Tips From the Dugout
by Coach John Peter
For Players
Some of your best baseball lessons will come from the head of your dinner table.not from Major League stars. Baseball lessons imitate life lessons so don't close your ears to your Dad's voice. His heart is with you every inning you are on a baseball field.
Never step on a baseball field without wanting to give your best effort. It's great practice for your life after baseball.
I learned (way too late) to thank all of my coaches with direct eye contact and a firm handshake. Every one of them made me better in some way.
For Parents
Enjoy your years watching and teaching the game to your kids.
Cut your kids some slack even when you want to shake them by the shoulders to get their attention. (Remember, they may be picking out your nursing home someday!)
Baseball years go very quickly. way too quick, so don't miss a minute that you can avoid. It may be the minute that they need you most!
Remember, you may never be closer to your child than when you are throwing a ball from 60 feet away!
For Coaches
Teach life lessons, especially after ballgames, by applying both good and bad situations where the lessons of cause and effect are easily absorbed.
If you do not want to be a role model.get out of coaching.
The greatest award you should want to receive in your after-season party or banquet is the respect of your troops.
And to all of you..THANKS FOR HELPING KIDS!
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Ask the Coach
by Coach Arnald Swift
Dan in Boca Raton, FL asks:
My grandson is nine years old. He is athletic and plays all the sports you can think of. He has played recreation baseball since he was five. Last year he started live pitching and got hit a few times, which resulted in him being more concerned about avoiding the pitches than hitting them. He missed the all star team because of this. He did perform in one tournament where he excelled at fielding and throwing. He also bunted effectively. The team won the tournament. I am looking for help to teach him how to hit and to get him over this fear at the plate.
Coach Swift:
This is a common problem and can usually be fixed. You need to do the following over the next week or so. It will take about 10 sessions.
- Take the bat away from him. What we need to do is pitch to him and have him only watching the ball. Don't ask him to swing, just stand in there and watch the ball. This can be done by live throw, or ideally by a machine.
- Now throw whiffle balls, safety balls, foam balls, something like that. Throw at least 20 pitches per session and twice a day if possible. Do this for 3 days.
- Move up to tennis balls, doing the same routine for 3 days.
- Now baseballs. Again the same routine for 3 days.
- Now have him stand at the plate with a bat, but do not swing. Normally you'll use soft/safety balls for 2 days.
- Same things with baseballs for 2 days.
- Now throw balls with him with at-bat, and let him stride into the pitch.
- After about 300-400 pitches let him hit.
It is very important that you spend the 2 weeks doing this and not letting him swing. Just watching the ball. Throw easy for the first few days.
Have a Baseball Question?
Coach Swift is the Director of Customer Relations at Baseball Tips. He joined the staff in 2003 after retiring from the high school coaching ranks in Colorado. If you have a question you'd like answered, send an e-mail to baseballtips@gmail.com.
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Featured Article
Put Me In Coach: Setting the Tone for a Positive Experience
by Dr. Darrell J. Burnett, Certified Sports Psychologist specializing in Youth Sports
Some coaches have a difficult time handling the youth sports atmosphere, and some may underestimate their importance to their players.
The No. 1 reason why kids come back is positive coaching. Coaches must grasp the idea that their role is important. When I talked to coaches and we define a successful coach, it isn't determined by their win-loss record. The coach has to keep the kids involved.
There are four needs a coach must establish for a child to keep him or her returning to youth sports.
- A sense of belonging.
If the children cannot find a group to come to them, they'll go to the group. The coach can add to that sense of belonging by making the child feel like part of the team. This point leads to the second need.
- To feel worthwhile.
If the coach relates to the kid as a person and as a member of the team, it will add to the value of youth sports.
- A sense of dignity.
The coach's job is to treat the
children with respect, and let them know they will be treated with respect simply for coming out and playing.
- A sense of control.
The coach lets the children know they are in control of their own destiny, and
lets them work their way into a role on the team.
The other job of the coach is to control the parents to prevent a situation from getting out of hand. The first step is to define unruly behavior.
If you're going to deal with unruly parents, you've got to have it all spelled out before the season begins. A preseason meeting with the parents can help prevent any unwanted situation. Coaches need to tell parents that offensive language, and the berating of players, coaches and officials are unacceptable. The coach also must provide consequences for any action considered inappropriate.
If there is a situation, the first step is to remain calm, otherwise you can feed the fire.
When a situation occurs, the coach has to have some way of dealing with it. One way is to have other parents who participated in the preseason meeting talk to the offending parent to try to calm him or her down. After the event
occurs, the coach must become the teacher, so the parent understands what he or she did wrong and why it was considered unacceptable. The coach has to look for the positives in every situation.
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Baseball Tips for the Holidays
Baseball players and coaches are not born....they are trained!
Check out our gift ideas for the player, coach and baseball parent in your family!
| Holiday Sales |
Personal Pitcher Pitching Machines
Our Best Seller!
The only golf wiffleball machine that is fully portable and rechargeable. Throws a very straight ball every 6 seconds, unless you prefer the brand new curveball model. Great for pre-game warmups or hitting stations. Zero set-up time. Use any bat. Eliminate fear of the ball and build confidence! All you need is 25 feet and enough area to swing a bat! This is a FUN pitching machine that any player can use by himself.
 See More Holiday Sales
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| Gifts for Players |
Heater Pitching Machine
Great for the Backyard
The Little League approved Heater is the most efficient entry-level pitching machine available! It throws baseballs, softballs or dimple balls up to 60 MPH from regulation distances. A free auto feeder is included with the pitching machine, all for just $499. Package the Heater with a batting cage, starting at only $1,035.
See More Ideas For Players
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| Gifts for Coaches |
Fungo Bat
Only $39.95
What kind of bat do you see a youth league coach or a dad hitting grounders and fly balls with? Usually it's a kid's bat. What you need is a fungo bat. Most are around 36 to 37 inches, but our Coach's Club is only 33" and weights just 18 ounces. It even comes in team colors!
See More Ideas For Coaches
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| Gifts for Under $30 |
Where's the Play CD
Little League Approved
Stop guessing where you're supposed to be with this defensive positioning interactive CD-ROM. It's narrated by a 12-year old Little Leaguer and teaches kids the mental basics of the game by using simple graphics of the field and the players in their positions. It then gives you various situations that players encounter and asks Where's the Play?
See More Gifts for Under $30
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| Gifts for Under $100 |
Armed & Ready Program
For Arm Health & Injury Prevention
Includes what has been called The Greatest Long Toss Program in Big League ball.and much, much more. Kids want to throw harder and more strikes. Alan Jaeger has devised a map to help them throw harder and with more accuracy while keeping these talented arms healthy! Used and endorsed by 2002 Cy Young winner Barry Zito.
See More Gifts for Under $100
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| When will it arrive? |
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All products found at Baseball Tips will be delivered in time for Christmas and are processed immediately. We ship in a timely fashion via USPS Priority Mail, UPS and occasionally FedEx.
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Free Baseball Tips Resources
Local Coaches & Baseball Instructors
If you or a player you know is seeking personalized instruction this winter, please take advantage of our free Instructors Section to find a baseball coach in your area.
We are now up to 275 instructors in 39 states!
States Currently Available
We have a nationwide database of instructors and we would like to add even more. If you know of any coach who instructs individuals or groups, forward this information to them so they can add their information to this FREE service.
For those that wish to be added to our online Baseball Tips Instructors section, please fill out the Instructors Section Form.
Help For Local Players!
Local instruction and videos/DVDs are among the best ways for players to improve quickest!
To view our new & unique 150+ videos, DVDs & books go to the:
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