Using a Tee to Improve Swing Path

It is so true about repetition, especially when it comes to batting.  Practice doesn't necessarily make "perfect" -- but rather, "Practice Makes PERMANENT".  Do it right, and do it over and over again. It's all about muscle memory.

No matter the age or size of your Little Leaguer®, being a good hitter is all about making solid contact with the ball. If a player can see the ball, they can hit the ball and using a batting tee is a great way to develop hand-eye coordination and a consistent contact swing path. So, have your Little Leaguer dust off the bat and helmet, and wake up those muscles from their winter slumber by taking some hacks off of the tee. 

Miguel Cabrera 
Since leading Major League Baseball (MLB) in homers, on-base percentage and average in 2012, and becoming the first MLB player since 1967 to win the Triple Crown, Detroit Tigers’ slugger, Miguel Cabrera is known for his bat control as much as his home run power. Being such an accomplished pro, you and your Little Leaguer may be surprised to learn about one of his secrets for success. The reigning American League Most Valuable Player uses a batting tee every day! 

In the 2014 edition of the Little League® Magazine, the two-time MVP said, “Taking a bunch of swings every day off a batting tee is the best way to practice your swing. If you’re able to do that consistently, you’re going to get better and better.” 

Drills
Here are two simple drills that your player can do to maximize a consistent contact swing path. Before you begin, be sure to adjust the height of the batting tee so that the ball on the tee is slightly below the batter’s beltline. Also, be sure the player is wearing a batting helmet and is using an alloy or Little League-approved composite bat that is age-appropriate. 

From Little League.org's website

Teamwork Trumps All

Teamwork, and the abstract concept of "team" is one of the most important lessons kids learn in sports. Personally, I love it when our team gels together, and just has that indescribable sense of "chemistry" that overrides whether we win or lose a game.

(below is from "Take the Lead: Make Youth Sports What They Were Meant to Be", by Kathy Hogan)

These days many young athletes are constantly trying to improve their personal standing so they can move on to a more competitive program.  They ("...or is it their parents?": Ed) operate like free agents -- always shopping for a better deal.  In the process, their commitment to a team depends on personal gain. Inadvertently, we not only allow these athletes to be self-centered, we encourage it.  Is that the mindset we really want? Pete Carill says it best, "I look for players who realize the world doesn't revolve around them." Unfortunately, sometimes it's hard to find those players.

In youth sports today, there is tremendous emphasis on drawing out skilled athletes because they are just too good for a regular league.  In many ways, that's unfortunate. Learning to work with players with various ability levels is a life skill that young people need to learn.  Even in the pros, some athletes are better than others. The same is true in every aspect of life. Rather than constantly regrouping players according to perceived ability, we need to teach them how to be part of a team. You win some. You lose some, but most of all, you stick together. Pat Riley understood that concept: "Great teamwork is the only way to reach our ultimate moments."

Upcoming Tryouts for 9U/10U Cardinals Team - 2014 Season

     After concluding an exciting and rewarding 2013 baseball season, the Redwood City Cardinals are holding tryouts for the 2014 summer tournament season - 9U/10U. We are looking for skilled, committed players to round out our 2014 roster.   The Cardinals Baseball Club is dedicated to giving local players a more competitive level of baseball.

TRYOUT INFORMATION

Dates & Time:  Saturday, December 7 and 14, 2014, 2:00pm – 4:00pm   

Location of Tryout: Canada College Baseball Field, 4200 Farm Hill Blvd., Redwood City

Registration : Pre-register by sending the following information to cardinalsRC@gmail.com :

•          Name / Current age / Date of birth
•          Favorite position(s) to play  
•          Years played

Players making a roster will have the opportunity to attend winter workouts prior to spring/ summer seasons.

*** All candidates must not turn 11 years old before May 1st, 2014 ***

On-site registration & check-in begins 15 minutes prior to tryout time. If you cannot make this tryout, private tryouts will be by request only.   Players will need to bring baseball gloves, bats, helmets, and cleats.

For questions, contact: Ed Gory, at (650) 743-7645, or cardinalsRC@gmail.com

Cardinals Baseball Mission

Our mission is to develop a team that focuses on mastering the fundamentals, good sportsmanship, improving each player’s overall baseball IQ, and having fun. This team is ALL about the boys and their love of the great game of baseball. We expect honest, dedicated, respectful and hardworking players, whose desire to get better equals their love for the game.

Tips for the Young Pitcher

 Always great to find expert advice out there on the 'net. This one comes courtesy of the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York.  Pasting below a few of some key ones.

Little League and adolescent throwers are as susceptible to many of the same stresses on their arms as adult players. Often, injuries that develop at a young age may become more serious as the player becomes older. However, certain precautions can be taken to prevent or minimize injuries.

The following are guidelines that parents and coaches should follow with this goal in mind:

(1) Limit the number of game pitches thrown. Excessive pitch counts have been linked to increased incidences of shoulder and elbow injuries. (Most leagues have developed guidelines for pitch counts). The USA Baseball Medical and Safety Advisory Committee has established the following pitch count guidelines:

AGE	PITCHES PER GAME	PITCHES PER WEEK	PITCHES PER SEASON
9-10 years	50 pitches	75 pitches	1000 pitches
11-12 years	75 pitches	100 pitches	1000 pitches
13-14 years	75 pitches	125 pitches	1000 pitches

(2) Prevent young pitchers from throwing curveballs or sliders in games until their elbow and shoulder growth plates have closed. Generally, growth at the elbow and shoulder is complete (with growth plate closure) between the ages of 14 to 16 years, but this varies from one individual to another and must be determined by taking an x-ray of the joint. These particular pitches have been associated with an increase in shoulder and elbow injuries. In addition, they require the stress and repetition of mastering new skills.

(3) Avoid pitching in multiple leagues during the same season. This makes it difficult to monitor the pitch count of a player. Playing another position may minimize the stresses on the throwing arm.

(4) Avoid throwing year-round, as the throwing arm needs time to recover. A minimum of three months of rest is required for recovery between seasons.

(5) Work with a coach to develop good throwing mechanics. Learning at an early age to utilize the core, larger muscles of the hips, trunk, and legs may not only enhance performance, but reduce the risk of injury to the shoulder and elbow. In addition, striding towards home plate and having a good, long follow through will also reduce the strain on the shoulder and elbow.

(6) Avoid trying to “overthrow” pitches. Throwing pitches too hard in order to gain pitch speed may predispose a pitcher to injury. In addition, it is mechanically inefficient and may decrease performance.

(7) Pitch only to the point of fatigue, not through it. This can decrease the risk of injury.

Too Much Baseball?

Too much baseball? Bite your tongue!

This is one of my favorite discussion topics.  The proliferation of clubs / travel teams sparks all kinds of debate when talking about overextending our youth with one sport year round.  My friend Lisa had a great New York times article, detailing one side of the story, which sparked some pretty heated discussion in its Comments section.  Bottom line, clubs, or travel teams, aren't for everyone, so there's no single, right answer.  And not all clubs carry the generalized intensity that is a commonly-held perception...though many sure do. But some don't.

My own personal opinion -- just let the kids play. It's not rocket science. "Play" is what they want to do. They're not obsessing about playing Varsity high school ball, or a Division 1 scholarship, or the pros.  Nay, that's what the parents who are carrying that vicarious baggage are dreaming about.   Another article I like, spells it out so perfectly in its title "Parents Ruin Sports for Their Kids by Obsessing About Winning."  Sure, kids want to win (and so do I!), they all do and that's the purpose of any game.  But the ice cream or pizza after the game is often equally, or sometimes more, important.

I like Mike Matheny's take on it on his blog.  Here are my favorite nuggets from his post:

• The problem is that most parents think that they are not being the best parent that they can be, if they aren't allowing their child to play on the most sought after team in town. The reality is that often times, when the parents go beyond their means to allow a child to play on a particular team, this adds tension. The tension is naturally going to flow down to the parents expectations on a return of their investment, and the kids will inevitably sense it and be effected
• I believe that this is a great time to remind parents that first of all, this should be ALL about the kids. Don't let yourself fall into the trap that "The only way my son will make it to the next level is if he plays on this particular team." If someone is feeding you this line, they are not telling you the truth …..If your son (or daughter) can play...they will be seen. As they get older, do they sometimes need some help getting exposed?...Yes, and there are ways that you can do that within a budget
• Where this gets ridiculous, is when these clubs start making their way down to 5-10 year olds and the parents buy into the sales pitch that this particular club is putting 80% of their kids into Division 1 schools, and the only way for your child to be seen by the college recruiters, is to start them at the lowest level in their club...GARBAGE! We have so many guys on our team, and in our minor league system that just played recreationally until they got into high school and then they had plenty of teams to choose from that would get them exposed

Play ball...and Just Let the Kids Play (great saying, and the title of a really good book).

Too Small for the Game of Baseball?

Hall of Famer at 5'7" -- no, not too small at all

Size, Shmize
With this year's Red Sox-Cardinals World Series having two local products, Daniel Nava and Daniel Descalso, I saw an interesting article on the former, relating to how he was actually at one point considered "too small" for the game of baseball.

As a freshman in high school, he was 4 foot 8 and weighed less than 80 pounds, and " he was considered too small and scrawny to excel in athletics at a school like St. Francis, which regularly sends players to Division 1 programs such as Stanford’s."  As a senior, at 5 foot 7 and 160 pounds, he was their starting infielder.  His MLB stat sheet now shows him at 5 foot 11, 200 pounds.

So does size matter, especially in these younger divisions of baseball (8, 9, 10 years old, etc)?  To some teams and coaches, I think so. They want the biggest, strongest, fastest 8 year olds money can buy. Well, ok, maybe not money, but visions of varsity high school and D-1 scholarship grandeur that hopeful parents suck up like a dry sponge in an ocean.  

Reminds me of the famous quote attributed to the founder of the Revlon makeup corporation: "In the factory we make cosmetics. In the store we sell hope."

The "Prepubescent Delusion Rule"
A great article I found about this notion of size being everything, call this the "Prepubescent Delusion Rule."  Here are some of my favorite quotes from this article:

• We have no idea what genetic cards have been dealt to these kids
• Any parent or coach who thinks they know what a kid is capable of before he or she goes through puberty is completely delusional
• While there are some attributes a child may show at a young age which might lend themselves to a particular sport.. all bets are off until the kid goes through puberty.

The bottom line: Coaches who understand and adopt this philosophy will be more comfortable with providing a loose and fun baseball environment for their young player.

And, for your edification, here are some famous sub-6 footers:
Marco Scutaro - 5' 10"
Sergio Romo - 5' 10"
Willie Mays - 5' 11"
Yogi Berra - 5' 7"
Rickey Henderson - 5' 10"
Phil Rizzuto - 5' 6"
Kirby Puckett - 5' 8"
Jackie Robinson - 5' 11"

Brandon Crawford on the Importance of Fundamentals

I really dig the two Brandons' blog - just awesome baseball info all around.  I found this particular piece by Brandon Crawford on their Spring Training start particularly compelling, because it jives with what we teach these boys all the time on the importance of fundamentals.  Too many other teams out there seem so laser focused on winning at all costs, that they forgo the basics.  Read on and enjoy:

If you came to the first few days of workouts here this week, you might be surprised at our drills. They are as fundamental as a Little League practice.

Jose Alguacil, the minor league’s roving infield instructor, literally rolls the ball to us. The point is to work on footwork and on exchanging the ball from the glove to the throwing hand, though we don’t throw. It’s not like we forget how to do any of this. But we’ve been off for three months, so you want to regain your form one step at a time to make certain you’re doing everything the right way.

For batting, we start by hitting off a tee. You can set the tee at different locations. First thing I do when I get to the park in the morning is  take five swings at nine locations: up and away, up middle, up and in, middle away, middle middle, middle in, down and away, down middle and down and in. That takes about 15 minutes.

Then a coach tosses balls underhand to me, and I’ll hit for another 15 minutes doing that.

Yesterday, our third base coach Tim Flannery had a session on base-running. He gathered all the position players at first base. He reminded us that a player who gets 200 hits in a season spends only 42 minutes on base. “There’s no reason you can’t stay focused for 42 minutes!’’ he said.