Here I am over-communicating with umpire Mike Reilly.

Here’s another catching tip….

As a catcher, you MUST communicate.

You don’t need to be a “rah-rah” guy, a cheerleader, or possess an out-going personality; however, you’ve gotta come out of your shell enough to risk embarrassment and verbally help your teammates.

You are the focal point of the infield, the closet player to the coach, and the only defender who looks out onto the field of play. You have a perfect perspective from which to direct traffic.

Here are a few simple suggestions passed on to me from Australian coach/scout Peter Gahan. These are automatic catcher responses to particular game situations. Memorize them and speak up every time they occur.

1. A bunter at the plate: “Stay alive”, etc.
2. Left Handed Hitter up to bat: (to pitcher) “Be ready to cover 1B.”
3. Ground ball to the right side: (to pitcher) “Get over!”
4. 2 out, runner on 2B: “Diving, keep the ball in the infield.”
5. 2 out, full count, runners moving on the pitch: “Going over to 1st base on a ground ball.”

These are just a few of many opportunities you’ll have to help out your teammates and become the defensive leader of your team. Pay attention and add to this list.

Till next week, good luck, have fun, and keep your eye on the ball…

He called me the other day for some information and here’s a couple small excerpts of what I had to say from Tim’s article…

“You’re preaching to the choir, you’re talking to a guy who made his house payments [by calling and running a game],” said Brent Mayne, who caught in the major leagues from 1990-2004. “What’s the most important part of the game? Pitching. If it wasn’t, why would teams throw this kind of money around lately? [That said] you have to have a good catcher. It’s like having a phenomenal race horse, but no jockey. Will the horse win the race without one? Probably not. Someone has to know when to use the crop and when not to.”

“Some pitchers need to be patted on the back, some need to be kicked in the ass, and a catcher has to have a feel for that,” Mayne said. “That’s extremely important, and it’s rare today. You have to be able to sense that. You have to be an amateur psychologist in some ways. There’s so much more to pitching than following a scouting report to a tee. That’s not how it works. That’s not the ultimate decision. The ultimate decision is the feeling in your gut. Carlos Ruiz has that, and Cliff Lee knows he has that. Anyone can sit in the stands and look at a scouting report, or an iPod, and know what to throw next. But sitting in the stands, you can’t see the subtle shift that the hitter makes after a pitch. Only the catcher can see that. And that’s where the feel for the pitcher comes in. The best pitch any pitcher can throw is the one he can throw with conviction, whether it’s the right pitch or the wrong pitch. The catcher’s job is to give him that conviction.”

If you’re interested, click here to read the rest of the article…enjoy.

Tony Pena spicing things up with a creative catching stance.

Here’s another catching tip….

Watching a catcher do the same thing – squat, catch ball, toss back – for three hours is about exciting as watching paint dry.

As much as anything, baseball is entertainment. Here’s a suggestion on how you can do your part as a catcher to bring some showmanship, creativity, and energy to your position.

In a non-blocking, non-throwing situation (less than two strikes, less than three balls, and nobody on base) mix up your squatting style.

Here’s just a few of the many benefits that come from using multiple stances.
1. It’ll give your pitcher a different look (which is especially helpful if he’s struggling to find the zone.)
2. Breaking the one-stance monotony is fun and will help keep you mentally engaged for the whole game.
3. It’ll set you apart from the masses and help you get noticed.
4. Varying your stances will make you appear to have bounce and brings positive energy to your defense.

Remember though, it’s only for the non-blocking, non-throwing situations!

Till next time, good luck, have fun, and keep your eye on the ball.

So I’m sure you’d like me to comment on something baseball related but…not now. (If you really need a fix, check out the latest tip I put out a couple days ago.) I’m going to go off the board and report about a fantastic art show I saw the other day. Steve Roden’s “in be tween” at the armory center for the arts in Pasadena. One thing that’s really nice about this new job I have is that I’m all over L.A. I love Los Angeles for a lot of reasons, but one of the biggest is because it’s full of art. And I love art.

I’ve mentioned it in a few past blogs, but I see a correlation between good art and athletics. The flow, the risk, the intuition, the creativity, the “in-the-momentness” of both acts are very similar to me. Enter Steve Roden. I’m no expert in the field, but I know what I like and his stuff felt honest and right. I’d highly recommend his show to anyone interested and in the L.A area. He also maintains an interesting blog.

Roden’s art runs the gamut…painting, sculpture, sound, movies, drawing, collage, etc. Here are a few pictures of his stuff that I snapped at the show…enjoy.

Paint Wite-Out on your fingers to help pitchers see signals.

Here’s another catching tip….

There’s nothing worse than a pitcher who can’t see the catcher’s signs. A pleasant 2.5 hour game can easily turn into an ugly 3 hour marathon when the battery can’t get their communications straight.

Getting crossed up sucks, and trying to catch when you’re unsure whether the pitcher is actually going to throw the fastball you signaled for or some other pitch is no fun either.

The fact is, pitchers don’t see very well (or else they’d be hitters, right?) I’m kidding…kind of. In all seriousness, sometimes shadows created by a catcher’s knees makes it very difficult to see.

One solution would be to open up the sign stance or give the signals higher or lower. However, doing so might give the opposition a chance to peek in and introduces a whole new set of problems.

I’ve found the best idea is to keep a bottle of Wite-Out handy. Paint the back of your signal hand fingers making them easier to see. This works better than tape because it won’t interfere with your throwing feel. In a pinch, if you don’t have the Wite-Out, moisten the back of your hand and drag it along the white chalk of the base line to illuminate the fingers.

Till next week, good luck, have fun, and keep your eye on the ball.

Proper blocking technique helps a catcher keep wild pitches close to his body.

Here’s another catching tip….

Blocking the ball effectively means keeping a bounced pitch in front of your body and making sure the resulting ricochet stays close enough to stop base runners from advancing.

Let’s focus on the second part of the equation – keeping the ricochet close to your body. To consistently accomplish this, a few things must happen. First, the receiver’s body must be square to the incoming bounce. Secondly, the catcher must stop moving by the time he and the ball collide.

The resulting impact when two moving objects (ball and catcher) bounce off each other is explosive. Conversely, if the catcher is quick enough to be waiting for a wild pitch, the ricochet will be muted.

Now for the cherry on top. To take your blocking to the next level, EXHALE when you and the ball meet. This will soften your body and further deaden the impact. Is a ball going to bounce farther off a wall or a pillow?

Till next week, good luck, have fun, and keep your eye on the ball.

Roger Bresnahan and Honus Wagner...simpler times and shorter games.

Here’s another catching tip….

The catcher impacts the pace of a game more than just about everyone else on the field. In basketball it’s the point guard who has the option to push action or stall. In baseball, the catcher controls momentum.

As a receiver, you must take responsibility and realize that how quickly you move, give signs, catch the ball, and get it back to the pitcher has a direct impact on the length of a game.

Make no mistake about it, baseball is a game played slowly. It’s easy and comfortable to play this way. Matter of fact, ninety nine percent of all people playing this game ONLY know how to compete at a leisurely pace. Use this fact to your advantage!

Catchers, if you can learn how to hustle and play quickly, you’ll add another weapon to your defensive arsenal and have a positive impact on the game. Here are but a few of the benefits. You’ll help your pitcher find a groove and minimize the amount of time he has to think (a good thing). You’ll disrupt the offense’s rhythm and help keep your defense on it’s toes. Not to mention, you’ll make it home in time to eat dinner, do your homework, and maybe even watch some TV!

So, take control. Bounce around and push the pace. Let’s get rid of the 3.5 hour game. Trust me, your coach will love you more, the fans will love you more, and your girlfriend will love you more. But most importantly, I’ll love you more.

Till next week, good luck, have fun, and keep your eye on the ball.

To be honest, I really have no clue what I’m doing. I mean, I obviously know what a good player looks like. But I’m just learning how to break it down into degrees of “how much I like him” and putting that in scouting vernacular. Basically learning how to make an accurate evaluation of an amateur player so the people spending money with the Padres know exactly what they’re purchasing.

How do I do that? I go to a lot of games. I videotape. I get running and throwing times with a stopwatch. I get velocities with my radar gun. I look at body makeups, watch mannerisms, watch how players interact, watch them take b.p and ground balls. I pay attention to how they throw, hit, and field. I watch to see how they handle adversity. I talk to other scouts, parents, coaches, and the players themselves. Basically I’m an information gathering machine in a Prius.

The honest truth about what I see so far? A truckload of below average players, a lot of mediocre players, and a handful of potential prospects. Baseball must be a tough game. Genetics must be a tough game. You’ve gotta have a lot of skill and luck on your side to be a prospect.

The one thing I can say without a shadow of a doubt is that in California (probably the rest of the country too), if you can play, one of us is gonna find you. Nobody’s slipping through the cracks. If you’re a parent or a kid at least you can scratch that off your list of concerns.

So after about a month of doing this gig, so far so good. It’s fun to be in the early stages of a learning curve and I’m loving getting a paycheck again. The driving hasn’t got to me (yet?). I really do enjoy going to games and evaluating. And the cast of characters that comprise the southern California scouting force are entertaining to say the least. Maybe not as entertaining as Mathew McConnaughey’s gay scout on Eastbound and Down, but funny none the less. Stay tuned…

Mathew McConnaughey as a gay scout from Texas on Eastbound and Down.

Proper hand position of "the four-seam grip."

Here’s another catching tip….

It never hurts to review the basics, and this is an important one.  As a catcher (or any position player for that matter), you must throw the ball with a four-seam grip!

Unless you’re pitching, you want the trajectory of the ball to stay true and straight. The rotation which results from using a four-seam grip will consistently create this path.

Gripping any other way will cause ball flight to dive, cut, sink, or rise.  Unfortunately, you may do everything else correctly only to have your throw move off target at the last moment.

Pay attention and consciously find this grip everytime you warm up.  Never throw a ball without it!  When you’re at home watching TV, flip a ball in the air and practice coming up with four seams quickly.  Make it second nature so you won’t need to think about it come game time.

Till next week, good luck, have fun, and keep your eye on the ball.

I find it interesting that regardless the outcome, Bengie Molina will be taking home a ring because he played half of the 2010 season with both teams. I’m sure he had a huge impact on the young pitching staff of the Giants and a big reason they’re in the position that they’re in. Ditto for the Rangers.

Say what you will about the Molina brothers…they’re a little rotund, slow, whatever. The fact is, these cats are getting it done. One of them is in the hunt every year getting a big hit or putting in a solid defensive performance. No doubt, Posey, Mauer, or even Ruiz are easier on the eyes and we’d all probably rather watch them. But you’ve gotta hand it to them, the Molina’s have a knack for getting to the big dances.

So who am I rooting for? Tough one. I played for the Giants and they’re in California. I’ve still got friends there. I love Krukow and Kuiper and Miller. I can’t take my eyes off Lincecum when he pitches. I love their stadium. On the other hand, Texas might as well be a separate country, but they have Wash and Hurdle and I love watching Vlad, Kinsler, Hamilton, and the rest of their offense do their thing. And I feel the same way about Lee as I do about Lincecum. Soooooo….I’ll take Texas I guess.