February 12, 2025 • 37 mins
What drives a 40-year-old father to return to JUCO baseball after two liver transplants and a battle with cancer? Join me, Coach Ken Carpenter, as I sit down with Aaron Rouselle, who defies all odds and inspires with his incredible journey. Hear how Aaron's passion for baseball fuels his fight against adversity and how his background as a former athlete and CrossFit gym owner has equipped him with the mental and physical resilience needed to chase his dreams. This isn't just a story about baseball; it's about the indomitable spirit that defines the human experience.
Stepping onto the field as both a player and a mentor, Aaron shares the unique challenges and rewards of being significantly older than his teammates. Find out how he navigates the team dynamic, transforming initial skepticism into acceptance and respect. His role has evolved beyond just playing; through empathy and understanding, he's become a beacon of support and guidance, embodying the essence of mentorship. Explore the balance between maintaining a solution-oriented mindset and being emotionally attuned to the needs of others, fostering a supportive environment both on and off the field.
We also dive into the broader world of youth sports, addressing the pressures young athletes face and the impact of overzealous parenting. Discover why maintaining a genuine love for the game is crucial for fostering positive competition and resilience. Imagine legendary matchups on the field and the potential for a Major League Baseball salary cap to level the playing field. Through it all, Aaron's unwavering dedication to his baseball dreams serves as a reminder of the importance of passion, resilience, and the legacy we leave behind.
Join the Baseball Coaches Unplugged podcast where an experienced baseball coach delves into the world of high school and travel baseball, offering insights on high school baseball coaching, leadership skills, hitting skills, pitching strategy, defensive skills, and overall baseball strategy, while also covering high school and college baseball, recruiting tips, youth and travel baseball, and fostering a winning mentality and attitude in baseball players through strong baseball leadership and mentality.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 3 (00:06):
Hello and welcome to Baseball Coaches Unplugged.
I'm your host, Coach KenCarpenter, and on today's
podcast, a story of inspirationA 40-year-old father.
He's had two liver transplantsand he's battled cancer in the
past 10 years and he's fightingfor a spot to play Juco baseball
with players half of his age,Aaron Roussel next on Baseball
(00:30):
Coaches Unplugged.
Speaker 2 (00:34):
Welcome to Baseball Coaches Unplugged with Coach Ken
Carpenter, presented byAthleteOne.
Baseball Coaches Unplugged is apodcast for baseball coaches
With 27 years of high schoolbaseball coaching under his belt
, here to bring you the insidescoop on all things baseball,
from game winning strategies andpitching secrets to hitting
drills and defensive drills.
We're covering it all.
(00:54):
Whether you're a high schoolcoach, college coach or just a
baseball enthusiast, we'll diveinto the tactics and techniques
that make the difference on andoff the field.
Discover how to build a winningmentality.
Inspire your players and getthem truly bought into your game
philosophy Plus, get the latestinsights on recruiting,
coaching, leadership andcrafting a team culture that
(01:14):
champions productivity andsuccess.
Join Coach every week as hebreaks down the game and shares
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Your competitive edge startshere, so check out the show
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On Baseball Coaches Unplugged.
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(02:35):
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coaches around the country.
Now to my interview with AaronRosella Coach.
Thanks for taking the time tojoin me on Baseball Coaches
Unplugged.
Speaker 1 (02:51):
Thank you so much for providing me an opportunity to
kind of share my story and evenjust talk to you, meet you and
make a new friend.
I appreciate you.
Speaker 3 (03:01):
Love it.
Well, you know, I reached outto you, I want to say around
January 23rd I came across yourstory, old and you're pursuing
Juco baseball, and the otherreason is you've battled cancer
(03:31):
and you've had liver transplant.
And you know, I guess I got tostart off with how are you doing
?
Speaker 1 (03:40):
I'm here Currently battling pneumonia on some new
antibiotics.
Hopefully kick that soon.
But I'm here.
I'm currently battlingpneumonia on some new
antibiotics.
Hopefully kick that soon.
But I'm good.
My liver numbers have been goodfor the first time in almost a
decade.
I've gone a year without beingadmitted to the hospital, so
that's a win.
I try to really focus on thesmall victories.
Speaker 3 (04:02):
Well, that's great.
I mean, I you know, when you,when you, when, before all this
started happening to you, Igotta ask I mean, uh, what was
like your, your size, as far as,like you know, height and
weight?
Speaker 1 (04:16):
oh, before I got sick , I was, uh, about 6, 4, 220 and
, um, nobody could stop me fromdoing anything I wanted to do
athletically, which kind of camewith an ego.
But I was big and I owned aCrossFit gym, so I was in shape
too.
Like my goal right before I gotsick was I wanted to be in the
(04:38):
best shape of my life at 30.
And I was, and thankfully,because what I was about to face
six, nine months later I neededthat, because I would have
survived without being in thebest shape.
Speaker 3 (04:51):
Yes, I can totally agree with that because your
story really resonated with me,because you've been through such
a great deal in your life withhealth issues and the only thing
I can say is you don't quit.
And you know as, as coaches,you know you, you find yourself
(05:13):
telling your players hey, youknow we're down six and it's the
seventh inning.
You know, hey, let's not quit.
You never know what's going tohappen.
And you yourself, you just keepgetting back up and staying
positive.
Speaker 1 (05:26):
I really look at it like and I think that's why I've
gravitated towards baseball,because I was a basketball
player before.
I was pretty good at football.
But those are timed events andlife obviously is timed, but we
don't know that time.
So with what you say, it kindof just makes me think of
baseball and it's like, untilyou get that left out, you're
not out, so why would you quit?
(05:47):
So you know, I might be in myfourth, sixth, seventh, ninth
inning, but I got two outs left.
You know, let's play ball.
Speaker 3 (05:58):
Yes, I totally agree with that.
And you know, I think yourattitude is just like in
anything that people do in lifeis the key to anything.
And you know, this past weekthis is actually my first
episode since returning from thehospital I was in Cleveland
Clinic having surgery because,you know, I have a J pouch and
(06:23):
that kind of replaced my largeintestines and colons that were
colon that was removed back in2011.
And I've recently found outthat there was a hole in it and
it's failing and createdosteomyelitis which is leaked
into the bottom of my spine.
(06:44):
And you know, I go to ClevelandClinic, they put an ostomy bag
on me and within two days, youknow, good old insurance says
it's time for you to go.
So I'm back home and I'm doingdaily infusions through a PICC
line and you know there's been alot of times where I've really
(07:07):
doubted myself and thought, youknow, hey, this isn't fair.
Uh, I, I don't want to dealwith this, but you know, I, I
guess this, this is kind ofselfish on my part.
You know, how do you do it, howdo you, how do you get up each
day and just keep pushingforward?
Speaker 1 (07:28):
It's you really.
I just do it and I don't thinkyou should feel any type of way
and negative about yourself orthe way you feel, because I've
been there and that put me in avery dark, depressed state.
I've been there and that put mein a very dark, depressed state
, but what I've realized is youdo what you can when you can,
(07:52):
and when you can't, you justdon't.
We have to listen to our bodies.
We all have limitations, butwhy can't we just learn to make
the best of what we have?
Um, but that, why can't we justlearn to make the best of what
we have?
(08:13):
And I think back to like when Iwas at my sickest, I slept 20
hours a day, but when I got up Iwould go to baseball practice
because my teams, I would tryand I'd give everything I had to
be involved.
And then the next day you knowI'm just not moving, um, and it
probably wasn't the smartest,but I was willing to accept that
as my normal and I was going tomake the most of it.
And I think that's where a lotof it lies, is I don't look at
(08:36):
it as like why me anymore, it'smore so just like trying and I'm
going to do what I can, andwhen I can't, I just don't.
And if anybody feels some typeof way about that, I don't care,
because it's not selfish to putyourself first so I, I, I get
that, but I wanted to see how isyour attitude affected those
(09:01):
around you.
Speaker 3 (09:02):
You know teammates, the players and just even your
family.
Speaker 1 (09:10):
It's hit or miss.
Sometimes I could get annoyedwith my mindset because I
sometimes push it on the othersand sometimes people just want
to be sad, mad and wallow intheir self-pity.
Be sad, mad and wallowing intheir self-pity, and I've
(09:30):
learned that it's not up for meto project who I am onto them.
But at the same time I can'tsit there and listen to it, so I
remove myself from thesituation and sometimes that'll
be.
You know, I won't talk to youfor years because you're not
making any progress to getbetter.
You know, once you identify theproblem, if you're not willing
to work on a solution, I can'tdo anything with you.
(09:51):
Um, and it's no hard feelings,it's just I'm not problem
orientated, I'm more on thesolution side, um, and I'm going
to offer everything I can.
But not everybody's receptiveto a solution.
They just want to be kind ofliving their problems and that's
just not me.
Speaker 3 (10:11):
You know and I you know I was sitting here thinking
you know I'm in the worstpossible situation I could be in
right now.
But you know, when you'regetting pushed around a hospital
, going into surgery or moved toa room or whatever, you realize
that there's always someone outthere that's in a lot worse
(10:31):
situation that you're in andI've kind of tried to go that
route.
You know it could be a lotworse.
Do you agree with that?
Speaker 1 (10:38):
Oh yeah, absolutely.
But I also agree with that.
At the same time, you know, youshouldn't discredit what you're
going through just becausesomeone's going through
something worse.
We're limited to our experienceand it's good to kind of
remember those and think aboutthose that are struggling a
little more, because it can helpus kind of rise.
But at the same time, like,don't discredit what you're
(11:03):
going through because it is hardand my hard is going to be
different than someone else'shard.
Like I know people that thehardest thing they ever dealt
with was a stubbed toe.
So to them that's catastrophicbecause that's all they dealt
with.
So who am I to judge them?
From my experiences I have tokind of go where they are and
(11:24):
say, man, like I've stubbed mytoe before, like that's bad and
that's I mean that's the kind ofweed, but it's just a good way
to kind of explain it like we'reonly limited to our experiences
, so you're bad right now, likethis is your worst.
That doesn't mean mine work wasworse, it's just different.
(11:46):
And I think that's where wekind of spur up in his life as
we compare, when we reallyshould just like be more
accepting and understandingmakes sense.
Speaker 3 (11:56):
Well, I, you know, I, I gotta ask.
You're 40 years old and you gothe route and I'm going to do
some try to play some Jucobaseball.
Um, how did that come about?
And uh, how did the, how didthe?
How did the team respond to, uh, a guy that's trying to play
(12:21):
the game and they're half yourage?
Speaker 1 (12:25):
So I knew the coach and I knew they were rebuilding
the program and he needed guys.
So it was kind of a perfectopportunity to be one of those
guys.
I wanted to go back to school.
I'm not a good student withoutsports, so why not?
You know, if the opportunitypresents itself, take it,
because that's what I try toteach the kids that I mentor and
(12:46):
coach.
So like what better way to leadthem than to go into their
world and then, with theteammates, they're a little like
who is this old dude?
But once they saw that I waswilling to put in the work, you
know, I embraced the struggle.
I did everything I could at thetime because I was also dealing
(13:06):
with pneumonia.
So they've learned to like,accept me.
They kind of call me UncleAaron, they make fun of how old
I am, but they're superreceptive of it.
They push me.
We did a sit-up test a couple ofweeks ago.
I only got four, but you wouldhave thought I got 150 in a
minute because the way they allcheered me on, because they know
(13:27):
, you know, I've been cut inhalf twice, my core is not
together, so to set up on my ownis a real struggle.
Um, in the beginning of JanuaryI can only do one.
By mid January I could do four.
So if you really break thatdown, that's a significant
growth product, but it's stillfour.
(13:48):
It's not that many Everyoneelse is doing, you know, 30 to
40, but I did four.
But you would have thought Idid the most, and that really
just puts into perspective howmuch they truly are like with me
, how much they truly are likewith me A lot of times that
couldn't um being around.
Speaker 3 (14:07):
you know a team, you know you guys are all in that
same struggle to try to getbetter and get ready for the
season Um have have the playerskind of.
You know that you got coachesthat are obviously going to be
older than the players, but dothey ever kind of just reach out
to you and talk to you aboutyour experiences?
Speaker 1 (14:29):
Oh yeah, quite a few of them.
I actually have my own facilityso during the winter break a
good amount of them would cometo my facility.
So now it's kind of awkwardbecause we'll be at the like a
team function and they'recalling me Coach Aaron because
they got so used to coming to myfacility and hearing everyone
(14:50):
else call me Coach Aaron.
So it's kind of a neat dynamicbecause I'm like a player and a
coach to some.
But I really welcome that roleand I take pride in it because
at the end of the day, I am acoach more than I am a baseball
player.
I mean, by being on the teamwith them it's almost like they
(15:11):
have a coach in the mud, in thegrind with them.
So it's been a really coolexperience because I'm there
with them but I'm also like,essentially their flashlight,
you know, guiding the way.
Speaker 3 (15:26):
You mentioned you have your own hitting facility.
Tell me a little bit about that.
As far as you know what, whatgoes on there, do you or do you
have a team like a summer teamthat you work with, or so I run
it as a nonprofit.
Speaker 1 (15:41):
It's called Pops Culture.
You've seen the baseballlandscape a lot of kids getting
priced out of it so I do this sothey can still get access to
training, hitting and the travelball scene without spending
thousands of dollars.
No-transcript and it'sobviously age appropriate, but
(16:35):
I'm hard on them, but they knowit's come from a place of caring
.
And another aspect is the.
These kids have like pro levelprograms and designs and
workouts and coaches.
Sometimes these kids just needto be kids and they get to do
that with me.
And I think that's a veryimportant part of baseball and
(16:56):
sports in life is remainingchildlike and understanding.
If they're not having fun, ifthey don't learn to love it
first, they're not going to workas hard at it.
So that's what I try to do is Iget them to love it and then we
work on it and we um, we usethe word invest a lot because I
think it's just a little morepositive than work.
Nobody likes to work, but aninvestment can turn a profit and
(17:20):
that's what we're trying to dois grow and turn a profit on
ourselves.
Speaker 3 (17:26):
Yes, and in today's world where travel teams are
playing 60, 70, 100 games and Isometimes wonder how that I can
see where it doesn't become funanymore.
It becomes like a job, and whenyou're that young, it's got to
be fun, I think.
Speaker 1 (17:45):
Oh yeah, it's huge.
I mean, you see it every day,from the Little League fields to
these travel ball tournaments.
These kids are under so muchpressure and it's a game, it's
fun.
We have kids, you know, asyoung as 10, that have pitching
coaches, hitting coaches, youknow all this stuff, but really
(18:06):
all they need is dad to go outback and throw them wiffle ball.
Play a game of wiffle ball inyour neighborhood.
How often do you see thatanymore?
But these kids have time to bekids.
Because it's in such a rush, wegot to get you here.
We got to get you here.
We got to take you to thiscoach.
We got to get you here.
We gotta take you to this coach.
We gotta take you here.
Um, and it's become a racket.
Like people are getting richoff kids with pro level workouts
(18:30):
and development, but I'm likethey're not ready for that.
Like, let's be, you know alittle more appropriate and let
them be kids.
And like, if your son wants toplay fortnight and not go to his
pitching coach, maybe sometimeslet him.
It's not that big of a deal.
Nobody's signing a contract at10, but the fear of missing out
(18:52):
has like consumed these parentsand they get online and they see
every kid in the countryworking and you're like, oh my
gosh, my 10 year old's not asgood as this 10 year old.
I need to get him a hittingcoach, I need to get him with a
pitcher and before you know it,by the time the kid's 13,.
He's got 17 different jerseysin his closet because they're
bouncing wrong from team to teambecause they just feel like one
(19:15):
team is better or one coachdidn't do it the way they wanted
to.
So we're not only pushing thesekids way harder than they need
to, so we're not only pushingthese kids way harder than they
need to.
We're also not teaching themhow to compete because the
second time they're not the bestshortstop on the team or best
second baseman, best catcher,best pitcher.
They don't buckle down and workto become the best.
They roll out and find a newteam and that's why you see such
(19:38):
a high dropout rate in college.
I think is because in collegeyou have to compete, but we're
not teaching kids how to competeor teaching them how to
complain.
And I'm sure you watch enoughgames like how often do you hear
parents say anything positive?
They're on the coaches, theumpires, their own kid playing
their teammate.
It's rarely anything of love orgrowth or development.
(20:04):
It's just ridicule andcriticism.
And who wants to be criticizedall day?
So why would this kid want todo it?
We're literally sucking thelove out of it, when that should
be the most important elementof all.
Speaker 3 (20:17):
I hear people talk about it on social media.
You see the crazy storiessocial media and you'll see the
crazy stories and, uh, you know,and, like you said, even the
umpires, they don't want to be apart of that.
So then it creates a rippleeffect where you don't have
umpires for games becausethey're just not enough that
want to put up with some of thethings that goes on in baseball
(20:39):
and basketball and football andeverything else out there yeah,
if you don't get the call youwant.
Speaker 1 (20:43):
It's like oh, meet me in the parking lot.
Is it ever really that serious?
As adults, I don't think verymany situations should ever get
to the point where I have tophysically do harm to another
human being.
We should be able to removeourselves from the situation or
dissolve the situation, but werarely do.
(21:05):
We just escalate it and then weget so angry that we don't know
how to react and then we throwtantrums and then we make a
terrible choice.
We get in a fight.
Our kids see that.
I mean we don't reallyunderstand the repercussions of
our action and our work asadults, like we're literally
creating their normal and we'redropping the ball because we
(21:27):
just refuse to be accountableand, like I say it often like
parents we're the problem andI'm just as guilty.
The only difference is is likeI'm aware of it and I'm working
to be better.
I still fail, but when I make amistake, if I'm too hard on my
kids or a kid that I coach, Iapologize to them, because I
think that's an important part.
(21:48):
As parents and adults andcoaches, we create these images
of ourselves to these kids likewe're perfect but we're all
severely flawed.
But if we're not willing toswallow our pride and apologize
to these kids when we makemistakes, they're never going to
think we're wrong because theydon't know that.
So that's why you see so muchnegativity still in this world
(22:09):
because adults are just stubborn, unaware of themselves.
They just refuse to takeaccountability.
Speaker 3 (22:15):
So how can we expect our kids Well, let me ask you
this what has been your biggestchallenge?
Trying to compete at the JUCOlevel?
Speaker 1 (22:27):
Speed I am not as fast as I used to be.
I have neopathy in my left leg,so when I plant sometimes I
just fall.
And on top of that I am 40.
So it's just speed tends to gofirst.
Thankfully, as the physicalfalls, the mind kind of picks up
(22:48):
.
So I'm kind of at a decent spotof balance to where I recognize
things and I can pick up ontells and things.
So I can still be effective.
But what I've learned too isit's far more effective for the
team's growth if I see it and Icommunicate it and I get it to
these fast guys.
(23:08):
Because speed with knowledge isreal dangerous on the base path,
but like knowledge withoutspeed, still a liability.
So um, so what I do mostly nowis like I try to just like I see
the game as a coach but I'mplaying.
So then I tell the you know theteammates like hey, man, like
(23:29):
watch this picture.
Like every time he does thishe's going home, you can get an
early jump.
Or you know he's pitching inthis sequence, it's just it
doesn't run around.
Second, he's heavy on hisfastball.
He's doing this Cause those arethings you don't think about it
.
You know 19 to 20, but at 40you have to.
So you know it's so beneficialto everyone that I use my mind
(23:55):
not just to benefit my game.
You know everybody's game and Ithink that's another part of
the sport.
That's missing is we don't seeplayers communicating as well
and helping each other besuccessful and we've.
We watch even the mlb,especially in the regular season
.
It's selfishness.
It's all about the individual.
You know, if there's no outs ina runner on third, these kids
(24:19):
would rather strike out thanmake contact and just drive
something over to the right sideto get the runner home.
How often do you see kidssquare the bunt anymore or a
sack fly?
These kids will hit a sack flyand they're going back to the
dugout pounding it mad becausethey got out.
I'm like bro, we scored the run,mission accomplished.
It's the small victories.
(24:40):
But we've gotten so far awayfrom small ball and baseball in
a way that's played togetherthat these kids don't understand
baseball.
Like the IQ is low but theathleticism is crazy high.
But we need to create thatbalance and I don't think a lot
of people are doing it becauseit's just not as popular.
(25:02):
These kids want to have homeruns.
The parents want to see homeruns.
You know you see a meme all thetime.
You know you got four thousanddollars worth of bats and two
cents worth of knowledge in thedugout.
It's like what are we doing?
Speaker 3 (25:15):
I, I gotta believe that.
You know, when you know the theseason gets rolling and you
know every player goes throughstruggles, you, whether it's
hitting, or they boot groundballs or whatever, they've got
to see how you keep battling toovercome all the challenges, you
(25:38):
have that boot and a costlyerror late in the game.
It it's not the end of theworld, you gotta.
You gotta just uh, have a shortmemory and just keep moving
forward.
I would think right.
Speaker 1 (25:53):
Oh, absolutely, and with everything.
And that's why baseball, Ithink, is such a great teacher
for life is um, you don't havetime to feel sorry for yourself
because the next place happeninglife is happening.
So what I've learned, too, as acoach, is we no longer get on
the kids about physical mistakes, because they're on themselves
enough.
They know when they screw up wedon't need to kick them while
(26:15):
they're down, because on top ofthe coaches yelling at them,
dad's probably yelling at them.
You know their teammates'parents are making fun of them.
They know that.
So why should like?
So we really started focusingon the mental side of the game
and building them up througherror, because we, we need it.
Why not let these kids failyoung and then help them
(26:38):
navigate it rather than justridicule them?
So they're scared to death tomake a failure?
And um, it's obvious becausethe errors are down when they're
not afraid to make a mistake.
But when we drive home thesefundamentals and they do
everything perfectly and theystill make that error, they
implode because it's like whatdo you?
(26:59):
I did everything right and Istill screwed up.
How much does that happen inlife?
Um, you know what I mean.
So they got to understand.
It's like you could doeverything right but you're
still out.
You could hit 104 mile an hourline drive and the outfielder
makes a crazy good play.
You're out Doesn't mean youfailed.
(27:19):
It just means you weren'tsuccessful in that moment.
You did everything right and itstill went wrong.
That's life.
How are you going to handlethat?
Are you going to let it consumeyou?
Are you going to you going tounderstand?
It's like yeah, I did it, I'mgoing to do it better next time.
And that's got to be.
The mindset is always a littlebetter next time, one percent
better every day, and it worksyou know I I experience.
Speaker 3 (27:43):
Uh, you know, like everybody around the country,
the I've got a I I to be a D1player.
You know you hear everybodytalking about how they you know
they want to play for the big D1schools and JUCO.
I think now is becoming more ofan option because the transfer
(28:04):
portal is having a huge effecton these guys.
The D1 coaches are just goingand getting another D1 guy
versus recruiting a high schoolkid.
So my question for you would bebest advice for a high school
player who wants to play JUCObaseball?
Speaker 1 (28:21):
Start getting strong, because that's really a
separator.
That's why they're going toJUCO now, because why take the
17-year-old when you get todevelop 19, 20 year old, spend
more time in the gym?
And then, with JUCO, the beautyof it is it's on you.
You don't have coaches teachingyou and guiding you,
(28:44):
nutritionists, so you reallyhave to develop some
independency, some self-worthreally, and decide how bad do
you want it Because it's on you.
I think everyone should gojukeboat just for that reason,
because just for you to developthe grit and the grind, and then
you find out if you really loveit.
Because if you're not willingto put in the work on your own,
(29:08):
you really don't love it.
And what's the point oftraveling 3,000 miles from home
to find out you don't love it?
You know, save some money, savesome time, stay at home, eat
your parents' food, go to JucoAll right, here we go, I got to.
Speaker 3 (29:25):
I asked this of every guest hate losing or love
winning.
Speaker 1 (29:31):
Probably love winning .
When you lose as many times asI have, you learn to appreciate
it, because usually when I lose,especially in life, usually my
fault, sometimes in sports it'snot my fault.
But that's also a goodtranslation of life, because you
(29:53):
have very little control inlife and I think that's why
baseball is such a great thingto do is because you have
limited opportunities to make animpact in the game and you can
win or lose based on that.
But it depends on who yousurround yourself with and your
success and your failures areall you kind of push together.
(30:15):
So I think I really lovewinning.
I don't mind losing because Iknow I'm going to get a little
better from them, but I do likealmost to a fault, unless now,
like young, winning wasn't anobsession.
Um, now I can handle notwinning, but I still want to win
(30:38):
everything.
I'm into Uno games, thebaseball games.
Um, I don't gamble because if Ican't sway the odds in my favor
, I don't want to do it, but Ilove competing.
Speaker 3 (30:51):
You're a general manager for an MLB team and you
can only keep one pitcher andone hitter.
I'm going to give you twogroups.
Group A has Aaron Judge andPaul Skeens.
That's your hitter and pitcher.
Group B is Shohei Otani andNolan Ryan.
(31:13):
What two are you going to keepand what are you going to say on
passing them?
Speaker 1 (31:21):
I'm going with Otani and Ryan.
Ryan was the ultimatecompetitor and I think Otani is
too Based on that speech that hegave at the world baseball
classic to his japan team whenthey were playing usa, saying
you know, essentially like,these guys aren't your heroes
today, they're your competition.
(31:41):
No matter how much you look upto them, we're essentially here
to destroy them.
I like that.
You cannot question nolanryan's competitive spirit.
Um, beating somebody up andthen throwing 114 pitches or
something crazy, he was just adog.
I'm in no disrespect to judgeand schemes, schemes is
(32:01):
incredible.
Need to see a little more ofhim.
And um, my last image of judgein my brain is that fly ball.
Speaker 3 (32:10):
Yep.
Speaker 1 (32:11):
And I think Otani is just a better player.
He's going to put the ball inplay more.
He doesn't just live or die atthe home run To where Judge is
like.
He's had some runs where hejust is pretty inconsistent at
times.
So to me it's a no-brainer.
Speaker 3 (32:29):
What would be one change that you would make to
major league baseball to make it?
Just make the game better forplayers, fans, everybody salary
cap.
Speaker 1 (32:41):
I'd like to see a little more um fairness, I guess
.
Like I don't like how you couldjust try to buy trophies.
I'd like to see more creativitywith, like moving pieces,
building teams, working yourfarm system, and not just saying
, hey, man, we didn't win thisyear, but I got six billion
(33:04):
dollars, we're going to win nextyear.
Like the Dodgers may not losethe game their rotation's insane
on top of their offense and notto say they won't, because the
beauty in baseball is you justreally don't know.
But I would just like to seeyou almost know some teams are
(33:24):
always going to suck becausethey won't spend the money.
I would like to see a littlemore parity in who's going to
make the playoffs.
Speaker 3 (33:33):
Yeah, definitely.
I'm a big Cleveland fan andthey've overcome a lot because
their owner doesn't like tospend.
But they have a good system.
But I can't even imagine whatit'd be like if they had Dodger
money.
Speaker 1 (33:49):
Well, I've been spoiled.
I grew up a Braves fan and allwe do is win.
I just like to see other teamscome up.
Speaker 3 (34:00):
Well, you're a parent .
Best advice that you would giveparents of young baseball
players.
Speaker 1 (34:10):
Let them be kids.
Let them learn to love it ontheir own.
Don't make them love it becauseyou love it.
Our kids will often do thingsbecause they think that's what
they want us to do, but at theend of the day, we should want
them to do things that they wantto do.
(34:31):
We're not making carbon copiesof ourselves.
We're building up newindividuals.
Let them find their passion,let them try things, let them
fail and be there to dust themoff, help them up and then
navigate the failure a littlebit better.
(34:51):
We have to stop protecting themfrom failure, because we're not
going to be around forever.
So when they fall and we're notthere to protect them, but
they're falling, you know, at 30, the fall from 30 compared to
the falls at, you know, 1, 2, 10, 15, a lot further.
So we need to learn to let thembuild some resiliency and
(35:15):
toughness so that they can lovethem where they are, understand
them and understand that love isnot protecting them.
It's preparing them.
Speaker 3 (35:26):
In my opinion, it's preparing them, in my opinion.
Well, it's Aaron Roussel, andall the heart in the world.
He's playing Juco baseball atthe age of 40 and just living
life, and I really do appreciateyou taking the time to join me
here on Baseball CoachesUnplugged.
Speaker 1 (35:47):
I'm truly honored, sir.
It's a blessing to meet people.
I love that I got to hear apart of your story.
I wish you nothing but goodhealth and no matter what God
puts in front of you, it's inyou to defeat it.
Just keep fighting.
It sucks.
I have a friend in a verysimilar relation.
He's got a colostomy bag.
It's embarrassing for him.
(36:09):
He spent a lot of time likestruggling with it, but it's his
normal embrace it.
Um, everything here istemporary.
You know, and leave your legacyand I really appreciate the
opportunity to you know, meet.
You share my story on yourpodcast and, um, I hope we can
stay connected.
Um, reach out.
Anytime you think of me, textme and I'll do the same.
Speaker 3 (36:32):
Sounds great.
Well, hey, thank you very muchand best of luck this upcoming
season.
Speaker 1 (36:37):
Thank you, sir, going to need it.
Speaker 3 (36:40):
Today's episode of Baseball Coaches Unplugged is
powered by the nettingprofessionals improving programs
one facility at a time.
One facility at a time.
Contact them today at844-620-2707, where you can
visit them online atwwwnettingproscom.
Be sure to tune in everyWednesday for a new episode with
(37:01):
some of the best baseballcoaches across the country.
As always, I'm your host, CoachKen Carpenter.
Thanks for listening toBaseball Coaches Unplugged.
Hello and welcome to Baseball Coaches Unplugged.
I'm your host, Coach KenCarpenter, and on today's
podcast, a story of inspirationA 40-year-old father.
He's had two liver transplantsand he's battled cancer in the
past 10 years and he's fightingfor a spot to play Juco baseball
with players half of his age,Aaron Roussel next on Baseball
(00:30):
Coaches Unplugged.
Speaker 2 (00:34):
Welcome to Baseball Coaches Unplugged with Coach Ken
Carpenter, presented byAthleteOne.
Baseball Coaches Unplugged is apodcast for baseball coaches
With 27 years of high schoolbaseball coaching under his belt
, here to bring you the insidescoop on all things baseball,
from game winning strategies andpitching secrets to hitting
drills and defensive drills.
We're covering it all.
(00:54):
Whether you're a high schoolcoach, college coach or just a
baseball enthusiast, we'll diveinto the tactics and techniques
that make the difference on andoff the field.
Discover how to build a winningmentality.
Inspire your players and getthem truly bought into your game
philosophy Plus, get the latestinsights on recruiting,
coaching, leadership andcrafting a team culture that
(01:14):
champions productivity andsuccess.
Join Coach every week as hebreaks down the game and shares
incredible behind-the-scenesstories.
Your competitive edge startshere, so check out the show
weekly and hear from the bestcoaches in the game.
On Baseball Coaches Unplugged.
Speaker 3 (01:33):
Baseball Coaches Unplugged is proud to be
partnered with the nettingprofessionals, improving
programs one facility at a time.
The netting professionalsspecialize in the design,
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This includes backstops,batting cages, bp turtles,
screens, ball carts and more.
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They're not limited to justbaseball and softball.
They also work with football,soccer, lacrosse and golf
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Contact them today at844-620-2707.
(02:14):
That's 844-620-2707.
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Check out Netting Pros on X,instagram, facebook and LinkedIn
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If you enjoyed today's show, besure to share it with a friend
(02:35):
and let them know that a newepisode comes out every
Wednesday where we talk withsome of the best baseball
coaches around the country.
Now to my interview with AaronRosella Coach.
Thanks for taking the time tojoin me on Baseball Coaches
Unplugged.
Speaker 1 (02:51):
Thank you so much for providing me an opportunity to
kind of share my story and evenjust talk to you, meet you and
make a new friend.
I appreciate you.
Speaker 3 (03:01):
Love it.
Well, you know, I reached outto you, I want to say around
January 23rd I came across yourstory, old and you're pursuing
Juco baseball, and the otherreason is you've battled cancer
(03:31):
and you've had liver transplant.
And you know, I guess I got tostart off with how are you doing
?
Speaker 1 (03:40):
I'm here Currently battling pneumonia on some new
antibiotics.
Hopefully kick that soon.
But I'm here.
I'm currently battlingpneumonia on some new
antibiotics.
Hopefully kick that soon.
But I'm good.
My liver numbers have been goodfor the first time in almost a
decade.
I've gone a year without beingadmitted to the hospital, so
that's a win.
I try to really focus on thesmall victories.
Speaker 3 (04:02):
Well, that's great.
I mean, I you know, when you,when you, when, before all this
started happening to you, Igotta ask I mean, uh, what was
like your, your size, as far as,like you know, height and
weight?
Speaker 1 (04:16):
oh, before I got sick , I was, uh, about 6, 4, 220 and
, um, nobody could stop me fromdoing anything I wanted to do
athletically, which kind of camewith an ego.
But I was big and I owned aCrossFit gym, so I was in shape
too.
Like my goal right before I gotsick was I wanted to be in the
(04:38):
best shape of my life at 30.
And I was, and thankfully,because what I was about to face
six, nine months later I neededthat, because I would have
survived without being in thebest shape.
Speaker 3 (04:51):
Yes, I can totally agree with that because your
story really resonated with me,because you've been through such
a great deal in your life withhealth issues and the only thing
I can say is you don't quit.
And you know as, as coaches,you know you, you find yourself
(05:13):
telling your players hey, youknow we're down six and it's the
seventh inning.
You know, hey, let's not quit.
You never know what's going tohappen.
And you yourself, you just keepgetting back up and staying
positive.
Speaker 1 (05:26):
I really look at it like and I think that's why I've
gravitated towards baseball,because I was a basketball
player before.
I was pretty good at football.
But those are timed events andlife obviously is timed, but we
don't know that time.
So with what you say, it kindof just makes me think of
baseball and it's like, untilyou get that left out, you're
not out, so why would you quit?
(05:47):
So you know, I might be in myfourth, sixth, seventh, ninth
inning, but I got two outs left.
You know, let's play ball.
Speaker 3 (05:58):
Yes, I totally agree with that.
And you know, I think yourattitude is just like in
anything that people do in lifeis the key to anything.
And you know, this past weekthis is actually my first
episode since returning from thehospital I was in Cleveland
Clinic having surgery because,you know, I have a J pouch and
(06:23):
that kind of replaced my largeintestines and colons that were
colon that was removed back in2011.
And I've recently found outthat there was a hole in it and
it's failing and createdosteomyelitis which is leaked
into the bottom of my spine.
(06:44):
And you know, I go to ClevelandClinic, they put an ostomy bag
on me and within two days, youknow, good old insurance says
it's time for you to go.
So I'm back home and I'm doingdaily infusions through a PICC
line and you know there's been alot of times where I've really
(07:07):
doubted myself and thought, youknow, hey, this isn't fair.
Uh, I, I don't want to dealwith this, but you know, I, I
guess this, this is kind ofselfish on my part.
You know, how do you do it, howdo you, how do you get up each
day and just keep pushingforward?
Speaker 1 (07:28):
It's you really.
I just do it and I don't thinkyou should feel any type of way
and negative about yourself orthe way you feel, because I've
been there and that put me in avery dark, depressed state.
I've been there and that put mein a very dark, depressed state
, but what I've realized is youdo what you can when you can,
(07:52):
and when you can't, you justdon't.
We have to listen to our bodies.
We all have limitations, butwhy can't we just learn to make
the best of what we have?
Um, but that, why can't we justlearn to make the best of what
we have?
(08:13):
And I think back to like when Iwas at my sickest, I slept 20
hours a day, but when I got up Iwould go to baseball practice
because my teams, I would tryand I'd give everything I had to
be involved.
And then the next day you knowI'm just not moving, um, and it
probably wasn't the smartest,but I was willing to accept that
as my normal and I was going tomake the most of it.
And I think that's where a lotof it lies, is I don't look at
(08:36):
it as like why me anymore, it'smore so just like trying and I'm
going to do what I can, andwhen I can't, I just don't.
And if anybody feels some typeof way about that, I don't care,
because it's not selfish to putyourself first so I, I, I get
that, but I wanted to see how isyour attitude affected those
(09:01):
around you.
Speaker 3 (09:02):
You know teammates, the players and just even your
family.
Speaker 1 (09:10):
It's hit or miss.
Sometimes I could get annoyedwith my mindset because I
sometimes push it on the othersand sometimes people just want
to be sad, mad and wallow intheir self-pity.
Be sad, mad and wallowing intheir self-pity, and I've
(09:30):
learned that it's not up for meto project who I am onto them.
But at the same time I can'tsit there and listen to it, so I
remove myself from thesituation and sometimes that'll
be.
You know, I won't talk to youfor years because you're not
making any progress to getbetter.
You know, once you identify theproblem, if you're not willing
to work on a solution, I can'tdo anything with you.
(09:51):
Um, and it's no hard feelings,it's just I'm not problem
orientated, I'm more on thesolution side, um, and I'm going
to offer everything I can.
But not everybody's receptiveto a solution.
They just want to be kind ofliving their problems and that's
just not me.
Speaker 3 (10:11):
You know and I you know I was sitting here thinking
you know I'm in the worstpossible situation I could be in
right now.
But you know, when you'regetting pushed around a hospital
, going into surgery or moved toa room or whatever, you realize
that there's always someone outthere that's in a lot worse
(10:31):
situation that you're in andI've kind of tried to go that
route.
You know it could be a lotworse.
Do you agree with that?
Speaker 1 (10:38):
Oh yeah, absolutely.
But I also agree with that.
At the same time, you know, youshouldn't discredit what you're
going through just becausesomeone's going through
something worse.
We're limited to our experienceand it's good to kind of
remember those and think aboutthose that are struggling a
little more, because it can helpus kind of rise.
But at the same time, like,don't discredit what you're
(11:03):
going through because it is hardand my hard is going to be
different than someone else'shard.
Like I know people that thehardest thing they ever dealt
with was a stubbed toe.
So to them that's catastrophicbecause that's all they dealt
with.
So who am I to judge them?
From my experiences I have tokind of go where they are and
(11:24):
say, man, like I've stubbed mytoe before, like that's bad and
that's I mean that's the kind ofweed, but it's just a good way
to kind of explain it like we'reonly limited to our experiences
, so you're bad right now, likethis is your worst.
That doesn't mean mine work wasworse, it's just different.
(11:46):
And I think that's where wekind of spur up in his life as
we compare, when we reallyshould just like be more
accepting and understandingmakes sense.
Speaker 3 (11:56):
Well, I, you know, I, I gotta ask.
You're 40 years old and you gothe route and I'm going to do
some try to play some Jucobaseball.
Um, how did that come about?
And uh, how did the, how didthe?
How did the team respond to, uh, a guy that's trying to play
(12:21):
the game and they're half yourage?
Speaker 1 (12:25):
So I knew the coach and I knew they were rebuilding
the program and he needed guys.
So it was kind of a perfectopportunity to be one of those
guys.
I wanted to go back to school.
I'm not a good student withoutsports, so why not?
You know, if the opportunitypresents itself, take it,
because that's what I try toteach the kids that I mentor and
(12:46):
coach.
So like what better way to leadthem than to go into their
world and then, with theteammates, they're a little like
who is this old dude?
But once they saw that I waswilling to put in the work, you
know, I embraced the struggle.
I did everything I could at thetime because I was also dealing
(13:06):
with pneumonia.
So they've learned to like,accept me.
They kind of call me UncleAaron, they make fun of how old
I am, but they're superreceptive of it.
They push me.
We did a sit-up test a couple ofweeks ago.
I only got four, but you wouldhave thought I got 150 in a
minute because the way they allcheered me on, because they know
(13:27):
, you know, I've been cut inhalf twice, my core is not
together, so to set up on my ownis a real struggle.
Um, in the beginning of JanuaryI can only do one.
By mid January I could do four.
So if you really break thatdown, that's a significant
growth product, but it's stillfour.
(13:48):
It's not that many Everyoneelse is doing, you know, 30 to
40, but I did four.
But you would have thought Idid the most, and that really
just puts into perspective howmuch they truly are like with me
, how much they truly are likewith me A lot of times that
couldn't um being around.
Speaker 3 (14:07):
you know a team, you know you guys are all in that
same struggle to try to getbetter and get ready for the
season Um have have the playerskind of.
You know that you got coachesthat are obviously going to be
older than the players, but dothey ever kind of just reach out
to you and talk to you aboutyour experiences?
Speaker 1 (14:29):
Oh yeah, quite a few of them.
I actually have my own facilityso during the winter break a
good amount of them would cometo my facility.
So now it's kind of awkwardbecause we'll be at the like a
team function and they'recalling me Coach Aaron because
they got so used to coming to myfacility and hearing everyone
(14:50):
else call me Coach Aaron.
So it's kind of a neat dynamicbecause I'm like a player and a
coach to some.
But I really welcome that roleand I take pride in it because
at the end of the day, I am acoach more than I am a baseball
player.
I mean, by being on the teamwith them it's almost like they
(15:11):
have a coach in the mud, in thegrind with them.
So it's been a really coolexperience because I'm there
with them but I'm also like,essentially their flashlight,
you know, guiding the way.
Speaker 3 (15:26):
You mentioned you have your own hitting facility.
Tell me a little bit about that.
As far as you know what, whatgoes on there, do you or do you
have a team like a summer teamthat you work with, or so I run
it as a nonprofit.
Speaker 1 (15:41):
It's called Pops Culture.
You've seen the baseballlandscape a lot of kids getting
priced out of it so I do this sothey can still get access to
training, hitting and the travelball scene without spending
thousands of dollars.
No-transcript and it'sobviously age appropriate, but
(16:35):
I'm hard on them, but they knowit's come from a place of caring
.
And another aspect is the.
These kids have like pro levelprograms and designs and
workouts and coaches.
Sometimes these kids just needto be kids and they get to do
that with me.
And I think that's a veryimportant part of baseball and
(16:56):
sports in life is remainingchildlike and understanding.
If they're not having fun, ifthey don't learn to love it
first, they're not going to workas hard at it.
So that's what I try to do is Iget them to love it and then we
work on it and we um, we usethe word invest a lot because I
think it's just a little morepositive than work.
Nobody likes to work, but aninvestment can turn a profit and
(17:20):
that's what we're trying to dois grow and turn a profit on
ourselves.
Speaker 3 (17:26):
Yes, and in today's world where travel teams are
playing 60, 70, 100 games and Isometimes wonder how that I can
see where it doesn't become funanymore.
It becomes like a job, and whenyou're that young, it's got to
be fun, I think.
Speaker 1 (17:45):
Oh yeah, it's huge.
I mean, you see it every day,from the Little League fields to
these travel ball tournaments.
These kids are under so muchpressure and it's a game, it's
fun.
We have kids, you know, asyoung as 10, that have pitching
coaches, hitting coaches, youknow all this stuff, but really
(18:06):
all they need is dad to go outback and throw them wiffle ball.
Play a game of wiffle ball inyour neighborhood.
How often do you see thatanymore?
But these kids have time to bekids.
Because it's in such a rush, wegot to get you here.
We got to get you here.
We got to take you to thiscoach.
We got to get you here.
We gotta take you to this coach.
We gotta take you here.
Um, and it's become a racket.
Like people are getting richoff kids with pro level workouts
(18:30):
and development, but I'm likethey're not ready for that.
Like, let's be, you know alittle more appropriate and let
them be kids.
And like, if your son wants toplay fortnight and not go to his
pitching coach, maybe sometimeslet him.
It's not that big of a deal.
Nobody's signing a contract at10, but the fear of missing out
(18:52):
has like consumed these parentsand they get online and they see
every kid in the countryworking and you're like, oh my
gosh, my 10 year old's not asgood as this 10 year old.
I need to get him a hittingcoach, I need to get him with a
pitcher and before you know it,by the time the kid's 13,.
He's got 17 different jerseysin his closet because they're
bouncing wrong from team to teambecause they just feel like one
(19:15):
team is better or one coachdidn't do it the way they wanted
to.
So we're not only pushing thesekids way harder than they need
to, so we're not only pushingthese kids way harder than they
need to.
We're also not teaching themhow to compete because the
second time they're not the bestshortstop on the team or best
second baseman, best catcher,best pitcher.
They don't buckle down and workto become the best.
They roll out and find a newteam and that's why you see such
(19:38):
a high dropout rate in college.
I think is because in collegeyou have to compete, but we're
not teaching kids how to competeor teaching them how to
complain.
And I'm sure you watch enoughgames like how often do you hear
parents say anything positive?
They're on the coaches, theumpires, their own kid playing
their teammate.
It's rarely anything of love orgrowth or development.
(20:04):
It's just ridicule andcriticism.
And who wants to be criticizedall day?
So why would this kid want todo it?
We're literally sucking thelove out of it, when that should
be the most important elementof all.
Speaker 3 (20:17):
I hear people talk about it on social media.
You see the crazy storiessocial media and you'll see the
crazy stories and, uh, you know,and, like you said, even the
umpires, they don't want to be apart of that.
So then it creates a rippleeffect where you don't have
umpires for games becausethey're just not enough that
want to put up with some of thethings that goes on in baseball
(20:39):
and basketball and football andeverything else out there yeah,
if you don't get the call youwant.
Speaker 1 (20:43):
It's like oh, meet me in the parking lot.
Is it ever really that serious?
As adults, I don't think verymany situations should ever get
to the point where I have tophysically do harm to another
human being.
We should be able to removeourselves from the situation or
dissolve the situation, but werarely do.
(21:05):
We just escalate it and then weget so angry that we don't know
how to react and then we throwtantrums and then we make a
terrible choice.
We get in a fight.
Our kids see that.
I mean we don't reallyunderstand the repercussions of
our action and our work asadults, like we're literally
creating their normal and we'redropping the ball because we
(21:27):
just refuse to be accountableand, like I say it often like
parents we're the problem andI'm just as guilty.
The only difference is is likeI'm aware of it and I'm working
to be better.
I still fail, but when I make amistake, if I'm too hard on my
kids or a kid that I coach, Iapologize to them, because I
think that's an important part.
(21:48):
As parents and adults andcoaches, we create these images
of ourselves to these kids likewe're perfect but we're all
severely flawed.
But if we're not willing toswallow our pride and apologize
to these kids when we makemistakes, they're never going to
think we're wrong because theydon't know that.
So that's why you see so muchnegativity still in this world
(22:09):
because adults are just stubborn, unaware of themselves.
They just refuse to takeaccountability.
Speaker 3 (22:15):
So how can we expect our kids Well, let me ask you
this what has been your biggestchallenge?
Trying to compete at the JUCOlevel?
Speaker 1 (22:27):
Speed I am not as fast as I used to be.
I have neopathy in my left leg,so when I plant sometimes I
just fall.
And on top of that I am 40.
So it's just speed tends to gofirst.
Thankfully, as the physicalfalls, the mind kind of picks up
(22:48):
.
So I'm kind of at a decent spotof balance to where I recognize
things and I can pick up ontells and things.
So I can still be effective.
But what I've learned too isit's far more effective for the
team's growth if I see it and Icommunicate it and I get it to
these fast guys.
(23:08):
Because speed with knowledge isreal dangerous on the base path,
but like knowledge withoutspeed, still a liability.
So um, so what I do mostly nowis like I try to just like I see
the game as a coach but I'mplaying.
So then I tell the you know theteammates like hey, man, like
(23:29):
watch this picture.
Like every time he does thishe's going home, you can get an
early jump.
Or you know he's pitching inthis sequence, it's just it
doesn't run around.
Second, he's heavy on hisfastball.
He's doing this Cause those arethings you don't think about it
.
You know 19 to 20, but at 40you have to.
So you know it's so beneficialto everyone that I use my mind
(23:55):
not just to benefit my game.
You know everybody's game and Ithink that's another part of
the sport.
That's missing is we don't seeplayers communicating as well
and helping each other besuccessful and we've.
We watch even the mlb,especially in the regular season
.
It's selfishness.
It's all about the individual.
You know, if there's no outs ina runner on third, these kids
(24:19):
would rather strike out thanmake contact and just drive
something over to the right sideto get the runner home.
How often do you see kidssquare the bunt anymore or a
sack fly?
These kids will hit a sack flyand they're going back to the
dugout pounding it mad becausethey got out.
I'm like bro, we scored the run,mission accomplished.
It's the small victories.
(24:40):
But we've gotten so far awayfrom small ball and baseball in
a way that's played togetherthat these kids don't understand
baseball.
Like the IQ is low but theathleticism is crazy high.
But we need to create thatbalance and I don't think a lot
of people are doing it becauseit's just not as popular.
(25:02):
These kids want to have homeruns.
The parents want to see homeruns.
You know you see a meme all thetime.
You know you got four thousanddollars worth of bats and two
cents worth of knowledge in thedugout.
It's like what are we doing?
Speaker 3 (25:15):
I, I gotta believe that.
You know, when you know the theseason gets rolling and you
know every player goes throughstruggles, you, whether it's
hitting, or they boot groundballs or whatever, they've got
to see how you keep battling toovercome all the challenges, you
(25:38):
have that boot and a costlyerror late in the game.
It it's not the end of theworld, you gotta.
You gotta just uh, have a shortmemory and just keep moving
forward.
I would think right.
Speaker 1 (25:53):
Oh, absolutely, and with everything.
And that's why baseball, Ithink, is such a great teacher
for life is um, you don't havetime to feel sorry for yourself
because the next place happeninglife is happening.
So what I've learned, too, as acoach, is we no longer get on
the kids about physical mistakes, because they're on themselves
enough.
They know when they screw up wedon't need to kick them while
(26:15):
they're down, because on top ofthe coaches yelling at them,
dad's probably yelling at them.
You know their teammates'parents are making fun of them.
They know that.
So why should like?
So we really started focusingon the mental side of the game
and building them up througherror, because we, we need it.
Why not let these kids failyoung and then help them
(26:38):
navigate it rather than justridicule them?
So they're scared to death tomake a failure?
And um, it's obvious becausethe errors are down when they're
not afraid to make a mistake.
But when we drive home thesefundamentals and they do
everything perfectly and theystill make that error, they
implode because it's like whatdo you?
(26:59):
I did everything right and Istill screwed up.
How much does that happen inlife?
Um, you know what I mean.
So they got to understand.
It's like you could doeverything right but you're
still out.
You could hit 104 mile an hourline drive and the outfielder
makes a crazy good play.
You're out Doesn't mean youfailed.
(27:19):
It just means you weren'tsuccessful in that moment.
You did everything right and itstill went wrong.
That's life.
How are you going to handlethat?
Are you going to let it consumeyou?
Are you going to you going tounderstand?
It's like yeah, I did it, I'mgoing to do it better next time.
And that's got to be.
The mindset is always a littlebetter next time, one percent
better every day, and it worksyou know I I experience.
Speaker 3 (27:43):
Uh, you know, like everybody around the country,
the I've got a I I to be a D1player.
You know you hear everybodytalking about how they you know
they want to play for the big D1schools and JUCO.
I think now is becoming more ofan option because the transfer
(28:04):
portal is having a huge effecton these guys.
The D1 coaches are just goingand getting another D1 guy
versus recruiting a high schoolkid.
So my question for you would bebest advice for a high school
player who wants to play JUCObaseball?
Speaker 1 (28:21):
Start getting strong, because that's really a
separator.
That's why they're going toJUCO now, because why take the
17-year-old when you get todevelop 19, 20 year old, spend
more time in the gym?
And then, with JUCO, the beautyof it is it's on you.
You don't have coaches teachingyou and guiding you,
(28:44):
nutritionists, so you reallyhave to develop some
independency, some self-worthreally, and decide how bad do
you want it Because it's on you.
I think everyone should gojukeboat just for that reason,
because just for you to developthe grit and the grind, and then
you find out if you really loveit.
Because if you're not willingto put in the work on your own,
(29:08):
you really don't love it.
And what's the point oftraveling 3,000 miles from home
to find out you don't love it?
You know, save some money, savesome time, stay at home, eat
your parents' food, go to JucoAll right, here we go, I got to.
Speaker 3 (29:25):
I asked this of every guest hate losing or love
winning.
Speaker 1 (29:31):
Probably love winning .
When you lose as many times asI have, you learn to appreciate
it, because usually when I lose,especially in life, usually my
fault, sometimes in sports it'snot my fault.
But that's also a goodtranslation of life, because you
(29:53):
have very little control inlife and I think that's why
baseball is such a great thingto do is because you have
limited opportunities to make animpact in the game and you can
win or lose based on that.
But it depends on who yousurround yourself with and your
success and your failures areall you kind of push together.
(30:15):
So I think I really lovewinning.
I don't mind losing because Iknow I'm going to get a little
better from them, but I do likealmost to a fault, unless now,
like young, winning wasn't anobsession.
Um, now I can handle notwinning, but I still want to win
(30:38):
everything.
I'm into Uno games, thebaseball games.
Um, I don't gamble because if Ican't sway the odds in my favor
, I don't want to do it, but Ilove competing.
Speaker 3 (30:51):
You're a general manager for an MLB team and you
can only keep one pitcher andone hitter.
I'm going to give you twogroups.
Group A has Aaron Judge andPaul Skeens.
That's your hitter and pitcher.
Group B is Shohei Otani andNolan Ryan.
(31:13):
What two are you going to keepand what are you going to say on
passing them?
Speaker 1 (31:21):
I'm going with Otani and Ryan.
Ryan was the ultimatecompetitor and I think Otani is
too Based on that speech that hegave at the world baseball
classic to his japan team whenthey were playing usa, saying
you know, essentially like,these guys aren't your heroes
today, they're your competition.
(31:41):
No matter how much you look upto them, we're essentially here
to destroy them.
I like that.
You cannot question nolanryan's competitive spirit.
Um, beating somebody up andthen throwing 114 pitches or
something crazy, he was just adog.
I'm in no disrespect to judgeand schemes, schemes is
(32:01):
incredible.
Need to see a little more ofhim.
And um, my last image of judgein my brain is that fly ball.
Speaker 3 (32:10):
Yep.
Speaker 1 (32:11):
And I think Otani is just a better player.
He's going to put the ball inplay more.
He doesn't just live or die atthe home run To where Judge is
like.
He's had some runs where hejust is pretty inconsistent at
times.
So to me it's a no-brainer.
Speaker 3 (32:29):
What would be one change that you would make to
major league baseball to make it?
Just make the game better forplayers, fans, everybody salary
cap.
Speaker 1 (32:41):
I'd like to see a little more um fairness, I guess
.
Like I don't like how you couldjust try to buy trophies.
I'd like to see more creativitywith, like moving pieces,
building teams, working yourfarm system, and not just saying
, hey, man, we didn't win thisyear, but I got six billion
(33:04):
dollars, we're going to win nextyear.
Like the Dodgers may not losethe game their rotation's insane
on top of their offense and notto say they won't, because the
beauty in baseball is you justreally don't know.
But I would just like to seeyou almost know some teams are
(33:24):
always going to suck becausethey won't spend the money.
I would like to see a littlemore parity in who's going to
make the playoffs.
Speaker 3 (33:33):
Yeah, definitely.
I'm a big Cleveland fan andthey've overcome a lot because
their owner doesn't like tospend.
But they have a good system.
But I can't even imagine whatit'd be like if they had Dodger
money.
Speaker 1 (33:49):
Well, I've been spoiled.
I grew up a Braves fan and allwe do is win.
I just like to see other teamscome up.
Speaker 3 (34:00):
Well, you're a parent .
Best advice that you would giveparents of young baseball
players.
Speaker 1 (34:10):
Let them be kids.
Let them learn to love it ontheir own.
Don't make them love it becauseyou love it.
Our kids will often do thingsbecause they think that's what
they want us to do, but at theend of the day, we should want
them to do things that they wantto do.
(34:31):
We're not making carbon copiesof ourselves.
We're building up newindividuals.
Let them find their passion,let them try things, let them
fail and be there to dust themoff, help them up and then
navigate the failure a littlebit better.
(34:51):
We have to stop protecting themfrom failure, because we're not
going to be around forever.
So when they fall and we're notthere to protect them, but
they're falling, you know, at 30, the fall from 30 compared to
the falls at, you know, 1, 2, 10, 15, a lot further.
So we need to learn to let thembuild some resiliency and
(35:15):
toughness so that they can lovethem where they are, understand
them and understand that love isnot protecting them.
It's preparing them.
Speaker 3 (35:26):
In my opinion, it's preparing them, in my opinion.
Well, it's Aaron Roussel, andall the heart in the world.
He's playing Juco baseball atthe age of 40 and just living
life, and I really do appreciateyou taking the time to join me
here on Baseball CoachesUnplugged.
Speaker 1 (35:47):
I'm truly honored, sir.
It's a blessing to meet people.
I love that I got to hear apart of your story.
I wish you nothing but goodhealth and no matter what God
puts in front of you, it's inyou to defeat it.
Just keep fighting.
It sucks.
I have a friend in a verysimilar relation.
He's got a colostomy bag.
It's embarrassing for him.
(36:09):
He spent a lot of time likestruggling with it, but it's his
normal embrace it.
Um, everything here istemporary.
You know, and leave your legacyand I really appreciate the
opportunity to you know, meet.
You share my story on yourpodcast and, um, I hope we can
stay connected.
Um, reach out.
Anytime you think of me, textme and I'll do the same.
Speaker 3 (36:32):
Sounds great.
Well, hey, thank you very muchand best of luck this upcoming
season.
Speaker 1 (36:37):
Thank you, sir, going to need it.
Speaker 3 (36:40):
Today's episode of Baseball Coaches Unplugged is
powered by the nettingprofessionals improving programs
one facility at a time.
One facility at a time.
Contact them today at844-620-2707, where you can
visit them online atwwwnettingproscom.
Be sure to tune in everyWednesday for a new episode with
(37:01):
some of the best baseballcoaches across the country.
As always, I'm your host, CoachKen Carpenter.
Thanks for listening toBaseball Coaches Unplugged.
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