Baseball Coaching Vs Having Talent - What's More Important?

Coaching Vs Having Talent - What's More Important?
By Stephen K Reynolds

My son and I just came off a tournament this past weekend where by we were beaten pretty soundly in all 3 games that we played. Sean is on a 12u travel team and he is the youngest at 10, 11 in April.

We probably have 6 travel level players and the rest are not! The manager and I were discussing the level of play on the way home and the topic came up as to whether we could make some of boys play better?

Coaches in competitive travel ball always are looking for better players and it is easy to assume that they are willing to take credit for the level of play of their team... Question is how much is coaching versus the quality of the ball players?

The big question is can you get kids with marginal ability to play like All-Stars? A lot of are kids can't hit and probably wont hit travel pitching no matter how much time you put in the cages, or throwing to them not to mention instruction. Players who struggling with the mental game and are marginal fielders probably are always going to be limited in their abilities.

It is frustrating because you want them to succeed and you feel responsible when they don't! I would say You want kids with above average ability and then you need to get them to play to the best of their ability. We don't like to hear it as coaches but quality players make us look good period!

Stephen K Reynolds and his wife LuAnne are publishers of the LSR Unlimited "Free" newsletter which focuses on helping newcomers & seasoned pros learn the secrets to marketing in the ever changing world of the internet! He is also a youth baseball coach in Western Montana Working on the Internet allows him the freedom to coach little league baseball. For more information on this e-mail coachsteve56@gmail.com

(800)758-1282
http://www.mindsetiswealth.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Stephen_K_Reynolds

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Youth Baseball Digest - 4 Important Factors That Can Help New Little League Coaches Be Successful

By Nick Dixon

Coaching Little league is a great way for baseball and softball players to give back to your community. Every baseball player remembers his first t-ball coach, coach pitch coach, little league coach, and high school coach. Baseball coaches have a profound effect on the lives of the players they coach. Being or becoming a great youth baseball coach requires a high level of commitment and dedication. There are 3 important rules that every new little league coach must always follow.



Those rules are

1. You must be a student of the game. To be a good youth baseball coach, you must have a good knowledge of how the game is played, how the rules are applied, and how certain skills and drills are performed. If you feel uncomfortable about a certain position, skill or fundamental, look for help. You may ask another coach. You may go to your local library or book store and find a book on how to coach baseball. You have access to an enormous amount of information about every aspect of the game through your computer and the internet.

2. You must have good help. You can never have too much help when coaching a youth team. Ask your parents and friends to find other volunteers to help you coach your team. It is best to have a parent meeting. Ask for parent volunteers. The parents that volunteer to help should choose a specific area in which they concentrate their effort. You will need at least 2 good assistant coaches. One needs to have enough knowledge and patience to be the pitching coach. One should be the hitting coach.

3. You must remediate your weaker players. In you draft, you may find that you must pick children that are good at certain skills but extremely week in other areas.One often overlooked and neglected aspect of coaching is remediation/ Remediation is special attention and help given to those players that need it. This is a job for what I refer to as the remediation coach. The coach that takes one or two players to the side and works on specific areas of the game in which they are too weak to compete. They may need help with swing mechanics, throwing mechanics, or simple footwork. These kids will master these skills easier and faster when they receive one-on-one personal attention. These "tutoring" lessons pay back huge returns if you can have enough help. The theory is that you must bring every player up to a certain level or much valuable team time will be lost to working with them during team drills. It is best to take these kids aside and work them separately from the team until they get their skill levels up. These lessons should be done in such a way to not embarrass the child or players involved.

4. You must work hard and set a good example. A willingness to work hard may be the most important trait of a successful coach. They work hard at planning, organizing, and executing individual and team drills for both offense and defense. They have high energy levels and are always willing to put forth that little extra effort to make a practice or game run smother.

I hope that you found this article to be helpful. Good luck to you and your team. Have a great day, Nick



The CoachesBest Baseball Store has a great selection of 1400 Baseball Products. Check out the BatAction Hitting Machine baseball pitching simulator. This high speed training machine is 100% Guaranteed to raise Batting Averages and has a full year warranty.

Nick Dixon is the President and founder of Nedco Sports, a sports training company established in 1999. Dixon is also an active and full time high school baseball coach with over 25 years experience. Coach Dixon is better known as the inventor of the BatAction Hitting Machine, the SKLZ Derek Jeter Hurricane Hitting Machine, the SKLZ Target Trainer, the SKLZ Derek Jeter ZipnHit Pro, and the SKLZ Strikeback Trainer. Dixon is also a contributing writer for BaseballCoachingDigest, the Youth Baseball Digest, the Baseball Parent Guide, the Baseball 2Day Coaches Journal, and Blog4Coaches.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Nick_Dixon

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Two Situations Drills For Little League Pitchers

Two Situations Drills For Little League Pitchers
By John R Di Nicola

Once you have had a couple of practices and have had infield and outfield practice you can venture to the next step working on game situations. You set your 9 players in their positions. Have your spare players as base runners. Have them stand behind home plate and you hit ball. This is so important it enables you to practice your pitchers and position players real situations. You will have to have patience. At first they will throw the ball around and be out of positions. Below are two drills that are very important in teach the fundamentals of defense.

Situations

Backing up 3rd base and home plate.


With nobody on base and ball is hit into gap pitcher should line up in between third base and home plate.
With base runners on first base and ball hit into gap they should do the same and watch and see where the play may be and make their decision which base they should back up.
With men in scoring positions and ball hit into the gap they should back up home. You have to make sure the pitchers have good distance from the foul line so they are not to close and have a good angle to go between third and home. The Pitcher must have depth behind the base so they get overthrown ball.
The mistake they all make is getting to close to base. Explain, they are backing up to get the overthrow. If they are to close they can't make adjustments. This defeats the purpose of them backing up the base.

Covering Home Plate on Pass Ball

This drill is very important because you will have passed balls at this level. Providing the backstop is not to far back it is an excellent way to get what I call a cheap out.
You can have signals for the pitchers to call out to the catchers. Most of the time the catchers will not be able to pick up which directions the ball has traveled.
You can use one, two and three. One being right, once he has turned to retrieve the ball. Two would be middle of backstop. Three would to the left.

Organizing your practice set up your schedule and rotate your days you do the drills. You will find that some of the drills they will pick up quicker than others. The biggest thing is you cannot have marathon practices. By keeping the practices short and crisp you will keep players motivated. I found if you have a practice schedule and post it will show the players approximately how long each drill will be and what to expect.

Practice makes perfect.

By: John R. Di Nicola

Thank you for taking the time to read my article. If you would like further information on this topic or other information you can E-Mail me at:
jdinicola@easypitching.com

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Youth Baseball Digest - The Power of Praise in Coaching Little League Baseball

By Nick Dixon

Praise is the easiest and most effective way to motivate young baseball players. Understanding and believing in the "Power of Praise" can make a Little League Baseball coach a better and more effective coach. Knowing how and when to praise is the key. This article discusses the value of praise in coaching youth baseball.

Good coaches have a variety of skills. They know how to teach the game of baseball. They know how to communicate their thoughts and observations almost immediately. They know how to correct without humiliation. They know how to motivate without intimidation. They love the game of baseball and that love is displayed through their actions and behaviors. But, one of the universal traits of successful youth baseball coaches is that they know the "Power of Praise".

Good youth baseball coaches know that kids respond differently when they are coached and taught the game of baseball. Many kids do not take constructive criticism. All kids do not respond the same to harsh words or loud instructions. But, one thing that 99.9% of all kids respond favorably to is praise. They love to hear words of encouragement and words that tell them that they did a task well.

What youth coaches must always remember is that many kids we coach never hear many positive words. It is sad and true that many kids never hear words or praise or encouragement at home. Words of praise are "words of respect" for a youngster. They want to love, appreciated, and respected just like most people do. Many kids we coach are hungry for attention, discipline and most of all praise. The more they are praised, the more they want to earn more praise.

So when you see a player struggling or having a bad day, find something that he is doing correctly and praise him for his action. Make his day a better day. I do not mean to give out unmerited or false praise. Make sure that the praise is deserved and merited. Kids can sense if a coach is sincere or genuine when the coach praises a player. False praise is useless and counterproductive.

One good rule to live by as a youth baseball coach is that you should find a way to praise every player on your team at least once a day. A pat on the head or back takes little time and energy on your part, but can do wonders for a kids self esteem and attitude.

I hope that you enjoyed this article. Thanks for taking the time to read it. Good luck to you and your team. Your friend in baseball, Nick.

The Coaches Best Baseball Store has a great selection of 1400 Baseball Products. Check out the BatAction Hitting Machine baseball pitching simulator. This high speed training machine is 100% Guaranteed to raise Batting Averages and has a full year warranty.

Nick Dixon is the President and founder of Nedco Sports, a sports training company established in 1999. Dixon is also an active and full time high school baseball coach with over 25 years experience. Coach Dixon is better known as the inventor of the BatAction Hitting Machine, the SKLZ Derek Jeter Hurricane Hitting Machine, the SKLZ Target Trainer, the SKLZ Derek Jeter ZipnHit Pro, and the SKLZ Strikeback Trainer. Dixon is also a contributing writer for BaseballCoachingDigest, the Youth Baseball Digest, the Baseball Parent Guide, the Baseball 2Day Coaches Journal, and Blog4Coaches.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Nick_Dixon

Little League Baseball Coaching

By Joe Brockhoff

If we hold our hands up and pop our wrists, we can do that over and over again very quickly. If someone were to throw a punch at us, our hands would quickly and automatically pop up in defense.

As an infielder, we don't have to think about a ball thrown to us. Our hands will react to the direction of the ball and make the catch without having to think about it.

Think of the catcher after he gives the sign. He is taught to frame the pitch. His hands automatically go to the pitch without any thought or direction.

So the hands are auto reactors. Is this good for the hitter? The answer is: No! The hitter who allows his hands to react automatically as his first movement towards the pitch will never have full body support.

When the hands go too early, this is when we hear the coach yell out, "Wait on the pitch!"
Now, let's apply this to our baseball hitting mechanics.

These are the steps:

1. Coil (Load): The hitter collects his weight on the backside
2. Stride: a linear step towards the pitched ball (30-40% of weight transfer)
3. Body Rotation: Hips rotate toward the ball
4. Hands will then, and only then, execute the stroke

Here is one of our best little league baseball coaching tips: "HIPS TAKE US TO THE BALL. HANDS TAKE US THROUGH THE BALL."

So, when we are leaning how to hit a baseball, do we trust the hands? The answer is:

Don't trust the hands. Then, trust the hands. In other words, discipline the hands to wait until we get into the launch position, which is with the hands inside the ball and the hips rotated.

Our hands do not initiate the stroke until we rotate to the pitch. They travel in rotation with the pivot, but they do not commit to the pitch until the rotation is complete. This rotated position with the hands still back is what we call the DRIVE position. It is at this time that the hands will launch.

NOW we can trust them. Let them explode the bat to the ball.

One final note. Remember that when we hit, the hands are in a double lever system. That is, they don't personally go to the ball. They are holding the bat, which goes to the ball. The hands always end up in front of the body. They are responsible for directing the bat to the proper cut line on the pitch.

Former Tulane Hall of Fame Baseball Coach, Joe Brockhoff, fully explains his baseball hitting drills with the Super 8 Hitting System, completely demonstrated with videos and hitting drills to help you hit with more power and raise your batting average. http://www.kewego.com/video/iLyROoafMM8J.html.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Joe_Brockhoff

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If you are looking for great coaching articles, please consider one of our sites: The BaseballCoachingDigest.com, the YouthBaseballDigest.com or the BaseballParentGuide.com. Have a safe and happy season! Nick Dixon

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Youth Baseball Coach - The 12 Commandments of Little League Baseball Coaching Success

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By Nick Dixon

Being a good head coach for a Little League Baseball Team or any youth baseball team requires certain skills, character traits, knowledge, and a high sense of commitment and dedication. There are certain rules and guidelines that every Little League Coach should always remember. I feel that there are 12 guidelines, the "commandments" that are required to establish a good learning atmosphere and true team unity.

Youth Baseball Coach: The 12 Commandments of Coaching Little League Baseball

1. I shall always consider the safety and welfare of my players to be my utmost responsibility when we are playing and practicing.

2. I shall treat every player fairly and show no favoritism. I want my players to have faith and trust in me. I want them to know I care.

3. I shall display good sportsmanship at all times. I will not display any behavior that would be a poor role model for my players.

4. I shall always be the first person to get to practices and games and the last to leave.

5. I shall never leave a player or players alone after practice. I will wait for a parent or guardian to arrive and pick them up.

6. I shall plan and organize every practice. Every player will have an assigned place and activity. Idle time is wasted time. Every minute will be valued and used wisely.

7. I shall make doing things right a priority. When it comes to practice repetitions, quality will be valued over quantity. I feel that 5 good practice swing performed properly do more good than 25 sloppy swings with incorrect fundamentals.

8. I shall be honest to myself, my players and my parents. I will always tell my players the truth. Telling misleading or false information is not acceptable.

9. I shall maintain the needed degree of team discipline to foster athletic improvement and growth. I must teach my players the value of self discipline in baseball and team sports.

10. I shall teach my players to respect all persons of authority and adults including myself. I will require that they show that respect to all parents, coaches, umpires, and league volunteers.

11. I shall learn the knowledge necessary to perform my coaching duties. That knowledge will include the rules of baseball, the fundamentals of baseball, and the proper techniques of baseball training, baseball instruction, and baseball coaching.

12. I shall always remember that I have a duty greater than the coaching of baseball. I have a responsibility to help each player learn the proper values and priorities that they should have in life. I will seek to help each player achieve to his or her maximum potential as both a player and a person.

I hope that this article was informative and useful to you. I would like to personally thank your for taking the time to read it. I wish you and your team good luck in the coming season. Have a great day, Nick.

The CoachesBest Baseball Store has a great selection of 1400 Baseball Products. Check out the BatAction Hitting Machine baseball pitching simulator. This high speed training machine is 100% Guaranteed to raise Batting Averages and has a full year warranty.

Nick Dixon is the President and founder of Nedco Sports, a sports training company established in 1999. Dixon is also an active and full time high school baseball coach with over 25 years experience. Coach Dixon is better known as the inventor of the BatAction Hitting Machine, the SKLZ Derek Jeter Hurricane Hitting Machine, the SKLZ Target Trainer, the SKLZ Derek Jeter ZipnHit Pro, and the SKLZ Strikeback Trainer. Dixon is also a contributing writer for BaseballCoachingDigest, the Youth Baseball Digest, the Baseball Parent Guide, the Baseball 2Day Coaches Journal, and Blog4Coaches.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Nick_Dixon

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Baseball2u.com/CoachesBest.com is the ultimate online baseball training and coaching store. With over 1400 products organized into categories Baseball2u.com makes finding that baseball training product easy and simple. Order securely online or by phone. Baseball2u.com is a fully licensed company and has a full time staff available from 8:00 to 5:00 CST. Their toll free customer service number is 1-877-431-4487.

The Categories they have are: Baseball Training Equipment, Youth Baseball Training Equipment, Training Bats, Pitching & Throwing Trainers, Defensive Trainers, Batting Cages, Pitching Machines, Jugs Equipment, Game and Practice Baseballs, Protective Practice Screens and Nets, Portable Pitching Mounds, Baseball DVDs & Books, Clearance Items on Sales, BatAction Hitting Machines, Hurricane Hitting Machines, NEDCO Bataction Replacement Parts, SKLZ Hurricane Replacement Parts and Much Much More! Visit Baseball2U.com today!