Don't waste your money-- let me help

Well now you just brought logic into the discussion.

 

There's nothing more frustrating than hearing parents of senior players coming to me complaining about their kid not playing for ______ sport because they were so great back in the day.  My first question to them is always "what has your son or daughter done extra to be better - did they show up to off season workouts or try to go to camps and learn new stuff or just did things on their own?"  Never fails almost always it's a no to that question.  Then they bring in the "fun" card - sports are about being fun and it's not fun being on the bench.  Well.......you're right - it's not fun being on the bench and it is fun to play the game but how does that happen?????  Through hard work.  Hard work at being good at whatever skill you want to be good at so you can get off the bench and play the game successfully.

 

Probably one of the most revolutionary things I've ever learned was on this site (and sadly I have no idea who to give the credit to) but I'm going to share it hope it helps someone like it helped me when faced with the "fun" card.

 

There are two types of fun - 1) immature fun and 2) mature fun.

 

1.  Immature fun is when you can be goofy and not be serious.  Horsing around to a degree that isn't hurtful or destructive.  The time to do this is after practice when the work is done.

 

2.  Mature fun is when you enjoy getting better at something or learning a new skill to improve your abilities.  You want to show up for practice and off season workouts because you get pride out of seeing the positive change.  The time to do this is during practice, during games and during off season workouts when nobody is around to see you - sorta like character.

 

Bum I realize this isn't quite in line with what you're talking about but it's not too far off either.  Hopefully, people will realize that in order to achieve the best you can be (maybe become a HOFer at MLB or just making the varsity team for HS) takes hard work and if there isn't some sort of internal drive / enjoyment that you naturally get then you'll never get there.

You mean there is no magic pill to get to greatness?  

Great point on off season workouts. Gotta get the new baseball body ready for spring! Its a grind but necessary. 

Great post Bum....BUT, you guys need to stop talking commons sense....it's going to confuse a lot of people!!!!!!

 

 

 

I think my two HS'ers are probably getting irritated at me, because I can't think of a single day that has gone by during this off season where I haven't asked them every time I see them "what have you done today to get get better?"  Have you worked out...have you done your band work, have you gone out to the cage and hit, what have you done?  And I don't plan on stopping anytime soon!

 

Great topic BUM, I hope people take you up on your offer and take advantage of your generosity.

2016's workout last night. Chopped wood with dull axe. Felt it in his buttocks this morning. Cost 0$. Today's workout move said wood to neighbors yard.

 

I have coached 4 players in the last 5 years that have received a D1 scholarship.  Not one of them used a recruiting service.  However all 4 were some of the hardest working individuals I have ever come across.

Bum and other posters...Amen to this.

 

There have been a number of people, places, things that I would spend money on again, e.g., Denny Doyle, Ron Wolforth, Stanford Camp, Perfect Game, as we found these very worthwhile.

 

There are things that I would never spend $ on or certainly not spend it again:  recruiting services, specialize web sites, Baseball Factory / Under Armour, IMG Academy.

 

Kid has to want to play regardless of talent level today.  They have to want to work on developing/expanding whatever God given skills they've been blessed with.  Sometimes it's useful to have some help (e.g., Wolforth's Texas Baseball Ranch was great for my RHPs).  Sometimes some of the "help" is wasted time and $ or downright harmful.

 

This site is awesome as experience can be communicated to all who will listen.

 

 

That's awesome!

Agree 100% with idea that you must do extra work on your own. I wish all HS coaches would pass out a blank sheet of paper at tryouts and say "write down everything you have done baseball related in the last 6 months".  That will give them an idea who takes the sport seriously. Had a pitchers dad ask me last yr if my pitcher son did anything from fall until HS season started and he said his  son hadn't-it showed. IMO just being lazy. Can't get better if u don't put in the work.

how much time off from throwing do you recommend?   I have a teen age son,  throws very hard.  Never sore, no pain at all  knock on wood.    He took off a few months this summer  but is throwing this fall,  gained about 5 mph and I would like him to work hard over the Christmas break and Jan before tryout season starts, but not sure if should rest arm again.   

Originally Posted by playball2011:

…I wish all HS coaches would pass out a blank sheet of paper at tryouts and say "write down everything you have done baseball related in the last 6 months".  That will give them an idea who takes the sport seriously. …

 

Why would or should a HS coach care whether or not a player takes the sport seriously? The only thing I can see it being used for, is in the case of some kind of “tie” between 2 players for the same “job”. It should and likely is important to scouts and recruiters, but for the level being played, is it work ethic or results that should count the most?

Why would a coach care if kids take the sport seriously? It depends if the coach is supervision or building a program. My son's high school coach told parents and players in the September meeting the odds of starting are slim without off season work. He warned them to show up the first day baseball ready.

Bum, sent you a PM (I think)

Hi all..  will check my PM's this weekend. 

Fun stuff.

 

Coach2709, I strongly agree with your sentiment.  Historically this has been expressed as the difference between pleasure and happiness.  Pleasure is the immediate gratification.  Happiness is the enduring feeling of contentment, maybe also pride, that comes from long term satisfaction.  The key difference is that when you're seeking pleasure, the notion of sacrificing now to reach goals or benefits is never considered, much less embraced.  When you're seeking happiness, you understand the connection between sacrificing now and achievement later.

 

We are a society that pushes immediate gratification.  For more and more people, pleasure seeking is the goal of each day.  Work?  That isn't fun.  Just give me the rewards and we'll cut out all that difficult stuff that used to come between where I am now and where I want to be.

 

I do think there are some guys who need help figuring out how to get noticed, so I am not going to diss all the recruiting services et al across the board.  But I think what you'll find is that the parent who is constantly building up his son by tearing down the other players ("why is he always pitching, he ain't all that", "he got an offer from State U, it must be the web page because he's not really as good as my kid") finds the notion of the easy route to be a convenient excuse for not succeeding.  So much easier than accepting the lack of work ethic (or desire or drive) as the root of the problem. 

 

I think it's not smart for a talented guy to make excuses for not doing the work of the recruiting process.  Talented guys who work the system find success.  Talented guys who don't sometimes get found, sometimes get overlooked.  But there's no question, no amount of working the system will overcome lack of talent, lack of drive, lack of competitive fire.

"2016's workout last night. Chopped wood with dull axe. Felt it in his buttocks this morning. Cost 0$. Today's workout move said wood to neighbors yard."

 

Where's Gotwood when you need him?  Seems like some still shots from old "Rocky" movies is called for here.  You know, pound a side of beef, chase chickens, pull logs through the snow.

We sent out an email about 3 weeks ago.  Highlights/stats from my son's spring, summer and fall from this past year.  Also had all 3 coaches contact info, etc.  We sent approximately 30....to schools ranging from ones where we really thought he could play to a few that we figured were a stretch.  In the past 3 weeks, we received replies from half of them. 5-6 were "personal"....including comments that let us know that they had looked at an online "recruting profile"...5 or 6 were semi-personal...meaning they seemed more than just a form letter...and the last 3 or 4 were obvious "mass emails".

 

Of the replies...4 or 5 mentioned that they'd like to see video....so that's what we did.  We spent an hour at the field, with a friend to run the camera....and took video of him hitting, pitching, catching, playing SS and OF.  I edited it myself with software I bought online for $35.00.  In the past 2 days we've sent it to 12-15 of the original schools.  We've gotten responses from 7.  One said that they really appreciated it, really liked what they saw and said they definitely want to see him play this spring/summer.  Another commented on a couple points in the video and invited him to an upcoming camp with the comment "we want to be clear...this is a personal invite...not a mass email"...and mentioned two coaches watched it this morning...even though today is signing day.  I guess my point is that it didn't cost us a dime...took about 3 hours total and has gotten more response than anything else we had done.  Anyone can do it...and it's been well worth the time spent.

My son posted this to his wall the other day:

I hated every minute of training, but I said, 'Don't quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a Champion!'

~Muhammad Ali

Great post Bum. I wish I could say the best players I ever coached were also the most hungry and hardest working players I coached. But that wouldn't be the truth. Some of the best players I ever coached were some of the hardest working players I coached. But some of the most average HS players I coached worked just as hard. But the thing is they wouldn't have ever been my players without that work ethic. I had some extremely talented players that were lazy. They only worked hard at practice. They only worked hard when they were required to work hard. These players got the opportunity to play in college. A couple of these players were drafted.

 

The difference was those talented hard working players that were hard workers had success at the next level. And those talented lazy players did not. There comes a time for every player when their God given talent is not enough. Players reach that point at different times.

 

If a player wants to be the best THEY can be the only way to truly know what that is is to give it all they have. What you do when no one is watching will determine what your capable of doing when everyone is watching. What you do in the off season will determine what your capable of doing during the season.

 

I believe there is too much focus on being seen instead of doing the the things that will make someone want to see you. So much focus on showcasing yourself instead of working to become something worth showcasing. I have seen players go from good to great. It happened because they had a drive and determination to be the best THEY could be. They were willing to do the things that were done when no one was watching.

 

Bum hit on a point that is often over looked IMO. For some its the difference in even making the HS team. Or the difference in getting recruited for college baseball. Or making it at the college level. Sticking at the college level. Getting drafted, sticking once drafted, getting to the show, etc. All I ever wanted for my kids was for them to be all they could be. If that meant they were just back ups on the JV but it was all they could be great. To see kids with the type of talent that is rare throw it away because they were lazy. To see kids with marginal talent that wanted it so bad they would give all they have to play the game. It comes down to knowing when you look in the mirror you were all you could be. Or looking in the mirror and always wondering what could have been.

 

Go to work. Then play the game. And then no regrets. Everything else is just fluff.

Thanks, Coach May.  IMHO the difference maker is often mental toughness, the ability to overcome adversity.  After all, when you go 0-5 with a golden sombrero or give up nine earned runs, the game can begin to wear on you mentally.

 

That just never seems to happen with the players that move on to the highest levels.  They prepare for the game and have success 2/3 of the time, so when they fail 1/3 of time they've been-there-done-that.

 

At the youth level, a lot of players rely on their early size dominance, natural skill, or playing time granted to them by their dads who coached.  The players with heart, tenacity, and extreme work ethic begin to gnaw away at their advantage.  They learn from their failures.  And in the end, when the the players who work hard draw even or begin to achieve an advantage themselves, the ones with the early advantage do not have that innate toughnness to fall back upon.

 

Hope this makes sense.  Does to me.  Nice to hear from you Coach May.

 

 

Rest before winter workouts is okay (although Bum, Jr. in h.s. kept throwing) but now that he's throwing again keep going.  Two breaks is one too many.

There's a pack of Coyotes and I can hear them off my deck yelping to high heaven tonight.  They sound hungry.  I doubt they'll stop until they eat. 

 

This is what I'm talking about. 

 

When I pitched in college, I would take 10 weeks off from the mound per year. 4 of those weeks would consist of no throwing at all, and 6 would be a progressive long toss program that was fairly extensive. The long tossing would build the arm into preseason bullpens, which would start in January. I would long toss throughout the entire season, although my in-season long toss was different than my off-season long toss due to the varying workload my arm took on while being off a mound.

 

Bear in mind that when I say "off the mound", this includes preseason bullpens and a college fall schedule. The competitive period(s) would be the spring season, typically February-May in college and then the summer season, which is typically June-August. August-October is typically the college fall season, which consisted of predominantly side sessions and, occasionally, a few innings in an intrasquad scrimmage. The time off from throwing did not mean time off from everything- all other workouts continued. It just meant no throwing.

the bottom line.....the player needs to want it MORE than the parent.

This mirrors my sons program as well.

Bum your are very gracious to make that offer. And you are absolutely correct.

Talent will win out, How do you gain talent, work. Many people asked me during my sons recruiting process, How did he get invited to that camp or this camp. These were invite only camps such as the Buckeye Scout.(now defunct). Honestly I had no Idea. I can tell you starting his Freshmen year, he was all of five foot nothing and 100 pounds soaking wet with rocks in his pocket. He went to every weight lifting session and did a lot of Long toss and field work on his own. Each year you could see him getting bigger and stronger. He started to pass up kids that were more developed than him in HS. Rumors started going around the club house that he was on steroids. This was from players that did not make the lifting session and he could not get them to long toss if he begged.

By his junior year the coach was setting his rotation so he would pitch some of the bigger games. His stats suffered a bit but he helped the team win. In the summer of his junior year he was he number one starter for his team.

Sure he was good in season, but it was because what he did in the off season. We did spend money on a recruiting service and it was the worst investment we ever made. Only one coach referenced it when he called. School was a terrible fit.

Do the work in the off season get stronger faster, work on hitting and mechanics. Do these things religiously and you will get better. If you get good enough people will have interest.