The Next Level Baseball

Last year’s Sunshine League was a huge success with over 40 boys participating in the weekly camp.
Steve Williams will be putting on the camp again this summer with a format similar to last year’s.
The league will be held every Wednesday in June and the second Wednesday in July. Each session will run from 9 a.m. – to – 11 a.m. and will give players a chance to play multiple positions and learn from current high school players, who will also be working the morning league.
For more information, please contact Williams at williamss@usd308.com or you can get in touch with him through his cell phone at 620-474-1240.

We have 4 new traveling camps set up for this winter.
We will hold our first camp in Hutchinson on Jan. 7 at the Salthawk Activity Center.
Our next camp will be held Jan. 21 in Ark City at Ark City High School.
Camp No. 3 will be in Winfield the following weekend on Jan. 28 at Winfield High School.
And camp No. 4 will be in Liberal on Feb. 11.
We have room for one or two more so if you are interested in having us come to your town this winter to put on a camp, please contact me as soon as possible.

Our first showcase will be held October 2, at McPherson College in McPherson, KS.

The showcase is designed to give high school players a chance to display their skills in front of junior college and small college coaches in the central Kansas area.

The Showcase will provide feedback to each player and give them information that each player can take with them at the end of the day. We think it will be a very worthwhile experience for every player involved.

Please go to the Showcase link and download the flyer if you’re interested and send your registration to Jon Hansen at McPherson College.

Players looking to build arm strength for next season should consider starting a consistent long toss throwing program right now.
In my opinion, the best way to build arm strength is by throwing to as long a distance as you possibly can and to be consistent with the days and amount of time you spend throwing.

The fall is the best time to work on this because you can do it without playing a bunch of games and put a program together that you can be consistent with.

Start slow and work it out gradually. Don’t be afraid to put air under the ball. Long, high-arcing throws will help get you out to your maximum distance. Once you are feeling as if you have reached that distance, work your way back in slowly and start throwing the ball on more of a line. Remember to concentrate on acceleration at the end of the throw and to let your throwing arm finish around your body as far as possible.

Chart your throwing and be sure to pay attention to the distance you finish at each day. You may even want to keep a journal of how far you are throwing and how you are feeling after your workout.

As usual, always remember to warm up properly and cool down as well. I recommend a surgical tubing program before and after throwing. I have also filled tennis cans with sand and used them as small weights to warm up with as well if you don’t have the tubing. Also start and finish your routine with a plyometric program and sprint work.

Remember, there is no substitute for long toss. You DON’T get a stronger arm in the weight room. There is a ton of video out there that covers long toss routines. Check out the Jaeger link on the site. You can also go to YouTube and see all kinds of video covering long toss programs.

Good luck.

The Sunshine League is a morning baseball instructional league that I used to run in Hutchinson throughout the 1990s.

This year, we are bringing it back.

The concept behind the league is that kids come to play games that are coached by current high school players. The difference between games here and games they play in for their regular teams is that coaches are on the field with the players and instruct them as things happen.

It’s also a fun, laid-back approach to playing the game as well that kids in the past really enjoyed. During the mid 1990s, we had as many as 70 kids involved in the Sunshine League and had nothing but positive responses.

The schedule will look like this:

During the first week, we will have two days of baseball camp instruction on hitting, fielding, throwing, pitching, baserunning . . . you name it. On the third day of the first week of camp, we will start playing games. Then, kids will meet one day per week for the rest of the month of June and we will hold a 30 minute instructional session and then a 90 minute game.

It’s a great supplement for kids already playing for another team. Kids show tremendous improvement over the 5 weeks and ultimately have much better seasons with their original teams.

I should warn any parents wanting to get their kids involved in the league that we do not allow parental contact, or criticism of any kind during the Sunshine League. Parents are welcome to come and observe the camp and games but one of the kids favorite parts of this league is that parents are not allowed to offer any input. It really helps them relax and just have fun playing the game.

If you think this is something your son might be interested in, please email me at williamss@usd308.com and I will send you a flyer. Or you can click on the link below.

Sunshine League Flyer

Jerry Powell from Winfield asked us to come down and put on a practice for his 12 and under baseball team this weekend.

The weather was great and the kids were even better. They did a great job and we had a lot of fun working with them. We spent about 3 and 1/2 hours working with his guys and they did a great job. If you run into Jerry’s team this summer, look out because they have some talented players and they really enjoy playing the game. They will certainly be a challenge.

We want to thank Jerry for having us down and invite anyone else to contact us if you are interested in having us come your way and put on a practice.

I have always been a believer that good hitters all have similar traits in common. One thing that is a constant for most good hitters is that they get the most out of their lower bodies when swinging the bat.

One thing to look at is a hitter’s front heel, which should start in the air but should push into the ground as the swing begins. Pushing the front heel into the ground allows the front hip to rotate to its maximum potential.

Meanwhile, the back heel is an exact opposite to the front heel. It starts on the ground but then releases from the ground as the swing begins and the front heel makes contact with the ground. Releasing the back heel allows the back hip to rotate fully as well.

While watching some good swings on the internet, pay attention to the hitter’s knees as well. As the hitter makes contact with the ball, notice that the front knee is locked out while the back leg is in an L shape. Trying the pinch the knees together is the goal as the ball is being struck.

There is certainly more to the swing but this is the best place to start.

For those that got to work with Noah Krol at one of our camps this past winter, you will be happy to hear that he has just been assigned to the Pittsburgh Pirates AA affiliate in Altoona, PA. You can follow Noah by looking for the Altoona Curve on the internet. Noah will either pitch in middle relief for the Curve or be the team’s closer.

Good luck Noah!

The never-ending debate about what is a good age to throw breaking balls will probably never go away.
Sports doctors tend to point to the added stress a breaking ball can put on an arm, especially the elbow and the front of the shoulder, as a reason to stay away from them. Others say, that if thrown properly, breaking balls can be thrown at an early age.
I would have to say that if there was ever a question as to whether or not to start throwing a breaking, then why in the world would you want to?
We have all been to little league tournaments and watched some kid with good velocity blow away hitters and then completely dominate them with some nasty breaking ball. But did he really need the curve ball? If he spent more time working on locating his good fastball at a young age, he would be even better when he got to high school and, hopefully beyond to even higher levels.
Is getting a hitter out with a breaking ball at age 12 really more important than the health of a child?
I have two sons who have pitched since they were 9 years old. My oldest son started experimenting with breaking balls after he turned 16. My younger son turned 16 in December and we started working on one just last week. Last season, as a freshman, he threw 27 innings at the varsity high school level and finished the season with a 2.56 ERA, throwing nothing but fastballs and change ups. And, his fastballs topped out at 75 mph, which is very average. The key to his success was location, and that is the same for every pitcher out there.

The other thing that is happening today, with good little league teams playing in excess of 50, 60 and sometimes even 100 games in a season, is that young pitchers are throwing way too much.
Tournaments are putting coaches in positions where winning takes the place of common sense when it comes to overusing a young arm. Some kids are pitching three, and even four times in a 3-day weekend tournament, and then pitching once during the week as well.
The harder a young kid throws, the more risk there can be to his arm.
This topic falls under the same guidelines of “why take a chance when you don’t have to?” category.
Pitching live once a week is a good rule of thumb at a young age. Then, on the other days, have a practice plan that includes teaching proper mechanics and location pitching in the bullpen.
If you want to enjoy watching your son pitch at levels higher than little league, then don’t take a chance with them when they are young.
There is a reason why major league pitchers only throw once every 5 or 6 days and are on a strict plan in between starts. Take a lesson from the pros and give your kids the rest they need. It will pay off for them later on.

A parent asked a good question the other day and I thought I would just post it. He was thinking about the size of bat to choose for his son and wanted to know how much impact an inch and an ounce will have on his swing.

The key when choosing a bat is to make sure it is a size that he can handle without altering his swing. At some point, probably by the time he is 14 or 15, he will need to be swinging a -3 bat, which means 33-30, 32-29 or 31-28. I would make a plan add length and weight each year gradually until you get to those numbers. But the biggest factor that is hard to measure would be how early will your son develop. The earlier a child develops physically, they more weight he or she can handle.

I would take some video of your child swinging a bat that you know they can swing comfortably. Then experiment with bats that are bigger. Pay attention where the hands go on the swing. If they start separating from the body, the player might be compensating for the extra weight by using his arms more. You might also pay attention to the barrel of the bat. Ideally, it should be parallel to the handle. Again, if the barrel starts dropping, it may be a sign the bat is too heavy.

Don’t sacrifice swing mechanics and bat speed for size, not at any age.