Don’t fall for the same lie we always hear… My hot take of the week: One of the biggest lies you hear over and over again in athletics is “Sports develop leadership.” I can tell […]
Pre-Throwing Band Work with Myndie Berka – BreakThrew Fastpitch
Watch as Coach Myndie Berka explains, and pitchers demonstrate these pre-throwing routine band exercises that incorporate band work for both upper and lower body. The assisted ankle band works on getting loosened up and mechanics. […]
All Pitching Plans Start in the Pen with Melyssa Lombardi – Univ. of Oregon
Watch as Coach Melyssa Lombardi discusses the importance of her pitchers to recognize that each one of them is different and she encourages them to do you and do you well. Find out what pitches […]
Ramp Swing Hitting Drill with Josh Bloomer – Arizona State Univ.
Watch as Coach Josh Bloomer explains, and a hitter demonstrates this ramp hitting drill. The goal is to have your hitters moving forward and to get out on the front leg while staying balanced. When […]
What’s Important Now with Alan Stein, Jr.
Watch as Alan Stein, Jr. discusses mental awareness and stresses the importance in today’s environment with all the distractions to stay focused. He uses the acronym W.I.N. which stands for “What’s Important Now” and recommends […]
Athlete Skill Evaluation Tool
By: Wade Gilbert Originally Published in: Coaching Better Every Season Provided by: Human Kinetics A coach’s skill evaluation tool should include all the technical, tactical, physical and psychological aspects of performance they consider to be […]
Infielder Routines with Colleen Powers – St. Catherine Univ.
Watch as Coach Colleen Powers explains, and infielders demonstrate these warm-up routines. The drill starts slow with no gloves, and then builds speed. The ball is received out in front and brought into the belly […]
8 Things Young Coaches Need for Success
By: Cindy Bristow Provided by: Softball Excellence We all get smarter as we get older, but wouldn’t it be great to start your career again knowing what you know now? For those of you that […]
Increasing Your Pitcher’s Speed with Beth Torina – Louisiana State Univ.
Watch as Coach Beth Torina discusses increasing your pitcher’s speed through long toss. Pitchers should long toss 2 to 3 times per week, working on throwing the ball as high and far as they can […]
Fear Is Powerful, but It Is Better to Build and Not Break with Kate Leavell
Kate Leavell explains that fear is a powerful tool that works as a short-term motivational tool but requires more and more overtime to be effective. Eventually fear does not work, as the recipient tunes it […]
Helping Your Younger Athletes to Buy In with Ricci Woodard – Texas State Univ.
Watch as Coach Ricci Woodard explains that the upperclassmen can help the younger players buy in to the program. They have been in the younger players’ shoes and sharing their successes and failures can have […]
Today’s Leadership Is Subtle with Chet Scott – Built to Lead
Watch as Chet Scott explains that leadership for coaches today is very subtle. You can no longer get in a kid’s face and use threats to achieve results. The focus and goal should be to […]
Selling Vision
By: Alan Stein, Jr. Originally Published in: Raise Your Game I don’t believe there’s such a thing as a “million-dollar idea.” The phrase implies that all you have to do is come up with an […]
4 Keys for Successful Postgame Talks
By: Cindy Bristow Provided by: Softball Excellence Addressing your team after a loss is never easy. So make sure you don’t fall into the postgame talk traps that can start to make losing a habit. […]
Practice Is the Foundation for Success with Christa Williams-Yates – Friendswood High School (TX)
Watch as Coach Christa Williams-Yates explains that the foundation for success is practice. There are no quick fixes, as the players need to put the time in and work on their game. If they don’t […]
The Pitcher’s Role with Rachel Lawson – Univ. of Kentucky
Watch as Coach Rachel Lawson discusses a pitcher’s role and responsibilities. The pitcher must take ownership of pitch calling as they have probably grown up with coaches calling their pitches and this hampers the development […]
Are You a Prospect or a Suspect?
By: Adam Sarancik Author of: Coaching Champions for Life Questions College Coaches Should Ask and High School Players Should Be Able to Answer Better People=Better Athletes=Better Players and Teammates I am frequently surprised how rarely […]
Season Teaching Checklist with Lisa Navas – Univ. of South Florida
Watch as Coach Lisa Navas discusses a general checklist that you should cover for the season. She focuses on team offense, hitting and team defense, infielders, outfielders, as well as pitchers and catchers. The goal […]
Developing a Group Into a Team
By: Dr. Colleen M. Hacker Originally Published in: Achieving Excellence Provided by: Human Kinetics One of the main points from this chapter is that groups and teams are formed through intentional actions; they don’t just […]
Infielder’s Bare-Handed Baseball Drill with Caitlin Bollier
Watch as Coach Caitlin Bollier explains and shows a video clip of this infielder’s bare-handed baseball drill. The infielder stands on the board which elevates the player, and they are forced to bend their knees […]
Catching: Target vs. No Target with Kelly Inouye-Perez – UCLA
Watch as Coach Kelly Inouye-Perez answers a question on whether the catcher should or should not give the pitcher a target. Some pitchers need the target while others never even look, but coach wants the […]
Body Awareness and Front-Side Pitching Drills with Myndie Berka – BreakThrew Fastpitch
Watch as Coach Myndie Berka explains, and pitchers demonstrate these body awareness and front-side pitching drills. With these drills, the pitcher can work on their fastball, change up, or a movement pitch. Coach will detail […]
My Take on Leadership
By: John Klessinger Originally Published in: A Coach’s Manual Provided by: Championship Productions “If you expect people to follow you, you have to be willing to be the first to get dirty.” – John Klessinger […]
Reflecting On Why You Coach
By: Wade Gilbert Originally Published in: Coaching Better Every Season Provided by: Human Kinetics Most coaching books start with a discussion of the importance of creating a coaching philosophy and follow up with a section […]
Dirting a Changeup with Lonni Alameda – Florida State Univ.
Watch as Coach Lonni Alameda explains, and a pitcher demonstrates dirting a changeup. This is a great 0-2 pitch that allows the pitcher to expand the zone by bouncing the ball before the plate.
Pitching: Analysis and Count with Randy Simkins – Utah Tech Univ.
Watch as Coach Randy Simkins discusses pitch analysis and count. Both pitchers and coaches should always know the count. When you are ahead in the count be aggressive and attack but don’t waste pitches. The […]
Social Media: Knowing Your Audience with Garry Rosenfield – Coaches Inc.
Watch as Garry Rosenfield explains that it is important to be informed and have your own opinions, but it is also important to know who your audience is on social media and realize that not […]
Be Careful Not to Overuse Technology in Coaching
From the time most children can walk and talk today, they have a technological device of some type in their hands. By the time they finish elementary school, children can code, decode, transmit and transcend […]
Coaches’ Stressors & Mental Health with Dr. Peter Ormsby – Univ. of North Carolina Pembroke
Watch as Dr. Peter Ormsby discusses coaches’ stressors and mental health. He cites case studies that indicate the three main stressors are performance-related, organizational-related, and personal. Performance stressors deal with injuries to athletes and poor […]
The Grind
By: Coach Mickey Marley Originally Published in: Game Ready – 52 Takeaways for Winning If you are a professional, or at the least someone who has sought out to be a champion, you probably have […]