Youth Baseball and Beyond

High school baseball is a different experience from travel ball. In Part 1 of our two part episode, high school and travel ball coach Tom McGovern and I discuss several topics on how players can prepare for that transition and be ready to begin this new adventure.

00:00: Introduction

02:10: Thinking about high school before high school

04:45: A second natural break at 14u

06:05: Learn how to speak with a coach

07:25: Understanding the landscape of travel / club / feeder baseball

08:40: Becoming a part of your high school baseball community

11:45: How players can prep as youths to play in high school

17:35: Understanding high school roster construction

21:20: Wrap up

If you have any questions or show ideas, please leave a comment or email us at [email protected]. Be sure to like and follow so you’ll be notified each time we drop new content. Thanks for listening. We’ll see you at the diamond. Good bye.

Tryout season is just around the corner and it can be a stressful time for players and parents. In today’s episode, Chris Modrzejewski and I discuss what tryouts are like from a parent’s perspective.

We share how you and your child can prepare for the tryout process, how you can support your child if he gets cut, and what you can do in the offseason to help him prepare for a new chapter in his baseball career.

00:00 - Introduction

02:10 - Our own kids getting cut

03:30 - Being honest with yourself

04:45 - Metrics when evaluating your child

06:50 - Talking with your coach in-season

10:30 - Helping your child learn self-advocacy

12:40 - Execute the feedback

13:35 - Keeping your options open

14:50 - Trying out for the same organization

16:05 - Tryout fees

17:10 - Trying out with multiple organizations

19:15 - Be respectful of the announcement process

21:25 - Set a good example for your child

24:30 - Supporting your child after being cut

26:05 - Appropriate ways to ask for feedback

28:55 - Advice from a player

29:50 - Finishing the current season with class

30:55 - Offseason approach

33:35 - Wrap up

If you liked what you heard today, drop a comment and share what your tryout experiences have been like. Feel free to email us at [email protected] to suggest show ideas or to let us know what you think of this episode. Thanks for listening. We’ll see you at the diamond. Good bye.

When you coach long enough you experience some moments. Looking back, you undoubtedly encounter some fun times where you can only shake your head and laugh.

Today’s episode touches on the “beyond” portion of our podcast. Frequent contributor Chris Modrzejewski and I share some fun anecdotes in our first edition of Sports Stories.

00:00 - Introduction

01:10 - When you gotta go, you gotta go

02:05 - Juuuuuusssst a bit outside

05:55 - Off to Europe

08:00 - Checking in

09:55 - A missing group

11:45 - A player’s rant

13:20 - The last night in Italy

15:55 - Creating memories for your players

If you like what you heard make sure you like and follow to always be notified when new content drops. If you have an idea for an episode, drop us an email at [email protected]. Thanks for listening. We’ll see you at the diamond. Good bye.

When your team is in a slump, players and coaches can dread coming to practice. If what you’re coaching isn’t resonating, maybe it’s time to shake things up a little to reconnect with your team. 

Today’s episode provides a variety of ways you can add variety to your routine by introducing different ways for your players to improve their tactics and techniques, along with using unique motivational methods to help them once again find the joy of the game.

00:00 - Introduction

01:40 - Identifying when things aren’t clicking

02:35 - It’s not personal

03:00 - Help me help you

04:00 - People first - athletes second

06:10 - Coaching isn’t linear

08:05 - Improving tactics and techniques

14:00 - Breaking up your routine

17:10 - Remembering moments, not scores

18:25 - Ace of the Game

21:40 - Game day award tally

23:20 - Helmet stickers & point system

26:40 - I scream you scream we all scream for ice cream

29:10 - Connections with players

Be sure to like and follow to always be notified when new content drops. If you have a show idea, email us at [email protected] and we’ll be in touch to discuss your thoughts and even possibly have you join us as a guest. Thanks for listening. We’ll see you at the diamond. Good bye.

Today’s episode discusses a series of recent interactions between a dad and a coach. Dad felt the coach showed clear favoritism towards his son. The coach didn’t think it was appropriate for the dad to express his opinion.

Who was right and who was wrong? Find out what happened and learn about effective communication techniques both dad and coach could have used to engage in constructive dialogue.

00:00 - Introduction

01:35 - Setting the scene

02:35 - Parent initiates communication with the coach

03:10 - Dad’s mistakes explained

04:15 - Using effective communication techniques

05:30 - Sample of an effective email to the coach

06:15 - Improvements the coach could have made

06:50 - What happened in Game 4?

07:30 - Post game events

08:25 - Parents don’t lose the right to ask questions because they didn’t volunteer

10:00 - Move players around in the batting order to help the develop

12:15 - My way or the highway 

13:20 - A better approach

14:25 - Free template to organize your game day roster

14:50 - Recap

Be sure to like and follow us on whichever platform you’re using to listen to our podcast. We’d love to hear from you. Please email us at [email protected] with your thoughts or to suggest a podcast topic. We’ll see you at the diamond!!

While walking by a house league practice the other day I became sad when I saw a coach having his players in a single-file line while hitting ground balls to one player at a time. I saw that and wanted to rush out there and offer a few tips to that coach.

That’s where this episode comes in. In today’s mid-inning broadcast I share why the infamous ground ball line is bad and offer several options on how that coach could have improved his practice INSTANTLY by making it more effective and fun without needing any more equipment.

00:00: Introduction

01:35: Setting the scene

02:45: Explaining the inefficiencies

03:55: Effects of players standing around

04:55: Dead air

06:15: Instant improvement #1

07:30: Instant improvement #2

08:30: Instant improvement #3

09:15: Using proximity to build connections with players

10:55: Instant improvement #4

12:10: Instant improvement #5

13:50: Increase your efficiency by 400% in < 3 minutes

15:55: Other options with a hitting net

16:20: Keep in contact with our podcast

We’d love to hear from you. Please email us at [email protected] to leave comments or offer up a show idea or two. Be sure to like and follow wherever you’re hearing out podcast to be notified every time new content drops. We’ll see you at the diamond.

Today’s Mid-Inning episode extends our discussion from our earlier “Transitioning From House Ball to Travel Ball” broadcast.

While Coach Chris Modrzejewski and I covered a variety of topics in that episode, we didn’t touch on playing time. 

Today I share how playing time regulations and expectations differ once you enter the travel ball world.

00:00: Introduction to our mid-inning episode

02:00: Explaining house ball playing time rules

03:30: Travel ball playing time rules

04:45: Ensuring competitive balance

06:25: Do tourneys regulate playing time?

06:55: Discuss organizational playing time philosophies

07:40: Pros and cons to the different sets of regulations

10:00: Wrapping up the episode

Please hit that follow button to get notified each time new content drops. We’d love to hear from you, so if you have any comments or want to suggest a topic for a future episode, please email us at [email protected]. Thanks for listening. We’ll see you at the diamond.

Look in any dugout and you’ll see thousands of dollars worth of equipment. Is it all really necessary? In today’s episode, Chris Modrzejewski and I break down the different pieces of equipment, important restrictions to know, and how you can save money and still get quality gear that’s right for you player.

00:00 - Introduction

01:40 - Bats

03:45 - Drop restrictions by age

05:00 - USA vs USSSA bats

06:05 - Importance of bat size

07:10 - Alloy vs composite bats

09:50 - One-piece vs two-piece bats

11:50 - How to save money when buying bats

16:15 - Fielding gloves

18:30 - Saving money when buying gloves

19:15 - Characteristics of a proper glove

22:00 - Taking care of a glove

23:15 - Catcher’s gear

26:40 - NOCSAE certification for high school

27:45 - Footwear

30:45 - Miscellaneous gear

36:20 - Episode review

You can click on this link to go to Sideline Swap, an online marketplace for used equipment. https://sidelineswap.com/

Drop a comment on what you thought on today’s episode. Click that like and follow buttons to always be notified when new content drops. You can also email the show at [email protected]. Thanks for listening. We’ll see you at the diamond.

Setting your tournament pitching rotation, defensive lineup, and batting order requires some foresight and thought to place your team in the best position to succeed. How you choose your pool play roster will greatly impact your bracket game play. Join us as we share our thoughts on how to prepare your team for a tournament.

00:00 - Introduction

02:15 - Pool play pitching rotation

06:10 - Playoff pitching rotation

06:55 - When to use your #1 starter & #1 reliever

10:20 - Using your league play pitching rotation to strengthen your tournament potential

12:30 - Defensive setup

13:45 - In-game communication with players 

17:45 - Tournament batting order philosophies

20:40 - Parent & player communication regarding lineup philosophy

23:10 - Keeping a fluid lineup

27:55 - Wrap up

In this episode we discussed using a Baller Board to facilitate in-game lineup and position changes with our players. You can use this link (http://www.ballerboards.com) to check out their products from their standard models to custom designs for your program.

Email us at [email protected] to share your thoughts about this episode or to suggest a topic for a future broadcast. Thanks for listening. We’ll see you at the diamond. Good bye.

Preparing your game lineup isn’t as simple as just writing down names on a piece of paper. Having a different approach between league games and tournament games allows you to develop your players to be ready in high leverage situations while preparing your team for long-term success.

00:00: Introduction

01:35: Using league play for player development

06:00: Letting go of your ego for successful failures

07:20: Getting lost in the moment

09:15: Organizational emphasis

10:40: Making purposeful mistakes

12:25: Do purposeful mistakes harm the development of others?

15:40: Why use league play to structure a tournament pitching rotation

18:00: Planning your weekly pitching rotation

22:30: Structuring your season schedule

27:15: How to stay in touch with the podcast

Leave a comment below to let us know your thoughts on today’s episode. Click on the follow button to be notified when new content drops and feel free to email us at [email protected] with any comments or to suggest a show topic that’s important to you. Thanks for listening.