Get in the know...and get the Edge
How does brain training for athletes differ from, say, doing a bunch of Sudoku puzzles? John Kennedy, founder and primary neuroplastician of Combat Brain Training, explains more about brain training and how it can benefit athletes. This is Part 2 of a two-part series.
Plus Justin Stone of elitebaseball.tv answers the Question Of The Week about how to help hitters prepare for pitchers with wildly differing velocities. And find out how to win YBE swag! Show notes
You’ve likely heard of the mental game of baseball—especially on this podcast. But you may not have heard of brain training, which is different from the mental game. John Kennedy, founder and president of Combat Brain Training, explains what brain training is and how it can benefit youth baseball players. This is Part 1 of a two-part series.
Plus Justin Stone of elitebaseball.tv answers the Question Of The Week about lunging during the swing and handling parents who offer unhelpful tips. And Austin Wasserman of wassermanstrength.com discusses first baseman training protocols in the Wass Strength Tip Of The Week.Show notes
In this latest in my series on Baseball Dads, Rob Friedman, the Pitching Ninja, shares how he helped influence his son Jack’s development, as well as the high school team that Rob helps coach, without needing to bark commands and make demands. This is Part 2 of a two-part series.
Plus Austin Wasserman of wassermanstrength.com explains frontal plane movements in the Wass Strength Tip Of The Week.Show notes
The latest in my series on Baseball Dads, Rob Friedman, the Pitching Ninja, shares how he helped his son Jack to get a baseball scholarship to Georgia Tech, a Division I college baseball team. This is Part 1 of a two-part series.
Plus Justin Stone of elitebaseball.tv answers the Question Of The Week about machine pitch vs. coach pitch. And Austin Wasserman of wassermanstrength.com shares a forearm strengthening tool and exercise in the Wass Strength Tip Of The Week.Show notes
Getting started with strength training for youth players? Nick Esposito of espositostrengthclub.com gives some thoughts on functional movement screens, planning workouts and whether certain familiar warmup routines are helpful or hurtful. This is Part 2 of a two-part series.
Plus Austin Wasserman of wassermanstrength.com shares why he no longer prescribes long-duration planks and crunches in the Wass Strength Tip Of The Week.Show notes
Is strength training important for youth baseball? How do you get started? Nick Esposito of espositostrengthclub.com and the Strength & Conditioning Coach at Austin Wasserman and Bobby Tewksbary’s AB Athletics facility shares his thoughts. This is Part 1 of a two-part series.
Plus Justin Stone of EliteBaseball.tv answers the Question Of The Week about why in-step pressure is important in the swing. And Austin Wasserman of wassermanstrength.com shares fitness games for youth athletes in the Wass Strength Tip Of The Week.Show notes
I talk pitching with Lantz Wheeler of BaseballThinkTank.com and creator of the Core Velocity Belt. A variety of pitching thoughts are discussed and perhaps you can take away a few things and implement them with your team. This is Part 2 of a two-part series.Show notes
How do you best teach kids to pitch? By NOT focusing on pitching mechanics, of course! If that raised your eyebrow, Lantz Wheeler of BaseballThinkTank.com and creator of the Core Velocity Belt explains why. This is Part 1 of a two-part series.
Plus Justin Stone of EliteBaseball.tv answers the Question Of The Week about what to say to kids before a big game. Show notes
What do you do as a coach when a parent is giving you grief? What do you do as a parent when a coach appears to be doing something you don’t like? Dayn Perry of CBS Sports goes through some scenarios to help give some guidance on how to help improve those parent-coach relationships. This is Part 2 of a two-part series.
Plus Justin Stone of EliteBaseball.tv answers the Question Of The Week about whether game experience is more important than training, or vice-versa. Show notes
Here’s a drill that crams multiple mini-drills into one. I go over the benefits of this drill, how to run it (both at a high-level as well as more detailed info), variation ideas, competition ideas and provide a homemade graphic (don’t laugh) that illustrates how it all flows and operates.
Read the full articleThe parent-coach relationship is usually good. But coaches will almost always encounter a bad baseball parent, whether it’s someone who undermines the coach to his kid, confronts the coach publicly, or backstabs him to league officials. Dayn Perry of CBS Sports discusses healthier, more responsible ways for baseball parents to interact with their kid’s coach. This is Part 1 of a two-part series.
Plus Justin Stone of EliteBaseball.tv answers the Question Of The Week about whether travel ball is necessary to be considered for high school ball. Show notes
A gadget-looking radar gun? Is the Pocket Radar Ball Coach model a serious radar gun or a gimmick? What can this thing do? What would you use it for? Is it too good to be true? My review inside.
Read the full articleDan Keller of DugoutCaptain.com share more ideas for making practice fun. This is Part 2 of a two-part series.
Plus Justin Stone of EliteBaseball.tv answers the Question Of The Week about what it means to ‘stay connected.’ And Austin Wasserman of WassermanStrength.com explains the floor dumbbell press (in audio this time) in the Wass Strength Tip Of The Week. Show notes
Dan Keller of DugoutCaptain.com share his ideas for making practice fun again. What exactly does that mean? And how do we do that? Tune in and get some ideas. This is Part 1 of a two-part series.
Plus Justin Stone of EliteBaseball.tv answers the Question Of The Week about how to improve 8U travel players’ baseball IQ. And Austin Wasserman of WassermanStrength.com shares his own practice plan and post-game recap templates for youth baseball and softball players in the Wass Strength Tip Of The Week. Show notes
15 more baseball coaches share the lessons they’ve learned in 2017, including Paul Niggebrugge, Jeff Albert of the Houston Astros and Rick Strickland. This is Part 2 of a two-part series.
Plus Justin Stone of EliteBaseball.tv answers the Question Of The Week about where to play lefties on the field. And Austin Wasserman of WassermanStrength.com explains the kettlebell waiter walk (in audio this time) in the Wass Strength Tip Of The Week. Show notes
15 different amateur baseball coaches share the lessons they’ve learned in 2017, including Justin Stone of EliteBaseball.tv, Tucker Frawley of Yale University and Billy Boyer of Seattle University. This is Part 1 of a two-part theme.
Plus Travis Kerber of EliteBaseball.tv answers the Question Of The Week about a “kid-safe” curve ball. And Austin Wasserman of WassermanStrength.com tells us about the floor dumbbell press for youth baseball and softball players in the Wass Strength Tip Of The Week. Show notes
You have a full-time job that doesn’t involve coaching baseball. You volunteer to coach your kid’s team and want to be as efficient as Tim Corbin. Is it a pipe dream or is it possible? Pete Caliendo, host of the Baseball Outside The Box podcast, offers multiple tips for volunteer coaches to be more effective. This is part 2 of a two-part interview.
Plus, Justin Stone of elitebaseball.tv answers the Question Of The Week about where to begin when teaching six-year-olds to play. And Austin Wasserman of WassermanStrength.com tells us about Kettlebell Waiter Walks in the Wass Strength Tip Of The Week. Show notes
When parents volunteer to become a coach, they often soon realize coaching is not as easy as they thought and become overwhelmed by the responsibilities. Pete Caliendo, host of the Baseball Outside The Box podcast, offers tips for helping the legion of volunteer parents who are coaching youth baseball. This is part 1 of a two-part interview. Show notes
What do the philosophies of a successful national elite travel team look like? Rudy Garcia, head coach of an elite national travel team from Wilson MVP Elite, shares many of his philosophies. Can any of this apply to your team? This is part 2 of a two-part interview.
Plus Austin Wasserman of WassermanStrength.com tells us about single leg lunge progressions in the Wass Strength Tip Of The Week. Show notes
How does a top travel team get run? Rudy Garcia, head coach of an elite national travel team from Wilson MVP Elite, gives some fantastic tips on running a successful travel team, although much of the discussion can also apply to rec leagues. This is part 1 of a two-part interview.
Plus Justin Stone of EliteBaseball.tv answers the Question Of The Week about handling difficult parents. And Austin Wasserman of WassermanStrength.com introduces us to Turkish Get-Ups in the Wass Strength Tip Of The Week. Show notes
What are some things we can do to help reduce the risk of arm pain? Randy Sullivan of the Florida Baseball Ranch offers some suggestions to help guard against arm injuries. This is part 2 of a two-part interview.
Plus Travis Kerber of Elite Baseball Training answers the Question Of The Week about what age to introduce the curve ball to pitchers. And Austin Wasserman of WassermanStrength.com brings us the Pallof Press with Weighted Perturbations in the Wass Strength Tip Of The Week. Show notes
How can we have strict pitch counts and play multiple sports instead of pitching all year round…and still have so many baseball arm injuries? Randy Sullivan of Florida Baseball Ranch discusses the touchy issues of arm pain. Show notes
Even in an era of baseball data, a radar gun at the youth level seems like a luxury. But is it a luxury—or a must-have? Pocket Radar co-founder and CEO Steve Goody discusses how the Pocket Radar Ball Coach model can help coaches help their pitchers and hitters.
Plus Justin Stone of elitebaseball.tv answers whether organizations like Baseball Factory would be useful for instructional or motivational purposes for a 13-year-old. And Austin Wasserman of WassermanStrength.com teaches us about one of his all-time fave exercises—trunk rotation for youth baseball players in the Wass Strength Tip Of The Week. Show notes
Is the Motus Baseball sleeve more gimmick or good? Every baseball product claims to do wonders. Does Motus Baseball help improve performance/help prevent injury? I discuss the merits of Motus Baseball with Will Carroll, the Media Relations Director for Motus Global.
Plus Austin Wasserman of WassermanStrength.com explains what bullpens are, what the benefits are and how he tracks them in the Wass Strength Tip Of The Week. Show notes
A product that physically forces a player’s fielding hand into the perfect glove presentation and pro-style palm-out position inside the glove? Sounds like a winner. But is it really? My review inside.
Read the full articleIf you’re teaching tee ball kids, there’s no nuance. It’s all the absolute, bare bones basics. It’s a good day if the kids can just throw the ball somewhere within three feet of you. Teaching tee ball requires extra patience, which is why making practice segments fun is so crucial—for both the kids’ AND the coaches’ sake. Marty Schupak returns in Part 2 of a two-part interview to discuss how to run practices for tee ball teams.
Plus Justin Stone of EliteBaseball.TV answers the Question Of The Week about how to help structure practices for a 7U machine pitch team consisting of players of varying skill level. Show notes
What’s the best bat for my child? What’s the ideal bat weight for my child? At last, a definitive way to answer those types of questions.
Read the full articleNo disrespect to other baseball coaches but tee ball coaches have it toughest. Yet help is scarce for tee ball coaches. Marty Schupak provides some great advice for coaches teaching the youngest of baseball athletes. This is Part 1 of a two-part interview.
Plus Justin Stone of EliteBaseball.TV answers the Question Of The Week about how to find a hitting coach for an 8-10 year old. Show notes
What’s your #1 baseball goal for your kid? Paul Reddick is certain there is something deeper there, and that you need to communicate that to your kids. But how? Paul explains this important concept in this interview.
Plus Justin Stone of EliteBaseball.TV answers the Question Of The Week about how to help a field leader be a more vocal leader. Show notes
Naturally, confidence is a key component of a player’s mental game. But can we really impact confidence? Dr. Tom Hanson, co-author of “Heads Up Baseball 2.0”, discusses this and provides some amazing tips to help our kids’ confidence. This is Part 2 of a two-part interview.
Plus Justin Stone of EliteBaseball.TV answers the Question Of The Week about how to kindle (or re-kindle) passion for the game among youth players.
Show notes
Dr. Tom Hanson, co-author of the book “Heads Up Baseball 2.0”, shares some mental game strategies. This is Part 1 of a two-part interview.
Plus Justin Stone of EliteBaseball.TV answers the Question Of The Week about how to handle kids who miss practice when you’re teaching a progression. Show notes
Kai Correa, assistant coach at the University of Northern Colorado and creator of the #FridayFielders series on Twitter, breaks down how to teach fielding fundamentals to young players. This is Part 2 of a two-part interview. Show notes
As discussed in Session #70 with Billy Boyer, elite infielding is not just about “get in front of the ball” and “get your glove dirty”. Kai Correa, assistant coach at the University of Northern Colorado and creator of the #FridayFielders series on Twitter, breaks down how to teach fielding fundamentals to young players. This is Part 1 of a two-part interview.
Plus Justin Stone of elitebaseball.tv answers the Question Of The Week about what to do for a 12-year-old who plays 70 foot bases in travel but 90 foot bases for school. Show notes
Tommy Hottovy, Chicago Cubs’ Coordinator of Advance Scouting—Run Prevention, has a fun job. But what can you and I do, given that we don’t have the benefit of reams of data? How can we still help our teams improve their odds of success? This is Part 2 of a two-part interview.
Plus Justin Stone of elitebaseball.tv answers the Question Of The Week about making the hitting part of our practices more efficient and less boring. Show notes
Tommy Hottovy, Chicago Cubs’ Coordinator of Advance Scouting: Run Prevention, helps explain what his job is and how he helps his team prepare better game plans using data analytics. This is Part 1 of a two-part interview. Show notes
Billy Boyer, assistant coach at the University of Washington, gives a detailed tutorial on how to teach the many intricate aspects of high-level double play feeds. This is Part 2 of a two-part interview.
Plus Justin Stone of EliteBaseball.TV answers the Question Of The Week about how to help tee-ball players hit with more power more consistently.
Show notes
Billy Boyer, assistant coach at the University of Washington, helps break down some of the nuances that can help elevate the infield play of your players. This is Part 1 of a two-part interview. Show notes
Kyle Boddy, founder of Driveline Baseball, discusses—among other things—what baseball tech is worthwhile. This is Part 2 of a two-part interview.
Plus Justin Stone of EliteBaseball.TV answers the Question Of The Week about how to handle fielding slumps.
Show notes
Kyle Boddy, founder of Driveline Baseball, discusses overload/underload training with bats—a new area of research-backed baseball training—as well as overload/underload training for pitchers, and more. This is Part 1 of a two-part interview.
Plus Justin Stone of EliteBaseball.TV answers the Question Of The Week about what the hands should be doing during the load & stride.
Show notes
Tanner Swanson, assistant coach at the University of Washington and popular speaker on the topic of catching, gives some key insights on how to help your intermediate-level and advanced youth, high school and college catchers. This is Part 2 of a two-part interview.
Plus Justin Stone of EliteBaseball.TV answers the Question Of The Week about whether kids should cheer and enjoy the moment, or keep calm and “act like they’ve been there before”. And Austin Wasserman of WassStrength.com tells us about his Base Stealing: Leads & Footwork ebook that talks about creating shin angle and direction in his Wass Strength Tip Of The Week. Show notes
Tanner Swanson, assistant coach at the University of Washington and popular speaker on the topic of catching, sets the vision for us on what it takes to develop good catchers and then begins to share how to make that happen at the younger levels. Plus Justin Stone of EliteBaseball.TV answers the Question Of The Week about whether it’s worth teaching kids how to bunt. And Austin Wasserman of WassermanStrength.com shares the Supine Anti-Resistance Movement to create separation between the pelvis and the torso in his Wass Strength Tip Of The Week. Show notes
Brent Kemnitz, distinguished former pitching coach for Wichita State, shares some insight on how he coached the mental side of pitching with his pitching staff. We don’t want to talk our pitchers into a slump, as he warned in Part 1 of my interview, but we do want to get them feeling happy, strong and confident. This is Part 2 of the two-part interview. Plus Austin Wasserman of WassermanStrength.com talks the progression of the Kettle Bell SOT Press. Show notes
Brent Kemnitz, renowned former pitching coach for Wichita State, shares about how to coach the little-discussed aspect of the mental side of pitching. The mental game of baseball doesn’t just apply to hitters! This is Part 1 of a two-part interview. Plus Justin Stone of elitebaseball.tv answers the Question Of The Week about what parents should focus on with travel kids during off-team practices. And Austin Wasserman of WassermanStrength.com introduces us to sled drags. Show notes
Baseball rundowns seem easy to execute, yet they are often botched. What rules must we teach and what rules are superfluous? Here is a definitive three-step process to teach rundowns to any age group.
Read the full articleJohn Fitzgerald of Sports Vision Training explains the core concepts of vision training for baseball and how coaches and parents can help. This is Part 2 of a two-part interview. Plus Justin Stone of elitebaseball.tv answers the Question Of The Week about how to teach pitching to 9-year-olds. And Austin Wasserman of WassermanStrength.com introduces us to side lunge slides. Show notes
John Fitzgerald of Sports Vision Training explains the concept of vision training for baseball and how it can help young baseball athletes improve their game. This is Part 1 of a two-part interview. Plus Justin Stone of elitebaseball.tv answers the Question Of The Week about why advanced players do not put their entire hand inside their fielding glove. Show notes
If your kids are wearing their baseball gloves the traditional way of sliding their hand all the way into their glove, they may benefit from a ‘pro’ way of wearing their glove.
Read the full articleTug Gillingham of Lincoln Park Baseball Academy chats about how to organize and structure baseball practices. We also segue into fungo golf and defending 1st & 3rd situations. This is Part 2 of a two-part interview. Plus Justin Stone of elitebaseball.tv answers the Question Of The Week about why advanced players should not catch the ball in the web of their glove. And Austin Wasserman of WassermanStrength.com talks about three different steal starts and which is best. Show notes
Tug Gillingham of Lincoln Park Baseball Academy discusses how to handle some challenges youth baseball coaches face. This is Part 1 of a two-part interview. Plus Justin Stone of elitebaseball.tv answers the Question Of The Week about how to create a lineup that maximizes offensive output. And Austin Wasserman of WassermanStrength.com shares an article about practice plans and post-game recaps (see below). Show notes
Rob discusses the theory behind efficient youth baseball practice planning so you know what to avoid and gives some tips to help you plan for next season. Plus, Austin Wasserman of wassermanstrength.com shares his 2016 CatcherCon slides for the Wass Strength Training Tip Of The Week. Show notes
