Watch as Coach Tony Vitello discusses the process of getting to know his players and cultivating relationships. Coach Vitello started coaching at a young age and wanted to be liked and to be buddies with […]
Catcher’s Weighted Wrist Drill with Miguel Mercado – Langham Creek High School (TX)
Watch as Coach Miguel Mercado explains and a catcher demonstrates this weighted wrist drill. Catchers can become pocket-dependent, and the wrist can collapse, forcing the catcher to try to bring the ball back. The wrist […]
Three Impactful Ways to Help Athletes Build Mental Strength Right Now
By: Julie Hatfield-Still Athletics are about more than just winning games or improving physical skills, it’s also a critical time for building the mental strength athletes need to succeed in sports and life. As a […]
Each Coach’s Role Is to Make the Team Better with Jay Johnson – Louisiana State Univ.
Watch as Coach Jay Johnson answers a question at the ABCA Convention Q&A on how he instills confidence in assistant coaches to make in-game coaching decisions. He explains how it is your job to get […]
What Does it Take to Hold Someone Accountable? with Stephen Mackey – 2Words Character Development
Watch as Stephen Mackey explains that it takes expectation, equipping, and encouragement to teach students and athletes to be accountable. You can have a very high standard but if you don’t teach them how to […]
Infield “Ball in the Glove” Drill with Ed Servais – Creighton Univ.
Watch as Coach Ed Servais explains and shows video of this “ball in the glove” drill for infielders. Infielders will have a ball in the glove and will simulate fielding a ball then throwing the […]
5-Step Pitching Warmup with Rob Fay – Schoolcraft College
Watch as Coach Rob Fay explains, and a pitcher demonstrates this 5-step pitching warmup drill. The purpose is to get the pitcher’s body ready for what they need to do in a game situation. It […]
Mental Toughness: A Skill That Can Be Developed with Dr. Colleen Hacker – Team USA / Pacific Lutheran Univ.
Watch as Dr. Colleen Hacker explains that mental toughness is a skill, and it can be developed. It is about how an individual responds to adversity, difficult situations, setbacks, and failure. Mental toughness is not […]
Connection Point: Parents with Adam Moseley – Hoover High School (AL)
Watch as Coach discusses points that he uses when connecting with parents. Examples of opportunities to work with parents are public events, player evaluations, weekly communications, fundraisers, and individual meetings. Make it a point to […]
Minimizing Your Athletes’ Anxiety with Robert Schinke – Laurentian Univ.
Watch as Robert Schinke discusses minimizing your athletes’ anxiety. Lack of confidence is the main cause of anxiety for athletes as an upcoming event nears. Focusing on previous negative performances instead of their positive performances […]
Leading Others
By: Jamy Bechler – Athletic Director at Midway University (KY) Originally Published in: THE LEADERSHIP PLAYBOOK It is not just enough to lead yourself effectively, you must also have a positive influence on others, John […]
Hitting Periodization: Drills to Progress Your Offseason Training with Kyle Nelson – Burlington Central High School (IL)
Watch as Coach Kyle Nelson breaks down the drills he uses with his players from August through January. He explains the distinction between swinging and hitting and how training for each differs. According to Coach […]
Developing a Swing That Plays with Devin DeYoung – New York Mets
Watch as Coach Devin DeYoung discusses four topics, which include motor learning, swing plane, zone coverage, and practice environments. He goes over his core values that he tries to instill into every player he has, […]
The Revolution in the Approach to Catching with Bob Lisanti – Bo Jackson Elite Sports
Watch as Coach Bob Lisanti discusses how catching is a challenging position that demands a deep understanding of techniques like framing. He says effective catching relies on proper posture and positioning, enabling players to respond […]
Building a High Performance Culture from the Inside-Out with Dr. Jason Ness – Ness Psychological Services
Watch as Dr. Jason Ness discusses the importance of responsibility and commitment to the team along with the subjective nature of high-performance culture. Trust, relationships, and clarity of values among coaches are emphasized. The conversation […]
Infielder Development with Ford Pemberton – Univ. of Memphis
Watch as Coach Ford Pemberton discusses his experiences as a hitting coach, the evaluation of players based on physical attributes and movement efficiency, and the importance of arm strength in development. Insights on throwing techniques, […]
The Space Between with Todd Carroll – Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Watch as Coach Todd Carroll breaks down the mental approach to the game, emphasizing the importance of mindset and how professionals stay locked in. He highlights the need to control emotions, breathing, and tempo. For […]
Practice Organization and Design for All Seasons with Shaun Wegner – Univ. of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
Watch as Coach Shaun Wegner shares insights on building a strong organization and effectively planning for each season. He emphasizes the importance of assessing your team’s talent level and understanding your personnel when developing a […]
Hitting with a Purpose with Joe Kelch – Northern Illinois Univ.
Watch as Coach Joe Kelch discusses hitting with a purpose. He says this consists of 5 key components: stance, timing/load, hitting position, ground-up rotation, and hitting behind the baseball. His overall thoughts are to make […]
Movements and Fielding Patterns for a Successful Infielder with Ramon Orozco – Eastlake High School (CA)
Watch as Coach Ramon Orozco discusses field patterns such as four-step, two-step, splitting your feet, on-the-run, backhand, and bonus moves. Throughout the video, he shows footage of these field patterns to make it easier to […]
What to Know and How to Help Your Players, the Scouts, and Your Program with Lukas McKnight – Cleveland Guardians
Watch as Coach Lukas McKnight discusses things you should know about scouts, what you should know as a coach, and how to best serve your players. He says that the goal of a scout is […]
Pitching: Perfecting an Imperfect Sport with Anthony Silkwood – Jacksonville State Univ.
Watch as Coach Anthony Silkwood details how to tweak your program into making it perfect. He says some areas that can be improved are your process, plan, preparation, and the 7 months before the season […]
The Aces Way: Our Culture Over the Years with Wes Carroll – Univ. of Evansville
Watch as Coach Wes Carroll shares insights on how he has cultivated a strong team culture, beginning with a powerful quote he champions: “Highly believe in the improbable” by Jamie Wheel. He emphasizes that maintaining […]
Build a Winning Program & a Balanced Offense That Attacks with Nick Mingione – Univ. of Kentucky
Watch as Coach Nick Mingione discusses how he built a successful program. He starts off his practices by having players memorize a quote and then recite it to him, and if they don’t memorize it, […]
Creating a More Productive Offense with Baserunning with Tony Vitello – Univ. of Tennessee
Watch as Coach Tony Vitello discusses how to create a productive offense by emphasizing pride in your team and the sport. He highlights the impact of speedwork in practice and the importance of a weight […]
Everything Counts: Build a Winning Culture with Dan Cimini – De La Salle Collegiate High School (MI)
Watch as 5-time Michigan State Champion and Hall of Fame Coach Dan Cimini explains his team’s success that is based on culture, not talent. His culture is based on his beliefs and not on someone […]
Outside Noises Are an Excuse to Make Players Feel Good with Omri Rachmut – The Program
Watch as Omri Rachmut explains that outside noises are an excuse to make players feel good. There are outside voices that your players hear besides the coaches. Sometimes it is parents who are providing the […]
Catchers Throwing to Bases Drill with Blake Sandford – Brownwood High School (TX)
Watch as Coach Blake Sandford explains, and catchers demonstrate this throwing to bases drill. The drill involves 3 catchers throwing to the bases and infielders covering and working on tags. The catcher on the right […]
2025 ABCA Convention Q&A with Tony Vitello – Univ. of Tennessee
Watch this Q&A session with University of Tennessee Head Coach, Tony Vitello, after his 2025 ABCA Convention lecture on “Building a Championship Program.”
2025 ABCA Convention Q&A with Chris Hart – North Carolina State Univ.
Watch this Q&A session with North Carolina State University Head Coach Chris Hart after his 2025 ABCA Convention lecture on “Developing Hitters, Not Just Swingers, with the Wolfpack Approach.”