Proper Hydration

As listed in our nutritional absolutes water is one of the most important nutrients in your diet. All athletes should drink adequate amounts of water for optimal performance. Without enough water, not only are you not able to work at your top performance but it could even cause dehydration.  Dehydration is can be very serious. During physical activity your body temperature increases. As your temperature increases, you body compensates by sweating. This sweating evaporates and then cools your body down. If you are not replacing the fluids that are lost in sweat, your body may become dehydrated. Once you become dehydrated your can no longer sweat. This is very dangerous. Some symptoms of dehydration include:

•    Increased body temperature
•    Heat cramps
•    Chills, nausea, and clammy skin
•    Heat exhaustion
•    Hallucinations

In order to prevent dehydration take these precautionary measures:
•    Drink plenty of water before during and after workouts
•    Increase your water intake in hot weather. Weigh yourself before and after exercise, for every pound lost drink 2 cups of fluid
•    Never rely on thirst alone to determine fluid intake

VITAMINS AND MINERALS
The last two items in the nutritional absolute list are vitamins and minerals. It is the consensus of the majority of nutritional experts that a person only needs a well balanced diet to meet all the nutritional requirements the body demands, I tend to disagree. Most kids simply don’t eat properly. Besides not eating properly the demands of the fast paced world in which we live further depletes our bodies of these vitamins and minerals. The answer to this problem is very simple, take a multi-vitamin and mineral supplement to offset any deficiencies you may have in your diet. By reading the labels on the bottle, you can easily determine your recommended daily allowance.

Getting Your Head in the Game

This post was written for baseball and softball players, however you will find that it can be used for many life situations.  Becoming a student of the game.  Many young kids think they are a student of the game but they haven’t even walked in the club-house. I say this as I am just finishing up another Instructional League. Here we have the cream of the crop, the best young talent in the nation. Most of these kids don’t have a clue as to what their swing consists of, let alone the mental toughness to make the necessary changes. I don’t speak for all, I do however speak for most. One thing I want to instill in you is the fact that there is so much to this game, don’t hurt your chances to improve yourself by thinking you know it all. I deal with plenty of know it alls day in and day out. Guess what, most of them don’t make it. Why? Since they know it all, they don’t need anyone to teach them.

Unfortunately in their mind, there is nothing more for them to learn. Always be ready to learn. I spoke to Rudy Jaramillo, Hitting Coach for the Texas Rangers, and he told me that Rafael Palmeiro just learned two years ago what it took to be a consistent Major League hitter. This was not in the minor leagues, nor was it his rookie year, this was after 10 years in the big leagues!

I recently received an e-mail from a customer. He has been solicited by a recruiting service to help his son get a scholarship. The recruiter told this dad that college coaches don’t care much about a kid’s swing, they can teach a kid to hit – all they are looking for is a good arm and glove. I was taken back by this advice. That is just another example of mediocrity and miscon-ceptions that circulate in this game. First of all everyone in professional baseball knows that the guys that hit – play – the gloves come in for late innings if necessary. Secondly you better not wait till college to learn how to hit because it will be too late. Don’t fall for it. Don’t let anyone, or anything take you away from becoming the best you can be. Not everyone will make it to the big leagues. However, having a solid work ethic, having the ability to make adjustments, not being afraid to fail, and becoming a student of the game are all qualities to take you as far as your abilities will take you, but more importantly, they will allow you to make it in the real big leagues – life.

Q&A for Effort Level

Question:

In working with my son, he seems to struggle with a problem, he has had on and off for 4 years now. He is currently 13. When he is not swing well, he appears to be too aggressive with his hips and shoulder, ie. pulling away from the ball. I shows up to look like he is not having aggressive hands, with the result of hitting a lot of weak balls to the opposite field. He is right handed. We have worked a lot off the tee, short toss, and live pitching on the outer part of the plate. He has a good understanding of the various contact points. We just haven’t had any long term success at fixing this problem. When his front shoulder pulls off, of course his bottom hand pulls away from the ball, ie. causing him to “what I call, slice the ball”. Sometimes during the season he will get in a real groove where the ball just jumps off his bat, but he eventually falls back into the problem of pulling away from the ball. We have also worked the one handed drills extensively over the past few years. I would appreciate your advice on how to approach this problem for long term success.

Answer:

Take a look at three areas:

• Overswinging, this is one of the areas where most young hitters do not understand. Young hitters generally want to see how far they can hit the ball, This causes them to use their body too much and therefore overswing. It’s best to develop a swing that is about 80% of his max. This does not mean that the hands are not aggressive, but he should feel like he has something left in his body. In hitting, swing at 80% will give you better hand speed. This will help him with the next two areas.
• Balance, swinging at 100% will keep him from having great balance and actually slow his hands down, and as in your son’s case, will miss direct the hand path. Swinging at 80% will allow him to work on the correct hand path and will help with the next area.
• Head position, this is on of the most important aspects of the swing. The proper head position not only allows him to see the ball well, but also allows the upper body to stay over the ball. Have him keep his head down past contact.

Perfect each of these three areas and he will be making consistent hard contact. Good luck.

The Hitting Preparation Cycle

We have established the value of routine. Routine – Set Behavior – Habit – Plan. Call it what you will, effective preparation is grounded in such behavior. Diet, sleeping habits and workout schedules are part of a hitter’s preparation. Important as they are, these off-field preparations, and the related philosophy, are too inclusive for these pages.

Before getting to those specifics, I must again note that baseball has been called a game of adjustments. The vehicle for this adjustment is your brain. The emotional system won’t allow you to learn from your mistakes. This has been discussed earlier. Its importance of the reminder is based on learning. The ability to make an adjustment implies the ability to learn from mistakes. When applying that learning, you are not preparing for the next pitch, or the next at-bat or the next game.

History of Baseball

Baseball Basics: Origins Of Baseball

Baseball wasn’t invented by one person. The old myth was that Abner Doubleday invented it in Cooperstown. Never happened. Baseball evolved from a variety of other bat and ball and base sports including cricket and rounder’s. But it wasn’t invented at any one point.

What are the origins of baseball?

Baseball traces its roots to a variety of bat-and-ball games, including rounders and cricket. It wasn’t until the 1840′s in America that a man named Alexander Cartwright actually put the rules to paper. Even though baseball existed prior to that point, he is often considered to be the father of baseball.

When was baseball invented?

Baseball really wasn’t invented. It is considered an American game, but it evolved from games in Europe. There wasn’t a birth, and there wasn’t a grand creation to the game.

When did professional baseball start?

Professional Baseball began in the late 1800s. The National League is the oldest existing league. It began in the 1870s, followed by the American League in the early 1900s.

When did Major League Baseball start?

Major League Baseball began in 1903 when the American and National leagues agreed to begin holding the World Series.

Who were some of the original Major League Baseball clubs?

Some of the original Major League clubs were Boston, New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, Louisville, and many others.

Who were the 1919 ‘Chicago Black Sox’ and why are they so important in baseball history?

The Chicago Black Sox of 1919 are the most infamous team in baseball history. They threw the World Series to the Cincinnati team. As a result, many of the players on that team were banned for life from baseball. It is now one of the cardinal rules of baseball, and became so at that time, that any player caught gambling on the game would be banned from baseball. It is why Pete Rose and Shoeless Joe Jackson, two tremendous ball players, are not in the Hall of Fame. The Sox scandal also led to the creation of a powerful commissioner form of government in baseball, and the first commissioner was Kennesaw Mountain Landis.

What were the ‘Negro Leagues’ in professional baseball?

Major leagues did not integrate until 1947 when Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier. Prior to that point, and even after that point ,black players often played in segregated leagues, in the Negro Leagues. There were many leagues that bore that title “Negro Leagues”. But it was a popular form of baseball.

Hitting with the Proper Stance

As you look around the baseball and softball world, you will see all types of different stances.  From Little League to the Major Leagues the stances will vary.  As a young player it is good to initially experiment with different types of stances. I’ve heard Ted Williams says that he would see a new player come into the league and like something this player was doing with his stance and he would try it.  He always went back to what he was comfortable with buy he wasn’t afraid to try something new.

You shouldn’t be afraid to try new things, but at the same time you should not be changing your stance everyday.  Find a stance that is comfortable and workable and stick with it.  When something is no longer working for you, make and adjustment!

Don’t Be Afraid of the Ball

Question:

I coach Little League (coach pitch) and seem to have problems with hitting. At practices most everyone hits. However, in the games most step toward 3rd base and miss the ball. Also, they seem to forget their form and swing.

Any suggestions on fundamentals of stance, swing and position of arms along with drills to help proper step and swing?

Answer:
When kids step in the bucket it deals with one of two areas.

• Wanting to pull the ball too much.
• A fear of the ball.

With the first area, pulling too much, start the kids in practice, have them hit the ball to the opposite field. This will help them to keep their front side in. Emphasize to them the importance of staying square to the plate as long as possible. If their stride is too long (more than 4-5 inches) have them widen their stance some. Keep their stride easy and short.

If some of the kids have a fear of the ball, first teach them how to react the proper way. When they know how to get out of the way, they will have more confidence to stand in.

Teach the kids to have an aggressive approach by hitting the ball right back up the middle. If you’re the pitcher and you’re over 40, you better get a glove. It can be dangerous!!!