There is no question that Clem Cohen was the start of my baseball career. It was at the Little League level, but that was the start. I was very fortunate to get off on the right foot. - Robin Yount
Coaching kids is important for so many reasons. Done right, and you instill a life long love of the game. Done wrong and skateboarding found another adherent… I remember all of my coaches and I'm grateful to them for showing me how to play the game and how to compete.
In honor of all the coaches I had over the years and all the other moms and dads who volunteer to teach each generation the games we love, I present the inaugural Coach of the Month Award to Robin Hager.
I've known Robin for several years, he's coached my son in baseball and I've coached his son in soccer. He understands that this is about making the kids better and in the years he's spent coaching, he's learned a few tricks on getting through to the kids and making sure they are better at the end of the year than they were at the beginning. I asked Robin 5 questions that I think you will get a lot out of. If you have any others, leave them in the comments.
1. How did you get started coaching?
I actually started coaching in college when I volunteered at the local Y to coach a 3rd grade boys basketball team. One of my early mentors was my high school basketball coach, and I was anxious to impart what I had learned from him on others. The reality was that 3rd grade basketball was a long ways from high school ball, but nonetheless the experience was rewarding and I learned my first truth in coaching youth sports - help the kids get better by the end of the season than they were at the beginning.
I got reconnected with coaching when my older son Jeff was growing up, coaching him in soccer, basketball and baseball. I have continued that with my other son Jason.
2. Why do you continue coaching?
First - and the reason I think most dads coach - is to be involved in my kid's lives. Coaching a youth team certainly does that. But the rewards go way beyond that. To take a group of kids with varying levels of talent and desire and build it into a team that competes is very gratifying. To feel that you have some positive impact on their lives is a huge feel-good. I tell my teams that our goal is to play to win, but that winning is not the reason we play. We want to do our best, improve our skills, be good teammates and be good sports. To compete fairly with the objective of winning is our goal.
I remember a few years ago when my oldest son Jeff was a 12 year old playing Little League. We were battling for a chance to go to the playoffs, and we had to win the game that night. Well, it was the bottom of the 6th, and we had a runner on 1st with 2 outs. Our batter hit one in the right-centerfield gap. As our runner rounded third, the right fielder came up with the ball. We sent him. It was a close play at the plate but he was clearly out. The umpire got the call right. You can imagine the range of emotions that started with the euphoria of the gapper to the reality of the out of the plate. Our boys were clearly disappointed.
When we pulled them together after the game, besides telling them how proud we were of them, we also told them how lucky they were to be a part of this very special game. Those who don't compete in life never experience the thrill of victory, or the agony of defeat. They are just passengers. That night we competed, and we did our best. We came up a half a foot short, but we played to win. And almost did.
We'll get them next time. That is why I continue to coach.
3. What are your two favorite drills?
The first drill is a ground ball drill that I learned several years ago. I simply put half the kids at short, and half at second. One coach hits balls from first to short, and the fielder throws back to a first baseman. The other coach stands next to third and hits a grounder to second, and the fielder throws to a third baseman. The fielders rotate lines after each ground ball. This drill enables us to get the most amount of ground balls to a kid in the least amount of time, and keeps the kids moving. The most important thing in designing a baseball practice is to keep the kids moving. If they get bored, bad habits develop and kids get hurt.
The second drill is wiffle ball batting practice. A coach throws from one knee about 15 feet out, and 2 or 3 kids shag balls behind him. With three coaches you can set up three stations, in in 15 minutes each kid can get 25 - 30 quality swings. Again, it keeps them moving and is very efficient. With the coach throwing only 15 feet away, the batter is assured of alot of good pitches, and alot of good swings.
4. Who is your coaching inspiration?
First my father. When I was 10 I didn't make the Little League team, and being from a small town there were no other options. It was going to be a summer without baseball for a 10 year old kid. My dad took it upon himself to start a new league and a team, and we played against other teams in the area. As I think back, it overwhelms me as to what my dad did not only for myself, but 11 other kids who were facing a summer without baseball. Unbelievable.
Secondly, my high school basketball and baseball coach. He taught me to play to win, and the power of self discipline. He took a small town program and made it competitive in one short year.
Thirdly, I learned alot from a Little League clinic called Al and Al, which I attended about 6 years ago. The clinic focused on baseball fundamentals, but also had some practical advice on the responsibility each of us had as a youth coach. The teachers - Al and Al - told us that we were going to be role models in the eyes of all the kids and that, quite frankly, we weren't qualified for it. They reminded us that we were a coach for all of the kids on the team, not just the ones who can throw strikes or hit the ball over the fence. Coaching was a confidence building exercise with young minds, and we had better take our responsibility seriously.
This really hit home with me, and since then I have tried to make sure that I was coaching the end of the bench with just as much energy and passion as I was the beginning.
5. What is the most important fundamental in baseball?
To catch and throw the ball accurately. If you can't do that, you will not enjoy the game.
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