January 15, 2025 • 45 mins
Discover the secrets to thriving youth baseball development with our special guest, Scott Anderson, the head baseball coach at Carmel Catholic High School in Illinois. Fresh from the ABCA Clinic in Washington, DC, Scott shares vital insights on prioritizing practice over tournaments and nurturing young pitchers. We explore the need for collaboration between high school and youth coaches to create a unified approach that ensures the growth and success of future players. If you've ever wondered about the real impact of early athlete rankings and the alarming trend of burnout by age 13, this episode offers a refreshing perspective focused on development over competition.
Transitioning into high school coaching, I share my journey of stepping into the shoes of a Hall of Fame coach and the challenges it presented. We discuss the importance of building a strong team culture through enhanced facilities, setting high expectations, and employing mental training techniques to compete with confidence against nationally ranked teams. Scott and I reflect on the significance of resilience and a positive mindset, and I recount a personal story about how my father taught me the value of hard work through regular snow shoveling. These experiences not only shaped my approach to coaching but also highlight the importance of maintaining a constructive attitude in the face of challenges.
As we shift our focus to college baseball, we unveil the unconventional paths players can take and the importance of trusting a coach or program over the competitive level. Scott introduces "Locker Room Central," an innovative app transforming how coaches and athletes communicate, track workloads, and ensure well-being. This tool is set to revolutionize how schools and facilities engage with athletes, promoting health and optimal performance. Join us as we wrap up with insights into effective coaching strategies and team dynamics, drawing parallels with other sports and emphasizing the qualities that make a great coach.
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 1 (00:03):
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.
(00:23):
Whether you're a high schoolcoach, college coach or just a
baseball enthusiast, we'll beright back insights on
recruiting, coaching, leadershipand crafting a team culture
(00:43):
that 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 2 (01:00):
Hello and welcome to episode 131 of Baseball Coaches
Unplugged.
I'm your host, ken Carpenter,and today's show takes us to
Illinois, specifically CarmelCatholic High School head coach,
scott Anderson.
He spent the majority of histime at youth sessions at the
(01:20):
ABCA Clinic in Washington DCrecently and he'll share his
takeaways on how to improvepractice over tournaments,
developing pitchers, and staytill the end to hear a story
from his playing days in theNorthwoods League and an upset
bus driver Before we get to theinterview.
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Now let's get to my sit downwith Carmel Catholic High School
(02:54):
head coach, scott Anderson.
Hello and welcome to BaseballCoaches Unplugged.
I'm your host, coach KenCarpenter.
Joining me today is ScottAnderson, head baseball coach at
Carmel Catholic High School inIllinois.
Coach, thanks for taking timeto be on Baseball Coaches
Unplugged.
Speaker 3 (03:15):
Definitely I'm excited to be here.
It's my first podcast, so I'm apodcast rookie.
Speaker 2 (03:24):
Okay, good, Well, we'll have some fun here then.
Well, prior to recording, wewere talking a little bit and
you flew back in and got awayfrom all the snow there in DC,
but you didn't get hit with verymuch there in the Chicago area,
I guess.
Speaker 3 (03:41):
No, the band is just south of us.
We just got a dusting of snowright now.
I feel like this winter we wejust got a dusting of snow right
now.
I feel like this winter wehaven't got a whole bunch.
Speaker 2 (03:53):
I think in December.
I think we could have practiced.
Well, you know it's Monday andthe ABCA is finished up down
there in DC, and you had achance both to be there as a
coach and also as an exhibitor.
What was your biggest takeaway?
Speaker 3 (04:08):
You know, I I I didn't get to go as many
sessions as I want, so I had tobe really strategic and I'm a
pitching guy, so I went to a lotof the pitching stuff and then
I went to a lot of the youth.
The youth hot stove wasprobably the biggest takeaway,
from the tech side to thefacility side and just a lot of
the discussion about how we needto change youth baseball and
(04:31):
that's kind of been somethingcentral to my belief system as a
high school coach.
Those young kids in yourcommunity, they're the ones that
are going to come play for youand they want to play for you.
We run a youth camp in thesummer.
Play for you, and you know, andthey want to play for you.
We run a youth camp in thesummer and, um, there was a lot
of things that resonated with meand and how we need to change
the game and I think ourdevelopment system in the united
(04:52):
states is a little broken.
So that's what I really walkedaway with.
Speaker 2 (04:56):
Yeah, so I I picked up on that um on x where you had
put out a post and kind oftalked a little bit about that
and you know how you spent agreat deal of your time with the
youth sessions.
I got a two-part question tostart off with ABCA how do we
get travel parents to not focuson playing in so many
(05:19):
tournaments and develop morewith, you know, getting more
practice time in with them?
And the second part of that ishow do we find more time for
high school coaches to find timeto educate these youth coaches
when you as a high school coachknow this, you're spread thin as
(05:41):
it is and you're definitely notgetting paid that much.
Speaker 3 (05:47):
Yeah, it's kind of a love affair for me because I do
coach a 13-year-old team.
I'm lucky enough to have aformer divisional player that
when I'm coaching high school ina season a nice start in the
end of April he kind of takesover until I can come back.
And I'm also a facilitypitching coach and so I do that
and then I coach high school.
(06:08):
So the time is tough.
I always encourage high schoolcoaches if you get a chance to
get in a facility and because Iknow there's kind of this
disconnect right, there's highschool coaches that blame
facilities and facilities blamehigh school coaches.
And I was talking to a facilityowner about a month ago and he
was saying man, you know, we gotthis disconnect with this
(06:29):
certain coach.
And I was like you've got tojust sit down and have an honest
conversation and everybody'sgot to get on the same page.
And I think to me that was oneof the reasons why I went into
the facility and wanted to getmore involved was, first of all,
there's always potentialCardinal players there, but also
my kids were there and I camein and I was hired as an
(06:52):
instructor for pitching but alsoas a head coach of a 13-year
team and I think that was thebiggest learning experience for
me.
I had been involved in highschool baseball right out of
college and I kind of got awayfrom baseball, became a high
(07:13):
school administrator and thendecided that I want to go back
in the classroom and now I'mworking for a tech company with
baseball software.
But I just wanted to be backinvolved in the game and I
coached but guess what?
That was probably harder thancoaching high school and the
demands of the parents and Ithink the culture.
It spent a lot of timeeducating parents on what was
appropriate and not because Ithink we almost professionalize
youth sports, which I think isreally unfortunate because and
(07:37):
there's a lot of money involvedand parents just don't
understand what's reallyappropriate health-wise for your
player too.
I think workload management hasbeen a big issue with pitching
and so I was lucky enough toeventually take over my kids'
team and that's how I kind ofhad it in and I've had an
amazing group of parents and Ithink the buy-in I hate to say
(07:58):
buy-in because not everybody'sbought in, but can I create a
coalition of the willing and Ihave a really great coalition of
parents and that group has beenthere together for three years
We've been reallydevelopmentally focused and we
really have to have honestconversations with parents and
lean into having difficultconversations, and I think
that's hard as an adult is tolean in and have difficult
(08:21):
conversations.
Speaker 2 (08:23):
Yes, I agree and you know it's.
I think you hit.
The key to travel baseball isif you can put a team together
and have them stick together notjump from team to team to team
and have a good parent group.
That's more than half thebattle, I think.
Speaker 3 (08:47):
Well, I also feel like I've always kind of worked
against the traditional um, I'mvery tech heavy, I'm kind of
like I it's funny because one ofmy parents said you know,
you're very old school butyou're also very new school,
you're kind of this combo ofboth.
But, um, I came into thatfacility and I was like, listen,
we got all these coaches and Igot most of our parents, which
is great.
We need parent coaches.
You know, I sat down with thefacility owner and I said,
(09:10):
listen, we just don't have anytraining for the coaches and we
need mentorship.
There's a lot of parents thatare really well-intentioned and
they're working another job.
They have a hard time withpractice planning.
They even have a hard timefiguring out what do I do for
schedule, what level should Iplay, what's kind of the plan
for my team down the road, right, and I've tried to mentor a lot
(09:36):
of coaches.
And you know it's funny becausethis morning I get back from
ABC and the 14 new coaches callme right away and I always want
to be open to everybody.
I have the 10 new coach callsme constantly, constantly and
what do you want to do?
And I let them use all ourstuff and I set up plans for
their practices and help them dothat.
And I think that's the piece asa high school coach is being
(09:58):
that mentor to those parentcoaches.
You, when you I would thinkabout it like if I had to coach
basketball.
I have no clue what I'd bedoing.
You know, and I I was luckyenough to play division one
baseball and play the jayhawkleague in the northwoods league.
I got a lot of experience.
I got to learn from a lot ofgreat coaches and a lot of those
(10:18):
parent coaches.
Maybe they played in highschool, maybe a little bit in
high school, and I was about itand it's it's.
It's a lot to chew on.
I remember getting back intocoach.
I coached, uh, my kids t-ballteam and I was like I don't know
how to coach t-ball.
So I think it could be dauntingand it is making sure parents
are on board.
But also I feel like there'sfacilities and travel
(10:38):
organizations.
You need to mentor the coaches,provide those type of
structures for everybody.
Speaker 2 (10:46):
Well, you, you know you're, you talked about the
parents and you know I I sawsomething today where I read it,
where they, a team, was playingin a tournament in December and
I don't know, I mean, I sitthere and just go.
Oh, my, my God, but what areyour thoughts when you hear
someone's taking a 10U team andplaying in December?
Speaker 3 (11:10):
Yeah, I look at it from the youth side, even the
high school side, like what arewe doing, you know, and where do
kids get to learn the game andget to practice without?
I think the game has got enoughpressure as it is.
So what are we doing?
Only playing games.
And always, like, everything ispressure filled in a game and
kids feel that that's the test,right, we never provide the
(11:33):
lessons and teach them to playthe game and practice and train,
right, and you're taking 10 newkids and and I, like I said,
you're traveling around thecountry and playing all these
games, what do you get out of it?
Because what I think I see isthose kids, when they get to
high school, they're burnt out.
Right, we burn kids out and Ithink we there's a statistic out
(11:55):
there that most kids quitsports.
It's like 70% by the 13, 13,13,.
You, we see kids just falling,and so you're starting on these
young teams and kids should justbe like figuring out how to
throw and just learning how tomove, and you're just everything
is high pressure and I just Idon't agree with it.
(12:18):
I think we, we got to let kidsbe kids too, and families.
Speaker 2 (12:22):
Yeah, more, that's even more important, think.
But you know, I I was speakingwith a, a guy I know that
coaches a young kid and hestarted telling me about players
that were ranked and they'relike fifth or sixth grade.
I'm like, first off, who'sranking these people, and you
(12:45):
know.
And then I went down the rabbithole and I thought I'm going to
look at basketball and theywere listing the top third
graders in the state, this onesite, and I'm just like, well,
seriously, you know what I mean.
I mean, I guess if you can makemoney off of it, go ahead, I
guess.
But I just was stunned thatthere are player rankings for
(13:10):
such young age.
Speaker 3 (13:12):
Yeah, and there's team rankings, right.
And so I took this team.
That was really not very good.
And now they ranked us third inthe state.
I don't know how they did it,you know, and I didn't recruit
any kids.
But when the rankings come backand some parents are like, you
know, you're ranked third in thestate, I'm like, well, how do
we do that?
And then we just add a layer ofpressure to everything.
(13:33):
Right, it's just.
I told the kids cause I know thekids are going to see it and I
said you know rankings.
I don't know how they do it, wedon't mean to worry about it,
but I said it does tell us thatwe're doing what's right.
And I sat down.
And I sat, I even talked to myparents.
I'm like, look at this, we onlyplay 50 games and all these
teams are listed.
(13:53):
Let's go look at how many gamesthey play.
And we're doing it rightplaying last games and
developing.
We had kids that we ended up.
We created a system when I wentin and it was just individual
coaches in the facility.
When I took over, I teamed upwith the other team at our age
group and said let's doeverything together, let's train
(14:14):
the same.
Let's do everything the same.
Let's just create a 11U groupand those kids don't look at A
and B.
I had some kids that went downto the other team last year and
the parents stayed in theprogram because they understand
the development is important,right, and we had some kids
(14:35):
struggle at the level we playedin and we had a really honest
conversation like, hey,physically you might just not be
ready for this, I think youwill be down the road, but I
want to keep you in because Itrust that you're going to just
get better anyway.
You're just physically asmature as some of the other kids
and our parents didn't leaveand they always said like I'm
(14:55):
going to stick with you, coach,because you know what you're
doing and I'm seeing theimprovement out of my kid and I
know you struggled this year butI trust the process and I think
that's the greatest thing Ifyou're not having a bunch of
parents leave.
You know you're doing, you knowyou're doing a good job and
you're not also sucking in abunch of kids and cutting kids
(15:16):
and stuff like that.
Speaker 2 (15:17):
Right.
Well, let's move a little bittowards the high school and the
things Now.
What is your approach to youknow, maintaining the standards
that you set and developing yourteam culture.
Speaker 3 (15:30):
So that's tough.
Last year was my first year Iactually took over.
I think it's always hard tofollow.
I followed a Hall of Fame coach, coach Gandolfi, who was a
great mentor.
I text Coach after every game.
He's on our game changer and Istill ask for him advice.
He came back as kind of abridge to Carmel and I've taken
(15:53):
over.
We didn't have a whole lot interms of facilities and stuff.
I've raised a bunch of money,new scoreboard, we did the field
.
I mean bought so much differentequipment and it was great.
My parents were really excitedto support the program and now
it's trying to raise theexpectation.
You know, the biggest thing waskids just didn't go to the
(16:15):
weight room.
And we go to the weight roomnow and it's an expectation and
they come to open gyms and theyhold each other accountable and
we talk about that right, weplay in the toughest conference
in the state of Illinois.
We had a nationally ranked teamthat had, I think everybody in
their starting lineup was aDivision I commit.
I mean this year they have akid that's a second-ranked
(16:38):
catcher in the nation.
Kid's going to LSU, theirsecond baseman's going to
Tennessee and we have that kindof grind in our nation, kids
going to LSU, the secondbaseman's going to Tennessee and
we have that kind of grind inour schedule we had last year.
We faced the kids that were 94from Tennessee and I had we
finished middle of the pack andit was funny because they said
when I took the job what wouldbe good?
(16:59):
And I said if we can be 500 inthis conference, we're going to
be a really good baseballprogram.
And we were almost.
We had one game and with onegame we would have been 500 and
the athletic director said wecouldn't do it.
I don't think he really thoughtwe would.
We would go in and do it rightaway.
I only had two small schoolcommits but we have a side
(17:19):
throwing strikes, beingaggressive, um, and just having
a little bit of confidence inourselves.
You know I use a lot of AlanJaeger's mental.
We even use Tread.
I reached out to Tread and Ihad their mental game stuff and
I said can I use it with my team?
I have the login and they saidjust get the login out and let
the guys do it and we would workthrough it and talk about that
(17:41):
mental game.
And I thought that was thebiggest block, that a lot of our
guys had was just confidenceand just going out and playing
and not overthinking it.
And I'm a little bit differentas a coach and it took a while
for them to get used to that.
I said you know what?
I don't give a steel sign.
If you got it, you take it, andwe do vaulted leads and we try
(18:02):
to set up pitchers, and it wasjust a different system.
But all of a sudden they tookmore ownership and I'm a catcher
, I don't call pitches that muchand my pitchers can shake off
and my catcher can take controlof the game and I'm so proud of
that kid.
He's one of the smartestcatchers I've ever worked with,
including playing in college.
And my kids started to takeownership of the team and it
(18:27):
wasn't me and I say that like,we have a pick system that
sometimes comes from me, butthey can run picks themselves.
Infielders can call them, thecatchers can call them and we
have our own system.
Speaker 2 (18:36):
But the kids take ownership and I think when they
started to take ownership on thefield too, they take ownership
off the field yeah, that's thekey, and I I really like when
you can get a team to just holdeverybody accountable and then
you know that you're doingthings the right way.
Speaker 3 (18:55):
Yeah, and it takes time.
Yeah, it just does.
And you know we had some kidsthat were happy about playing
time and stuff.
And the one thing that we didwhen I came in is we had grade
rep meetings and so I hadrepresentatives from the
freshman team and the JV teamand the varsity and every Friday
(19:16):
we got together, had pizza andwe talked about what was going
good in the program and whatthey wanted to see that changed
and that was kind of our culturemeetings and we made sure all
our coaches are there and I saidthis is the time to have
difficult conversations and ifyou don't like what's going on,
we can have those conversationsand try to change it, because
(19:36):
this is your program in the end.
You know my name's attached toit, but it is.
We need to be player centricand we need to be kid-centric of
everything we do.
Speaker 2 (19:48):
Well, if you, you know you talked about how you,
you know you were a pitcher andyou like working with the
pitchers If you had full controlof your pitchers for an entire
year, with no other pitchingcoaches on the side, the parents
weren't going to step in.
Take me through how much youthink they should throw
(20:11):
throughout the four seasons.
Speaker 3 (20:16):
Yeah, I'm not a big, huge like total shutdown guy.
But I'm also not saying that weshould rip and run all year.
I'm big on like on-ramping guys.
But I just tell guys, thelonger you take off, the longer
it takes to really get your armin shape.
And we see even in the majorleague studies right, that they
(20:37):
label fatigue as a big issue.
And also I was lucky enough toto take a course last year with
uh casey mahala with kinetic pro, and they had forgot um the
guy's name, but he was one ofthe lead scientists of the cubs
and he said we, what we see withplayers in the major leagues
and why we see injuries happenin spring training is most guys
(20:58):
aren't ready.
But then also we're tooconcerned at the minor league
level of overthrowing guys.
So there's, I'm not throwingenough or I'm throwing too much.
But we have to kind of meetlike where are we going to get
guys ready?
I always advise my pitchers thisIf you don't, I don't like fall
ball.
I hate fall ball.
(21:18):
I think it's stupid.
I always say that you've playedsummer and spring.
Stupid, I always say thatyou've played summer and spring.
If you're going to lift heavyand hard, go from August,
september, even half of October,and just lift and do some light
throwing in between to keepyour arm in shape a couple times
a week.
But that's a time to getstronger.
(21:39):
And I always tell guys, like,listen, if you want to gain
velocity, there's no secretsauce.
You can throwows, you can ripand run, you can do all these
things that you see, but that'snot what's going to get you most
likely to throw harder.
It's to get stronger, and so II would really want to like, set
(22:00):
up a really hot like.
That's the time to gain a lot ofstrength and then mid-october
start to just on-ramp guys wedon't get on the mound do a lot
of indoor long toss because oroutdoor long toss.
Start to do some good straightlead training and getting them
and that's what I do at ourfacility is like I take video,
(22:21):
we do a physical assessment onkids and we kind of set up the
program for them and we spendall the way to the end of
December just on ramping themand throwing and we monitor.
I've used pulse sensors but weuse armcarecom now test the
range of motion Every time theycome in.
We're testing the range ofmotion strength, making sure
(22:41):
they're also healthy, so thatthey progress in the program.
Or we got to, we got to tailorthem back and then by January we
start to introduce you to themound and gradually just like
start doing pitch design andgetting in.
I think a lot of facilities justreally concentrate on velocity
and then the kids don't havethat time to to to apply like
(23:03):
applicate it to the mound, likeI do velocity training, but it's
a short phase, we're done withit, and then we gotta start
applying to the mound and Ithink that's where we lose out
of.
Some of those facilities islike, yeah, you throw hard but
you get a strike.
So I'm not a huge shutdown, butat least like spend some time
(23:24):
throwing in the fall a littlebit, get stronger, and then we
kind of on-ramp you, because inIllinois we start first week in
March is tryouts, so be ready,and then we can gradually build
your bullpens up to about 60pitches and go on 60 pitches and
go on in this season.
Speaker 2 (23:41):
Well, with college baseball recruiting becoming
extremely tough for high schoolplayers, what is your plan as
far as telling your players andparents what to expect?
Because right now it almostseems like if you're not a legit
D1 guy, you probably should belooking at D3 or Juco, something
(24:03):
like that.
Speaker 3 (24:07):
Yeah, it's insane how the landscape keeps changing.
Just even what a couple weeksago?
The junior college.
I think that's all up in theair, right, kids now get an
extra year.
I also think it would be insanefor coaches, um, to take a high
school kid unless you're really, really, really good and you
(24:29):
know they're going to be able towalk in because you they've
already caught the rosters tooto 34.
So I think junior collegebaseball is going to take off.
You're going to see.
I think it's already good.
I played junior college baseballbecause my path to baseball was
really unconventional.
I grew up in western NorthDakota.
(24:49):
I didn't have a high schoolteam.
In high school I was beingrecruited as a track athlete.
I was a 6'8 high jumper.
I was a long jumper, all-statelong jump, triple jump, and I
went to a baseball camp becauseI could play at American Legion
with the University of Minnesotaand they were like you don't
know what you're doing, butyou've got a good arm, you've
got a lot of talent and I gotkind of funneled into junior
(25:10):
college and had the chance to goto Minnesota.
But the head coach the pitchingcoach became the head coach at
University of Illinois, chicago.
I followed him and I tell kids,like you're going to develop
your own time, but pick theschool that you know, you trust
the coach, you know the programand it's not about the level.
We're seeing kids that aren'thighly recruited and by the time
(25:33):
they're junior especially ifI'm talking about pitching
they're throwing 92, 93, andthey just got bigger and
stronger and I was likesomebody's going to notice you
there.
And it doesn't always have tobe a division one school.
I think college baseball isthat good.
If you can play collegebaseball, you're good.
That's why I keep telling and Itell the parents that like
(25:54):
you're good if you can playcollege baseball right now well,
you've mentioned that you werealso an exhibitor at the abca,
and make sure I'm saying thisright.
Speaker 2 (26:04):
You, you set up a thing called locker room central
.
Is that correct?
Speaker 3 (26:12):
So yeah, so I was teaching, I was yep, so I kind
of helped.
We have a, we have a guy thatis a heavy investor.
He's also in in like equity.
He, his kid, plays baseball andI think all year last year I
would talk about man we havethis huge disconnect between
high school and travel right andwhat's going on.
I don't know when my kids arelifting or what, and I tell my
(26:36):
guys like I need someaccountability, but I also need
to like know if my pitchers areready.
And we kind of justbrainstormed and he created this
app and I kind of gave a lot ofinput and then I would test it
out and I was teaching a specialeducation teacher in a special
education school and I've alwaysworked with kids with emotional
(26:58):
disabilities.
I actually taught in the cookCounty jail for 11 years and
that was always kind of my field.
And he said listen, I want tostart this company, let's get it
going.
I'm going to hire you.
And the first time I was like Idon't want to stay in teaching.
I love teaching.
But then sometimes I got toogood of an offer and it's worked
(27:20):
really well.
And when we went to ABC a lot ofcoaches were like why don't we
have this?
And I was surprised because Ididn't think college coaches
would be that interested in it.
And some college coaches werelike I don't know what my guy
does over break or when they goin the summer and I can assign
workouts to my players throughthe app and then my players can
(27:42):
also put their workouts in thatthey're doing at their facility
so I can know if they're doingsomething.
I can give some input in it andI think it gives some
accountability for kids.
But also it's a great way tohave conversations.
We have health checks in it andI know some coaches are like
man, I ain't got no kid that'sgoing to always say he's sore
and I'm like, yeah, but havingthat open conversation with a
(28:04):
young act, young athlete likehey, you're sore, you know, or
you know?
It's funny because we ask likehow many hours of sleep you get
and I get flagged if my guy'snot sleeping.
And I got a really high academicschool and I tell my guys like
listen, you gotta like you havea lot of expectations on the
academic side at Carmel and ifyou're not getting enough sleep,
(28:24):
I had a kid that was reallygood baseball player last year
and wanted to go to a reallygood school.
He had an almost perfect ACT,wasn't getting any sleep and I
asked him and I was like he'slike I'm just stressed out, I'm
not doing well in my Englishclass and I said you know what,
why don't you take today offfrom practice so you can get
your stuff done?
I knew he was a reallyresponsible kid but it was great
(28:48):
.
I have those conversations withmy athletes when I'm making my
lineup.
I know who's healthy and who'savailable and I think we were
looking at what there was a gapbetween travel and high school
and how do we kind of narrowthat gap and narrow like high
school coaches, really knowingwhat's going on when these kids
are away from you?
Speaker 2 (29:06):
Well, let me ask you this I love that idea.
That's.
That's phenomenal.
And if there's coaches out herelistening to this, how could
they get more information?
Is there a website or?
Speaker 3 (29:22):
Yeah, locker room centralcom.
Um, we also are on twitter.
Um, I'm about to start aninstagram page, so we we've just
started six months in.
We have a couple schools thatuse it, abca, we it was funny
because everybody's on our, onour aisle was like man, you had
so many people stopping by yourbooth and I think we're really
starting to take off.
(29:43):
I remember he got back and Iwas answering emails and we're
actually working with blastright now to hopefully integrate
with blast and work with somecompanies to integrate.
And you know, go to the website.
Our information is on there.
So, locker room centralcom, andwe'll definitely get back to
you.
It's, it's awesome.
I've had a lot of coaches thatwere on free trials right now
(30:04):
that love it, some facilitiesthat use it right now on free
trial.
My facility actually started touse it and I think it's just
something when we talk aboutworkload management and health,
because we've got kids alsoplaying other sports, working
with different trainers.
We just don't know and we canalso assume that a kid's not
doing anything, but he might beworking his butt off at his
(30:26):
facility or the different coachand I tell my kid are you doing
your work?
I just want to know right.
I want to know you're ready.
Speaker 2 (30:34):
Hate losing or love winning.
Speaker 3 (30:39):
I hate losing.
I'm pretty competitive, I'lladmit it.
I could you know?
What's funny is everybody'slike you're pretty calm and
everything.
But I get in the game, I gotta,I gotta catch myself from
barking back at the umpire.
Sometimes I think that's thatcompetitive picture in me.
But I always I've gotten betterand as I've gotten older I
(31:02):
always tell like the part oflosing is there's always a
lesson in it and it's okay tolose and it's okay to fail.
But how do we come back on it?
And I think with young people,that's the, that's the lesson
that we always have to have.
I think I, after a game, beforeI get in the huddle after we
lose, I got to take a breathmyself.
Speaker 1 (31:22):
I take a second.
Speaker 3 (31:22):
I always say I got to take a second and think about
what I'm going to say and Ialways try to make a positive
spin on it.
And I think kids I don't thinkof kids out there trying to
trying to lose or trying to dobad and I think it's easy as a
coach to get angry about aperformance.
I think we had a horribleperformance against one of the
(31:44):
top-rated teams in the statelast year and I mean it was bad
and I remember walking after wego to the line and taking a
second and going you know whatI'm going to say, what am I
going to say?
You know, I'm just.
Everything happened that wasbad and I just walked in and I
(32:05):
said you said you know what,guys, that's baseball.
I don't think you didn't.
I don't think anybody herewanted to mess up.
That's baseball.
sometimes you're gonna walk onthis field and everything goes
wrong oh yeah, everybody's and Isaid, all I'm gonna ask you is
how, yeah, how are we gonna walkaway, file it away and say you
know, we're done that game'sover and how are we going to get
(32:25):
ready for next day?
And I, what, what, what are wegoing to?
What are we going to improve?
You know, how do I need toimprove, how I prep before the
game.
You know, and I'm big on catchplay and it's, it's funny as the
(32:46):
high school kids drive me nutswith catch play, right, and I
was like the little thingsmatter.
So you're throwing, you make itthrowing errors, but you just
go and toss the ball and don'treally care about your catch
play and then you wonder why youmake throwing errors.
Well, that's, that's, uh,that's a problem.
So I try to really beintentional.
We do the dirt brother programand I do it with everybody.
My outfielders do it, likepitchers do it, but I was
(33:06):
talking about with intent.
Everything you do is withintent, and so when you, when
you lose, I think it's thinkingabout being intentional.
Be intentional or changes.
And I also feel like and I hadto catch my assistant coaches
once we lost a game and wedidn't hit well, I had two
consistent coaches like what arewe going to do?
We're going to change this andchange this.
And I said listen, I think wecreate chaos and sometimes a
(33:30):
loss is a loss.
But if we try to changeeverybody and change this with
this kid and change that, we'regoing to start doming kids up
and we don't have the time to dothat.
You know, it's such a mentalgame that sometimes you got to
lift them up like man.
We just didn't hit well todayand let's think about our plan
and stick to our plan and trustour plan and sometimes that day
(33:52):
that plan won't work.
But also trust and we're hereto help you and give you input.
But I think I always say thatlike, don't overreact to a loss,
and I think coaches do that toooften well, I I this next
question I thought about.
Speaker 2 (34:11):
I was, uh, outside this morning it's like 7 am and
I'm frustrated, and so I saidI'm going to turn this into a
question for the podcast.
And I said would you rathershovel six inches of snow on
your driveway or prep a naturalgrass field for a tournament all
(34:31):
day?
Speaker 3 (34:37):
I'm going to go with the North Dakota answer.
It was funny because I grew upwith my dad.
My dad worked at a taconitemine in minnesota and you know
they had massive layoffs in the80s and they all those guys went
out to western north dakota alot of them and he worked a
ligonite taconite um power plant.
So he's a.
My dad was a roughneck in a wayand he was funny because he
(34:59):
just said to us I don't, we got,we had snow.
That was.
I had a Ford Bronco when I wasin high school and it got buried
in the storm Like that's howmuch snow we got and we never
had a snowblower.
He said I got.
I had two other brothers withthree boys and he said you are,
you are the snowblower and sowe'd have the big old steel
(35:19):
steel shovels and he'd go everyhour on the hour.
You have to go out and startshoveling so it just doesn't
pile up.
And I think I'm used to that.
Field maintenance.
I love it, but when you have toput I feel like the spring,
when you've got to really put inall that work, that is tough.
I'd rather go shovel.
(35:40):
I actually feel like it'seasier with field maintenance,
but I also feel like you have toas a high school coach.
Speaker 2 (35:46):
you've got to do field maintenance.
Well, I kind of got frustratedbecause I did that where you're
going along and then you catch apiece of the concrete that's a
little bit higher and it jabsyou in the stomach and I was
like, oh, I'm like I I'll takethe field any day.
Speaker 3 (36:03):
but right now I'm I'm really limited.
Um, I just actually a month agohad a procedure on my back so I
had a bulging disc and so theyshaved her a little bit, the
disc, to release the nerve, andso I'm kind of lucky I don't
have to do anything.
I go to the facility, everybodypicks up everything for me.
But I was like I got to beready for the season Once I get
(36:27):
to get out of the field.
I got to be able to bed, twistand lift.
That's what they told me.
Speaker 2 (36:31):
I can't do right now, but I got to be able to do that
by the time the season starts.
Well, what college or NFL coachwould make a great baseball
coach?
Speaker 3 (36:44):
in your opinion?
Oh, that's a great question.
You know I'm a Vikings fan andI know last night they got boat
raced by the Lions.
But I really respect KevinO'Connell and I think he's very
similar to Rocco Baldelli in away.
You know there's a calmpresence.
I read something about him,though the guys are like you
(37:06):
listen to him at pressconferences.
He seems kind of calm and veryarticulate, but they're like he
holds guys accountable, he's notafraid, but he's also a great
communicator.
And I think and I have said thatit's hard to find an assistant
coach, especially in a Catholicschool, for what they pay.
And I think and I have said thatI took, it's hard to find an
assistant coach, especially in aCatholic school, for what they
(37:27):
pay.
And I've had some really goodcoaches that aren't really
baseball guys and mentoring them.
And I have a coach that man hepaid his way to ABCA, an
assistant coach, my freshmancoach, and he loves baseball
that much but he didn't play incollege, he didn't, you know,
and he's an older guy but heloves to learn and he has such
(37:50):
an amazing relationship with theplayers that I think he's
better than some of the coachesthat have a lot more experience
and I think sometimes thatconnection with athletes and
being an open communicator is isawesome and I I always say that
like I I brought two coaches inand the other one guy I was
(38:11):
like he said I want to be aneducator.
I think I'm going to quit my joband I and I watched him and I
said you know what I can be?
Great teacher, kids love youand you you have a have a way
with them and I think I canteach you and I can provide you
some of the structures to helpyou.
Um, I just need you to want,like, be able to communicate
(38:32):
with kids and be good with kids,and I think Kevin O'Connell is
just another example of someonethat's just a great communicator
.
Speaker 2 (38:41):
Well, I'm, you know my crack research team, which
consists of me.
I think, if I'm right here,you're a Twins fan, minnesota
Twins fan, correct?
Speaker 3 (38:54):
I'm a huge Twins fan.
Speaker 2 (38:56):
Okay, well, you get a chance to manage the Twins and
you can have these three playerson your team, and I'm going to
choose from the 87 and the 91World Series teams.
Group A you get Frank Viola,gary Gaietti and Kirby Puckett,
(39:19):
and group B you get Jack Morris,kent Herbeck and because he was
so daggone good, kirby Puckettagain.
Which three guys would yourather have on your team.
Speaker 3 (39:35):
That's a tough one because I'll give you a little
side note I collect onlyMinnesota sports memorabilia and
I have a game-used bat.
Besides the pitchers I do havesome pitchers, but I have a
game-used bat from every twinpositional player that hadn't a
bat in the 87 or 91 World Series.
(39:56):
So I have a massive collectionof game-used bats in my basement
and the 87, 91 twins.
Both of them hold a really,really special place in my heart
and I actually say that 87 teamis what got me to love baseball
and want to play baseball.
Um, in the middle of northdakota there's not much to watch
(40:16):
and and I really that wassomething special and in
minnesota there's no whole lotof championships.
I think those are really thelast championships.
I'd have to go with the 91.
Jack Morris that guy is acompetitor, St Paul native
really competitive.
I mean, Kirby Puckett was.
If you grew up in North Dakota,Minnesota, South Dakota, every
(40:38):
kid wanted to be Kirby Puckett.
I mean, he was just a heck of abaseball player.
I think when I was playing withmy friends I always wanted to
be Kirby Puckett hitting theball, Was it?
Herbeck Was the third one.
Speaker 2 (40:56):
Jack Waters, herbeck and Puckett.
Speaker 3 (40:58):
Herbeck.
He's another guy.
There's so many great storiesof Kent Herbeck.
He's kind of a character but Ilove him and you know in
Minnesota he has an outdoorstore show now where he goes
around and hunts and fishes.
He definitely epitomizes like atrue Minnesotan, kent Herbeck,
(41:19):
and I've met him before and he'she's a.
He's an awesome guy.
Speaker 2 (41:24):
Yeah Well, my last question for you before I let
you go your best story as eitherfrom your playing days or as a
coach it can be.
Usually I try to get some ofthe guests to talk, so I'll let
you have at it.
Speaker 3 (41:42):
Man, I played a year in the Northwoods League and the
stories out of the NorthwoodsLeague was just unbelievable,
because you're playing 80 gamesin a full summer and you're
riding on a bus.
I remember we're driving andthe Northwoods League is really
spread out now and there's waymore teams.
I think it might have been 10teams.
(42:03):
When I played and and I playedthe only year that my not north
dakota had a team they ended upfolding and then madison became
the madison mallards.
But so western north dakota,north of western north dakota's,
got a team but we got to go tolike waterloo and brainer.
You'd play like a night gameand you get done playing.
(42:23):
You gotta get on a bus.
You got to get on a bus andyou're sleeping on the bus going
all the way to Wausau orWaterloo or Brainerd.
There were nobody any close tous.
The travel was just atrocious.
We get on a bus and we hadafter a game and we had to
Brainerd.
We stop in Fargo and we have aguy that was just.
(42:44):
He was such a good hitter, heplayed for UCLA and he played, I
think, up to double A with theTwins.
And we had these old ladiesthat just bake us cookies and
treats and put them on a bus.
He was like he didn't know thatthere was nuts in the cookies.
So he stands up in the middleand he's like there's nuts in
these cookies.
So we got to.
And the cookies?
So he stands up in the middle,he's like there's nuts in these
(43:04):
cookies, I'm going to.
So we got to pull them off thebus.
So we're stuck in Fargo tillthe till we take them to the
ambulance.
And we got a game in Brainerdand we got to get there.
So we only have a couple ofcoaches, so one coach has got to
stay with him and we got towork out all this stuff.
And now we're late for the gameand we get all the way to
(43:25):
brannard and we're late and Ithink we got stuck.
There's like an accident on theroad and we're on this bus and
police show up and it's likethey put on the sirens and we're
buses flying behind the policeto get around the accident and
to get us.
We walked in like as the gamewas supposed to start.
There's thousands of people inthe stands and there's no other
(43:48):
team and hurry up and play.
We had one time in Fargo.
Grand Forks had a team in NorthDakota, that's just on the
border of Minnesota and NorthDakota.
Our bus driver quit and tookall our equipment, all our our
suitcases with them.
So we had to be put up in ahotel and all we had was what we
(44:11):
had our baseball bag and ouruniforms.
And we got picked up by aschool bus and had to wait till
the bus company break, takesomebody else and take our
equipment, take our suitcasesback.
But I think that's the grindand the fun of playing in those
leagues and I always tell guysyou get the opportunity to play
in a collegiate league, go do it, because those are memories
(44:33):
that last a lifetime.
Speaker 2 (44:36):
Yes, definitely.
My son had some great storiesfrom his summer experience
playing, but you know it's ScottAnderson, carmel High School
Catholic head coach Coach.
Wow, really great for you totake some time out of your day
to join me here, and you know.
(44:57):
Thanks again, I really doappreciate it.
Speaker 3 (45:00):
No, I appreciate it, and it's always fun to just talk
shop with another coach.
Speaker 2 (45:06):
There you have it, episode 132 in the books and
looking forward to next week.
Every Wednesday, look for a newepisode here on Baseball
Coaches Unplugged.
And a special thanks to ourpartnership with the netting
professionals, improvingprograms one facility at a time.
Contact them today at844-620-2707, or you can visit
(45:31):
them online at wwwnettingproscom.
As always, I'm your host, coachKen Carpenter, and thanks for
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Welcome to Baseball Coaches Unplugged with Coach Ken
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We're covering it all.
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On Baseball Coaches Unplugged.
Speaker 2 (01:00):
Hello and welcome to episode 131 of Baseball Coaches
Unplugged.
I'm your host, ken Carpenter,and today's show takes us to
Illinois, specifically CarmelCatholic High School head coach,
scott Anderson.
He spent the majority of histime at youth sessions at the
(01:20):
ABCA Clinic in Washington DCrecently and he'll share his
takeaways on how to improvepractice over tournaments,
developing pitchers, and staytill the end to hear a story
from his playing days in theNorthwoods League and an upset
bus driver Before we get to theinterview.
(01:42):
Baseball season is right aroundthe corner and if you're
preparing your field andfacilities, you need to check
out the Netting Pros improvingprograms one facility at a time.
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If you enjoyed today's show, besure and share it with a friend.
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It helps us to grow the show.
Now let's get to my sit downwith Carmel Catholic High School
(02:54):
head coach, scott Anderson.
Hello and welcome to BaseballCoaches Unplugged.
I'm your host, coach KenCarpenter.
Joining me today is ScottAnderson, head baseball coach at
Carmel Catholic High School inIllinois.
Coach, thanks for taking timeto be on Baseball Coaches
Unplugged.
Speaker 3 (03:15):
Definitely I'm excited to be here.
It's my first podcast, so I'm apodcast rookie.
Speaker 2 (03:24):
Okay, good, Well, we'll have some fun here then.
Well, prior to recording, wewere talking a little bit and
you flew back in and got awayfrom all the snow there in DC,
but you didn't get hit with verymuch there in the Chicago area,
I guess.
Speaker 3 (03:41):
No, the band is just south of us.
We just got a dusting of snowright now.
I feel like this winter we wejust got a dusting of snow right
now.
I feel like this winter wehaven't got a whole bunch.
Speaker 2 (03:53):
I think in December.
I think we could have practiced.
Well, you know it's Monday andthe ABCA is finished up down
there in DC, and you had achance both to be there as a
coach and also as an exhibitor.
What was your biggest takeaway?
Speaker 3 (04:08):
You know, I I I didn't get to go as many
sessions as I want, so I had tobe really strategic and I'm a
pitching guy, so I went to a lotof the pitching stuff and then
I went to a lot of the youth.
The youth hot stove wasprobably the biggest takeaway,
from the tech side to thefacility side and just a lot of
the discussion about how we needto change youth baseball and
(04:31):
that's kind of been somethingcentral to my belief system as a
high school coach.
Those young kids in yourcommunity, they're the ones that
are going to come play for youand they want to play for you.
We run a youth camp in thesummer.
Play for you, and you know, andthey want to play for you.
We run a youth camp in thesummer and, um, there was a lot
of things that resonated with meand and how we need to change
the game and I think ourdevelopment system in the united
(04:52):
states is a little broken.
So that's what I really walkedaway with.
Speaker 2 (04:56):
Yeah, so I I picked up on that um on x where you had
put out a post and kind oftalked a little bit about that
and you know how you spent agreat deal of your time with the
youth sessions.
I got a two-part question tostart off with ABCA how do we
get travel parents to not focuson playing in so many
(05:19):
tournaments and develop morewith, you know, getting more
practice time in with them?
And the second part of that ishow do we find more time for
high school coaches to find timeto educate these youth coaches
when you as a high school coachknow this, you're spread thin as
(05:41):
it is and you're definitely notgetting paid that much.
Speaker 3 (05:47):
Yeah, it's kind of a love affair for me because I do
coach a 13-year-old team.
I'm lucky enough to have aformer divisional player that
when I'm coaching high school ina season a nice start in the
end of April he kind of takesover until I can come back.
And I'm also a facilitypitching coach and so I do that
and then I coach high school.
(06:08):
So the time is tough.
I always encourage high schoolcoaches if you get a chance to
get in a facility and because Iknow there's kind of this
disconnect right, there's highschool coaches that blame
facilities and facilities blamehigh school coaches.
And I was talking to a facilityowner about a month ago and he
was saying man, you know, we gotthis disconnect with this
(06:29):
certain coach.
And I was like you've got tojust sit down and have an honest
conversation and everybody'sgot to get on the same page.
And I think to me that was oneof the reasons why I went into
the facility and wanted to getmore involved was, first of all,
there's always potentialCardinal players there, but also
my kids were there and I camein and I was hired as an
(06:52):
instructor for pitching but alsoas a head coach of a 13-year
team and I think that was thebiggest learning experience for
me.
I had been involved in highschool baseball right out of
college and I kind of got awayfrom baseball, became a high
(07:13):
school administrator and thendecided that I want to go back
in the classroom and now I'mworking for a tech company with
baseball software.
But I just wanted to be backinvolved in the game and I
coached but guess what?
That was probably harder thancoaching high school and the
demands of the parents and Ithink the culture.
It spent a lot of timeeducating parents on what was
appropriate and not because Ithink we almost professionalize
youth sports, which I think isreally unfortunate because and
(07:37):
there's a lot of money involvedand parents just don't
understand what's reallyappropriate health-wise for your
player too.
I think workload management hasbeen a big issue with pitching
and so I was lucky enough toeventually take over my kids'
team and that's how I kind ofhad it in and I've had an
amazing group of parents and Ithink the buy-in I hate to say
(07:58):
buy-in because not everybody'sbought in, but can I create a
coalition of the willing and Ihave a really great coalition of
parents and that group has beenthere together for three years
We've been reallydevelopmentally focused and we
really have to have honestconversations with parents and
lean into having difficultconversations, and I think
that's hard as an adult is tolean in and have difficult
(08:21):
conversations.
Speaker 2 (08:23):
Yes, I agree and you know it's.
I think you hit.
The key to travel baseball isif you can put a team together
and have them stick together notjump from team to team to team
and have a good parent group.
That's more than half thebattle, I think.
Speaker 3 (08:47):
Well, I also feel like I've always kind of worked
against the traditional um, I'mvery tech heavy, I'm kind of
like I it's funny because one ofmy parents said you know,
you're very old school butyou're also very new school,
you're kind of this combo ofboth.
But, um, I came into thatfacility and I was like, listen,
we got all these coaches and Igot most of our parents, which
is great.
We need parent coaches.
You know, I sat down with thefacility owner and I said,
(09:10):
listen, we just don't have anytraining for the coaches and we
need mentorship.
There's a lot of parents thatare really well-intentioned and
they're working another job.
They have a hard time withpractice planning.
They even have a hard timefiguring out what do I do for
schedule, what level should Iplay, what's kind of the plan
for my team down the road, right, and I've tried to mentor a lot
(09:36):
of coaches.
And you know it's funny becausethis morning I get back from
ABC and the 14 new coaches callme right away and I always want
to be open to everybody.
I have the 10 new coach callsme constantly, constantly and
what do you want to do?
And I let them use all ourstuff and I set up plans for
their practices and help them dothat.
And I think that's the piece asa high school coach is being
(09:58):
that mentor to those parentcoaches.
You, when you I would thinkabout it like if I had to coach
basketball.
I have no clue what I'd bedoing.
You know, and I I was luckyenough to play division one
baseball and play the jayhawkleague in the northwoods league.
I got a lot of experience.
I got to learn from a lot ofgreat coaches and a lot of those
(10:18):
parent coaches.
Maybe they played in highschool, maybe a little bit in
high school, and I was about itand it's it's.
It's a lot to chew on.
I remember getting back intocoach.
I coached, uh, my kids t-ballteam and I was like I don't know
how to coach t-ball.
So I think it could be dauntingand it is making sure parents
are on board.
But also I feel like there'sfacilities and travel
(10:38):
organizations.
You need to mentor the coaches,provide those type of
structures for everybody.
Speaker 2 (10:46):
Well, you, you know you're, you talked about the
parents and you know I I sawsomething today where I read it,
where they, a team, was playingin a tournament in December and
I don't know, I mean, I sitthere and just go.
Oh, my, my God, but what areyour thoughts when you hear
someone's taking a 10U team andplaying in December?
Speaker 3 (11:10):
Yeah, I look at it from the youth side, even the
high school side, like what arewe doing, you know, and where do
kids get to learn the game andget to practice without?
I think the game has got enoughpressure as it is.
So what are we doing?
Only playing games.
And always, like, everything ispressure filled in a game and
kids feel that that's the test,right, we never provide the
(11:33):
lessons and teach them to playthe game and practice and train,
right, and you're taking 10 newkids and and I, like I said,
you're traveling around thecountry and playing all these
games, what do you get out of it?
Because what I think I see isthose kids, when they get to
high school, they're burnt out.
Right, we burn kids out and Ithink we there's a statistic out
(11:55):
there that most kids quitsports.
It's like 70% by the 13, 13,13,.
You, we see kids just falling,and so you're starting on these
young teams and kids should justbe like figuring out how to
throw and just learning how tomove, and you're just everything
is high pressure and I just Idon't agree with it.
(12:18):
I think we, we got to let kidsbe kids too, and families.
Speaker 2 (12:22):
Yeah, more, that's even more important, think.
But you know, I I was speakingwith a, a guy I know that
coaches a young kid and hestarted telling me about players
that were ranked and they'relike fifth or sixth grade.
I'm like, first off, who'sranking these people, and you
(12:45):
know.
And then I went down the rabbithole and I thought I'm going to
look at basketball and theywere listing the top third
graders in the state, this onesite, and I'm just like, well,
seriously, you know what I mean.
I mean, I guess if you can makemoney off of it, go ahead, I
guess.
But I just was stunned thatthere are player rankings for
(13:10):
such young age.
Speaker 3 (13:12):
Yeah, and there's team rankings, right.
And so I took this team.
That was really not very good.
And now they ranked us third inthe state.
I don't know how they did it,you know, and I didn't recruit
any kids.
But when the rankings come backand some parents are like, you
know, you're ranked third in thestate, I'm like, well, how do
we do that?
And then we just add a layer ofpressure to everything.
(13:33):
Right, it's just.
I told the kids cause I know thekids are going to see it and I
said you know rankings.
I don't know how they do it, wedon't mean to worry about it,
but I said it does tell us thatwe're doing what's right.
And I sat down.
And I sat, I even talked to myparents.
I'm like, look at this, we onlyplay 50 games and all these
teams are listed.
(13:53):
Let's go look at how many gamesthey play.
And we're doing it rightplaying last games and
developing.
We had kids that we ended up.
We created a system when I wentin and it was just individual
coaches in the facility.
When I took over, I teamed upwith the other team at our age
group and said let's doeverything together, let's train
(14:14):
the same.
Let's do everything the same.
Let's just create a 11U groupand those kids don't look at A
and B.
I had some kids that went downto the other team last year and
the parents stayed in theprogram because they understand
the development is important,right, and we had some kids
(14:35):
struggle at the level we playedin and we had a really honest
conversation like, hey,physically you might just not be
ready for this, I think youwill be down the road, but I
want to keep you in because Itrust that you're going to just
get better anyway.
You're just physically asmature as some of the other kids
and our parents didn't leaveand they always said like I'm
(14:55):
going to stick with you, coach,because you know what you're
doing and I'm seeing theimprovement out of my kid and I
know you struggled this year butI trust the process and I think
that's the greatest thing Ifyou're not having a bunch of
parents leave.
You know you're doing, you knowyou're doing a good job and
you're not also sucking in abunch of kids and cutting kids
(15:16):
and stuff like that.
Speaker 2 (15:17):
Right.
Well, let's move a little bittowards the high school and the
things Now.
What is your approach to youknow, maintaining the standards
that you set and developing yourteam culture.
Speaker 3 (15:30):
So that's tough.
Last year was my first year Iactually took over.
I think it's always hard tofollow.
I followed a Hall of Fame coach, coach Gandolfi, who was a
great mentor.
I text Coach after every game.
He's on our game changer and Istill ask for him advice.
He came back as kind of abridge to Carmel and I've taken
(15:53):
over.
We didn't have a whole lot interms of facilities and stuff.
I've raised a bunch of money,new scoreboard, we did the field
.
I mean bought so much differentequipment and it was great.
My parents were really excitedto support the program and now
it's trying to raise theexpectation.
You know, the biggest thing waskids just didn't go to the
(16:15):
weight room.
And we go to the weight roomnow and it's an expectation and
they come to open gyms and theyhold each other accountable and
we talk about that right, weplay in the toughest conference
in the state of Illinois.
We had a nationally ranked teamthat had, I think everybody in
their starting lineup was aDivision I commit.
I mean this year they have akid that's a second-ranked
(16:38):
catcher in the nation.
Kid's going to LSU, theirsecond baseman's going to
Tennessee and we have that kindof grind in our nation, kids
going to LSU, the secondbaseman's going to Tennessee and
we have that kind of grind inour schedule we had last year.
We faced the kids that were 94from Tennessee and I had we
finished middle of the pack andit was funny because they said
when I took the job what wouldbe good?
(16:59):
And I said if we can be 500 inthis conference, we're going to
be a really good baseballprogram.
And we were almost.
We had one game and with onegame we would have been 500 and
the athletic director said wecouldn't do it.
I don't think he really thoughtwe would.
We would go in and do it rightaway.
I only had two small schoolcommits but we have a side
(17:19):
throwing strikes, beingaggressive, um, and just having
a little bit of confidence inourselves.
You know I use a lot of AlanJaeger's mental.
We even use Tread.
I reached out to Tread and Ihad their mental game stuff and
I said can I use it with my team?
I have the login and they saidjust get the login out and let
the guys do it and we would workthrough it and talk about that
(17:41):
mental game.
And I thought that was thebiggest block, that a lot of our
guys had was just confidenceand just going out and playing
and not overthinking it.
And I'm a little bit differentas a coach and it took a while
for them to get used to that.
I said you know what?
I don't give a steel sign.
If you got it, you take it, andwe do vaulted leads and we try
(18:02):
to set up pitchers, and it wasjust a different system.
But all of a sudden they tookmore ownership and I'm a catcher
, I don't call pitches that muchand my pitchers can shake off
and my catcher can take controlof the game and I'm so proud of
that kid.
He's one of the smartestcatchers I've ever worked with,
including playing in college.
And my kids started to takeownership of the team and it
(18:27):
wasn't me and I say that like,we have a pick system that
sometimes comes from me, butthey can run picks themselves.
Infielders can call them, thecatchers can call them and we
have our own system.
Speaker 2 (18:36):
But the kids take ownership and I think when they
started to take ownership on thefield too, they take ownership
off the field yeah, that's thekey, and I I really like when
you can get a team to just holdeverybody accountable and then
you know that you're doingthings the right way.
Speaker 3 (18:55):
Yeah, and it takes time.
Yeah, it just does.
And you know we had some kidsthat were happy about playing
time and stuff.
And the one thing that we didwhen I came in is we had grade
rep meetings and so I hadrepresentatives from the
freshman team and the JV teamand the varsity and every Friday
(19:16):
we got together, had pizza andwe talked about what was going
good in the program and whatthey wanted to see that changed
and that was kind of our culturemeetings and we made sure all
our coaches are there and I saidthis is the time to have
difficult conversations and ifyou don't like what's going on,
we can have those conversationsand try to change it, because
(19:36):
this is your program in the end.
You know my name's attached toit, but it is.
We need to be player centricand we need to be kid-centric of
everything we do.
Speaker 2 (19:48):
Well, if you, you know you talked about how you,
you know you were a pitcher andyou like working with the
pitchers If you had full controlof your pitchers for an entire
year, with no other pitchingcoaches on the side, the parents
weren't going to step in.
Take me through how much youthink they should throw
(20:11):
throughout the four seasons.
Speaker 3 (20:16):
Yeah, I'm not a big, huge like total shutdown guy.
But I'm also not saying that weshould rip and run all year.
I'm big on like on-ramping guys.
But I just tell guys, thelonger you take off, the longer
it takes to really get your armin shape.
And we see even in the majorleague studies right, that they
(20:37):
label fatigue as a big issue.
And also I was lucky enough toto take a course last year with
uh casey mahala with kinetic pro, and they had forgot um the
guy's name, but he was one ofthe lead scientists of the cubs
and he said we, what we see withplayers in the major leagues
and why we see injuries happenin spring training is most guys
(20:58):
aren't ready.
But then also we're tooconcerned at the minor league
level of overthrowing guys.
So there's, I'm not throwingenough or I'm throwing too much.
But we have to kind of meetlike where are we going to get
guys ready?
I always advise my pitchers thisIf you don't, I don't like fall
ball.
I hate fall ball.
(21:18):
I think it's stupid.
I always say that you've playedsummer and spring.
Stupid, I always say thatyou've played summer and spring.
If you're going to lift heavyand hard, go from August,
september, even half of October,and just lift and do some light
throwing in between to keepyour arm in shape a couple times
a week.
But that's a time to getstronger.
(21:39):
And I always tell guys, like,listen, if you want to gain
velocity, there's no secretsauce.
You can throwows, you can ripand run, you can do all these
things that you see, but that'snot what's going to get you most
likely to throw harder.
It's to get stronger, and so II would really want to like, set
(22:00):
up a really hot like.
That's the time to gain a lot ofstrength and then mid-october
start to just on-ramp guys wedon't get on the mound do a lot
of indoor long toss because oroutdoor long toss.
Start to do some good straightlead training and getting them
and that's what I do at ourfacility is like I take video,
(22:21):
we do a physical assessment onkids and we kind of set up the
program for them and we spendall the way to the end of
December just on ramping themand throwing and we monitor.
I've used pulse sensors but weuse armcarecom now test the
range of motion Every time theycome in.
We're testing the range ofmotion strength, making sure
(22:41):
they're also healthy, so thatthey progress in the program.
Or we got to, we got to tailorthem back and then by January we
start to introduce you to themound and gradually just like
start doing pitch design andgetting in.
I think a lot of facilities justreally concentrate on velocity
and then the kids don't havethat time to to to apply like
(23:03):
applicate it to the mound, likeI do velocity training, but it's
a short phase, we're done withit, and then we gotta start
applying to the mound and Ithink that's where we lose out
of.
Some of those facilities islike, yeah, you throw hard but
you get a strike.
So I'm not a huge shutdown, butat least like spend some time
(23:24):
throwing in the fall a littlebit, get stronger, and then we
kind of on-ramp you, because inIllinois we start first week in
March is tryouts, so be ready,and then we can gradually build
your bullpens up to about 60pitches and go on 60 pitches and
go on in this season.
Speaker 2 (23:41):
Well, with college baseball recruiting becoming
extremely tough for high schoolplayers, what is your plan as
far as telling your players andparents what to expect?
Because right now it almostseems like if you're not a legit
D1 guy, you probably should belooking at D3 or Juco, something
(24:03):
like that.
Speaker 3 (24:07):
Yeah, it's insane how the landscape keeps changing.
Just even what a couple weeksago?
The junior college.
I think that's all up in theair, right, kids now get an
extra year.
I also think it would be insanefor coaches, um, to take a high
school kid unless you're really, really, really good and you
(24:29):
know they're going to be able towalk in because you they've
already caught the rosters tooto 34.
So I think junior collegebaseball is going to take off.
You're going to see.
I think it's already good.
I played junior college baseballbecause my path to baseball was
really unconventional.
I grew up in western NorthDakota.
(24:49):
I didn't have a high schoolteam.
In high school I was beingrecruited as a track athlete.
I was a 6'8 high jumper.
I was a long jumper, all-statelong jump, triple jump, and I
went to a baseball camp becauseI could play at American Legion
with the University of Minnesotaand they were like you don't
know what you're doing, butyou've got a good arm, you've
got a lot of talent and I gotkind of funneled into junior
(25:10):
college and had the chance to goto Minnesota.
But the head coach the pitchingcoach became the head coach at
University of Illinois, chicago.
I followed him and I tell kids,like you're going to develop
your own time, but pick theschool that you know, you trust
the coach, you know the programand it's not about the level.
We're seeing kids that aren'thighly recruited and by the time
(25:33):
they're junior especially ifI'm talking about pitching
they're throwing 92, 93, andthey just got bigger and
stronger and I was likesomebody's going to notice you
there.
And it doesn't always have tobe a division one school.
I think college baseball isthat good.
If you can play collegebaseball, you're good.
That's why I keep telling and Itell the parents that like
(25:54):
you're good if you can playcollege baseball right now well,
you've mentioned that you werealso an exhibitor at the abca,
and make sure I'm saying thisright.
Speaker 2 (26:04):
You, you set up a thing called locker room central
.
Is that correct?
Speaker 3 (26:12):
So yeah, so I was teaching, I was yep, so I kind
of helped.
We have a, we have a guy thatis a heavy investor.
He's also in in like equity.
He, his kid, plays baseball andI think all year last year I
would talk about man we havethis huge disconnect between
high school and travel right andwhat's going on.
I don't know when my kids arelifting or what, and I tell my
(26:36):
guys like I need someaccountability, but I also need
to like know if my pitchers areready.
And we kind of justbrainstormed and he created this
app and I kind of gave a lot ofinput and then I would test it
out and I was teaching a specialeducation teacher in a special
education school and I've alwaysworked with kids with emotional
(26:58):
disabilities.
I actually taught in the cookCounty jail for 11 years and
that was always kind of my field.
And he said listen, I want tostart this company, let's get it
going.
I'm going to hire you.
And the first time I was like Idon't want to stay in teaching.
I love teaching.
But then sometimes I got toogood of an offer and it's worked
(27:20):
really well.
And when we went to ABC a lot ofcoaches were like why don't we
have this?
And I was surprised because Ididn't think college coaches
would be that interested in it.
And some college coaches werelike I don't know what my guy
does over break or when they goin the summer and I can assign
workouts to my players throughthe app and then my players can
(27:42):
also put their workouts in thatthey're doing at their facility
so I can know if they're doingsomething.
I can give some input in it andI think it gives some
accountability for kids.
But also it's a great way tohave conversations.
We have health checks in it andI know some coaches are like
man, I ain't got no kid that'sgoing to always say he's sore
and I'm like, yeah, but havingthat open conversation with a
(28:04):
young act, young athlete likehey, you're sore, you know, or
you know?
It's funny because we ask likehow many hours of sleep you get
and I get flagged if my guy'snot sleeping.
And I got a really high academicschool and I tell my guys like
listen, you gotta like you havea lot of expectations on the
academic side at Carmel and ifyou're not getting enough sleep,
(28:24):
I had a kid that was reallygood baseball player last year
and wanted to go to a reallygood school.
He had an almost perfect ACT,wasn't getting any sleep and I
asked him and I was like he'slike I'm just stressed out, I'm
not doing well in my Englishclass and I said you know what,
why don't you take today offfrom practice so you can get
your stuff done?
I knew he was a reallyresponsible kid but it was great
(28:48):
.
I have those conversations withmy athletes when I'm making my
lineup.
I know who's healthy and who'savailable and I think we were
looking at what there was a gapbetween travel and high school
and how do we kind of narrowthat gap and narrow like high
school coaches, really knowingwhat's going on when these kids
are away from you?
Speaker 2 (29:06):
Well, let me ask you this I love that idea.
That's.
That's phenomenal.
And if there's coaches out herelistening to this, how could
they get more information?
Is there a website or?
Speaker 3 (29:22):
Yeah, locker room centralcom.
Um, we also are on twitter.
Um, I'm about to start aninstagram page, so we we've just
started six months in.
We have a couple schools thatuse it, abca, we it was funny
because everybody's on our, onour aisle was like man, you had
so many people stopping by yourbooth and I think we're really
starting to take off.
(29:43):
I remember he got back and Iwas answering emails and we're
actually working with blastright now to hopefully integrate
with blast and work with somecompanies to integrate.
And you know, go to the website.
Our information is on there.
So, locker room centralcom, andwe'll definitely get back to
you.
It's, it's awesome.
I've had a lot of coaches thatwere on free trials right now
(30:04):
that love it, some facilitiesthat use it right now on free
trial.
My facility actually started touse it and I think it's just
something when we talk aboutworkload management and health,
because we've got kids alsoplaying other sports, working
with different trainers.
We just don't know and we canalso assume that a kid's not
doing anything, but he might beworking his butt off at his
(30:26):
facility or the different coachand I tell my kid are you doing
your work?
I just want to know right.
I want to know you're ready.
Speaker 2 (30:34):
Hate losing or love winning.
Speaker 3 (30:39):
I hate losing.
I'm pretty competitive, I'lladmit it.
I could you know?
What's funny is everybody'slike you're pretty calm and
everything.
But I get in the game, I gotta,I gotta catch myself from
barking back at the umpire.
Sometimes I think that's thatcompetitive picture in me.
But I always I've gotten betterand as I've gotten older I
(31:02):
always tell like the part oflosing is there's always a
lesson in it and it's okay tolose and it's okay to fail.
But how do we come back on it?
And I think with young people,that's the, that's the lesson
that we always have to have.
I think I, after a game, beforeI get in the huddle after we
lose, I got to take a breathmyself.
Speaker 1 (31:22):
I take a second.
Speaker 3 (31:22):
I always say I got to take a second and think about
what I'm going to say and Ialways try to make a positive
spin on it.
And I think kids I don't thinkof kids out there trying to
trying to lose or trying to dobad and I think it's easy as a
coach to get angry about aperformance.
I think we had a horribleperformance against one of the
(31:44):
top-rated teams in the statelast year and I mean it was bad
and I remember walking after wego to the line and taking a
second and going you know whatI'm going to say, what am I
going to say?
You know, I'm just.
Everything happened that wasbad and I just walked in and I
(32:05):
said you said you know what,guys, that's baseball.
I don't think you didn't.
I don't think anybody herewanted to mess up.
That's baseball.
sometimes you're gonna walk onthis field and everything goes
wrong oh yeah, everybody's and Isaid, all I'm gonna ask you is
how, yeah, how are we gonna walkaway, file it away and say you
know, we're done that game'sover and how are we going to get
(32:25):
ready for next day?
And I, what, what, what are wegoing to?
What are we going to improve?
You know, how do I need toimprove, how I prep before the
game.
You know, and I'm big on catchplay and it's, it's funny as the
(32:46):
high school kids drive me nutswith catch play, right, and I
was like the little thingsmatter.
So you're throwing, you make itthrowing errors, but you just
go and toss the ball and don'treally care about your catch
play and then you wonder why youmake throwing errors.
Well, that's, that's, uh,that's a problem.
So I try to really beintentional.
We do the dirt brother programand I do it with everybody.
My outfielders do it, likepitchers do it, but I was
(33:06):
talking about with intent.
Everything you do is withintent, and so when you, when
you lose, I think it's thinkingabout being intentional.
Be intentional or changes.
And I also feel like and I hadto catch my assistant coaches
once we lost a game and wedidn't hit well, I had two
consistent coaches like what arewe going to do?
We're going to change this andchange this.
And I said listen, I think wecreate chaos and sometimes a
(33:30):
loss is a loss.
But if we try to changeeverybody and change this with
this kid and change that, we'regoing to start doming kids up
and we don't have the time to dothat.
You know, it's such a mentalgame that sometimes you got to
lift them up like man.
We just didn't hit well todayand let's think about our plan
and stick to our plan and trustour plan and sometimes that day
(33:52):
that plan won't work.
But also trust and we're hereto help you and give you input.
But I think I always say thatlike, don't overreact to a loss,
and I think coaches do that toooften well, I I this next
question I thought about.
Speaker 2 (34:11):
I was, uh, outside this morning it's like 7 am and
I'm frustrated, and so I saidI'm going to turn this into a
question for the podcast.
And I said would you rathershovel six inches of snow on
your driveway or prep a naturalgrass field for a tournament all
(34:31):
day?
Speaker 3 (34:37):
I'm going to go with the North Dakota answer.
It was funny because I grew upwith my dad.
My dad worked at a taconitemine in minnesota and you know
they had massive layoffs in the80s and they all those guys went
out to western north dakota alot of them and he worked a
ligonite taconite um power plant.
So he's a.
My dad was a roughneck in a wayand he was funny because he
(34:59):
just said to us I don't, we got,we had snow.
That was.
I had a Ford Bronco when I wasin high school and it got buried
in the storm Like that's howmuch snow we got and we never
had a snowblower.
He said I got.
I had two other brothers withthree boys and he said you are,
you are the snowblower and sowe'd have the big old steel
(35:19):
steel shovels and he'd go everyhour on the hour.
You have to go out and startshoveling so it just doesn't
pile up.
And I think I'm used to that.
Field maintenance.
I love it, but when you have toput I feel like the spring,
when you've got to really put inall that work, that is tough.
I'd rather go shovel.
(35:40):
I actually feel like it'seasier with field maintenance,
but I also feel like you have toas a high school coach.
Speaker 2 (35:46):
you've got to do field maintenance.
Well, I kind of got frustratedbecause I did that where you're
going along and then you catch apiece of the concrete that's a
little bit higher and it jabsyou in the stomach and I was
like, oh, I'm like I I'll takethe field any day.
Speaker 3 (36:03):
but right now I'm I'm really limited.
Um, I just actually a month agohad a procedure on my back so I
had a bulging disc and so theyshaved her a little bit, the
disc, to release the nerve, andso I'm kind of lucky I don't
have to do anything.
I go to the facility, everybodypicks up everything for me.
But I was like I got to beready for the season Once I get
(36:27):
to get out of the field.
I got to be able to bed, twistand lift.
That's what they told me.
Speaker 2 (36:31):
I can't do right now, but I got to be able to do that
by the time the season starts.
Well, what college or NFL coachwould make a great baseball
coach?
Speaker 3 (36:44):
in your opinion?
Oh, that's a great question.
You know I'm a Vikings fan andI know last night they got boat
raced by the Lions.
But I really respect KevinO'Connell and I think he's very
similar to Rocco Baldelli in away.
You know there's a calmpresence.
I read something about him,though the guys are like you
(37:06):
listen to him at pressconferences.
He seems kind of calm and veryarticulate, but they're like he
holds guys accountable, he's notafraid, but he's also a great
communicator.
And I think and I have said thatit's hard to find an assistant
coach, especially in a Catholicschool, for what they pay.
And I think and I have said thatI took, it's hard to find an
assistant coach, especially in aCatholic school, for what they
(37:27):
pay.
And I've had some really goodcoaches that aren't really
baseball guys and mentoring them.
And I have a coach that man hepaid his way to ABCA, an
assistant coach, my freshmancoach, and he loves baseball
that much but he didn't play incollege, he didn't, you know,
and he's an older guy but heloves to learn and he has such
(37:50):
an amazing relationship with theplayers that I think he's
better than some of the coachesthat have a lot more experience
and I think sometimes thatconnection with athletes and
being an open communicator is isawesome and I I always say that
like I I brought two coaches inand the other one guy I was
(38:11):
like he said I want to be aneducator.
I think I'm going to quit my joband I and I watched him and I
said you know what I can be?
Great teacher, kids love youand you you have a have a way
with them and I think I canteach you and I can provide you
some of the structures to helpyou.
Um, I just need you to want,like, be able to communicate
(38:32):
with kids and be good with kids,and I think Kevin O'Connell is
just another example of someonethat's just a great communicator
.
Speaker 2 (38:41):
Well, I'm, you know my crack research team, which
consists of me.
I think, if I'm right here,you're a Twins fan, minnesota
Twins fan, correct?
Speaker 3 (38:54):
I'm a huge Twins fan.
Speaker 2 (38:56):
Okay, well, you get a chance to manage the Twins and
you can have these three playerson your team, and I'm going to
choose from the 87 and the 91World Series teams.
Group A you get Frank Viola,gary Gaietti and Kirby Puckett,
(39:19):
and group B you get Jack Morris,kent Herbeck and because he was
so daggone good, kirby Puckettagain.
Which three guys would yourather have on your team.
Speaker 3 (39:35):
That's a tough one because I'll give you a little
side note I collect onlyMinnesota sports memorabilia and
I have a game-used bat.
Besides the pitchers I do havesome pitchers, but I have a
game-used bat from every twinpositional player that hadn't a
bat in the 87 or 91 World Series.
(39:56):
So I have a massive collectionof game-used bats in my basement
and the 87, 91 twins.
Both of them hold a really,really special place in my heart
and I actually say that 87 teamis what got me to love baseball
and want to play baseball.
Um, in the middle of northdakota there's not much to watch
(40:16):
and and I really that wassomething special and in
minnesota there's no whole lotof championships.
I think those are really thelast championships.
I'd have to go with the 91.
Jack Morris that guy is acompetitor, St Paul native
really competitive.
I mean, Kirby Puckett was.
If you grew up in North Dakota,Minnesota, South Dakota, every
(40:38):
kid wanted to be Kirby Puckett.
I mean, he was just a heck of abaseball player.
I think when I was playing withmy friends I always wanted to
be Kirby Puckett hitting theball, Was it?
Herbeck Was the third one.
Speaker 2 (40:56):
Jack Waters, herbeck and Puckett.
Speaker 3 (40:58):
Herbeck.
He's another guy.
There's so many great storiesof Kent Herbeck.
He's kind of a character but Ilove him and you know in
Minnesota he has an outdoorstore show now where he goes
around and hunts and fishes.
He definitely epitomizes like atrue Minnesotan, kent Herbeck,
(41:19):
and I've met him before and he'she's a.
He's an awesome guy.
Speaker 2 (41:24):
Yeah Well, my last question for you before I let
you go your best story as eitherfrom your playing days or as a
coach it can be.
Usually I try to get some ofthe guests to talk, so I'll let
you have at it.
Speaker 3 (41:42):
Man, I played a year in the Northwoods League and the
stories out of the NorthwoodsLeague was just unbelievable,
because you're playing 80 gamesin a full summer and you're
riding on a bus.
I remember we're driving andthe Northwoods League is really
spread out now and there's waymore teams.
I think it might have been 10teams.
(42:03):
When I played and and I playedthe only year that my not north
dakota had a team they ended upfolding and then madison became
the madison mallards.
But so western north dakota,north of western north dakota's,
got a team but we got to go tolike waterloo and brainer.
You'd play like a night gameand you get done playing.
(42:23):
You gotta get on a bus.
You got to get on a bus andyou're sleeping on the bus going
all the way to Wausau orWaterloo or Brainerd.
There were nobody any close tous.
The travel was just atrocious.
We get on a bus and we hadafter a game and we had to
Brainerd.
We stop in Fargo and we have aguy that was just.
(42:44):
He was such a good hitter, heplayed for UCLA and he played, I
think, up to double A with theTwins.
And we had these old ladiesthat just bake us cookies and
treats and put them on a bus.
He was like he didn't know thatthere was nuts in the cookies.
So he stands up in the middleand he's like there's nuts in
these cookies.
So we got to.
And the cookies?
So he stands up in the middle,he's like there's nuts in these
(43:04):
cookies, I'm going to.
So we got to pull them off thebus.
So we're stuck in Fargo tillthe till we take them to the
ambulance.
And we got a game in Brainerdand we got to get there.
So we only have a couple ofcoaches, so one coach has got to
stay with him and we got towork out all this stuff.
And now we're late for the gameand we get all the way to
(43:25):
brannard and we're late and Ithink we got stuck.
There's like an accident on theroad and we're on this bus and
police show up and it's likethey put on the sirens and we're
buses flying behind the policeto get around the accident and
to get us.
We walked in like as the gamewas supposed to start.
There's thousands of people inthe stands and there's no other
(43:48):
team and hurry up and play.
We had one time in Fargo.
Grand Forks had a team in NorthDakota, that's just on the
border of Minnesota and NorthDakota.
Our bus driver quit and tookall our equipment, all our our
suitcases with them.
So we had to be put up in ahotel and all we had was what we
(44:11):
had our baseball bag and ouruniforms.
And we got picked up by aschool bus and had to wait till
the bus company break, takesomebody else and take our
equipment, take our suitcasesback.
But I think that's the grindand the fun of playing in those
leagues and I always tell guysyou get the opportunity to play
in a collegiate league, go do it, because those are memories
(44:33):
that last a lifetime.
Speaker 2 (44:36):
Yes, definitely.
My son had some great storiesfrom his summer experience
playing, but you know it's ScottAnderson, carmel High School
Catholic head coach Coach.
Wow, really great for you totake some time out of your day
to join me here, and you know.
(44:57):
Thanks again, I really doappreciate it.
Speaker 3 (45:00):
No, I appreciate it, and it's always fun to just talk
shop with another coach.
Speaker 2 (45:06):
There you have it, episode 132 in the books and
looking forward to next week.
Every Wednesday, look for a newepisode here on Baseball
Coaches Unplugged.
And a special thanks to ourpartnership with the netting
professionals, improvingprograms one facility at a time.
Contact them today at844-620-2707, or you can visit
(45:31):
them online at wwwnettingproscom.
As always, I'm your host, coachKen Carpenter, and thanks for
checking out Baseball CoachesUnplugged.
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