)
  • A team out of his district has played in last 4 state championships, 
  • nearly 100 wins in 6 years
  • AC Allen HS (biggest HS in Texas)
    • 3 rounds deep in state playoffs
  • Coached Kyler Murray
  • State football championship (7 kids on that team have taken NFL snaps)
  • HC Mount Enterprise (4 years)
    • Playoffs 3 out 4 years he was there
  • AC at Ballinger HS
    • Both years went to state playoff
  • Been a football coach at stop of his career
  • Manager of Colorado Springs Snow Sox in the Pecos League
    • 31-14 and won the division
  • The current Hitting coach for the Mat-Su Miners in the Alaskan League (Palmer, Alaska)
  • Pitching coach in the Texas Collegiate league for the Frisco Rough Riders
    • Covid cut short season
  • Twitter - @kylewatson_22
  • 903-522-2693

    •  

    Notes

    • I wish there was so much that I knew when I was a player, and I would have been so much better
  • Signed up for Brain Cain immersion 
  • Red light, yellow light, green light and what do we physically do when we are in those lights
  • What we need to do at the plate 
  • Ball games are won and lost in between the ears!
  • Watch a big league game tonight and watch why they step out of the box and do what they do
  • Baseball class all year long
    • Use classroom to show the WHY
  • Give them a paper, what are you going to do to let that go?  WRITE it down, and then practice it!!
  • I want to see it!! Every time something bad happens, we need to do something.
  • Before practice starts we do mental training and just listen, breath, and relax. Contain yourself, calm yourself down, and get back to green lights. 
  • We work on it in the weight room too!
  • Control your breathing
  • Different kids learn different ways
  • I love the game so much I can listen and learn from them so much
  • I want to continue to learn and be a student of the game, don’t ever stop learning
  • I want to see my kids be successful
  • I want them experience that type of success
  • My heart has laces on it!!
  • Pitching need to attack the zone
    • Ways to compete in the zone
  • We want quality PITCH (not strike)
  • Play horse with 9 hole net
  • I want them to know WHY we throw those pitches
  • Pitchers should have a good routine
    • Pre game to be ready for game time
  • Players can come up with their own routine
  • Type it up, laminate it, keep it with them
  • Hitters - routine and approach at the plate (mental approach)
    • Attack fastballs early in the count
  • Each of them have their approach
  • HS goal - hit a double in oppo gap
    • Pitch dictates 
  • Feeling things is one of the best things you can do to get better
  • Flat bats
    • Palm up through the ball, no rollover
  • Chart hard hit balls (self scout)
  • Not yelling instruction while guy is at the plate
  • Having the correct mindset and approach is where the at bat is won!!
  • A3P - after 3 pitches, what happens within first 3 pitches
  • 13 pitches of less each inning - we chart
  • Chart on the wall to see how their inning went
  • Tell him how confident we are with him to help with A3P, tell him how good our defense is to make a play for him (make 100% of the routine plays), throw the ball in a spot and do your job.
  • They don’t have to be the best baseball player, they just need to believe they are!
  • Practice planning
    • Arm care - bands and arms up
  • Mental break - lay down, listen, breath, and just be quiet
  • Brian cain daily dominator
  • Practice plan
  • Catch play
  • Fungo work
  • BP session
    • Cages - focus bats, flat bats, regular bats
  • On field
    • Bunt, hit and run, behind runner, score runner, firework show!!
  • Baserunning group
  • Defensive group
  • Cage group
  • Group guys based on all levels
  • Baserunning every other day and at the beginning of practice
    • Not every lead is good for everybody
  • Vaulting (jump) lead is not good for everyone, but others is sooooo good
  • Tight turns
  • Break up infield and outfield to teach/throw and then switch
  • Grass, dirt grass = 1st/3rd
  • Dirt, then grass, and side to side = 2 bases
  •  
  • 3 days a week year round 
    • In season - one light day, heavy day, and one recovery day
  • Be open and honest with trying new things, but if I don’t know why then we won’t do it
  • Give them a goal to allow them to be successful,
  • Find the best way for them to learn
  • Allowing kids to grow into their body before you make big time decisions to see where they may end up.
  • Show them that you care!! The things they learn from the basebal field is what they will take long after they are done playing
  • I want to get as many wedding invitations
  •  



    • 1 hr 34 min
  • 97 - Mitch Thompson: McLennan CC (TX)

    Bio

    • Current HC of McLennan CC, and national COY for D1 JUCO
  • 2021 D1 JUCO national champions
  • In 9 seasons he is 322-125 (.720) record, including a 168-64 (.724) conference mark
  •  three conference championships, three regional championships, a second-place finish at the 2015 JUCO World Series, and the 2021 NJCAA Division I Baseball National Championship
  • 16 MLB Draft picks including the top NJCAA MLB Draft Pick in America in three of the last four years
  • 3 consecutive years being ranked number 1 in NJCAA polls in some point of season
  • 108 players went on to play at four- year universities with 87 advancing to play at the NCAA Division 1 level of competition.
  • Baylor University (1995-2012) as hitting coach and recruiting coordinator
    • three Big 12 Conference titles, 12 NCAA Regional appearances, three Super Regional appearances and the 2005 College World Series.
  • Former Auburn AC under Hal Baird and made a WS appearance (1994)
  • Former Mississippi St GA, AC, and director of baseball ops under Ron Polk, making a WS appearance (1990)
  • Constant winner 
  • Loved by many

    • Notes

    • We really want the kids to know we care about them more than just baseball players
  • Its more than just baseball with us
  • Surround yourself with great people
  • Pour into your players 
  • Challenge of juco with only 1 or 2 years
  • Culture built every year -you will lose nearly half your team
  • Creating the idea we are trying to be excellent and what it means to grow up
  • Serving each other is big
  • Look for ways to encourage your teammate and encourage their efforts
  • Hold each other accountable - get to class, serve the team,
  • If we ask the player to serve each other we need to serve our players!!
  • No one is more important than the team
  • The only way for us to keep them here is that they love it here and we make it a great experience***
  • Juco allows for draft eligibility and still get a shot for their dream school
  • We expect that kid to make those base running plays but we don’t find ways to practice it often
    • Helps hold kids accountable
  • This is my year 32, this is my players year number 1 *****
  • I want performance
  • Approach is all about swinging at strikes and taking balls, pitch recognition
  • Help guys learn what they do well
  • Create ways for hitters to feel offensive! Have an approach of how to attack the pitcher
  • I don’t want my 9 hole guy to have the same approach as my 4 hole guy
  • Group hitters in their BP groups to work on what they need, and who they are
  • Get guys to be honest with themselves
  • Trust who you are and do what you do! BE YOU!!!
  • Get them to do what they do well, and maximize it for the team
  • Keep on the players
  • Set up situational BP
  • Its a mentality 
  • Control their emotions or their emotions will control them! I got to keep working on it too!!!
  • Breath!! Stick with the process
  • Great players - incredibly hardworking, passion to improve, know where they are going, knew who they were, and not concerned with others
  • Bring in guys with great competitors with great mentality you are going to win!
  • Do they love it or not? I don’t want to kick you to work hard
  • Seeing guys that have passion and are good teammates
  • Talent is not enough
  • Are you shaving everyday? How big are your feet? Catch them before they have a lot room to grow
  • Do they have more left in the tank?
  • You want to look young in the recruiting world, dream on me that I still have a lot left in the tank!
  • I want these players to tell my daughters they loved me!!
  • Twitter - @mthompy25

    •  

    1 hr
  • 96: John Fitzpatrick - Indianola HS (IA)

    Jon Fitzpatrick Notes

     

    Bio

      • Current Assistant AD and Head Baseball coach at Indianola High School in Indianola, Iowa
        • Starting 2nd season (30-11)
  • Below .500 year before
  • Kasey Blake, Brady Blake is junior
  • Former Head Baseball Coach at Martensdale St. Marys (public school)
    • 10 years, 12 years total 
  • Part of 88 win streak as an assistant coach (under Justin Dehmer)
  • 9 of 10 years as state finalist 
  • Ethan Westfall played professionally (Rockies)
  • 3rd year as a Mental performance coach
    • Author of Don’t Shoot the Young Buck: Living in the Present Moment
    • Worked with 3 college teams - Concordia, Central College, Simpson College
    • Multiple High school teams in all sports
    • Provides 1 on 1 coaching to many athletes

     

    Notes

    • The mental game is a separator
  • Brian Cain total immersion
  • Mental minute at the beginning of practice
    • Awareness, strategy, action
  • Build in routines during practice
  • Practice green lights, yellow lights, red lights
  • Release routine - physical, breath, self talk
  • Practice striking out
  • End of practice journal - well, better, how or start, stop, continue to reflect on themselves, the team.
  • Well, better, how for more of a weekly to kick start your week
  • Start, stop, continue post game to get us closer to where we want to be at the end of the year
  • Does the kids thinking align with the coaching staff thoughts 
  • APE - Attitude/Appearance, perspective/preparation, energy/effort
  • Be clark kent and turn into superman when you get to the ball field and change into your uniform. Journaling post game helps them turn back from Superman to clark kent
  • APE - stuffed animal to visualize APE
  • Signal lights 
    • Green lights - GO! When things are going smooth, 
  • Yellow lights - caution - pump the brakes or speed up through the light
  • Red light - STOP or you will crash
  • Recognize as respond to get back to green light
  • What does our body language look like in green lights?
  • How does that change when adversity hits?
  • Where is our focus?
  • What does our self talk?
    • Have kids write it down
  • Release language
    • Get big - take a deep breath on a focal point, 
  • GOOD
  • SO what!
  • First place to start with team was signal lights, then build routines based on those lights
  • Shadow bullpens - no ball, just visualize, and lost in a routine
  • Leadership drives culture, culture drives behavior, behavior leads to results (performance pathway)
  • Go from coach fed leadership, to player led leadership
  • Created 4 key principles to culture
    • PETE - process, energy/effort, trust, excellence
  • Define each of the principles
  • What you do on the daily basis will get you the results
  • Everything we talk about in baseball goes way beyond the field
  • Person, student, and player and what is “above the line” and define it, there is no grey area
  • “Was that above the line or below the line?” simple question to ask and hold each other accountable to
  • Carving out time every single day
  • What is driving your program? What are those things we are going to be really good at?
  • What are your core values? What do they look like on the field
  • Signal lights
  • Strategies to handle signal lights
  • 3-8 hitting chart - hard hit ball chart
    • Defined each number of hard hit and find out which numbers you hit when you are going good
  • What works best for you, and then get really good at that!
  • Pitchers first pitch % (60-67%), and quality innings
  • Figure out what pitcher is really good at and what they need to go with in certain situation
  • A3P - After 3 pitches is the ball in play or is it a 1-2 count?  
    • Pitching is about being efficient due to pitch counts
  • 2 out of 3 - 67% of at bats
  • Reverse engineer what we want from our program
    • Graduate
  • State championship
    • Get to the park
  • Win sub state
  • host/win a district
  • Win the conference
  • Go 1-0 today
  • Everyone has that same goal, how are you going to get there?  How are you going to separate yourself?
  • www.coachfitzpatrick.com
  • 515-339-5490
  • Twitter - @Fitzpatrick_MP
  •  
    • 1 hr 13 min
  • 95 - Frank Leoni: Mt. St. Mary’s University (MD)

    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!

    •  

    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
  • Twitter - @coachleoni, @msm_bsb

    •  

    1 hr 17 min
  • 94 - Clay Cox: Paris Junior College

    Bio

    • Current HC of Paris Junior CC (TX) (2016 - present)
      • Former assistant of the Dragons where in his 1st year as an assistant the Dragons doubled their win total and improved in every offensive category, including leading the conference in stolen bases.
  • Whie at the helm his team has been:
    • Teams rank in the top 10 for stolen bases multiple years
  • Teams continue to be ranked nationally in offensive and defensive categories each year
  • Played for regional championship 2021, longest streak in 30+ years
  • Won nearly 70% of his games
  • Sent over 50 guys D1
  • 2021 2nd in the nation with team GPA
  • Founder of Infield U - https://www.infieldu.com/
  • Former Texas Collegiate League with Brazos Valley Bombers
    • 4 straight TCL championships and broke several team records during his time as Skipper
  •  
  • Former AC of West Alabama University
    • Gulf South Conference regular season title and GSC tournament championship
  • School record for winning percentage in a year and win record
  • Multiple national known podcast guest, ABCA hot stove presenter
  • 2021 USA Baseball 17U task force, USA Baseball coaches clinician



    • Notes

     

    • Number 1 thing in our stolen base system is MINDSET!
      • Break the mindset in the fall
        • Have to go in the first 3 pitches
  • Same lead
  • What do you see off the pitcher
  • Sheet in the dugout that keeps home to plate, catcher pop times
  • Steal start times (78 ft), and then post what your numbers are, and then see the pitcher/catcher number
  • 3.35 + = automatic greenlight
  • DBR - dirt ball reads 
    • Read the angle of the ball, not just at contact
  • Pressure bursts pipes!!
  • Be careful when players make mistakes, allow them to fail forward
  • Coaches own mistakes and get out in front of it
  • This is a family, and we need to be in this together. 
  • OKG - Our Kind of Guys - if you are 99% then don’t come, you need to be 100% bought in
  • If you expect it from the kids, you will get it!! When you are upfront about these expectations, you are either get it or get out
  • 388 jucos in the country, 2nd in the nation with team GPA
  • We want to WIN at everything
  • Class attendance policy - if you miss you better let me know, if you do not whole team gets in trouble, if you tell me, you get in trouble
  • Leave phones on the bus when we go on the road to eat!
  • Take care of the little things, and the big things take care of themself
  • Team get togethers with family, cooking for the players
  • Gave the team more freedom to what they need to work on later in the year. Getting feedback to get ownership in their work
  • Weights, nutrition, and sleep to perform at the optimum level
  • 3 days a week year round in the weightroom
  • Listening to players to see what they need
  • Some teams can handle dyas off, and some teams cannot
  • Yoga 3 days a week from august to May have decreased naggin injuries
  • Post stretch just as important as pre stretch
  • You grind because you love it!
  • Work with each pitcher based on the innings/pitches to manage workload
  • FB/CU only for 1st 3 weeks of fall, and then work up through the fall
  • November active rest, put the ball down and just recover and work out
  • Break up pitchers on charts, and rotate people doing them so everyone knows how to do the chart
  • Give it to someone and say do the chart, not just say it, give it!
  • Hell week - welcome to JUCO!
    • First meeting classroom to walk through throwing program, prep step, and positioning, and then error analysis chart
  • Like to show video of the move before explaining it
  • Infeld group me! - send video to talk and get ready to work 
  • Offensive freedom with in your swing
  • We discuss mentality and approach, and decision making
  • In the fall I do not give them ABs to see who is coming in to watch film
  • Be the best version of YOU!! If you are a speed guy, don’t try to be a big Bomber!
  • 2 strike approach - we just will not go down. I am just as good with 2 strikes, that I am with 1
    • Everybody needs to choke up some
  • Expanding in and out, not up and down
  • MENTALITY
    • Step out of the box, pat chest, and coach gives it back
  • 2 strike war
    • Always a station, daily
  • Each rep focus on 2 strike approach
  • Lightening round
  • Weekly 2 strike war winner
  • 70% for year
  • We have to win 70% - anything that puts us on base, or throw another 2K pitch
  • Offensive find is when we do things that stand out (+ or -) 
  • % of gotta piece with 2K
  • Pass the stick - next man up
  • Refuse to lose (R2F)
  • Notecard on game points for next day game recap, and if player can’t see coach then he goes to player to give him the touch
  • Taking notes during the game and during recap it can go 20 minutes or it can go an hour 
  • I am here to develop the player
  • If we put it on a recap, we do not want to see it on another recap
  • The only thing that is forced on the infield is the hop on the prep step
  • Things are repped and so in depth that they end up doing things the way they should
  • Out of high school infielders are not getting through balls and pre pitch is bad
  • multi-million dollar house needs a great foundation. That prep pitch is your foundation
  • Infield report card
    • drills/groups based on where guys are struggling
  • Throwing program, ozzie and picks, drill work
  • Infielders can run itself if I cannot be there.
  • Try to relate things to the world so much, they will help off the field just as much on the field
  • We are truly a family
  • Put the person first!
  • 99% of them
  • Twitter @coachcox, or @infieldu 
  • Email on Paris JC website
    • 1 hr 23 min

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