West Hills Little League: WHLL News: Tips from the Coach
I recently spoke with parents at a “select” team tryout. The all told me pretty much the same story. They each employed private hitting instructors and pitching instructors for their sons, had batting cages in their backyard complete with Jugs pitching machines. They all had paid 3-5000 dollars the previous year on their son’s baseball activities. And contend they knew people that had spent as much as $40,000! I checked their son’s bat bags. Each had 2-3 $200+ bats, a couple of pro line gloves, 4-5 pairs of batting gloves etc. These kids were 8 years old!
I wonder how I managed to get my sons’ to accomplish being All State and All American in HS, Jr. Team USA and Olympic Festival, play major D1 baseball on scholarship and one is still playing pro ball and I don’t think I spent $5000 on baseball combined for both of them?
When the eldest was in Pee Wee league, I produced the BASEBALL SKILLS AND DRILLS video series. From the experience, I learned all the baseball knowledge necessary to instruct my sons, myself. This baseball experience is a short and precious period of time that YOU get to share with your sons. Why farm it out to some private instructor? The BASEBALL SKILLS AND DRILLS video series is available at www.tipsfromthecoach.com for less than the cost of 2 private lessons.
I built a Tee Station in the garage by attaching a tarp to the roof. I attached a pole to the bottom so that it could be rolled up and secured with a chain, out of the way. This Tee Station is where they honed their swing mechanics with thousands of hours of work.
I used to throw BP to them at the local field until one of them drilled me in a very tender spot with a line drive and I sang soprano for a week. After that I refused to throw hardballs to anyone unless I had an L screen. Then I discovered Pickleballs. With these plastic balls, I can throw quality BP in the front yard without worrying about breaking the neighbors windows or endangering myself. Pickleballs are available at www.tipsfromthecoach.com.
I videotaped every game and afterward, we would analyze their ABs. When they had a good game they were eager to watch. When things didn’t go so well, they might not want to watch for a couple of days. What is important is to ask questions not point out mistakes. They are the one playing the game. They are the ones that are going to have to analyze and make adjustments. I would ask, ‘what happened on that swing? Where was that pitch? What was the count when you swung at that curve?’
You will want to hit ground and fly balls to your sons. Get a FUNGO! There is nothing so pathetic as some coach/daddy hitting to a kid with his son’s 29 inch bat except the dork using one of those things that looks like A tennis racquet. I offer a nice FUNGO at www.tipsfromthecoach.com. It should last a lifetime.
A 9 year old doesn’t need a pro line glove. He will probably leave it out in the rain and ruin it or the dog will eat it. I have found some excellent, inexpensive gloves made by Akadema. By the same token, it isn’t the bat. It’s the batter. One of the greatest 12 year old players I have ever coached, hit 50 HRs using a bat he found in a dumpster behind the school. It looked like a pipe with all the writing worn off and the handle taped. Akadema also makes an excellent bat that costs about ½ what the big name bats cost. These items are available at www.tipsfromthecoach.com.
The HANDS BACK HITTER was not available when my sons were still at home and playing ball but if it were, they would have been even better from working with it because it encourages them to have a short and consistent stride on the ball of their foot, not blend their stride and swing, keep their weight back and on balance and then swing using their proper rotational swing mechanics. I can think of no drills that accomplish so much as the HANDS BACK HITTER and it is FUN!
You can’t buy a long and successful baseball career for your son. I think so much of this excess is purely “keeping up with the Jones”. Your son will not be a better baseball player because he played 100 games instead of 50 or played in Cooperstown. What you can and should do is share this short and precious period of time that he plays baseball with your son. Motivate and encourage him to work, to strive to be the best that HE can be. From the effort will come those lessons in life about which we all like to talk. He will have EARNED the right to get to play one more day!
I have loved every minute of this baseball lifestyle. After my sons finished college ball, I decided to share some of the experiences and wisdom I have amassed from the experience. So I wrote a book, A PARENTS GUIDE TO BASEBALL-Surviving And Thriving Youth League To College. It is a humorous and informative ode to a lifestyle in baseball. It too is available at www.tipsfromthecoach.com. I envy each and everyone of you because I know how rewarding and how much fun you are going to enjoy in the next few years while my son is now off in the frozen tundra of Binghamton, NY playing pro ball and I will not get to hit him Fungos or throw him Pickleballs but it was pretty cool because before he left for Spring Training, he asked “Hey, Pops, will you throw some Pickleballs to me”.
Yours in Baseball
Bruce Lambin
THE COACH
