Baseball is Fun

Baseball is fun. I am the biggest believer in that statement. My #1 goal in life is to make you guys experience how fun it is to play baseball. I want you guys to have fun this summer.

Now let me define fun.

Success in baseball is fun. When the game is going well, baseball is fun. When you are getting better everyday, baseball is fun. When the game rewards your efforts, baseball is fun.

Now let me define success. I do not think, and quite honestly I do not want to win every game. That is not my goal. Sometimes to grow in the game we have to make changes, and do things that make it difficult to win the current game, but grant us the most growth in the game of baseball. Sometimes LONG term growth gets in the way of 7 inning success. Most likely, winning more than we loose will be a by product of us – having fun – and getting better everyday.

Now, why am I bringing this up?

You are 13. You are learning. You have crazy energy. You sometimes lack focus. Relax, I realize this and are more patient than you will ever realize. But sometimes it is going to look like I am getting on you. I typically try to do this in amusing ways. I try to do it gently. But one thing I know about human nature is that nobody likes to be corrected. When authority speaks, it is human nature to defend what is and close off to what could be. That is okay, but please try to think about it and know that I am always available to talk more about it – just not at the immediate time. And know this; I have short term memory loss about it. I realize (because I needed it) that you will have to hear things 100 times before you actually “see it” and then it will take more time to “do something” about it.

Back to fun. Baseball is fun. Doing baseball things at practice is fun. Other things are fun. Have fun about other things at other times. There are 24 hours in the day, baseball only takes up two or three during a couple of your days in the week. When we are at baseball practice, and baseball games – let’s have baseball fun.