The Summer Begins….. - Jun 03
I am not sure if you can consider this a true blog as I only add to this once a month or so. Trying to keep it up, but the life of a minor league manager, with three young children does not yield much blog time! The Flying Tigers are 21-23 about 9 games out of 1st place in the first half. The Florida State League plays two 70 game halves, with the first place team in each, heading to the playoffs. We would have to get on a heck of a run to catch 1st place Brevard County, that is the bad news. The good news is that at the half way point, everyone starts over again and has a shot in the second half. We are seeing steady improvement in all facets of the game, so I think with continued hard work and dedication, the Flying Tigers should be primed to make a run in the second half. We have a fine group of young men on this club who are working and playing very hard, day in and day out. As a manager, you can’t really ask much more. We continue to work at improving each and every player’s skills and fundamentals and hope that it translates into the ball games. One thing I can definitely say about this group is that they play hard and play to win every night. I like our chances in the second half. On another note, Baseball Pros is in the process of scheduling two to three Combines this summer, fall and winter. The response from last year’s Combine at Tiger Town and Combine at Viera has been overwhelming. It looks like we will be hosting another Combine at Viera in August and possibly another Combine at Tiger Town in October or November. In the day and age of Showcase baseball (that term makes me nauseas by the way); we have found a niche that I feel is critical to parents and players alike. There are so many tough decisions to make for young players and their parents these days. College baseball recruiting has become a big business for many people. Parents aren’t sure where to spend their hard earned money for their kids to be seen by college recruiters and pro scouts. We have found a way to give them the exposure they are looking for while at the same time, providing them with a learning experience that they will never forget. Our Combines are instruction based, where players have one on one interaction with college and professional coaches. Players are instructed on all facets of the game and are taken through pro style workouts. We give them a day of Spring Training so that they have the information they need to improve their games, from the people who evaluate them. We then play games so that they can strut their stuff. The feedback has been wonderful. We are looking forward to an exciting 2009 Combine season. That is all for now…..this bus ride is getting long and I need a nap. Until next time…..