Don’t forget the mental side

With Hurricane Sandy rolling through and colder temperatures settling in, it looks like most of the Fall programs in my area are all but finished.  Thus begins the official off-season for most baseball players.  With all the focus normally placed on the physical side of the game this time of year, I wanted to remind […]

World Champion SF Giants

“When pitching is your strength, you want a good defense,” SF Giants manager Bruce Bochy said. “That shows up every day. … Hitting sometimes, it comes and goes. But as long as you can stay in more games, the better chance you have of winning them, and that’s how we play.” AMEN !!

Tunnel and cone drill

The winter months are approaching rapidly.  Ultimately, that means lots of swings using indoor batting tunnels.  These tunnels are terrific to use but can lead to boredom if players just take the same old swing over and over.  Of course, for many hitters, this repetitive swing is exactly what they need to develop muscle memory. […]

Baseball “acculturation”

In my high school sociology classes, we recently discussed the concept
 of acculturation.  By definition, acculturation is when a culture
 identifies aspects (common behaviors, values, beliefs, etc.) of their
 culture that are holding them back in terms of success and replaces them 
with behaviors that will allow them to succeed.  Often, those new
 behaviors adopted […]

Footwork on backhands

If you look closely at photos of infielders who are backhanding a ground 
ball, you’ll probably notice some differences in footwork.  Which 
footwork the fielder chooses has to do with the type of groundball that
 was hit.  Was it hit hard but fairly close to you or was it hit with 
average speed but farther […]

The downside of benching a player

The baseball world was in a tizzy a week ago when Yankees manager Joe
 Girardi benched Alex Rodriguez and Curtis Granderson due to poor hitting
 performances in the playoffs.  Both players seemed to take it well … at 
least on the surface.  Inside, I’m sure both players were mad as hell.
  Players like that are […]

Organize a college night

A great idea for high school coaches this time of year is to organize a
 college baseball night at your school for players and parents.  Tap into
 your college contacts and get some coaches (D1, D2, D3, and junior/community colleges) to come and speak about their level of 
ball, how they recruit, scholarship info, and […]

Own the recruiting process

Last week, I wrote three posts (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3) that centered on the theme of how to
 choose a college.  In one, I mentioned that very few high school players 
are fortunate enough to have college recruiters come to them.  For some
 lucky studs, the recruiting process is as simple as sitting […]

Choosing a college – Part 3

No matter how good of a player you are and no matter how many colleges
 come knocking on your door, you still have the difficult job of
 selecting the right school for you.  This is usually not an easy
 decision to make.  However, with the right priorities in order, the 
process can become a little […]

Choosing a college – Part 2

Where in the world is Kutztown? Actually Kutztown is a small D2 state school about an hour and a half northwest of Philadelphia.  It’s also where Giants pitcher Ryan Vogelsong attended.  Based on his performance the other night (as well as the last two seasons for that matter) you’d probably think he turned pro directly […]

Choosing a college – Part 1

** NOTE:  I found out late yesterday that the links I provided in yesterday’s post were not working.  Sorry for the mistake on my end.  They are now working.  You can access yesterday’s post again by clicking HERE.   Many senior high school baseball players in the country are winding down 
their college selections for […]

Master of the slow roller

During the Yankees/Tigers playoff game the other night, two versions of a
 shortstop throwing on the run was seen.  Derek Jeter successfully
 executed the play on a slow, choppy grounder but the Tigers shortstop (Jhonny Peralta) was not able to on a similar grounder the following inning.  Jeter was
 able to complete the play because […]

The Space Shuttle and off-season habits

I saw the Space Shuttle the other day being towed down a street in Los Angeles on the way to its new home in a museum.  It reminded me of a statistic I read somewhere.   Did you know that Space Shuttles lose 80% of their fuel on takeoff?  It’s a neat bit of trivia but […]

Optimism of baseball

In the last couple days, we’ve seen some remarkable playoff games that
 have come down to the wire.  Specifically, the A’s and the Yankees, just 
the other night, both won in walk-off fashion to the delight of their 
hometown fans and, I’m sure, to the executives of Major League Baseball.
  The Nationals won with a […]

We just want to get the call right

There aren’t many statements that get me more worked up then the title of this post.  It’s a common one that umpires love to use as a cure-all way of getting a coach off their back.  Here’s an example you often see.  A play at first where the throw takes the first baseman off the […]

High & Hard, Slow & Low

This is another post in the area of “Pitching is not rocket science” category.  In a recent MLB playoff game, announcer Jim Kaat used the title of this post numerous times to explain how to pitch Miguel Cabrera.  He advocated hard stuff up and on the inner half of the plate and slow stuff low […]

Lights won’t always be green

I’m sure there are players and coaches who are doing some soul searching these days after their long seasons of baseball.  Players who hit .210 and pitchers with an ERA over 6.00 are probably wondering if this sport is really for them.  Coaches who spent a tough year with entitled athletes, critical parents, and maybe […]

The business of private instruction

Private instruction in baseball has exploded over the past 20 years. In a ten mile radius of my home, around 10 different sites have popped up that cater in some way to private baseball instruction. When you add various AAU teams and fall-ball programs, the amount of instruction available to players who want to improve […]

Weekend posts

Hi everybody! Due to weekend commitments with the family, I will only be doing posts Monday – Friday for a while. Have a great weekend! Coach McCreary

You’ve got to be kidding me

Click HERE for an unbelievable video clip (about 10 seconds long) It’s a little tough to see but the video clip shows a Brewers runner on third base who took his eyes off the ball.  Phillies pitcher Cliff Lee just lobs it over and picks him off. I’m not sure when this play occurred but […]

Avoid a line drive to the mouth

Here’s the situation … bases loaded, two outs, full count.  Runners are all off at the start of the pitch.  The runner on third base is charging home on the pitch which, of course, could very well be hit directly at him.  Nothing would ruin your day more quickly than being that guy coming down […]

Help! My best player is seeing a private instructor!

Recently, I received an email from a friend who is facing the ever more common challenge of their players participating in private lessons during the off-season.  I used the word “challenge” instead of “problem” because I believe off-season programs have done wonders for some players.  I wish they existed when I was a kid!  However, […]

A story about athleticism

In yesterday’s post, I mentioned how scouts like the idea of athletes playing multiple sports.  Although this is a baseball site, I have an example of what I’m talking about from the sport of football.  If you are a football fan, you probably know the name Howie Long.  The Hall of Fame player for the […]

Advantages of other sports

Some challenging questions arise this time of year for baseball players.  Some are as follows: Should I continue/start playing other sports in the off-season? Should I play baseball year-round? Will I make the team in the spring if I’m not playing fall ball with the high school players. Should I get private lessons to improve […]