Parents || Baseball Dudes LLC

Dear Parents

Nov

Dear Parents:

We all know many coaches can be better at how they plan and utilize team practice time. But let’s make sure we are clear about something, your athletes development is not solely on them. In fact, they are just a small piece. To blame them for your athletes lack of production, is a big mistake. Before even second guessing your athletes coaches, answer these questions:

• How much does your athlete really love their sport(s)?
• How much time do they spend on their own daily/weekly practicing their sport(s)?
• What is their attitude like when with their team and things aren’t going well?
• Are they a good teammate?
• How’s their focus?
• Are they able to apply what they are learning (aptitude)?
• Are they in the right situation and level or team for their ability level?
• Are they accountable for their mistakes or do they have a habit of blaming and excuse making?

Parents, YOU are a major part of their development. Great coaches can make a huge difference for players BUT they are temporary. Your expectations must be realistic and understanding the requirements or growth are necessary. Check your athletes habits before anything else. If they are doing their part, be careful of looking elsewhere for reasons before looking at home first.

Chris Gissell (172 Posts)

Founder of Baseball Dudes. Blessed with three beautiful children and an amazing wife. Baseball is my life, after my family, and I love sharing what I have learned from it. Thanks for taking the time to view what we offer here at Baseball Dudes.

Categories : All Articles, Baseball Life, Chris Gissell, Coaching, Dudes Blog, Parents

I Don’t Care!!

Jun

“I don’t care.”

I guarantee some won’t understand this and some will say “You’re wrong!” But here you go. This was part of my growth as an athlete.

I was the same as dang near every youth athlete. I would hold onto mistakes. I would get upset with what I thought were umpires mistakes. I would blame my coaches. I would play scorekeeper in my head when my teammates made errors. When the game was over I would think way more about all of the mistakes everyone else made except my own.

These moments of weakness would turn one walk into two. Turn a bad inning into a bad game. Turn a bad game into a month long slump. And make seasons seem more like a roller coaster than steady progress.

Looking back on it, I had to go through these moments. They were completely necessary to get to where I would eventually get. I had to get knocked down enough times but get back up more. But when I finally snapped out of it and stopped being a weak competitor and teammate, everything changed.

I finally got to that point of “it doesn’t matter!” “I don’t care!” “So what!”

I walked a batter, so what, let’s get the next guy to hit a ground ball. Teammate made an error, so what, let’s get the next guy. The umpire missed a pitch call, oh well, let’s execute the next pitch.

For me, I became a better competitor when I stopped caring. I know that sounds weird and wrong but that’s the best way I can describe it, in the moment I had to not care how we got there to be all in on the next pitch. That was my job.

Chris Gissell (172 Posts)

Categories : All Articles, Baseball Life, Blog Samples, Chris Gissell, Coaching, Parents, Pitching

Call it What You Want…

Feb

It doesn’t matter what you want to call it:

• Travel ball
• Select ball
• Tournament ball
• League ball
• City League ball
• Little League ball

It’s still youth baseball. It’s a hard game being played by kids. That alone is a challenge but then add in adult emotions and intentions of wanting to be “superior” and you have a recipe for disaster. Keep those expectations realistic.

Even though some of these kids have grown quicker than others, were born with different abilities than their peers, they are still kids. They will make mistakes (a lot), struggle with focus, look amazing one second then trip on nothing the next, have poor body language, tear up and do many other things that get under us adults skin.

Yep, they are kids! Funny thing is once upon a time we were them and did the same things, made off the wall comments, had squirrel moments and drove our parents, coaches and teachers crazy. So in reality, we get frustrated with them for the same things we did 🤔.

This is youth baseball. No matter how we want to spin it and give it a title that implies we are better than the others, I would slow down and remember that this phase in their lives is not about us. Not about our experience but all about them, their personal growth as young athletes and people and we are here to help them get the most out of it for as long as they would like to play them game.

In fact, we have an opportunity to enjoy something with them that many of us enjoyed growing up. And for a few of them, their ability will grow into something amazing which will lead to opportunities they dream of.

Grow the game!

Chris Gissell (172 Posts)

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5 Adjustments that Changed the Course of my Career:

Jan

1. Pitching inside. In my 7th season, I had a pitching coach (Bob McClure) who spent a lot of time with us (his pitching staff) talking about how to use the inside part of the plate. How it affected hitters. How it opened up the outer half. How it made your other stuff better. Only a few were able to grasp the concept and execute it but for those of us that did, it was a game changer. I’m convinced it’s what gave me another 7 years, a shot at the big leagues and a contract overseas.

2. Accountability. I stopped making excuses. Stopped blaming my teammates. Stopped giving attention to the umpires “missed” calls and started paying closer attention to where I really threw the pitch, how often their “misses” actually helped me and my team and opened my eyes to how their “misses” do even out in the end. I became honest with myself about my personal performance every single time.

3. Cut down on walks. In my career I threw just under 1,600 innings and walked 540 batters. Of those, about 400 came in the first 6 years. The remaining were spread out over the last 8. Maybe a coincidence but those last 8 were by far better than the first 6. I contribute it to a few things. I went from the stretch position only (got rid of the windup), stopped trying to get swing and misses and started forcing contact if they wanted to get on base and as mentioned above, I took control of the inside part of the plate.

4. Started working quick. Less than 10 seconds between pitches. Warm up pitches done in less than 60 seconds. The goal was to complete a 9 inning game in under 2 hours. We were able to do it once. Missed it by a few minutes a handful of times. Most hitters didn’t like the quick tempo but my teammates did, my coaches did and the umpires really did! It helped me get into a rhythm, kept my teammates ready and kept the umpires in a good mood!

5. Gave it a rest. Staying healthy and strong was a must. The long seasons of professional ball can take a toll on anyones body. Over the second half of my career, whenever I was in the starting rotation I wouldn’t pick up a ball the day before or the day after my start. The other two days included a session of long toss and a bullpen each day. If I was a reliever, I would find a day to not pick up a ball. Usually after a 2-3 inning stint the night before. Though some thought I was a little crazy for doing this, it was something I tried and found to keep me healthy and strong from the beginning to the end.

We are all different and it’s up to us to find out what helps us become our best. The above are a few things that helped me reach the top. They wouldn’t work for all and some may see them as “wrong” but that’s okay. Hope some of you do find them helpful.

Chris Gissell (172 Posts)

Categories : All Articles, Chris Gissell, Coaching, Parents, Pitching

Teaching

Dec

I was drafted in 1996 (yes I’m old) and my first manager was Sandy Alomar Sr. I graduated HS that year and three days after graduation I found myself on a plane to rookie ball. At the time I had no idea I was about to embark on a period of my life that would take me and my family all over the country and world. It gave me 14 years as a player and over 1,500 innings pitched. I’ll forever be grateful for not only the baseball experience but the men and leaders the game put in front of me.

The culture I found myself in was about development EVERY SINGLE DAY. The teaching was relentless. From team fundamentals, to PFP’s, to learning new routines to the mental side of the game. Now that I look back on it, I have no doubt it’s the main reason behind my beliefs and direction as a teacher and coach.

That first year of Rookie Ball I experienced a level of development I honestly haven’t seen since. Position players were taught the game and left to play. They put on their own hit and runs, own stolen bases and own sac bunts. They called their own 1st & 3rd defense and bunt plays. As for us pitchers and catchers, it was on us. We would discuss game plan and approach before the game/series and then work together in game and between innings. Of course they were there as coaches to give feedback and teach as the games went on and looking back on it, what an amazing way to teach the game. So fun!!

Now this wasn’t the approach of every coach I had in pro ball but from a pitcher and catcher standpoint, running the game was our job every game at every level. Building game awareness, game IQ and self confidence was the goal.

As the years went on, and our competition got better, so did we. We had to if we wanted to last. We had to find ways to get the upper hand. The mental and strategic side of the game was the easiest way to be different since at that level EVERYONE has the physical abilities.

I’m a believer in teaching the game, letting them play, learning from the game, letting them play (yes I meant to write that again!) and being the teacher and leader they need.

Chris Gissell (172 Posts)

Categories : All Articles, Baseball Life, Chris Gissell, Coaching, Parents

From Athlete to Parenthood:

Oct

Once upon a time my life revolved around a baseball for a few months, then a football for a few months and then a basketball for a few. Then there was a local public swimming pool for the remaining few. Mix in some yard work, riding bikes, finding some pond to fish in or creek to catch some crawdads to take up the rest of the time. The outside was our distraction. I’m 46 and just like others around my age, this was the story of our youth.

I loved playing sports (still do) and my father was my biggest supporter. Whatever the sport was, he was my teacher (did it the best he could). My fondest memories are from time spent together in our backyard hitting on the tee and practicing pitching. I can still see clearly the strike zone he built out of a sheet of plywood with a zone cut out and a piece of old carpet hanging behind to stop the strikes thrown. He would keep tally of total pitches thrown and total strikes thrown to give us a strike percentage. I also have strong memories of our time at the local school field and him throwing batting practice and hours of playing pepper. Like many, he is a big reason for instilling a love for the game and helping me improve.

The other day I was looking for something and opened a box which was filled with memorabilia. Newspaper clippings (yep, we are old) from when I played in Taiwan and Japan, lanyards from the AAA All Star game I got to play in, baseball cards, etc. The kind of stuff you forget about but when you find it, it gives you good memories to reminisce on. The game has given me plenty of memories that I’ll forever be grateful for.

After a couple minutes of thumbing through some of it, I boxed it up and put it back. While stuffing it away to collect some more dust it dawned on me that my kids have never seen that stuff (and that’s okay). We have three children, 21, 19 and soon to be 16 and the older two were just little ones at the end of my career. They got to see Dad play a little but they were too young for those memories to stick. To them I am just “Dad” and that’s exactly how I want it.

I’ve learned those personal accomplishments I had in the game unfortunately carry no weight when it comes to being a parent. All those promotions, wins, trophies, rings, article clippings, baseball cards and stats literally mean nothing in comparison to raising children. With that said though, many of the mental and character skills I had to learn as an athlete without a doubt have had carryover.

Parenting can be one of the toughest and most rewarding jobs there is in life. At least that’s how I feel about it. With two young adult boys and a daughter working her way towards being a young adult, the process of one phase to the next is a constant learning process for not only them but for us as their parents.

The game not only gives us memories but can help prepare us for things in life much more important.

Chris Gissell (172 Posts)

Categories : All Articles, Chris Gissell, Coaching, Parents

Arm Care

Oct

The term “Arm Care” is thrown around as if it’s a simple thing. Do some band exercises and you should be good!! Truth is it’s a very loaded term and deserves a much much deeper explanation and plan. If you’re serious about the game, pitching, your teams arms, then it’s time to get serious about all of it.

ARM CARE is…

• Understanding and developing proper throwing/pitching mechanics.
• Pre season throwing plan.
• Pre season/early season pitch count progression.
• Total body strength.
• Nutrition
• Weekly between game throwing routines.
• Listening to your arm.
• Knowing your body.
• Not pitching with a lower body injury.
• Post throwing arm maintenance/recovery routine.
• Knowing what an arm is conditioned for, aka, how many pitches is an arm ready to throw that day.
• Knowing what signs of fatigue look like and how to diagnose what a sore arm is.
• Not rushing back into competitive throwing after an arm injury.
• Weekly bullpens to get better with command and stuff to be able to compete better which means throwing more strikes which means most likely throwing less pitches per inning.
• Being mentally tougher which again means being a better competitor which means being able to get more outs with less pitches.

Band work is good but there is WAY more to it. We have a whole page here on our site dedicated to this topic. Check out our “Save Our Arms” page.

**Side note, those bands sitting at the bottom of your bag aren’t helping.

Chris Gissell (172 Posts)

Categories : All Articles, Chris Gissell, Coaching, Parents, Pitching

Mechanics vs Approach

Sep

Strong competitors are solid with both but what’s the balance? Is one more important than the other? When do you work on mechanics? When do we talk and teach approach?

In my opinion and experience both should be a constant focus but we see it time and time again, athletes who are great with their body movements but struggle with competition. Even though they may be hearing and learning about the head game, in the heat of the moment emotions push approach out the window leading to trying to compete via anger, embarrassment, fear and over aggression.

For many involved in the game, athletes and adults, when the desired results aren’t showing, we immediately go to mechanics when in reality more often than not the fix is between the ears.

As athletes we need to be able to compete relaxed. That’s when most of us will be at our best physically and be able to organize ourselves mentally. The difficult part are the distractions for the immature athletes. Who’s watching, what are they thinking, teammates voices, opponents voices, parents voices and coaches voices.

For those not there yet, these uncontrollable’s take them off their game and put them in a place of anxiety and insecurity leading to a loss of approach and proper visualization.

While we prepare ourselves, our players and our children to be great physically we need to understand the importance of mindset and approach just as much as we have taught ourselves about mechanical side of the game. There needs to be a constant focus on it. We need to be aware of how our attitudes as adults affects this part of their game, good or bad.

Players, keep training to get the most out of your body but to play this game long term, you better learn to be one of the mentally toughest, mentally prepared, smartest and grittiest players on the field at all times.

Chris Gissell (172 Posts)

Categories : All Articles, Chris Gissell, Coaching, Hitting, Parents, Pitching

Leadership:

Sep

Let’s talk leadership for a few minutes. What is it? What does it mean?? What does it look like??? Why is it so important????

In my words…

Leadership is the act of leading others. Someone who others look to for direction, advice, guidance, encouragement, support and an example of how to behave, work, focus and relate to others. Leadership is the foundation a group is built around. The quality of leadership will be seen in those around it.

The best leaders we will ever come across take their opportunity seriously. They understand the impact they can have. They know when to be loose and when it’s time to be serious. They carry themselves in a way that garners respect and trust. Their moral integrity is unbreakable, they are firm in their beliefs, they can’t be bought, they don’t get caught up in nonsense and they stay the course.

Think of any adjective used to describe someone who is highly respected and you will see a list of words that show why they make such a difference. This will lead to those looking to them start to emulate their behaviors. A team, organization, town, city, state, country, world full of people of integrity with an innate ability to lead we will see people come together, work together and fight evil together.

Leadership IS the difference maker. It’s why when teams, businesses, cities, states and countries start to fall apart and can’t seem to recover you see leadership changes. Many try hard to be good leaders but not everyone is meant to do it well. Weaknesses within lead to poor judgement, poor choices and consistent mistakes they can’t seem to recover from.

Leadership starts at home. This is where many attributes in a person start. From there we come across “leaders” in many areas of our lives. Our character is formed as we grow and experience life. Beliefs may change as the years go on but leadership is leadership. It’s a vital piece to unity.

Chris Gissell (172 Posts)

Categories : All Articles, Baseball Life, Chris Gissell, Coaching, Parents

Play Free!

Aug

We need to be so confident in our abilities that when we do make a mistake, have a tough day, fall into a little slump, we trust that it’s temporary. We know without a doubt we will work through it and come out better because of that adversity.

Playing free is not caring who is watching because you know you’re giving your best but that doesn’t always mean you’re going to be the best. Your level of focus, purpose and intent will allow you to keep getting better.

Playing free means you don’t panic or lose yourself when things become uncomfortable and don’t go your way. You stay the course and keep moving forward with the situation at hand.

Playing free is playing with a level of confidence that no one can beat you but in reality you know in the back of your mind that doesn’t always happen. But that confidence allows you to get back up with the same level of belief.

Playing free is knowing yourself, your body, your mechanics so well that when somethings off, you feel it instantly and know how to fix it. You’re careful to not over think and be too analytical though.

Playing free is what we want our players to play like. We want them to trust themselves, be aggressive and play like no one can beat them. For this to happen they need to know we believe in them and that we want them to play like they are unbeatable!!

Play FREE young ballers!!

Chris Gissell (172 Posts)

Categories : All Articles, Baseball Life, Baserunning, Catching, Chris Gissell, Coaching, Fielding, Hitting, Parents, Pitching

It’s Just Smoke

Jun

Sure, it’s said with good intentions. Makes you feel good about yourself. Makes others think good things about you. Happens all the time. But then things get real! Those actions…They will catch up to you. Words are great and all but it will always come down to actions and effort. What you DO will ALWAYS carry more weight than what you SAY. So you might want to ease up on the Smoke, stop saying things and making promises you can’t keep, or to be honest, don’t know how to keep.

This is life. Everyone is a salesman to some extent. Whether you’re a parent, a teacher, a coach or even have “Salesman” in your job title, we are all trying to convince someone that this is the best way or what’s really going on.

To my fellow coaches, we use the word “development” often to define our approach. Or the phrase “trust the process” to help others with patience. Or “have fun out there” to help our players relax.

But here’s the thing…

We say that in one breath but then don’t understand that “development” requires so many reps and opportunities. It requires us learning more about the game and getting better ourselves. Deep down our goal is to really help them but in the moment our emotions win and then appeasing our feelings becomes more important. The numbers on the scoreboard start to cloud our judgement.

The “process” has no end date and even though we talk so much about it, we might be the worst one at genuinely trusting it. Our eyes get big, our smiles get wider when we see those early bloomers but we look past those kids who haven’t grown at the same pace because they can’t help us win some youth ball game that no matter the importance we put on it, it really doesn’t mean much in life.

We want the kids to “have fun out there” but have something to say on every play, our team meetings consist of talking about and harping on everything we see they did wrong and need to be better at. Our body language cries of disappointment. We try to make ourselves feel better with passive aggressive comments towards them. We yank them off the field in the middle of an inning because we are tired of seeing them out there making mistakes. We encourage them to be aggressive but then wear them out when they get out “being aggressive.” We get on them for not executing fundamental baseball but haven’t provided them with countless practice reps on those fundamentals.

Adults, we need to slow down. Start paying closer attention to our attitudes, actions and are we REALLY living our words. The kids will start to see through it and when they do, don’t be surprised when that oh so important “trust” thing starts to fade. That’s OUR fault. GET RID OF THE SMOKE!

Chris Gissell (172 Posts)

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10 Tips for Parents of Athletes:

May

1. Control your emotions. Be a consistent example of mental stability. Show them how to properly respond when things don’t go our way. They will be able to get the most out of their skills when they are mentally in control.

2. Support them away from their team. All players should practice their sport on their own time. They will always have more time away from their team to get better than they will while with them. Help them develop this great habit. Help them learn to take their development into their own hands.

3. Be realistic. Put them in a position to thrive. We want them to get better but just because we want them to be ready for a certain level doesn’t always mean they are ready for that level. Just because that’s where their friends are doesn’t mean it’s the right place for them at that moment.

4. Don’t allow excuses and blaming. The longer they do this the longer they will stunt their own growth. Teach them the difference between the controllable’s and the un-controllable’s. Their attitude, effort, energy and focus.

5. Think twice about your conversations. What are you allowing? What are you participating in? What are you instigating? The tone, the message, the impact. Know this too, sometimes the best thing we can say is nothing at all. Silence is okay!

6. Sports are hard. If you played while you were younger, keep perspective on how hard it was. If you never did, I suggest you go out there and practice with them. Try doing everything they are trying to do.

7. Slow down!! It’s a process. They all grow at different rates. Support them, encourage them, motivate them and help them be their best but be careful of comparing them to their peers. The process and journey is different for all. Some are early bloomers while many are late bloomers. The most important years for an athletes performance don’t even happen until after puberity kicks in and again, that even hits at different ages.

8. Look for leaders. Place them in front of those who are great people. People who will help instill the same values you are trying to teach them at home. Raising children is hard. Never underestimate the power of outside voices.

9. Youth sports has a way of becoming a toxic enviornment. From gossip about other players to coach bashing to berating and belittling officials. Don’t be a part of it. Don’t get sucked into the emotions of it. If you want these years to be as enjoyable as possible, beware of the nonsense and stay away from it.

10. Please don’t ever let sports come between you are your child(ren). Don’t let your attitude about their performance cause strain in your relationship. This game is a temporary phase in their life and meant to be enjoyable. Your relationship is forever. Nurture it now to have for life.

Chris Gissell (172 Posts)

Categories : All Articles, Baseball Life, Chris Gissell, Coaching, Dudes Blog, Parents

13 Things Life Has Taught Me

Apr

2014-09-26-16-30-49 I am 45 years old. Grew up in Concord, CA until I was about 14 years old. We moved to Vancouver, WA the summer before my freshman year of high school and moved to Tyler, TX about 2 years ago.

Let me give you a little history…

My parents recently did the parent thing and broke out old video to enjoy some laughs and some memories. There was a lot of amazing video that was great to see. But one thing I realized was that I didn’t remember any of it. Video from when I was 11/12 years old to video of me playing ball in HS. I remember the people of course, but the moments…Well the memories are few and far between.

One video showed me acting like a complete fool towards my sister. In a teasing manner but when I see my actions, it’s quite embarrassing. In another video, I watched myself pitch in a Freshman HS game. Though I was tall and had a decent arm, my delivery left a lot to be desired compared with what I know now.

Through HS, I wasn’t the best son or student. Especially those first couple years. When I look back, this was right after we moved. The biggest reasoning for this was who I chose to spend my time with. My grades were awful. I spent most of my time around unmotivated people and I constantly disrespected those who had provided the most for me my whole life, my parents.

Blame it on puberty, blame it on moving, blame it on whatever. All I know is that I was going down the wrong path.

Through all this, my parents had faith. Things started to turn around and it all revolved around Baseball. The possibility of being able to play beyond HS started to become a reality but I had to make some big adjustments and improvements, starting with my school work. It was a big uphill battle but I was able to make enough changes to sign a scholarship to a major college.

I was drafted out of HS and chose to go that route. Three days after graduating, I was off. I had to learn how to take care of myself in a hurry.

Seven years into my career, our first child was born. He is now almost 20 years old and looking back, that was the moment in my life that everything changed. All of a sudden I had someone else to provide for and take care of. I realized that there was more to life than myself and baseball.

We were blessed with seven more years of traveling and playing baseball. During those years, we had two more beautiful children. We spent a lot of time apart but we also traveled the country and even overseas together. During all those years, I’m always surprised at what I remember most. Not the games I pitched or the championships we won but the ups and downs of being parents.

After my playing days were done, we found ourselves still fortunate to travel the US but now it was because of coaching. We did that for three years until we decided to step away from the pro game and focus on teaching, guiding and mentoring our local ball players and their families.

During those years as a player and coach, all the traveling, being around so many different people with so many different upbringings and experiences while raising a family in the process… Let’s just say it has all taught me so much.

13 things life has taught me…

1) Relationships are first and foremost. With your family, spouse, friends, students or players.

2) As adults, we most likely won’t remember many of the details of our youth, but all the moments along the way molded us. Think of it like this, in youth Baseball, it’s not the games and the outcomes that a child will remember, it’s the little things like someone showing faith in them when they fail or someone belittling them and pushing them to the side when they make mistakes that will develop their self esteem and teach them how to trust or not trust.

3) Puberty can be hard on anyone. It hits everyone different. My parents persevered. Realizing what I put them through has helped me as a parent of now three teenagers.

4) Baseball is a game. A game that should be fun and played to win. But the life lessons it can teach you, 1000% outweigh one’s physical ability, how many trophies or rings they win, how many homers they hit, how many guys they strike out, how hard they throw or where the game takes them.

5) Character > Athleticism

6) Playing the game is tough. Coaching the game is tough. Parenting is tough. Growing up is tough. Play it the best you can. Teach it the best you can. Raise them the best you can. Learn as much as you can.

7) You can’t teach experience but experience doesn’t always mean better. It means you may have more to share from but not everyone is a teacher. Playing and coaching are two very different things.

8) Knowledge is power. Gain as much information on the subject as you can before you start making choices and decisions.

9) We are a product of what we surround ourselves with. Do the things we choose to have in our life provide positive and encouraging thoughts or do they breed negativity and put us in a place of constant bitterness to what is happening around us? I suggest filling your head with as much motivation as you can. Life is tough enough!

10) Everyone has different opinions. Different feelings on topics. Different ideas and different approaches. IT’S OK! We don’t all have to see eye to eye on everything.

11) There are two kinds of coaches. Transactional and Transformational. Learn the difference between the two. Personally I strive to be Transformational and breathe to help others become this type of mentor.

12) Too many adults often forget how hard it was growing up and how hard this game is. Many have lost perspective that the number one goal is raising people. Developing quality people. They get so caught up in, and become obsessed with, the outcome of a game, that they become blinded to the children that are standing before them learning how to live.

13) FAMILY IS EVERYTHING!!

The game is called “Life.” In our world, Baseball is an amazing tool we get to use to teach with. The lessons that it teaches are endless. It’s not for everyone and very few in this world understand the passion we all have for it, but I recommend we all learn to use it for goodness and not greed.

What the game of Life has taught me.

Chris Gissell (172 Posts)

Categories : All Articles, Baseball Life, Chris Gissell, Coaching, Parents

Mental Stability

Apr

Besides physical tools, what goes on between our ears is absolutely vital for not just performing well but performing well consistently.

For the mentally weak and those who just can’t get a grip on their emotions when things don’t go their way, this game will chew them up and spit them out. Seen it happen and can only imagine how many talented athletes, and non-athletes, never reached, and will never reach, their full potential because they couldn’t get past “fair” or being so prideful they couldn’t handle being beat by their competition that day or they couldn’t grasp the importance of “stoic” when their teammates made mistakes.

It’s an emotional game, we are human. Excitement and frustration are most definitely part of being a competitor but using that as a reason or excuse to “lose it” is not “competing.” Throwing pitches with anger is not competing. Swinging harder than normal because we don’t like the last call is not competing. Hanging onto whatever happened the last pitch and being so distraught that we make a mistake on the next pitch/ball in play is not competing.

In the real world “Mental In-stability” leads to many mistakes and in some cases those mistakes can be life changing. Not just for us personally but often those around us. In our game this is often referred to as being “soft” or “easy to beat.” You call it what you want but if this is you, you are indeed easy to beat. You may have some special talent but ultimately you are not a strong competitor…YET!

Personal growth is an ongoing process. Some can, and do, fix things like this earlier in life while others take time and unfortunately some never figure it out. Having the ability to remain calm in tense situations puts us in a place to think clearly. To be able to critically think, observe the situation and make better thought out decisions. Breathe, relax your shoulders, give yourself a second.

We work so hard on improving and perfecting our physical tools but let’s make sure we are giving our mind the attention it needs and deserves too.

Chris Gissell (172 Posts)

Categories : All Articles, Baseball Life, Catching, Chris Gissell, Coaching, Dudes Blog, Fielding, Hitting, Parents, Pitching

12 Things I would tell myself as a young player:

Mar

1. The work you put in away from your team is where real growth happens. Take your personal development into our own hands. Stop waiting for others to help you.

2. The game will be hard on your body. Take care of it.

3. Accountability will be one of your biggest weaknesses. Get better at it ASAP!

4. Everyday you play catch you are a pitcher. Even if you’re not slated to pitch that day, while you play catch, be a pitcher. Work on your throwing mechanics, throw your off speed pitches and hit spots on your partner.

5. THROW YOUR CHANGE UP!! Start learning it from day one. Experiment with different grips. Keep it out of your palm. Play catch with it EVERYDAY you throw the ball. It will be a very important pitch you need later. Develop it and your confidence in it early on so you don’t need to later.

6. GET STRONGER!!

7. Be a student of the game. When you watch the game on TV, watch it more like a student than a fan. Watch how they move their bodies. How they move around the field. Read up on mental toughness. Seek out those with more experience and ask questions.

8. You’re a pitcher. Just because you threw a pitch, your job is not over. The only time you should find yourself still standing on the mound after a hit ball is if there is no one on base and a GB is hit to your 3B or SS. Any other time you are either moving towards 1B to cover if needed or backing up a base somewhere. Stop spectating!

9. Your headspace will separate you from your competitors. Please start learning this at a younger age! Mental toughness, baseball IQ, competitiveness and emotional control need to be a constant focus.

10. You will have some great coaches in your life and some who have no business being in that position. But you can learn something from all of them, even if that means learning how you DON’T want to be as a coach someday.

11. Playing with and through discomfort is part of it. You shouldn’t have to feel 💯 to give 💯. You better develop some toughness in that area if you want to last.

12. Enjoy the Game!! Someday you will play in your final game. Be grateful for what the game gave you. Respect the game. Remember as much as you can. Enjoy your teammates and when you’re ready, give back as much as you can.

Chris Gissell (172 Posts)

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