dtbaseball

BUILDING A PERFECT PRACTICE

The 12 Infield Throws One of the key reasons infielders make throwing errors is faulty footwork. They’re off balance or rushed or out of rhythm. I teach 12 infield throws to first base to correct this problem. If you do these 12 two or three times a week you’ll develop a feel for your footwork,Continue reading “BUILDING A PERFECT PRACTICE”

Should kids throw curveballs?

Since the days Genghis Khan played shortstop in the Mongol Empire League, dudes have been telling us curveballs will rip your elbow up faster than a lightning bolt.

BUILDING A BETTER HITTER

We aren’t playing golf. The ball doesn’t sit there placidly waiting to get clobbered. It’s moving. Up. Down. In. Out. Breaking as sharp as a machete. Cutting sideways like a swallow in flight. Tumbling. Running. Humping. Spinning. Dive Bombing. It’s a damn carnival of sporadic, frantic, schizoid movement like a Psycho UFO.

Random thoughts from nowhere

There will only be 11,500 fans on hand for every World Series game, including 950 in suites. Surprisingly, ticket prices aren’t even close to destroying records.

KILLER KEYS TO VELOCITY 5

“If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well enough.”
–Albert Einstein

The Terminator at Shortstop

Kevin Nicholson devoured groundballs like The Terminator. He made Arnold (I can’t spell Schwarzenegger) look like the proverbial 98-pound weakling. Kevin attacked charges, backhands and double play feeds like a heat-seeking missile. Drive something within a city block of him and you might as well veer off and head to the dugout.

Whitey and Roger and history

I met Whitey Ford when he came to Vancouver with Roger “61” Maris and Don “Perfect Game” Larsen. They were here to promote an MLB spring exhibition game at B.C. Place, which is about as suited for baseball as a senior’s home is for Super Mario.

Five ways for a hitter to stride

This is really no stride. Start wide. Coil your knee a bit without your foot moving at all. So simple absolutely nothing can go wrong. Albert Pujols has crushed 662 jacks with this one and Juan Soto uses it with two strikes. When a hitter’s having trouble with his timing I’ll have him hit from load in pre-game BP. Often he’ll stay with it in the game because he’s back in the groove.

DON BAKER AND HIS LOVE AFFAIR WITH THAILAND

Donnie Baker played baseball in Jaycee Little League many moons ago. He was a talented left-hand pitcher, first baseman, outfielder, gifted enough to be an all-star at the age of 11.

THE TOUGHEST COMPETITOR EVER

“Don’t dig in against Bob Gibson. He’ll knock you down. He’d knock down his grandmother. Don’t stare at him, don’t smile at him, don’t talk to him. If you hit a home run, don’t run too slow, don’t run too fast. If you want to celebrate, get in the tunnel first. And if he hits you, don’t charge the mound, because he’s a Gold Glove boxer.”
–Hank Aaron