Patrick Jones Baseball

In today’s episode, we talk to Doug Laumann. Doug is currently with Chicago White Sox and is not just simply a director; he has over 40 years of scouting experience with several major league organizations. In this episode, he talks about what it is like scouting players down in the Dominican Republic versus scouting players in America. He also mentions what he is looking for when he is out scouting and how he only really needs to see a player one time before he's in or out on him. SHOW NOTES:[02:51] What piece of advice would you give yourself 40 years ago?[4:28] What did you mean when you said to keep an open mind?[8:02] There's a lot to having good area scouts, good scouts with no backgrounds onplayers that you have to trust and that you can rely on to tell you because you're notYou will always see it the first time you go to see it.[8:54] Do you attribute that gut feeling to you the performance of the players?[18:07] Have you ever drafted a player based on those metrics and went against your gut?[31:44] Th

In today’s episode, we talk to Marty Sutherland. Marty is currently the associate head coach and recruiting coordinator at the University of Iowa. He gives some great insight and great tips to those who are going through the recruiting process right now. He also talks about what he's looking for and how they do things at Iowa from a development standpoint. He mentions some of the things that are important to them at Iowa. Marty takes us behind the scenes and talks about some of the things that they are implementing this fall with their players that they haven't done necessarily in the past.SHOW NOTES[4:26] What is your story on having to stop coaching, selling insurance, and then getting back into coaching?[10:19] How many texts and emails would you say you get a day about recruiting?[12:29] Why do you not go after and offer tons of kids then sit back and see how they perform?[16:29] Would there be smaller classes because of the transfer portal?[19:32] What does a high quality high school kid look like for yo

In today’s episode, I speak to Mitch Davidoff. Mitch is currently the manager for the Victoria Eagles, which is a travel baseball organization. Mitch talks about how he helps young baseball players in Canada as well as the comparison of Victoria Eagles in Canada and in the United States. Mitch is also a fantastic hitting coach and has a growth mindset that works perfectly with his coaching skills. He also mentions hitters that he watches to observe their strategies in playing.SHOW NOTES[2:26] Based on what you've seen on how travel baseball is in the States, what's the biggest differences that you see from Canada to the United States?[6:21] Do your team travel a decent amount?[7:00] How often do your team come to the United States to play?[7:54] How often do your team have college coaches come up and see you in Canada?[10:39] What is your story behind playing college baseball at four different schools?[13:52] What was your experience with competing at a higher level?[16:42] Did you play hockey growing up?[17:

Nate Walker has worked in baseball operations for two Major League Baseball front offices. He acted as a contact person for the coaching staff of the Major Leagues and helped them with pregame planning, game strategy, and statistical analysis. Nate currently serves as the founder and president of Diamond Solutions, a business that provides analytics consulting to softball and baseball companies.In today’s episode, Nate talks about how he collects data and information in softball. He also mentions that high school pitchers should focus on creating movement north-south vs. east-west. Nate also mentions that he goes out and scouts high school pitchers or the travel ball scene and his ways of scouting and recruiting pitchers.Free Presentation on how to help Softball Hitters improve their timingTune in to this episode to find out more about Nate Walker.SHOW NOTES[2:37] How did you go from a scout and professional baseball to now working with different programs in the softball world on the pitching?[5:40] How are y

Dr. Ismael Gallo, a physical therapist who was once a professional baseball player, appears in today's episode. As a current physical therapist as well as a former baseball player, he's able to mix the areas of movement and on field baseball and comprehend abilities and skill growth. He also created a movement system that enables players to execute more effectively from a young age through high school, junior high, college, and professional baseball.SHOW NOTES[2:20] Did you immediately knew that you wanted to get into studying the movement and biomechanics of how people move?[4:05] What are some of the things that you've found that we're doing a poor job of training and developing athletes from a young age all the way up?[5:05] What are some things that coaches can start doing to help their athletes develop at a younger age and at a faster rate?[6:46] What are some ways to help a player when they grow older in high school?[8:09] It's not necessarily a strength issue, it's just the players not having good move

Josh Johnson, an assistant coach who joined Mississippi State's staff on August 27, 2019, has improved the Bulldogs' player development strategy with the use of advanced technology and analytics. He is also a recruiting coordinator at the said university for their softball program. He is working on research using motion capture technology with State's Athlete Engineering department while getting his PhD in biomechanics at Mississippi State.In today’s episode, Josh, being one of the most progressive minds in softball, talks about his experiences and knowledge on applying biomechanics and advanced technology in softball. He also mentions that visualization and mental imagery has to be trained and that it takes practice to get good at it. Furthermore, Josh points out the importance of movement. He mentions that learning how to move properly in the weight room is huge. Talking about and understanding how to move properly, according to Josh Johnson, is the easiest way to get better faster.SHOW NOTES[03:0

In today’s episode, a newly recruited hitting coach, Rachel Huggins, shares her experiences in coaching at Eastern Illinois University. Rachel shares how she was recruited during her high school years. She also talks about her recruiting process today as a hitting coach and how she helps hitters build their own approach and in individualizing the different pitches and parts of the zone.She shares her and the team’s philosophy when it comes to hitting. She also talks about how she builds relationships with the team and points out what they need to improve on.SHOW NOTES:[2:25] What is your recruiting process as a high school player?[3:48] Is there anything you would have worked on or focused more on as a player in high school to get ready for college?[4:46] What other sports did you play?[5:19] In the recruiting process, do you look for players who have played multiple sports?[6:01] What are you looking for when you are recruiting players?[7:08] Do you look for defense first type players or offense first type p

Millard Dawson enters his fifth year with the baseball program at Seattle U in 2021-22, and his fourth as an assistant under Head Coach Donny Harrel. In his first season, Dawson served as a student manager for the Redhawks. He assists with the recruiting, small-game offense and outfielders, while also serving as the team's first base coach.Millard shares his experiences being a competitor playing multiple sports and how he's grown as a hitter over the years. He tells us about professional baseball and what it all takes to be a complete hitter. He also talks about letting players be their own hitting coach.He shares the importance of understanding how the body moves in sequence and getting hitters to understand how their body moves via drills or constraints from the ground up.Millard shares some tips on how to be successful from a hitting standpoint. He talks about why he wants to give back to the youth and college athletes and help them learn from the mistakes that he made along the way.In this

I'm Patrick Jones and I used to be a hitting coach for the Baltimore Orioles. Now I work with hitters in the private sector in Cincinnati, Ohio, and also help players with college recruiting. In today's episode, we're going to talk about college recruiting. Specifically, we're going to talk about division one players versus d2 and d3 players.Learn the reasons behind why certain players are getting recruited to Division 1 schools and why others aren't.It's a tricky topic to talk about because it's not always easy to see why certain players get chosen over others. But I think it's important for us to understand the reasons behind these decisions so players can better prepare for their future in terms of playing baseball in college and make sure they're doing everything they can to get recruited.SHOW NOTES:[1:34] Your age is important and the year you graduate is important.[2:11] All these big conferences are looking at you.[2:41] Remember how social media works you don't go viral by just doing ordinary thi

In today's episode, I speak to Dawn Weatherwax. Dawn is a Registered/Licensed Dietitian with a specialty in Sports Nutrition and Founder of Sports Nutrition 2Go. She is also a Board Certified Specialist in Sports Dietetics, which is the premier professional sports nutrition credential in the United States. In addition, she is an Athletic Trainer with a Certification in Strength and Conditioning from The National Strength and Conditioning Association. She brings a comprehensive and unique understanding of the athlete's body, and its nutritional needs, to those interested in achieving specific performance goals and optimal health. Dawn is an active member in the American Dietetic Association (ADA), Sports, Cardiovascular, and Wellness Nutritionists Dietetic Practice Group (SCAN), American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), National Strength & Conditioning Association (NSCA), National Athletic Training Association (NATA), & Greater Cincinnati Athletic Training Association (GCATA).Dawn shares nu

In today’s episode I speak to Bryce Neal, Bryce is the hitting coach of the University of Louisville. Bryce comes to Louisville after serving as an assistant coach at Bucknell University during 2021 season. Prior to his stint at Bucknell, Bryce served as a volunteer assistant coach at Arizona State in 2020. He has also worked as a private instructor and spent five years coaching one-on-one private lessons at Perfect Timing Baseball and Softball in Springdale, Arkansas. In 2019 he worked as a camp instructor for LSU softball. From 2013 to 2015, he served as a director and coach for Midwest Nationals Baseball in Springfield, Missouri. While there he was in charge of developing training programs as well as travel logistics.He talks about softball from a development standpoint, hitting, recruiting, offensive strategy, and the mental side of the game.He shares some of his experiences in baseball and how he evolved as a coach.In this episode, learn how they do things at the University of Louisville.S

In today's episode, I speak to Paul Reddick. Paul is the Founder of the Baseball Education Center.Paul is also one of America's top young speakers. He speaks to numerous youth, high school, college, and business groups every year. Paul's speaking career is centered around empowering youth and college groups to achieve lasting success, greater friendships, and healthy relationships.In this episode, he talks about The Recruiting Process, The Politics in Baseball, Scholarship System, Baseball Culture, Player commitment, Self-development, and Building Relationships.He talks about how he helps players get better and offers advice to aspiring players who want to be recruited.Listen to learn more about baseball camps in this episode.SHOW NOTES:[5:54] While you were doing this were you also coaching too?[8:08] What advice would you give yourself 20 years ago?[11:40] What's your take on social media and recruiting?[17:03] Why does he need to win?[17:48] If a college coach loses his job.[18:28] When parents ask me all

In today’s episode, I speak to Connor Gandossy. Connor came to Creighton in the fall of 2017 from Saint Louis University, where he served as an assistant coach for four seasons. Prior to coaching at Saint Louis, he was an assistant coach at Jefferson College.Connor has been an instrumental part of the Bluejays’ successes leading to a trip to the NCAA Regional finals in 2019. The 2019 team was ranked among the 25 teams in the nation and claimed the BIG EAST regular-season and tournament championships.He is responsible for recruiting, developing catchers, and working with the offense for the Bluejays, the same responsibilities he had at Saint Louis.In total Connor has coached 28 players who were drafted by MLB. In addition to the teams’ on the field accomplishments, 25 Bluejay players were named to the 2018-2019 BIG EAST All Academic team.In today's episode, he talks about leadership, development, how to go about recruiting, how to utilize the transfer portal, what specifically he is looking for when recruiting

In today’s episode, we have Steve Merriman. Steve returned to the Wolverines baseball program for the 2021 season after previously serving as pitching coach in 2002 and 2012, in addition to starting his coaching career at U-M as a hitting coach in 1995.Steve worked in the Colorado Rockies organization, where he was the minor league pitching co-coordinator and pitching coach for the Double-A Hartford Yard Goats.He worked with the Chicago Cubs in 2018 at their high-tech pitching lab in Mesa, Ariz., and has other professional coaching experience with the Arizona Diamondbacks, New York Mets, and Detroit Tigers organizations.He currently serves on the advisory board for OnBaseU and has previously served in various professional roles, including area scout, AA pitching coach, and MiLB Pitching Coordinator. He has also coached at all levels of college baseball, including three seasons at Michigan.In this episode, he shares his insights based on his experiences helping players improve their mechanics and he speaks of

In today's episode, I speak to Brady Kirkpatrick. Brady joined the Florida Atlantic University staff as pitching coach in September of 2021. Brady comes to FAU most recently having coached at Harvard University for the past three years.  Prior to Harvard, he coached for two seasons at Monmouth University. Before that, he was an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at Rochester University, and coached two summers with the Mountain West College Summer League as well. Brady’s playing career began at the University of Maryland, for three seasons. He finished his college career at the University of San Diego, and began coaching there as well, in the fall of 2015 as a volunteer assistant.In this episode, he talks about the landscape in the summertime as a Division I baseball coach.He says that players need confidence to improve, and that confidence comes with preparation and organization.He shares what he does every day when it comes to recruiting. He talks about structure and the mechanic

In today's episode, we have Troy Merriman Troy is currently the hitting coach at the University of Findlay. He played at the University of Findlay, and now he's coached there for eight years.In this episode, he gives some insight into not only how they do things at the University of Findlay, but also how the DII landscape is laid out, what scholarships are like at that level, how they allocate money at Findlay, and then he gets into a little bit more in-depth on what specifically are they looking for out on the recruiting side. Troy talk about how do they go about trying to develop players and what tools they use. Learn if they utilize the transfer portal.We can get into a lot of different areas of a college program in this episode!This episode can be very beneficial for parents, players out there, and even coaches maybe in other schools giving you all kinds of insight into what exactly goes on behind closed doors with these colleges so be sure to listen in!SHOW NOTES:[2:31] What's been something that stands

Resilient. That would be the best word to describe T.J. Bruce. After his playing career ended, he decided he wanted to get into coaching. When he first started coaching junior college baseball he was making 5k while supporting his wife who was still in school.  He was passed over three times while he was a volunteer assistant at Long Beach State for the paid position. He never gave up. After he became the head coach at the University of Nevada, he had a player pass away, and then two weeks later, his dad passed away. He held it all together and became a stronger man.   He did all of this while becoming known as one of the best college recruiters in the country, won a national championship, and have a family. SHOW NOTES:[1:49] Why did you decide then to transfer to Long Beach State?[3:27] When you say the style of play, what do you mean?[5:58] So you're a graduate assistant when you came back and then did you transition into just a full-time assistant coach?[9:17] During those fou

Currently, in his 7th season as a Volunteer Assistant and the University of Louisville, Adam Vrable loves what he gets to do, coach. His passion for baseball sticks out like a sore thumb when you listen to him talk. Adam played College Baseball at Coastal Carolina where get graduated with a degree in History. After graduating he began his coaching journey, with stops at The Citadel and Charleston Southern. He also was involved in travel baseball coaching in South Carolina right after graduating from South Carolina. In this episode, Adam explains what it's like coaching at Louisville, why they compete in everything that they do, and working with baserunners, outfielders, and hitters at Louisville.SHOW NOTES:[2:12] Does that change the philosophy of the game when it's that cold outside?[3:18] Do you guys change your philosophy on hitting or just approach or anything just based on where you guys play?[5:11] Would you say that at Louisville you guys didn't waver your approach too much just in the last couple of y

In today’s episode, I talk to Adam Cornwell. Adam joined the University of Indianapolis coaching staff after a two-year stay at the University of Dayton. The Flyers finished second in the A-10 during the regular season. He helped guide the Flyers to the 2nd most strikeouts in program history during the 2021 season.He joined the University of Dayton baseball staff in August 2019 following a one-year stint as an assistant coach at Iona College, where he served as the pitching coach for the Gaels.He talked about the pitching development side as a coach. He shares that pitching is all about disrupting timing.In this episode, learn about the growth opportunity as a pitcher and what velocity he is looking for when recruiting. SHOW NOTES:[2:19] What was one thing that you thought you did an excellent job of and one thing that you are reflecting you feel like you could have improved upon as a coach?[4:48] How did you get some players to believe in themselves? [7:01] What rabbit holes have you recently gone

In this episode, we have Craig Snider. Craig is currently the hitting coach and recruiting coordinator at Texas A&M University. He won a National Championship when he was at his prior school, Florida State University, back in 2018. Craig talks a bit about what they do at Texas A&M from a development standpoint and what he's looking for in recruits. It's fun to go across onto the softball side and see some of the similarities and differences between baseball and softball, doing some cool stuff with force plates down there.He talks a bit about some of the fantastic projects behind the scenes.SHOW NOTES:[1:52] Why did you start and continue to stay in softball your entire career?[4:27] How have you evolved over those 21 years as a coach?[6:04] How have you gone about being able to make changes that show up in the game?[8:05] What good exit velocity for a college softball player?[9:09] Is there a team philosophy you have like I was listening to another podcast you did earlier. Did you talk about havi