We moved a lot when I was a kid. Because of that, I made a conscious decision that when I had children, they wouldn’t have to move if I could help it. My daughter lived in an apartment for five years and then in the same house until she left for college.…
There are a few questions asked by every umpire before a game. One of the most important question is: “Are your players properly equipped?” This is the do your players all have a jockstrap and cup on. This is critical for a few positions and was often a battle for us as coaches.…
I saved this story because it is one that still embarrasses me. With our upper baseball field, we were not able to have a fence around it and so we struggled to keep people off of the field. We were lucky and had people in the neighborhood that would call us when someone was on the field.…
The graphic for today should say everything. Mothers have always hated white baseball pants. I have told my players to have a practice pair of pants and then game pants. It just made it easier. We played on a field that was rough on uniforms.…
Field conditions in high school run the gambit from perfect to perfectly horrible. One game where I was able to make the umpire laugh so hard that he forgot to yell at me. We were playing a game against Bruce Randolph in Denver.…
Working with umpires is a delicate balance between diplomacy and losing your mind. I need to say that the overwhelming majority of the umpires we have had were outstanding and did their job well. There were times that I didn’t agree with them but that is to be expected in a game.…
One of the challenging parts of coaching a high school sport is working with umpires or other officials. Before I get too deep into a couple of stories I need to preface my comments with the fact that I was only tossed from a game once in all of my years of coaching.…
Successful coaches often have things that are non-negotiable in their program. Mine was the direction of the hat. I am a believer that the athlete represents his team, his program, his school, his family, his community, and himself. Respect for all of those folks is paramount for me.…
A snack bar is a favorite place for spectators during a game. We made some good money for our program when selling snacks and soda. Players can even indulge between the first and second games of a doubleheader. I have had many hotdogs and Snickers bars between games, but not much during a game.…
The goal of every coach is to have a kid who throws with good velocity, and movement, and can disguise his pitches. We all make them pitchers and if they are left-handed we are in heaven. One year I had a kid named Devon.…
The game of baseball is a love affair and not just a sport. I am one of those that hold the game sacred. I am an old-school guy and am still grumbling about the designated hitter. “If the pitcher ain’t hitting, it ain’t baseball.”…
Today is the 81st anniversary of the Pearl Harbor bombing to force the US into the Second World War. With that in mind, I will do my favorite veteran. This person is not a staff member at Rangeview but was as important a part of my work as most of my faculty colleagues.…
One of the great pleasures I have had at Rangeview is coaching baseball. There will be many stories later about our baseball escapades. The colleague that I am thankful for is our head coach Mike Hamilton. Our field for the lower levels were separate from the varsity and JV field and we liked it that way.…
I am not Catholic but I coach baseball at a Catholic high school. I have discovered many traditions that I like from the athletes and the school but there is one that I have shared with them. Vespers is traditional nightly prayers or devotions around sunset.