The Little League Coach

Let The Games Begin!

General
baseball, Leagues, little league, Little League Baseball, Sports, US Eastern Region, Youth
26 June 2010 comment [1] TrackBack-URI

Have the Courage to do What is Right

I challenge any of you to walk into your boss’ office today and tell them, “Hey Boss, thanks for teaching me everything I know, investing your personal time in me, and making me the exceptional employee I am today, but, I have a second job that is going to take priority over this one now. Don’t get me wrong, I will be here when I can, when the other job doesn’t need me, but that job is going to come first from now on.” I am certain your boss would ask you to pack your things and immediately show you the door. However, this is exactly what we are teaching children today. Then we are surprised when the real world smacks them in the face?

I challenge every coach, at every level, in every sport, to implement the following policy as it relates to attendance on your team:

Practice Attendance Policy

All players are expected to be at ALL games and ALL practices. Of course, there are times when conflicts will arise and you will not be able to make games or practices, we understand that. The following are acceptable reasons to miss a practice or a game:

-Illness
-School Function or event including High School Practices
-Religious event or Special Family Event (Wedding, Baptism, etc….Birthday parties do not apply..lol)

There are no other legitimate reasons to miss practice or a game. If the player is going to be absent, it is the player’s responsibility to let me know when and why. If a player misses a game or practice for any reason other than what is stated above, the penalty for the absence will be:

-Will not start next played game. (There may be times when more than 2 are absent and this is impossible, but when possible, it will be strictly enforced)
-Will play mininums during that game (6 defensive outs and 1 at bat)

The Little League Mantra is
Loyalty – Character – Courage

Loyalty

Definition: the state or quality of being loyal; faithfulness to commitments or obligations. (dictionary.com)

It is important in any relationship to have loyalty. From simple friendships, to complex business relationships, without loyalty, the foundation upon which to build cannot withstand the pressures that will be placed on it. Rather than allow our children to develop bad habits, we must teach them loyalty by demanding loyalty to team. If they chose otherwise, then it is our duty as leaders to demonstrate what happens to those whose loyalties lie elsewhere.

We must remain loyal and true to those who are loyal and true to us. Every day our loyalties are tested and every day we must make decisions that impact those around us, often substantially. The kids that are loyal to our teams must be rewarded and taught that loyalty and trust are something that cannot be taken for granted, they are character traits that result in rewarding circumstances.

Character

Definition – the aggregate of features and traits that form the individual nature of some person or thing. (Dictionary.com)

I write about character in just about every article I write, both here and in the Volusia/Flagler Parent magazines. My position on the impact of sport in the development of a child’s character are clear. Sport builds character. What character it builds is directly attributable to the manager and coach as well as the support system at home.

Do you want the character of your team to be one of integrity, or one of sacrifice? Ten years from now nobody will remember if the Giants beat the Red Sox or the Heat beat the Diamond Gems, but they will remember their coach didn’t reward their loyal character, so why should they provide it to their boss, company or customer? Maybe we need only look in the mirror to figure out why dedication to cause and commitment to quality are lacking in our country today.

Courage

Definition – the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain, etc., without fear; bravery. (Dictionary.com)

How many times have you stood in the box and watched a kid walk to the plate with fear in his eyes? What did you do? You encouraged him of course, and how often did he or she reward you with giant smile standing on second base after a line drive over the shortstop’s head? Why do we find it so easy to instill courage in others, but so hard to find it within ourselves?

I challenge you to have the courage to play those players loyal to your team. The ones who come to every practice, every game, don’t complain when they sit out, and give you 150% when you insert them in the order. As always, I think you might be surprised how well they perform when the pressure is applied. Then, you will be teaching two life lessons.

1. You can do anything you put your mind too
2. Nobody is irreplaceable.

Life is about choices, make good ones.

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• Coaching (bendbulletin.com)
• Loyalty: An Engine For Healthy Growth (centralfloridac12.com)

General
character, Child, courage, Games, loyalty, Sport
31 March 2010 comments [2] TrackBack-URI

My New Year’s Resolutions

Here are my top 10 Coaching New Year’s Resolutions

10. I will learn AND REMEMBER every kid’s name on the team BEFORE the end of the season.
9. I will only say “come on blue” once per inning. (Will probably be the first one to be broken)
8. I will maintain my cool when one of my players runs full speed to the next base on a caught line drive for the 5th time in the game! (Probably not, but again, sounds good)
7. I will be on time to every practice.
6. I will have a plan for every practice. (Yeah right)
5. I will focus on the field and not the pretty moms in the stands! (Again, unlikely)
4. I will draft kids for their commitment to team and not their ability…(sure)
3. I will not argue with anyone from a city who’s name starts with D…(anyone believe this?)
2. I won’t let uniformed parents with nothing better to do with their lives than complain bother me. (This one I will keep)
1. I will remember that 10 years from now, none of this will really matter except the impact I have on the kid’s lives.

Now don’t go gettin’ your panties all in a ruffle…just a little fun for the end of the year.

What’s your resolution?

General
coach, Holidays and Special Days, Kids and Teens, New Year, new year resolution, People and Society
29 December 2009 comments [3] TrackBack-URI

MIA Cheated My Players, My Teams, Myself, and My Dignity

I have never really been the most popular guy on the planet. But, one thing I have always earned, is respect. This past year you may have noticed I have been missing in action here. I used to write every day about what was going on in my life on the field, but I stopped. Why? Because I didn’t want to hurt any feelings.

That’s right. Rick the Giant Ass tried to play nice-nice. And what did it get me? Nothing. The ones I tried to appease left angry anyway, and the ones that stood by and believed in me paid the price. Don’t get me wrong, I had nothing but good intentions.

Had I written all year about the daily activities of the league, my teams, and my players, I would have had to of called out a lot of people for behaving badly. Character would have been questioned, doubt raised, and conflict would have been inevitable. Funny thing is, those same people fought with me all year any way! And now, they have removed themselves from my life. All I did was compromise my principles in order to delay inevitable conflict!

My wife said it best, she said, “Why are you trying to make everyone happy all of a sudden? Go back to being an a**hole and at least then you are true to yourself and your core beliefs”. Wow! Sometimes we simply need a smack in the face don’t we? Don’t get me wrong, I feel that I am a fun loving great guy, but not everyone sees me that way. Go figure.

One of the coaches I respect a great deal told me like this. I asked him how he dealt with the irate, the disrespectful, and those with total disregard for authority. His reply? “I’m pretty much a ‘my way or the highway’ kind of guy”. He added, “I will tell them, ‘yeah that’s one way to do it, but it’s not how we are going to do it here’”. I love it!

Of course this doesn’t mean I am not open to new ideas, creative concepts, and individual motivational mechanisms. In fact, I am the kind of guy who likes to delegate authority and sit back and enjoy how inspiring the human spirit can be! There is nothing better than teaching a kid how to do something and then sitting back and enjoying watching them succeed. The same applies to coaches and parents. But from this point forward:

-I will NEVER compromise my integrity again.
-I will stand strong and believe in all my positions.
-I will be open to new ideas but decisive about whether to institute them.
-I will empower all those around me.
-I will praise extraordinary effort.
-I will not accept sub par effort.
-I will not permit disrespect of any kind.
-I will give those that earn it respect.
-I will not tolerate insubordination.
-I will have a plan and execute it.
-I will be honest and straight forward when delivering information someone may not want to hear.
-I will be true to my players, my league, my team, and myself.

Even with 20 years of experience, it is possible to fall into a self inflicted trap. At least I recognized the error of my ways and hope to never repeat it.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Defining Self-Esteem: Is it Possible? And What Does it do for Us? (docinthebiz.com)
• Build Your Self Confidence Like a Leader (blogs.harvardbusiness.org)

General
dignity, Human, littleleague, respect, Sports
18 December 2009 comments [2] TrackBack-URI

Watch the Little League World Series on Directv

General
15 August 2009 comment TrackBack-URI

2009 Little League Baseball Television Schedule

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Following is the 2009 Television schedule for all the divisions of the Little League All-Stars. Should be exciting!

2009 TV Game Schedule
(All games are Eastern U.S. time)

August 5
Big League Baseball World Series Championship Game: 8 p.m., ESPN2

August 12
Little League Baseball Mid-Atlantic Region Tournament – Pennsylvania vs. Maryland, 10 a.m., MSG/NESN
Little League Baseball New England Region Tournament – New Hampshire vs. Rhode Island, 1 p.m. MSG/NESN
Little League Baseball New England Region Tournament – Connecticut vs. Massachusetts, 4 p.m. MSG/NESN
Little League Baseball Mid-Atlantic Region Tournament – New York vs. New Jersey, 7 p.m., MSG

August 13
Little League Baseball Southwest Region Championship Game, 8 p.m., ESPN2
Little League Baseball Mid-Atlantic Region Tournament – Semifinal No. 1, 2:30 p.m., MSG
Little League Baseball New England Region Tournament – Semifinal No. 1, 5:30 p.m. MSG/NESN

August 14
Little League Baseball Mid-Atlantic Region Tournament – Semifinal No. 1, 2 p.m., MSG/NESN
Little League Baseball New England Region Tournament – Semifinal No. 1, 5 p.m., MSG/NESN
Little League Baseball Southeast Region Championship Game, 8 p.m., ESPN2

August 15
Senior League Softball World Series Championship Game: 11 a.m., ESPN2
Little League Baseball Midwest Region Championship Game, noon, ESPN
Little League Baseball New England Region Championship game, 2 p.m., ESPN
Little League Baseball Great Lakes Region Championship game, 7 p.m., ESPN
Little League Baseball Northwest Region Championship Game, 9 p.m., ESPN

August 16
Little League Baseball West Region Tournament Championship Game: 8 p.m., ESPN2

August 17
Little League Baseball Mid-Atlantic Region Tournament Championship Game, 8 p.m., ESPN2

August 18
Little League Softball World Series Semifinal – No. 1, 7 p.m. ESPN2
Little League Softball World Series Semifinal – No. 2, 9:30 p.m., ESPN2

August 19
Little League Softball World Series Championship Game, 7 p.m. ESPN2

August 21
Little League Baseball World Series
Mid-Atlantic vs. Northwest, 1 p.m., ESPN HD
Asia-Pacific vs. Europe, 3 p.m., ESPN HD
Midwest vs. Southeast, 5 p.m., ESPN HD
New England vs. Southwest, 8 p.m., ESPN HD

August 22
Canada vs. Mexico, 11 a.m., ESPN HD
Caribbean vs. Latin America, 1 p.m., ESPN HD
Southeast vs. Mid-Atlantic, 3 p.m., ABC HD
Senior League Baseball World Series Championship Game: 3 p.m. ESPNU
Junior League Baseball World Series Championship Game: 5 p.m., ESPNU
MEA vs. Japan, 6 p.m., ESPN2 HD
Junior League Softball World Series Championship Game: 7 p.m., ESPN Classic
Great Lakes vs. West, 8 p.m., ESPN2 HD

August 23
Midwest vs. Northwest, Noon, ESPN
Great Lakes vs. Southwest, 2 p.m., ABC HD
Asia-Pacific vs. Canada, 3 p.m. ESPN HD
West vs. New England, 6 p.m., ESPN2 HD
Caribbean vs. Japan, 8 p.m., ESPN2 HD

August 24
Europe vs. Mexico, noon, ESPN2 HD
Latin America vs. Japan, 2 p.m., ESPN2 HD
Southeast vs. Northwest, 4 p.m., ESPN HD
Caribbean vs. MEA, 6 p.m., ESPN2 HD
Mid-Atlantic vs. Midwest, 8 p.m., ESPN

August 25
MEA vs. Latin America, noon, ESPN2 HD
Europe vs. Canada, 2 p.m., ESPN2 HD
Great Lakes vs. New England, 4 p.m., ESPN HD
Mexico vs. Asia-Pacific, 6 p.m., ESPN2 HD
Southwest vs. West, 8 p.m., ESPN2 HD

August 26
Senior League Baseball World Series Championship Game, 2 p.m., ESPN2#
Little League Baseball International Semifinal, 4 p.m., ESPN HD
Little League Baseball U.S. Semifinal, 8 p.m., ESPN HD

August 27
Little League Baseball International Semifinal, 4 p.m., ESPN HD
Little League Baseball U.S. Semifinal, 8 p.m., ESPN HD
Junior League Baseball World Series Championship Game, 10 p.m., ESPN2#

August 29
Little League Baseball International Championship, noon, ABC HD
Little League Baseball United States Championship, 3 p.m., ABC HD*
(* Or 45 minutes after the conclusion of the previous game)

August 30
Little League Baseball Consolation Game, Noon, ESPN HD
Little League Baseball World Series Championship, 3 p.m., ABC HD

September 11
Junior League Softball World Series Championship Game, noon, ESPN2#
(# taped replay from Aug. 22)

General
9 August 2009 comment TrackBack-URI

Back to School Optical Savings!

General
2 August 2009 comment TrackBack-URI

Volusia Parent Magazine Coming!

This post sponsored through the pepperjamNETWORK by:
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Just when you thought you could get rid of me, I am going to be coming home in your child’s book bag! (I will pause now while everyone sighs) Yup, it’s true, the Volusia Parent Magazine, published by Brady Publishing, is coming in October! Originally, it will only be distributed on the east side of the county, but expansion to the west is planned as well.

For those of you who don’t know, I have been writing for the Flager Parent Magazine in a column called The Coach’s Corner. It is similar to this blog, but with more focused and longer articles. I am very proud to be part of such a fine publication and thankful they asked me to contribute. Humbled actually.

Anyway, if you are an advertiser wanting to reach into the homes of the families of Volusia and Flagler County there is no better way to accomplish this. Drop me a line and I will be happy to reserve some space for you. 386.837.5300.

Check out the Flager Parent Magazine and Brady Publishing. This is really cool stuff!

General
1 August 2009 comment TrackBack-URI

A Proud Day in the Coach’s Life

This post sponsored through the pepperjamNETWORK by:
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Today our Junior Softball All-Star team played a fun pick-up game against our Major’s softball team. It was a blast as all the girls from both of the teams are good friends, the score, irrelevant really, was 2-0 and not because of pitching, but because of fantastic defense played by both teams!

As I stood in the coach’s box at third base, suddenly it hit me. With the exception of one girl, I had coached every one of these players, most for multiple seasons. This was the fruits of my, and many others labors, coming to fruition. The smiles on every one of their faces made this a very proud moment for this humble coach.

To understand you have to know a little history. About 5 years ago I moved here to this small town. The place was recovering from being hit by 3 three massive hurricanes in a row, over 40 inches of rain in less than a month left hundreds of houses flooded. There were messes to clean up everywhere with trees down and parks destroyed.

The season, though it started late, still went on though. Volunteers pitched in and cleared trees, mended fences, and got the sites playable again. Though challenged, peopled pulled together as they often do in times of crisis, and worked to get things back to normal.

It was that fall I had my first experience with softball in DeBary. Our team? 0-16. Did it matter? Not one bit. I could see the raw talent that existed, and I knew that there had to be a ton of other players out there that would love to participate if given the opportunity.

Tonight, there were 19 girls on the field, 18 of them I had coached before. Most for many years, all for many seasons. It was a proud moment. Four years ago we had one minor softball team, one major softball team, and one senior softball team. That was it. This year, we had four minor softball teams, two major softball teams, and a very large senior softball team. Our league grew from 275 players to 333.

Standing there it suddenly hit me how far we had come. There was only 1 error in the game, every player made the correct play at the correct time, and both teams hit the ball hard. I want to take a second to thank every coach who helped, every parent that tolerated our long practices, and every player for believing in each other and in our philosophies.

It was very obvious, the hard work and dedication of so many was paying dividends ten-fold. Thank you for allowing me to be a small part of this fantastic transition and it will be interesting to see how far we can go.

General
Major League Baseball All-Star Game, Men, Pitcher, Slowpitch, softball, Sport, Teams, Third baseman
26 June 2009 comments [5] TrackBack-URI

Honored to Serve the City

This post sponsored through the pepperjamNETWORK by:
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I received a letter today from Anthony Gonzalez, the Acting City Manager of the City of DeBary. The letter is welcoming me to the “DeBary Strategic Planning Steering Committee”. As a member of the committee we will help the city council and mayor determine their strategic planning for the city. The first meeting will be held Saturday the 20th, at 9AM. I guess I am about to get an education in local politics!

From the Little League’s perspective, the number one priority in my mind is making sure that the new parking lot gets built at Sullivan Park. Do you have any ideas for what direction the city should be steered into? I would love to hear about it.

General
Anthony Gonzalez, baseball, Leagues, little league, Little League Baseball, Sports, Star Trek, Youth
13 June 2009 comment TrackBack-URI

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