Tips From the Dugout of Coach John Peter
Learn to tell your boy (and your players) tales about your Major League heroes when you were his age.
Search www.baseball-almanac.com with him.
Once you are there, go to the players' area and check out the stats and lives of some of those heroes from so long ago.they are all in there!
Teach your boy (and your players) about Mickey Mantle.
Search www.themick.com.
While there, check out areas like his eulogy given by Bob Costas, the Mickey quotes and the mini biography.
Have a game of catch without any coaching (I find it tough). And no, it is not snowing that bad.
Know that there will come a day when your favorite player may just be your son.
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Baseball Bytes
50 Baseball Tips For Managers, Coaches and Parents
From the book Coaching Baseball Skills & Drills by Bragg Stockton
Excerpt from Ch. 12, pgs. 234-36
The following is a brief summary of some of the major skill thoughts which players need constant reminders to execute. Managers, coaches and parents can be an asset to their players by continually emphasizing these 50 tips to them.
- Door knocking knuckles pointing upward during hitting stance.
- Extend elbows at the moment of contact with ball as a hitter.
- No tension in hands and wrist when hitting.
- Nose lined up with back of baseball at point of contact during hitting.
- Front shoulder slightly down during stride and swing.
- Back side tall at point of contact of ball as a hitter - back heel should face upward.
- Belt buckle points toward pitcher as the bat meets the ball.
- Hitter's lead hand should land like an airplane in front of plate.
- Hips should turn quickly as bat meets ball.
- When a hitter hits the ball, his top hand should be facing up and the bottom hand facing down.
- The hitter should feel that he is throwing the bat at the ball.
- A hitter's swing should be similar to the action of throwing an ax into a tree.
- Bat should be eye level when attempting a sacrifice bunt.
- Top hand should be firm when bunting.
- Bottom hand should be soft next to bat knob when bunting.
- Bat should be in front of plate while bunting.
- Little finger to little finger when fielding a ground ball.
- Thumb to thumb when catching a fly ball or a thrown ball.
- Field a ground ball in front of the ball of the cap.
- Use a crossover step when moving to catch line drive and fly balls.
- Line the front shoulder and hip with target prior to throw.
- Infielders should "circle" all ground balls hit straight to them.
- Cushion the ball softly when fielding short hops and ground balls.
- Follow through with throwing shoulder toward target.
- Outfielders should "circle" all high fly balls.
- Fingertips should spin the ball smoothly when throwing.
- Arm should be loose and flexible when throwing.
- Glove foot forward when fielding ground balls.
- Keep glove wide open and facing the ball when fielding ground balls.
- Fielder should set throwing-side foot, then glove-side foot and force glove fingers toward the ground just as ground ball enters the glove.
- When throwing, do net let throwing hand knuckles turn downward behind body prior to arm coming forward.
- When playing defense, watch the barrel of bat hit the ball in order to get a quick jump on the ball.
- Infielders and outfielders should be on balls of feet prior to pitch.
- Bend knees and hips low when fielding ground balls.
- Knuckles of first two fingers should stay directly behind the ball at point of release, and glove should tuck quickly to side of body.
- Grip the ball lightly when throwing.
- Infielders and outfielders should be in a quality ready position prior to each pitch during a game.
- Pitchers should push with back legs and spin the hip fast when delivering a pitch. Throwing elbow should always lead toward target prior to release.
- Pitchers' throwing shoulder should be in front of glove knee as ball spins off of fingers.
- Pitchers should throw from the most comfortable arm slot and angle based on how he throws long tosses.
- The pitcher's whole glove side (toe, heel, knee, hip and shoulder) should remain closed to the plate while throwing arm drops behind the body. Opening early destroys power in the delivery.
- A pitcher should finish with a "high V" with back leg prior to setting it down.
- Hands, wrist and forearms should be relaxed and loose when hitting, fielding, throwing and pitching.
- 40 rollies a day keep the strike outs away.
- Daily jump rope program adds flexibility, endurance and increased skill development.
- Shoulder should lean forward when fielding ground balls and bunting.
- When executing the stand-up slide, only the hip pockets touch the ground first.
- Run on the "balls" of the feet and lean shoulder forward when sprinting.
- Arms should not cross center of body while sprinting.
- When a player improves his strength and coordination, he will automatically improve his baseball skills.
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Baseball Tips' Best-Selling Book - Just $24.95
Coaching Baseball Skills & Drills
A great book for anybody involved in youth baseball. You'll learn in-depth aspects of hitting, pitching, defense, and planning, plus get baseball-oriented conditioning drills and a team practice chart.
264 pages, includes over 600 illustrations & 85 drills
"Coaching Baseball Skills & Drills by Bragg Stockton is the most comprehensive baseball skill development book we've ever seen."
- Coach JP
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Featured Article
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A Coaching Philosophy You Can Live By
Wayne Mazzoni, Teikyo Post University (Connecticut)
My coaching philosophy comes from a blend of most of the coaches I have played for, coached with, and those I have studied at the professional level. It boils down to a few ideals.
One is that each player needs to be coached as an individual. Some kids need coddling, others need me to aggressively correct their errors, and others don't need much attention.
Secondly, each person needs to be coached differently on each aspect of the game and in life. So, if a player is a great bunter, he doesn't need much coaching or feedback in that area, just encouragement from time to time.
As far as my philosophy of life, which goes along with baseball, (after all, baseball mirrors life - you hit the ball perfectly and can still be out) is that you must always work to get better and if you are not, you are wasting time on the planet.
Work as hard as you possibly can so when you look yourself in the mirror at night you know you did all you could. I try to expect more from my players than they expect from themselves. Upon graduation, the student-athletes that endure the rigors of the baseball program at Teikyo Post University will be better students, athletes, and people than they ever thought they could be.
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Give Baseball For Christmas!
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Christmas Gifts for Youth Coaches & Dads
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Double Angel Foundation
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I owe much of who I am to the day my child was born. His birth was also the birth of my family. This concept was unknowingly foreign to me prior to his arrival. During this holiday season, I tend to appreciate it just a bit more.
Please take a look at the following website and learn just a bit more about real life.
There is a risk that it can make you feel bad, but if you read beyond the tragedy you can learn the depth of a parent's love and how even under such dire circumstances of personal tragedy. great things can be derived.
The Double Angel Foundation is a Colorado non-profit corporation dedicated to guiding children in the fulfillment of their dreams through the joy of recreation and the love of the game of baseball. This is one of the most worthwhile projects that I've ever encountered, as the Foundation is a family's tribute to their two youngest sons, who drowned in the summer of 2000.
Double Angel Foundation
www.doubleangel.com
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