FOCUS

What is a focus burst? 

Ken Ravizza, the godfather of mental baseball, who we lost in 2018, says… “Take care of the next pitch. Can I bring what I have right now and attack the next pitch?”

We believe that focus happens in bursts. Kind of like a “focus wave.” Five seconds of intense LOCKED IN FOCUS… followed by an exhale and relax.

Here comes the next pitch… lock in five seconds… exhale and relax.

But the games are the easy part. Isn’t it true that creating focus for a two hour practice is much more difficult. That’s kind of the idea behind dugout captain in general. How can we get together to run better more engaging practices? Dividing the athletes and the small groups rotating quickly and running drills where the action is fast paced. Hey if you’re not paying attention this ball is going between your legs.

Well outside of practice plants, here’s a couple focused suggestions.

1. Focus Friend – A tool to bring the athletes back. Toss a baseball up… clap every time I catch it. Clap. Clap.
2. Finish My Sentence – When I say work, you say hard: “Work!  Hard!  Work! ___”
3. Pre-Pitch Mantra – “Baseball ready!” What you need to do? Defensive ready position, eyes locked, focus burst is happening. “Baseball ready!” HA!!!

Make practice important this week. Build out a great practice plan and hold your athletes accountable. Focus is important and it’s a skill that we can improve at.

Practice focusing.

Play hard. Have fun.

Conversation Questions

1. What do you focus on before a pitch?
2. How do you use your FOCUS-power at school?
3. Offer a suggestion for our team’s pre-pitch mantra.

Athlete Challenge

1. Ready Position – Get to the ready position before EVERY ground ball in practice and every pitch during games this week.

Coach Challenge

1. Pre-Pitch Mantra – Choose a mantra to get your squad into the defensive ready-position (example “Baseball Ready!”).

EQUIPMENT LIST