"Other" skills and traits

Fungo,
How about preparation? By that I mean ready to play. Knwoing where your uniform is and having your gear together. It shows me "desire". I get really burned up when a player shows up and couldn't find his belt or hat. I had a 17U kid this summer come to me right before we took infield and said "Coach, I couldn't find my glove today". This "desire" is something that lessons, camps, nor $$$ can change.

I used to think our school district over-used this word, but I'm seeing the results of a kid who makes good CHOICES! Many things are out of your control, but when you make the right CHOICES, good things usually follow. This applies to your character, school and baseball.

Fungo,
Team player. Leadership. Personal responsibility. Dedication.

With so many folks are out there spending money on pitching lessons, hitting lessons, showcases, elite travel teams,recruiting services to get ahead, they don't realize that these are very important skills that you can obtain for "free".

Good question Fungo,
In today's society many of the old ways have gone by the board....not just what it takes to be a good ball player but what it takes to be a good life player...first and foremost, in my book, respect is of the utmost importance...and that means respect for others and respect for yourself...also, the ability to take and receive a compliment and also, to be able to genuinely give one too...not a phony one but one from the heart...
and finally sincerity...the sincere desire to be the best you can be in all aspects of life combined with humility and grace...I hate bravado and I certainly hate the me, me, me I hear so often...step back and listen...you may learn something

Mental and physical toughness.

The player has to have an absolute abhorant distaste for LOSING. These are the players that are going to do anything in their power to make YOU lose, and to keep from losing.

Fungo,

You sure come up with some excellent topics to discuss!

This topic will bring up many suggestions, all of those suggestions will be good ones.

Rather than get into all these things, here is my opinion of just a few things it takes beyond the obvious tools. Many with great tools fail and some without those great tools end up being Major League players.

1. The ability to make adjustments
Professional baseball (just like college baseball) is a series of adjustments. Perhaps that is the major reason we see so many college players drafted these days (they have proven they can adjust). These adjustments are required both on and off the field. The on-field adjustments are simply doing the things necessary to succeed as the levels get tougher. The off-field adjustments are often overlooked and a deficiency in this area has ruined many promising careers. There is the ballpark where things are one way (fairly simple) and then there’s the life style (hard to explain)!

2. The ability to learn
This of course, goes hand in hand with the ability to adjust. Many players are more than willing to make the necessary adjustments, however they are not capable of learning things quick enough.

3. Persistance
Many a future Big League player has simply given up too early. Only the super stars can get by without a lot of persistence.

4. Courage
A player needs courage to succeed at the highest levels. Fear is a baseball players worst enemy!

5. Work ethic
I’m sure everyone understands the importance of hard work. Natural talent needs to be super star status (World Class) level and most of those at the very highest levels do not possess World Class athletic ability.

6. Confidence
Everyone loses confidence for short periods of time, but those who reach the top never completely lose it! This goes hand in hand with persistence.

7. Love of the Game
Unless a player has Super Star ability, he must truly love the game or he is unlikely to reach the top.

There are more important items.

The desire to prepare to win is more important than the desire to win. I have coached for many years. Most kids want to win very badly. Most kids do not have the desire to prepare to win badly. The ones that understand that the time spent getting ready to play the game is where the actual game is won. You all have seen it before. The kid that goes through the motions in the off season and during the days leading up to the game. Then on game day they are excited and bouncing around ready to get after it. Then there are those kids that understand how important it is to use every day as an opportunity to get better and prepare themselves for victory. Mental maturity. Mental toughness. Dedication. Self discipline. Work ethic. Loyalty. Leadership. Ability to follow leadership. These are all traits that make a kid a winner not just in baseball but in life. I have said it before and I will say it again practice is more important than games. Every team wants to win. Every team does not prepare to win. If you take care of business before the games then the game will take care of itself. I spend very little effort during the game. I do not loose any sleep before a game. I do not stress during a game. I loose sleep before practices worrying about wether or not we should work more on ground balls or cut plays etc. I stress at practice internally wondering if we are hitting on the right aspects of the game today and if we are progressing like we should both individually and as a team. On game day the hay is in the barn so to speak. Its time to let the boys play and collect their paycheck for all the hard work put in. To me its alot harder to decide what we need to put more emphasis on in practice than it is when we should hit and run in a game. I want my players to have the same attitude. JMHO

agree with mental toughness & physical conditioning,

and I'd have to say that I "hammered home" two more points

- actions have consequences

- when you encounter someone knowlegable, listen closely to what they tell you


JT, respectfully disagree with the distaste for losing
if a player trains to perform - "make the play" and "go all out"
the wins take care of themselves - no focus on the outcome is required

no-one likes to lose, but every game has a loser, and if a player's focus shifts to the outcome, it has to take away from his execution

jmo


.

Desire, fortitude and gotta have "heart".

Good topic and good posts by all.

PG pretty well summed it all up and BTW, glad you ignored your email from an idiot!

The two most important abilities required to play the game:

Dependability and Responsibility......

O42

Great stuff here!

JT,
I have to agree with BEE>. It's a given that no one likes to lose, everyone loves to win.
I have seen many fine players have a great personal game with a team loss.

Then those skills and traits come into play with how one handles the losses.

Maybe someone else said it but but I missed it.

Respect for the game, your teammates, and your opponent.

And what about those who's parents never taught them these things? Cause honestly growing was hell for me.
I especially remember when dad told me "you better look for another career, cause I don't think you're gonna make it!" And that's just the tip of the iceberg.

The ability to overcome setbacks and dissapointments.

Things like:

a slump
the inability to find the strike zone
an error in the field.

not making the varsity team
not being a starter
not receiving an award they felt they deserved,

not getting rated as high as they feel they should be at a showcase
not being recruited as heavily or drafted as high as they anticipated
or simply not being given an opportunity they felt they deserved.

Any of the above can weigh heavily on the shoulders and impeded forward progress.

Mr3000,

It sounds like you didn't learn them at home but you seem to have done a good job picking up those good traits somewhere.

You can only hope they are "family" learned, then you pray that those that did not learn them there are smart enough to pick them up from their peers.

hey RZ, you prolly get the prize

because - if a player "Respects the Game"

he WILL, by the very nature of that respect -

prepare properly
respect his team-mates, coaches, etc
have a good work ethic
go all out
stay in line off the field
be coachable & willing to learn

and, just about every other trait mentioned -



I agree -


ps - see Fungo for the prize
pps - it is too late to recieve your prize by Christmas, unless you to upgrade the $hiping

.

If you love baseball and respect the game for its, history, its beauty and all it represents, the rest invariably will follow.

My compliments to Fungo for a great topic and to the rest for great posts. I learn from you all every day.

I never really had any close friends growing up either. I just learned them I guess by just seeing how other people react in those bad situations and I guess too my own desire to be a good person.

I was also just in the Dr's office and was reading a Sports Illustrated and I read a little section on Mark Beuhrle, who apparently was cut from his high school baseball team his freshman and sophomore years, his was gonna quit baseball, but his parents sat him down and told him that they didn't raise a quitter, so they encouraged him to try out his junior year, made the team, and now look where he is.

How do you handle adversity? One kid gets cut and finds excuses and becomes bitter. Maybe he goes home and this is reinforced by his parents who convince him he was cut because the coach doesn't like him. Or he doesn't kiss ***. ETC ETC. The other kid gets cut and it motivates him to work harder and prove the coaches wrong. He has a burning desire to play. He finds solutions not excuses. Two very different paths that you can choose. We have a kid this year that was cut as a Freshman. This year he is a Sr. He will start and be one of our pitchers. He has a chance to play at the next level probaly D-2 or D-3. And he has had two great years of playing baseball in HS with memories that will last him a lifetime. And he has this upcoming sr season to look forward to as well. All because he made the right decision. There are kids like this in every HS program. YOU DONT QUIT. Once you start it is too easy to keep on quitting.

To elaborate on my "hating to lose" remark. Someone who hates to lose will do all the things needed to keep from losing:
1. Mental and physical toughness
2-8. PG's list
9. The HUGE heart
10. Works to elevate the players around him--in practice and games.
11. PASSION--about the game.
12. Love of competition.
13. Does not accept mediocrity--in effort, especially.

So, BEE> and TPM, I am not talking about the sore loser, but one who feels like "2nd place is the first loser." Hope this clarifies what I meant.

No matter what the coach says, vote for yourself for MVP if you were truly the Most Valuable Player for your team.

VOTE for yourself if you're the best!

quote:

by JT: To elaborate on my "hating to lose" remark. Someone who hates to lose will do all the things needed to keep from losing:

MAYBE - but someone whose main trait is "hate to lose" is just as likely to

1-undermine team-mates & coaches
2-not be coachable
3- not be a team player, blaming team-mates when things go wrong
4-be desparate for any advantage

A-cheating - cork, vaseline, sandpaper, etc
B-cheating - drugs, suppliments, steroids, etc



.

You are the ultimate Devil's Advocate Bee> and I mean that as a high compliment. You will definitely be reincarnated as an attorney if you are not already in law school

Your point seems to me to be at the extreme - e.g., the Ty Cobb or Albert Belle hate-to-lose scenario. I don't think JT had that in mind. But, then again, I am not that good at reading minds either

A trait that is needed to move from one level to another is perserverence and knowing how to handle setbacks. dont make excuses. Dont be a whiner

you guys are a tough crowd -

first CD says he's complimenting me, then in the SAME sentence compares me to an attorney

I'm not saying anyone should like to lose, just think cautiously about encouraging a "hate to lose" trait

look, if a player's priorities are respect, work ethic, desire . . . . & then, "hate to lose", that's one thing -
but, if the MAIN TRAIT (per the topic here) is "hate to lose", that is a horse of a different color


try this -

try to identify a trait most likely to eventually cause a person trouble if it is dominant in his personality

1- work ethic
2- respect of the game
3- passion
4- confidence
5- desire
6- responsibilty
7- mental toughness
8- perseverance
9- hate to lose


answer to be posted later


.



.

I have said the same thing JT is saying. But “hating” may be a bad choice of words because it conjures up thoughts of negatives reactions to losing like sand paper, Vaseline, sandpaper, and cork, that BEE> suggested. I see it differently. I think it motivates and pushes the truly competitive athlete to get the most from his ability. I don’t think the competitive athlete “loves” to win ... I think he “expects” to win. I also think honesty/cheating are character traits learned at a very young age and not created by winning or loosing a baseball game.

Thank you, Fungo. Could not have said it better, myself--and probably would have said it worse.

Dang--those Ohio guys must not have anything better to do as they're staying out of the cold...

Now, correct me if I am wrong, but isn't Fungo's orginal topic OTHER Skills and Traits. I'm not saying hating to lose is a dominant trait, but one that CAN be on the list. I agree, if the other things on your latest list are not there, then hating to lose can (and will) cause trouble.
HOW-EV-A...
...if the hate-to-lose person has good character, then this can (and often does) work to their advantage. I think of PETE ROSE (OK, bad example) of a hate-to-lose guy. I think of ROGER CLEMENS (better example), Bob Gibson, etc as those kinds of guys. Think of Clemens--he certainly has many of those traits listed, but is it the hate to lose that drives him to push himself (and others around him) to work harder??

BTW, I thought bees were dormant in the winter??

maybe we can agree on "fiery competitor"


and, some bees don't go dormant -
you just don't see them as they continue their work



.

quote:

and, some bees don't go dormant -
you just don't see them as they continue their work

No, but it's hard to miss their "buzz!"

Hope you're fixin' up the Skybox, Bee>!

Hey, I agree with that. Fiery Competitor is a great compromise. I like it! I'm just glad we didn't let this conversation DRONE on and on and on....

quote:

just glad we didn't let this conversation DRONE on and on and on....

ditto, CD was setting me up for more "stinging" compliments



Prepster, skybox?

"YOU" know there's not a bad seat in the house,
and
"I" know you never sit anyways


Christmas greetings to RW & the Prepster family


.

I just hope all this time on the computer doesn't make you break out in hives...

Bee, given the type of lawyers that I admire, you can trust me - that was a compliment

I know of at least three outstanding ones on this site including Holden Caulfield, hokione, and infielddad. I just think your argumentitive skills are second to none

Bee>:


RE: Your opinion on rz's respect comment.

quote:

I agree -

As do I also!

Nice post!