Muscle memory can cause a hitter to ground often for outs, it can cause a pitcher to keep throwing the ball too high in the strike zone, as well as many other things. Your baseball game is the total sum of your muscle memory.

So what is muscle memory? Muscle memory is the programming of your muscles. Get up, walk to the other side of your house and come all the way back. I'll bet you did not think about every step you took. Why? Because the movements and what it takes for you to walk, run, clap, etc have been built into your muscles memory. You've programmed your body how to do things without having to think about it. That's the secret!

So let's apply this to baseball. How you currently field, hit pitch, run, think is all programming that you have developed over the time that you have been playing the game. So, if you want to play better than you are right now, you have to change your muscle memory to a programming that gets better results.

Its funny, many times in my coaching career I will change a player's mechanics and tell them to do an action (hitting for example) in a different way than they are used to. The response is interesting..."that doesn't feel right" or "that doesn't feel comfortable". Which is how it should feel! It's shouldn't feel right. It should feel weird! Why? Because you're doing it different than you've ever done. That's a good thing (if the coach knows what they are talking about...which I do) because as the saying goes, "if you want different result than you've ever gotten, you have to do things differently than you've ever had to do them."

1. Find a personal coach
This shouldn't’ come as a surprise since there have been many articles out there proving that in order for a child to compete in today’s world of sports, a player needs to have the assistance of a personal coach and not just rely on the coach of a particular team. The trick is finding the right coach. So find some one who is knowledgeable, has the experience and can be a good role model and relate to your child.

2. Get involved
That’s right! Get involved. When I give one on one lessons, it’s always so great when the parent gets involved, asks questions and participates. Since the coach can’t be around 24/7, its good for you as the parent to know what your child is working on, what’s their goals, what are they supposed to be doing to enhance their game.
Aside from being involved in lessons, do things like take them to the batting cages, take them to a game, embrace the idea of hard work pays off, baseball is great for that.
Be sure to attend all games and root for your child as well...I think this goes without saying.

3. Learn with your child
I always think its such a shame when a parent consistently drops their kid off with a coach and has the attitude of “He’s all yours now”. It seems like its almost treated as a short term babysitting job while the parent :goes to get some things done.” As stated before, its a great idea to learn the game with your child. It helps you attend and enjoy practices and games as well as be able to communicate with your child about their game. If you can’t communicate, its almost like you don’t even care. So learn at the lessons as well.

4. Create a free environment- No pressure!
Baseball is a game of fun and should be treated as such, especially in little league, travel ball and early high school. I realize that it can get extremely competitive, even at the young ages, but it’s absolutely important that you as the parent control the environment as much as you can. you want your child to feel free and easy with little to no stress about playing or winning and losing. Yes competitiveness is great! I am a big advocate, but stressing out and pressing is something I’m not a fan of. By the way, they did an experiment a few years back on why players play team sports and do you know what the consensus was? “I just want to have fun and be with my friends”. Lets remember that!

5. Make sure they want to play
I’ve seen many parents over the years push their kids into the game and possibly want it more than the player. What this does is actually push the player away from playing and makes it feel like a drag rather than inspirational. While I think its good for us to start something once we’ve finished, if your child doesn’t want to play, don’t make them. It only causes resentment and I’ve seen it many times.

6. Make sure their are put in positions to win
This has to be said and is a very important point. If you have been the parent of a baseball player for any length of time, you have noticed that some players are put in position where they are not getting their fair chance and where it is very tough to succeed. From a parental perspective, just do your best on your side to make sure that they are in the best position to play their best and have fun doing it. If you feel like your child is not being put in positions to succeed on the field, it might be a good idea to have a chat with the coach.

7. Have a good attitude
Oh my goodness! This points is hilarious because its ridiculous. We’ve all seen those Youtube.com videos where the parents at a game get into a huge fight. We’ve seen the dad in the stands that rags the umpire or the coach or possibly even yell at the kids! Come on, lets remember why the kids are out their...“I just want to have fun and be with my friends”. That means they are not their to watch their parents get carried away and too rambunctious. Keep your cool at the game. I know it can get intense, baseball’s greatest moments are very intense. But cheer and support and keep our emotions in check

8. Don't always blame the team coach
A lot of times when a players are not getting enough playing time, we jump right to the coach. I will be the first to admit, there are a lot of dumb coaches out there! I know. At the same time, as a parent, the situation should be approached having both sides of the story. Sometimes the player may not even really want to play and has just been to scared to tell you. Sometimes the coach has a legit reason why your child’s not playing. If the reason is something like “He’s got start hitting” then lets go back to step one, find a personal coach who knows what they are doing and get them hitting better!

9. Make sure priorities are in line
I was the son of 2 parents who were very big supporters of mine in baseball. And they noticed at a young age that David was slacking on school because he was spending too much time on baseball and other extra curricular activities. They nipped that in the bud very quickly by laying down the law and telling me “No good grades...No baseball!” Its amazing how I got instantly smarter!
Baseball is a great game, but it is not the main priority in life. Things like family, school etc. are much higher of a priority and its your job to bring that to their attention. Because take it from me, priorities can get a little out of whack as a young baseball player.

10. Leave the ego out
Remember, this is about you. Its about your child. Its about them having fun playing the game and using the game as a vehicle for learning life lessons. Its about the process. So don’t get hurt if someones kid strikes out your kid and don’t get cocky if your kid strikes out someone else. Don’t take things personally. Because in the end, its just a game and it is a great game.

Your Coach,

David J. Keesee

Now what about momentum for the individual player? How does a player gain personal momentum to start performing the way they want? That's a great question and when you learn the answer you can rise above 99% of your competition.

The answer is this, while there are many aspects to creating momentum, you have to understand that it all first starts with mindset. Without going into great depth, here are 4 quick steps you can take to create momentum in baseball now!

1. Be aware of where the momentum is.
2. Create a mindset that is strong enough to switch the momentum in your favor or keep it going if you already have it (which can a lot of times be tougher than getting into momentum in the first place)
3. Develop a plan (or an approach) for changing the momentum.
4. Follow the plan.

The momentum in baseball is RARELY taught. That's because most coaches don't know how to teach you how to get it and how to keep it once you've got it. It took me a long time to learn it. It wasn't till my last years of baseball playing that I really got that momentum was actually something that I could control. Both for me and for my team. It changed my game entirely for the better and once you learn it, it will change your game forever too. And if you want, I'd be happy to teach you how...

Your Coach,
David Keesee

The umpire calls out "Safe!" and this is the amazing part...the runner jumps up and says "What! You gotta be kidding me! That's the worst call ever!" as he begins to walk off the base he continues arguing. So the second baseman tags him, the umpire looks at the guy with a bewildered look and says "Ok...now you're out..." After the batter had realized that he had actually argued with the umpire for calling him safe, he walked the walk off embarrassing shame back to the dug out where his teammates were laughing hysterically at him.

I found this very funny and thought you might too. It's also a great story proving that arguing really gets you nowhere, especially if you're not very certain on why you're arguing. There are right ways to argue with an umpire and there are wrong ways. This story was an example of one of the wrong ways. I could go into all the details about how to make you're point to umpires without offending and how you can actually earn respect and more calls in your favor, but we'll save that for another time. For now, just don't argue with the umpire!

Your Coach,

David Keesee

This member is going into his junior year of high school and the time has come where he needs to start thinking about going to college. He most certainly wants to play college baseball and it appears as though that might be the main priority for him going to college, is to play baseball. So, I started asking him questions like I always do when I’m helping a player. One of the questions I asked him was… “So what’s your GPA?” The response I got was a weird look back. I said, “Look, if you want to go to college to play baseball, you HAVE TO have good grades!” Bottom line. That’s the truth. Most players think they can just dominate on the field and college coaches will just take care of it because they’re good. Sorry. It doesn’t work that way and here is why.

This is the example I gave to my member…When it comes to college baseball, the better grades a baseball player has, the cheaper he is to recruit. What does this mean? It means that if you don’t have good grades, you’re going to get beat out by other players that do!

For example, lets say I’m a college coach and I am looking to recruit Player X and Player Y. Both rank pretty evenly in skills, speed, athleticism, etc. The only difference is that player X has a 3.5 GPA and player Y has a GPA of 2.6. As a college coach, I am going to go with player X all day long! Why? Because with a 3.5 GPA I can get player X academic scholarships and grants to pay for 50% or more of his education. Therefore, I can spend less of my “baseball scholarship” money (my baseball scholarship budget that is giving to me as a college coach) and get the same caliber of player for cheaper. In addition, also have more money left over for other players to recruit.

The truth is, I might even take a player with good grades that is a little less talented on the field but has good grades and work hard at teaching him to play better if I can get him enough academic grants to save me more money.

Another scary fact is that you are most likely competing with thousands of other players that are just as good as you. How do I know that? Because…

• The top 10% of players are going to go pro or Division 1 baseball
• The bottom 10% don’t make it even make it to college ball
• That leaves 80% of the players that are in the middle and competing against each other for positions at the college level.

Therefore, most of you that are trying to go into college fall into that 80%. That 80% is a very large number guys. What are you going to do to separate yourself from the pack and get to that next level? The purpose of my blog today is to show you that grades can and should be your competitive advantage to help you separate yourselves. Take pride in your schooling and getting good grades. I promise that if you commit yourselves to getting good grades, you’ll be happy later that you did. Don’t be casual in the class room. Casualness in baseball (and in school) leads to baseball casualties.
These are just a couple of reasons why you should keep your grades up. Believe me, there are a lot more! So focus on the grades, get them up and keep them up. You’ll be happy later that you did and you'll have much more of a chance at getting to that next level.

Your Coach,

David Keesee
AllAspectsBaseball.com

You must control your mind and the thoughts that go into it if you want to play baseball at a high level. There are many different swings out there. Some players have strong arms, some have weak arms. Some players run fast and some run slow. But ALL GREAT PLAYERS have one thing in common...They know they are good. They have the right thoughts going through their heads and they know what they are trying to do and they know how to execute the process to get the result they want. That is why I spend so much of my time teaching the mental side of the game.

I have seen so many players change their game dramatically as a result of changing their mindset and their approach. I also believe that most of my own personal success in the game can be credited to my mental toughness throughout the years and certainly not my physical strength. It's very simple, where you mind goes the body will follow. You simply cannot consistently think about walking a hitter and throw consistent strikes. You cannot think about striking out all the time and then get consistent hits. It won't happen. Did you know that all slumps start mental and then turn into physical? It's true, all slumps start in the mind and then manifest into our swings, pitches and plays. Therefore, what you're thinking becomes crucial to your success on the field. You need the right frame of mind, the right attitude and the right approach or your mechanics and fundamentals won't be very effective.

Stay mentally tough this week and if you're in need of some guidance on mental toughness in baseball and in your game, you know where to find me

I was giving one of our great members a one on one lesson in a local batting cage. Right next to the cage was an actual live game happening on the field right next to us. The cage was right next to the home team's dugout so naturally players were coming over and eves dropping on the lesson. I was preaching to our member about how important it is to have a strong approach and going into the details of that approach. The next thing I know, I hear that special sound..."crack!" I looked out toward the field and there was the ball flying over the fence. One of the players who was listening into the lesson I was doing had just hit a home run! The hitter came back to the dugout, sat down and looked over at me. Then he winked and said "thanks for tip on approach coach".

It just goes to show us how important approach is when we're at the plate. A great approach will always bring great results.

What approach do you have when you're hitting?

At the same time, my thought for you is this…who are you taking advice from? Who are you listening to? Who’s coaching you? I have a saying about the advice we get from other people in this game and that saying is “you can never have too many chefs in the kitchen at one time because nothing ever gets cooked the right way.” If you have 10 different people telling you 10 different things about what you need to do, what you should do or “Hit this way” or “swing like this”…you’re done before you start. So while this is a short blog for you, it is a powerful one. Who are you taking advice from? Here are a couple rules that I’d like you to consider:

1. Never take advice from someone who is worse off then you.
2. Never take advice from someone who didn’t make it further than you.
3. Never take advice when you are in the zone.

I’ve always taken pride in the fact that I have studied, learned and mastered most, if not all, of the different philosophies out there in baseball. I take pride in that because that is the single most contributing factor (I believe) to making me a powerful coach. I’ve stood in the same place you are right now. I’ve felt the way you feel. I’ve experienced the same trials and tribulations you are going through. Believe me, in the last decade of my coaching; there is not a lot that surprises me anymore.

So, in regards to this blog, I want you to read some of the previous blogs that I’ve written on here to see how picking the right people to listen to and get coached by, can dramatically have an effect on your game and on your mind set.

I know a lot of you might have questions on my 3 rules. I love it! Send me an email and ask away…I’m here to make you better.

I see too many players going to lessons unconscious and they're passing the time because they feel like that’s what they're supposed to be doing. Or sometimes it’s the players ego that says "I don't need your help...I've got this thing all figured out". If you have ever said this in regards to baseball, I assure you...you do not have it figured out!

Baseball is always and I mean always a work in progress.

Look, if you want to be better at baseball than you are today, you are going to have to practice with a purpose every time you practice. There is simply too much to learn in this game to let time waist. You're not taking baseball lessons for the sake of batting practice or repetition. Baseball lessons are just that. They are lessons. Therefore, the purpose of baseball lessons should be:

1. To find a coach that knows what they are doing
2. Let them figure out ways to get you better
3. Listen and take the advice they give you and go out and master it.

Very rarely do you get better at the actual lesson. Yes, once in a while a tweak can be made and you can see some instant results. But the real progress is made through the repetitions of the material that you learned in the lessons. The skill is developed outside the lesson with hard work, not the reps in the lessons themselves.

You're job as a player is to take the information you are being taught, understand it and apply. Then practice it until you have mastered it. If you do that, you will be getting the most out of your time and money spent.

Congratulations on seeking out that knowledge. Now commit to learning the skills and practicing them every day and watch what happens to your performance on the field!

At some point in your baseball playing days, you’re going to have to accept the fact that you have to be in top shape if you want to perform at your highest level. For my members in little league and maybe even early years in some high school baseball, conditioning and training your body is not as important. I understand that. But like I told this player during his workout over the weekend, “the difference for you at the next level will not be the skills aspect of playing the game. It will be the physical. Can you keep up with all the players now that everyone is stronger, faster and more agile? It will be the mental. Will you have the mental strength to persevere through the tough times and stay humble during the easy times?”

This makes the difference.

If you want to take the edge over your competition on the field…

If you want to make the starting line-up…

If you want to get to the next level…

Than you’re going to have train condition your body through baseball specific workouts to enable you to play at the level that you want. It’s as simple as that.

So the question is…how are you going to train your body? What are you going to build an athletic machine that is strong, quick, fast and explosive? For my members, that’s an easy question for you. Just ask me and keep watching the videos we have for you. For those that are not yet AllAspectsBaseball.com members, you need to do a couple of things…

1. Determine how good you want to become.
2. Find a coach that knows the path you want to take well enough to get you where you want to go.
3. Hire that coach. Study what they tell you and follow it with blind faith.

Its tough to do it alone. Tiger Woods has a coach. Kobe Bryant has a coach. Major Leaguers have coaches. All the greats have coaches to get them where they want to go. So if you want to be better at baseball then you are today…who is coaching you?

David Keesee

AllAspectsBaseball.com