The tournament season has come to a close and we, as coaches are now starting the process of evaluating whether or not we are meeting or advancing toward our stated goals.

       The team was started when the boys were 10 years old.  The idea was to give an opportunity for them to play against better competition than the local little league games or Williamsport Tournaments. Players were selected who clearly had better talent than their peers and were given the challenge of pitting themselves against the very best players in the area. This meant a lot in terms of expectations of the players and parents. It meant adjusting to failure much more than they had already experienced by being the best player on their respective teams.

        As a pitcher, instead of facing 3 or 4 tough hitters in a lineup it would mean facing an entire lineup of "allstars". As a hitter it would mean facing an "allstar" pitcher for every inning rather than very rarely.   By facing this type of competition the players would be better prepared for school teams and whatever the future could hold for them. Indeed, they could become their personal best by playing against the best.

          As coaches and former players we set out to do our part, teaching  what we have learned over the years, and placing the team into competitive tournaments.  Throughout this time we continually asked the players to do their part.    Here is a very brief synopsis of what we asked of our players, it all came down to being properly prepared to compete in every game:

1. Please give every baseball game 2 hours of your full attention

        It should not have to be stated but 2 hours of full attention to a baseball game should be the desire of every player.  Coaches shouldn't have to ask this of the players. It should be expected from the players.  The dugout should not be a place to discuss sex, or Borat, or school gossip.  Teammates should not be criticized.  Coaches should not be second-guessed, regardless of the situation.

            The dugout should not be used for spitting contests or looking for candy or drinks by searching through other player's bags, while they are in the field.

          The on-deck batter should not be looking for his helmet, batting gloves, and his bat when the batter already has 2 strikes on him. On deck means on-deck. The player is watching the pitcher as he prepares, looking for some type of edge to use when it is his turn to bat.   Many games are won or lost PRIMARILY by MENTAL errors.  Mental errors start by nonsense in the dugout and not being prepared.

2.  Practice Like You Play

Whether it is practice before a game or a full team practice, players should use practice as a way to REINFORCE their skills. PRACTICE makes PERMANENT (a borrowed slogan from a parent).

      Warming up/playing catch, for a 13 year old, should not be an adventure. All of the players have the ability to make throws to their partner's chest, for short throws, and to be somewhere near the target, for long toss.  Warmups are not the time to practice knuckleballs or curves.  It is a time to prepare. 

  Just recently in the papers, A-Rod’s teammate, Doug Mientkiewicz, commented about the exceptional preparation that he sees before EVERY game.  Mientkiewicz has known Alex Rodriguez since childhood as a teammate and competitor.  Regardless of how A-Rod is hitting or the criticism that he is receiving, he prepares with the same intensity before every game.  He stretches, warms up, runs sprints, and takes BP so that he is fully prepared.  If he fails, as most good ballplayers do 7 out of 10 times, he has given it his best effort.  However it ends up, he starts the process all over the next day.  Whether it is for a 25 million dollar player or a committed 13 year old travel player, preparation and practice enable one to give their best effort.   Professional players do it for 162 games per year, arriving at the ballpark 5 hours before a game, just to prepare.  We ask for about 1hr-45min before the game to prepare, and 2 hours of game concentration.

            Admittedly we could have had more actual structured practice time but all of our players at this level have a basic set of skills that brought them this far. When we do have practices we expected a 100 percent effort DURING practice.

           I'll share a story about practice as told to me by a trainer at one of the local training facilities ..., a former minor league catcher…..

        When someone is drafted to the professional level they immediately get the gratification that they are among the best in the country.  They have placed themselves among the best of the best. This has been rightfully told to them all their lives and reinforced by getting drafted. They are the best players in their area.  Once they reach training camp they meet up with the "best" from other areas.

This particular catcher was in a group of 8 other "best" catchers in class A rookie camp working out with the pitchers.  Working out the pitchers simply involved catching them while they lined up and pitched.  8 pitching mounds, 8 home plates,  8 "best"pitchers, 8 "best"catchers, 8 pitching coaches

   As we all know, not all pitches will be perfect strikes, especially in rookie camp when the pitchers are all trying to overthrow and hit 95 on the radar gun. Pitches will be in the dirt, wild, etc.

             This particular player, again a catcher, noticed the catcher next to him taking a beating. He was in the dirt, going to his right and left, blocking pitches, etc., while nobody was looking or paying much attention.   The former minor league pro,( now a baseball trainer) scooped a few here and there but didn't really get into it since it was "just practice for the pitchers". "It didn't count".

            This guy went on to tell me that the playing ability of all 8 catchers was about the same. A few of them advanced. A few were released, but one went through the system very fast.  The player who advanced was the guy blocking those "pitches that didn't count" in the dirt.   He was giving a 100% effort when “it didn’t count”  That guys name was Jason Varitek.  So as it turned out, it did count. Somebody was always watching.

3. Have personal pride

About 1 year ago we posted a message about finishing a tournament with pride when we were already out of contention.

       There are times during a tournament when a team can no longer make it to the playoffs and must simply play for the pride of winning.  A good player ALWAYS wants to win. He doesn't loaf around, stop hustling, or start joking around in the dugout simply because a game "doesn't count".  It is times like that where character is revealed. How a player responds in those situations reveals how he will handle many difficult situations later. A college coach or scout watching a player may be looking to see how that player responds to a bad outing or an unwinnable situation. It could turn a maybe, into a yes or a definite no.  This type of pride comes from deep inside.  Either you have it or you don't.

Summary

       As we go into the late fall and winter, as coaches we have to decide if we have been effective in what we are trying to do. Overall we were satisfied most of the time but we had to repeat ourselves many, many, many times regarding our expectations from the players.  It is entirely possible that we as coaches are not connecting to the players. It is also possible that certain players do not want to be under our system and are being forced to play against their will, for whatever reason.

         Perhaps a school team, or a different travel team will give those players easier rules, which they may prefer.  It may also take another approach or a different stimulus to get them to perform at their personal best.

         As coaches we will change things to make sure that we get best effort out of the players. 

A few things will be very different. We started 4 years ago batting 11 players for the sake of making it easier to get guys into games. This year for the first time we started batting 10 or sometimes 9 but still got all of the players into the games, similar to little league, where everyone is promised to get at least 1 at bat and 3 innings in the field.

           That will change. We will bat 9 players, or MAYBE 10 if we feel it could help the team, or if playing time was earned by that player.   We will no longer be obligated to get a player into a game unless we feel it will help the team win AND the player has shown us that he is putting in the effort and concentration that we expect. That means showing up for a game and possibly not playing at all, similar to school games or other high level travel teams.  Players who consistently provide distractions, are not prepared and show no effort or concentration will be rewarded by not playing, at all.

            We realize that these types of conditions are not for everybody, after playing lifelong with the “promise to play” by just showing up.  As coaches we can respect your opinions but must do what is best for those players who put in the time and give their teammates the respect of giving their best effort on the field and in the dugout.  

        The coaches put a lot of effort into getting the team into competitive situations and are not getting a consistent collective effort on the part of some of the players.

        That being said, these are our plans/solutions for next year. If we don't feel that we can field a competitive team from within, or by recruiting additional players, then it is possible that we may no longer continue to compete as a team. It would be unfair for the players who want to advance their skills to be held back because they are not playing with a competitive team with the same goals. We will give those players the chance to find other teams and we, as coaches, will then become observant parents.

         We are putting things in the hands of the players.  Whether it is lifting weights, indoor training, speed school, core training, pitching training, hitting training, etc, it is the player’s responsibility to get themselves ready to compete.  Whether it be for the Angels, a school team or another travel team, it would only help.  It cannot be forced by the parents.  It has to be the player’s wish.

        If the players show us that they want to play at a high level, with full concentration while on the field, the coaches will provide the tournaments to show their skills. The coaches can even help organize training sessions, but the effort must be on the part of the player.