Thank you very much for having me on @BCUPod!! It was a pleasure to meet you and I looking fwd to five seasons of episodes to listen to this summer and grow in the game!
Baseball Coaches Unplugged π
@FF_DiamondHawks Granville Gehris
Most coaches walk into interviews with a resume. Granville Garris walks in with a vision, a portfolio, and a facility plan. Want the head job? Steal this approach from start to finish. Listen Now!
On April 3rd, Milwaukee was 5-22 and one of the worst teams in the country.
Some of their losses:
Run-ruled 21-7 by LSU
Run-ruled 20-3 by Duke
Run-ruled 14-4 by Minnesota
Run-ruled 12-2 by SEMO
Run-ruled 17-1 by Purdue
Run-ruled 14-1 by NKU
Run-ruled 13-2 by Wright State
Run-ruled 16-2 by Notre Dame
Run-ruled 14-4 by UNLV
They finished the regular season 22-31, but won the Horizon League tournament and earned an autobid to the NCAA tournament.
Milwaukee beat #4 Auburn 13-8, beat UCF 13-6, and is now in a regional final, one win away from going to supers.
College Baseball.
In the stands, a H.S. parent complains to anyone who will listen that his kid isn't playing much.
Another parent: "Team is 15-2, Top 5 in the state, winning the league."
Response: "I don't care about that."
And there you have it.
For some parents, it's never about the team.
Being a @NCStateBaseball guy, Never said this before, or even thought it, but watching this story, I am rooting hard for this kid and the @DiamondHeels
Every high school and travel baseball player loves to take BP and play games. The players who make it to the next level and are successful do this. βDo you what you hate to and do it like you love it
Tournament time decisions.
@cstewart1993 shares the tournament decision he still thinks about and what it taught him about staying simple under pressure.
Hard truth:
Some parents donβt mean to hurt their childβs growthβ¦But they do.
When we remove struggle, chase labels, or coach from the stands, we take away the lessons sports are meant to teach.
Support > Control
Which one do you see most right now?
Travel baseball needs to make changes to addressing player, coach and parent conduct.
Tournament Directors should be required to have law enforcement at all fields. Some adults struggle to be adults. π
I'm not at my best in heavy traffic.
Actually, I'm not at my best while waiting for anything.
But here's the one that stung.
We were at the Key Royale Club for Bingo. Someone called a premature number. Maddie was watching. And I muttered something under my breath that wasn't exactly Sunday morning material.
Maddie yelled out, "What the hell, lady?" because she had just heard her dad mutter it.
In that moment, Karla didn't yell at me. She didn't lecture.
She grabbed me by the ear, looked at me with those captivating brown eyes, and said five words: "Model the behavior you hope to instill in others."
That line hit me like a fastball at my ears.
All those years as a manager.
All those talks about character, discipline, how to handle adversity. How to represent yourself with respect. How to stay composed when things go wrong. And my daughter was watching me lose it over Bingo.
I wasn't modeling anything except frustration.
I was teaching her that the rules change when nobody important is watching. That your values are situational.
Here's what this taught me: Your kids won't always listen to what you say, but they're always watching what you do.
Model the behavior. Every time. Because someone who loves you is watching.
The Death of Baseball IQ
The game is over and we need to talk about why we took an L and why half of you are going to go home open your phones and completely miss the point.
We have an absolute epidemic in amateur baseball right now.
Players who are chasing metrics but losing ballgames. Youβve been trained to believe that if your exit velocity is up, your launch angle is perfect, and your radar gun numbers look good on a screen. Youβre an elite prospect.
Let me tell you the truth. You are training for a spreadsheet while the team is trying to win a game on the dirt.
Data builds a great engine but tools don't mean a thing if you have zero Baseball IQ.
The 3 Lefts Metrics Audit
The Situational Deficit: In the cage a 95 mph exit velo is a perfect rep. In a live game with a runner on second, zero outs, and a tie score in the 6th. The definition of success changes. If you take a massive, heavy-pull hero swing to juice your personal data profile and roll over into a weak groundout. You failed. You chose to chase a metric instead of executing the backside approach the scoreboard demanded.
The Invisible Play Deficit: You canβt put a radar gun on a perfectly executed cutoff throw. There is no viral metric for an outfielder running 60 feet just to back up first base or an infielder communicating who has the bag on a steal before the pitch is thrown. Because those high IQ defensive plays don't generate a flashy stat line for social media. You treat them like afterthoughts. That is exactly why we give up runs.
The Scout Card Reality: Youβre on the bus right now refreshing apps looking at a padded batting average. Letβs be real high level college recruiters and pro scouts don't care about your digital box score or what a local app says you're batting. They see right through it. They are watching how you handle a 95-mph fastball inside, your pitch recognition on a 3-2 slider, and your in game instincts. The screen might lie to protect your feelings but the radar gun and the scout's notebook won't.
Data can build the engine but it cannot steer the car. The college game moves way too fast for slow thinkers. If your energy, your hustle, and your focus change depending on your personal metrics instead of the team's record. You aren't a competitor.
You're just a data collector wearing our jersey.
Turn off the screens. Learn the game. Own the standard.
#3LeftsBaseball #CoachBigMike
This is a Wrigley Field (Chicago Cubs home) tradition, the visiting team sends their rookies outside the stadium in their uniforms to fetch coffee for the rest of the team. βοΈ
The Houston Astros appear to have a lot of rookies! π³
My guy has a clipboard I guess to take attendance and make sure they are all partaking. π
Wrigley field has an atmosphere like no other. π―
So many traditions there. I never knew this was a tradition.
Have you ever been to Wrigley Field? Did you know this was a tradition there? Is a visit to Wrigley on your bucket list?
Here's some ground rules for this coming weekend:
1. Don't wish me a Happy Memorial day. There is nothing happy about brave men and women dying.
2. It's not a holiday. It's a remembrance.
3. If you want to know the true meaning, visit Arlington or your local VA, not freaking Disney.
4. Don't tell me how great any one political power is. Tell me about Chesty Puller, George Patton, John Basilone, Dakota Meyer, Kyle Carpenter, Mitchell Paige, Ira Hayes, Chris Kyle and any other heroes too numerous to name. Attend a Bell Ceremony and shed some tears.
5. Don't tell me I don't know what I am talking about. I have carried the burden all too many times for my warriors who now stand their post for God.
6. Say a prayer... and then another.
7. Remember the Fallen for all the Good they did while they were here.
8. Reach out and let a Vet know you're there, we're losing too many in "peace".
Carry on! πΊπΈ π- Johnny Cadillac
π¨Tanner Bibee : Leadership Lesson
β’ Teammates will make mistakes. How you respond to those mistakes define your character.
β’ Instead of pouting, go make the next play and pick him up.
βοΈ Regroup. Refocus. Recover.
"I was in L.A. watching [Eddie Murray] take batting practice... the whole 1st round was the ugliest swings I've seen in my life... I walked up to him and said Eddie what were you trying to do in that 1st round? He goes, that was infield back man on 3rd less than 2 outs I got 2 strikes and I'm just trying to put it in play"
Will Clark tells the story of watching Eddie Murray prepare in batting practice and how it changed his thought process.