The Obamas go to Stockholm....and why I love sports

THOSE CRAZY KIDS!!!!

The Obamas are going to Stockholm to meet with IOC officials and make the pitch that their adopted hometown and the country gets to host the 2016 Summer Olympics.

Now admittedly, I am not the greatest fan either the President or the Olympic movement as it is constituted today, but I have to call BS on the criticism directed at the President for going.

People, what on earth do you expect him to do? I would criticize him more for not going, for not helping the city nail down the prize.

It's funny to hear where it seems the bulk of the criticism is coming from. Republican party pooper Michael Steele says he shouldn't go for various reasons--none of them good. We're at war, Iranian mischief threatens world security, he should stay here and protect us...blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.

Don't worry. The Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines will protect the country while the Pres. is gone.

Here's some free advice for you Mr. Steele: If your job is to lead the party back from eight years of stupidity by the party, please think before you talk. And check with Mitt Romney, one of your 2012 front-runners, who appears to applaud the effort.

Actually, most of the criticism comes from the extreme left. The Huffington Post columnists must be apoplectic with anger at the President for fronting this effort.

It just goes to show how sports has the power to bring people with diverse backgrounds together and experience the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat.

They should have brought along Geithner and Bernanke because those guys have the financial wherewithal (our tax dollars) to talk these guys into orgasmic fits of praise for Chicago.

Stay tuned, only a couple of days before the final decision.

I'm officially on record as being for the games to come to Chicago. The human drama of athletic competition will be enhanced by the two most corrupt organizations getting together and putting on an event that used to be steeped in virtue and idealism. That has to be good for some fireworks. Who is going to be the pimp and who is going to be the whore for two weeks while the IOC and Chicago's finest politicians play nicey-nice?



I hereby nominate "Huggy Bear" from the Starsky and Hutch TV series as the head of entertainment and good times for our future Olympic guests.

What were you looking at??

MUST HAVE LOST MY HEAD THAT DAY

That's what somebody should have asked when I made my 2009 baseball predictions.
OMG they were terrible.

http://slavieboy.blogspot.com/2009/04/baseball-predictions-for-2009.html




Let's review:

I had the METS!!@@@##$ winning the East. That's just terrible.
The Cubs winning the Central. The definition of insanity.
The Dodgers winning the West. Even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in a while.
The Phillies were my Wild Card. So 2 out of four is pretty awful.

But it gets worse.
Cubs over Phillies - Dodgers over Mets in the Divisional Series.
Cubs over Dodgers in the League Championships Series.

THAT'S JUST PATHETIC.

How about the AL side, Any vindication there?

Rays-Sox-Yanks, 1-2-3 in the East. Actual results - opposite. Nice call, slick.
Indians winning the Central with the Tigers fourth. Oh, just missed on that one.
Angels winning the West.
Red Sox as the Wild Card.
Again a brutal two for four.

Sox over Angels - Rays over Indians in Divisional Series. Could go oh-fer there.
Rays over Sox in LCS. A definitive whiff.

And finally, Rays over Cubs in the World Series!!! Keep dreaming!!!

I guess this demonstrates two things. If you make your picks with your heart (Mets, Cubs and Rays) instead of your head, you lose. And just when you think you know this game of baseball--it shows you how little you actually know.

Fix the draft??...That's right, fix this...

I SET THE OVER-UNDER ON THIS GUYS CONTRACT AT $75 MILLION - NO DICE-K LIKE BUYOUT FEE TO CASTRO REQUIRED

Now this is MY pet-peeve about the draft. These guys want to further strangle the negotiating ability of American kids, so they can allow more funds to flow to the bottom line AND have more money for SPECIAL situations like this.

NOW, we shall see what the recently demonized Stephen Strasburg was ACTUALLY worth.

This kid here is 21 years old, and a LEFTY with a 102 MPH fastball. The lefty-ness may even make him MORE valuable in an open market situation than Strasburg.

HOLY COW!! These huckleberry owners won't be able to keep their checkbooks in their pants long once they get close to this guy and his agent. (It's got to be Boras).

We will see if my $75 million, back of the envelope calculation rings true here.

I officially declare him comparable to Strasburg. What he gets, Strasburg would have received, give or take a few perks to be named later.

What really roils me is I don't see how players in this situation are not required to be subject to the next player draft. The headline says he is "petitioning" MLB to be a free-agent. I'm not asking them to say NO. But why can't they say, "Sure, you can play here. Your fastball is welcome here, but you are subject to the same rules as other youngsters your age, we'll see you at the next years draft, televised by ESPN." Would the current major league players or the union object? What other constituency would stand up and represent for these guys? The World Future Baseball Players Defector Society?

I don't want to hear from these idiot owners or any of their weeny-whiny media mouthpieces about what needs to be fixed in baseball until they fix the most obvious problem, which is the payroll disparity and it's correlation to teams ability to compete and make the playoffs from year to year. I mean if anything calls for the phrase "level playing field" these two issues certainly do.

SHARE REVENUES BETTER OR IMPLEMENT A SALARY CAP TO EQUALIZE THE CURRENT PAYROLL DISPARITY!!
and
EQUAL TREATMENT OF PLAYERS REGARDLESS OF COUNTRY OF ORIGIN!!
FIX THAT MLB AND MLBPA!!!!

FROM ESPN:

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4491904

Aroldis Chapman, the Cuban defector considered to be one of the top pitching prospects in the world, petitioned Major League Baseball for free-agency status recently and is likely only weeks from becoming a free agent, according to his agent.

Early Monday, Chapman's representatives announced that the left-hander has established residency in Andorra, a tiny country of about 84,000 that borders Spain and France.

By establishing residency outside the United States, the 21-year-old Chapman avoids being subject to baseball's amateur draft. MLB must study his residency and legal paperwork before declaring him a free agent.

"We chose Andorra because of its tranquility, its tax benefits for Aroldis, and also being a commercial mecca of sorts, particularly for its size," Edwin Mejia, Chapman's agent, wrote in an e-mail. "We felt that it could translate to unique marketing opportunities for Aroldis in Europe.

"Andorra is a winter playground for the wealthy and powerful residents of Europe, of which, God willing, Aroldis will be as well. Given all our options it became the perfect choice. He even has health insurance, life insurance, and a pension all before he even signs his first major league contract. We are very proud of this."

( The Slav - won't this guy fit right in, he sounds like a Hall of Fame prima dona already. )

The New York Yankees have already shown interest in the lefty, whose fastball was clocked at 102 miles per hour at the World Baseball Classic this year. It's also expected that teams such as the Boston Red Sox, Los Angeles Angels and Los Angeles Dodgers will at least show initial interest in Chapman.

( The Slav - what no Pirates, no Royals, no Padres? Don't they need pitching?)

Giants prospect Villalona suspect in DR murder

According to the San Francisco Chronicle and MLB.com, Angel Villalona--one of the Giants top prospects--is a suspect in the murder of a man in the Dominican Republic.

Not a good note to close the curtain on this season.


http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/giants/detail?&entry_id=48000

Angel Villalona suspected of murder in Dominican

Angel Villalona, the Giants first base prospect who at the time was given the largest signing bonus in team history at $2.1 million, has turned himself into authorities in the Dominican Republic and is suspected of a homicide. The story can be found here.

The Giants are expected to issue a statement shortly.

Villalona spent the season with Class A San Jose, which won the California League championship last night, but was not with the team because he was hurt.

New Study: Kids aren't the only ones benefitting from youth sports

MAN BITES DOG, NOW THAT'S NEWS!!!
http://www.thenewsmanual.net/Manuals%20Volume%201/volume1_01.htm


This is great news and doesn't fit the mantra the stories we see in the news--the man bites dog type of story scraped from the bottom 0.01% of the barrel--but it is what I see on a daily basis.

FROM HUMANKINETICS.COM
http://www.humankinetics.com/hk-news/hk-news/kids-arent-the-only-ones-benefitting-from-youth-sports

New study in Journal of Sport & Exercise Psychology proves parents also benefit.

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Parents who sign their children up for sports as part of an educational experience and to learn about teamwork may be learning some of the same lessons themselves, according to new research from Purdue University.

"People often think about how youth sport benefits children because of physical activity, self-confidence and friendships, but we found that parents also are affected when their children play organized team sports," said Travis Dorsch, a doctoral student in health and kinesiology who led the study.

While children are making friends and learning to work well in groups, parents are practicing the same behaviors in the stands and on the sidelines. Spousal communication also improved as adults coordinated logistics for carpooling and attending practices and games, whereas other parents noted improving their time management skills. Some parents reported maintaining friendships after their children finished with sports, and others talked about how they experienced an emotional loss when they were finished being a sports parent and no longer had those opportunities for adult "playdates.

This type of reciprocal benefit is also good reason for continuing to fight to keep strong physical education programs in the schools at all levels as well as strong extra-curricular programs.

More from the study:

"I don’t think it’s terribly surprising that parents connect with one another, but what was surprising is the intensity of that connection," said Alan Smith, associate professor of health and kinesiology. "Many view themselves differently, as well as their children differently, after exposure to youth sports. This experience was very eye-opening for them whether or not they themselves were previously involved in sports."

Dorsch and Smith, along with Meghan McDonough, an assistant professor of health and kinesiology, looked at how parents perceive that they change from a child’s participation in team sports. Their results are published in this month’s Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology.

In 2006 more than 57 million children under the age of 18 participated in organized sport programs, according to the National Coaching Report.

"Sports act as a platform for the child-parent relationship, and many parents said sports gave them and their children something to talk about," McDonough said. "What we learned from these parents shows that many do not fit the negative stereotype of being overinvolved or acting out."

At the same time, other parents were frustrated when a child did not make a competitive travel team after time, money and emotional energy had been invested in the child’s sport experience over many years. Others admitted they felt guilty for wishing a team would stop winning so the season would end.

The researchers interviewed 26 parents of children, ages 6-15, who were playing organized basketball, baseball, softball or soccer. This research was supported by the Department of Health and Kinesiology.

Writer: Amy Patterson Neubert, 765-494-9723, apatterson@purdue.edu

Sources: Travis Dorsch, 765-496-2231, dorsch@purdue.edu

Alan Smith, 765-496-6002, alsmith7@purdue.edu

Meghan McDonough, 765-496-9483, mcdonough@purdue.edu

Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu

It's clear from the results of this study that we are in fact getting a "hidden" double bang for every buck spent in this area. We may be raising better parents while we are attempting to raise better children. HOW ABOUT THAT!!!

We can't continue to be penny-wise and pound foolish in this regard. Public school administrators need to learn to cut the bureaucratic waste from other areas of the budget that do not return this type of societal benefit.

FOLLOW UP: A COACH'S WORST NIGHTMARE

COACH DAVID STINSON AND HIS PLAYER 15-YR.OLD MAX GILPIN

As I said when this story first came out, there are no winners. But I am glad that absent any finding of true recklessness on the part of the coaching staff the jury came in with a just verdict.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/09/17/kentucky.coach.trial/index.html

A jury Thursday acquitted a former Louisville, Kentucky, high school football coach of all charges connected to the heat-related death of a player last year.

The jury found former Pleasure Ridge Park football coach David Jason Stinson not guilty of reckless homicide and wanton endangerment in the death of 15-year-old Max Gilpin, who collapsed during a practice on August 20, 2008. The teenager died three days later.

Gilpin's body temperature reached 107 degrees, officials say.

Stinson also was acquitted on a charge of wanton endangerment.

It is clear that this has had a devastating effect on the family as well as the coach, who clearly lost a member of his extended "family" by losing a player.

Days after he was charged, Stinson told supporters that his "heart is broken." "Part of my life has been taken away," he said, according to WHAS. "I no longer teach, and I no longer coach at the school that I love. ...

"The one thing people keep forgetting in this is that I lost one of my boys that day," he said. "It was a boy that I loved and a boy that I cared for and a boy that meant the world to me. That's the thing that people forget. And that's a burden I will carry with me for the rest of my life."

The local news actually adds more detail than the national story from CNN. While I personally do not care for the practice of using conditioning drills as punitive measures by coaches, it seems like the team was allowing for kids to bow opt out and get water if necessary.


http://www.herald-dispatch.com/news/briefs/x912513692/Ky-coach-acquitted-in-player-death

The jury deliberated for about 90 minutes, and Stinson hugged defense attorney Brian Butler after the verdict was read.

“That’s why they came back quickly, because he was innocent,” said Butler, who characterized the prosecution as a “witch hunt.” Stinson left without speaking to reporters.

Players said he ordered the gassers as punishment for the lack of effort they showed at practice on a day where the temperature and heat index were both 94 degrees.

Prosecutors relied on a series of Gilpin’s teammates who testified that several teens became ill during the gassers, vomiting or bowing out of the running with ailments.

Several medical and athletic training experts also testified for the prosecution, saying Gilpin suffered from exertional heat stroke, which led to his death. One witness, University of Connecticut associate professor Douglas Casa, said Gilpin could have been saved if he’d been immersed in ice water almost immediately after collapsing on the field.

Hurlbert said he hopes the case prompts coaches to pay closer attention to their players.

Stinson’s defense attorneys relied on Pleasure Ridge Park players who testified that, while they ran sprints, there were only a few more than normal. Three of Gilpin’s classmates, along with his stepmother, testified that Gilpin complained of not feeling well throughout the day he collapsed.

This is one of the great difficulties for a coach to deal with is you don't know what the kids are doing on their own time to make the team. Sometimes these details are disclosed on the initial physical evaluation forms, many times they are not.

Some schools have athletic trainers on staff, but not always on the field at all times, others do not for budgetary reasons.

There is a need for better education to filter down to the coaching staffs as far as when and where and how you can ride these kids hard physically, but the bottom line from a philosophical standpoint should always be:

YOU ARE CONDITIONING KIDS TO BUILD THEM UP, NOT TO TEAR THEM DOWN.

Defense medical experts told jurors that it appeared a combination of heat, the use of the dietary supplement creatine and attention deficit disorder drug Adderall, and being ill were the main factors that contributed to Gilpin’s death, which they called an accident.

The medical experts also said little could have been done to save Gilpin because his temperature was so high for so long before he made it to the hospital and began cooling down.

This would be the ultimate end result--you would see less people willing to participate as coaches due to the potential liability and less qualified people to boot. The ripple effect would have been felt throughout all sports.

Jimmie Reed, executive director of the Kentucky Football Coaches Association, said he followed the trial daily and expected most of the coaches in the state were doing the same. He said a conviction would have had lasting ramifications for all teams.

“Any type of coaching where you’re dealing with student-athletes, where there’s some type of tragic accident, then it would have been scrutinized to the liability of the coach no matter what the sport was,” he said.

What wins in the playoffs? BALANCE.....

As we prepare to enter baseball's second season, the baseball gurus and pundits will deliver their pet theories as to what "wins in the playoffs". Normally it boils down to a single facet of the game like "defense wins championships" or "pitching wins in the playoffs" or some other neat, simple theory as to what wins. And we will self-select examples of teams that fit the mold/theory we create. But is it really that simple? And if it was, wouldn't it be easy to win championships?

From personal observation over the years, I saw too many teams that were somewhat one-dimensional in one area--built around the "defense wins championships" mantra-- that did not win in the playoffs due to the lack of even a modicum of offense. My football Giants did manage to win a couple of Super Bowls around a rock-ribbed defense and a somewhat pedestrian offense. They were also defeated in a Super Bowl by a Ravens team that was superior defensively and the opposite offensively. But these examples seem to be more the exception rather than the rule. I also remember watching many Pat Riley led Knicks teams in basketball that were built around strong defense--so much so that they couldn't throw the ball in the ocean at times--losing to more well-balanced Bulls and Rockets teams.

So what works in baseball?

Does better pitching win in the playoffs? It depends on what metric you look at-- just looking at lower ERA for example--the results are mixed. About 60% of the teams with lower ERA's win in the divisional and league championship series (about 62.5% win) but lose in the World Series (about 62% lose). Yikes, that's not conclusive. A mixed bag at best.

How about better defense? If you use fielding percent as a measurement, look again. Only about 50/50 in the DS and LCS and the roughly the same for the World Series. Inconclusive results at best, a coin flip.

How about the team with the better record? Does dominance in the marathon of the regular season translate into the sprint that is the playoffs? Here the results are a little bit clearer. In the DS and LCS, teams with the better overall record wins about 60% of the time. In the World Series, it's a coin flip. And this makes some sense since, even in this era of inter-league play, there likely isn't enough of a sample of games played to use the overall record as a valid metric for comparison in the World Series.

So what seems to work?

Teams that win the regular season series (establish dominance) win when they meet again in the playoffs. At about a 60% clip. That's significant and it makes sense intuitively. Don't fight the trend.

It dovetails nicely into the next metric. Home field advantage. That still works too. At about a high 50% rate. Which makes sense, the team that has the better overall record earns home-field advantage, has established dominance over the other team during the season. Those built in advantages are hard to turn around in the playoffs.

Having the better closer seems to work. If regular season saves are the metric used, the team with the more dominant closer wins about 70% of the time in the league playoffs and about 57% of the time in the World Series. Which makes sense, the team is playing with the lead late in games and has a rally stopper at the end of the bullpen to shorten games.

So pitching plays more of a role than hitting in a teams ability to MAKE the playoffs. For the most part, spotty pitching probably eliminates teams more so than dominant pitching wins for them. And hitting probably plays a lesser role than any element of the game. If we look at what statistics lead to ADVANCING in the playoffs, we see very few hitting stats rise to the top.

In fact, the hitting metric that most tells what teams perform better in the playoffs is a low strikeout ratio. A lower K% translates to winning about 60% of the time and conversely the pitching staff that has a high K% (power pitching) wins 60% of the time.

For hitters, a higher OBA, higher batting average and a higher runs scored vs. runs allowed (really a team stat) translate to winning in the playoffs about 55% of the time.

More stolen bases (speed) wins about 55% of the time as well. So a team with a more diversified offense, that can manufacture runs when the power bats go silent and keep pressure on the defense, has a better chance of winning than a one-dimensional offense.

For pitchers, allowing fewer hits than your opponents wins about 65% of the time. Number of shutouts vs. your opponents shutouts (dominant pitching) wins about 67% of the time. Keeping the ball in the yard wins about 60% level as well and not allowing runs wins about 55% of the time (seems like a no brainer).

The better fielding team, measured by number of errors, wins about 60% of the time as well, so defense shows up as a statistically significant measurement as well.

So we have pitching, speed, defense...what about hitting? Don't chicks dig the long ball in the playoffs? Well, they may dig the long ball, but they will probably need a boost of Viagra if their favorite team relies on the long ball to win in the playoffs.

Teams that win the HR battle during the season only succeed at about a 40% rate in the playoffs. Slugging Percent--about 40% winning percentage. Batting Average and OBA are about a coin flip. 50/50.

So what's a team to do, what is the formula for success in the playoffs?

Formula for pitchers:
Allow fewer hits than your opponent - Wins 70% of the time.
Have your pitchers throw MORE shutouts - Wins 70% of the time.
Have your pitcher keep the ball in the yard - Wins 65% of the time.
Pitch more complete games - Wins 60% of the time.
Have a lower ERA that your opponents - Wins 60% of the time.

Formula for fielders/defense:
Commit fewer errors than your opponent - Wins 70% of the time.
Have a higher Defensive Efficiency Rating than your opponent - Wins 60% of the time.

Formula for base runners:
Steal more bases than your opponent - Wins 65% of the time.

Formulas for hitters:
Strikeout fewer times than your opponent - Wins 70% of the time.

So, pitch, play defense, put pressure on the opponents defense, steal bases and hitters--just don't strike out, put ball in play and extend AB's.

The conclusion seems to be that winning in the playoffs doesn't lend itself neatly to reliance on one dimension or one individual metric, but rather on a well-balanced composite of skills that lead to success.

THAT WAS EASY!!!

How to teach the mental game of baseball

I am happy to recommend to all players, coaches and parents out there, the launch of a program to help learn how to teach the mental side of the game of baseball from an acknowledged national expert on the subject.

Dr. Tom Hanson lives in the same general area in Tampa as we did before we relocated to Illinois, so I have been well aware of his work for many, many years. His book "Heads Up Baseball" co-authored with Dr. Ken Ravizza is one of the best books on the market on the subject of the mental game of baseball.

I have listened to Dr. Hanson speak numerous times at conferences and he never fails to leave you feeling better equipped to teach a side of the game that I believe is very much under-coached among teams from the youth to collegiate level.

Oh sure, coaches always say they want kids to learn the mental and emotional aspects of the game. Many pay lip service to having a team that is well-prepared, doesn't hurt themselves with mental mistakes, stays cool under pressure, etc. But how many actually spend valuable practice time teaching these valuable skills? Not many in my experience.

Dr. Tom gives you the tools and teaches you how to use them.

Beginning tomorrow -- September 15th at 12: noon -- Dr. Hanson will launch his newest program from this site "Baseball Success Secrets".

I have included Dr. Hanson's professional resume below as well as his e-mail explaining further details of the program.

www.BaseballSuccessSecrets.com Dr. Tom Hanson - Baseball Success Secrets


----------
HIGHLIGHTS OF DR. HANSON'S PROFESSIONAL RESUME:

Career highlights include:

Full-time Performance Enhancement director for the New York Yankees (2001)

Performance Enhancement Consultant for the Texas Rangers (1999, 2000)

Performance Enhancement services for Anaheim Angels & Minnesota Twins

Head baseball coach and tenured professor at Skidmore College (NY) (1990-1997).

Co-Author of Heads-Up Baseball: Playing the Game One Pitch at a Time.

Interviews with Hank Aaron, Rod Carew, Pete Rose, Tony Oliva, Carl Yastrzemski, Stan Musial, Kirby Puckett, Billy Williams and others for my research on the Mental Aspects of Hitting.

Interviews with pitching greats Nolan Ryan, Tommy John, Ferguson Jenkins, Bert Blyleven and many current major league players.

Corporate Coaching and Training for businesspeople and organizations ranging from Fortune 500 Companies to start-ups.

Education

Ph.D. in sport psychology from the University of Virginia (1991)

M.S. in sport psychology from the University of Illinois (1987)

Certified Personal and Professional Coach, The Newfield Network (2000)

Certified Yoga Teacher, Kripalu Yoga Center, (1996)
----------
COPY OF DR. HANSON'S E-MAIL:

Charles,

On Tuesday I'll launch a program determined to change lives.

The program is about success: how to be powerful (power =
the ability to produce desired results) and have "peace of
mind."

I'm involved in a youth sport group that is closely aligned
with John Wooden. You may know Wooden's definition of
success:

"Success is peace of mind which is a direct result of
self-satisfaction in knowing you did your best to become
the best you are capable of becoming.”

My quest for me is this peace of mind -- and the fun
results that will come with it -- and this is ultimately
what "Baseball Success Secrets" is all about:

Players, Coaches and Parents being successful.

On and off the field.

There's lots of new material in the program, along with
some familiar coaching if you've been with me long.

But the big difference is the format of the program... and
the energy it contains.

-----------------------------------------

Program Format

-----------------------------------------

The format is simple: Each week you get a new coaching
lesson from me via email.

Each lesson will have:

1) A "distinction" -- content giving you a new way of
looking at something; and

2) A "practice" -- something for you to DO during the week.

The program acknowledges that KNOWING SOMETHING DOES YOU NO
GOOD.

It has to be in your body for it to make a difference. So I
will give you training to do just like a physical trainer.

For 6 months.

------------------------------------------

Who Is the Program For?

------------------------------------------

The program is for players, coaches and parents. Anyone who
wants to succeed.

The applications for players is obvious. I will teach you
and train you to become unstoppably confident and able to
accomplish any goal (on or off the field) you want to
accomplish.

I'll give you the best tools in the world to become
successful.

For a PLAYER with a big dream, this program is the best way
to spend training time and dollars this fall and winter.

For COACHES, you get benefits on two levels:

1) a mental training system for your players. You'll know
what to teach them to be confident, consistent and mentally
tough under pressure.

And you'll have the tools to train them.

2) A success system for yourself. Look at the coaches you
REALLY admire and you'll notice they are all great people.

Success comes out of their pores.

For players to trust you and respect you they must FEEL you
-- they must FEEL your personal power.

They must feel that you walk your talk.

If they don't it doesn't matter how great your hitting
mechanics teaching is -- they won't buy in.

So the program will help take YOU to the next level.

(I can't leave this out: Your team will NOT outperform its
leadership. Chances are YOUR OWN INTERNAL LIMITATIONS are
your team's biggest constraint.)

The best way to take your team to the next level is to take
YOU to the next level.

-----------------------------------------

For Parents

-----------------------------------------

Same as with the coaches, really.

You can't tell your son to do something when your own
actions aren't aligned with what you are "teaching."

What is really being taught is your "being," your "energy."
Not your words.

So the best way to be a great parent is to be a great
example.

Be the person you want your son to be. If you want him to
be happy, your being happy is your first goal.

------------------------------------------

So There!

------------------------------------------

That's what "Baseball Success Secrets" is about.

Success!

On and off the field.

For players, coaches and parents.

And in addition to the format improvement (short weekly
lessons that guide you step-by-step), the whole program has
an energy way beyond anything I've ever created.

It launches Tuesday.

------------------------------------------

What Questions Do You Have?

------------------------------------------

Tomorrow (Monday) from noon to 4pm Eastern time I will be
conducting my first ever "Success-athon."

I've recently received over 380 questions from committed
parents, players, and coaches and I'll be answering as many
as possible during those 4 hours.

I'll be chatting at the same time so you can respond to
what I say and ask your own questions -- live (anonymously).

So please tune in.

Get the details here:

www.BaseballSuccessSecrets.com

Thank you,

Dr. Tom
Tom Hanson, Ph.D.

p.s. I'll have some cool prizes for the first people who
join the program, so mark your calendar for noon Tuesday
when BSS becomes available.

www.BaseballSuccessSecrets.com

9.11.01 Never Forget...

Never forget the true heroes of the day. Those whose sense of duty to their fellow man compels them to run towards danger to save lives while others are running away.

Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. John 15:13

Kaleb Eulls makes the ultimate highlight film play

Kaleb Eulls is a 6 foot 4, 255 pound, do-everything, ambidextrous QB and DE for Yazoo County HS in Mississippi. Did I mention he also handles the punting duties as well as kickoffs and extra points?

He received scholarship offers from football powerhouses like Florida, LSU and Georgia. He committed this summer to play for Mississippi State. He has the kind of ability that makes the recruiting message boards light up and the antennae on Mel Kiper and Todd McShay's future stars list begins to do a little shimmy-shake.

Did I mention that he is also a great student? So what must this already well-recognized and honored football "hero" do to garner national attention?

ROLL THE TAPE!!!
FROM THE ASSOCIATED PRESS YOU TUBE SITE:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37LBPtT5Am8


Was that the type of highlight film you expected? The voice coming from the back of the bus saying "I've got the gun" was from Kaleb. Probably the most important "forced fumble and recovery" he will ever make.

READ MORE INCREDIBLE DETAILS OF THE STORY FROM MOSPORTS.RIVALS.COM
http://mosports.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=985823


Doesn't the title of the story just say it all?
Kaleb Eulls' heroic action a decade in the making

Although on the surface, this seems like the prototypical man bites dog story--people just don't make this type of heroic action normally, do they?--if we look to the world of academia, maybe that perception doesn't have to be so.

Philip Zimbardo, a Stanford professor, coined the term "Banality of Heroism" to describe the phenomenon in his book "The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil".

In the book Zimbardo illustrates through his shocking Stanford Prison Experiment how easy it is for "normal" people to commit heinous acts when put in a unique cauldron of circumstances. This highlighted the "Banality of Evil" concept described by Hannah Arendt in her work titled "Eichmann in Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of Evil"

http://www.lucifereffect.org/heroism.htm

Although much of the Lucifer Effect text revolves around the negatives of human behavior, salvation comes in the final chapter (16) where I flip the coin and celebrate what is best in humanity-- those among us who move from passive observers to take heroic action. In celebrating heroism, I challenge the traditional view of heroes as extraordinary people, as super-special agents of noble deeds. In doing so, I distinguish between those rare people whose whole lives are centered around sacrifice for the good of society or for the well being of their fellows, chronic heroes, and those ordinary folks who are moved to an heroic deed in a specific situation at a particular time.

Their heroic deeds are always special, but these heroes are just plain folks, ordinary citizens, who “do what they had to do” when moved to action by some call to service. Typically, they say, “It was nothing special;” “I did what anyone would do in that situation.” And some add, “and what everyone ought to do.” I refer to this phenomenon as “the banality of heroism.” Doing so, obviously trades off of its similar opposite in the phrase coined by Hannah Arendt, “the banality of evil,” that she used to describe why modern criminals, like Nazi Adolph Eichmann were so frightening precisely because they are “terrifyingly normal.”

We also want to believe that there is something IN some people that drives them toward evil, while there is something different IN others that drives them toward good. It is an obvious notion but there is no hard evidence to support that dispositional view of evil and good, certainly not the inner determinants of heroism. There may be, but I need to see reliable data before I am convinced. Till then, I am proposing we focus on situational determinants of evil and good, trying to understand what about certain behavioral settings pushes some of us to become perpetrators of evil, others to look the other way in the presence of evil doers, tacitly condoning their actions and thus being guilty of the evil of inaction, while others act heroically on behalf of those in need or righting injustice. Some situations can inflame the “hostile imagination,” propelling good people to do bad deeds, while something in that same setting can inspire the “heroic imagination” propelling ordinary people toward actions that their culture at a given time determines is “heroic.” I argue in Lucifer and recent essays, that follow here, it is vital for every society to have its institutions teach heroism, building into such teachings the importance of mentally rehearsing taking heroic action—thus to be ready to act when called to service for a moral cause or just to help a victim in distress.

MORE FROM ZIMBARDO REGARDING THE BANALITY OF HEROSIM:
http://www.november.org/BottomsUp/reading/banality.html

Historical inquiry and behavioral science have demonstrated the "banality of evil" -- that is, under certain conditions and social pressures, ordinary people can commit acts that would otherwise be unthinkable.

But because evil is so fascinating, we have been obsessed with focusing upon and analyzing evildoers. Perhaps because of the tragic experiences of the Second World War, we have neglected to consider the flip side of the banality of evil: Is it also possible that heroic acts are something that anyone can perform, given the right mind-set and conditions? Could there also be a "banality of heroism"?

The banality of heroism concept suggests that we are all potential heroes waiting for a moment in life to perform a heroic deed. The decision to act heroically is a choice that many of us will be called upon to make at some point in time. By conceiving of heroism as a universal attribute of human nature, not as a rare feature of the few "heroic elect," heroism becomes something that seems in the range of possibilities for every person, perhaps inspiring more of us to answer that call.

It's clear that we will always have this battle of "good" vs. "evil". It illustrates the importance of having a solid base of character development so that we understand when the proper time and place to stand up and say "NO!!" arises, whether it's confronting a teen with a gun or an authority figure asking to do that which you know is wrong, you will have the strength to act heroically.

Too often we are almost comforted by the fact that perceived "evil-doers" are "not like us". We don't want to hear that we may all be capable of perpetrating similar crimes if we were put in similar settings. The works of Zimbardo and the famous Milgrim experiments at Harvard clearly demonstrates the fallacy of clinging to those inconvenient truths.

By the same token, we are too often led to believe that these heroic actions are anomalies as well. We couldn't do that, COULD WE? Well, why the heck not?

The quote from Kaleb's high school coach wraps it up best:

“I’m very proud of him,” Eulls’ football coach Matt Williams said. “He doesn’t have to score any more touchdowns or make any sacks, he is probably the greatest kid I’ll ever be a part of.”

HOW COOL IS THAT!!!!

Casey Crosby to start playoff opener

Good to see Casey is doing well. As I've said before, this is the kind of kid you root for to do well. I have every confidence that he will soon be joining Rick Porcello to give the Tigers a potent righty-lefty, one-two punch at the top of their rotation for years to come.

FROM WEBSITE MLIVE.COM:
http://www.mlive.com/whitecaps/index.ssf/2009/09/whitecaps_pitcher_casey_crosby_1.html

COMSTOCK PARK -- The West Michigan Whitecaps will hand the ball to Casey Crosby in Game 1 of their best-of-three Midwest League playoff series against the Great Lakes Loons, which begins Wednesday night.

UPDATE:


FROM WEST MICHIGAN WHITECAPS WEBSITE:
http://www.whitecaps-baseball.com/BLOGS/?p=957

September 9th, 2009

MIDLAND, MI- Potent pitching from starter Aaron Miller and a balanced offense attack helped the Great Lakes Loons overpower the West Michigan Whitecaps, 7-2, in game one of the best-of-three playoff series on Wednesday night. Miller out dueled Whitecaps’ ace Casey Crosby in the much anticipated match up of left handed starters. Every Loon starter got at least one hit as Great Lakes leads the series, one game to none.

Casey Crosby took the mound for the first time since the eighteenth of August. The ‘Caps southpaw lasted 2.1 innings in the loss allowing 5 earned runs on 6 hits with 2 walks and 2 strikeouts.

This doesn't change the future outlook for Mr. Crosby. He will be a better pitcher as a result of the experience.

Bumgarner Debuts

Five and 1/3 innings, five hits and two runs allowed (both earned). Not a bad start.

I could see this kid finding his way into the starting rotation next year. He doesn't have to be at the top of the rotation, maybe fifth starter so the IP total is kept down over the course of the season. He's only twenty years old, so even next year you wouldn't want to put more than 200 innings of mileage on his arm.

Bumgarner was called into action after Tim Lincecum was scratched (yikes) due to back issues. Probably from carrying the team all season. Hopefully, this injury doesn't cost him his Cy Young chances, but if the back problem is at all serious, the Giants need to shut him down. Find out what you have with some of the minor league starters like Pucetas so you can plan better for next year.

More details on Bumgarner's start from ESPN:

As for Bumgarner, who became the youngest active player in the big leagues, he acquitted himself well in a no-decision, allowing two runs in 5 1/3 innings, walking one, striking out four, and exiting after throwing 76 pitches. He posted a 1.85 ERA in the minors this year between high Class A and Double-A, but his velocity took a dip at the end of July. Instead of working in the 92-94 mph range and touching 95 as he had earlier in the year, he dropped down to the 90 mph range, presumably just because of the grind of the season. I doubt the Giants would have kept running him out there if they suspected anything else was the cause, or thought anything might be wrong. Bumgarner hit 90 mph twice in his big league debut, but mostly sat at 87-89 mph after throwing 131 1/3 innings in the minors this year.

The club had planned to call him up for situational and long relief help for the balance of September, but the injury changed their plans....

Happy Labor Day!!!

These are not fine days for labor in this country. A 9.7% "reported" unemployment rate (blame Bush) and a less than 50% approval rating from the public (according to Rasmussen - blame Reagan). But on the plus side, a friend in the White House for a couple of more years (blame Bush). You just have to hold on and hope that he's around long enough to tend to your needs.

Once that stimulus money really hits in late 2010-early 2011 you watch, that unemployment rate will start to turn around.

A bunch of garbage programs for homeowners that aren't working and chump change for the blue-collar worker--who isn't working--makes for a pretty crappy Labor Day.

There is the great barbecue weather and NFL football right around the corner, so that should help.

HAPPY LABOR DAY!!!

Chicago in the lead for 2016 Olympics...by one point

The Chicago bid was characterized as "ambitious, but achievable". All three of the other contenders fell under the category of "reasonable, but achievable."

I'm not sure what elevated Chicago to the lofty "ambitious" status, but my Spider sense suspects that--given that we are dealing with the International Olympic Committee and Chicago politicians--bribery, liquor and hookers were probably involved.

HEY, HO!!! WAY TO GO!!! CHICAGO!!!

According to Around the Rings:
http://www.aroundtherings.com/articles/view.aspx?id=30687

One point is all that separates the four cities in the race for the 2016 Olympics: that's based on the results of the latest edition of the Around the Rings Olympic Bid Power Index. The third edition of this contest's ranking is the only authoritative, independent review of the race for the 2016 Games.

Chicago Leads, But Barely

Based on the strengths of its venue plan and infrastructure, the U.S. bid from Chicago keeps its spot as the leader in the ATR Power Index -- but just by a single point over the rest of the field. Chicago scores 77, with Madrid, Tokyo and Rio de Janeiro tied at 76.

That lead is trivial. In a practical sense, the race is tied among the four cities. Each have indisputable assets, each comes with liabilities.

Penny pays dividends for Giants....Posey called up

Brad Penny pays immediate dividends for the Giants by pitching eight shutout innings, allowing four hits to record a win versus the Phillies.

The Giants went against plan and called up Buster Posey to help the battered catching corps. Apparently, Bengie Molina's bruised ego is more serious than we thought.

The Rockies matched the Giants pick up of Penny by acquiring Jose Contreras from the White Sox. Contreras has a fairly consistent history of maddening inconsistency. The Rockies hope that the good Jose shows up to help down the stretch. If Jose has the splitter working, he could help.

The Dodgers loaded up the bench by picking up Jim Thome from the Pale Hose. He helps if they make the playoffs and can DH, otherwise he's merely a late innings threat from the left side.

GO GIGANTES !!!!

More Participation Fees = Less Participation

Today it is hard to find an area of society that has not been adversely affected by the current economic turbulence we are experiencing.

Many schools districts are charging students "pay to play" fees for participation in high school athletics and extra-curricular activities. This is not necessarily a new phenomena but it appears to be on the increase. Some schools are going further and reducing the number of contests or eliminating programs entirely.

This news report is typical of what is going on throughout the nation.

http://www.leadertelegram.com/story-news.asp?id=BL0CF5CT0M8&userid=d1a38dbaf3c5c3b7d2fad43e9b99a392&messageid=558

Fewer Eau Claire public high school students will participate in athletics this fall after the school board raised fees for nearly all sports.

District officials can't say for certain that the $100 hike in all but one fall sport is the only reason student participation at Memorial and North high schools is down this year.

One can assume that the participation fees are the smoking gun that is leading to less participation. It's simple economics. The problem is many of these school boards and districts use the athletics program and sometimes the entire extra-curricular activities as hostages to extract higher property taxes to fund school district overall.

Now we know intuitively the positive benefits that these programs bring to our kids. To say nothing of the way it can bring communities together in pursuit of a common goal or shared experience.

Numerous studies have shown the positive life lessons passed on to our youth via these programs including: teamwork, leadership and perseverance. Other studies show that these intrinsic values lead to more positive results in areas such as improved grade-point average, improved chance of college acceptance and greater economic success later in life.

To say nothing of its affect in combating childhood and adolescence obesity and involvement in gang activity or recreational drug use.

Why does school board after school board take the short-term budgetary fix to the problem instead of tackling the root causes of their budget mess, which generally has little or nothing to do with athletics and extra-curricular activities?

Isn't taking short cuts something we encourage our kids not to do as an overriding life lesson? So why do we tell them one thing and then demonstrate with our actions something entirely different?

We need to more to defend our children from this creeping incompetence that is attacking this high school sports and all extra-curricular activities.

Lying to ourselves is more deeply ingrained than lying to others.
– Fydor Dostoyevsky, Russian novelist (1821-1881)

As this story from USA Today from 2004 shows, this is hardly a new issue:

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/preps/2004-07-29-pay-to-play_x.htm

Pay-to-play programs began in the 1970s and grew in the '80s and '90s, according to Scott Smith, assistant professor for sports management at Central Michigan University. "Now, as education budgets shrink, more and more schools are trying them," he says. "It's a national phenomenon."

Smith says user fees can be found in city, suburban and rural districts but are most common in suburbs, where parents are accustomed to paying fees for travel soccer and basketball teams.

Smith studied the issue of how much participation rates fall at schools charging user fees."When the fees are small, $50 or $100, participation rates don't go down much," he says. "When fees are high, more than $300, they drop noticeably," sometimes by a third or more. Fairfield officials are anticipating a drop of about 35%.

And there has been some push back, but apparently not enough over the last five years or so. I'm not sure I understand the logic of paying it so your taxed don't rise, when in most cases they appear to rise anyway, but what do I know?

In Fairfield, city of warring acronyms, Arnold Engel is founder of CARE — Citizens for Accountability and Results in Education. The group has succeeded in helping to vote down three levies since 2001.

Engel says he opposes a rise in taxes because he believes the school district does not spend its money responsibly. Superintendent Robert Farrell disputes Engel's charge. "We're fiscally responsible," he says. "We spend 14% less than the state average" per-pupil.

Engel says he does not oppose the pay-to-participate plan. "The only reason to cut sports and extracurriculars is to blackmail the public to pass the levy," he says. Engel's son Josh, a rising sophomore, was in the band last school year. Engel has not paid $350 for his son to return to the band, but he says that has to do with scheduling issues rather than cost.

Lee Maloney, another CARE member, says he plans to pay $630 for his son Jeff, a rising senior, to run track in the spring: "I'd much rather pay it than raise taxes and force senior citizens to move out."