The weekend is over and spring has arrived, we have played nine non-conference games, and now it is time to prepare for a 28 game conference schedule.
As for the weekend, it was bittersweet. After beating the nation's top ranked Heidelberg College team in a 2-1, ten inning game yesterday, Heidelberg turned the tables on us today and won another ten inning game by the same 2-1 score. One could say that the weekend was a success, but it didn't necessarily feel that way when the last out was made in today's tenth inning.
When a team comes so close to knocking off the top ranked team in two consecutive games, only to lose the second one, it might be natural to feel a little deflated. The way I generally try to look at things is that it is now time to prepare for the next game. A team is only as good as its next game. Our last game is over and has been entered into the history books, but if we indeed achieve one of our often stated goals of trying to improve every day, we have to take a look at these two games, evaluate our performance, and look for ways to improve.
We did some things very well this weekend. As in our last two games (two weeks ago in Florida against Marietta College), we pitched well and played great defense. In two games (20 innings) against Heidelberg we gave up a total of three runs, one of which was earned. As for that earned run, it was scored when a fly ball to deep left-center was caught by left fielder Kyle Strawn and the runner on second base advanced to third and home. It was a very good defensive play by Strawn and an outstanding hustle play by the Heidelberg runner to score all the way from second base (an extremely rare occurrence) .
So we can say that we did a pretty good job pitching, but it was a little more difficult to pitch all those shutout innings than it was against Marietta two weeks ago. Against Marietta we retired the leadoff batter in 15 of the 17 innings we played. Anytime you get the first batter out, there is a lot less pressure on the pitcher and defense. We walked more Heidelberg batters (this weekend we walked 14 batters in 20 innings) than we did Marietta batters (4 walks in 17 innings) and thus had to make more stressful pitches this weekend.
What we did a very good job of, partly due to allowing more freebies, was maintaining damage control. It is an important part of pitching that the pitchers and I often talk about. One of the reasons we were able to prevent Heidelberg from scoring when they had runners on base so often was that we did a great job of getting strikeouts and pop outs with runners on base. Runners don't advance on strikeouts and pop outs; thus we successfully pitched and played great defense in crucial situations and kept the Student Princes from scoring.....in other words, our damage control was pretty good.
What can we do better? As a pitching staff, we need to do a better job of allowing the hitters to get themselves out and thus make it easier on us. By allowing freebies and pitching so often with runners on base, we are forced to throw more pitches than we would like to throw. Therefore, efficiency is probably the most important thing our pitching staff has to improve on as we prepare for our first conference games.
We all know that we also need to score more runs, and I am confident that will come with time as our hitters face game pitching more consistently (remember, we had gone two weeks without playing a game). We do have to tip our caps to the pitchers Heidelberg threw at us this weekend, just as we had to give Marietta's pitchers credit for keeping the games low scoring. As we play our MIAA conference games, I'm sure our batting averages and situational hitting will gradually improve, and soon we will put up some good offensive numbers.....it happens every year!!
And now that spring is here, we hope to have warmer weather on a more consistent basis. That is another thing that can help any team score more runs!
MIAA conference games begin for us Friday when we play two home games against Calvin College. Saturday we will travel to Calvin for two more games. In the last two seasons, we have won 48 conference games and lost only eight in earning the MIAA Championship both years. Our goal is to win every conference game that we play, but just one at a time. The regular season MIAA Champion earns an automatic berth into the NCAA Division III Regionals, which is the first step in earning a trip to the DIII World Series in Appleton, Wisconsin.
The path to the World Series is like eating an elephant, which one can only do one bite at a time. We have taken a few small bites already; now it is time to put on the bib and get to work on the main part of that elephant. Personally, I am proud of our entire Adrian College team; they have played well enough to know for sure that they are one of the country's best DIII baseball teams!!
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
The importance of believing
The down time between our last game to our next game is 14 days. We played Marietta College on Saturday, March 5th and we will play Heidelberg College on March 19th and 20th. Even though baseball is a sport that is best played on a regular, even a daily basis, this delay is one of the results of being a college team in a northern climate with a spring break in late February/early March. We are one of the fortunate programs that has a turfed field surface, and that makes the opportunities to have quality practices much easier than if we played on natural grass at Adrian College.
So how does a team go from playing almost daily for a week to not playing at all for two weeks? One thing that we have been able to do is play some JV/Reserve games during this time. We played six such games in cold weather last Saturday, Sunday and Monday. We didn't use our varsity starting position players, nor did we have any of our top pitchers throw. Those games were a good opportunity to play some of the guys who did not travel south with us as well as the guys who just need playing time for development and consistency. Tomorrow (Thursday) we play two more JV games before this weekend's games against Heidelberg.
Heidelberg is ranked #1 in the NCAA DIII National polls, and their record is currently 10-0. We are very familiar with them, as we played them three games a year ago and then once again in the Mid-East Regional Tournament. Last year we were on the wrong end of the scores in each game against Heidelberg, but in previous years we have fared much better against them. In saying all that, none of the past really matters any more. The next game is the only one that matters now, and then after that one is played it also becomes history, so again the next one after that will be the most important.
One of the things I have been telling the pitching staff the past few days is that it is important that we believe we are going to win these games, but that as always we have to take them one game at a time, one inning at a time, and one pitch at a time. It is important that each player on the team believes in himself, in his teammates, and in the team. The analogy of the weak link is appropriate. A team is only as strong as its weakest link, and by that I explained that I mean we are only as strong as our weakest link mentally!
If any player, even just one, doubts that we are going to beat this weekend's opponent, then that doubt becomes difficult for the rest of the team to overcome. If a team member goes into a game with doubts, but good fortune turns the doubts into belief, then that can help, but if doubts deepen during a stressful inning or misfortune it is tough for a team to overcome those doubts. Personally, I like to doubt the doubter, but I can't control the thoughts of the entire squad and coaching staff.
Today we talked about visualization again. I want the pitchers to practice visualizing hitting specific spots with their pitches, and to imagine them being able to expand their strike zone as they get ahead in the count and thus visualize pitches 3-4 inches out of the zone as well as the pitches on the edges of the strike zone. The need to be able to envision their pitches being swung at and missed, and they also need to be able to mentally see pitches which are hit by the handle of the bat and the end of the bat. It is important that they visualize success in several different ways. Proper and positive visualization will lead to more consistently good execution.
As for these two upcoming games against the nation's top ranked DIII team, we have already been there and done that. As was mentioned above, we have been battling with Heidelberg for several years now in the Regionals, and we faced them four times last year. We have beaten them in huge games before, much bigger games than this weekend's games.
We are also 2-2 this season against ranked teams already. We split with #8 Marietta and split with #24 Millsaps College. I would bet that unbiased observers who may have seen our games against those teams might even say we are a better team than both of them. It really doesn't matter in mid-March. When it does matter will be when (or if) we play them in May, and that is when it will come down to execution as well as belief.
I believe we are going to win this weekend. Most of all, I believe that our players are going to execute tremendously and are going to give a 100% effort for all 500 or so pitches that will be thrown in these two games!!
I can't wait!!
So how does a team go from playing almost daily for a week to not playing at all for two weeks? One thing that we have been able to do is play some JV/Reserve games during this time. We played six such games in cold weather last Saturday, Sunday and Monday. We didn't use our varsity starting position players, nor did we have any of our top pitchers throw. Those games were a good opportunity to play some of the guys who did not travel south with us as well as the guys who just need playing time for development and consistency. Tomorrow (Thursday) we play two more JV games before this weekend's games against Heidelberg.
Heidelberg is ranked #1 in the NCAA DIII National polls, and their record is currently 10-0. We are very familiar with them, as we played them three games a year ago and then once again in the Mid-East Regional Tournament. Last year we were on the wrong end of the scores in each game against Heidelberg, but in previous years we have fared much better against them. In saying all that, none of the past really matters any more. The next game is the only one that matters now, and then after that one is played it also becomes history, so again the next one after that will be the most important.
One of the things I have been telling the pitching staff the past few days is that it is important that we believe we are going to win these games, but that as always we have to take them one game at a time, one inning at a time, and one pitch at a time. It is important that each player on the team believes in himself, in his teammates, and in the team. The analogy of the weak link is appropriate. A team is only as strong as its weakest link, and by that I explained that I mean we are only as strong as our weakest link mentally!
If any player, even just one, doubts that we are going to beat this weekend's opponent, then that doubt becomes difficult for the rest of the team to overcome. If a team member goes into a game with doubts, but good fortune turns the doubts into belief, then that can help, but if doubts deepen during a stressful inning or misfortune it is tough for a team to overcome those doubts. Personally, I like to doubt the doubter, but I can't control the thoughts of the entire squad and coaching staff.
Today we talked about visualization again. I want the pitchers to practice visualizing hitting specific spots with their pitches, and to imagine them being able to expand their strike zone as they get ahead in the count and thus visualize pitches 3-4 inches out of the zone as well as the pitches on the edges of the strike zone. The need to be able to envision their pitches being swung at and missed, and they also need to be able to mentally see pitches which are hit by the handle of the bat and the end of the bat. It is important that they visualize success in several different ways. Proper and positive visualization will lead to more consistently good execution.
As for these two upcoming games against the nation's top ranked DIII team, we have already been there and done that. As was mentioned above, we have been battling with Heidelberg for several years now in the Regionals, and we faced them four times last year. We have beaten them in huge games before, much bigger games than this weekend's games.
We are also 2-2 this season against ranked teams already. We split with #8 Marietta and split with #24 Millsaps College. I would bet that unbiased observers who may have seen our games against those teams might even say we are a better team than both of them. It really doesn't matter in mid-March. When it does matter will be when (or if) we play them in May, and that is when it will come down to execution as well as belief.
I believe we are going to win this weekend. Most of all, I believe that our players are going to execute tremendously and are going to give a 100% effort for all 500 or so pitches that will be thrown in these two games!!
I can't wait!!
Friday, March 11, 2011
Northern baseball and professional/personal growth
After over a week of games in the warm south, the reality of college baseball up north can hit us and cause us to count our blessings. How many college students get to take a trip south on their spring break, with all expenses paid by the college and the added bonus of playing a sport they love?
After five days back in Michigan though, we just don't know from day to day if we are going to be able to practice outside or be forced (due to weather/field conditions) to work on our game indoors again.
Fortunately, this week at Adrian College, with the benefit of having Pro Grass Field Turf on our field, we have been able to get outside every day. The position players have gotten defensive work done out there and then gone inside for their hitting. The pitchers have been able to do all of their work outside. It has given us an opportunity to do some good throwing, including our normal daily drills, and have important long toss sessions and flat ground work.
We are hoping to play an intrasquad game today and then have JV doubleheaders the next three days (Saturday through Monday). This will be a great opportunity to get all of our pitchers (except two) some live action so that they are staying (or getting) sharp as we head into next weekend's two game series against #1 ranked Heidelberg College.
I've got to admit that I have felt a bit out of balance this week, though in my mind there is no good reason for it. Twice this week I fell asleep on the couch at about 8:30, which is very unusual for me. Fortunately, having a normal week of school and practice helps to keep me busy and grounded as I try to return to a daily routine. I suppose that 22 hour bus ride back from Florida gave me a little jet lag.
One of the other nice aspects of my week (besides school and baseball) is the fact that I got to spend some time with both of my kids. Tess is here in town on her last college spring break, and Eric is in and out during his season at Hillsdale College. Tess is on her way to Chicago with friends for the weekend and Eric is leaving this evening for a weekend of games against the University of Indianapolis.
Eric and I have been able to share game experiences with each other now that our seasons have begun, and even as an old guy it is great for me to share baseball information and knowledge with Eric and with my young colleagues Luke Harrigan and Xander Younce at Adrian. I can learn a lot from these young, passionate coaches! I hope I never stop learning about coaching this great game of baseball.
Just like in life, sometimes I think that if I knew back then (insert whatever year you want) what I know now, I would have been a better coach and mentor for many of my teams and players in the past. But since we can't go back, all I can do is continue to try to improve every day!!
After five days back in Michigan though, we just don't know from day to day if we are going to be able to practice outside or be forced (due to weather/field conditions) to work on our game indoors again.
Fortunately, this week at Adrian College, with the benefit of having Pro Grass Field Turf on our field, we have been able to get outside every day. The position players have gotten defensive work done out there and then gone inside for their hitting. The pitchers have been able to do all of their work outside. It has given us an opportunity to do some good throwing, including our normal daily drills, and have important long toss sessions and flat ground work.
We are hoping to play an intrasquad game today and then have JV doubleheaders the next three days (Saturday through Monday). This will be a great opportunity to get all of our pitchers (except two) some live action so that they are staying (or getting) sharp as we head into next weekend's two game series against #1 ranked Heidelberg College.
I've got to admit that I have felt a bit out of balance this week, though in my mind there is no good reason for it. Twice this week I fell asleep on the couch at about 8:30, which is very unusual for me. Fortunately, having a normal week of school and practice helps to keep me busy and grounded as I try to return to a daily routine. I suppose that 22 hour bus ride back from Florida gave me a little jet lag.
One of the other nice aspects of my week (besides school and baseball) is the fact that I got to spend some time with both of my kids. Tess is here in town on her last college spring break, and Eric is in and out during his season at Hillsdale College. Tess is on her way to Chicago with friends for the weekend and Eric is leaving this evening for a weekend of games against the University of Indianapolis.
Eric and I have been able to share game experiences with each other now that our seasons have begun, and even as an old guy it is great for me to share baseball information and knowledge with Eric and with my young colleagues Luke Harrigan and Xander Younce at Adrian. I can learn a lot from these young, passionate coaches! I hope I never stop learning about coaching this great game of baseball.
Just like in life, sometimes I think that if I knew back then (insert whatever year you want) what I know now, I would have been a better coach and mentor for many of my teams and players in the past. But since we can't go back, all I can do is continue to try to improve every day!!
Sunday, March 6, 2011
What more could a coaching staff want?
A few hours ago we arrived back at Adrian College after a 22 hour bus ride. Though it's nice being home, after playing baseball in sunny, 80 degree weather, the snow on the ground here isn't what we ever hope to see upon returning for the baseball season. The weather is out of our control though, and now we have to continue to prepare for our next games and our conference schedule.
Our last day in Florida was yesterday. We had already played and won two games there on Wednesday and Thursday. After using Friday as a practice day and playing a JV game, we played two nine inning games against NCAA DIII #8 ranked Marietta College. We are familiar with them, since we seem to see them every May in the Mideast Regional Tournament.
Originally we were only scheduled to play Marietta one game on Saturday, but since we had a game rained out earlier in the week in Georgia, we had room on our schedule to add the second game with Marietta. It almost didn't happen! I was personally hoping we would get to play them twice, as the opportunity to play against teams that are currently and traditionally strong helps us to improve, regardless of the outcome. I think that as a result of playing yesterday's doubleheader, we are not only a better team than we were the day before, but we also have a team full of players who believe we are better than they believed the previous day. What else could a coaching staff want??
Yesterday's doubleheader with Marietta was a quick one in comparison to a lot of college doubleheaders. We finished two nine inning games in four hours, losing the first game 3-1 and winning the second game 2-0. The two games were full of great pitching and defense, as the scores would indicate. Game one was scoreless until the fifth inning, when Marietta scored two runs, one of which was earned. The rbi single that Marietta shortstop Tim Saunders hit was on an 0 and 2 pitch, and the second run scored when our centerfielder's throw hit the baserunner sliding into third and bounced away. The throw was a good throw and just took an unfortunate bounce off the runner's body. Saunders deserves credit for making good contact on a pretty good pitch.
Marietta scored again in the sixth on a ground ball to our second baseman with a runners on second and third. We considered bringing the infield in to prevent the run from scoring on a ground ball, but kept the middle infielders back to avoid giving up two possible runs on a blooper over their heads. Therefore we were down 3-0.
Ryan Domschot again pitched a great game for us, going the distance, striking out ten batters and allowing only six hits and two walks. Unfortunately for us, Marietta's pitcher Mark Williams was outstanding as well, pitching 8 1/3 innings, allowing only five hits and also striking out ten batters. The run we finally scored off of him in the ninth inning was an unearned run.
The second game featured another pitcher's duel. Marietta's Austin Blaski pitched a complete game, allowing only six hits and three walks while striking out seven batters. Our sophomore shortstop Cody Meyer scored both of our runs, one in the first inning after he walked, advanced to second on a bunt, third on a hit by Brian Bilius, and then scoring on a wild pitch. He scored our only other run in the fifth inning, after he tripled and then scored on a ground ball by Andrew DeLuca. Cody was hit in the back of the head in the seventh inning and had to leave the game. He was up in a situation with a runner on second, two outs and first base open and he had done all the damage almost by himself already. By hitting him and putting a runner on first base it set up an easier force opportunity for Marietta's defense, who got the third out on the next pitch.
We heard a comment from the fan section about us getting back at them for hitting Cody, as he had to leave the game and go to the Emergency Room (fortunately he is doing great!), but with a 2-0 score we couldn't afford to intentionally throw at a batter and put a potential run on base.
The game ended, fittingly, with a routine ground ball to Mike Herzog (who replaced Meyer in the lineup) at shortstop. I had just made my only trip to the mound when the last batter was coming up. Our winning pitcher, senior Dave Partyka, was pretty excited at that moment, with a shutout and the game on the line. His heart rate was a little higher than it had been the previous eight innings. He had gotten two outs in the inning and allowed a hit and then hit the shirt sleeve of their cleanup hitter to put runners on second and third. We had two guys warming up in the bullpen at the time, but the game was Dave's game to finish. During my trip, I told him that he was in charge of the game from the beginning, was still in control of it, and that he would be to the end. Dave proceeded to get ahead of the hitter and induce him to hit the easy ground ball to finish the game.
Having two pitchers throw complete games in the same day is pretty rare, especially when we are playing a nationally ranked team in nine inning games. Domschot and Partyka both did such a great job of throwing their fastball where they wanted to and got ahead of a lot of hitters. They both deserved victories; but so did the pitchers for Marietta. It was a great day of college baseball for both teams.
I think that ultimately, what that doubleheader (thankfully we added that second game to the schedule) did was enhance the confidence level of our players and of course, the team. They experienced two tight games against one of the top ten teams in the country, and succeeded in winning one of the two games. We can say that we could have won both games, but Marietta could say the same thing. A couple of balls being hit a few feet either way could have made the outcomes of each game different.
After a nice trip and some success in close games, we are now preparing for our next games (on March 19th and 20th) against #1 ranked Heidelberg College and then the beginning of the MIAA Conference schedule. Again, what more could a coaching staff want??
Our last day in Florida was yesterday. We had already played and won two games there on Wednesday and Thursday. After using Friday as a practice day and playing a JV game, we played two nine inning games against NCAA DIII #8 ranked Marietta College. We are familiar with them, since we seem to see them every May in the Mideast Regional Tournament.
Originally we were only scheduled to play Marietta one game on Saturday, but since we had a game rained out earlier in the week in Georgia, we had room on our schedule to add the second game with Marietta. It almost didn't happen! I was personally hoping we would get to play them twice, as the opportunity to play against teams that are currently and traditionally strong helps us to improve, regardless of the outcome. I think that as a result of playing yesterday's doubleheader, we are not only a better team than we were the day before, but we also have a team full of players who believe we are better than they believed the previous day. What else could a coaching staff want??
Yesterday's doubleheader with Marietta was a quick one in comparison to a lot of college doubleheaders. We finished two nine inning games in four hours, losing the first game 3-1 and winning the second game 2-0. The two games were full of great pitching and defense, as the scores would indicate. Game one was scoreless until the fifth inning, when Marietta scored two runs, one of which was earned. The rbi single that Marietta shortstop Tim Saunders hit was on an 0 and 2 pitch, and the second run scored when our centerfielder's throw hit the baserunner sliding into third and bounced away. The throw was a good throw and just took an unfortunate bounce off the runner's body. Saunders deserves credit for making good contact on a pretty good pitch.
Marietta scored again in the sixth on a ground ball to our second baseman with a runners on second and third. We considered bringing the infield in to prevent the run from scoring on a ground ball, but kept the middle infielders back to avoid giving up two possible runs on a blooper over their heads. Therefore we were down 3-0.
Ryan Domschot again pitched a great game for us, going the distance, striking out ten batters and allowing only six hits and two walks. Unfortunately for us, Marietta's pitcher Mark Williams was outstanding as well, pitching 8 1/3 innings, allowing only five hits and also striking out ten batters. The run we finally scored off of him in the ninth inning was an unearned run.
The second game featured another pitcher's duel. Marietta's Austin Blaski pitched a complete game, allowing only six hits and three walks while striking out seven batters. Our sophomore shortstop Cody Meyer scored both of our runs, one in the first inning after he walked, advanced to second on a bunt, third on a hit by Brian Bilius, and then scoring on a wild pitch. He scored our only other run in the fifth inning, after he tripled and then scored on a ground ball by Andrew DeLuca. Cody was hit in the back of the head in the seventh inning and had to leave the game. He was up in a situation with a runner on second, two outs and first base open and he had done all the damage almost by himself already. By hitting him and putting a runner on first base it set up an easier force opportunity for Marietta's defense, who got the third out on the next pitch.
We heard a comment from the fan section about us getting back at them for hitting Cody, as he had to leave the game and go to the Emergency Room (fortunately he is doing great!), but with a 2-0 score we couldn't afford to intentionally throw at a batter and put a potential run on base.
The game ended, fittingly, with a routine ground ball to Mike Herzog (who replaced Meyer in the lineup) at shortstop. I had just made my only trip to the mound when the last batter was coming up. Our winning pitcher, senior Dave Partyka, was pretty excited at that moment, with a shutout and the game on the line. His heart rate was a little higher than it had been the previous eight innings. He had gotten two outs in the inning and allowed a hit and then hit the shirt sleeve of their cleanup hitter to put runners on second and third. We had two guys warming up in the bullpen at the time, but the game was Dave's game to finish. During my trip, I told him that he was in charge of the game from the beginning, was still in control of it, and that he would be to the end. Dave proceeded to get ahead of the hitter and induce him to hit the easy ground ball to finish the game.
Having two pitchers throw complete games in the same day is pretty rare, especially when we are playing a nationally ranked team in nine inning games. Domschot and Partyka both did such a great job of throwing their fastball where they wanted to and got ahead of a lot of hitters. They both deserved victories; but so did the pitchers for Marietta. It was a great day of college baseball for both teams.
I think that ultimately, what that doubleheader (thankfully we added that second game to the schedule) did was enhance the confidence level of our players and of course, the team. They experienced two tight games against one of the top ten teams in the country, and succeeded in winning one of the two games. We can say that we could have won both games, but Marietta could say the same thing. A couple of balls being hit a few feet either way could have made the outcomes of each game different.
After a nice trip and some success in close games, we are now preparing for our next games (on March 19th and 20th) against #1 ranked Heidelberg College and then the beginning of the MIAA Conference schedule. Again, what more could a coaching staff want??
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Sweating the small stuff
Yesterday we evened our record at 2-2 with a 16-3 victory over John Jay College of Criminal Justice, a school from New York City. It was one of those games in which we clearly were physically a better team than our opponent was.
I have to give the John Jay coaching staff and players a lot of credit, though. Their players hustled from the time they got to the field to the time that they left. They were respectful of the game, their opponents, and the umpires. They were disciplined and they seemed to genuinely enjoy playing the game of baseball.
What a game like that does for us is a couple things. First, it gives us an opportunity to get some additional position players in the game and give some younger guys a taste of game experience. Second, as the game progressed, it allowed our players to execute without the fear that a mistake might cost the team a victory.
Being the pitching coach, most of my focus is on executing the game plan and trying to get our pitchers to get ahead of the hitters by throwing strikes, and especially by throwing first pitch strikes. We use three guys who hadn't made an appearance yet, but who all are deserving of more opportunities. Out of 150 pitches in the nine inning game, we threw 138 fastballs. We had four walks in the nine inning game, which is one more than our goal per nine innings. That is something we still need to be better at doing. Even with some of the batters who did not walk, we got behind in the count more than what we want to do. We went to 3-ball counts on nine batters total and threw first pitch strikes to only 19 out of 34 batters.
As a coaching staff, what you want to do after a game like this is to be happy for the win but not allow the players to think they are better than they are. We want them to believe in themselves, but also to be able to evaluate their performance(s) not just based on the scoreboard, but on some of the little things.
One of the sayings I have been using with the pitchers this year is to 'sweat the small stuff'. Even though I generally don't want to sweat the small stuff when it comes to daily living, I have tried to get the pitchers to sweat the small stuff during practices, drills, and conditioning. I want them to practice the right way so that it becomes habit and helps them to execute more consistently during games. Therefore, our pitching charts can show us if we are doing things well, if we are achieving some of our smaller goals that are going to help us achieve the bigger goals.
We are making progress, and we are trying to develop an entire pitching staff. I discuss the pitchers more than the position players because those are the guys I spend every practice with, and those are the players I am fortunate enough to work with and set goals with during the pre-season, during each game, and throughout the entire season.
Did we pitch good enough yesterday to shut down a good team? Perhaps, depending on many other factors, but we can still get better. It was definitely a day that good things happened, and our team can build on the successes of those three pitchers and the execution of the hitters who squared up some pitches and drove the ball into the gaps! On to today's game against Ferrum College.
I have to give the John Jay coaching staff and players a lot of credit, though. Their players hustled from the time they got to the field to the time that they left. They were respectful of the game, their opponents, and the umpires. They were disciplined and they seemed to genuinely enjoy playing the game of baseball.
What a game like that does for us is a couple things. First, it gives us an opportunity to get some additional position players in the game and give some younger guys a taste of game experience. Second, as the game progressed, it allowed our players to execute without the fear that a mistake might cost the team a victory.
Being the pitching coach, most of my focus is on executing the game plan and trying to get our pitchers to get ahead of the hitters by throwing strikes, and especially by throwing first pitch strikes. We use three guys who hadn't made an appearance yet, but who all are deserving of more opportunities. Out of 150 pitches in the nine inning game, we threw 138 fastballs. We had four walks in the nine inning game, which is one more than our goal per nine innings. That is something we still need to be better at doing. Even with some of the batters who did not walk, we got behind in the count more than what we want to do. We went to 3-ball counts on nine batters total and threw first pitch strikes to only 19 out of 34 batters.
As a coaching staff, what you want to do after a game like this is to be happy for the win but not allow the players to think they are better than they are. We want them to believe in themselves, but also to be able to evaluate their performance(s) not just based on the scoreboard, but on some of the little things.
One of the sayings I have been using with the pitchers this year is to 'sweat the small stuff'. Even though I generally don't want to sweat the small stuff when it comes to daily living, I have tried to get the pitchers to sweat the small stuff during practices, drills, and conditioning. I want them to practice the right way so that it becomes habit and helps them to execute more consistently during games. Therefore, our pitching charts can show us if we are doing things well, if we are achieving some of our smaller goals that are going to help us achieve the bigger goals.
We are making progress, and we are trying to develop an entire pitching staff. I discuss the pitchers more than the position players because those are the guys I spend every practice with, and those are the players I am fortunate enough to work with and set goals with during the pre-season, during each game, and throughout the entire season.
Did we pitch good enough yesterday to shut down a good team? Perhaps, depending on many other factors, but we can still get better. It was definitely a day that good things happened, and our team can build on the successes of those three pitchers and the execution of the hitters who squared up some pitches and drove the ball into the gaps! On to today's game against Ferrum College.
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