Jake and Mark sit down with Nate Irving (@natebirving), hitting and game planning coach in the Reds' organization and former UVA catcher. Nate has put his data analytics knowledge to work in several capacities from Virginia to Chattanooga to Venezuela. We talk to Nate about personalization in player development and education, as well as the speed of the game at different levels. What skills help players thrive at every level of baseball? And what's it like being in the organization with budding stars like Elly De La Cruz and Christian Encarnacion-Strand?

(0:00) Intro 

(1:35) Nate's Baseball Journey 

(4:47) From Playing to Player Development 

(7:21) Competitiveness Shines at Every Level 

(8:40) Flow State and Mental Acuity in High Leverage Situations 

(11:22) Personalization of Player Education 

(13:02) The Sweet Spot of Personalization in Player Development 

(22:09) The Speed of the Game 

(25:00) Making the Game Feel Slow 

(30:59) Rapid Fire (questions and curveballs) 

(36:08) Closing Thoughts & Venezuela Winter Ball