Here is a comprehensive, practical resource that makes building a successful baseball program considerably easier for both the new and the experienced coach. Included are proven techniques and ready-to-use materials for virtually every aspect of the coach?s job, from recruiting to training talent for each position. For easy use, the Guide is printed in a handy spiral-bound format that folds flat and is organized into 15 sections focusing on 15 different coaching concerns: Getting Started Recruiting and Tryouts Game Control From Start to Finish Pitching The Pitches Catching General Infield Play Outfield Play Defensive Strategy and Positioning Team Defense Hitting The Short Game Base Running Offensive Strategy and Techniques Scholarships and Professional Baseball Each section is packed with inside tips, drills for skill development, and winning strategies for a variety of game situations and for dealing effectively with a wide range of problems. Here are just a few examples of the ready-to-use help you?ll find: Guidelines for setting team goals, establishing standards, and marinating positive relationships with players and parents Pitching mechanics and skills including the pitching sequence form starting position to landing, special issues with right and left handers, and insights into various pitches Tested ways to prevent and treat arm soreness 39 defensive play diagrams for cutoffs and relays, bunt defense, first and third defense, and more Techniques and drills to help players improve their hitting in all situations Guidelines for stealing against left- and right-handed pitchers Tips for helping outfielders establish the proper psyche, state of readiness, and way to react to the ball And that?s not all! Baseball Coach?s Survival Guide includes nearly 140 photos showing stance, position, and technique ... plus 85 reproducible forms, checklists, and charts for recording progress and performance that can be photocopied for immediate use to help even the most veteran coach save time!

You volunteered to coach the local baseball team, but are you ready? How will you teach the fundamental skills, run effective practices, and harness the energy of your young team? Fear not: Survival Guide for Coaching Youth Baseball has the answers. In Survival Guide for Coaching Youth Baseball, longtime coach Dan Keller shares his experiences and provides advice you can rely on from the first practice to the final game. From evaluating players’ skills and establishing realistic goals to using in-game coaching tips, it’s all here—the drills, the strategies, and most important, the fun! Develop your team’s fielding, catching, throwing, pitching, and hitting skills with the Survival Guide’s collection of the game’s best youth drills that young players can actually use. Best of all, you’ll be able to get the most out of every practice by following the ready-to-use practice plans. Survival Guide for Coaching Youth Baseball has everything you need for a rewarding and productive season.

You volunteered to coach the softball team, but are you ready? How will you teach the fundamental skills, run effective practices, and harness the energy of your young team? Fear not: Survival Guide for Coaching Youth Softball has the answers. Longtime coaches Robert and Tammy Benson share their experiences and provide advice you can rely on from the first practice to the final game. Establishing realistic goals, in-game coaching tips, drills, strategies, and fun—it’s all here. Develop your team’s fundamental skills—fielding, catching, throwing, and hitting—with the Survival Guide’s collection of the game’s best youth drills. Included is a section on pitching instruction, and the ready-to-use practice plans will help you get the most out of every practice. Survival Guide for Coaching Youth Softball has everything you need for a rewarding and productive season. So step up and enjoy the experience. It will be one that you won’t forget.

Coach Ron Wolforth reveals truths about pitching that are rarely shared with the public. In Survival Guide for the Parent of the Elite Pitcher, you'll find straight talk from America's "Go-To-Guy" on Pitching. "Relying on first-hand experience, in this type of arena, can be quite costly. Imagine if you could avoid injury for your son's arm, or body? Would you want him to "learn the hard way"? Baseball is a game that requires a ton of perspective from a parent's viewpoint. All that matters when your son is 12, or 16, or 18 is that along the development curve he has a chance to reach his potential. Regardless of what that potential ceiling is, relying on first-hand knowledge with the possibility of injury and ineffectiveness is not secure. As a kid, I was a great reader, and from A-Z it seemed like I'd read every available book on pitching, even skimming biographies for inspiration. I never got my hands on Ron's method until I was already in the major leagues, which by that time I'd already had enough injuries to essential body parts. Perhaps if my family and myself could rewind the clock, then I might have been able to avoid some of the injuries and their lasting effects. A saying you learn in the minor leagues: nobody gets sent to the big leagues from the training room. Find a way to make yourself stronger, more stable mechanically, and mentally by working on the right program and having a bit of perspective. It's more important to improve, and if you are going for the top, you better do what you can to keep yourself in onepiece." -C.J. Wilson Major League Picher, Los Angeles Angels 2011 American League All-Star

Dr. Tommy John's unique program: a diet, lifestyle, and movement plan (Rethink. Rebuild. Replenish. Recover) for injury- and performance-proofing young athletes in every sport Beginning as early as age 6 and continuing through the teenage years and on into their twenties, both male and female athletes are more at risk of serious injuries at younger ages than ever before. Dr. Tommy John, son of lefty pitcher Tommy John and also a sports performance and healing specialist, offers an invaluable diet, lifestyle, and movement plan (Rethink. Rebuild. Replenish. Recover) for injury- and performance-proofing young athletes in every sport. Dr. John explores the sudden rise of Tommy John surgeries being performed on young athletes today, as well as the many injuries--and the surgeries required to fix them--increasing at an alarming rate in baseball and all youth sports. Dr. John's book outlines the three top causes behind this "injury epidemic": The American lifestyle, the business of youth sports (from coaches to corporations), and the decisions we believe as parents are truly benefiting our children. Minimize Injury, Maximize Performance focuses on prevention, and also offers tips on how to tailor the advice for athletes coming back from an injury, with over 120 black and white photographs.

Most golfers seek to get better by making their swing as simple as possible to produce distance, control, and consistency. The ESPY technique is like riding a bicycle: once you learn, you don't forget. Based on fundamental sprocket mechanics, the ESPY is an acronym for three simple Ergonomic movements, consisting of the Synch, Protract, and Yaw elements. The E is the ergonomics used to set up each S.P.Y. element of the golf swing. By learning what these mechanics are and how they create power, speed, and control, you'll be able to: control backspin, loft, and trajectory; eliminate the negative effects of downtime and nerves; overcome common obstacles to develop a consistent swing

The New York Times bestseller from the author of The Bullpen Gospels. “A humorous, candid and insightful memoir . . . Grade: Home Run.”—Cleveland Plain Dealer After six years in the minors, pitcher Dirk Hayhurst hopes 2008 is the year he breaks into the big leagues. But every time Dirk looks up, the bases are loaded with challenges—a wedding balancing on a blind hope, a family in chaos, and paychecks that beg Dirk to ask, “How long can I afford to keep doing this?” Then it finally happens—Dirk gets called up to the Majors, to play for the San Diego Padres. A dream comes true when he takes the mound against the San Francisco Giants, kicking off forty insane days and nights in the Bigs. Like the classic games of baseball’s history, Out of My League entertains from the first pitch to the last out, capturing the gritty realities of playing on the big stage, the comedy and camaraderie in the dugouts and locker rooms, and the hard-fought, personal journeys that drive our love of America’s favorite pastime. “A rare gem of a baseball book.”—Tom Verducci, Sports Illustrated “Observant, insightful, human, and hilarious.”—Bob Costas “A fun read . . . This book shows why baseball is so often used as a metaphor for life.”—Keith Olbermann “Entertaining and engaging . . . reminiscent of Jim Bouton’s Ball Four.”—Booklist “The book is a terrific read. If you loved Bullpen Gospels (I’d have a hard time believing you are a baseball fan if you didn’t) you will love Out of My League too.”—Bluebird Banter

An in-depth, comprehensive book from one of the best catching instructors in baseball. Illustrated with nearly 400 photos many of Major League catchers the book covers everything coaches and catchers at every level need to know in regard to stances, receiving, blocking, and throwing, with innovative drills for each skill, plus sophisticated pitch calling and game management material. And the book isn t just for catchers it is an excellent resource for anyone in baseball, from coaches to pitchers to other position players interested in bettering their overall game. -- Amazon.

"Carl Pierson uses his two decades of coaching and his political science background to offer real world examples and practical advice on eternally troubling topics like picking teams, playing time, powerful parents, booster clubs, and so many other issues that today's youth and high school coaches have to contend with"--Amazon.com, viewed July 25, 2013.