Hi,

Over the next 9 days, as we wait for snow to melt, fields to dry and Spring to finally appear, I will make a daily post on the topic of "succeeding" in youth baseball.  

Here is Post #1

Two Paths to Success

 

I strongly believe that the most important element of youth baseball is teaching kids "how" to succeed. The Gamers program is built around this mission -- teaching young men how to recognize and take responsibility for things they can control to be successful.  The process of success on the baseball field pays direct dividends in success off the field and in 10 years when young men start making their way in life. This is the essence of our Pyramid of Success life lesson program.

 

With that said, there are two paths to succeeding in youth baseball:

 

  1. Focus on developing physical skills and athleticism to compete at a high level and teaching players the right mental approach to succeed in a challenging game.  This takes hard work, discipline and lots of coaching.  It is the Gamers way.
  2. Recruiting the most physically developed athletes, trading genetics and hormones for hard work and then just riding horses to the finish line with a narrow focus on the end prize of wins and $3 trophies.

The later path creates symptoms that are immediately visible to parents/players observing the youth baseball process:

  • Kids are over-pitched (for example, 80+ pitches in March tournaments for a 13 year old kid)
  • Lineups are fixed (positions and batting order)
  • Kids are cut during season, or the newest trend ... moving players up and down among club teams like a farm team system based on results.
  • Lots of dads/coaches in the dugout trying to influence the outcome of the game or the outcome for their son.
  • Too much focus and yelling on the scoreboard results of the game.  Winning = happy coaches/parents, losing = mad coaches/parents.
  • Too much Focus on results not skills.  More physically developed players can win without skills, until of course everyone else catches up with them at 16u.

I am not sure why a player or parent would choose the genetic/ hormone path unless it fundamentally aligns with their view on the world.  Or, maybe they are not aware that alternatives exist.

 

Next post - so how do you actually win a baseball game?


Thank you.


Coach Gallion