Coaching Management 21.7

Coaching Management

> Social Media Solutions > Picking the Right Turf

STOPPING A SLUMP How to turn around a struggling squad

POSTSEASON 2013 | VOL. XXI NO. 7 | $7.00

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GATORADE SPORTS SCIENCE INSTITUTE THE CARBOHYDRATE COMMITMENT

Roberta Anding, M.S., R.D./L.D., C.D.E., C.S.S.D. Director of Sports Nutrition, Texas Children’s Hospital Sports Dietitian, Houston Texans

All athletes require dietary carbohydrate as a fuel source for working muscles. However, carbohydrate needs can vary significantly depending on the type of sport and even within sport, by event or position. As a general rule, athletes participating in aerobically-based sports will require higher amounts of carbohydrate than those competing in anaerobic sports. The nutritional needs of athletes who participate in stop-and-start sports such as soccer, basketball and football need to be specialized not only by sport but also by position.

THE AEROBIC ATHLETE Aerobic sports include distance runners/swimmers, triathletes and cyclists. The oxidation of glycogen (the storage form of carbohydrate in the body) and intramuscular triglycerides are the predominant form of energy in the aerobic athlete. High intensity endurance events (>85% VO2 max) maximally sustained for 90 minutes require large stores of glycogen, so adequate stores are critical. These athletes benefit most from carbohydrate loading (glycogen supercompensation) in the days leading up to competition. On low to moderate training days, these athletes’ carbohydrate needs are estimated at 5-7 g/kg/day. On harder training days and during the active season, these endurance athletes will require 10-12 g/kg/day. Without adequate carbohydrate, these athletes will not be able to perform at maximal capacity.

Before Exercise: Consume 1-4 g carbohydrate per kg body weight up to 4 hours prior to exercise During Exercise: Consume 30-60 g carbohydrate per hour up to 2.5 hours or 90 g carbohydrate in events lasting >2.5 hours After Exercise: Consume 1-1.2 g carbohydrate per kg/hr for the first 4 hours following exercise THE ANAEROBIC ATHLETE Anaerobic sports include but are not limited to sprinters, power lifters and gymnasts. Creatine phosphate is the primary source of energy for anaerobic athletes but is not readily stored in the body. In a 30-second sprint, creatine phosphate stores can be decreased by as much as 75%. The reduction in stores and the demand for continual energy, the secondary source of energy, is glycogen oxidation. Since anaerobic events are short in duration, the anaerobic athlete will require substantially less carbohydrate than the aerobic athlete. The regeneration of phosphocreatine is actually an aerobic process although little is known regarding the carobohydrate demand for recovery of stores. Most studies do not observe a significant benefit of a high-carbohydrate diet over a moderatecarbohydrate diet in these athletes. It is important to remember that although the event may be anaerobic in nature, it is the practice that can drive the carbohydrate need. The carbohydrate requirements for the anaerobic athlete are 5-7 g/kg/day and these athletes will most likely not benefit from carbohydrate loading days prior to competition.

THE STOP-AND-START ATHLETE Stop-and-start sports include basketball, soccer and football. These athletes have complex carbohydrate needs due to the fact they are activating both aerobic and anaerobic pathways throughout competition. Increased reliance on carbohydrate as an energy substrate parallels the increase in intensity.

Conversely, the oxidation of intramuscular triglycerides and plasma-free fatty acids increase as duration increases (and intensity naturally decreases).

Glycogen depletion is directly associated with fatigue and exercise intensity and, therefore, adequate carbohydrate in the diet is important in the stop-and-start athlete.

Carbohydrate guidelines for stop-and-start athletes (Adapted from Sports Nutrition: A Practice Manual for Professionals 5th Edition) TIME

AMOUNT OF CARBOHYDRATE

SPECIFICS

1-4 hrs prior to competition

1-4 g/kg

Low-glycemic carbohydrates

1 hr prior to competition

25-30 g

Liquid carbohydrates may be beneficial due to rapid stomach emptying

During Exercise

0.5-1.0 g/kg/hr; 30-60 g/hr

6% carbohydrate solution- Gatorade Thirst Quencher

After Exercise

1.0-1.2 g/kg

Every 15-30 min for up to 4 hrs

CARBOHYDRATE COMMITMENT While most athletes fit into the three categories mentioned previously, the International Olympic Committee has created general recommendations for athletes based upon time commitment per day. These guidelines can be beneficial for the busy high school athlete as well as the elite athlete. The commitment to adequate carbohydrate is often challenging with school and practice schedules as well as common misinformation. Sports dietitians, strength coaches and athletic trainers need to follow evidence-based guidelines and use individual assessment skills to assist athletes in meeting their nutritional goals.

COMMITMENT

AMOUNT OF CARBOHYDRATE

Low intensity exercise; 3-5 g/kg/day athletes with energy restriction 1 hr per day

5-7 g/kg/day

1-3 hrs per day

7-10 g/kg/day

>4-5 hrs per day

8-12 g/kg/day

Carbohydrate needs cannot be addressed in a one-size-fits all approach.

Prioritize carbohydrates appropriately depending on intensity, duration and nature of your sport for maximal performance benefits.

References: 1. Rosenbloom CA, Colemen EJ. (2012). Sports Nutrition: A Practice Manual for Professionals. Sports, Cardiovascular, and Wellness Nutrition Dietetic Practice Group. Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.

2. IOC Consesus Statement on Sports Nutrition. J Sports Sci. 2011; 29: Suppl 1:S3-4.

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B220 Lead-Off

CONTENTS | BASEBALL Edition | POSTSEASON 2013 | Vol. XXi, No. 7

james f. kraus

25

cAl sports media/ap photo (TOP); Brian Westerholt/four seam images(BOTTOM)

Coaching Management

LEADERSHIP 25 strategies for

COVER STORY 18

STOPPING A SLUMP Veteran coaches share their advice on turning things around when players, or even whole teams, are struggling to perform their best.

SOcializing

How do you ensure that social media mishaps don’t bring harm to your team? This author suggests putting proactive policies in place.

5

5

POSTSEASON

BULLETIN BOARD

College coaches consider raising the seam height on balls … Keeping a blowout in check … 3D sensor offers new view of swings ...

Mississippi State’s Cohen on reaching out to fans … High school teams scrimmage at 3 a.m. … BP system focuses on situational hitting.

FACILITIES 31 TURF DECISIONS There are a lot of options available when it comes to choosing a playing surface. We take a look at the pros and cons of each.

Q&A 12

SCOTT BROSIUS Thirteen years after winning his third World Series championship, Scott Brosius coached Linfield College to the 2013 NCAA Division III title. Learn about his coaching philosophy and why he returned to his alma mater following his playing career.

On the cover

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE 35 BASEBALL FACILITIES 38 HITTING AND PITCHING AIDS 39 TEAM EQUIPMENT

31

40 MORE PRODUCTS 36 ADVERTISERS DIRECTORY

Even the best teams sometimes find wins hard to come by. Top coaches, including Dan McDonnell from the University of Louisville, explain how they right a struggling ship in our cover story beginning on page 18.

PHOTO: Jeff Reinking/Louisville Sports Information

Publisher Mark Goldberg

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Coaching Management POSTSEASON 2013 3

Special Advertising Feature

Camps and CliniCs:

Double your money and decrease your work load

T

housands of coaches from New York to Alaska have learned the secret to running a more successful camp: Let someone else do most of the work. And while working less, they are making even more money.

“It’s not often you can work less and make more,” said Brad Allen, former head coach at St. Joseph-Ogden HS in Illinois. “But we took a local clinic with 50 kids and turned it into a 300-player camp that attracts the top talent from all over central Illinois. We make five times the money and the camp is actually easier to run now than it was then.”

For Allen and hundreds of others, the secret was partnering with U.S. Baseball Academy, a Louisville-based company that has been helping coaches run camps since 1988. In the past few years, its growth has been nothing short of explosive. Since 2002, the company has grown to 150,000 players in 41 states and boasts an impressive Advisory Staff that includes Don Mattingly, Paul O’Neill and Cy Young Award winner Brandon Webb. Beneficiaries of the expansion have been thousands of college and high school coaches, who have earned $6 million in hosting fees in the past 12 years.

U.S. Baseball Academy founder and President Marc Hoffman describes the concept as a kind of “camp in a box.” “We handle all the administrative functions that all coaches hate,” he said. “We not only give them the itinerary and equipment; we take care of advertising, marketing, registration, payments, T-shirts, insurance, and paying the instructors.

The schools and coaches have no expenses, no risk, no phone calls from parents. They keep the biggest slice of revenue, plus all the equipment when camp is over.”

The company is seeking new host locations for its rapidly expanding Spring Training program, which offers six days of hitting, pitching and fielding lessons to local players in grades 1 through 12. A typical site runs indoors for six Sunday afternoons between December and March, before high school or college play begins. Host schools typically attract 150 to 250 players from an hour’s radius and earn up to $10,000 for their local coaching staff. Because age groups are staggered throughout the day, there are never more than 50 players at a time, limiting the need for space.

“Sometimes coaches think they need a giant field house, but with 30 or 40 kids per hour, it’s really not much different than running a normal practice session in your gymnasium,” Hoffman said.

Parents pay only about $100 for the six

U.S. Baseball Academy’s advisory staff includes stars such as Cy Young winner Brandon Webb

U.S. Baseball Academy Growth Chart Year

Total Players

Paid to coaches

2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

750 3,000 9,000 18,000 30,000 44,000 59,000 72,000 90,000 106,000 127,000 150,000

$33,750 $135,000 $405,000 $810,000 $1,350,000 $1,980,000 $2,655,000 $3,240,000 $3,950,000 $4,400,000 $5,080,000 $6,010,000

one-hour lessons, with the largest slice of the pie going back to the host school and coaches.

Hosting coaches can do whatever they want with the money, which generally ranges from $7,000 to $10,000. “Most coaches use some of the money to supplement their salaries,” Hoffman said, “but many put some or all of the money back into their program to pay for field upgrades, a spring trip or new uniforms.

We send their money before camp ends, and they determine who gets the checks.”

USBA handles all the administrative tasks.

Coaches have no risk and no hassles. They just coach.

The company works like a franchise.

Coaches reduce their workloads because they don’t have to develop itineraries, brochures and handle administrative tasks. They increase their numbers and revenue because of the panache of hosting a nationwide program.

“U.S. Baseball Academy made six weeks of instruction feel like it lasted only six hours,” said Youngstown State University assistant coach Craig Antush.

“The administrative staff is highly organized and efficient, making these camps very low-maintenance,” said Steve Farley, head coach at Butler University in Indianapolis Circle No. 102

and a host for 10 years. “We’ve been sold out each year.”

University of Findlay head coach Troy Berry agreed. “U.S. Baseball Academy has been nothing but great for our program. It has helped build relationships around the community and has been a great fundraiser. They do all of the leg work and we get to do the fun stuff: coach the kids. I highly recommend getting involved with them.”

Hoffman said the company’s biggest obstacle to growth has been that coaches are sometimes skeptical, often questioning whether it’s too good to be true. Skip Bailey, athletic director at Monroe Community College in Rochester, N.Y., and an ABCA committee member, thought exactly that eight years ago when he was head coach at the school.

But 2,000 players attending eight clinics has made him a believer.

“This was a home run for our baseball program,” Bailey said. “We have been running camps for 25 years, and these have been our best. I thought their ad was too good to be true, but I’m glad I made the call.”

The company hopes more coaches make the call, but don’t delay. Thousands of players are already registered for Spring Training 2014, and new sites must be finalized soon.

If you don’t have time to put something together for this year, contact them to get on their schedule for summer or next spring before a coach near you reserves your territorial rights. To learn more, contact Vice President of Baseball Operations Joe Marker at 800592-4487 or by email at sites@usbaseballacademy.com.

Visit the company’s web site at www.USBaseballAcademy.com.

BULLETIN BOARD POSTSEASON 2013

CONTENTS

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5 Push is on to raise offense

|

6 Managing a

major mismatch

College Rules

Lower Seams for Higher Numbers?

Following the switch to new bat standards in 2011, NCAA Division I offenses have spent the last three seasons experiencing historic struggles. Home runs have become scarce and batting and team scoring averages dipped to a 40-year low.

To try to reverse this decline—and hopefully drum up more fan interest—Clemson University Head Coach Jack Leggett is championing a switch to a lower-seamed ball, similar to the type used in professional leagues.

For Leggett, the need for change can be seen in the numbers—and the stands.

In 2010, the year before the switch to less springy bats, Clemson slugged 93 home runs at a rate of 1.33 per game. After the introduction of the new bat standards, the Tigers hit just 48 round-trippers (0.76 per game) in 2011 and 44 (0.70 per game) in 2012. This season, Clemson managed a

|

6 Sensor shows swing secrets

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7 Early birds get

big-league field

mere 22 home runs—a clip of 0.35 per contest.

“The season-ticket holders are looking for home runs, looking for excitement,” Leggett told The Associated Press.

“I see them sitting on their hands a lot, everywhere I go. So I just think the simple transition to play with the minor league baseball is the way to go.”

There is some thought that the higher the seams are on the ball, the greater the drag created when it travels through the air. Based on that theory, the lower the seams, the farther a ball will fly.

Right now, the NCAA does not have standards for seam height, but the ball used in national tournament games, such as the College World Series, has raised seams. As a result, most teams use balls with raised seams during their regular season games as well. Balls used in the professional leagues feature lower-profile seams.

After hearing Leggett’s concerns, Dave Keilitz, Executive Director of the American Baseball Coaches Association

|

9 Situational

hitting practice

|

10 3 Qs on pulling in big crowds

(ABCA), surveyed Division I coaches to gauge their thoughts on a possible change and found that 55 percent support the idea. He also surveyed NCAA Division II and III coaches on the topic.

Division II coaches reported a slight interest in using lower seams, while those in Division III indicated they would like to keep using the higher-seamed ball.

After receiving that feedback, Keilitz asked the ABCA Research Committee to quantify any difference in how far each type of ball will fly. Based on that data, he will then re-survey the coaches and take their recommendations to the NCAA Baseball Rules Committee.

“The rules committee won’t make a change unless we really push for it based on a majority decision,” says Keilitz, noting that Division I, II, and III could each decide independently which type of ball they would like to use at their level. “Normally, I find that you need an overwhelming number of coaches on board to get something done. If 80 percent of coaches indicate they want something, then there’s a lot better chance of getting it through.”

However, even if a majority of coaches push for a change, the committee will not consider any new rules until July 2014, so the earliest a new ball could be put into play would be the 2015 season.

“When considering any type of change, I first ask coaches to consider how it would affect game play,” Keilitz says. “Then we discuss legal aspects of ball contracts with conferences and teams and the potential for liability if we change the ball and somebody is injured. We also need to consider the financial cost of securing all new balls for a program.

“But if coaches wanted to switch to a lower-seamed ball, it would probably be a relatively smooth change,” continues Keilitz. “In talking to the three major ball manufacturers, seam height has no effect on the price of the ball. They might need a little lead time to produce

Clemson University Head Coach Jack Leggett is among those who feel a switch to lower-seam baseballs could raise slumping home run numbers in college baseball. In 2013, the Tigers hit 22 homers in 62 games, including two by senior Thomas Brittle (at left).

CoachesNetwork.com

Coaching Management POSTSEASON 2013 5

more flat-seamed balls, though, because the majority of balls they’re currently manufacturing have raised seams.”

Technology

Swing Science Most coaches know a good swing when they see one. But what happens when they eye a stroke that needs improvement yet can’t pinpoint exactly how to fix the problem? A new three-dimensional tracking technology developed by a University of Michigan engineer may soon provide a way to help coaches identify, explain, and improve swing flaws.

Using a tiny accelerometer that attaches to the knob of a bat, Noel Perkins, a professor of mechanical engineering at Michigan, has found a way to measure swing variables such as bat speed, reaction time, hand position, and the plane of the bat at impact. “There are a number of technical aspects of a swing this technology can measure that are hard to resolve with the naked eye or even high-speed video,” says Perkins.

“And unlike video, this sensor technology can provide quick and easy feedback. The batter and coach can immediately view the metrics of their swing on a tablet or computer, and make on-the-spot adjustments.”

Perkins began developing the technology as a frustrated fisherman. In attempting to figure out the ideal mechanics of a fly cast, he soaked up everything he could learn about the subject and even took lessons from a number of experts. “Despite all that, I still wasn’t casting the way I wanted to,” he says. “So I decided to measure various casts using an accelerometer. I put the device on the base of my fly rod and measured what I was doing, then compared it to readings from the rods of fly casting experts that I measured. That

6 Coaching Management POSTSEASON 2013

way, I could pinpoint the flaws in my cast and figure out how to improve it.”

Perkins says the fly-casting technology concept easily translates to baseball.

The goal is to analyze how the bat’s sweet spot moves through the hitting zone. But because locating a sensor at the sweet spot is a recipe for crushed technology, the only viable options were to put the device on the bottom of the knob or at the end of the barrel.

“The knob is better because it is further away from the impact site and it affects the swing less,” Perkins says.

“We’re sampling the motion of the bat at the knob, but I can calculate how the sweet spot is moving using a simple formula based on the bat’s measurements.”

As an engineer, Perkins’ role has been to develop the technology and identify exactly what he could measure with it.

The next step is to bring that technology to the marketplace, which will be handled

by Diamond Kinetics, a Pittsburgh-based company that expects to release a product in 2014.

Perkins says that in studies conducted by his lab and by Diamond Kinetics, “more than 1,000 batters from Little League, high school, college, and a few select Major League players” have had their swings analyzed. “Based on those results,” says Perkins, “we identified what data we should be reporting back to the batter, coach, or parent about how the player is swinging.”

So what elements will the technology reveal? And will coaches need a PhD to decode the advanced graphics and calculations that define their players’ swings?

Perkins believes coaches will pick up the metrics pretty easily, as some are

A new 3D bat sensor can provide coaches with a wealth of previously untapped information on a player’s swing, such as showing its movement through the contact zone.

already a common part of hitting conversation. “Bat speed is something most coaches talk about now, and I think they’ll grab on to reaction time and swing plane soon as well,” he says. “Hand position is another thing I see coaches getting on board with because it affects so many parts of a swing.

“For example, when you talk about bat speed, players who swing the fastest generally hold the knob close to their body—they’re not casting the bat far out and decreasing the inertia,” Perkins continues. “The position of the knob at impact indicates if a player’s hands are in an optimal position to generate high bat speed. I think coaches will become more comfortable with those measurements as they realize exactly how those metrics relate to creating a sweeter swing.”

Sportsmanship

Keeping it Down During his 34 years as a baseball coach, Jeff Boyer has almost always been happy after a win. But when his Licking Heights (Ohio) High School team posted a 65-0 victory over Harvest Preparatory School, he was anything but pleased. The blowout made national headlines, and many felt it painted Licking Heights—which has an enrollment of 662 compared to Harvest Prep’s 156—in a bad light. Worst of all, the two schools would play each other again just two weeks later.

Determined to avoid a repeat of their first meeting, Boyer faced a difficult task.

How could he keep his squad’s run total at a more reasonable level without making a mockery of the game?

Rather than rely on any one strategy, Boyer made a variety of moves to avoid making news again. While the final score of the rematch was 29-0, the changes Boyer made had the desired effect—it kept the score from reaching the level of the first meeting while maintaining the integrity of the game.

The first step Boyer took was to have his squad use wood bats in hopes of reducing the distance of batted balls.

Another tactic was having his players hit from the opposite side of the plate once they got a big lead. “I felt this would be tough for the fans to notice, and wouldn’t show up the other team,” Boyer says. “In addition, it would be a challenge for our players, and would force them to compete a little bit harder.”

While a few of the players were skeptical about hitting from the opposite side, Boyer says the team bought into the mandates quickly. “We’ve played Harvest Prep before and our guys understood the situation,” he says. “Several of them talkCoachesNetwork.com

BULLETIN BOARD ed to me before the game and said ‘Let’s just try to get better and not draw too much attention to the game.’”

Licking Heights also emptied its bench, bringing in its three backups early, and Boyer had several players who had never pitched before take the mound. The end result was a contest that was competitive over the final three innings— after jumping out to a 26-0 lead in the second, Licking Heights scored only three runs the rest of the way.

Boyer also strove to avoid repeating mistakes he made in the first meeting between the two schools. For one, he admits he lost track of the score in that contest—the stadium’s scoreboard wasn’t on—and says that he made a suggestion to an umpire he wishes he hadn’t. “In the first game, I asked the umpire if our hitters should bunt and intentionally step on home plate for an out,” he says. “I realize that could be seen as arrogant, and I regret it. No one is out to embarrass anyone in high school baseball.”

Still, Boyer felt much of the criticism leveled at his team following the 65-0 game was undeserved. “We’ve been suc-

“In the first game, I asked the umpire if our hitters should bunt and intentionally step on home plate for an out. I realize that could be seen as arrogant, and I regret it. No one is out to embarrass anyone in high school baseball.”

JEFF BOYER Licking Heights (Ohio) High School

Boyer instructed his players to advance only one base on any batted ball. In addition, he told them there would be no stealing bases or advancing on wild pitches or passed balls.

cessful over the years, which always increases the spotlight, but after that game, it was like we were seen as bullies,” he says. “A lot of people didn’t understand this was a league game that we had to play, and there’s no bad blood between the teams. I would have rather made the game an exhibition and not reported the score, but that wasn’t an option.”

Boyer is also relieved he won’t face the same situation next season. “We’re moving to a new league next year,” he says. “So we won’t be playing Harvest Prep again.”

Scheduling

Wake Me Up for the Ball Game When the Minnesota Twins moved to the new open-air Target Field in 2009, surrounding college and high school baseball teams started using their old, enclosed home, known as the Metrodome, for early season practices and games. Hoping to get some on-field time for his Middleton (Wis.) High School squad, Tom Schmitt booked a scrimmage

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Coaching Management POSTSEASON 2013 7

at the facility on March 28 to kick off the 2013 season. The catch? A 3 a.m. start time.

Because snow-covered fields are routine in the upper Midwest when the season begins, Schmitt is used to finding his team a warmer place to play over spring break. In the past, they had traveled to Florida and southern Illinois.

However, due to financial challenges, this year’s trip would have to stay close to home.

“A few high school coaches I know recommended that we go to the Metrodome,” says Schmitt. “But because we had not played there before, we were at the end of the line for choosing a time slot. Then, I had to find an opponent for a 3 a.m. scrimmage because we had already scheduled the maximum number of games allowed. Luckily, Dave Langbehn [Head Coach at D.C. Everest High School in Weston, Wis.] said his team would play us.”

The two teams split the $750 rental fee, which gave them the field for three hours, and Schmitt arranged hotel reservations. Once the logistics were settled, both coaches told their players about the early rise for the scrimmage. “Their first response was: ‘Three o’clock? Really?’” says Schmitt. “But then it was, ‘At the Metrodome? Oh, it’s going to be cool!’”

Langbehn did what he could to prepare his players for the strange start time.

“We scheduled our last two practices in

our high school gym at 6 a.m. to get them acclimated to waking up early,” he says.

“The night before the scrimmage, the athletes were in their rooms by 7 p.m., lights out was at 9 p.m., and we woke them up at 1 a.m.”

The coaches were initially concerned that their players would stay up late and not take the scrimmage seriously, but Schmitt says he was impressed with their behavior. “Both teams were responsible and got as much sleep as they could,” he says. “I don’t think any of the athletes wanted to be dogging it when they had a chance to play in such a famous venue.

Plus, they were excited for the chance to finally play real baseball after spending so many weeks in the gym.”

This enthusiasm was evident when the teams took the Metrodome field.

With cameras in hand, players wandered wide-eyed through the dugouts trying to pinpoint where their favorite major leaguers had sat.

While their teams were reveling in the history of the facility, Schmitt and Langbehn were surprised to find it empty. “The group scheduled before us was supposed to play until 2:30 a.m., but they were gone when we arrived at 2:20,” Schmitt says. “So we had an extra half hour to warm up. It was the first chance we had to hit fly balls to our outfielders or have infielders take a grounder off of something other than a hardwood floor.”

The teams played six-out half-innings, clearing the bases and bringing in a new pitcher after three outs. Each team also had a 10-player batting order. Playing so many athletes helped Langbehn keep his squad alert in the dugout.

“A few of our younger guys started to fall asleep, so I quickly got them off the bench and into the scrimmage,” he says.

“We made frequent substitutions because I didn’t want any of them just sitting around.”

The squads used every second of their allotted three hours. Middleton’s team stayed an extra night to take in a NCAA Division I baseball game between the University of Minnesota and South Dakota State University at the Metrodome and tour the Twins’ new home.

Schmitt was thrilled with the chance to get some on-field time, but the most rewarding part of the trip wasn’t measured in hits or runs. “It was a great team bonding experience,” he says. “Going on the road and staying overnight with their teammates made my players feel like professionals. And by taking them away from home, they were able to focus solely on baseball and each other.”

With their own fields covered in snow, Middleton (Wis.) High School and D.C. Everest High School in Weston, Wis., traveled to nearby Minneapolis for a 3 a.m. scrimmage at the Metrodome in March.

julie tanin

8 Coaching Management POSTSEASON 2013

CoachesNetwork.com

BULLETIN BOARD Skill Development

Systematic Approach Doug LaValley, Head Coach at Guilderland (N.Y.) High School believes that hitting success is rooted in the fundamentals. Traditionally, his lineups don’t possess a lot of power, so rather than have his squad focus on driving the ball over the fence, he wants his players to concentrate on successful situational hitting and making solid contact. Prior to the 2012 season, he implemented a new batting practice system designed to emphasize those skills, based on one he had heard about at a coaching clinic a few years earlier.

The four-part system, which comprises just one aspect of Guilderland’s hitting practice, is used against live pitching on the field. In the first segment, players bunt the ball six times— two sacrifices to each side of the diamond and twice for hits. In the second segment, they take three or four swings, with the goal of hitting the ball up the middle or to the opposite field. The third part focuses on specific aspects of

small ball, such as advancing runners with ground balls, executing a hit and run, and sacrifice flies. Finally, the players get a handful of swings to hit the ball as hard as they can, with the emphasis on line drives and hard contact, not towering fly balls.

During the final three rounds, each swing is scored on a scale from zero (a swing and a miss or foul tip) to five (a line drive in fair territory). The goal is to have each hitter average 3.5 points or higher for all their swings. Players are limited to three or four swings in each part to better mimic an in-game plate appearance.

“The system is based on hitters having the right approach at the plate depending on the game situation,” LaValley says. “For example, the second round is designed to help their two-strike technique. A lot of pitchers will throw the ball to the outside of the plate with two strikes, so the hitters aren’t going to be successful if they try to pull everything. Instead, we tell them to look for the ball outside and drive it the other way. And if the pitch is inside, their hands should still be quick enough to come around on it.”

In the third section, LaValley likes to put runners on the bases and defenders in the field to heighten the realism. “It helps the kids understand their goals if they see runners out there,” he says. “If you don’t set up game-like situations, it’s tough to get them to buy in.

“This system allows hitters to see that they can have a quality at bat even if they don’t get a hit,” LaValley continues. “Instead of a kid getting down after going hitless for a game, I can show him how many good at bats he had where he moved a runner up a base with a ground out or hit a sac fly. As a bonus, the guys on the bases work on their baserunning.

A runner on second has to read ground balls properly and a runner on third learns to judge the depth of fly balls correctly.”

Even when players are free to swing away during the final segment, LaValley stresses they should play to their strengths. “I had one player who hit fly balls 40 percent of the time,” he says.

“The problem was, he was 140 pounds and had never hit a home run in his life.

As a result, he was just making a lot of outs. But since a hard ground ball is worth four points in this system—the

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QUESTIONS

3

In his five seasons as Head Coach at Mississippi State University, John Cohen has continued the Diamond Dogs’ strong tradition of success. He led the team to the 2012 Southeastern Conference Tournament Championship and appearances in the 2012 and 2013 NCAA tournaments, including a secondplace finish in the 2013 College World Series.

Along with triumphs on the field, Cohen has helped maintain Mississippi State’s reputation as a leader in college attendance. More than 14,500 fans packed into the Polk-DeMent Stadium at Dudy Noble Playing Field for a game against Auburn University in April, the second-largest on-campus crowd in NCAA history. Likewise, four of the program’s top six all-time season ticket sales marks have come during Cohen’s tenure—and many of the tickets were handdelivered by his players, one of the ways Cohen works hard to build support in the community.

Why do you spend so much time personally trying to get fans to your games?

Our marketing and promotions staff does a great job, but we have something they don’t—the players. If a marketing person knocks on your front door to deliver season tickets, that’s not nearly as thrilling to a fan as having a player show up to do it. I believe in using that recognition factor to our advantage.

And our players receive life lessons about interacting with the community in the process—especially those who want to get involved in intercollegiate or high school athletics after graduation. I love it

Filling the Seats when student-athletes say, “Hey Coach, have you thought about trying this?” Working together on this is part of the creative process and I think we all benefit.

When did you begin having players deliver season tickets— and how does it work?

I started it as an outreach program when I was Head Coach at the University of Kentucky. I thought it would be good marketing for the program, but I also felt it was john cohen important for our players to meet the alumni and fans they represented.

We make an announcement through social media the day before we send our players out in pairs to make deliveries. We usually do it on a Saturday so it doesn’t conflict with other commitments.

They only deliver to residents in Starkville and if no one is home, the players bring those tickets back and we mail them out.

How have you increased student attendance at your home games?

When I arrived at Mississippi State, our fan base was on the older side and I felt it was important to get our students involved so they could have that falling-in-love experience with the game, just like our older fans had. So we created a rewards program called ‘The Dudes,’ in homage to Dudy Noble, a legendary player and coach here. Students don’t have to do anything special to join The Dudes—just show up.

Their student IDs get them into games for free, so we started keeping track of each student’s attendance and rewarding it. We had one young man who attended 28 home games one season.

To thank him, we invited him to a practice and introduced him to the team, gave him a game jersey, and tweeted a 30-second video of his visit.

Also, the five students who attend the most games are invited to a steak dinner at my house with the players in the fall. We’re just trying to build a connection with student-fans that will bring them back to campus for games after they’ve graduated.

Mississippi State players hand-delivered season tickets to some of their fans in the Starkville area.

10 Coaching Management POSTSEASON 2013

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BULLETIN BOARD same as a deep fly ball—it was easy for me to tell him, ‘Why don’t you focus on keeping the ball on the ground and using your speed to get hits?’ He gradually got used to the idea and ended up being much more successful at the plate.”

Besides making practice scenarios as realistic as possible, LaValley says the key to getting players to buy into the system is stressing that the process matters more than product. “I tell the team that if they’ve got a good approach at the plate and consistently hit line drives, things will break their way eventually,” he says.

“Likewise, even if they’re getting hits, if they have a poor approach and aren’t making solid contact, they’re going to start making outs. The results have been great.”

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Hitters at Guilderland (N.Y.) High School are prepared for any situation they face at the plate, thanks to a new batting practice system Head Coach Doug LaValley implemented in 2012.

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SAFE AT HOME

Players from Linfield College celebrate winning the 2013 NCAA Division III championship after beating the University of Southern Maine, 4-1, to finish the season 42-8.

Q&A with Scott Brosius | Linfield college

season, he returned to Linfield as an assistant to Scott Carnahan, who was Brosius’s coach at Linfield. When Carnahan was promoted to Athletic Director in 2007, Brosius became the head coach.

Brosius set several school hitting records at Linfield before embarking on an 11year major league career with the Yankees and Oakland Athletics. After retiring from professional baseball following the 2001

In this interview, Brosius talks about his second baseball career. He discusses why he wanted to coach, adjusting to the Division III game, and getting the opportunity to lead the USA Under 18 squad.

Management POSTSEASON 2013 12 Coaching Management

Coaching agrees with Brosius, as his 200-72 record indicates. In addition to the 2013 national title, the Wildcats have won four Northwest Conference championships and three regional titles. He has also earned Northwest Conference Coach of the Year honors in 2008, 2010, 2011, and 2013.

CM: What have been the keys to your success at Linfield?

Brosius: I think the biggest strength of our program is developing our players. We recruit talented athletes who we think have a lot of upside, and then it becomes our job as coaches to help them reach their full potential. Right off the bat, we put them in competitive drills so they are constantly pushing one another to get better while fighting for playing time. Not only does this environment help individuals improve, it makes the entire team better as well.

How did you build your team?

As a coach, you need to have a vision of how your program is going to be successful.

When putting together my squad at Linfield, I looked at what made the Yankees teams I was CoachesNetwork.com CoachesNetwork.com

LEHIGH PHOTO/LINFIELD SPORTS INFORMATION

In most of the country, Scott Brosius is best known for being named the MVP of the 1998 World Series, one of three championships the New York Yankees won with him playing third base. But in and around McMinnville, Ore., he is also hailed for his success at Linfield College, the current NCAA Division III National Champions.

Q&A on successful. We had a good lineup, and we were pretty talented, but we weren’t a powerladen squad. We won because we had great pitching, played solid defense, and were able to manufacture runs in different ways. That’s the kind of team I wanted—skilled pitchers, tough defenders, and guys who can get hits.

What is your coaching philosophy?

Naturally, I’m here to instruct the players on how to win games. But I think in the bigger picture, my goal is to teach our guys how to be successful in whatever they do after their time at Linfield. If they have the talent to play professionally, that’s great. But succeeding in pro ball requires intangibles such as a strong work ethic, discipline, and perseverance in order to grind though the minor leagues. For players who don’t go the baseball route, those same characteristics apply to getting a job on the bottom rung of the business world and climbing that ladder.

I tell my players, “Let’s pursue greatness in baseball, but let’s also see how good we can become in all areas of our life.”

Your team has frequently laid down

sacrifice bunts. What value does bunting have to you?

Although I think it’s important to know how you want to play, you also have to be realistic in what your players are capable of. While I’d love to see us pound the ball every at bat, for the middle chunk of 2012, we struggled offensively. Since we weren’t stringing hits together, we decided to start bunting a little more in order to create runs in other ways.

Now it is a skill we emphasize daily in practice. Every hitter on our roster knows how to bunt, because there will come a time during a close game in the playoffs when we will need to get a bunt down, and I want to know we can do that regardless of who is at the plate.

When did you decide you wanted to coach?

When I retired from professional baseball, I didn’t have a plan in mind other than knowing I needed to spend more time with my family. Wanting to coach is something that developed gradually.

It began with coaching my kids’ little league baseball and middle school basket-

ball teams. Gradually, I moved to helping at the local high school and then Linfield.

As I spent more time working at the college level, I became more and more attracted to that atmosphere.

What drew you to the college game?

I see aspects of myself in the players.

They have a real passion and eagerness to learn and are dedicated to getting better. At the high school level, I didn’t always see that same level of commitment.

Although Scott Carnahan is now Linfield’s Athletic Director, he stayed on your staff as a pitching coach. What is your relationship with him?

As a player, I had the chance to learn from incredible managers like Tony La Russa and Joe Torre, but for me, everything comes back to Coach Carnahan. Having him remain on staff has been invaluable because I can still lean on his knowledge and benefit from his advice. There are always going to be things that come up that I haven’t been through or thought about. Having someone on my staff with more than 20 years of coaching experi-

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Q&A ence helped lessen the worries of my first year, and I’m still learning lessons from him about recruiting and how to treat players.

What adjustments did you have to make to coach in Division III?

At the big league level, you’re working with guys who have already been through a lot of life experiences, made mistakes, and learned from them, so they are more refined mentally. When I came back to Linfield, I quickly realized there are a lot of things that 18- to 22-year-olds don’t know yet.

So when it comes to coaching the fundamentals, I break concepts down to their most basic element and work from there. Our players come from a variety of programs, and they were taught different things, so we keep it simple. For example, I’ll tell them, “Successful hitters look fastball, adjust to the breaking pitch, and look outside but react inside.”

College baseball, especially in Division III, is played much differently than the pros.

Major league teams rely so much on power at the plate that things like double steals, hit and runs, and certain bunting situations rarely happen. But we still do those things at this

1

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level, so I had to reacquaint myself with those parts of the game.

What advice do you give players who want to play professionally?

The biggest thing I tell them is that the players who make it are not just the ones who are physically able but those who are mentally strong and disciplined enough to do what needs to be done to succeed. True discipline and dedication means working as hard on the things you don’t like as the things you do. It’s easy to go to the cages and take some swings, but are they willing to put in the work to become a more complete player? Are they willing to go the extra mile by hitting the weightroom and doing conditioning in the off-season?

You served as Head Coach for USA Baseball’s Under 18 team in 2011 and 2012. How did you find the time to coach the squad with all of its international trips?

The decision to coach the U18 team only came after I had a couple of important conversations. First, I spoke with my wife and

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children about being away again for a couple of summers. Next, I talked to my coaching staff to see if they would be able to pick up some of the slack in terms of watching summer games that I would miss. Everyone bought in. One thing that made the decision easier was that USA Baseball organizes its schedules so coaches who are responsible for another program can balance both teams.

Looking back, it was a stretch at first.

I initially felt uncomfortable and would ask myself, “Can I do this?” But I think it’s important to get out of your comfort zone and keep yourself from getting complacent.

In what ways did coaching the USA U18 team differ from coaching at Linfield?

I was dealing with a different skill level with the U18 team. Two years ago, 10 to 12 guys from that squad were selected in the first round of the major league draft. Although you are working with the best of the best, the players are still 18 years old, which means they make mistakes and lack maturity at times. The biggest difference is an U18 kid might throw a 95 mph fastball and a Linfield pitcher throws it at 85. CM

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STOPPING

A SLUMP Veteran coaches share their advice on turning things around when players, or even whole teams, are struggling to perform their best. | By Patrick Bohn

Tim Scannell, Head Coach at Trinity University (Texas), has had a lot of success during his time with the Tigers, winning six Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference championships and making seven trips to the NCAA Division III baseball tournament. But even thriving programs like his aren’t immune to stretches of bad play from time to time.

During one losing streak a few years ago, Scannell was frustrated as his team struggled to get back on track. Rather than pushing his squad even harder to eliminate mistakes, he chose a different approach for a midweek practice. When the players arrived for their workout, they found the field set up for a Wiffle ball tournament.

“Sometimes, when you’re struggling and the changes you make to the lineup aren’t working, you need to hit the reset button,” Scannell says. “As a coaching staff, we

thought the guys needed to get away from the game and relax. We knew playing Wiffle ball would accomplish that. The players had a lot of fun, and we won our next game to kick off a long winning streak.”

For coaches, one of the biggest keys to continued success is turning their team—or individual players—around when they’re struggling. But doing so can be a challenge.

Some players may try to do too much when things aren’t going well, while others may lose focus and intensity. Losing can put

University of Louisville players congratulate each other following a win. Their coach, Dan McDonnell, likes to focus on effort and energy when he feels his team is struggling.

Photo by Jeff Reinking/Louisville Sports Information

everyone in a funk, changing the dynamics of team chemistry. And confidence levels— even the head coach’s—can wane as losses pile up, making it even more difficult to right the ship.

E FOR EFFORT

The first step toward getting your team back on track is figuring out the root of the problem. Assuming the issue is not a lack of talent, coaches usually focus on the players’ attitude and effort, which can affect the team in many ways.

Kevin James, Head Coach at Yukon (Okla.) High School, saw troubling signs early in the 2013 season. “We started well, then lost three in a row because some players were not giving 100 percent,” he says.

“For example, in one game, an opposing batter hit a swinging bunt, and even though our pitcher could have made a play on the ball, he didn’t even go after it. He just waited for someone else to field the ball, and the runner reached first safely.

“The hit itself didn’t bother me,” James continues. “What upset and concerned me was seeing a guy take a play off and let his teammates pick up the slack.”

A lack of effort and enthusiasm can reveal itself in more subtle ways, too, if a

is to lead by example. Bob Castell, Head Coach at The Haverford (Pa.) School, says actions often speak louder than words. “If I see the team’s effort is dropping, I’ll have my younger assistant coaches take part in drills,” he says. “Seeing something as simple as a coach diving for a groundball shows the kids the work we’re expecting from them.”

Another option is to discuss the importance of playing with energy. “Our coaching staff uses a phrase that seems to get the players’ attention,” says Dan McDonnell, Head Coach at the University of Louisville. “When we’re struggling, we tell them: ‘We’re looking for lid-lifters, not energy vampires.’ For us, it’s about keeping your head up—lifting that lid—during the tough times and not sucking the energy out of the team by being down.”

While a lack of focus or effort can lead to obvious problems, sometimes trouble comes when players try to do too much.

“Our ballpark plays small, so when things aren’t going well, some guys try to hit a home run in every at bat,” Castell says. “As a result, we have a harder time getting on base and our offense suffers.

“Whenever that occurs, I put more focus on situational hitting,” he continues. “During one early season game, we had the bases

infielders are making mistakes, for example, it’s important for me to set up practice situations where they can succeed, especially early in the year,” says Pat Casey, Head Coach at Oregon State University. “Taking a little bit off the balls I hit them can get the players into a rhythm and get their confidence up. After the drill is over, I remind them of all the things they’ve done to be successful at this level and stress that I have confidence in them.”

Another tactic can be providing players alternative opportunities to compete and succeed outside of games. “Sometimes, it’s just about getting them to feel like they’re winners,” Scannell says. “We score everything we do during practice and when a player has an exceptional day on defense during a practice, he gets to wear a yellow jersey the next day. We call it the ‘Tour de Fence.’ Even little things like that can make a player feel great about themselves and raise their confidence level going into the next game.”

Castell says another option is to shift the players’ focus from whatever they’re struggling with and place it on something else they do well. “For example, if one of my speed guys is in a hitting slump, sometimes I won’t even let him swing the bat in practice,” he says. “I’ll have him work solely on

“We score everything we do during practice and when a player has an exceptional day on defense during a practice, he gets to wear a yellow jersey the next day. We call it the ‘Tour de Fence.’ Even little things like that can make a player feel great about themselves and raise their confidence level going into the next game.” | TIM SCANNELL, TRINITY UNIVERSITY coach is paying attention. “Sometimes, when we’re not playing well, I’ll watch guys at the bunting station during practice,” Scannell says. “If they’re just going through the motions and not paying attention to the technical aspects of getting a good bunt down, I address it immediately. Lack of effort and a bad attitude can spread quickly and contribute to even more losses.”

In some cases, the negative behavior can stem from complacency. “When we struggle, it’s often because guys take a look at the schedule, see what they think is a stretch of easier games, and check out mentally,” Scannell says. “Then they stop working hard in games and practices. When that happens, I call attention to their lack of effort to get them back on track.”

So what else can a coach do when his players aren’t giving their all? One approach 20 Coaching Management POSTSEASON 2013

loaded, and I called for a squeeze, which I rarely do in that situation. The hitter got the bunt down, the other team threw the ball away, and we scored a couple of runs. That really relaxed our players and set the right tone for the rest of the season. The hitters realized they didn’t need to crush the ball every time they went to the plate in order to be productive.”

WINNING THE CONFIDENCE GAME

Whether the whole team is in a funk or it’s just a few key players, one of a coach’s biggest challenges is keeping everyone on the squad from doubting their ability to get the job done. Fortunately, a player’s confidence level can be worked on in practice, just like mechanical flaws in a pitcher’s motion or a hitch in a batter’s swing.

“If we’re losing games because the

his bunting instead, because I know he’s able to beat out a good bunt for a hit. Once he starts feeling like he’s helping the team again, he’ll be more confident when it’s time to swing away.”

In some cases, however, a player’s struggles may require a lineup change for the good of the team. In these situations, it’s crucial to know how the player will react.

Some are okay with sitting out for a game.

They see it as a “mental health day” and a chance to clear their minds. Others, though, may take offense to the switch. This is when a coach needs to reinforce his continued belief in the athlete, despite the change.

“One season, I had a senior who was a returning all-region player who really strugPATRICK BOHN is an Assistant Editor at Coaching Management. He can be reached at: pb@MomentumMedia.com.

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COVER STORY

keeping the peace One common side effect of individuals or teams not playing up to par is that reserves may feel resentment over not getting a chance to play. It’s one thing to sit

behind a guy who is hitting .350 with power. It’s another to see a player hitting .150 continue to get all the at bats.

While building a sense of teamwork and camaraderie is always important, it can be especially crucial when things aren’t going well.

“My first year coaching, my starting catcher dropped a pop-up, and the backup catcher laughed,” says Brian Morrison, Head Coach at Hartland (Mich.) High School. “I sat him down the next day and told him it was unacceptable and that he needed to support his

teammate. He apologized to the starter, and I haven’t had a problem since. That really set the tone for the program going forward.”

Dan McDonnell, Head Coach at the University of Louisville, says it’s important to communicate with your bench players about their roles. “I try to remain conscious of the attitude of the backups,” he says. “But I stress to them that I’m not going to make a move just because the starter is slumping. I need a reason to think they’re worthy of a shot. I need to know that they’ve spent extra time in the batting cage or on the field, working to improve their game. When I know that they have been doing that, I feel more confident about giving them a chance to show what they can do.”

gled at the beginning of the year, so I put him on the bench for a few games,” Scannell says. “But I kept the lines of communication open and told him he was going to be our guy at the end of the year. It was important that he heard that and knew we were still counting on him, and he was able to turn it around.”

To show his support for hitters he’s taken out of the lineup, Castell sometimes places them in a specific game situation where they are more likely to succeed. “For example, if the bases are loaded and there are less than two outs, there’s a good chance that simply putting the ball in play will drive in a run,” he says. “Then, everyone’s excited for him, he feels good about himself, and his confidence begins to come back.”

With pitchers though, Scannell might take a different approach. Instead of making them comfortable, he will occasionally bring them into the game in a difficult spot. “I want to see his competitive instinct take over,” Scannell says. “The challenge of simply getting one guy out can break a pitcher out of a slump.”

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HASH IT OUT

Sometimes, the problems plaguing a squad have more to do with chemistry and teamwork than mechanics or confidence. In these cases, it may be necessary to address the team as a whole. But team meetings

enth-inning lead,” he says. “I called a meeting for 6:30 Monday morning, and I think the players came into it worried I’d lay into them.

“To their surprise, it was more of a heartto-heart talk than anything else,” McDonnell

wound up reaching the Super Regionals that year.”

Another option is to remind players that although losing is no fun, it’s important to keep things in context. “Last April, we lost a few games, and the kids were getting down

“There are a lot of things you can do to make practice fun that will take a team’s mind off their struggles ... sometimes, if it’s been raining, we’ll let the kids slide across the wet turf for a while. Other times, the assistant coaches will join them for a game of stickball where everyone has to bat from their non-natural side. Getting the coaches involved really relaxes the players.” | Bob Castell, The Haverford (Pa.) SchooL don’t have to feature a coach reading the riot act. There are several other ways to get your message across.

McDonnell recalls a time when he needed to talk with his team following a stretch of bad play. “We had lost two of three and then dropped a Sunday game against the University of Notre Dame by blowing a 12-7, sev-

continues. “I told the guys that I had certain expectations for them and a vision of what the team could accomplish, but we weren’t doing what needed to be done to reach those goals. Instead of breaking them down, I just laid things out plainly. They bought in to the vision I laid out and started playing with more energy and making fewer mistakes. We

on themselves,” Castell says. “We reminded them of the tragedies at the Boston Marathon and the explosion at the Texas fertilizer plant that week. We told them to be thankful that they were all happy, safe, and able to play baseball.”

McDonnell has used this approach as well. “Players sometimes act like their strug-

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gles are worse than they are,” he says. “To remind them of the big picture, I cut out sad stories from the newspaper and put them on a bulletin board for the guys to read. Seeing all of the awful things that go on in the world can put things in perspective pretty quickly.”

While addressing the team in a serious manner certainly has its benefits, strong coaches know that sometimes you just need to take a break. “There are a lot of things you can do to make practice fun that will take a team’s mind off their struggles,” says Castell. “We play on a synthetic turf field, and sometimes, if it’s been raining, we’ll let the kids slide across the wet turf for a while. Other times, the assistant coaches will join them for a game of stickball where everyone has to bat from their non-natural side. Getting the coaches involved really relaxes the players.”

Casey says it’s also important to remember that not every loss means there’s a larger problem. “If your team loses to a pitcher throwing 94, with a 12-to-6 curveball, you sometimes just have to tip your cap to the other team and move on,” he says. “There

have been times when we’ve lost games that way and I’ve told the team, ‘We played our tail off, and we simply got beat. As long as we keep playing this way, we’ll win our share of games. Let’s not dwell on it.’”

KEEP YOUR HEAD UP

Coaches are not immune to experiencing a dip in confidence when the team struggles.

They need to recognize this can happen and be ready to address it.

“It’s easy to let your own morale slip when you’re losing,” says Scannell. “You start thinking you haven’t been creative enough in practice, and you go crazy trying to think of ways to fix it.

“When that happens, I like to think back to how I felt as a player,” he continues. “I think successful baseball players have a swagger about them, so I try to return to that confident feeling from my playing days.”

McDonnell follows a simple approach to keep his confidence and enthusiasm high.

“If the team is struggling, I read motivational books, coaching books, or the Bible to keep myself upbeat,” he says. “I also make sure to surround myself with positive peo-

ple, be it family, friends, or assistant coaches, and avoid negative people. That goes a long way toward keeping my spirits up.”

Above all, Brian Morrison, Head Coach at Hartland (Mich.) High School, says it’s important to keep things in perspective. “If you get down on yourself when the team is struggling, remind yourself why you got into coaching in the first place,” he says. “It wasn’t just to win games. It was to help kids learn the sport and get better. Even if you’re losing, you can help your players do those things. So focus on that and not the results.”

Every coach will eventually hit a rough patch. But if you have confidence in yourself and your team, you can come out of it better than ever.

“Sometimes a team will lose three, four, or even five in a row, and the coach thinks they need to throw out their whole system,” McDonnell says. “You don’t. It’s better to trust your abilities and trust your plan. You can make some small tweaks here and there to address specific situations, but once you start changing the core of what you do as coach, you’ll never stop and you’ll drive yourself crazy.” CM

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2012 FOOTBALL SCHEDULE HOmE gAmES in rED Date/opponent time Location Date/opponent time Location Friday, August 24 Norwalk

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1996 Luke Peterson (2) Nathan Stewart Grant Wesson Blake Hansen 1997 Nick Matsen Wade Rinderknecht Craig Wilkening David Foreman Ed Machin

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1998 Joe Illingworth

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STRATEGIES fOR SOCIALIZING james f. kraus

How do you ensure that social media mishaps don’t bring harm to your team?

This author suggests putting proactive policies in place. By Steve Trifone

CoachesNetwork.com

On the one hand, social media is an amazing tool that has made a coach’s job easier. A coach can check the league Twitter feed while watching the team warm up. He or she can relay information to the media while on the team bus. And a coach can quickly contact the athletic trainer if there’s an injury.

On the other hand, this new way of communicating has handed coaches complicated issues to deal with, many of which have no existing guidelines. Is it okay for coaches and athletes to text each other? What should a coach do if someone anonymously forwards a negative photo of an athlete?

The explosion of social media is not new, but its increasing presence in society means we need to think more deeply about its use Coaching Management POSTSEASON 2013 25

and misuse. For many years, school districts tried to ban cell phones and student use of social media while at school. That has become unrealistic. Instead, the trend is to develop policies and procedures on social media behavior, along with educating students about using it properly.

In athletics, we need to do the same.

While following their schools’ rules, coaches should consider outlining additional specific policies on social media for their athletes.

They also need to educate everyone involved about the capabilities and hazards of these communication tools.

EMBRACING CHANGE

If you do not text, are not on Facebook, or have never checked out Twitter, you need to revamp your communications toolbox.

Social media has become such a huge part of American society that you risk being perceived as out of touch among student-athletes if you don’t embrace it.

You will also be missing out on tools that can help you do your job. For example, texting can streamline communications because it is so quick and easy to do. Our busy lives do not always allow for phone conversations so a quick text has become a helpful resource.

Using Facebook to reach out to constituents is also a time-saver. You do not need to use Facebook in your personal life to set up Facebook groups that keep you easily connected to others in your coaching life. This could include a Facebook group for parents of student-athletes or another for alumni athletes.

Many coaches set up Facebook groups for their teams as a way to quickly and easily communicate important information. Items such as practice schedules, team outings, upcoming events, and parent information make these sites a worthwhile tool. A group can be set up to include parents and athletes by invitation only, thereby restricting access to others. One rule to follow at the high school level is that whenever you allow access by athletes, you need to give their parents access, too.

Twitter is one of the fastest growing electronic message tools used today. Setting up a Twitter account can allow you to update followers on game results, changes in schedules, and general information. Today’s parents want to be in the know and the need for up-to-date information is important to them. Posting on Twitter is fast and easy and can be fun to do.

EDUCATING OTHERS

Along with all the wonderful things social media can do, it’s no secret that it can be destructive. From trash-talking opponents to the posting of inappropriate materials that violate codes of conduct, online communication can lead to problems, both minor and major.

I recently presented a class to my coaching staff here at Cheshire (Conn.) High School on social media mishaps. It was well attended, and the topic stimulated great dialog among the attendees. Here are some of the things we discussed: Privacy: I explained to our coaches that the most important thing for everyone to understand is that nothing on the Internet is private. Once you send or post something, you have relinquished control over it. That picture you only wanted friends to see can easily be forwarded to others, either intentionally or inadvertently, by anyone who received it. Pictures and messages can be easily saved or copied, and the privacy controls used by social media sites are not foolproof. Plus, a defense based on, “I never

thought anyone else would see it,” isn’t likely to carry much weight.

Proper use: We talked a lot about how to use social media responsibly, and why it’s a bad idea to communicate with students through these tools unless it’s a formal team Facebook page that includes parents. If a coach friends an athlete on Facebook, then the athlete’s posts can appear on the coach’s page. If the coach needs to discipline that same player, it’s easy to imagine the athlete posting something negative on his or her page about the coach. This post can then appear on the coach’s page, creating tension.

Another problem is if a coach went to a player’s Facebook page and saw inappropriate photos of the player or teammates. Ideally, athletes never do anything wrong, but in reality they do, and post things they shouldn’t. You probably don’t want to become a Facebook police officer.

We also discussed the use of our personal Facebook accounts and how “secure” they truly are. Students will seek out Facebook accounts and often find a way to view

do’s & don’ts Last fall, the University of Michigan implemented a social media policy, which requires its student-athletes to inform the athletic department of all their accounts and follow some specific guidelines. Below are those guidelines.

dO set your security settings so that

only your friends can see your account.

most likely to say something you will regret.

dON’T accept friend or follow

dO be familiar with the department’s

requests if you are not sure who they are coming from.

social media policy and the consequences for violating it.

dO understand that who you have

dON’T post anything about a

listed as followers or friends is a reflection on you.

dON’T put anything on social

media that you would not want your family, your future employers, those reading the front page of the paper, or the whole world to see.

recruit, even if it is someone you know, as this will result in an NCAA rules violation.

dO ask questions if you are not sure what you are doing is okay.

dON’T post anything that could be

retweet—will this positively reinforce my brand?

construed as an endorsement or promotion of a business product or service, even if the business is owned by a relative or friend.

dON’T post offensive language,

dON’T post or tweet anything dur-

personal attacks, or racial comments.

ing a class.

dO talk to your sports information

dON’T publicize information about

dO think before you post, tweet, or

director about how to use social media to your advantage.

dON’T post when you are emo-

your team, the athletic department, or the university that is not considered public knowledge.

tional, like right after a game. You are

STEVE TRIFONE is Director of Athletics and Department Leader in Applied Technology at Cheshire (Conn.) High School. He can be reached at: strifone@cheshire.k12.ct.us.

26 Coaching Management POSTSEASON 2013

CoachesNetwork.com

leadership

personal accounts that you think are protected. High school coaches should never use their formal name (which is easy to find) for their Facebook account and should be very careful what they post, even if they are using enhanced privacy settings. It can work well to have one Facebook account for your

sometimes we are careless about who will receive the message. Before hitting send, make sure you know who your words are going to. The “Reply All” button can cause huge difficulties when unintended recipients are included.

Keep it simple: Less is more when reply-

and the situation became very embarrassing.

The coach was suspended pending further investigation.

ATHLETES & PARENTS

After getting up to speed on social media best practices for themselves, coaches should

Properly using social media also means not posting anything negative about the athletic program. This includes refraining from talking about opponents, officials, or student-athletes. Coaching is such a high-profile job, it’s easy for even a casual comment to blow up into a social media crisis. ing to messages from parents. Quick answers are a better response than a journal of your deepest thoughts. If you find yourself having a lengthy conversation via e-mail or text, cut it off. A face-to-face meeting is more effective at that point.

Understand the consequences: During our class, we discussed a coach who had the cell number of a student-athlete in his phone.

The coach accidentally sent a text, which was meant for the coach’s girlfriend, to the student. Needless to say, the text spread rapidly,

educate athletes on the topic. Along with a discussion on privacy, similar to what is in the above text, here are some areas I discuss with our student-athletes: Blogs and electronic chat rooms: Student-athletes need to be educated on the potential pitfalls of using these sites. Many times athletes will post comments hoping to stimulate conversation with another school.

Most, if not all, comments posted on blogs and chats are based on emotion, not a thoughtful expression of ideas. People can

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personal life and one that is more public to use with school groups.

Properly using social media also means not posting anything negative about the athletic program. This includes refraining from talking about opponents, officials, or student-athletes. Coaching is such a highprofile job, it’s easy for even a casual comment to blow up into a social media crisis.

Know your audience: All too often people will send a message without fully thinking about the content. Even worse,

Step up to the plate.

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hide behind fictitious names, and there are usually no boundaries. Student-athletes can be quickly lured into replying to comments on such sites. My advice to athletes is to stay away from the temptation by simply not reading them.

Texting: The main message here is to think before you send. A hasty negative message by one athlete can cause dissension among teammates. In addition, studentathletes need to be reminded that once sent,

text messages cannot be taken back.

Some students also need instruction on when it is not appropriate to text. Last spring, my freshman baseball coach caught a player texting a friend in the dugout during a contest. Needless to say, that athlete spent the remainder of the game on the bench without his cell phone.

Online photos: Most high school students have a Facebook or Instagram account.

I ask all of my athletes to look at their photos

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on these accounts. I then ask them if they would show those same photos to their grandparents. If they answer, “No,” it is time to remove the picture.

When athletes counter that their Facebook page is private and they only “friend” people they know, I remind them that in reality nothing on the Internet is completely private. Once one other person has access, there is no way for you to control who can and cannot view it.

In discussing photos, we also talk about how camera phones are prevalent. Students take pictures wherever they are, and it’s easy to unknowingly be in a photo posted on someone’s Facebook page or Web site. If you are doing anything that might be seen as negative, it can very easily end up in a photo for the world to see. These can be found by a college coach or employer or used as evidence of illegal activity. We stress two things: do not attend events that could endanger your reputation; and do not jump into every picture being taken without thinking about what it shows.

Twitter: Similar rules apply for Twitter accounts. We explain to student-athletes that the world does not need to know about every minute of your life. Overuse of a media tool will most likely lead to something you did not want people to know. In addition, when faced with the 140-character limit, it can be difficult to convey exactly the meaning you intend, and tweets are often misinterpreted because of this.

Bullying: Kids are accustomed to posting comments about others without a lot of thought. Student-athletes should understand that negative comments towards others can be hurtful, and even seen as cyber-bullying, which is not tolerated in most schools. The ramifications of bullying can be destructive for the victim, and for the one doing the bullying. Remind students that once a comment is in writing, it becomes proof the statement was made and the digital footprint will always be in existence.

It can be helpful to also talk about social media to parents during the preseason parents’ meeting. The main point to get across to parents is to stop and think before they express opinions about their children’s sports teams. Being the parent of a student-athlete can stir strong emotions and when something doesn’t go right, it’s easy to vent on Facebook.

Ask them to refrain from doing so.

You can also require parents to abide by a “24 hour rule” when communicating with you. If a parent has an issue, ask them not to send a message to you within the first 24 hours. The tone of an e-mail or text written CoachesNetwork.com

leadership

one hour after a game is going to be quite different from one addressing the same issue 24 hours later. Ask them to take a day to process their thoughts.

RULES & GUIDELINES

More and more school districts are putting social media policies in place, which is a great way to set expectations for students and staff. Whether or not your school has done this, you should consider coming up with some policies that apply specifically to your team.

One rule we have is that coaches and student-athletes may not friend each other on Facebook. Under no circumstances should a coach provide a student-athlete access to their social media accounts. And a coach should also never have access to a student’s Facebook account. The one exception is for team pages.

Another policy we’ve implemented is to restrict use of cell phones in locker rooms.

All school districts disallow security cameras in locker rooms since their presence would be an invasion of privacy. Yet when a team enters the locker room, the athletes are most likely carrying cell phones with a built-in

camera. A quick shot of someone undressing could become problematic. A copy of that photo sent to a Facebook or Twitter account can suddenly put indecent pictures of your players all over the Internet.

Our policy states that all cell phones need to be turned off in a locker room. Calls to home must be made in the parking lot or hallway. Anyone found using a cell phone in a locker room faces disciplinary action.

While we don’t have a formal policy on texting between coaches and athletes, I discourage the practice. Some coaches feel texting players about basic information will get the word out quicker than a phone tree.

While this may be true, I do not like the practice of coaches having personal cell phone numbers of athletes—or athletes having the coach’s cell number. It can easily lead to conversations that should never happen.

Any message to an athlete should take the conventional avenue: phone call at home or personal conversation. As an alternative way to get information such as schedule changes out quickly to the team, the coach can speak with the team captain, who then disseminates it via text.

ONE STEP AHEAD

The social media craze is here to stay, and one thing we can be sure of is that it will continue to change. Coaches need to be in tune with the communication tools student-athletes are using right now. Some of the latest social media platforms are already old news (remember MySpace?) and the Facebook explosion may be replaced by something else before we know it. We also need to be ready to navigate any hazards the next craze may bring.

Because of the reach and immediacy of social media, making sure we communicate properly is more important than ever. We can’t forget about the importance of face-toface conversation while at the same time keeping up on how our students are communicating through electronic devices.

Know what’s out there now and be ready for what will come next. CM

A version of this article was previously published in other editions of Coaching Management, as well as our sister publication Athletic Management. For more articles visit: www.AthleticManagement.com.

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FACILITIES

turf decisions

Synthetic turf has given coaches additional options when it comes to choosing a playing surface. But for some, natural grass might still be the best way to go. We take a look at the pros and cons of each. By Patrick Bohn

CoachesNetwork.com

Natural or synthetic? That’s the debate taking place in many high school and college baseball offices right now. While grass fields remain the most popular choice, modern synthetic turf has become a viable alternative for some. Today’s synthetic fields look and play more like traditional grass fields than ever before, while also helping to cut down on maintenance time and lost playing time due to inclement weather.

However, there are still costs and concerns when it comes to synthetic turf fields, including safety issues and replacement of well-worn areas, not to mention the higher upfront costs that come with installing a new synthetic turf field.

Some schools have even had success in mixing surfaces. The most common hybrid Coaching Management Postseason 2013 31

configuration is to have a synthetic turf infield with a grass outfield, but the reverse setup is also being used. And even those who opt to use synthetic turf on the whole field often choose to use dirt for the pitcher’s mound and around home plate.

So how do you decide which playing surface is best for you? In this article, we talk with coaches and grounds workers about the benefits and drawbacks of both types of surface.

They also offer advice on the best way to get the most out of whatever surface you choose.

PRESERVING PLAYABILITY

One of a coach’s primary concerns when considering a synthetic turf field is how the new surface will affect play. The first generations of synthetic turf were harder and faster than natural grass, which changed the way the game was played. Infielders often positioned themselves in the outfield, and the ball bounced around so much that some people said it looked more like pinball than baseball.

The newest generation of synthetic turf systems, however, is different. Most use an infill material, often sand or crushed rubber, to help keep the synthetic blades standing

biggest adjustments players need to make has to do with sliding,” he says. “On synthetic turf, players come into the bag faster than they do on dirt. Not only do you run the risk of over-sliding the base and being tagged out, there’s a greater risk of jamming an ankle or a wrist.”

The variety of synthetic turf options to choose from led one coach to enlist his players in the decision-making process. Owasso (Okla.) High School Head Coach Larry Turner has seen his school go through two turf changes, the most recent coming three years ago.

“When our coaching staff was looking at various surfaces prior to our last switch, we had the players come along for a test drive,” he says. “They fielded some ground balls on each surface, and we asked them which they felt more comfortable on. While there are a lot of things to consider when it comes to turf, don’t forget that the players have to feel good playing on it.”

When Michael Frank, Head Coach at Fox Chapel High School in Pittsburgh, was looking to replace his school’s infield with synthetic turf, he listened to his pitchers who told him they wanted to continue using a

“January and February are the two most important months for a college baseball team,” Walter says. “When we had a grass field, I can’t tell you how many times during those months I would wake up at three in the morning, hear it raining, and wonder if we had put the tarp over the field so we would be able to practice that day. But now, I don’t have to worry about it.”

The ability to play in any weather can have competitive advantages as well. “This year, we were able to practice on days when other teams couldn’t,” Turner says. “Even when we got a freak snowstorm, all we had to do was shovel off the field, and we were able to practice.”

Frank agrees. “Before we made the switch, we probably had to practice in the gym one or two days a week,” he says. “Since then, we’ve only been inside two days total. And we’ve even gotten extra home games as a result of our opponent being unable to host due to bad weather.”

Asprion says, however, that many grass fields could be made more playable in inclement weather if programs would take money they’re thinking of spending on a synthetic turf system and invest some of it into irrigat-

“When our coaching staff was looking at various surfaces prior to our last switch, we had the players come along for a test drive.

They fielded some ground balls on each surface, and we asked them which they felt more comfortable on.” upright. This not only makes the play more closely resemble grass fields, it also gives teams the ability to adjust infill levels to suit their own needs.

“This past season, we made our field a little faster because we were an offensiveminded team,” says Wake Forest University Head Coach Tom Walter. “But next year I think we’ll be a little more pitching-based, so we might decide to slow it down a little bit.”

Tyler Brewer, Virginia Tech’s Athletic Fields Coordinator, has maintained grass fields for both a minor league team and the Hokies— before they switched to synthetic turf last season. He says it’s critical for coaches and players to understand that sometimes unanticipated changes can occur to synthetic fields.

“As the season progressed and the synthetic surface started to settle in, the players said that the ball actually started traveling faster and that they had to make adjustments,” he says. “With grass, I think you’re going to see more week in, week out consistency.”

But Brewer adds that playability isn’t solely about how the ball moves. “One of the 32 Coaching Management Postseason 2013

dirt mound. “We’d played on a field that had a synthetic mound, and our pitchers said it was awkward,” he says. “They told me their plant foot would stick into the surface rather than sliding naturally.”

It’s also important that coaches consider their players’ long-term careers when thinking about surfaces. “While synthetic fields are becoming more popular at high schools and colleges, at the professional level, an overwhelming majority of the teams still have grass fields,” says Rene Asprion, Sales Manager at Diamond Pro and a member of the Sport Turf Managers Association. “If a kid has spent his high school and college careers taking groundballs off of synthetic turf, making the transition to grass could be a struggle.”

RAIN, RAIN, GO AWAY

Dealing with weather—and how it affects practice and game schedules—is one of the toughest things for a baseball coach to handle, especially when early-season snow is a common obstacle. And that’s one area where synthetic surfaces have a clear advantage.

ing their grass fields properly. “Major league teams make having a playable field a priority, and it pays off,” he says. “While a high school or college might have trouble doing it at the same level, it can be improved significantly.”

Brewer agrees. “If you aerify the dirt on a grass field in the early spring by poking holes in it with a hollow tine, you’ll create more places for the water to go when it rains,” he says.

Another weather aspect to consider is player health and safety, especially for teams in the West and South. “The temperature on a synthetic surface can be significantly higher than on grass,” says Asprion. “Heat-related illnesses are becoming a bigger concern for athletic departments, so they need to keep an eye on that. I also think playing on grass leads to less wear and tear on players’ joints.”

An often overlooked benefit of a synthetic field is the way the turf can withstand use and remain in playable condition. “What PATRICK BOHN is an Assistant Editor at Coaching Management. He can be reached at: pb@MomentumMedia.com

CoachesNetwork.com

FACILITIES

I love about the synthetic portion of our field is that the guys can practice on it the day before a game,” says Frank, who has a grass outfield and a synthetic turf infield.

“There’s no concern that they’re going to tear up part of it.”

Coaches also like having increased flexibility when it comes to setting up practices on synthetic turf. “Every square inch of our

in the time devoted to maintenance. JSerra High School in San Juan Capistrano, Calif., has one of the most unique fields in the country—the outfield consists of synthetic turf while the infield is natural grass. And JSerra Head Coach Brett Kay appreciates how easy it is to maintain his outfield.

“I groom the outfield a couple of times a week and it’s pretty simple,” he says. “I prob-

But Asprion says synthetic turf fields aren’t without maintenance needs. “I think some coaches have a misconception that they won’t need to do anything if they have a synthetic field,” he says. “Not only is this not true, they need to realize they’re going to need to use different equipment than they’ve used on their grass fields.”

At Owasso, Turner has established a reg-

“Major league teams make having a playable field a priority, and it pays off. While a high school or college might have trouble doing it at the same level, it can be improved significantly.” field is a practice field,” says Walter. “It’s great not to have to worry about wearing out a portion of the turf, or have to see players fighting for practice space on certain spots. Now, we just spread them out, and everyone gets their work in. Practices are more efficient that way.”

MAINTENANCE PROGRAM

One of the benefits coaches often cite after switching to synthetic turf is a decrease

ably spend twice as much time on the infield.”

The story is similar at Fox Chapel.

“We’ve probably cut our maintenance by 80 to 90 percent by using synthetic turf for the basepaths,” Frank says. “For example, we no longer have to paint lines on them or water the infield dirt. I have my players help with the maintenance, and taking care of those things really cut into our practice time.”

ular maintenance schedule. “Once a week, we take a machine to groom the turf and make sure the infill is evened out and standing up properly,” he says. “If you don’t stay on top of that, you’re going to run into problems like strange hops.”

Schools that have dirt basepaths or a dirt mound also have to work to ensure the areas where dirt meets turf don’t become a problem. “When it rains or players slide into a base, there’s no way around it—the dirt is

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Coaching Management Postseason 2013 33

FACILITIES

going to spill over to the turf,” Kay says. “And if you don’t take care of it right away, it’s going to become embedded in there and the turf will stiffen up.

“To stop that from happening, every so often I use a power washer on all the areas

that gets into the turf on a regular basis, and use a wire brush to keep it clear.”

When it comes to maintenance, there are some areas where having a grass field can be an advantage. For example, short-term, high-use areas on the diamond can be

up properly,” Asprion says. “On a grass field, all you’ve got to do is replace some sod.”

Like many things in baseball, the decision to have a natural or synthetic field doesn’t come down to a “right” or “wrong” answer.

While synthetic turf has certain advantages

“Every square inch of our field is a practice field.

It’s great not to have to worry about wearing out a portion of the turf, or have to see players fighting for practice space on certain spots. Now, we just spread them out, and everyone gets their work in.” where the dirt and turf meet and blast it away,” he continues. “That can create little divots, but I just fill those in with the rubber infill. We also try to sweep it back on a daily basis.”

Turner pays special attention to the area around the mound. “We went to the Phillies’ spring training facility in Clearwater, and spoke with their groundskeepers about maintenance,” he says. “They stressed the importance of taking care of that area, so our groundskeeper will vacuum up the dirt

affected much more on a synthetic surface than a natural one. “I was talking with a colleague who played at a tournament on a synthetic field that wasn’t cared for properly,” Turner says. “He told me that by the end of the tournament, there was a groove at second base from all of the players sliding into the bag.”

From a year-to-year standpoint, it can also be trickier dealing with high-use areas on a turf field. “You’ve got to cut a section of carpet and make sure the seams are all lined

over grass, there are many benefits to sticking with a natural surface as well.

Those with a stake in choosing the surface, be it the coaching staff, school administrators, or facility managers, need to weigh the positives of both surfaces and decide which is the best fit for their program. By taking a close look at their needs and what it will take to maintain the field properly, they can ensure that whichever surface they ultimately choose will give their team a highquality playing experience. CM

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A-Turf • 888-777-6910 www.aturf.com

Circle No. 500

Screens to Meet Your Needs

West Coast Netting’s line of L-screens and batting screens offers professionalgrade protection. WCN designs and manufactures custom sizes and configurations to meet your needs.

The company also manufacture infield screens, tri-fold screens and softball pitcher’s screens. All models are portable and can have foam padding on the frames. WCN screens and netting are manufactured in the USA, offering a cost-efficient and highquality product for your baseball or softball facility.

West Coast Netting • 623-556-6873 www.westcoastnetting.com

Circle No. 504

Tuffy® Windscreen Super-Premium Screen

Good Enough for the Pros

Aer-Flo, Inc. • 800-823-7356 www.aerflo.com

C&H Baseball • 800-248-5192 www.chbaseball.com

The Tuffy ® Windscreen will last for years because it’s made of Aer-Flo’s exclusive VIPOL® Matrix. Used by all levels of baseball, even MLB, the Tuffy ® Windscreen has a five-year warranty. It is available in 20 standard colors, including purple, brown, burnt orange, and scarlet. Super-durable Chroma-Bond Imprinting technology produces multi-color logos that do not fade like digital printing. Super-premium, but surprisingly value-priced, the Tuffy ® Windscreen is the Official Windscreen of the US Professional Tennis Association and is sold only by Aer-Flo dealers.

Circle No. 501

Net Gains

Gourock provides reliable commercialstrength netting applications featuring top-notch craftsmanship and excellent service. Fast turnaround and multiple twine/ mesh size combinations are available. The company specializes in providing highquality materials and expert design and production. Its products can be customized to any dimensions.

Gourock • 877-803-5123 www.gourock.com

Circle No. 502

Everything for Your Infield

Everything you need to maintain and improve your infield is supplied by BEAM CLAY®, makers of infield mixes, mound and batter’s box clays, and red warning tracks for every state and climate from regional plants nationwide.

BEAM CLAY® also supplies more than 200 other ballfield products from bases to windscreens, and has supplied every MLB team, most minor league and college teams, and thousands of towns and schools from all 50 states and worldwide.

BEAM CLAY • 800-247-2326 www.beamclay.com CoachesNetwork.com

Circle No. 503

C&H Baseball has been supplying quality equipment to professional teams since 1968. The company’s products have been on the field for 45 years, which shows a commitment to quality. C&H manufactures portable batting cages, field screens, field products, padding, netting, and the “original” ball caddy.

Buy direct from the manufacturer and provide your team with some of the longest-performing field equipment on the market today. The company also provides field maintenance equipment, tunnels, installation services, backstop systems, barrier netting, replacement nets, and more.

Circle No. 527

A Natural Performer

Since installing its first collegiate field at Wichita State University in 2009, AstroTurf ® has installed more Division I baseball fields than any other synthetic turf manufacturer. AstroTurf’s baseball systems have been designed to perform like natural fields, which entails replicating the playability of both grass and clay. This playability is achieved using proprietary fibers, specialized infill ratios, communication with coaches, and a genuine understanding of the game itself.

AstroTurf • 800-723-8873 www.astroturf.com

Circle No. 528

The Professional Look

Pro’s Choice Select premium infield conditioner has a unique particle size blend and natural red color that gives you the look of a professional ballpark.

The small, uniformly sized, longlasting granules make it the perfect infield topdressing to keep your infields smooth, safe, and resilient. For winning fields season after season, use what the pros use—choose Pro’s Choice Select.

Pro’s Choice 800-648-1166 www.proschoice1.com

Circle No. 531 Coaching Management POSTseason 2013 35

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Circle #. . . . Company. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page #

Circle #. . . . Company. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page #

123 . . . . A-Turf® . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

121 . . . . Prep Gear. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

126 . . . . Aer-Flo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IBC

110 . . . . Pro Look Football. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

122 . . . . AstroTurf®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

103 . . . . Pro’s Choice Sports Field Products. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

129 . . . . Athlete’s Guide to Nutrition. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

101 . . . . Shock Doctor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

119 . . . . BEAM CLAY®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

114 . . . . Southern Athletic Fields. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

113 . . . . C&H Baseball. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

106 . . . . SPI Nets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

108 . . . . California University of Pennsylvania. . . . . . . . . . . . 14

127 . . . . Sports Attack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC

116 . . . . Coaching Management Program Service. . . . . . . . . 24

104 . . . . Sports Tutor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

124 . . . . Diamond Pro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

105 . . . . Stabilizer Solutions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

111 . . . . Disney Spring Training. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16-17

115 . . . . TannerTees.com. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

100 . . . . Gatorade . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IFC

120 . . . . TurfCordz®/NZ Manufacturing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

109 . . . . Gourock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

102 . . . . U.S. Baseball Academy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

107 . . . . Muhl Tech. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

112 . . . . Vero Beach Sports Village. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

125 . . . . National Sports Products. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

117 . . . . West Coast Netting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

118 . . . . OC Sports. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

128 . . . . Wizard Sports. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Circle #. . . . Company. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page #

Circle #. . . . Company. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page #

500 . . . . A-Turf® (Canisius College) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

537 . . . . OPTP. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

505 . . . . A-Turf® (Titan). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

536 . . . . Prep Gear. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

506 . . . . Aer-Flo (Bunt Zone® Protector-Trainer). . . . . . . . . . . 37

533 . . . . Pro Look (baseball uniforms). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

501 . . . . Aer-Flo (Tuffy Windscreen). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

534 . . . . Pro Look Sports (reversible jerseys). . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

529 . . . . AstroTurf® (Diamond Series). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

532 . . . . Pro’s Choice (Professional Blend). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

528 . . . . AstroTurf® (Division I installations). . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

531 . . . . Pro’s Choice (Select infield conditioner). . . . . . . . . . 35

503 . . . . BEAM CLAY®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

516 . . . . Shock Doctor (Lead-Off). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

527 . . . . C&H Baseball. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

515 . . . . Shock Doctor (Power Control). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

519 . . . . California University of Pennsylvania. . . . . . . . . . . . 40

507 . . . . SPI Nets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

530 . . . . Diamond Pro. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

509 . . . . Sports Attack (e-Hack Attack). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

525 . . . . Disney Spring Training. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

512 . . . . Sports Attack (Junior Hack Attack). . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

520 . . . . Gatorade . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

514 . . . . Sports Tutor (HomePlate). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

502 . . . . Gourock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

508 . . . . Sports Tutor (TriplePlay Pro). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

535 . . . . Human Kinetics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

523 . . . . Stabilizer Solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

511 . . . . Joe H. Tanner Baseball (Tanner Tees). . . . . . . . . . . . 38

522 . . . . TurfCordz®/NZ Manufacturing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

513 . . . . Muhl Tech (Advanced Skills Tee). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

521 . . . . U.S. Baseball Academy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

510 . . . . Muhl Tech (Power Bag). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

518 . . . . Vero Beach Sports Village . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

524 . . . . National Sports Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

504 . . . . West Coast Netting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

517 . . . . OC Sports. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

526 . . . . Wizard Sports. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Products Directory

®

A Division of Douglas Industries, Inc. Circle No. 125 36 Coaching Management POSTseason 2013

CoachesNetwork.com

Baseball Facility Equipment Perfect Playability

When Wheaton College decided to step up its game, it converted its baseball field to A-Turf Titan.

The blended Mono & XP fibers system features an amazingly plush, natural-looking surface and the industry’s best safety rating. Regardless of weather or scheduling, this durable, all-synthetic field delivers perfect playability and ball response—like the best-kept natural grass fields around— every day, without upkeep.

A-Turf • 888-777-6910 www.aturf.com

Circle No. 505

Proper Bunting

The Bunt Zone® ProtectorTrainer protects turf and teaches the proper placement of bunts. Its color-coded target system—yellow for bunt-for-hit, green for safe sacrifice, and red for pitcher’s triangle to avoid—teaches by visualization without supervision. Used by hundreds of high schools and colleges, the Bunt Zone® Protector-Trainer is widely accepted as today’s best bunt training system. It is available in medium and large for baseball, and small for Little League and softball.

Aer-Flo, Inc. • 800-823-7356 www.aerflo.com

Circle No. 506

Net Gains

SPI Nets’ full-service net building facility offers top-quality nets at unbeatable prices. The company stocks and custom-builds a wide variety of nylon and poly batting cage nets, protective screens, and deflective barrier netting products. All custom nets are guaranteed to be of the highest quality, and are built in the USA to meet all your needs. Call the company toll-free or go online to learn more.

SPI Nets, Inc. • 866-243-6387 www.spinets.net

Circle No. 507

A Favorite Among Pitchers

Diamond Pro Professional Mound Clay is a screened heavy clay with a natural yellowish-brown color. This heavy clay has a higher clay content than Diamond Pro’s Red Mound/Home Plate Clay and will require more attention. Professional Mound Clay can be used in conjunction with other products, or as a stand-alone everyday maintenance clay. This clay can be used to construct, rebuild, or repair pitcher’s mounds, as well as catchers’ and batters’ boxes. In a recent independent study by Virginia Tech, Diamond Pro’s PMC was voted “Favorite Product” in the comparison baseball mound clay study. ®

Diamond Pro • 800-228-2987 www.diamondpro.com CoachesNetwork.com

Circle No. 530

Advanced Natural Soil

Stabilizer Solutions, Inc. is advancing the evolution of natural soil for baseball and softball fields.

The company offers advanced mound clays, as well as infield and warning track mixes, in both its Stabilizer ® organic and Hilltopper® waterless product lines. Used at the Baseball College World Series, Stabilizer® “Pro Red” Infield Mix and Hilltopper® Waterless Mound Clay save time while providing protection from the elements.

Stabilizer Solutions, Inc. • 800-336-2468 www.stabilizersolutions.com

Circle No. 523

Heavy-Duty Frames

The new Douglas® Double Batting Tunnel Frames share center poles to allow side-by-side installation eliminating the need for extra poles and ground footings. These heavy-duty frames feature the same high-quality craftsmanship as the single Douglas® frames and are constructed from fourinch square heavy steel with a black powder coat finish to add extra resistance to the elements. Adjustable crossbars feature Allied’s® Superior zinc Flo-coat ® galvanization process for maximum protection. This product boasts a five-year warranty.

National Sports Products • 800-478-6497 www.nationalsportsproducts.com

Circle No. 524

Synthetic Turf’s Next Step

Having led the baseball market year after year, AstroTurf ® introduces the next step in the evolution of baseball turf, the Diamond Series. Superior durability and tuft binds allow for shorter pile heights and greater height variation between the grass and clay areas. This leads to bounces similar to those found on the highest level natural fields. Simply stated, the Diamond Series provides some of the most natural play, feel, and look available in synthetic turf.

AstroTurf • 800-723-8873 www.astroturf.com

Circle No. 529

Naturally Red Clay

Pro’s Choice introduces their Professional Blend, their highest quality infield conditioner.

Selectively screened for the grounds keeping perfectionist, Pro’s Choice Professional Blend combines natural red color and high durability.

When these granules become moist from pregame infield watering, the natural red color of the clay comes out, eliminating the need to pay extra dollars for artificially colored conditioners.

Pro’s Choice 800-648-1166 www.proschoice1.com

Circle No. 532 Coaching Management POSTseason 2013 37

Hitting & Pitching Pushbutton Simplicity

Batting practice just got easier with the TriplePlay Pro. Simply push a button on the control panel to choose the pitch you want.

The TriplePlay Pro baseball model can throw right- and left-handed fastballs, curves, sliders and sinkers-and pitch speed is adjustable up to 90 miles per hour. The TriplePlay Pro also utilizes the Three Wheel Advantage. Three throwing wheels provide greater accuracy, and less movement is required to produce different pitches. And with TriplePlay Pro, the ball is visible from the time it leaves the feeder’s hand until it is pitched, allowing the hitter to time pitches more naturally.

Available for $2,995. A softball model also offered.

Sports Tutor • 800-448-8867 www.sportsmachines.com

Circle No. 508

Realistic Practice

The e-Hack Attack Programmable Baseball Pitching Machine has quickly become one of the most reliable electronic machines on the market. Easily input any change in speed, location, and pitch type to deliver any fastball, right- or lefthand curveball, slider or split finger. Set pitches in any sequence, weighted or random, to work on weaknesses or to prepare for an upcoming pitcher. This unit is an electronic version of the tried and true Hack Attack and will provide the most realistic batting practice ever.

Sports Attack • 800-717-4251 www.sportsattack.com

Circle No. 509

All In the Hips

Are you hitting for power? Try the Power Bag. It was designed to teach hitters to use their lower half when hitting the ball—not just to rotate the hips, but to use them as a power source when driving through the ball. The Power Bag allows hitters to power through contact and finish the swing. Use good point-of-contact mechanics and the bag will swing higher for a visual reward. If you use lazy hips, rolled wrists, or swing around the ball, the bag will not move nearly as much.

Muhl Tech • 888-766-8772 www.muhltech.com

Tanner Tees have been a staple in professional batting cages for the past 18 years. Lightweight and durable, with a ball rest that is interchangeable for baseballs or softballs, the Tanner Tee will suit your needs.

Numerous coaches have said the tees are the best training aid to come out in decades. A must for serious coaches, this tool allows hitters to train and coaches to teach.

38 Coaching Management POSTseason 2013

Joe Maddon, manager of the Tampa Bay Rays, uses the Junior Hack Attack pitching machine in innovative ways to vision-train Major League hitters. His objective: hard focus and quick to the ball. Call Sports Attack to ask what makes Coach Maddon say, “Their entire ‘hack’ improves without my having to say a word. It takes about three rounds and then instead of the initial frustration, it’s a line drive.”

Sports Attack • 800-717-4251 www.sportsattack.com

Circle No. 512

Instant Feedback

Why is the Advanced Skills Tee from Muhl Tech used by more than 2,000 high school and college programs? You get instant feedback with every swing. Its unique forward arm and outside barrier help develop a nice swing path—and keep the hands inside the ball. The tough polyurethane construction will give you years of worry-free use. Try one this season and if you don’t like it, the company will buy it back.

Muhl Tech • 888-766-8772 www.muhltech.com

Circle No. 513

Programmable Pitching

The HomePlate pitching machine is the first programmable pitching machine designed for both batting cage and on-field use. Users can store up to eight different pitches—including fastballs up to 90 miles per hour, curveballs, change-ups, and more—in eight different programs, with only seven seconds between pitches.

The programmed pitches can be thrown sequentially for specific hitting drills, randomly for game conditions, or in a way that simulates an opposing pitcher. The HomePlate features a patented three-wheel pitching mechanism for greater pitch accuracy, along with an 80-ball auto-feed system. Available for $6,995. For more information, visit the company’s Web site.

Sports Tutor • 800-448-8867 www.sportsmachines.com

Circle No. 514

Circle No. 510

Training Staple

Joe H. Tanner Baseball • 800-230-6219 www.tannertees.com

Vision Training

Circle No. 511

Must-Have for Pitching Coaches

True to its name, The Complete Guide to Pitching is packed with guidance and instruction on every aspect of pitching. In this book and DVD package, Chicago Cubs minor league pitching coordinator Derek Johnson shares his secrets on mechanics, pitch selection, arm care and conditioning, fielding, and mental strategies for dominating the opposition. It is a must-have for every pitching coach, pitcher, and baseball fan.

Human Kinetics • 800-747-4457 www.humankinetics.com/baseball

Circle No. 535 CoachesNetwork.com

Team Equipment Enhanced Grip

Ideal for hitters seeking a lightweight batting glove with enhanced grip, the Lead-Off features C-TACK™ Performance Grip Material on the fingers and thumb.

This material reduces grip pressure, but still is durable and lightweight. A one-piece flexible back and a thicker 40-millimeter elastic strap provide lightweight comfort and a secure fit.

Available in youth and adult sizes, the Lead-Off comes in white, red, navy, and royal.

Shock Doctor • 800-233-6956 www.shockdoctor.com

Pro Look reversible jerseys are built to perform on the diamond. The company is so sure of the quality of these jerseys that they are backed with a four-year manufacturer’s warranty. Pro Look can make any style jersey into a reversible jersey, and won’t drain your budget while getting you the look you want. Contact the company today to request your free mock-up.

Pro Look Sports • 800-PRO-LOOK www.prolooksports.com

Circle No. 534

Circle No. 516

Performance Headwear

In 2014, OC Sports will offer a new MLB Elite Series™ line of custom performance headwear created for the competitive baseball player. The featured style, BL2000C, is fabricated from Cage Mesh, the perfect performance mesh fabric that complements performance uniforms worn by today’s serious player. The cap is available in ProFlex ® or Fitted, sports a coordinating MLB Silhouetted Batter logo, and is customizable to fit your team’s colors and options.

OC Sports • 866-776-6774 www.ocsports.com

Reverse It

Show Your Colors

The Prep Gear Split Flex is one of the most popular spring and summer caps. With just a touch of contrasting color on the bill, the 3D embroidery on the front of the cap is accented in a very subtle way. The dry-fit crown is cool and washable, the flex band is extremely comfortable, and every cap is custom-made to your specifications.

Prep Gear • 800-279-7060 www.prepgear.com

Circle No. 536

Circle No. 517

Carry in Style For That Custom Look

Pro Look Baseball is where tradition meets innovation. Combine the latest in materials technology with the unique ability to create any style uniform for one low price, and you get an unmatched uniform ordering experience. Pro Look uniforms are so good that they’re backed with a four-year manufacturer’s warranty. Call today for a free custom mock-up.

Pro Look Sports • 800-PRO-LOOK www.prolooksports.com

Circle No. 533

Versatile Resistance

New Wheeled Custom Bat Bags are now available. These custom bags are some of the most durable and affordable bat and equipment bags on the market. They are manufactured in the U.S. and built to last, with heavy-duty 600D nylon featuring a PVC backing and a limited lifetime warranty. You will not find a better-quality bag at a lower price. All bags are made in your team colors and decorated to include your team name, number, and logo.

Wizard Sports Equipment • 888-964-5425 www.wizardsports.com

Circle No. 526

Smoother Swing

Tougher and more versatile than resistance tubes or bands, Sport Cord® is constructed of bungeetype cord with a high-strength nylon jacket for increased lifespan and no sudden breakage. Steel snap links on each end quick-connect to handles, accessories or any sturdy anchor point. The Sport Cord Kit includes four Sport Cords of increasing resistance, two handles, a door anchor, a waist belt, and an adjustable strap for the wrist or ankle.

Ideal for hitters seeking a glove that will last for a full season, the Power Control batting glove features machine-washable MicroTex Embossed Synthetic and C-TACK™ Performance Grip Materials on the palm. The C-TACK™ Performance Grip minimizes grip pressure, causing less muscle tension and, in turn, a smoother swing and quicker bat speed. Available in youth and adult sizes, the Power Control batting glove comes in black, white, maroon, red, orange, navy, green, and royal.

OPTP • 800-367-7393 www.optp.com

Shock Doctor • 800-233-6956 www.shockdoctor.com

CoachesNetwork.com

Circle No. 537

Circle No. 515 Coaching Management POSTseason 2013 39

More Products

Testimonial

Ideal Setting

Vero Beach Sports Village provides the ideal setting to enable your team to grow together and better prepare for the upcoming season. Everything you need is here, at Vero Beach Sports Village’s 79-acre sports and conference center. The complex can be configured to accommodate a variety of sports. It features an abundance of competition and practice fields, along with on-site housing, dining, and recreation allowing your team to spend quality time together on and off the field.

Vero Beach Sports Village • 866-656-4900 www.vbsportsvillage.com

Managing Top-Quality Infields

Circle No. 518

Online Program

The 12-month, 36-credit Master of Science in Exercise Science and Health Promotion program at California University of Pennsylvania is 100-percent Web-based. The flexibility of the online program allows professionals or military personnel, who would be precluded from attending graduate school in the traditional sense, to complete their M.S. while still maintaining their full-time positions.

California University of Pennsylvania • 866-595-6348 www.calu.edu/go

Circle No. 519

Fuel They Need

Give it everything you’ve got. Gatorade is dedicated to providing high school athletes with the fuel they need to achieve their best during practice and competition. That’s why Gatorade offers G Series performance packages to high school coaches and athletic trainers at a significant discount. To get the most out of every play and every player, visit the Web site to learn more and place your order.

Gatorade • 800-88-GATOR www.gatorade.com/coaches

Circle No. 520

Versatile Workout

Used during internal and external rotation exercises, TurfCordz® Cuff Tuff strengthens shoulder rotator cuffs. Cuff Tuff features a four-foot rubber tube with a handle and combination mounting loop. Available in five resistance options, this product can be used by athletes at all levels—from high school to professional—during upper body workouts. TurfCordz resistance products provide a versatile workout that is safer and more comfortable than others.

NZ Manufacturing • 800-886-6621 www.turfcordz.com

Circle No. 522

Start at the Top

Begin your season at the top of your game with Disney Spring Training at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex. The Disney Spring Training Program is open to high school and college teams in the following sport categories: baseball, softball, lacrosse, track & field, golf, tennis, and rugby. Registration for the 2014 season closes on October 31, 2013.

Disney’s Wide World of Sports • 407-828-FANS www.disneyworldsports.com

Circle No. 525

Hosting a Camp

U.S. Baseball Academy partners with high school and college coaches across the country and is the nation’s largest network of baseball camps. U.S. Baseball Academy makes the camps hassle-free for coaches by providing the itinerary, equipment, marketing, public relations, registration, payments, insurance, and even T-shirts.

Coaches run the six-day program at their schools and can earn up to $10,000 as a hosting fee. There is no financial investment or risk. The 2012-13 program included 400 locations in 41 states and approximately 50,000 players. The deadline for new locations is Oct. 31.

U.S. Baseball Academy • 800-592-4487 www.usbaseballacademy.com 40 Coaching Management POSTseason 2013

Circle No. 521

“I have changed the way I do many things since my groundskeeping career began at the University of Mississippi in 1988. But I haven’t changed my use of Pro’s Choice products because any change would be a step backwards.

I have to thank former major league player and Ole’ Miss Coach Don Kessinger for leading me to Pro’s Choice. He wanted an infield that played like the ones he remembered from his days with the Chicago White Sox, and asked me to call their groundskeeper, the legendary Roger Bossard.

After Roger recommended Pro’s Choice, I quickly realized it was different from the rest of the products that I had been having so much trouble with. It fundamentally changes the way an infield plays while allowing me to manage infield skin moisture levels in both dry and wet conditions.

I use Pro’s Choice Professional Blend field conditioner on all infield, mound, and plate areas, and their Pro Mound and Easy Mound for high wear areas.

There is no way that I would be working for the New York Yankees Triple-A franchise today had I not learned about Pro’s Choice all those years ago.”

Steve Horne, Director of Field Operations for the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders, the Triple-A affiliate of the New York Yankees.

Pro’s Choice 800-648-1166 www.proschoice1.com

CoachesNetwork.com

Wind Weighted® TARPS

They stay put in high winds without stakes or sandbags.

These are the famous rain covers used by every level of baseball: Little League, High Schools, Colleges, Minor and Major Leagues. Chain in the perimeter keeps wind from getting under, so they do not blow away.

Choice of 14 oz. or 18 oz. models. 18 oz. in 14 colors: Black, Forest Green, Navy, Royal, Sky Blue, Red, Purple, Grey, Orange, Kelly Green, Maroon, Yellow, Tan, White. 14 oz. only in underlined colors.

THOUSANDS IN USE TODAY.

Multiple Patents

CHROMA-BOND® IMPRINTING is available … see below.

INSTALLER Device Unique PVC/aluminum pipe

with SS cable handles to roll WW tarp onto and off.

This allows 2 people to easily install a WW tarp in less than 30 seconds. Saves time and backs.

PREMIUM MESH TURF PROTECTOR is a color-coded target system to teach bunting and hitting placement. YELLOW to bunt-for-hit, GREEN for sacrifice, RED is bad bunt OR hit-and-run target area. Includes low profile stakes. Grommets around edges. Available in 3 sizes to fit all BB & softball fields: Large: 20’Deep x 24’x 64’ Med:15’D x 24’ x 54’ LL/Softball:15’D x 18’ x 48’

Bunt Zone®

< MINOR LEAGUE MAJOR LEAGUE >

MULTIPLE PATENTS

WIDELY ACCEPTED AS TODAY’S BEST BUNT TRAINER.

BP Zone® INFIELD PROTECTOR For the SUPER SPIKE RESISTANCE of VIPOL® Matrix Mesh.

Now available in 20 standard colors and sizes that fit all infields. Full perimeter is reinforced, hemmed, and brass grommeted every 18”. Allows air, sunlight, and rain to get to grass, and eliminates smothering. Sizes:

IN

Large: 25’ Deep x 20’ x 70’

Med: 20’ Deep x 20’ x 60’

Small: 15’ Deep x 20’ x 50’

CHROMA-BOND® IMPRINTING & CUSTOM SIZES/SHAPES available.

Tuffy® WINDSCREEN

20 VIBRANT TUFFY COLORS

America’s toughest windscreen because it’s made of VIPOL® Matrix, a mesh that contains over 50% more micro-fibers than conventional windscreens. Multireinforced edging is also VIPOL Matrix to eliminate the problem of grommets pulling out. All corners and ends are double lock-stitched to eliminate the unraveling problem of fully chain-stitched windscreen. Backed by 5 year factory warranty, Tuffy W/S is used at all levels of baseball…even MLB.

Aer-Cushion™ Fence & Wall PADDING Attach to chain link fences with hooks, hangers, or back support plates (shown)

Wind Weighted®

4.

INFIELD PROTECTOR

1..

MULTIPLE PATENTS

2.

No stakes needed since its corners, front, and mid-top are self-weighted. Made of VIPOL® Matrix with vinyl weight sleeves. Available in 20 colors and same sizes as BP3.Zone® Protector above.

Already used by MLB and NCAA teams. Perfect for natural or artificial turf.

SOLD ONLY BY THE BEST SPORTS DEALERS 800-823-7356

AERFLO.COM

© 2013 AER-FLO, INC.

Proudly Made by AER-FLO, INC. in Bradenton, FL and Anniston, AL USA

Chroma-Bond® IMPRINTING Our double coat process fully masks the underlying fabric color, unlike digital printing that can leave an unsightly white back-side. Images are highly weather and spike resistant, last as long as the fabric, and do not fade like digital images.

Available on our vinyl, Vipol Matrix, and PVC mesh products.

Pro Quality @ Value Pricing Configurations that fit any budget to attach pads to walls, fences, concrete, or wood.

Standard or Custom Sizes in thicknesses from 1” to 4”. Our standard padding covered with 18 oz. vinyl in choice of 14 colors.

N ow you can afford padding for backstop, outfield, or other problem areas.

Chroma-Bond Imprinting available

Tuffy® BALLASTED WINDSCREEN Protects Chain Link Fences from Wind Damage PATENTED technology using engineered 5’ x 6’ windscreen units with weighted PVC pipe inserted in bottom pocket, attached to fence only at top. High winds open the unit to let damaging velocities thru. Installing alternately on both sides of fence allows half of it to open up no matter the wind’s direction. Can be intermixed with regular Tuffy Windscreen to reduce wind pressure on any chain link fence. Built-in hook & loop strips at top allow one person to roll up and secure unit in less than 30 seconds, saving costly labor in last minute pre-storm preparations (and improves tourney viewing). With units rolled up, net wind force may approach 93% less than that on same fence with fully attached windscreen.

HUNDREDS HAVE BEEN IN USE BY SCHOOLS, GOVERNMENT, AND PRIVATE CLUBS FOR UP TO FIVE YEARS. Fully tested and ready to protect your fences.

Circle No. 126

LEFT-HAND SLIDER

DIALED IN

RIGHT-HAND SLIDER

LATE-BREAKING CURVEBALL

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KNUCKLEBALL LEFT-HAND SLIDER RIGHT-HAND SLIDER FUNGO

RIGHT-HAND CURVEBALL HigH ScHool, college & Pro Curveball

Top Left 6 ± 1 Top Right 1 0± 1 Bottom 3± 1

LEFT-HAND CURVEBALL

BASeBAll PiTcHiNg MAcHiNe The cur veball, known for its for ward spin and late-breaking drop, is considered one of the toughest pitches to hit. The Hack Attack Baseball Pitching Machine lets you practice against a right- or left-hand cur veball with the velocity and spin-action other machines can not duplicate. The large throwing wheels provide more spin and more speed, without having to be repositioned.

With a quick turn of the dials you can effor tlessly throw up to 100+ MPH major league fastballs as well as right- and left-handed breaking pitches including cur veballs, sliders and split fingers. tf

800.717.4251

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sportsattack.com

Circle No. 127

HigH ScHool, college & Pro Top Left 1 0± 1 Top Right 6± 1 Bottom 3± 1

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