D.R.I.P.

 I recently watched a talk from Tim Tebow on the difference and importance of having success and having significance that really spoke to me and made me think about how coaches, leaders, parents, educators, etc. go about what we do on a daily basis.  We talk to our team about success and what that looks like... I have always given the success speech to teams I have coached. We talk about who wants to be successful and then dive into what it takes to be successful (which was touched on in a previous blog). There is individual success and there's team success. Individual success can come in different forms on a baseball field: high batting average, low ERA, quality at bats, high fielding percentage, extra base hit, steals, strikeouts, awards, accolades, etc. What can I do to help my team? Team success can be evaluated in wins, playoff runs, championships, etc. What is our potential and how can we achieve those tangible things?  Looking back, I probably could have done a bet...

    I do not know everything about running a successful program, leadership, and certainly not everything about baseball. However, through years of experience, many failures, and a few successes, I have learned some valuable lessons in those regards.     While I am writing through the lens of a coach, these ideals and values are valuable lessons for players and coaches at all levels. So here it goes, my attempt at articulating some of the “Do’s” and “Don’ts” when it comes to baseball... and LIFE! 1. Do the right thing.    Following directions, being coachable, off-field behavior, classroom behavior and academics, how you treat people...      If I had to choose one principle that matters more than all the others combined, it would be this one: Do the right thing. All the time. Every single time. In my humble opinion, it should be the #1 expectation or standard of any program and any player… at any level.      It sounds...

Let's talk hitting! Now, I was never a great hitter, but there are many things I understand now that I never thought about as a player and even as a young coach. Hitting is hard. Hitting consistently is even harder. In my mind, it’s one of the  hardest things to do in sports. That’s why it takes mechanics PLUS an approach, an attitude, a mentality, a mental toughness, and an undeniable work ethic. Give me the guy who doesn't have the prettiest swing, but has the right mindset, exudes toughness, will prepare, then compete his tail off in the box. The most successful and consistent hitters have the right attitude, mentality, and a certain level of toughness. You can’t get too high or too low based on one at bat (AB) or a series of ABs. The game will absolutely eat you alive. Every pitch, every AB has a life of its own. IT DOESN’T MATTER WHAT YOU DID BEFORE whether good or bad.  The guys that win ABs are the guys who can treat the next pitch like it’s the only one that matters....

Many say that baseball is "just a game" and they got one thing right-- it is a game. However, it is SO much more than "just" a game.  I've had great mentors throughout my life-- parents, siblings, teachers, coaches, bosses, colleagues, and friends... but there's one different than the rest-- not better, not more efficient, not more effective-- but different. That's because it isn't a person. Baseball. From a young age, when I first grasped a baseball or swung a bat, I was being taught valuable lessons that go beyond the field and, at the time, I had no idea. Baseball has taught me many things, so many lessons that help in all areas of life. Now, I am no expert on anything, but where would I be without the things I've learned from... a game? We've established, or at least I have in my mind, that baseball can teach you discipline, the importance of respect, how to channel intensity into something positive, and passion for something greater than...

Good vs. Willing to be Good There are two questions I always ask teams at the beginning of the season:  1) Who wants to be good? I ask them to raise their hands if they want to be good- a good player, a good team. Without fail, they all slip their hand up.  2) Who is willing to do EVERYTHING it takes to be good? I don’t ask them to raise their hands for question #2, but ask them to really think about it after I lay out what it takes to be good, to be successful. And we do take some time to define what success looks like for us.  Of course everyone wants to be good. Every individual has goals to be as good as they can be, contribute to the success of the team, maybe even make it to the next level. Every team has big aspirations— wins, playoff runs, championships. But far too many want to be good without the willingness, the sacrifice to do everything it takes to be good. Man… a lesson I wish I would have actively absorbed a little more as a player before it was too late! I...

Welcome to DRIP-- a baseball blog focused on the Discipline, Respect, Intensity, and Passion in which the game of baseball should be approached.  Let me introduce myself. My name is Chris Shelton and I have been coaching baseball at various levels from travel to high school to college for the past 15 years. Before I really get into this, let me provide a disclaimer: I’m certainly no expert on baseball, coaching, program building, or life in general. However, through years of experience, many failures, and a few successes, I have learned some valuable lessons in those regards and have developed some philosophies about running a program, developing players, and the game itself that I believe in... really believe in. I did not have a spectacular baseball career, if you call it that, or play at a very high level. However, an ever-growing love for the game has allowed me to hang around long enough to learn a few things and develop some sort of philosophy on how the game should be played...