KPB Podcast

We are excited to welcome Coach Darren Siler to the podcast. Coach Siler is the head baseball coach at John Carroll School in Bel Air, Maryland where he has led his alma mater’s baseball program since 2016.

The 2018 John Steadman High School Baseball Coach of the Year and Maryland State Association Baseball Coaches Coach of the Year brings a wealth of baseball knowledge and experience to the podcast.

Coach Siler has played and coac...

Episode 2 of our new season of the KPB Podcast is a conversation with Alec Smith, who has a long track record of coaching baseball at all different levels in the Sacramento Area. Smith is the founder of Best Speed Baseball Academy, co-founder of Adi-Speed National Team, a three-time varsity head coach, and also spent 4 years as a junior college assistant coach with Cosumnes River College. Countless players from Smith's programs hav...

This episode kicks off a new season of KPB Podcast episodes where we sit down with coaches most familiar with the recruiting process. We are excited to kick the season off with Jim Maciejeski, athletic director and head baseball coach of the Mauldin Mavs in Mauldin, SC. Coach “Mach” has been coaching for 17 years, including the last 12 as a head coach. He is also in his 3rd year as athletic director at Mauldin High. In addition to ...

A targeted email to a program of interest remains one of the best ways to get recruited. Yet, many recruits mess up this valuable opportunity to create a meaningful connection. Why? Most players don’t have the patience or do the prep work required to knock the email out of the park. 

If you have the patience to listen to this short episode, you'll learn how to email college coaches the right way. In just 8 minutes, you'll walk...

In this episode, are excited to be joined on today’s podcast by Colorado Rockies Data and Game Planning Coordinator and former Big League infielder, Doug Bernier. A California native, Bernier’s baseball career included success at every single level. After college baseball stops at Cuesta College and Oral Roberts University, Bernier started an incredible 16-year professional baseball career, which included 4 seasons in the Majors an...

We've been sensing a great deal of panic among recruits and parents who have become fixated on the recruiting shutdown and D1 baseball's prolonged dead period due to COVID-19. In this episode, we try to put those fears to rest and explain why now is the time to plan and prepare, not panic. This episode follows a round-table discussion put on by our friends at the 3-2 Count Foundation exploring this new age of recruiting from multip...

We are excited to be joined by Sacramento area native and Philadelphia Phillies Catcher Andrew Knapp on the KPB Podcast for this fun episode. A former standout for the California Golden Bears, Knapp quickly rose through the minor league ranks, making his Big League debut on April 6, 2017. Knapp comes from a baseball family as his father Mike played 10 years of professional baseball and his younger brother, Aaron, is currently playi...

In light of disruptions to normal academic schedules, the NCAA Eligibility Center has modified initial eligibility requirements for D1 and D2 bound players. Among the changes we discuss in this podcast are:

• No standardized test requirements for 2020 graduates
• Implications for PASS/FAIL grading implemented this spring and summer
• Importance of a 2.3 GPA (D1) or 2.2 GPA (D2) in 10 core courses (7 math/english/science) pr...

When you are sitting at home all day, every day, it's easy to get discouraged or get into a funk. Even with limited resources, you can still use your time in self-quarantine to get better and stay on track to play college baseball! In this podcast, we discuss 6 areas where you can continue to improve that will help you with your dreams of playing at the next level. Listen in to learn about improving in the following areas:

1. Ac...

The D1 Council ruling just came out and it's good news for college baseball players, particularly seniors. We discuss:

1. The D1 Council giving every college baseball player from this year an additional year of eligibility

2. The ability for seniors to have their scholarship renewed for the additional year (at the discretion of the school, who may also reduce or eliminate the scholarship for the returning player)

3. The elimination...

The most comprehensive and important #KPBpodcast episode on parents' role in the recruiting process is here! Following the same format as our Parents' Role in the Recruiting Process mini-series, we break down everything a parent needs to know to understand their role in the recruiting process and successfully help their son find a college baseball fit. In this episode, we break down:

1) An overview of parents' role in the recruitin...

In our annual college coaches survey, coaches routinely rank non-baseball related recruit attributes as being more important than physical ability and baseball skills. Why? Having a baseline level of athletic or baseball ability is the only way that a coach will continue to completely evaluate a player. So among players who meet that threshold, it is often stuff other than on-field skill that separates them from other recruits. Wan...

A successful recruiting process is one where the player finds a lasting college baseball fit. It's a situation where the player puts themselves in a position to achieve their college goals and enjoy their time doing it. Why, then, do so many people get caught up in chasing the highest level? The D1 experience, even when it doesn't fit what they want in a college experience? Sometimes it's hard to pass on shiny things. In this episo...

Daily KPB

This is the podcast version of the written article by the same title on the KPB website.

Many college players that we talk to reflect back on campus visits as one of their best memories of the recruiting process. Think of it like the MTV Cribs of college baseball. Coaches open up the doors and peel back the curtains to their program and provide you with an opportunity to see what your life could look like if you end up at...

Daily KPB

This is the podcast version of our written article by the same title, which can be read here.

With the signing period starting in just a few days, there will likely be a wave of commitments in the coming weeks. If you are one of the recruits making a commitment or that will be you at some point, this podcast is for you! In this episode, we will address the way to handle your commitment the right way. The baseball world is...