All-Pro
How To Approach Your Draft Season
You only get one shot at this. For me it was in 1979, when I was a senior at Sachem High School. When you have dreams of getting drafted, you have to learn how to make sacrifices. That means staying in when you’re friends are going out. It could mean not going to prom. It means not going to the beach when your friends are. Not many kids now want to make the sacrifices necessary or put in the work. If it’s raining, that’s no excuse not to run outside. In fact, that’s the best time–because most likely nobody else is getting that work in. You need to have the mentality that you’re trying to get a little bit of an edge. That’s really what it takes to have success at the higher levels. It means doing more things that involve the game of baseball–running, fielding, throwing. When it comes to soc...
Where Are They Now: Chris Pike
Fear never crossed Chris’ mind. Not in the minor leagues, not at the Division-I level, not in the Long Island Championship. Not even when he was 7-years-old playing on a 9-year-old travel team playing 3rd base just 45 feet away from the batters. It’s not clear how Chris developed his fearlessness but he did admire and adopt the grittiness of the late 90s Yankees; although his favorite player may come as a surprise. “My favorite player growing up was Chad Curtis,” he said citing the 10-year veteran that batted .264 in his career. Just about every Yankee fan from that era cites Derek Jeter as their favorite player, but Pike preferred the player that had to fight tooth-and-nail for his chance. It was a sign of things to come. The early days Chris immediately jumped int...
Neal Heaton: What Should A January Throwing Program Consist Of?
(Editor’s Note: Neal Heaton is a 12-year MLB Veteran pitcher. He was the No. 1 overall pick in the MLB Draft and is in the University of Miami’s Hall of Fame. He now gives pitching lessons at 365 Athletics in Bellport, NY. The following words are his own.) A pitcher should be treated like a race horse–carefully groomed and you cannot accelerate that process. When a pitcher picks up the ball for the first time in January, they haven’t pitched off a mound for over two months. I tell my pitchers before I see them on the mound they should have done a bit of long-tossing. You should not be going from inactivity to a mound. I took a lot of precautions to stay healthy in my career, and for that reason I landed on the DL only once–and it was a freak accident during BP while running spr...
Kyle McGowin Hosts Clinic at Southampton Youth Services
Washington Nationals RHP Kyle McGowin hosted. clinic this morning in Southampton for young ballplayers. McGowin (Pierson 2010) is a member of the reigning World Series Champions. “The camp went great,” he said. “It was awesome to see kids from the local tows along with kids from up island! Feels great to share my passion of baseball with the future generation and help guide them in the right direction to achieving their dreams. And it feels great to give back to my hometown! He has overcome some improbable odds to transition from one of the smallest towns on Long Island to the Major Leagues. He was drafted out of Savannah State in 2013 by the Los Angeles Angels in the 5th round following an outstanding season in which he compiled an ERA of 1.49 with a record of 12-1 spann...
Off-Season Training
Jarad Vollkommer, CSCS The off-season grind is slowly coming upon us. The summer heat is cooling down, kids are going back to school, and fall practices will start in a couple of weeks. Now that we transition into the off-season, it’s important to consider some variables. You’re probably enjoying the time off from all baseball activity. Give your body and your brain the rest that it needs Your arm may be hurting, and it may not be either. BUT, regardless of your situation, I think it would be best to not throw for a while. Obviously, you don’t really have a choice if you are a college player. In the perfect world (most High School kids), you could be taking off at least 2 months from throwing altogether. NOW is the time to work on your specific needs. In a general sense, players should be ...
