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Episode #018: Anthony Santiago- White Sox Latin Cultural Development Coordinator

February 2021 By Evan

Ep. #018- Anthony Santiago- White Sox Latin Cultural Development Coordinator

Join Evan and Anthony Santiago as Anthony shares his baseball journey from Catcher to Pitcher to Coach. Anthony shares pitching and hitting tips with youth baseball players as well as the value of perseverance, character, and work ethic.

What You’ll Learn:

01:11  Anthony’s youth baseball journey

09:36  Being signed by the White Sox

11:34  On having an older brother in the MLB

18:59  Transitioning from Catcher to Pitcher

24:54  His first professional pitching experience

28:54  On becoming a coach

37:57  His experience as Latin Cultural Development Coordinator with Yoan Moncada and Luis Robert

41:36  Importance of coaches building trust with their players

55:35  Getting on plane early

1:03:46  The grind and trusting the process

Thank you for being here with us!  Evan and the Born To Baseball Team are looking forward to celebrating your success and sharing this journey together.
 
If you enjoyed this episode we’d be really grateful if you’d rate the show and leave a review on Apple or wherever you’re listening here. This will help other ballplayers find the Born To Baseball Podcast and give us more chances to shout out our listeners!  
 
Now, let’s play ball!

Read show notes here.

Show Links:

Anthony’s Instagram @santiagosoldiers

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Episode 018_ANTHONY SANTIAGO_WHITE SOX LATIN CULTURAL DEVELOPMENT COORDINATOR

The transcription below was provided for your convenience through an automated service. Please excuse any unintended errors made in the process.

Evan 0:00

This episode of born to baseball is sponsored by the BTB. Travel team and training tracker. Are you a parent or player searching for travel teams or training facilities in your area? Or are you a coach looking to expand your reach?

Then you have to check out the BTB triple t tracker at born to baseball.com. Make sure your team is represented. Let's go.

Unknown Speaker 0:23

Calling all ball players. Are you ready to take your game to the next level? Were you born to baseball? Then bring it in, it's game time.

Evan 0:40

Hey, guys, and welcome to the born to baseball podcast. I'm Evan. And today we have Anthony Santiago joining us. Anthony signed with the White Sox in 2012. He later became a coach for the White Sox organization in 2015. and is now their Latin cultural coordinator. Anthony, thank you so much for joining me today.

Anthony 0:59

Thanks for having me. It's a pleasure.

Evan 1:01

I'd like to start with your baseball journey. So how old were you when you first started playing baseball? And what was your youth baseball experience? Like,

Anthony 1:11

um, when I first started, I was very young, somewhere, somewhere around four or five years old. You know, and it started off obviously, just as having fun. You know, being a kid. You know, at the time, I was too young to think too big and think, you know, I want to make the Major Leagues but I started off playing baseball and for the Ironbound Little League in North New Jersey, and eventually ended up moving north a little bit going to the north north side to the north Ward and continue playing there and so forth. My journey in baseball is very long, there's a lot of different routes that I took, and, you know, a lot of steps and obstacles that I had to overcome. So we'll get there little by little, but yeah, you know, it all started at a playing for the Ironbound Little League.

Evan 2:02

What was high school baseball like for you?

Anthony 2:05

Yeah, I went to Bloomfield tech, vocational school in Bloomfield, New Jersey, and high school, you know, I was I was a pretty good ballplayer. You know, I was always I was always on different teams, travel teams, playing for North project pride and, you know, different travel ball teams and just staying active constantly at, you know, at the park with friends, just staying active, whether it was with an organized team, or just with friends. So going to Bloomfield tech I originally made that decision because my brother was there had some other friends that played at the same school. And, you know, we were trying to put together a pretty good ball program. And so we all came together and kind of decided, you know, let's all play together, stick together make make something out of a program. And at the time, it wasn't, you know, that school wasn't really known for baseball. So we kind of turned it around a little bit. And you know, now it's, it's still it's they changed the school. And now they've combined a few schools and made one big one. But eventually, after the few years that I was there, and my brother ended up getting some pretty good ballplayers that came through there as well, because of kind of the history and the culture, that we created there. So it was pretty awesome to see, you know, other guys want to follow in our footsteps and choose Bloomfield tech to play baseball there because of the program as opposed to just what the school had to offer. So yeah,

Evan 3:36

just like you said, That's awesome. And being there with your brother, as well as yourself. And that's just a really cool experience being able to play with your brother and sort of help each other out.

Anthony 3:47

Absolutely. Absolutely.

Evan 3:49

What was your college baseball experience like? And do you feel like it really prepared you for the next level?

Unknown Speaker 3:59

So getting to my college experience, this is where it got really long and complicated. So I ended up going through, I ended up going to five different colleges, throughout my college career. You know, I was kind of on and off, coming out of high school, you know, I watch, I watched my brother get drafted. Another friend of mine that we played together get drafted as well the same year as my brother in 2006, out of bloomfield tech. So that kind of, you know, gave me that push to want to work harder to want to get better. So I wanted to really make the correct decision. When I was going to college. I didn't want it to just be about academics. I also didn't want it to just be about baseball. But at the time, like all I saw was my one goal and I said you know what i want to follow in their footsteps. I want to play professional baseball. And originally My plan was to go to William Paterson University, which is in New Jersey, Wayne, New Jersey, and things kind of changed. I was playing in the summer at a tournament and a college coach approached me and some of my friends. And at the time, he didn't think I would decide to go with them. Being that he knew I was probably going to have more offers. But it was a community college in Baltimore, I decided to, to go that route. I knew that the coach at the time had worked for Cal Ripken Jr. So I know there was some background there. So I figured, you know, that sounds like a good choice, you know, I'm going to be around the right people. And I decided to go there. I won't get into too many details about all these schools, because we can be on this call for two days. But anyway, so I went there for a little while, it kind of things didn't work out with, you know, recruiting and other players. And it was just a tough atmosphere to be in. So I eventually decided to leave. I went to another school, I transferred over to NJCU, which is College in New Jersey, was there I kind of had some issues with the coach and we just kind of didn't see eye to eye so I decided, you know, it wasn't for me. At that time, I made the choice to go to Dominican Republic. So I ended up going overseas and trying to you know, try to try to take the fast route and sign professionally. in Dominican Republic was there for a few months, you know, had a lot a lot of scouts watch me. It didn't work out and I came back. I ended up going to William Paterson University, which was going to be my original choice finally finally went there. I finished up a semester, I played with them in the fall, I didn't get a chance to play spring. I ended up leaving, there going. I believe I went back to Dominican Republic again, after William Paterson went out there for a few more months, got some looks, you know how to how to do some had some offers. Nothing that I ended up deciding to take afterwards came back and at this point was kind of was probably the most important point in my college career. I was kind of at the point where I'm like, you know what, maybe it's not for me, it hasn't happened yet. I've kind of went through a you know, I've had a lot of obstacles, a lot of negative, you know, things going on a lot of no's. And someone actually the agent, my brother's agent at the time kind of saw me catching a bullpen for my brother. You know, he was in the offseason, he was already with the White Sox. And he saw me and he's like, hey, why aren't you in college, you know what's going on. And he saw something in me said you should be playing Listen, I'm gonna make a call. And I have a friend who would love to have you. And the friend of his was a he had just got a head coaching job at Mitchell college, which is a division three College in Connecticut. And, you know, we we talked, he saw me play he loved me. I you know, I thought it was an amazing coach. He was a great person, you know, he really seemed like he was interested in making me a better player and helping me get to the next level. So I made the decision to to go to that college. So now I'm in Mitchell college in Connecticut. You know, we had a great baseball program, we had, you know, great players, we had an amazing coaching staff. We ended up winning a championship there, I was ready to stay there. You know, I had some scouts watch. Had some scouts watch me I had some offers, you know, possibly getting drafted. It didn't work out, didn't get drafted, I was ready to repeat. And my coach lost his job at that school, which kinda, you know, broke me because I was very comfortable Finally, after so many different schools and being all over, so I ended up having to leave again, which is where I finally ended up going to Florida, Community College in Florida College of Central Florida. Finally played another season there had some scouts see me didn't get drafted. But after the draft about I believe, a week or two after get a phone call, and they offer me to sign with the Chicago White Sox.

Evan 8:46

Yeah, that's awesome. And really, I know, you mentioned that at a point there was almost like you almost wanted to give up and say, maybe this isn't for me, but you persevered and you kept trying, and eventually things worked out for you. That's awersome.

Unknown Speaker 9:01

Absolutely, absolutely. And you know, that that's why I like to share my journey with a lot of, you know, players, I train along with just you know, through Instagram and, you know, people who follow me and just trying to kind of send out that message so that, you know, if it helps one other player, kind of just just keep pushing through after, you know, a lot of obstacles they have to overcome or persevere and might kind of just give them that one little push, they need to get forward and keep going to that next step and hopefully, you know, it can help them get to their, to their next level, whatever it may be.

Evan 9:36

Yeah definitely. You were signed out of the College of Central Florida by the White Sox, how did it feel to get signed by a major league organization and say, I'm here I made it to the next level and now I got to keep grinding.

Unknown Speaker 9:52

Um, no, it was it was it was obviously it was amazing. You know, it was it was the moment that every kid dreams of you know, for me it was, I just felt like it was even, it was even better than, you know me being drafted out of high school, you know, because I always enjoy my story and how I got to where I got to, because of all the failure that I had to had to go through first to get it. So it just made it so, so much more sweet. When the moment actually happened. You know, I always say, I, you know, being a coach now for for so many years, with the White Sox seeing so many players drafted and, you know, I can see all the different personalities between first rounders and free agents, you know, or late round draft picks, you kind of see how players act based on, you know, what round they're selected in or how much money they get. And it actually, you know, it makes a big difference. And, you know, how far they go in their career. And I believe everything that I went through really humbled me. So in that moment, you know, I just I broke down, I cried, and I'll be honest, you know, I was in tears. I was I was amazed. I, you know, I didn't, I didn't think it was gonna happen. You know, we all hope it does. So when it did happen, it was just, you know, that much more awesome

Evan 11:08

A mix of emotions.

Unknown Speaker 11:10

Absolutely, absolutely. But you know, once, once I did, finally sign that contract, that was all right now, onto onto what's next, you know, we are here now, what's the next goal?

Evan 11:21

That's a great success story and being able to go through some of the failure that you did, but then you you achieved one of your goals, and it's just makes it all the more better?

Anthony 11:33

Absolutely. Absolutely.

Evan 11:34

At the time you were assigned, actually, your brother was playing in the MLB. For the White Sox. having that connection to the organization? Did that make signing with the White Sox any more special?

Unknown Speaker 11:47

Oh, yeah. 100%. And it's funny too, because at the time, when I was playing for the College of Central Florida, you know, I had, I had a lot of a lot of scouts watching me, you know, more for my defense, I was a very, very good defensive catcher, I had a strong arm. And, um, at the time, though, there was two main teams that we're watching, that were constantly communicating with me, you know, I built a good relationship with those two scouts, it was the White Sox, and it was the Angels. So obviously, you know, I was hoping it would go that route with the White Sox, just because of the you know, the history, the background. But at the same time, if it was the Angels, you know, would have been just as great. And then eventually, my brother ends up playing for the Angels as well. You know, so who knows, if I had signed with the angels at the time, it could have ended up being to where we ended up being on the same organization, as well. But yeah, I think it worked out for the best. Once I did get to the White Sox, I tried not to. And it's funny, because my brother actually was the first one to tell me, I try not to tell people who I was, you know, because he didn't, he didn't want anyone to treat me differently, because of the fact that they knew we were brothers, we were related. He kind of wanted me to earn everything, you know, and everyone's respect, based on who I was, as opposed to them respect me just because they knew who my brother was. Ultimately, they would see the last name on the jersey and asked me anyway, any any chance you're related to Hector. So, you know, people found out but it was after a few months of me being with the organization, and after, they kind of got to know me a little bit, which was much better because then I got a chance to build my own relationships with everyone, as opposed to just everyone knowing me because of being Hector's brother.

Evan 13:34

It's also a great job by your brother too, just because he had some success at the time, he made sure that you you earned some stuff, and you didn't have to have people Oh, you're his brother. Oh, that's, that's cool. It's like you made them respect you for who you were.

Anthony 13:53

Exactly. And that was the idea. Yeah.

Evan 13:56

So I know you you've shared with me a story about when he faced Miggy, Miguel Cabrera. Can you share that story with our listeners and sort of what went on?

Anthony 14:05

Yeah, so um, I forget exactly what year it was, but it was during his time with the twins and we were in Minnesota, I went out to go watch him play. And they were facing the Tigers. Yes, they were facing the Tigers. So he's up against Miggy. They had previous at bats. You know, my brother had bested him a few times with a few strikeouts. Miggy had a few hits off of him. So they kind of knew each other and respected each other. So Miggy being the professional he is he knew already, you know, my brother's game plan. He kind of knew how he would pitch to him. And the reason I brought that story up to you was to kind of talk about, you know, having a plan and sticking with it. And I know my brother, so I knew what he wanted to do. And I'm watching Miggy, just as a hitter and you know, obviously seeing him, his previous at bats and his career, knowing what type of hitter he is and being a coach Now I, what I like to do is I like to watch hitters I like to watch how they react to certain at bats, how they react to, you know, certain pitchers, how they how they change from one pitch to another. And the best of the best they usually stick to their game plan. Miggy is obviously one of the best hitters in the major leagues, he's been one of the best hitters. So I'm watching them. And I already know my brother, he loves throwing fast balls to righties. So he's coming in, you know, Miggy's fouling some balls off, he gets the two strikes, and I can just watch Miggy every time he steps out, you know, after foul ball, he would step out, and he'd, you know, he'd stick to his approach either, you know. He'd get his feel of his swing, before stepping back in and every one was staying inside the ball, you know, looking, looking to go the other way. And obviously, it's the opposite of what my brother is trying to do. He's trying to pound him in, you know, hoping he obviously swings and miss or tries to pull the ball and break his bat, whatever it may be. And every timehe would foul the ball off. Miggy would step out and do the same thing. Try to go the other way, with his swing to go the other way. My brother eventually ended up throwing him something that Miggy was just sitting there fighting pitches off hoping he would do. And I'm in my head, I'm sitting in the stands like don't throw him an off speed. Don't throw him anything over the plate, he slips in a curveball, Miggy sits back and drives it the other way hits a double, I believe it was either one hopper off the wall, he gets a double. But in that moment, it was funny just to see, you know, I'm watching. I obviously know my brother, I know his game plan. I'm watching Miggy, I know his game plan. And just to see, you know, such a professional hitter, stick to his game plan, no matter what the pitcher was doing. And as hitters you know, we tend to make adjustments based on what the pitcher is doing. But the best, they know what they do well, and they stick to it.

Evan 16:47

Yeah, staying within yourself. That's a big key.

Anthony 16:51

Yes, big time.

Evan 16:54

Who would you say, are the people who've had the biggest influence on you as a ballplayer?

Anthony 17:01

Um, I've had a lot in my career, to be honest. Um, but by far the most would have to be my brother and my father. My father, obviously, you know, he was always there for us. You know, he was the one who had us at the ballpark, all the time, not just because he was trying to force us into, you know, playing baseball professionally, but more because he loved the sport. And he knew that there was something in us that would eventually turn into something better. So he made sure that we were there, he also made sure that we always needed all the equipment, you know, that we always had all the equipment we needed. You know, whatever it was, whether whether it was showcases, he was always there to support us, there was never... We never got a no from my father. And one thing that he taught us was always to work hard. You know, he made us, He made us go to work with him from a very young age, just to kind of teach us, you know, what it was to earn something, you know, to work hard to earn something. So he kind of put that into us. So we knew that, whatever we were going to achieve in our life that we were going to have to earn, it wasn't gonna be handed to us. So definitely my father for that, and my brother just for you know, just for always being a positive influence and being able to watch him grow as a player and be a professional. And watch other people respect him for his work ethic, kind of taught me, you know, to follow in his footsteps. And just kind of gave me something to, you know, look up to and to want to try to be as good as or even better.

Evan 18:33

Fathers play a big role. They really help us out and help us ultimately achieve our goal. You were a catcher pretty much your whole life. And like you mentioned earlier you transitioned to a pitcher. So you're a pitcher in the pros, but a catcher through college. So how did you make that transition from catcher to pitcher as a pro baseball player?

Anthony 18:59

Yeah, so this is another funny story. So obviously, my scout that was watching me through college, watched me as a catcher. You know, I did a little bit of pitching in high school, but not much because I was our, I was our best catcher. So a lot of the times that we played on fields, they had big backstops, and we wanted to make sure that we weren't giving away runs so I didn't get too many times too many opportunities to pitch because I had to be the one catching the, you know, to make sure we weren't just giving up runs. So I did you know, when I did pitch it was more of just throwing so I wasn't really a pitcher, but I did have a strong arm. And as I was getting scouted in college, you know, I was told that there would always be a possibility that I would be converted to a pitcher. And I was okay with it. You know, and in my mind, I just wanted to play professional. I wanted to get get the chance to prove to myself you know that I could compete at that level. And I was, I was ready for it. But I didn't know because when my scout called me You know, it also could have been the fact that there was so much emotion going on. But I remember our conversation and my scout says, Yeah, you know, you're gonna be headed to Bristol, Virginia, which is where the rookie, rookie ball affiliate is for the White Sox. So he's like, you know, pack up your gear. They're gonna they're gonna send you your your plane ticket. And, you know, you'll go from there. So, in my head, when I was told to pack up your gear, I'm assuming my catchers gear, you know, but I wasn't, I guess I probably should have asked a little more questions. But anyway, so I show up, I show up to the field. And I remember signing my contract with with our trainer, he pulls out my contract. And when I'm reading my contract, I see believe it was RHP, like, right handed pitcher, or right handed reliever or something like that. And I'm reading and I'm like, I told my trainer like, hey, but um, I'm a catcher. He looks at me and he goes, not anymore. So at that moment, I'm like, alright, I sign the contract. And I didn't even have a pitchers glove with me. I had all my catching, all my catching equipment, my trunk was full of bats. So I literally had to borrow a pitching glove from from another teammate. At the time, there was a player who was, who had played at a higher level. And he's like, Hey, I got you, man, I got an extra glove. You know, so I went out and played catch as a pitcher for the first time. And I remember thinking, like my arm is not gonna be able to hold up. I'm like, I hope I hope I can. Because as a catcher, I had a lot of bicep pain when I threw, and it ended up working out. I ended up becoming a pitcher and my arm held up, I never really had, you know, thankfully, never had any arm issues. And then at that point, it was just all about, alright, you know, I got to put that in the past and I have to teach myself. I have to listen, I have to become a pitcher now.

Evan 21:55

That's a pretty cool story. Being able to know, and it's last minute, but I got it, whatever it takes.

Anthony 22:02

Yeah, exactly. Whatever it takes.

Evan 22:05

So do you think catching almost helped you transition to a pitcher? Because just because you're working with pitchers a lot, and you're sort of in their head?

Anthony 22:15

Oh, no, definitely 100%. Um, and it's tough. Because as a pitcher, you're on the mound and you know, things go so fast, the game speeds up on you, especially at the professional level, you know, when you're just starting off. So you don't even have the time to think to yourself, you know, about the catching process about, you know, what, what pitch you would call at the time. It just becomes, you know, just competing. So I think it did help me in the sense of being able to kind of stay calm a little bit and realize that hitting isn't easy. You know, obviously, as a catcher you have to hit. So, you know, I knew that. It's difficult being a hitter, you know, whether you have a great swing, and we always talked about this. You can have the best swing, but if your timing is off, you're not going to hit. So I knew when I was on the mound, I said, Listen, I may not be a pitcher right now but as long as I throw strikes, I have a chance at getting outs. So that that I would say was the biggest helper for me kind of transitioning, just trusting that if I get the ball over the plate, hitters are bound to get themselves out.

Evan 23:22

That's a great mindset to take into it. Hitting is one of if not the hardest thing to do in sports.

Unknown Speaker 23:30

In all of sports. Yes. 100%

Evan 23:32

So I heard that you had a very interesting first pitching appearance. Can you share that story with us?

Anthony 23:42

Absolutely. So um, you know, I become a pitcher. And obviously in professional baseball, everyone's an investment. So they can't just throw you out there right away. They have to kind of transition you into it. So you know, everyone, we started our season and everyone's pitching except me because I had to you know, I had to throw bullpens and get my rest. I'd go into the bullpen get my rest, you know, work on my mechanics work on my pitches. Then I got into throwing live batting practices to our own hitters, you know, so I'd go out and face our own hitters. So I was at the time I was more of a high three quarter pitcher with a you know, fastball curveball, very simple threw a changeup here and there. So when I was facing our own hitters, I did really well you know, I was striking out some of our guys you know, guys were telling me a throwing pretty hard. You know, so the results were there. You know, I was I was getting getting outs. But then obviously sitting in a bullpen Finally I was told, hey, today is going to be the first day you're active about halfway through the season. So obviously my adrenaline's going, I'm in the bullpen.

Evan 24:52

Awesome.

Anthony 24:54

I get I get the call down to the bullpen, you know, they they give me my sign and my adrenalin You know, starts starts going, my bloods pumping. I warm up and I get out on the field, you know, I get loose, I'm looking around, it's such a different feel, you know, when you're in a game on the mound, especially at the professional level compared to being a catcher looking at a completely different view. So I get out there and, you know, I'm obviously new to professional baseball, so I'm not really sure how it works. But all I knew in my head was that I wanted to throw strikes. So I said, Listen, don't try to overthrow I'm talking to myself, don't try to overthrow you know, just throw strikes, get ahead, you don't want to be the guy that's out here walking everybody and become, it becomes an embarrassment. So in my head, I say, you know, I'm just gonna throw, I just want to get my first pitch over. This guy is probably not going to swing. And you know, I'm sure they know that it's my first time pitching, which I don't know why I thought that. Like, he's probably just gonna let me get the first pitch ahead. So I'll just throw it over. So I throw a fastball probably at 87 miles an hour, who knows. And it's up and away to a left handed hitter, lefty. He goes and swings at the first pitch, Yanks a homerun over the fence. And it was such a crazy moment because immediately my,my mind went to negativity and I go, I'm not a pitcher, I just thought I'm like, Wow, my first pitch, they hit a homerun off me like, that's what's going to keep happening. I'm like, I'm not a pitcher I'm a catcher. But then, you know, just being a competitive person, a competitive player. You know, I shook it off fast. I looked at the umpire and said give me the next ball. I get the ball. You know, I didn't even watch the guy round the bases. I was just focused on the next hitter. I go in, and I didn't think as opposed to my first pitch, I was just overthinking. When I break the next guy's bat and a ground ball. Next guy comes up, I get a pop up. Last hitter, broken bat ground ball, and I get out of the inning. I get three quick outs after they're given up a first pitch home run. And as I'm coming into dugout, you know, everyone's kind of laughing joking about it, like oh, you know, welcome to the league, you know, welcome to the pro ball, or welcome to pitching. And I it's funny, because in my in my head, I'm just I'm thinking like, wow, I just sucked, you know, I gave up a home run. It's terrible. Like, they're probably going to release me and just immediately just all the negative stuff. And everyone's coming up to me like, Hey, nice job, nice job, good job. I'm just wondering, like, why they're telling me good job. But they obviously knew that it was my first time out and I give up a home run and next thing you know, I go and get three outs. And my manager at the time was Pete Rose, Jr. who was an awesome, awesome manager, great person. And the next day, you know, we always meet up and talk about the game. And he's having a meeting, we lost a lot at the time. So he yelled a lot. But during his meeting to us, He used me as an example. And he goes, um, this guy went out there yesterday and on his first professional pitch gives up a homerun. And guess what he goes in right after, you know, and he gets three quick, quick outs. He's like, that's the kind of pitcher that I want on the mound every day. Like, I don't want anyone going up there scared. He's like, I'm gonna, he's I'm gonna ask for this pitcher every day. Because that's the guy went out there. And it kind of motivated me. And I was like, wow, you know, in my head, I was like, That was terrible. And in his eyes, you know, it was, it was something that he felt he could use to motivate the other players. And from there on out, you know, I use that as motivation. And it kind of pushed me to think you know, it's possible I can do this.

Evan 28:41

Yeah, bouncing back is huge. And that's, that's a really cool and really special first pitching appearance. And that story is awesome.

Anthony 28:52

Definitely, definitely. Thank you.

Evan 28:54

After 2014, you signed your very first coaching contract with the Chicago White Sox. What was it like going from player to coach?

Anthony 29:06

Um, it was it was interesting. At the time, you know, I was still young. I, you know, I still technically was in my prime as a player. And I had never thought about becoming a coach at the time. You know, it was all about playing. And until I was released by the White Sox, I was in winter ball playing in Puerto Rico at the time, they called me to release me. And it wasn't, it was just a few months later that they called me right back. And I remember getting the call and I was pitching really well in Puerto Rico, facing, you know, high level competition. And I was performing. I was probably at the time one of the best relievers that we had out there. And so I was thinking, you know, I'm gonna get a call by somebody, hopefully, the next day and I get a call from the White Sox and I'm kind of confused. I'm like, these guys just released me and they call me kind of asking You know, how I was doing and what I was doing? And if I was still playing or if I had signed with another team? And my answer was like, No, you know, I'm still waiting. I'm in Puerto Rico, I'm performing well, kind of just waiting for the call. And then Okay, well, good, you know, we got some got some good news, we have a position here for you. And my first thought was, okay, well, as a player, obviously, I'm just thinking like, Oh, I guess you know that something must have happened, they need more pitching, and I'm pitching well, so they noticed that, and he goes, Well, it's a coaching position. And I was kind of shocked, I'm like, okay, because, you know, typically coaches go, and they'll apply for these jobs, if they have the experience. And I did no such thing. But it was, it was just more of the fact that they saw something in me as a player, you know, going, you know, going about my business and my work ethic, and also helping other players along the way. Just things you know, the ins and outs, that people notice, you know, personality traits, things like that. They noticed this in me, and they had a position available. And, you know, I remember them telling me, they're like, Hey, listen, you're the first one on our list. The job is yours. If you want it, you know, think about it. Talk to your brother, talk to your family. And let us know. We're not going to make any other moves until you give us you know, your decision. And yeah, I was like, Alright, well, yeah, let me let me think about it. I'm going to talk to my brother and stuff. And I talked to my brother right after and he was like, so shocked, like, it's not easy to get into professional coaching. He's like, you have to take it, you know, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity. And obviously, it was a tough decision because I was pitching well, you know, I was at the peak of my career doing very well. And, you know, facing big league hitters, and AAA hitters and AA hitters were, at the time had only faced rookie ball level guys or A ball guys. And I was doing well. So I really thought I could compete at higher levels. But then I thought to myself, like, you know what, you know, if I become a coach, I'm gonna, I'm going to be around a lot of people who have a lot of knowledge, I'm going to get the ins and outs of how things work, I'm going to learn, not just, you know, I didn't think of it as I'm going to go and teach people. In my mind, I was like, Alright, I'm going to go in, and I'm going to learn, I'm going to listen, take advantage of, you know, this opportunity, and try to become a good coach. So that one day, I can come back home. And I can share all this knowledge that I knew a lot of the players from the inner cities are getting this information, you know, as opposed to people that are in professional baseball, you know, they're able to get all this information, and a lot of people aren't as privileged. So I thought to myself, like, you know what, this, this can be something where I can make a difference somewhere else, not just about becoming a professional coach, but more about helping others. So I told them, You know, I called them back within probably 10 minutes. And I told them that, you know, that was that was gonna agree, and I was going to agree, and I was gonna sign the contract.

Evan 33:04

Yeah, it's awesome to be recognized and say, okay, we, we think you'd be perfect for this. And, like, let me know what you think you're the first on our list, and we're not going to do anything until we really get you because we really want.

Anthony 33:19

Yeah, and that was, that was, that was a big thing for me. You know, I figured, alright, if they see something in me, then, you know, they obviously know what they're doing. So, you know, let's, let's, let's see it out. And let's see what happens.

Evan 33:32

10 minutes, only 10 minutes.

Anthony 33:35

That's it. That's it. It was really a really quick decision

Evan 33:39

in 2017. Now, I'm going to skip ahead here, but you were promoted to the Latin cultural coordinator for the White Sox. Can you talk more about what this role is? And what made you want to help players in this way?

Anthony 33:54

Yeah, so my, when I first signed my contract, was as an assistant coach. When I got to spring training, they started talking to me about talking to me about my job responsibilities. I had a few different responsibilities. One obviously was on on field coaching, you know, coaching, first base, and obviously throwing batting practice and hitting fungos, and all the all that kind of stuff. Being an instructor, as well as I had to help out with the Latin American players, younger Latin American players, so I was doing some translating. I was handling some paperwork stuff outside of the field, there was a lot of a lot of things going, going into that position. So I did it for two years. After my first year, I remember my boss talking to me telling me that you know that I was overqualified for the position. So I kind of knew that eventually it was going to transition into something bigger. And the way the way, the way that I am the person that I am I no matter what I'm doing, I'm going to want to do it the right way. And there are there are people out there who, who aren't that way. So, in the position that I was in, typically that role, people didn't last long in that role, you know, they'd be in for a year or two and out, they'd find someone new, get them in and get them out. Because people, certain guys would take advantage of situations. But for me, I was like, you know, I wanted to make sure I did everything that I could, especially with the position that I was in. The position was helping younger players, younger Latin American players, who were coming into a country where they didn't know the language, you know, they didn't know the culture, they didn't know how to order food, you know, so everything was completely different for them, and they're trying to live out their dream. So if I could be there to help them, I wanted to do it. So I went above and beyond, you know, outside of the field, I made sure that I helped these guys, and I made them feel at home. You know, I had to find them apartments, I had to keep them, you know, comfortable making sure that you know that they weren't homesick that they were that they were going to be able to perform on the field at their, you know, optimal level. And I took, you know, I took a lot of pride in that. So eventually, they, you know, they took notice to it, and my boss, they actually created this position for me at the time, they didn't have this role. So I remember in that offseason, I got a call. And my boss at the time Buddy Bell, he said, listen, you know, we're gonna, we're going to promote you, we're going to give you a promotion, you're going to become a coordinator now. And a coordinator and professional baseball is basically there's there's many, they all have their own specific, you know, jobs, for example, hitting coordinator, pitching coordinator catching coordinator, they all work specifically at certain positions. So what they do is they travel from affiliate, affiliate. So as opposed, instead of just being at the triple A level, or double A level or A ball level, they throughout the season, they, they hop from one team to another, they're in one place for a few weeks or a few days, they'll go to A ball for a few days, triple A double A, all over. So when they he told me about this, you're going to be a coordinator. You're This is going to be your title, it's the latin cultural coordinator. We kind of spoke a little bit about about the responsibilities but I had already knew at the time that I didn't have to change anything that I was doing that obviously what I was doing was what made them give me that promotion or what made them create that position for me. And I actually didn't get a full opportunity to or haven't yet got an opportunity to do that position to the full extent. Because in 2017, when I was actually given that position.

In the offseason, we made a trade with Boston for for Chris Sale. When we made that when we made that trade, we obviously we got Yoan Moncada was a high profile, you know, Cuban player, and a huge investment. So before that spring training, before I got a chance to actually start that position, the way it was supposed to go. I get a call from my boss again. And they had spoken to our general manager at the time. And they wanted to make sure that Yoan Moncada was going to be taken care of, they wanted to make sure that they had somebody that was going to travel with him to make sure that everything was going the right way, you know, on and off the field. So obviously, they thought highly of me. So they decided like, Hey, listen, we're going to have you specifically with Yoan Moncada. You're going to go to major league camp, you're going to go to AAA until he gets to the major leagues. And, you know, basically you're gonna, you're going to be the guy that that makes sure everything goes smoothly. So that was the kind of transition to transition into that role. Once Moncada got to the major leagues, I fell back into my role and I started to travel. You know, I went to Dominican Republic, watch our players out there to kind of oversee everything with the young Latin American players. You know, I was roving around all the lower levels. I did that for a few months until the season ended. And then we signed Luis Robert, who was the next high profile guy, and then obviously transitioned back into that. So he became my next responsibility.

Evan 39:32

That's awesome. Luis Robert, he's a star in the making right now. And Yoan Moncada a big name in baseball. So it's awesome how you got to sort of help them and guide them a little bit and really make sure they were well taken care of. I read that when you played in the Dominican Republic, you didn't know any Spanish but your teammates would help you out and correct you if you said anything wrong in Spanish. Did that make you any more passionate about Coming into this role just because you've been helped before, so you want to give back and help others.

Anthony 40:06

Definitely, definitely. And that that was, that was the big reason why when I was a player, I took it upon myself to help these players, you know, without it having to be my job. You know, I was constantly I actually lived with all of the Dominican and Venezuelan players, you know, we all we all stayed together. Obviously, the minor leagues, you don't make a lot of money. So you kind of have to grind it out and get by so we used to live in apartments, you know, 6,7,8 players altogether, you know, there'll be three to four of us in a room. So I made sure you know, I had a car at the time. These guys didn't, I made sure that, you know, I was helping out, helping them out, open up bank accounts, you know, help them buy their groceries and help them order food, a little bit of everything, without it having to be my, my job. And I did it just because I understood, you know, what it is to be in a place to be in a different, different country where you're, you're not comfortable, you don't know the language, you don't know anyone, and to have other people help you out. So I took it upon myself to make sure that I was doing that. And that was, you know, some of the reason why they decided to add me on as a coach, not just because of, you know, my knowledge of the game, or you know, from my work ethic, but as well as being a just being a good person. And, you know, having a big heart

Evan 41:29

What advice could you give to coaches to help them build trust quickly with their players?

Anthony 41:36

Now, I'm actually glad that you bring that up, you know, trust. That's, that's a very, very important word in baseball, especially in coaching. And it was kind of why, why a lot of the players respected me, because they trusted me. They knew they knew. And it happens all the time in professional baseball, in college, or in high school. A lot of times players don't, they don't trust their coaches enough to listen to whether it be advice or listen to, you know, mechanics, whatever, whatever it is. So to give other coaches advice, I'd say just, you know, just to be honest, I know, I know, there's a lot of a lot of times where coaches like to put their egos first. They want to make sure that people feel like they know it all, or they have all the answers. No coach has all the answers, I definitely don't have all the answers. Especially the way baseball is. The game constantly changes, there's always new ways to teach it. There's new ways to play it. So you just basically have to continue being a student of the game, even though you're the teacher, you're the coach, you still have to learn. And just just be real with your players. Make sure that you guys have you know, build the relationship, not just, you know, it's not just coaching, you got to make sure that you know, these guys on and off the field. And just to make sure that, you know, you show them that you actually care about them.

Evan 43:00

Yeah, that's, that's awesome advice for the coaches, they might not know everything. And a lot of it is just adapting and adjusting to new information, whether it's whether you're a hitting coach, and you're trying to learn a new method, or there's a new philosophy out there, maybe a more efficient swing, whether it's pitching, how to throw harder how to hit your spots, like nine out of 10 times, everything's adapting.

Anthony 43:25

Absolutely.

Evan 43:28

Could you share some of the cooler moments you've had with guys like Yoan Moncada and Luis Robert,

Anthony 43:37

um, I mean, there's a lot, obviously, you know, it's funny now, you know, watching and watching these games, and watching this Robert play now. And, you know, I saw this, I saw this kid kind of grow and mature over the last few years, coming into professional baseball, now I'm gonna get an opportunity to watch him perform at the highest level. So it's just funny, you know, just just to kind of meet and me being able to know these, these, these kids and these players, you know, personally, I kind of know, I know how they think. So I'm, as I'm watching them, I can already imagine, you know, what he's saying, when he gets back to the dugout, and, you know, for example, like Robert he still he doesn't realize how much of a, you know, high profile guy he is. And he forgets that, that people read, you know, people can read and they, they know who he is, and they know how good he is. So I remember his, his first spring training in the major leagues. I think he he faced one of his first at bats he faced like Kelly Jensen, and he goes up right away and he hits a double down the line. And I remember thinking in my head, I'm like, he has no idea what pitch he just hit. Like he's that good that he didn't, he doesn't know what pitch he just hit, he just he saw the ball, he hit the ball. But he's so raw,he's just that talent that he can get away with it. Typically guys are gonna go in saying, oh, it's Kelly Jensen, like, I know he's gonna throw me either a fastball or cutter, most likely, nine out of 10 times he's gonna throw me 95,96 mile per hour cutter. And that's what the pitch was. And I remember asking, asking him, when he got back in the dugout, like a will pitch what pitches to hit? And he's like, fastball, I think. And I'm like, No, I'm like, it's a cutter. And he goes, and he tells me he's like, what's a cutter? Didn't know what the pitch was, you know, cuz he's coming from Cuba. And out there. It's you know, they're, they're not facing anybody throwing that hard. They're facing a lot of curveballs, they don't see you know, splitters and all these different kind of pitches. So I had to, like, explain to him what what a cutter was, and like, what kind of movement it you know, it had, but it was just funny to see, like, you know, how good he actually is. And he doesn't even realize it, he had another experience where he went up the hit, and he's looking for a fastball, and they would not throw it. Thgey wouldn't throw him a fastball and mind you he is in Major League camp, but he would get upset because he's like, I don't know why they're throwing me breaking balls, like, I'm not even in the major leagues yet. They should be throwing fast balls. And I'm like, No, you got to understand that, you know, you're obviously like a super prospect. They're not gonna want you to, you know, to do damage, it doesn't matter if you're not there yet. They know you will be. So these guys already, respect you. And being able to watch him now, you know, on TV and watch his games. You know, I see certain pitches, I already know, I'm like, I already know what he's thinking. So you know, and with Moncada you know, kind of the same stuff. But from with Moncada it's pretty cool, you know, he's, he's actually become more of a leader now. You know, when when I was with him, he was still coming up. And, you know, he only had a little bit of big time with Boston. So he didn't really, he was still learning, but now he's at that point where, you know, within the last two years, he's become more of a leader. So that's, that's been pretty cool to watch.

Evan 47:06

Now, I want to move more into the technical side. So I'm gonna start off with pitching and then we'll, we'll get into hitting.

Anthony 47:12

Okay, oh,

Evan 47:14

I've asked former professional pitchers before, whether they think velocity or location is more important. So far, everyone has said location? Do you agree with them? Or do you think velocity is more important?

Anthony 47:30

To be honest, for me, it's gonna depend on the pitcher. You know, I, and this is this is, you know, something that I teach to all my players, I just make sure that they know what kind of player they are, whether it's hitting or pitching, I know we're on the pitching topic right now. So, as a pitcher, I make sure that they know what you know, what they have, what they, what their arsenal is, what pitches they have, how fast they throw, what movement they have, if they can command the zone, or if they have good pitches, if they can command those pitches. So to me, it's all about knowing who you are, and, you know, pitching to your strengths. So for example, if you have somebody throwing 86, and they have a lot of movement on their on their fastballs, a lot of sink, you know, and they can throw strikes, then it's gonna, it's gonna come down to command. But if you have somebody who can throw 95 Plus, and they can throw strikes with it, then obviously, I'm going to say velocity, you know, because that's what's that's what's going to help them is being able to blow by guys. But there are people out there, there are guys who were in college and throw 90 miles an hour. And in their head, they're just like, you know, I throw 90 I throw hard. And nowadays, 90 is not that hard. So you know, it's all about, it's all about, you know, forgetting about the ego, and knowing your strengths. And, you know, using it to your advantage. So if your hard thrower it's going to be velocity, you know, blow it by guys, yeah, keep the fastball up in the zone. You know, make sure you're throwing 95. Don't hold back and throw 92 or 90 because now you're going to be more in the hitting speed. But if your ball has a lot of movement, don't try to blow by guys, you know, live down in the zone, get ground balls, forget about strikeouts, you know, throw, get deep into the game.

Evan 49:20

That's great advice. Sometimes as pitchers, we tip our pitches. So what tips would you give to pitchers on helping them disguise their pitches?

Anthony 49:31

Yeah I mean, I guess you know, to keep it simple as just making everything the same, you know, especially with grips. The thing with with pitchers is we have certain pitches. For example, if you have a fastball slider, and a changeup, you grab all of them differently, and the good hitters you know or good coaches can pick up on, you know how pitchers start the ball in their glove. Most guys start with a fastball grip They're holding a fastball in their glove. And when they go to a change up, they end up you know, even though they wiggle their fingers, they wiggle them more than they would when they go to the slider because from the fastball to the slider, you might not move too much, you know you're closer, you're closer to that grip, as opposed to being having a grab a circle change or split change, whatever it is. So finding what pitch what grip, you should start, you should start with in your glove, all the time. So a lot of guys, if they have a changeup or they have a splitter, they'll start with a splitter, so that when they get to that pitch, they don't have to, you know, manipulate the ball and dig in, and do all this extra stuff just to get that grip, they'll start with it so they're already there. And even if they have to fakeit kind of, you know, they just make sure they're consistent on every single pitch.

Evan 50:50

It's definitely super helpful for a guy like me who I do pitch and guys for, even at the higher level, who pitch a lot. Now, as a hitter, how do you pick up on these tendencies?

Anthony 51:02

Now this this part's tough, because you don't want to do it while you're hitting obviously. So a lot of times, it comes down to paying attention to the game. And a lot of guys forget about this because, you know, we're with our teammates or with our friends and, you know, we forget about watching pay attention, paying attention to the game, but the best players, you know, they know how to focus on the pitchers, and watch the pitchers in the in the bullpen. You know, watch them as they're throwing their warmup pitches, they you know, they pay attention, all the little things, they pay attention to all the details, or even just communicating with with other teammates, you know, if somebody, if you're hitting fifth in the lineup, and the leadoff guy gets up, and he sees you know, hopefully he sees a few pitches, he can go and you can ask him questions, hey, what do you see, you know, whatever he's doing, his fastball, whatever it may be, but making sure that it's actually something that you notice, as opposed to, you know, just seeing something and saying, Oh, I got him, I know he's doing this, and you go up there guessing and you're wrong. So it's a matter of, you know, doing your homework, making sure that they're actually tipping the pitches, you know, if you pick up on something, make sure he goes through a few more hitters and make sure he does it the same to those hitters before you go in. And say, you know, I'm going all in and I'm going to watch him tip his pitch, so I can know what's coming and sit on that pitch. And it was actually something I did in college a lot. Not with everybody because not every pitcher tips his pitches. And sometimes from the dugout view, you can see things that it's not the same when you get in the box. So it's tougher, but um, you know, it's not for everybody. Because a lot of guys who know what, they can know what's coming. And because they know what's coming, they think too big, like I'm getting this fastball right here, I'm gonna hit it 900 feet, and you know, they over swing and they pop it up, or, you know, their timing is off. So it's a matter of, you know, if you can, if you can handle it, and you're good at seeing it and use it, if not, you know, go up and have a plan and see the ball hit the ball.

Evan 53:01

That's, that's important. And I've actually had one of those experiences recently where I've caught a pitcher they, they were taking their pitches, and it was simple. They were just, you could see them sort of manipulating the grip and the glove from the on deck circle. But it still can give away and I like how you said sometimes it can make hitters overthink?

Anthony 53:22

Yes, definitely.

Evan 53:24

When it comes to hitting How do you coach your players on really feeling what they're doing, as well as making sure the mechanics are right.

Anthony 53:33

It's for me, it's it's it's different. You know, because every every player is a little bit different. Every player has their their tendencies that they've done since they were since they first picked up a bat. So it's a matter of getting to know the player really, before you just say, you know, alright, this is the drill we're doing. You know, I like to, I like to talk a lot as you know, you know, we communicate a lot when we're having our sessions. You know, so I like to like to get to know the player. You know, I love video, I always give video and so we can slow things down and talk about it. And then just finding different ways that they can feel it. And that's the big, that's the biggest way using different different examples, whether it be a verbal cue or a physical cue. But one thing that I do like to keep up with, if I am doing any drills with my players, I like to make sure that I do them myself first. So that I'm not just telling them what to do that I can actually go and show them. A lot of players are visual learners as well. You know, I'm big time into feel but visual as well. So, you know, sometimes it's not just saying it or feeling it, it's actually seeing somebody do it. You know, I'm sure you watch a lot of Major League games. And I'm sure there's things that your you know, your batting stance, you might have gotten picked up from a player just by watching them play and you didn't realize Next, you know, you're doing something like oh, I'm kind of doing this, like, you know, Josh Donaldson or, you know, or Albert Pujols, whatever it may be. But you do it without realizing just by watching. So making sure that they're, the hitters can actually visually see what you're trying to get them to do.

Evan 55:16

I like how you, you say you do the drills before you have them do it, just so you're able to show them. And for those guys who are more of visual learners, it can sort of come to them easier just being able to help all your players and think, okay, maybe this might not work for you. But let's try this and see if this does.

Anthony 55:34

Yep.

Evan 55:35

I've often heard the phrase get on playing early used, can you talk about what that means and why it's so important in the swing?

Anthony 55:44

Yeah, for me, um, you know, getting on plane, it's not so much about the, you know, the hitting plane or the strike zone. For me, it's all about the pitch angle, you know, and got a lot of guys talk about, you know, launch angle, and, you know, the degree that the ball goes out on, for me, it's just a matter of, you know, the the line, you can say, or the angle that the ball has, when it's coming from the pitchers hand, into the catcher's glove. You know, and I like to visually show hitters, like, you know, what that angle is, you know, so I'll put the ball on a tee, you know, give them the visual of the ball coming out of the pitchers hand up on top of the mound, so that they can know the difference between a low fastball and a high fastball, they're not coming in at the same, you know, at the same plane at the same angle. So it's a matter of being able to match that as early as you possibly can, giving yourself the best chance to have room for error. You know, like we spoke about already hitting is very hard. You want to give yourself a chance to be late, to be early to be on time and to have success. You don't want to just have success, when you're perfectly on time, if you have success only when you're perfectly on time, you're not going to have that much success. It's not that easy, especially at the higher level where you have all these big high velocity pitchers, a lot of movement, multiple pitches, there's a lot that goes on. So we have to give ourselves the best chance to succeed, whether it be late, early or on time. So just matching that plane as early as possible, just gives you the best chance to not be that great and still get away with things.

Evan 57:27

Getting on plane early, huge key to being able to be successful. that's helped me and I'm still working on it. But getting on plane early and as as really as early as possible. And like you said, low fastball is not going to be the same as a high fastball. So when it comes to a curveball and getting on plane, it's more up and down, let's say 12, six, curveball, that's a steeper plane. And if you do match the plane, you're most likely going to hit a pop up or fly ball. So how would you get on plane with that without sort of getting on plane?

Anthony 57:59

Yeah, you know, that's, that's actually a really good question. And, you know, kind of like I spoke about earlier, not everyone has the answer. So for me, that can that can vary depending on on the on the hitter, there's guys who are naturally gifted, and just they're better at that talented to have good hand eye coordination, that they're able to make that adjustment, you know, that they're able to, you know, get their timing to the point where they can still stay in the zone and adjust based on the movement of the ball. Because when you when you see a ball, you know, a breaking ball, curveball slider, whatever it may be, you're not immediately going to calculate, you know, how much movement this ball has, how much spin it has, and you know, where the ball is going to be when it gets to you, but we just naturally as as ballplayers, which is why repetition is so important. You know, we go through, we see so many curveballs that we start to realize more or less, we have an idea, without being a computer having to be a computer that we can, we can tell more or less where the ball is going to be. So yeah, it's a matter of I like to teach it as you know, just having one consistent, consistent swing, so we're not going to adjust our swing just because it's a breakable where no one is going to be that that good. So it's a matter of approaching everything like it's a fastball and then just being able to trust that your hand eye coordination is going to help you be able to barrel it up as as well as you can.

Evan 59:28

Hand eye it's a skill that you to have. It doesn't come to everyone. I know there's training for it. But some guys, they are just super talented and they have that aspect already. They don't have to work on it as much. Are there certain drills that you would recommend for youth players to do when it comes to getting on plane early.

Anthony 59:49

There's different ways to kind of you know, to think about it, but for me, it's all about getting guys to not think about going directly to the ball. first instinct, you know, and, you know, as a young player you have coaches tell you, you know, be short to the ball, be quick to the ball, you know, get them out to the ball. And you know, those cues typically get guys to go directly to the ball, you see the ball and you get there with your hands, which typically leads to the barrel following and downward action, which, as we spoke about, most fastballs are coming downward, if our bat's coming downward, it's gonna be very hard to get on plane. So just a matter of thinking, you know, whether it be getting the barrel off the back, the back shoulder, coming behind the ball, you know, I know I've done this drill with you using the deep Tee. You know, setting up the Tee deep in your swing, so that you can try to naturally just find a way to get the barrel on the ball without having to manipulate our bodies. And, you know, as you've you've seen, if you come down to the ball, or your, your too direct to it, you're not going to be able to hit that pitch, you know, on the barrel. And going back to what we talked about with being able to give yourself a chance to be late to be early to be on time and still hit the barrel. You know, I really love that drill to be able to feel the swing, get in the zone early, to get on path early, you know, plain, get behind the ball and just let the natural, you know, bat path you know, give the ball and bat a chance to meet up

Evan 1:01:25

That drill has helped me and it's it really is an awesome drill. And for our listeners, if you want to do it, you can just set the tee up somewhere around your back foot, I would say, and you try to hit it, but just really without I know you've talked me about not compensating with another part not staying back, super back, or not really manipulating your body too much. I like that drill tip. What hitter in the MLB right now do you recommend use players that you work with to really study and why?

Anthony 1:02:03

The first one I'm going to go to is Nolan Arenado. And it's it's really not just about you know, if you just watch a not just in game swings, but if you watch his, you know, his highlight videos, whether it be you know, hitting in the cage or hitting off a tee, the way he goes about his you know, his work, it just goes to show you that it's it's not easy to hit. And it takes time. And it takes effort to become a good hitter. And it seems like he's constantly making adjustments, and constantly, you know, trying to find different ways to consistently get better. But the biggest reason why I bring him up is because, you know, I'm sure you've heard it 1000 times or more. But you know, when you're in games, our head pulls off and naturally wants to pull off, we want to see where the ball is going right away. And he's a major league hitter who's had very, you know, so much success, and he's an all star. And if he's able to make contact with the ball, and keep his eyes, his head at contact point and not look up immediately, which most guys do, and it they don't realize what it takes their body out of the zone, it takes their swing out of the zone too soon. And every young player should be able to do it. So yeah, the way he the way he goes about two things, you know, keeping his eyes on the ball, keeping his head at contact point, even through through contact and getting extension are the biggest two things. And I really love watching him mainly for that reason, whether it's a ball that he pulls and hits 400 feet to left, or a ball that he slices the other way for a base hit. He's he's keeping his head there, as long as he can. His eyes are at contact point even through extension. Yeah,

Evan 1:03:41

he's he's a great example. Youth players were often told to trust the process and grind every day. What's some advice that you would give to youth players on really trusting the process, even when they're not seeing the results yet?

Anthony 1:03:59

Um, yeah, I mean, it's, it's tough. You know, it's tough as a young player, because you want to see results right away. But if you if you think about it this way, and just see, you know, Major League players go, you know, go about their business and how they approach everything. You'll realize that they didn't get there, you know, just in just in a few days or a month, you know, it doesn't, it takes repetition, you know, you have to constantly work at it, even when you perfect it, you know, the game throws you a curveball, and now you're trying to find another way out of a slump. You see major leaguers do it all the time, even even some of the best, you know, they're they're at the peak of their careers. And next thing you know, they have an off season. So they have to find another way to be successful, whether it's the change in the velocities or you know, the change in the way pitchers are approaching hitters. It could be anything, but it takes time and I was able to watch a lot of players over the last few years come up through the minors and, you know, are currently playing in the major leagues. And when they first got the professional baseball, they weren't the same players that they were, that they currently are. It took, it took repetition. And the big thing is, in professional baseball, there's not that many days off, these guys are out there every day, they're practicing for a few hours before playing every day, for seven months straight, eight months straight, and then they, they get home. And guess what they have to continue working to get ready for the next season. So it takes a lot of time, a lot of a lot of repetitions to start feeling things, and especially as you know, youth players younger, you guys are still growing into your bodies, you guys are still figuring out how your body works, or you know what kind of player you're going to be in the future. So you got to give it time, you got to be patient, you know, just enjoy the game, while you're playing it. And, you know, just let let your work ethic and let the amount of time and work that you put in, do its job on its own. Just make sure that you're actually you know, going about your business the right way, and, you know, practicing with a purpose, as opposed to just going through the motions waiting for the day, for you to get big and strong and hit all these homeruns it's not that simple. You know, you got to really, really put the time and effort in

Evan 1:06:19

you got to grind to get achieve your goals and get where you want to be. That's, that's really helpful advice. In your opinion,

What are some of the qualities that successful players should all have?

Anthony 1:06:33

For one being humble, I think that goes a long way, being a good person, you know, being a caring person, you know, to where you become a good teammate. And a good listener, there's a lot of coaches out there, who, who have a lot of a lot of knowledge, a lot of information. And some players take it for granted. You know, and and I, you know, I'm a, I'm an example of that I've, I've been in professional baseball, I've been into certain meetings where you know, I'm just tired, and you really don't want to listen to too much talking, you know, you kind of just like, I'd rather just get out there and hit batting practice. So just being you know, being a good listener, and actually making sure that you know, that you're you're thanking everybody along the way who has helped you out, it'll go a long way, trust me. You know, I'm, I'm an example of that. Because, you know, I tried to pride myself on being a good person and being a good teammate. And eventually, it helped me out to the point where, you know, people were to, were able to see something in me that gave me an opportunity to become, you know, the person that I am today.

Evan 1:07:40

I want to wrap this up with some rapid fire questions. So you're ready

Anthony 1:07:45

I think so, here we go.

Evan 1:07:46

Who's your favorite pitcher in the big leagues right now?

Anthony 1:07:50

Oh, I was gonna say Hector Santiago, but he's currently not there right now. Um, but a fun one to watch for me is Lucas Giolito. He's been the White Sox. And you know, I was able to see him in triple A Charlotte before he got to the majors. And he's made some some adjustments and his mechanics. And it's been interesting to see how much success he's had by making those adjustments.

Evan 1:08:12

Second one,

if you could have one person in baseball history, mentor you who would it be?

Anthony 1:08:19

tough one. I'd say probably I know. I know. This is a different position. But probably Ivan Rodriguez, Pudge. He was, he was somebody you know, I watched a lot when I was a catcher. Obviously, he's Puerto Rican as well. So if I could have somebody mentor me, you know, when I was a catcher would definitely be him.

Evan 1:08:37

Last, but definitely not least, you grew up in New Jersey, if I was visiting for the very first time in my life, what's one place that I would just have to go check out?

Anthony 1:08:51

That's a good question. Maybe the Jersey Shore just because it's such a, you know, such a big name. And obviously, I you know, when I was younger, I grew up, you know, going there and enjoying Memorial weekends there and certain holidays and, you know, I always had a blast that or Wildwood

Evan 1:09:08

Okay, two great suggestions. Anthony, do you have any projects that you're currently working on? or places that people can reach you and learn more about you?

Anthony 1:09:19

Oh, yeah, I actually am um, you know, I was kind of waiting around because obviously, this this year has been a, you know, a very different year for everyone. But, uh, you know, our minor league season was canceled, which is the reason why I've been home, excuse me for the last few months. And I obviously recently just started doing given baseball lessons again, but um, I am planning on this winter depending on how everything you know, is going with the virus. I am planning on doing a few big clinics, getting some some pro guys as well to come in and help me out with that. No dates are set yet but that is one thing and I'm also open Putting together a, a pitching velocity program that I'll be doing this winter as well. For some, you know, some of the high school, older high school, college guys who are interested in building some velocity, we're going to do some strength and conditioning stuff as well as, you know, pitching mechanics a little bit, a little bit of everything to kind of help these guys get them themselves ready for the next level.

Evan 1:10:23

Are there some places that our listeners can reach you or learn a little bit more about you.

Anthony 1:10:30

Yeah, I mean, obviously, I'm constantly posting on my social media. My my Instagram is ant_santiago6. And I have two Instagrams, but that's my my baseball page. And, you know, I constantly put posts up, you know, I post some of my sessions with my players, our training sessions, as well as just motivational, you know, quotes or, you know, just just anything that kind of pops in that I feel might help a player out.

Evan 1:10:57

Anthony, thank you so much for joining me today.

Anthony 1:11:01

Thanks for having me over the pleasure.

Evan 1:11:05

Thank you all for listening in. We really hope you enjoyed this episode. Be sure to hit the subscribe button and be the first to know when new episodes launch. Check us out at born to baseball.com for free resources and new gear. And of course on social media, at born to baseball where we can connect live now let's play ball

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Episode #015: Trey Hunt- Independent League Baseball Player and Hitting Instructor

November 2020 By Evan

Ep. # 015: Trey Hunt- Independent League Baseball Player and Hitting Instructor

Join Evan and Trey Hunt as Trey shares his baseball journey, his experience playing Independent ball, and hitting tips for youth baseball players of all levels. He also shares some of his influences and tips for developing a strong mindset on and off the field.

What You’ll Learn:

01:07   Trey’s Journey

03:27   Benefits of being a multi-sport athlete

08:20    What contributed to his success transitioning from catcher to outfielder

09:45   Experience playing Indy Ball

12:40   Swinging up vs swinging down

15:13   Loading of the scapula

20:37   Feel versus Real

23:34   Mental cues and having a thought process at the plate

26:43   Hitting tips for youth baseball players

28:17 Tips for developing good footwork

29:39 Developing baseball IQ

32:09   Trey’s “So what” philosophy

33:35   Tips on quieting your mind

Thank you for being here with us!  Evan and the Born To Baseball Team are looking forward to celebrating your success and sharing this journey together.
 
If you enjoyed this episode please consider leaving a rating or review on Apple or wherever you’re listening here. This will help other ball players find the Born To Baseball Podcast and give us more chances to shout out our listeners!  

Now, let’s play ball!

Read show notes here.

Show Links:

Instagram @trigggatreyy15

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Episode 015_TREY HUNT_INDEPENDENT BASEBALL PLAYER_HITTING INSTRUCTOR

The transcription below was provided for your convenience through an automated service. Please excuse any unintended errors made in the process.

Evan 0:00

This episode of Born To Baseball is sponsored by the BTB. Travel team and training tracker. Are you a parent or player searching for travel teams or training facilities in your area? Or are you a coach looking to expand your reach? Then you have to check out the BTB triple t tracker at borntobaseball.com. Make sure your team is represented. Let's go.

Music 0:23

Calling all ballplayers. Are you ready to take your game to the next level? Were you born to baseball? Then bring it in. it's game time.

Evan 0:39

Hey guys, and welcome to the born baseball podcast. I'm Evan and joining us today is Trey hunt. Trey was born and raised in San Diego, California, where he attended Lincoln High School and became San Diego Athlete of the Year. After high school tre went to Point Loma Nazarene University in San Diego and was named the all Conference Player not once, but twice as a centerfielder. He currently plays with the Black Sox organization out of Pennsylvania. Trey, thank you so much for joining me today.

Trey 1:06

No problem at all. Thank you for having me.

Evan 1:07

So you're from San Diego, can you share how you got started playing baseball?

Trey 1:12

Oh, my dad actually was a Sunday league All Star man, he played all growing up. So I was always in the dugout, I was always kind of just running around the field. So I just picked up a bat whenever I was ready, and it happened ever since then.

Evan 1:26

That's awesome. And can you talk about like your high school and maybe college experience a little?

Trey 1:32

Yeah, absolutely. I went to a very basketball and football High School. And so I was on the football team as well. So I went, basically back and forth between baseball, football, baseball, football over and over. And then eventually, my junior year, I started breaking out a little bit, I hit .535, which was the highest average in the state or close to the highest average in the state. And then my senior year, I kind of just took over all baseball and just did what I had to do.

Evan 1:59

That's awesome. Your last two years at Lincoln High School, like you said, you put up a .535 And then in your senior year, you put up a 565 average, which is ridiculous.

Trey 2:11

That season felt good. Everything felt good.

Evan 2:15

Like those numbers are just really incredible. And especially that 30 point jump over that only one year period of time. So what do you think sort of attributed to that jump?

Trey 2:26

honestly, I was just a very raw athlete. So I just tried to get as many swings as I could, I was just always born to to do more and do more and want more and just see what, what repetition could do for me. So I wasn't the most smooth swinging guy. But I wasn't going to strike out and I wasn't going to miss fastballs. And a lot of it was just the mentality of knowing that you can't beat me, I'm just going to do what I can.

Evan 2:50

Yeah, confidence is huge, it plays a huge role.

Trey 2:53

Absolutely, absolutely. And for me, it was any, any little hiccup in the day could have been my average go down. So I was really focused on just trying to keep everything consistent. If I could get up there and force a fastball early and not miss it then I was gonna hit a double and I was just gonna do what I had to do. I knew I couldn't get beat.

Evan 3:08

Yeah, that's a great approach to the game and you're at bats. And youth athletes were like you said, You played football and baseball. And a lot of us youth baseball players, and just athletes we're told to play multiple sports. So What benefits do you see in playing multiple sports?

Trey 3:27

Well, for me, I always just noticed it in situations where a lot of guys would like get out, you know, for instance, a pickle, there's times where you're just so, so used to going side to side on a football field or having to shake somebody or do something that you would never really do on a baseball field, that when the time comes and you could implement it on the baseball field, it showed up. And a lot of guys that didn't have that athleticism to move out of the way of a 300 pound guy or find a way to outrun a safety, you know, you'd never have to really do that on a baseball field, you can kind of play it safe and jog in and get the double. Or you'll notice a lot of guys that play other sports are comfortable taking that risk, where they could get that extra base because they're not really worried about failing, they just want to go for it and see what happens. And for me, I think that plays a lot, a lot into my game for, you know, always trying to take that extra base. when I'm at first and the guy shows his back on a fly ball to the left field, I'm going to take that second base if I can, because I know he's got to catch it turn around and make a perfect throw. And if I'm tagging up, I only got 90 feet to go. So I think I could beat him on that.

Evan 4:31

That's interesting. That's a great way of looking at it. And like Are there any like specific sports like would it be football or basketball that you would recommend youth baseball players to play

Trey 4:40

um, I mean, honestly, anything that's gonna have a lot of moving side to side. You know, for baseball, the quickest, quickest way to get the second is if I can get that first step and get going as fast as I can to steal second base where a lot of guys that's not a part of their game. They're either they're not very fast or they don't have that secondary twitch when you're going in and playing Those other sports, you automatically have to find a way to get that, you know, football even the linemen their first step is quick. You know, you're, you're playing safety, your first step is still quick, you know, you don't really have time to mess up in that situation. And if you do you end up on your back. So it's like automatic. Alright, we're gonna let you know you messed up.

Evan 5:19

Yeah definitely

Trey 5:20

Whether it's, you know, getting a shot blocked in basketball, there's always like that instant. Okay, you weren't fast enough. So the next time you might make that shot, because you gave it that extra fast twitch to get there? You know, it just all depends on, on how you can interpret it your own way.

Evan 5:36

Yeah, it makes a lot of sense. Like you said, lateral movement is, I guess, sports that have that is, I guess, you can implement in baseball,

Trey 5:43

you could, you could do, you could do tennis, you could do anything. Anything that has has to make a quick decision real quick, you know. And in baseball, you can easily look at it this way. When I'm hitting When I say go, I want everything to go. Yes, I don't, I don't want that little lag to where it's like go and now my swings coming. You know, and in football. If I'm lag on that first step. I'm on my back right now. There, there was no couldn't, could have just fouled one off and get extra pitches. You know, so there's ways to interpret it, where it's like, okay, that first step is really important when I'm hitting that, okay, I needed to go now is really important. So,

Evan 6:22

yeah.

Trey 6:23

That's how I see it

Evan 6:24

So you are San Diego Athlete of the Year in your senior year of high school, which is incredible. What kind of confidence did that give you going into college that knowing you'd like face even stronger competition?

Trey 6:37

I wouldn't say that, that gave me more confidence than actually getting like, the opportunity to go play. Because it's a lot of teams did pass up on me, you know, and a lot of colleges did pass up on me. So for me to go in, and, and get the opportunity to do things I go play scout ball that gave me the confidence because I see that I can play with those guys. You know, I go I go up and play scout ball on Sundays for the Mariners and then come back home and the competition would be way different. I'm like, Okay, well, I should be dominating this group. And then I got a fight when I get up to play with those bigger guys. You know, so my confidence going in was playing the scout ball and playing summer ball where I'm starting to see and hit 90 mile an hour fastball and, and see stuff like that. I've never seen it before. I'm not gonna have any confidence. So I think that gave me the most confidence.

Evan 7:23

I totally get that. I know you majored in graphic design in college. What was sort of the reason behind that?

Trey 7:31

Um, I started as a business major. And then I took economics class, and it just didn't go very well. I figured out that numbers were not for me. That's kind of not something I wanted to get into for the rest of my life. And I had always kind of doodled a lot. I was always trying to create things that I've never seen before. So for me graphic design, I was always a computer geek. And constantly on computers growing up, I was a big gamer growing up. So I figured I might as well try it out and see what I can do. And I ended up liking it a lot.

Evan 8:05

Yeah, that's really cool. So you were mainly a centerfielder In high school and college. What are some like unique skills and qualities that a player would need to have in order to play an outfield position?

Trey 8:17

Well, I actually was a catcher going into college.

Evan 8:19

Oh, interesting

Trey 8:20

yeah, I caught for a while. But as far as expanding on your question, for me, it was taking the flyballs during BP as serious as I could. The reason I got the job that I got in college was because I moved from catcher to outfield, and I would take fly balls. And one day, I just kind of took off on one and laid out because I knew I wasn't playing and I was just trying to kind of go do stuff and coach was like, Alright, we're gonna need you to get Outfielder glove for the rest of the year. And I was like, Alright, I'm cool with that. So I just kind of worked on it and was hitting better than some of the other guys. And that's how I found my spot. So I think taking those fly balls, as serious as you can makes the game so much easier. You don't really have to think as much, especially at your home field. If you're getting the same conditions over and over and over again. It should be like riding a bike. You shouldn't even have to think about jumps. You should just be able to kind of run and play around.

Evan 9:17

Yeah, taking practicing as hard as you can play.

Trey 9:20

Yeah, absolutely.

I mean, don't get me wrong as you get older, you kind of slow it down a little bit. You know, you can't go as crazy as you would in BP because you're gonna be sore the next day, but I would say definitely trying to track down as much as you can if you don't think you can get there. Try to get there you might get there. You never know. You know, in the game. You'll take that. That extra jump to go get it if you tried to do it in practice.

Evan 9:45

Yeah, definitely. You currently play independent ball, which I learned is a first chance Second Chance league for baseball players. What has your experience been like playing there?

Trey 9:59

Um, I have I've been on the lower end of a majority of the independent leagues, a couple leagues that folded, played on the lower levels got to play in some of those bigger, bigger stadiums and bigger situations. So that was fun. But what I think I've learned the most and gotten the most out of it was, you really got to want to do it, you can't come out and think that you can train for two months. And then you get into a situation where it's a tryout and someone's been talking to you. And then you get there and you're not ready. Like you have to want to continue to play, you have to want to train year round, you have to want to do the traveling to get to where you're playing, you've got to grind it, you're not going to get paid much. That's just point blank period. So you got to really want to do it, you've got to be using it, try to get better and just loving the game.

Evan 10:50

Loving the game is why almost everyone plays. You gotta love it. You gotta love it,

Trey 10:55

you have to, you have to and if you don't, it's gonna eat you alive.

Evan 10:58

Would you say that independent ball was sort of what you expected going into it? Or has it been just a whole different experience.

Trey 11:05

Um, I've, I've had a lot of guys, a lot of mentors and stuff, tell me exactly what it was. So I kind of knew what it was going and I knew I wasn't gonna get paid much I knew I had a lot of work to do. And I was willing to make the changes, to just be able to play against some of these guys that had a big change in major league ball and then came down and played independent leagues, like I played against guys that have been in the major leagues. So it's like to be on the same field as them and to be able to compete and grind it and have an at bat against a guy who throws 95. And next thing, you know, you piece him up in centerfield. It's, it's that want to do it, you know. And for me, that experience is undeniably The best thing that's happened to me. So it's like, why not continue to go for it? You know?

Evan 11:51

Yeah, that's really awesome. So what would it really mean to you to sign with a major league organization?

Trey 11:57

For me, it would just be like, it's about time, though, that would be my first thought. But uh, you know, it would just kind of complete what. I wouldn't say complete, because obviously, you're going to still have goals after that. But it would complete the confirmation that I'm doing what I'm supposed to do. You know, if I'm taking care of my body, and I'm not missing games, and I'm doing everything I got to do, and I'm excelling at what I'm trying to do, then I can't be mad.

Evan 12:25

A lot of times for new youth baseball players and Baseball Players all over. Our goals are to play Major League Baseball, get drafted and sign

Trey 12:34

Absolutely. Even with where the games take me so far, like I'm having a great time. And that's what it's about. It's just having a great time. You do what you love, and you have a great time. Why not?

Evan 12:44

Definitely

Are you part of the swing down and get on top of the ball approach or the turning the barrel to like work slightly up through the zone, like elevate to celebrate?

Trey 12:57

I am, I would say a hybrid of both. I liked the turn to, for me, I did transform my swing into a more upward, but that was to create backspin and be able to hit balls harder, and get a little bit more lift out of it. But the swing down to me can be misconstrued into many different ways that make it kind of seem like it's hard to teach. You know, I can teach a kid to get on plane a lot easier if I'm teaching him to go up at the ball. Because if I'm gonna go Yeah, go down hill with your hands go down hill go down hill, then he's going to create a path that straight down. Now if he creates a path that's straight down and the balls coming straight down, he's going to completely miss or he's going to be really good in a really small portion of the zone.So for me, I want to try to turn

it gets a little serious when we talk about SCAP loading and doing all that stuff. But for me, I will teach a more upward barrel turn. But there's... when it comes to kids, you have to word it different sometimes.

Evan 14:14

Okay,

Trey 14:15

you know, everybody's not gonna know the exact same thing. So if I tell the kid to stay inside the ball, if I look at every single kid, they're going to give me a different answer. You know, and for me staying inside the ball it's more of just keeping my hands tight and turning and when I turn my hand should be inside the ball. The barrel is going to come after and we're gonna make damage. So I am kind of a hit it up in the air kind of guy. I train, I train high. I try to hit homeruns in BP. I do what I got to do, but at the end of the day, I'm still aiming for double because if I'm a little bit a little bit low, I'll hit base hit and if I'm a little bit high, it'll go out.

Evan 14:50

I love what you said about like the doubles and base hits are a home run if you miss it.

Trey 14:56

Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely.

Evan 14:59

me recently I've ever actually been learning about like the SCAP load and like hands inside and the turn and like some more advanced movements. So could you maybe elaborate on the SCAP load a little bit.

Trey 15:13

Um, for me you can kind of think of, think of the SCAP load is two different things. I mean, for me, I like to focus a little bit more on my barrel because I don't really, I'm not very risky when I swing. So like, when I say risky I mean a lot of guys will kind of wiggle the bat around a lot. I basically when I load, I do my load over and over and over again. And that's my rhythm. So like when other guys are kind of just twirling the bat around and doing whatever they're doing, I'm literally just doing my load over and over and over again. So I feel it. And then when it comes, then I just do it a little bit more exaggerated, and I kind of just pull my back elbow is far behind me as I can without changing how my body is directed. Okay, yeah, that makes sense. So if that makes sense, I mean, I try to keep my body in parallel with the plate. And then I'm trying to pull my back shoulder or my back elbow is far behind me as I can while tiipping the barrel towards my head.

Evan 16:05

Okay, yeah, that makes sense.

Trey 16:08

So I mean, there's a little bit of the body. But yeah, for me, I like to break it down. Super simple. And I want to know where everything's at, like, I clench my hands right before I swing, because I want to know exactly where everything's at, I got a big leg kick, so my leg kicks got to go up, and then my body's got to be in the same spot throughout the whole, like, if it moves a little bit forward, we're okay. But if it moves, big forward, we're in trouble. So for me, I just like to keep my head centered, and try to get that elbow as far back behind my head as I can.

Evan 16:37

Knowing your body is super important. And yeah, being able to sort of realize, like, if I do this I'm not gonna do well, if I do this, that's what's gonna help me.

Trey 16:47

Yeah, and for me, it's like you find a thought that'll help you out a lot. I mean, as you keep working, as you keep getting stronger, you're gonna start to be able to feel movements that you never really felt before. Like, a majority, if not, every baseball player can probably flex almost every single muscle in their body without moving anything dramatically. You know, you tell them to flex their forearm, they can probably flex their forearm, just by closing their hands, you know, or you say, squeeze your LAT, they can probably squeeze their lat and you'll be able to see their lat a little bit more. So as you get older, and as you kind of figure out your body and start to be able to see, okay, this movement does this, and this does this, you'll start to be able to kind of evolve in your swing a little bit. Because like you learn how to use your legs, you learn how to use your hips, you learn how to use the scapula, you learn how to get that rubber band, by letting your body go first, but not losing your posture. There's things like that that can very easily translate.

Evan 17:44

Okay, yeah, thank you for that. And like, have you had like, I know you talked about this, like that was, there was a certain point in your career, where you sort of tweaked your swing and learn more about the swing and your body and different things like that. So like, like, what really impacted that decision to learn more about your body and learn more about maybe the proper swing sequence, and what are some of the things that you've changed?

Trey 18:11

Um, well, I was a toe tap guy for a really long time, I'd get my foot down early, and then would kind of just heal click and go. And I would hit a lot of topspin ground balls, or top spin line drives in the five six hole. In one year, I counted, I probably hit, I probably had 80 hits, I think 36 of them were in the 5/6 hole where the ball was crushed, and I was on time. But if I just backspin it, instead of top spinning, it would have been a home run or a double or something where it's a lot more damage done. So for me, I just wanted to get out of that realm of just hitting singles when i crush a ball. When I crush a bal Now I want it to go out or I want it to to line drive somewhere. Whereas back then I was okay with the topspin line driving the five, six hole because I was getting on base you know, it wasn't a problem, whatever, no big deal. And then as power numbers started going up and my power numbers weren't going up. When I knew I had the capability to do so it was about time to change something. So I went in the lab and I started figuring out how to get on plane and I started the sequence to the body and trying to figure out how to use my hips and you know what I needed to implement for myself to get the result that I wanted. So I work in the top corners of the cage now backspin in the top corners of the cage both sides and if I can do that, if I got a pitch up and in, middle in, belly button in or down and I should be able to put it in the exact same spot. Yeah, the angle of attack is going to be different. But I should be able to put it exactly where I want to with the backspin that I want. So if I work that way in the game, my body will be used to going down and getting those pitches from a different angle or staying tall and getting to that pitch up. Even though they think 92 and it was running in, you know, so you want to be able to train yourself and those angles by keeping the same principles of your kinetics.

Evan 20:10

Okay, that's really cool what you said and being able to no matter where the pitches, if it's inside, you hit it to the same place, and no matter the height, so that's really cool.

Trey 20:21

I think that's what what kind of changed everything was, was being able to backspin it for a double no matter where, you know, if you were a little early, it might get down the line, but you want to backspin it into that double zone. And then you can't get beat by anything.

Evan 20:37

So feel verse real, what do you understand that to mean when it comes to hitting.

Trey 20:42

So there are things that you'll tell yourself, that don't make sense. But for some reason, your body gives you the result that you want. So if I tell myself to pin my elbow to my ribs, and let the barrel come through late, someone else could do the exact same thing, and it will jack up their completely different swing, like their swing would just be all messed up. But for me, it could probably give me the perfect path. And I crush a ball.

Evan 21:16

interesting

Trey 21:17

when you're trying to feel something, you can't always get stuck on the same thought. You have to be able to like change your thought and see if you can get the feel to be a little bit different.

Evan 21:28

Okay

Trey 21:29

Because if someone's teaching you something, it's probably because you're doing it incorrectly, right. And if you trust, if you trust this teacher, they should be able to get you to feel something that's awkward. And it'll eventually become not awkward. And that's when you've made a change. You know where you'll get the feel, but it'll feel right instead of feel wrong.

Evan 21:54

Interesting. Yeah. And I know you've mentioned to me, you mentioned a mental cue. And I guess for you would that be like the pin your elbow to the ribs, and let the barrel come through a little late? Or would that sort of be different?

Trey 22:09

Yeah, it kind of depends on what I'm going through at the time, honestly, um, one a big one for me is just locking my front hip out. you always need to have some kind of braking system to let the barrel come forward the energy to kind of transfer over. So as soon as my foot gets down, and I'm ready to go, and I locked my knee and my hip drops back, and now my hands have a lane to go. And if my hands have a lane to go, my barrel is gonna probably be in the right spot when the right time comes. So that's a big one for me, but I can only use that one in BP because in the game it's just not, it doesn't really work out. But, in the end that's the crazy thing about everybody's gonna be different. Like, I can't think of something that intricate when I'm hitting LIVE or in a game. I like to think of something more along the lines of just turn into it. Turn into it, things like that. Get the foot down on time. If my foot's down on time. I'll go foot down on time, but I'm thinking about that anyways, a majority of the time. Cuz I think for me, pitch selection shouldn't be something you think about

Evan 23:20

you can't think about too much when you're at the plate. For a lot of people. Yes, simple, easy thoughts that could remind you of what to do. small things that, you just take what you know and what's second nature and you react to

Trey 23:34

an easy way for me to explain it would be you should have a process of thoughts before the ball comes. I have a process Everyone has their they come to the plate, they kick the dirt, they do whatever they do, but they probably are thinking about the same thing every time they do that, you know, for me, I get in. I like to get my hands in my posture locked in. That's my first thing I'm focused on at the plate. the posture should be right hands in the right spot. Flush that thought now I'm already feeling it. You know this is quick because you know you got a guy on the mound. So now hands are already thought about everything. Now my rhythm is on I'm focusing on just getting my foot down on time. I already know I'm looking for a heater. We're not looking for anything but a heater because I'm not trying to miss the heater. We don't want to see all the other stuff. So I should be down on time for the heater I can think about that ON TIME ON TIME ON TIME. And once you're down for that, it should just be GO. Shouldn't have to really tell yourself anything else. It should just be go or No.

Evan 24:37

That makes a ton of sense. And so I met you when you coached me at a tournament down in Florida this past winter. And I immediately picked up some great infield and hitting tips from you. Do you work with some young athletes back home?

Trey 24:55

I do. I work with the gorillas back home in Chula Vista, it's a small, Small program we got from about, I'd say 6U to, I got some high school kids as well. I've always been coaching always loved giving back and doing stuff like that. So it's just, it's just part of it now, I like to teach the stuff that I'd never had the opportunity to get taught when I was younger. And I think that's what makes me want to do it. Because I can implement some stuff on some kids that may not have the opportunity to ever hear something of that level, you know?

Evan 25:26

Yeah, that's awesome. That really is, when you work with young athletes, do you work with them with just everything? Or are there specific areas that you specialize in?

Trey 25:38

Um, for me, I've always enjoyed projects. So a lot, a lot of the time, it's a kid that I'm trying to revamp, and just give them a whole new approach a majority of the time, it's more mental. I'm trying to get into the mental of my kids, I want you to be able to go to the play and be equipped for the test. I don't want the test to come up and it looks like you never read the book. I want you to know, as soon as you get up there, what you're looking for, you know, and if you're missing it, then we got something to work on. But if you're not, then we're just gonna kind of pick and choose the things we want to change.

Evan 26:16

It's really important mindset is huge with a baseball player.

Trey 26:20

Absolutely.

Evan 26:21

For the youth baseball players, I know, we've been talking about more advanced movements in the swing. But for baseball players who are like just like getting ready for those advanced movements, can you share like one or two tips on what types of movements to really start with? Or maybe the proper parts of the swing sequence to work on first?

Trey 26:43

Um, I would probably work on let's see, that's a tough question one or two. I would say the lower half is obviously extremely important. I would focus on trying to get kids which seems to be the one of the hardest things to do is to let them know it's okay that after the swing, and your front leg is locked out, to leave it that way. Leave it there as long as you can.

Evan 27:13

That's interesting.

Trey 27:14

Because a lot of times the first thing that kids do is they collapse that front knee. And that's going to take a lot of power away. Because your body's still going forward. You never had anything to stop around it to make the swing come through and actually snap out front, so that locking of the front knee is very important. I like to work from the ground up the hands, you can always figure it out later. But I would I would focus on the front knee and locking that out. And then after that just learn how to stay connected. And keeping hands tight. And being able to go all sides. you got to be able to go all sides. Because oppo is where the money's at.

Evan 27:54

Yes. You got to be able to hit both ways. Both sides of the plate.

Trey 28:00

the fastball always seems to come on the outer half. So why not?

Evan 28:03

Why not

Trey 28:04

Hit the one out there.

Evan 28:06

Yeah.

And like in order to be an infielder. I believe you're an infielder. Now, am I right,

Trey 28:12

yeah, I transfer back and forth. But I take a lot of ground balls on a daily basis. So that's always good.

Evan 28:17

Okay, yeah. So not only do you have to be have great hands to be an infielder, but you also have to have great footwork. So can you share some like drills and different techniques that you've used to help you develop great footwork,

Trey 28:34

um, first thing I would do is hip bands. Hip bands are extremely important, because if you can't get low, then you can't get underneath the ground ball, it's not going to work out too nice. A lot of problems I've seen with kids is they just don't bend their knees far enough down. And a lot of it is hip mobility, and not being able to get low enough. So I would do that. And then from there is just to try to be smooth, try to stay smooth. Don't let your feet move too fast. Let that first step get you there. And then after that, try to slow everything down, a lot of kids want to go a mile a minute, slow it down the guys on TV, they never look like they're stressed out. So you should never look like you're stressed out.

Evan 29:20

That's great advice. So on the field we not only have to have great skills, but also have to be really heads up. What are some of the things that you tell your players to develop or things that they should develop to develop good baseball iQ?

Trey 29:39

Um, I would say always look where the sun is because at some point that first baseman is not going to be able to see the ball. And that's one of those things that's kind of important to me. A lot of kids you'll see at tournaments and stuff, the sun will be right behind the first baseman and then they're not getting a big leap. Well, why not first baseman can't The first baseman can't see the pitcher. So they're not going to pick you off. And if they do, you're probably going to get to third. So I like to tell them pay attention to the surroundings. Wind, things like that, can the team throw the ball to first base? Watch them during in and outs. Can they throw the ball to first base, can they play catch from the outfield, who can throw the ball all the way to a base, you know, things like that, that you can take full advantage of extra bases, the team that gets the most extra bases is probably going to win the game. You know, so if you can get as many extra bases as possible, then find a way to do it, especially if it's easy. A lot of tag ups, a lot of tags ups. I'm big on tag ups, don't be afraid to tag up from anywhere. Especially if they can't play catch tag up.

Evan 30:52

Would you say there's like a mentor or someone that you've looked up to, to help you develop a strong mindset over the years.

Trey 31:00

Um, for me it was my dad, my dad was always really big on just always being smarter than everybody else. you might not be the best on the field, you might not be the most athletic, but if you're smarter than everybody else, you can find a way. if you know the fastball is coming, you can't miss it. You know, things like that, where it's like, you can take advantage of a game just by knowing what's going on. You know, if I've seen this guy throw me three curveballs in a row, he's probably not gonna throw me four curveballs. You know, paying attention to counts and attention to things like that. Trying to get myself into really good counts. You know, not swinging at that borderline pitch early to see if the umpire calls it a ball and then getting that 2-0 fastball. You know, things like that. I feel like we're very beat into me earlier. My dad was like, you can control the game more than you think. It was definitely my dad for sure.

Evan 31:57

Yeah, that's awesome. Parents play big roles in mentorships. And, just helping us coaching us and everything really?

Trey 32:07

Absolutely. Absolutely.

Evan 32:09

So yeah, when you coached me this past winter, you often used the saying. "So what", when something didn't go our way? When did you start using this saying? And is this sort of part of your mindset when you started playing?

Trey 32:23

Yeah, it kind of kind of came out when I was playing. My first year of pro ball, I was playing out in a small town, super small league in the empire league out in New York. And stuff would just happen. I would just be like so what. So what it doesn't even matter. Doesn't matter. Like I wasn't playing for the first three months of the year I got benched for the first three or four games just straight off spring training, I was really expecting much. didn't play. In the first game, I come up, I get two hits. And then I go for a snide for like three or four days, I just could not figure it out. And then I was just like, you know, I just gotta get in the cage, I gotta swing it out. So what it is what it is, figure it out and everything started to roll in the right direction. Now it's every time something bad happens. So what.... You got to move on pitch to pitch, if I can make my adjustments pitch to pitch, instead of at bat to at bat, or day by day, we're going to be better if I swing over a slider in the dirt. I can't think about that slider in the dirt for the next four pitches, I got to be like, Alright, you know what, he might throw the slider again, because I swung at it in the dirt. So we got to be mindful of that. So what, we'll figure it out.

Evan 33:31

Yeah, I love that. I love that.

Trey 33:34

I appreciate it.

Evan 33:35

Um, and like when you hit it's important to clear and quiet your mind. So you're not thinking too much. What techniques would you recommend for youth baseball players in order to clear and quiet their minds?

Trey 33:50

Learn to breathe. Breathing is super underrated. Breathing is what slows down your heart rate, the better you can slow down your heart rate. I know everyone's had that one at that, where they can't stop their leg from shaking. Or, you know, everyone has it. It happens to everybody when the guys throwing super hard. You don't really, never really seen it before. You can't figure out how to slow your heart rate down. You have to breathe, you have to breathe. For me. It's a big deep breath then I get in the box. Take one more deep breath before he starts his wind up and then we're going. you know, you got to learn what works for you get your nice little deep breath in there. It'll slow your heart rate down. It's like snipers. What do they do? They hold their breath and do what they got to do. You know? That's how, that's how it happens. You know you got to slow all that stuff down.

breating is huge, it slows your heart rate down, slows almost everything around you. It's like stopping or slowing down time.

It's like the matrix man.

Evan 34:50

And I know that you were once asked if you could choose a famous baseball player to have dinner with it would be Willie Mays.

Trey 34:57

Yeah.

Evan 34:59

Why? Willie Mays, and what question would you ask him?

Unknown Speaker 35:04

I would ask him if he was cheating when, when he went to that ball, because I feel like you have to know that that was coming to be able to run stuff down like that. But no, I mean, he was just so influential, you know, growing up, seeing all the old school videos of that stuff, and just hitting bombs and doing all that. And the way he passed the game down to people that he mentored, like barry bonds, like guys like that, like you can tell they played a big role. And for me, those are all my favorite hitters growing up. So if he was the one that started it, then why wouldn't I want to watch him? And why wouldn't I want to talk to him and figure out what he knows? Because he obviously knows something that I don't so

Evan 35:48

yeah, learn from the best of them?

Trey 35:50

Yeah, absolutely. Why not? He started it all. So let's do it.

Evan 35:54

He was super influential in baseball, and the guys that he mentored and just

Trey 36:00

yeah, just playing the way that he played and it's a different different way of playing and you can't, it's hard to even play like that now with all the rule changes and stuff and being as crazy as he was. So it's cool to watch.

Evan 36:13

Yeah, definitely. So Trey, would you like to share anything else that you're working on, or where people can go to reach you.

Trey 36:24

Um, you can follow me on Instagram at trigger tray 15 trigggatreyy15 if you would, like we're about to start playing. So I'll be posting a lot more baseball stuff and, and probably at bat by a bat type things. But other than that, it's time for me to go. So I just been working out and I'm ready to ready to do some damage.

Evan 36:47

Yeah, ready to do some damage.

Trey 36:50

That's it. Other than that, everybody just needs to go out and have fun while they can be safe out there while everything's going on? I know. We're going to be taking measures. So I'm hoping you guys are taking measures as well. Yeah, definitely. So

Evan 37:03

well, Trey, I wanted to thank you again for coming on and sharing Amazing, amazing information.

Trey 37:09

Absolutely. No problem, man. Thank you for having me. I appreciate you guys are doing great things over here.

Evan 37:14

Thank you. I appreciate it.

Trey 37:15

Absolutely.

Evan 37:18

Thank you all for listening in. We really hope you enjoyed this episode. Be sure to hit the subscribe button and be the first to know when new episodes launch. Check us out at borntobaseball.com for free resources and new gear. And of course on social media @borntobaseball where we can connect live now let's play ball.

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Episode #008: John Rodriguez- World Series Champion/ Hitting Coach

May 2020 By Evan

Ep. #008: Join Evan and John Rodriguez as John takes us through his baseball journey, talks some hitting including his thoughts on hand path and launch angle, and shares his World Series experience. 

What You’ll Learn: 

01:20-  John’s baseball journey 

05:06-  Road to the majors

07:40-  Hitting in front of Albert Pujols

11:45-  How he felt when he was signed by the NY Yankees

13:30-  Keys to success when it comes to hitting

14:50-  Good hand path

15:50-  Thoughts on Launch angle

20:04-  Tradeoffs on the road to success

22:50-  The importance of Mindset

26:27-  Playing in the World Series

Thank you for being here with us!  Evan and the Born To Baseball Team are looking forward to celebrating your success and sharing this journey together.
 
If you enjoyed this episode please consider leaving a rating or review on Apple or wherever you’re listening here. This will help other ball players find the Born To Baseball Podcast and give us more chances to shout out our listeners!  
 
Now, let’s play ball!

Read show notes here.

Show Links:

Email: Jrod411925@yahoo.com

Website: https://www.yyaa.org/yorkville-baseball-academy

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Episode 008_JOHN RODRIGUEZ WORLD SERIES CHAMPION AND HITTING COACH

The transcription below was provided for your convenience through an automated service. Please excuse any unintended errors made in the process.

Evan 0:00

This episode of Born To Baseball is sponsored by the BTB travel team and training tracker. Are you a parent or player searching for travel teams or training facilities in your area? Or are you a coach looking to expand your reach? And you have to check out the BTB triple T tracker at borntobaseball.com Make sure your team is represented. Let's go.

Music 0:24

Calling all ball players. Are you ready to take your game to the next level? Were you born to baseball? Then bring it in? it's game time.

Evan 0:39

Hey guys, welcome to the born to baseball podcast. Today we have John Rodriguez with us. His 17 year pro career started with him getting signed by the New York Yankees in 1996 as an undrafted free agent. He got called up in 2005 by the St. Louis Cardinals and won a World Series ring in 2006. He retired and 2013 with an MLB career average close to 300. He is also the head of operations and head hitting coach at Yorkville baseball Academy, as well as the hitting coach for the Cleveland railroaders based in Texas. John, thank you so much for being here.

John 1:15

Thank you for having me, kid.

Evan 1:17

Could you start us out by sharing your baseball journey?

John 1:20

I was born and raised in New York. And I went to Brandeis High School and then I had a tryout and Yankee Stadium. My uncle knew a cop, who knew the scout which was ceaser prescot, who was holding a tryout in Yankee Stadium. And they were about I would say, close to 100 kids, and I was the only one that was just as a favor. went in, you know, did what I had to do just more or less, you know, I in a tryout, it's, you know, fly balls in the outfield because I'm a lefty. I rarely play First base, run a 60. Hit batting practice and then it was like more of like a simulator game. And at that time, I was actually my first time swinging a wood bat. And I hit three in the upper deck, then when old Yankee Stadium, which is kind of telling my age, but you know. And then from there, I left because I felt like he didn't, there was no interest. You know, I did what out to do, but you know, I just felt like there was no, no, no, no, like I said, no interest towards me or because he had a bunch of kids there that he had invited. I went to play in the Bronx in the St. Mary's league. And then from there, the president of the league asked me, you know, are you serious about this game? And I was like, Yeah, of course. I love this game. This is I love this game ever since, you know, two years old, I was able to pick up a bat and throw a ball. And he was like, Alright, good, because I have some scouts coming down here to watch you play. I was like, Yeah, right, whatever, you know. And then he saw He's like, No, I'm serious. Like, alright, I'll believe it when I see it. So the Yankees, Detroit Tigers, Pittsburgh, I think it might have been the Cubs and they might have been Milwaukee all came down and watch me play in and long and behold, the Yankee scout was ceaser prescot the one that was holding the tryout and he came up to me after the game. He was like, Where were you? Why did you leave? You know, I was looking all over for you. And I was like, why is like, you know, being my naive self was like, why? He's like, because I want to sign you. I was like, now you're playing around with me. Seriously, don't this is my biggest dream is to get signed specially from the Yankees. And he's like, No, I'm serious. We can't give you a lot of money. So I was Listen to me, I don't care about the money. What I want to do is just give me a plane ticket, get me down there. And I'll show you what I can do. And 17 years later You know, that's, that's really it. I went down there. Enjoyed rookie ball, because in the outfield was me, our first rounder, our third rounder, and our fifth rounder. And guess who, you know, obviously, those three guys are going to start over me. But I took it as a challenge. I didn't feel like they were any better than I was. You know, and I and I proved it. And I ended up being the starter on my rookie ball team, right fielder.

Evan 4:51

That's awesome.

Yeah.

Could you talk to us a little bit about your road to the majors.

John 4:55

road to the majors, who was definitely a tough one. I just said started off in rookie ball, played rookie ball went to a skip short season a once a regular season a which was in Greensboro, North Carolina. Then I spent two years in high which is the Yankees two years in double A and then two years in AAA and then got a signed with the Cleveland Indians in 2005. And then they traded me over to the St. Louis Cardinals where I guess it's just like, they always say, you know, new surroundings brings, you know, new joy. And for some reason it just clicked. Everything clicked I was I hit 343 with 17 home runs and 43 RBI's in 34 games.

Evan 5:50

Yeah,

John 5:50

You know, and it just something like I said, they call it the zone but what I was feeling was not wasn't scared. I felt like I had nothing to lose, you know, everything was was just coming together and I just felt good. It felt amazing. You know, coming to the baseball, you know, baseball field every day, even if I was, you know, I love that either way, even if I was struggling or I was succeeding, but at that time it was it was just magical like I I can't I couldn't figure it out like it was. It was something that was I was always dreamt of as a little kid when I was in my mother's living room, hitting a baseball and just imagining you know, hitting home runs or you know, being you know, the best at that sport and that at that in that month. That's what I felt. And then from there, Reggie Sanders got hurt. And I guess they had no choice to call me up. Since I was doing so good. Got there soon as I got to the locker room. I was an amazement because I saw, you know, the jerseys. Albert Pulhos, Scott Rowland, Jim Edmonds, you know, Yadier Molina he was a rookie at that time. Adam Wainwright just seeing you know, those guys jerseys and then looking off and seeing number 53 that Rodriguez in the back and I was, I had to hold back my tears I ran into the bathroom and just threw water on my face and make it look like water on my face instead of tears. But it was just a time and place of joy. It was. It was amazing. Soon as I got out the bathroom, Tony larosa goes come into my office. And at that point, I was scared. I was I was really nervous. He was like, you know, howdy, welcome, you know, thanks for being here. You definitely deserve it. You know, I hope you continue. You know your success up here. And I was like, No, I plan on it. But we'll see. What happens? And he was like, that's good because you're starting tonight. Like what? Wait a minute. Are you serious? He's like, yeah, you're starting you're starting in left field and you're hitting second right in front of Pulhos so I was like, All right, I'll make sure to get on base so he can get his RBI's he was like good because that's all he wants. And then at that point in time, the scenario with all that was my thought process was, one be a team player to do everything that you need to do to succeed but also do it in a team atmosphere, not just I I wanted to stay healthy, because that was one of my problems, you know, throughout my career, was trying to stay healthy is just baseball injuries, you know, hamstrings, pulled this pull that you know, just freak accidents and then just enjoy them. Just enjoy. Because you never know what is going to be your last time there. So, you know, even at this time in my life, I still feel like I can do it, but my age obviously is not going to let me. But once you're there, don't take it for granted. Just enjoy every, every every second that you're there and just treat everybody with respect, with admiration with you know, with a lot of love and all that in return, it will come back to you. You know, never think that you're better than anybody else. If you do keep it to yourself, just keep that confidence in yourself. Be confident, not cocky, you know, treat the reporters with respect, because at the same time, I know they're gonna ask you difficult questions. You know, try to answer it as best as you can. And in a respectful manner, you know, especially if you're a great player, you're going to have the microphone in your face, every game 162 games. year plus postseason spring training, you're going to have a microphone in your face. And if you're a great player, those are the guys that dictate if you're going to go on to the Hall of Fame or not so. So you also have to, you know, take that into consideration, but more, more than anything, you just want to be a personable guy where they feel comfortable coming up to you, and knowing that they can talk to you and not be so afraid or standoffish that, you know, they want to just shy away from you. You know, and, and the biggest thing with me too, was the fans. I love the fans like they're there to see you play. And if a little kid, you know, wants an autograph, sign it that's, that was my biggest thing. I'd stopped. I'm going to sign you know. So then, adults, you know, you have guys that want to sell your cards or sell your autograph. It's their hustle. You know, you're in the major leagues you're making as a rookie, you're making half a million. And then you get your contracts you're making into the millions. And if they want to sell your autograph for 20 bucks or 30 bucks or 100 bucks, so be it. You know, they have to make a living also. So I saw it, I saw it in that manner where everything is a hustle, but at the same time, they're also trying to feed their family. So if I'm making that a bunch of money, why, why not share?

Evan 5:50

Wow.

John 11:32

like I said, with the kids. That was easy for me. I just did it wasn't even a hesitation.

Evan 11:38

How cool was it to get signed by one of your hometown teams, the Yankees

John 11:43

oh my gosh,one it was a dream come true. Two it was just seeing those guys on TV and then being with them in the locker room was it's just hard to explain. It's just you're an actor. You know, when you've been watching, you know, Denzel Washington or, you know, Robert DeNiro, you know, on TV your whole life and then all of a sudden you're in the same place with them and you're acting with them. It's kind of surreal. But then after a while when you're there, it's becomes a family and you just, you know, you belong. You know, because you're there. So you know, you belong.

Evan 12:29

What led you to become an outfielder,

John 12:32

lefty. I can't play that many other positions. Besides outfield and pitch and first base. That's it. So that's why I have my youngest son, who's 17. When he was two years old, he grabbed the ball with his left hand and I told him to drop the ball. I said, Put your left hand behind your back and grab it with your right and throw with your right so he's been doing that.

Evan 12:53

And can you share some tips that you use in the outfield to take the fast route to the ball.

John 13:02

Oh, that's hard to kind of hard to explain. It's easier to show. That's why I love doing it. Just a lot of drills are like drop steps, you know, reaction times, you know, just knowing knowing where the ball is going to be, and getting there putting your head down and know what's going to be there. Yeah, that's really the best way I could explain it.

Evan 13:28

You're heading into your second season as the hitting coach for the Cleburne railroaders their team batting average from 2018 to 2019 jumped 32 points and slugging increased by 95 points. So congratulations on that. What are some of your keys to success when it comes to hitting

John 13:45

a hand path, bat path, balance. There's a lot of things that go into it. Like I said before, it's easier for me to show then and to say but uh, a lot of it is controlled anger, controlled aggression. You know, I want people I want the kids, even adults that I teach. I want them to swing hard, but if when they do, it has to be the right approach the right hand path, the right bat path, to get to the ball to stay short to the ball and drive the ball. There's so many elements that go into you know, hitting pitching fielding, obviously, but hitting is probably the most difficult part of baseball because you have a ball that's coming 90 to 100 miles an hour and now it's moving you know, it's not just straight, like I said balance is one of the keys hand path and bat path is the biggest for me

Evan 14:40

some know you as john hand path, Rodriguez. That just shows how much you preach hand path while hitting. How important is it to have good hand path?

John 14:50

It's one of the keys because you know, like we call it the Allah Derek Jeter, you know how many times he's been jammed and get a base hit to right field. You know, Because he had the right approach, he had the right hand path, getting to the ball staying tight, staying through the ball and, and just believed in himself and believed in his hands.

Evan 15:10

What's your favorite drill for creating good hand path?

John 15:15

Oh, again, I would have to show you. I'm just trying to stay compact, is trying to stay short, trying to stay tight. And what I mean by tight is, you know, you almost want to swing. Like you're gonna rub your hands across your shirt, you know, stay in short and tight into staying inside the baseball and trying to drive the ball that way. And more or less is just where you may contact is where you're going to hit the ball. Really,

Evan 15:45

what's your take on the launch angle, type swing,

John 15:48

launch angle is portrayed with some coaches the wrong way and some coaches the right way. A lot of it is you know that a lot of kids are just dropping a barrel behind the zone to bring it up and that's not the right way to do it. You want to drop your bat in so the zone and then have that kind of upward swing but it's it's more of an angle to your bat, which creates and also contact points. You know you could have that loopy swing and then hit a ball out but you could have that loopy swing and topspin balls, Miss balls, which, obviously statistics is showing that that they're more inconsistent with that swing than then consistent, you know? Yes, homeruns have gone up but averages has gone down. strikeouts has gone up walks has gone down slugging percentage, you know, on base percentage for sure. Run as a scoring position. You know, there was a situation you know, with the in the Yankee game during the playoffs. You have runners on third, less than two outs, and both the next two guys struck out. Because of that upward swing, just put the ball in play, that run may count, you know, that run dictates, you know, the outcome of the game. And a lot of guys just see it as and you know, Why get that one run when we could get 2, you're going to have over 500 bats in the big leagues. How many times you think you're going to hit a home run at the most 20, 30, 40 so 40 just say four that's the top guys 44, 40 home runs out of five to 600 bats. It's not a lot. You know, I rather have a guy that hit 20 home runs with 130 RBI's, then a guy hit 40 home runs with 80 or 90 RBI's. That's my you know, I rather have that. That's that's the type of player i would love.

Evan 18:00

Power is a big part of hitting. What are some key things that you baseball players can do to increase power and exit velocity?

John 18:09

Well, what I do is I use a lot of weighted balls, just to gain strength on your hands, wrists and forearms. Yes, also I do band work with for rotation for your hips, you know, just to get that whip but most of all, I love doing, you know, weighted baseballs. And then also have the hitting jacket where it's a weight that sits in between your bat in the middle of your bat where you could still hit, but it also balances out the bat where it's not top heavy. I like doing those two routines. And the biggest thing, like I said, for me is the weighted balls. It's just like I kind of in comparison to a boxer. Right? He's doing his his training camp. He's punching a heavy bag, and that heavy bag is probably 30 40 pounds heavier than a human being. So the more and more he hits that bag as he gets stronger, and then when he hits a human being in a boxing ring, that's where the knockouts come. And that's where the power comes from.

Evan 19:15

So you coach both youth and adult players. How do you know when a player is ready for a new piece of information? Is it based on age or skill level and readiness?

John 19:27

Well, they're always they're always ready for new information doesn't matter age, obviously age, you're going to need more. But as you get older, you know, you if, if you're a student of the game, you'll need less but you will always need information no matter what.

Evan 19:46

How much time should a youth baseball player be investing on their own? If they're serious about playing college ball and one day going pro,

John 19:56

like I said, become a student of the game. It takes a lot of sacrifice. You know, especially as you get older into your teens, you know, you get into middle school, we get into high school. There's friends, there's parties, there's girlfriends. There's a lot of outside distractions that can take you away from your goal. And if you're serious about, you know, not just playing in high school or college, if you're serious about going to the big leagues, there's going to be a lot of sacrifice. And like I said, and I tell you know, the youth today, there's always going to be parties, there's always going to be girls, even for softball women. That's always going to be there. But it gets better. When you make it to the top. You know, be the best you can be. Get your contract. Like I said, Be respectful, be the best person you can be and all that is way Better in the major leagues, you know not to worry about all that. Now, yes, you want, you want to be a kid, that's fine. There's times that you can hang out with your friends. There's times that you can go to parties and stuff like that. But don't let it interfere with your work ethic. Don't let it interfere with your school. Never let it interfere with your school. That's one point. And be decisive be be the person that it say. If I have practice, right, and I've done it, let's say I practice Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday and a have, and I also have practice on Friday, but it interrupts with a school party or a friend's party. If you're serious about it, what are you going to do? You're going to go to practice. Skip the party. You guys let me know how It went. That's fine. This is my goal. This is where I want Be and those that like I said, those are the little things and those are the sacrifices that you have to go through. So you're gonna miss a lot of stuff. But at the end of it all, you're going to be thankful that you did it.

Evan 22:13

What was your playing and workout routine as a high school ballplayer?

John 22:18

Well, we didn't have any of the facilities, equipment, you know that kids have today. There's no batting cages for us. We kind of had to like invent our own baseballs. We took a tennis ball and make it heavier, we would tape it. You know, we played a lot of sponge ball. A lot of backyard stuff, you know, put the guys put all your friends together and then just play that way. A lot of us didn't have baseball gloves. So we just you know, play the sport without gloves and just use our hands just to make it even for everybody. A lot of things a lot of you know the way I truly got better was that playing with my friends in the backyard and then mimicking a lot of the guys on TV. You know, like, you know, Bernie Williams, Don Mattingly, Paul O'Neill guys like that. Ken Griffey Jr. You know, those are the guys. I just watched him on TV as a lefty, I would mimic their swing. And you know, just had a feel for what they were doing, but didn't really know the process on how they were doing it. So that was a confusing part. But every time I mimicked it, it felt good and it felt real. So I just went with that.

Evan 23:43

How important has mindset been for you in your career?

John 23:47

Oh that's the biggest one. That's the most powerful tool for any human being warrior athlete. Its your brain its your mind. Just being in control, being in control of your of your body of your everyday life, it's it's the biggest thing like you couldn't you could control. Whatever you want to control is if you put your mind to it and study and read and understand emotions, understand people's feelings understand, you know what type of lifestyle you want, you know, the mind, like I said is the most powerful thing anybody can have.

Evan 24:31

You played in the MLB for two years with the Cardinals. How often did you get to pick the brains of other players

John 24:38

every day Every day Like all right, different situations. I pick the brain of Chris carpenter and Adam Wainwright on how they get hitters out. Pick the brain on with Albert Pulhos, our pools and hitting in all different situations. Also did that with Jim admins on Hitting because he was lefty and then also I did with Jim Emmons picked his brain about you know, how to how to become a better outfielder you know how to how to approach the game with different hitters and their power where do they hit the ball the most and how does he you know, get around the baseball to you know, have a better throw up a better throwing, you know, position to the basis and also with you know, yadi Molina same thing you know how he would go about you know, calling pitches for different hitters slap guys power guys, average guys, you know, just different scenarios. And then also, as I was getting older in my career, I spoke to the coaches on you know, how to coach how to be a manager how to be a hitting coach, you know, and how to teach. You know, the guys

Evan 25:53

yeah, was there one piece of advice that stood out to you the most

John 25:59

a lot of time times guys would just say, you know, just be true to yourself and know, know your game. You know, don't if you're a slap guy, don't try to be a power guy. If you're a power guy, don't try to do too much. Just play your game and try to be the best player for your team.

Evan 26:20

youth baseball players like me, we dream of playing in the MLB playing in the World Series is the next level. How much different as a World Series game than a regular season?

John 26:31

Well, it's, it's mind blowing. It's it's excitement from before the first pitch. So even after the last pitch. It's just an experience because now you know, you have 32 teams, and usually, only your fans and the team's fans that you're playing against are watching. Now it's the World Series. You're the only two teams left now you have a million have fans watching you, you know, even if they're fans of someone else, they're watching the game. So that's where they call it you know, that's the stage that's where your dad, you know, being a an artist in the music industry. He'll be at a club and then all of a sudden he's playing in the Super Bowl. You know he's playing halftime the Super Bowl and it's like, everybody's watching you now. You know and it's the same kind of the same aspect and not top of that is like I said, You can't let the moment get too big. treated as just like for me, yes, I was nervous but at the same time, I just treat it as a you know, backyard, you know, baseball game with my friends. I didn't let the moment get too big for me.

Evan 27:48

What was your reaction when Adam Wainwright threw that last pitch to strike out Brandon Inge and win the World Series.

John 27:57

Mind blowing, Unbelievable. dream come true. Just Is this real? Just everything you can think of as a kid just at that moment was real

Evan 28:14

What's your favorite memory from the World Series?

John 28:18

when Adam Whainwrigh struck out, Brandon Inge, because it was over. Yeah, just to celebrations. Just knowing that we were world champions, and nobody could ever, ever take that away from us.

Evan 28:34

That's awesome. And now I want to move on to the Rapid Fire question.

John 28:38

All right, let's do it. Oh, hotseat?

Evan 28:42

What was your favorite team growing up

John 28:44

New York Yankees.

Evan 28:46

Who's your favorite power hitter of all time.

John 28:50

I would have to say Ken Griffey Jr. Because him and Barry Bonds but Ken Griffey Jr. The most because I'd followed him a lot,

Evan 28:57

in your opinion, who's the best clutch player of all time.

John 29:02

I would love to say, postseason wise is Derek Jeter and and just like all around when I was playing like my first, those first 10 years just watching his Albert Pulhos and then Now, obviously, you know Mike trout.

Evan 29:22

Last but definitely not least, how often do you clean your World Series ring?

John 29:27

Oh, probably every month just to check if it's still in the safe.

Evan 29:38

Are there any projects you're working on or have coming up that you'd like to share?

John 29:42

Going back to be the hitting coach for the Cleveland railroaders I'm excited about that. And then hopefully, you know if everything works out, either continue there or throw my hat in the ring for an MLB job.

Evan 29:57

Where can people go to follow you or learn more about you?

John 30:00

I'm at the Yorkville baseball Academy on 106 and First Avenue in New York, New York. I'm there Monday through Saturday. And then Google.

Evan 30:11

JOHN, thank you so much for being here.

John 30:14

Oh, you're awesome kid

Evan 30:15

and sharing great knowledge with the born to baseball community.

John 30:19

Thank you very much for having me.

Evan 30:20

So it's tradition around here to have some ice cream after so you're ready?

John 30:24

Let's get it

Evan 30:27

Thank you all for listening in. We really hope you enjoyed this episode. Be sure to hit the subscribe button and be the first to know when new episodes launch. Check us out at borntobaseball.com for free resources and new gear. Download the borns baseball app to have real time conversations, share your game and video highlights and be celebrated by our BTB team and of course on social media @borntobaseball where we can connect live. Now let's play ball.

Transcribed by https://otter.ai

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