Once, a parent called for advice on her daughter’s “mental game”.  The girl would get upset very quickly.  She was always expecting too much of herself.  I asked for a video, and the mother could not understand that request, but sent it anyway.  What I saw on the video was a kid who had every right to be frustrated….

This can be a dangerous idea.  “Do this drill and you will gain incredible speed.” Do not blindly accept that…

Parents often come with great questions, but three of them might surprise you… not the question itself, but the answers.  Here we go.

…won’t always get you to the next level. 

The greatest advice I can give you is this. 

“Just throw strikes”.  We hear this too often.  Baseball and softball are quite different, but recently I went to a huge 12U baseball tournament.  I heard the opponents exhorting their pitchers to throw strikes. …

Tools have very specific uses.  The wrong tool in the wrong hands can do far more harm than good. Inexperienced or poorly trained pitching coaches want quick fixes.

If your kid has big dreams, you need to show her that you are behind her.  I see far too many parents believing that they can “nag her to the top”.  Be there, be enthusiastic, and know when to be quiet.