All Entries in the "Columns" Category
February Reflections on the Cleveland Indians
There just has to be a big bat out there somewhere. At least that’s what the Indians keep thinking. According to press conferences from various front office personnel over the past week, the team claims they have achieved all of the offseason goals they set for themselves except for one: finding a big bat to [...]
Baseball Tips: How To Focus On Three Things To Improve Your Hitting!
I believe hitters are way too often bombarded with too many baseball tips on hitting. The guilty culprits are often teammates, coaches, parents and occasionally even your Aunt Mary. Take your time and take hitting in stride. No pun intended. Try to learn a little bit at a time and you will be just fine. [...]
Red Sox Pitching for 2012: An In-Depth Look
Introduction This article is a follow up to the one published here on Monday, December 12th. In this article I will delve in more detail into the Red Sox current Pitching situation. Here we will break things down by talking about the current list of injured pitchers and the effect that has on the team, [...]
A Book Review: Jack and Larry by Barbara Gregorich
What do you get when you cross a successful Major Leaguer, one of the most historic teams in Major League baseball and an adorable dog? Author Barbara Gregorich answers this question in her new book Jack and Larry: Jack Graney and Larry, the Cleveland Baseball Dog. In this children’s book told in a prose style, [...]
New Online Baseball Training: Now Performance for Guaranteed Improvement
Combining physical, mental, and baseball skills are necessary for elite performance on the diamond, but how is that attained, practiced, improved and honed? There are trainers you can visit and books you can read, but they can be costly and time consuming. Now there is an interactive educational website that combines the skills needed to [...]
DVD Review: Baseball’s Greatest Games-Collector’s Edition
Looking for the perfect item to get your baseball fix on TV in the offseason? Well, you can stop looking once you acquire Baseballs Greatest Games. Put out by MLB and A&E Studios in 2011, this 11 disc DVD set will occupy any baseball lover for hours (29 hours and 56 minutes to be [...]
Cleveland Indians 2011-2012 Off Season So Far…
At this point, the Indians off season can unfortunately be described by three words: Roberto Hernandez Heredia. Before mid-January, those three words didn’t mean anything to anyone in baseball circles perhaps except for the man who was calling himself Fausto Carmona. As it turns out, when Carmona tried to get his new visa to come [...]
Good Coaches Take Nothing for Granted – Valuable Base Running Tips
“Baseball is a game of inches,” is an often-used phrase and nowhere is that more evident than with base running. Saving an inch or two when running the bases makes all the difference whether players are out or safe and makes a difference in the win/loss column. A couple inches here and there mean a [...]
Baseball Pitching Tips: How You Communicate With Your Teammates Is Critical!
I can write forever about the necessity of good communication for a pitcher with all his teammates. It’s not something that’s taught very often but it can affect the outcome of the baseball game. What can be more frustrating than losing a game because a catcher got crossed up and missed a pitch because he [...]
A Professional’s Take on More Women Umpires in MLB Due to Expanded Instant Replay
After reading the recent article on SB Nation by Wendy Thurm entitled, “Will Expanded Replay Lead to More Women Umpires?” I just had to ask my friend, professional umpire Ms. Perry Lee Barber what her take on this article was and this was her “classic” response to it! First, the title. Hilarious! “Will Expanded Replay [...]
A Case for Larry Walker’s Induction into the Hall of Fame
This is the time of year when the Baseball Writers of America (BBWA) submit their final ballots for the players they think are deserving of induction into Major League Baseball’s Hall of Fame. Among the eligible nominees this year, Barry Larkin and Jeff Bagwell may have the best chance of being elected. But an equally [...]
Preseason Timing Tips for Hitting
I have seen so many kids season ruined before the season even gets close to starting. Dad or team coach takes player(s) to the batting cages and sets the speed at game speed on their first day of hitting, after a long offseason. It is important to realize that hitters’ eyes are not close to [...]
How Players And Coaches Should Deal With A Hitting Slump!
Very simply, a baseball hitting slump occurs because of something that you are now doing that is mechanically incorrect when swinging the bat or it can be something that you were doing correctly and now you are not doing it. In other words, either you have developed a bad habit or have gotten away from [...]
College Baseball Showcases – Good or Bad?
I am often asked about whether college baseball showcases are worth attending. In general, I answer, “Yes, if affordable and if the showcase is not an apparent money grab. Attending one or two is a good experience for kids for a few reasons. One, it gives player (& parent) an idea of how they compare [...]
Baseball Pitching Tips: How To Improve Your Control By Playing A Game That Is Fun!
Take a look at almost any inning in which three or more runs are scored and I would venture that in at least 75% of those innings one or more walks were involved. I teach pitchers that you must throw strikes consistently and I don’t care if a batter hits the ball into the trees [...]
The Interconnectedness of Carlos Zambrano’s Challenges
by Buddy Biancalana I recently returned from baseball’s Winter Meetings. Reflecting back over the three days, one conversation I had is staying with me. The conversation of which I intentionally did more listening than speaking, included Carlos Zambrano’s agent Barry Praver, Cub’s VP, Player Personnel, Oneri Fleita and MLB.com writer Carrie Muskat. They were discussing Zambrano’s challenges. [...]
My Outlook on the Boston Red Sox 2012 Season
This article was originally posted at BaseballDigest.com on December 4th, but was updated for this publication due to a few transactions that have occurred since it was written. A Look Back at Boston’s 2011 Season First, they had that horrific 0-6 start which led to their 11-15 April finish and this was after being tabbed [...]
Hitting Drills using Two Batting Tees to “Stay” Fundamentally Sound
Three important ingredients of a good baseball swing are staying compact, staying inside the ball, and staying through the ball. The following drills involve using two batting tees. These drills work on good hitting fundamentals and just as important, give hitters a better understanding of what those ingredients mean. 1. “High, Low tee drill” develops [...]
Are You Really Comfortable With Your Circle Changeup Grip?
You really have to experiment and find out what is the most comfortable for you when it comes to different grips on the baseball. Baseball pitching tips involve experimenting with many different ways to grip your pitches. This definitely applies to throwing the changeup. I would venture that 95% of all pitchers, at any level [...]
Valuable Off-Season Baseball Tips Parents and Players should Consider
1. With the Holidays coming, it is a good time to assess your child’s baseball equipment for next season. Do they need a new bat, glove, etc…? If yes, do some research so that you have a good idea exactly what brand, size bat they need and desire – remember once used, gear is not returnable, [...]
Which Side Of The Rubber Should You Pitch From?
I’ll gladly give you my input about pitching from different sides of the rubber but ultimately you will have to decide what works best for you and where you are comfortable. There are many baseball theories on this but ultimately you will have the final say because you are doing the pitching. Usually, but not [...]
The Long Toss: A Pitcher Will Benefit Tremendously From Long Tossing!
The “long toss” is simply a throwing session where you start out fairly close to your throwing partner, then gradually increase the distance between the two of you. You finish the drill by then gradually decreasing the distance until you are back to the distance you originally started from. Many very good authorities believe that [...]
How to Help the Baseball Player that is Extremely Hard on Himself
Baseball is a difficult game to begin with. Add in a child, who is very hard on himself when he fails, and parents have the recipe for many unhappy nights. This type child is often difficult to reason with and parents may feel like their child needs outside help. That may be true. First, parents [...]
Baseball Tips On Hitting: Your Front Shoulder And Elbows Are Critical!
Let’s look at several important baseball tips on hitting involving the front shoulder and the elbows, particularly the back elbow. Your Front Shoulder: 1. It should go straight into the pitch and toward the pitcher and NOT fly open. 2. The front shoulder must be kept closed until the swing itself forces it to open. [...]
How To Properly Expand The Strike Zone Is Critical!
Whenever you are ahead in the count, you should “expand the strike zone.” No, let’s rephrase that. You must expand the strike zone! That simply means throwing a pitch off the plate, that’s actually a ball. Or throwing a pitch too high or too low that is out of the strike zone. Let’s be clear [...]
The Rangers’ Bullpen Woes by Buddy Biancalana
The World Series that very few folks outside of Missouri and Texas wanted to see turned out to be incredibly entertaining. Congratulations to the St. Louis Cardinals and the Texas Rangers on an outstanding Series and season. The most memorable moment for me was seeing both, the exhilaration and anticipation on the face of MVP David Freese as [...]
Valuable Tips so Your Batting Tee is not a Waste of Money
One thing I always ask my baseball and softball students is “How many of you have a batting tee?” and the answer is usually encouraging with a number of hands being raised. I follow that up with “How many of you use your batting tee regularly? To which very few hands shoot up. I admire [...]
Baseball Pitching Tips: How You Hide Your Grip Is Critical!
For something that’s very important, I’m quite surprised hiding your grip isn’t talked about or taught more. How many things can be more detrimental for a pitcher than tipping off his pitches to opposing players and their coaches? Trust me. Players, coaches and managers will look for opposing pitchers that tip off their pitches! For [...]
An Update From Buddy Biancalana of PMPM Sports (Zone Training)
Greetings, It’s been another year of wonderful success for many of our clients. We have now worked with athletes in seven professional and 13 amateur sports. We’ve also worked with a few musicians. Following are a few of the success stories from baseball. I am not at liberty to use some client’s names. Philip Humber–Pitcher-Chicago White [...]
The Hit And Run Play: How To Execute It Perfectly!
Starting at square one, it is the responsibility of the batter to swing at anything, no matter where the pitch is located. If possible, hit the ball to the opposite side, whether it’s toward the second baseman if you are a right-handed hitter or toward the shortstop if you are a left-handed hitter. At the [...]
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