Monday, October 31, 2016
Sunday, October 30, 2016
Saturday, October 29, 2016
Friday, October 28, 2016
Wednesday, October 26, 2016
Travel Baseball Is Not Just About Getting What You Want
Travel Baseball Is Not Just About Getting What You
Want
Learning self-evaluation and teaching your kid the right life lesson is the best path.
By Steve Smull
of LVBA
Blog Article #1
To be fair, I should not limit this article to just
baseball parents. A parent who has kids in any
sport often struggles to understand what is happening on the field.
“Why did the coach take my kid out?”
“Why is my kid not playing shortstop?”
“Why is my kid not batting 3rd or 4th
in the lineup? He has always batted 3rd or 4th.”
“Ok, I am going to give that coach a piece of my mind.”
Raise your hands if you have had those thoughts while
watching a game.
I will now attempt to help the reader understand how you
can help your kid develop to be a better baseball (or basketball, soccer, etc.)
player and more importantly, a better person. And I will conclude with how you
should approach a coach or organization owner when you have a multitude of questions
that you need answered.
I will attempt to help you by passing on a story that
Dylan Dando, owner and Director of Baseball Operations at Lehigh Valley
Baseball Academy, relayed to me involving his 7-year old daughter playing
soccer in a local rec league.
Dando went on to talk about how his daughter was not
happy about the amount of playing time she was getting and she wanted him to
talk to the coach about getting her more playing time.
Sound familiar?
What is not “familiar” was Dando’s approach to that
situation.
Dando explained to his daughter that he was not going to
talk to the coach about getting her more playing time. He felt that her only playing
half the game was appropriate.
He went on to explain to her that if she wants more
playing time, then she should be more focused on what she is doing on the
soccer field when she is playing and be more focused on the game when
she is sitting. He also explained to her that she needs to practice more at
home to improve her soccer skills because he never sees her practicing on her
own.
Dando admitted that she is more interested in the social
aspect of playing soccer with her friends and that her number one priority with
playing soccer (besides socializing) was to have fun.
And there is nothing wrong with that. Let kids be kids.
But Dando was not going to approach the coach about
getting his daughter more playing time just because she wanted more playing
time.
“No way”, Dando said. “I told her she has to earn her
playing time. I would be teaching her the wrong life lesson to go to the coach
to get her more playing time just because she wants that and just because I can
make that happen for her.”
“And therein lies the problem with parents everywhere,”
Dando continued. “A lot of these travel baseball parents teach their kids the
wrong lesson by jumping from one travel program to another to another because
their kid is not getting enough playing time or not playing the position they
want their kid to play or not batting in the spot in the batting order they
want their kid to bat.”
“Parents at LVBA forget that I am a parent, too,” Dando
said. “I have two kids who play sports and I handle the kids at the academy the
same way I handle my two kids. If my kids or the academy kids are not on the
field as much as they think they should be, then do something to make yourself better
and earn more playing time. Focus more at practice. Do more work at home. Get
additional instruction. Do the things you need to do to get better and get on
the field more.”
However, parents would rather blame the coach or the
organization instead of looking at their kid’s situation honestly.
“Parents just automatically point the finger at the coach
or the organization,” Dando said. “Parents don’t even consider the possible
reasons their kid is not on the field as much as they think their kid should
be. Parents do not ask themselves how they can help improve the situation. They
just point the finger at the coach or the organization and often times leave
the organization to go somewhere else where they can play more. And that is not
the answer.”
“A big problem with the world today is that most people
cannot self-evaluate,” Dando said. “They just cannot look into the mirror and
admit their mistakes. And most baseball parents are incapable of evaluating
their own kids honestly. They are not honest about what they see on the field.”
One of the most important points that I took from the conversation
was when Dando said this:
“Sure, LVBA develops players by giving them tons of reps
in the infield and outfield, throwing pens, getting thousands of reps in the
batting cage and going over situational spots constantly with hitting and
fielding, but we also develop the kids to make them better people by teaching
them the right life lessons,” Dando said. “And those life lessons include
earning your playing time on the field.”
In conclusion, another important topic Dando touched on
was how to approach a coach or an organization leader and what you should expect
when you do so.
“First of all, parents have every right to discuss and
learn the reasons why their kid isn’t getting the playing time they think he
deserves or discuss positions and anything related to the sport and their child,”
Dando said.
“Secondly, it is the responsibility of the coach and/or organization
to give the answers to their questions, but to do so honestly, as the coach
sees it. It is important to tell the
parents the truth and not tell them what they want to hear,” Dando continued. “A
lot of parents are interested in the answer they want, not the truth. Everybody
says that they want the truth, but that is directly related to what they think.
Obviously, there are places where you can go that people will tell you anything
you want to hear. That won’t help any player in any sport in the long run. Some
travel organizations and showcases will tell you want to hear in order to
solicit more money from you. LVBA will give you a truthful evaluation. It may
not be want you want to hear, but if it is truthful, that is all you can ask for.
Organizations should be answering questions honestly and with integrity.”
“And lastly, choosing the right time to approach a coach is
very important,” Dando said. “It is not an appropriate time to approach coaches
before, during or immediately after a game or practice to have a lengthy talk
about your kid with other people present. It is never a good idea to talk
immediately after a game when emotions are still running high for a parent who
has issues. The coach is not paid to have these talks at the field. The proper
protocol is to set up an appointment with the organization.”
Tuesday, October 25, 2016
Monday, October 24, 2016
LVBA Middle Infielder Advanced Training Camp with Brett Bittiger
If you’re a
middle infielder looking to take your defense to the next level, the winter
months can be a crucial time to get a jump on your competition. This winter,
LVBA will be conducting a training camp for shortstops and second basemen who
are interested in learning advanced infield techniques. The program will be run
on a small-group, specialized basis, covering an array of middle infield
concepts, including:
Receiving the ball – catching the ball needs to
be a given; learning how to redirect the ball from your glove to throwing
position is the next step.
· Footwork around the bag – shave crucial tenths
of seconds off double plays and throws from the catcher; create extra outs with
your feet and hands.
· Footwork on ground balls – give your hands and
arm less work to do by taking the proper angles to and through the ball; slow
the game down and command every inch of your position.
· Relays – increase your speed and accuracy when
completing relays from the outfield by getting your footwork done early, and
receiving the ball properly.
· Short-hops, long-hops, and in-between-hops –
creating good hops for yourself by reading the ball off the bat and approaching
the ball accordingly.
· Situational defense – use every piece of
information available to determine your positioning and priorities; add a step
to your range simply by being better prepared to anticipate, read, and
react.
The goal of this camp is to prepare any player who wants to
play a middle infield position at the college level. It will provide not only mechanical
instruction, but discussion of the mental aspects of playing the middle
infield, as well as everyday drills that can be utilized in the future to keep
these skills sharp. Upon completion of the camp, each infielder will be left
with a detailed plan that identifies individual points of focus for future
development.
The camp will meet once a week, running from November 15th to December 27th, for a total of 7 sessions, and a cost of $150. Groups will be limited to a
12-player maximum per session, so don’t wait to register; session one will be
ages 11U-14U on Tuesday nights from 6-7:30 p.m., and session two will cover ages
15U-18U on Tuesday nights from 7:30-9 p.m.
For any middle infielder looking to take his game to the
next level, LVBA is pleased to provide you with the most specialized, advanced
program in the area.
All sessions will be run by LVBA Coach and Instructor Brett
Bittiger, who has played shortstop professionally, as well as at the Division I
and II levels. The sessions will also be overseen and evaluated by LVBA
Director Dylan Dando, LVBA Consultant Jeff Bittiger, LVBA Coach Dan Albert, as
well as a number of other guest instructors (current and former
collegiate/professional players and coaches).
Call us at 610-351-0013 to schedule.
Thursday, October 20, 2016
Thursday, October 13, 2016
Tuesday, October 11, 2016
Welcoming Brett Bittiger
LVBA Prospects News
Andrew Brandstetter
Of LVBA
"Welcoming Brett Bittiger"
On behalf of LVBA, we have great pleasure introducing Brett Bittiger as a member of our Instructor and Coaching staff!
Just to give you a little bit of background and up-to-date information on Brett's baseball and academic career...
- Oakland Athletics Minor League 40th round draft pick in 2016 (short-stop/pitcher)
- ACBL Champion with the Allentown Railers during their record-setting 2015 season with the best record in league history (37-6)
- Attended Fairleigh Dickinson and later graduated from Pace University with a 3.99 GPA
Brett is a prime example of what it takes to take care of business on the field, and more importantly, in the classroom...the term "student-athlete" comes to mind.
I've known Brett for many years and have had the privilege of being his teammate as we both developed through LVBA & the Allentown Railers. I'll remember Brett for his passion and integrity for the game...and his 90+ rocket arm from short-stop to first base! I'll be remiss not mention his range between short and third & up the middle. Most of the time I'd find myself mindlessly jogging off the field whenever there was a play to the left side of the infield with 2 outs (sometimes without backing up the play) because I knew Brett would make the play with plenty of time to spare.
Brett seems to be "in the right place at the right time" whenever he is on the field. True statement. However, there's no luck involved here. His comprehensive knowledge for game-time situations, tendencies' of hitters and understanding of his physical capabilities are what leads him to be successful defensively. His baseball IQ is off the charts!
My recommendation for any infielder is to get in touch with this young man - pick his brain, work out with him and truly engage during his lessons. He will provide the fundamental techniques and knowledge for the game to help his players reach their fullest potential.
Glad to have you part of the family, Brett!
Sunday, October 2, 2016
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