Brandon Inge's All Star Appearance.

Watching the All-Star Game and Home Run Derby over the past two nights, I couldn't help but think back to when I had the chance to meet Brandon Inge this past February at Spring Training. He was sitting next to Matt Treanor getting dressed for a day at the park, when Matt introduced us and showed him my hitting aid. Jim Leyland, (the skipper), then came over to me and said, "Hey, did you invent this thing?" And after gulping, I said, "Yes sir." He then looked at me and said something I'll never forget. He looked over the lockerroom and said, "Hey guys, this thing is awesome! One of the best things I've seen in years. You all need to hit with it." And then he turned to Brandon and said, "Hey Brandon, you need to hit with this thing. It will help you." And Brandon looked up and replied, "Sure, skip." and the rest is history.

The Detroit Tigers later ordered seven Pitcher's Nightmare Swing Trainers from me and instantly became my favorite American League team (sorry guys, the Braves will always be my favorite team overall, but you guys definitely rule in the A.L.) and Brandon became one of my favorite players. Check out this great story on him from his Home Town newspaper, the News and Advance, http://www.newsadvance.com/lna/news/local/article/lynchburg_buzzes_over_brookvilles_all-star_inge/17660/.

And here's hoping he keeps tearing 'em up in the Second Half!!!

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Chris Coste.

The other day as I was eating breakfast, I happened to notice Chris Coste was picked up on waivers by the Houston Astros, or in other words, was no longer a Philadelphia Philly. (Old habits die hard. Ballplayers always check the transactions as you eat breakfast, because you never knew when your own name was going to be in there!)

I had the pleasure of meeting Chris this past Spring Training. The perennial back-up Catcher, who after spending 11+ years in the minors finally got the call up to the Bigs back in 2006, is an inspiration to all who never, ever give up! In fact, he wrote a book about his exploits, "The 33-Year-Old Rookie", which is available through Amazon.com, or through his website, http://www.chriscoste.com/.

Undrafted out of college, Chris began his minor league career in Independent ball, in a league that folded before even completing one season! After that, he kicked around for four more years in Indy ball, before finally signing a minor-league deal with the Cleveland Indians in 2000, and making it to the Bigs with the Phillies in 2006.

When I met Chris, I asked him, "why didn't you give up?" Was I asking this rhetorically? Probably...Because I remember the struggles of being a back-up catcher...Of watching the other guy play while catching bullpens...Of batting once in a while and catching Day games after Night games, so the other guy could rest...

And his answer was simple. "Chance, I never had a Plan B." Amen, brother. "Burn the boats. That way, you can never go back!"

Best wishes to you, Chris Coste. Here's hoping this unusual twist of events in life which have now made you a Houston Astro turn out to be a wonderful blessing. You deserve it.

Don't Ever Give Up!

The other night, I got a phone call from one of my students. He had just participated in the first of two games after being named to the Top 100 Underclassman by the Georgia Dugout Club, and unfortunately, to put it in his words, he had done "awful", "embarassed himself" and "wasn't going back." Now how many times do we all feel like that? I know there are times in life when I do.

My student had struck out twice, and popped up on the infield in three at-bats. He also committed the cardinal error of not hustling down to first on the popup, due to his digust with himself (something College Coaches will write you off quickly for). He also played briefly in the outfield, but luckily, with the night he was having, no one hit a ball to him.

After listening, I asked him, "Ok. So how were they pitching you?" He said "inside." And my reply was "Perfect. Now you know what to look for." So many times in life, we get lost in the moment, and we have trouble stepping back and seeing what we can learn from the situation. I also told him, "Remember, if a hitter strikes out four times, but hits a home run to win the game in his final at-bat, what does everyone remember?" Of course, the home run.

Finally, to reenforced my thoughts with him and said, "Now remember, if you don't go back, it says volumes about you. And if you do go back, it also speaks volumes about you in another way." Luckily for him (and me), he went back the next day, and played a much better game.

Rashad Eldridge's Demotion

Yesterday, Rashad Eldridge texted me to let me know he had been sent down from Durham to Montgomery. Starting today, he will be a Biscuit again. I know the Montgomery Biscuits fans will be glad to see him again (He was a 2008 Southern League All-Star), but the ultimate goal of a ballplayer is to play in the Big Leagues.

At the time of the demotion, Rashad was hitting .301 with 25 hits in only 21 games. Unfortunately though, the Tampa Rays are Outfield Heavy, (which means they have a ton of outfielders in their system). He also had an OBP of .731 and was playing a solid outfield for them. However, the minor league system is such that with limited time and limited resources, certain players are going to be pushed (or lifted) to the Big Leagues. Rashad does not appear to fall in that category.

His demotion pulls at my heartstrings in two ways. 1) He is also a user of the Pitcher's Nightmare Swing Trainer and I'd love to see him play in the Bigs, but more importantly, he is a very, very good friend. And I understand his frustration with the game we all love so dear. It is part of being a professional. Trust me, I know. I was demoted, shifted, benched, and ultimately released several times. Unfortunately for Rashad, as the Manager from Bull Durham says before releasing Crash in the 1988 movie Bull Durham (required movie watching for ballplayers...of a certain age..., "this is the toughest job a Manager has". It's also the toughest part on the players.

Notes on Game One of the CWS Finals.

Watching Game One of the Finals tonight. ESPN: Take Note: Orel Hershiser is worth every penny for his analysis on Coleman's (the LSU pitcher) problems in the stretch. He is absolutely right, and without a doubt, the best pitching analyst who is not sitting somewhere in a dugout.

Just saw a Home Run float out to left. Not a big deal except for the fact, the ball was MISS-HIT off the barrel opposite field!!! Omaha is a very bad combination for pitchers: Normal fence lengths on top of a hill (FYI, most Mid-western ballparks are much larger in terms of distance to the fences, due to the thin air), space-age aluminum bats, nobody pitching inside, hitters looking just as comfortable as they do in B.P...Did I mention the Thin Air? In other words, Home Run Derby.

Quick note: the announcers keep discussing the heat and how the umpires are dripping with sweat, the pitchers are cramping, etc. Next year, the tourney has been moved back even further into the month (June 19-30). Think it's hot this year, wait 'til next.

Fun Off the Field in Omaha.

Looking back on my time in Omaha, there are so many things going on that you, the viewer on TV, can't see that make this place so much fun. Example: There are so many beach balls being bounced around in the outfield that in between innings they often fall on the field. At which time, a security guard will race as hard as he can to grab it and pop it (before one of the players can run over and throw it back up in the stands), with a shower of boos being rained down on him from the crowd. This tug of war goes on the whole game, with balls being bounced all around throughout the outfield stands, as the people laugh and cheer when the frustrated security guards just can't quite seem to grab the ball before it bounces back into the crowd, or booing crazily when they do somehow manage to catch one.
Another fun feature of Rosenblatt is the ballgirls behind the plate (again, something you can't see on TV). When a foul ball goes back, it will more often than not (unless it goes over the roof and outside the stadium) roll back down the protective netting and fall back onto the field. If you look carefully on TV, the ballgirl is inside a door right behind the plate. As soon as a ball is fouled back, she will race out of the door and run full-speed to where she believes the ball will fall. At which time, people in the front row will start pulling on the net to change the trajectory. Needless to say, in front of 25,000 people, wearing no glove, on a full sprint, with people pulling the net, this is not an easy task. However, as a fan, it is so much fun to watch! The girls will make routine catches to a nice golf clap, but more often than not, they will miss the ball, and get booed and teased incessently by the fans as they make their way back to the door behind the plate. Side note: During the LSU game, one ballgirl made a running one-handed catch just in front of their on-deck circle and it drew the greatest applause of the night! There is no doubt, it would have made the Top 10 Plays for that night on ESPN!
Finally, and who knows how this tradition started, but during the games, one group of outfield stands will begin to compete with the other to see who can tell the other group which one sucks the worst. Left field will yell, "one, two, three, RIGHT FIELD SUCKS!!!" At which time, right field will regroup and yell even louder, "one, two, three, LEFT FIELD SUCKS!!!" And this goes on the entire game. In fact, there are some times when they yell, it catches you by surprise because it is SOOO LOUD!!! There are even T-Shirts for sell in the souvenir stands that you can buy that read "Left Field Sucks" or vice versa. All the more fun if you are there.
I hope all of you readers who have read these blogs get a chance to one day see these things for themselves. There is no doubt I consider myself lucky to have had a chance to experience Omaha and Rosenblatt for myself, so tomorrow, I will give you some tips on travel should you ever get a chance to see the College World Series for yourself. Until then.