Texas Baseball Ranch September 2017

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RANCH REVIEW THE

SEPTEMBER 2017

www.texasbaseballranch.com (936) 588-6762

HARVEY, HARVEY, GO AWAY…

At the end of August, when Jill and I boarded our plane to Oahu for a weeklong cruise of the Hawaiian islands, Hurricane Harvey was just a blip off the Coast of West Africa. By the time we were ending the final leg of our trip, Harvey had turned into a real monster, dumping between 40 and 50 inches of rain on the Greater Houston area …

When our good friends, Doug and Laura Savant, got wind that we were stuck, they rolled out the red carpet, and we had an amazing

four days in LA. We listened to the LA

Symphonic Orchestra at the Hollywood Bowl. We visited Beverley Hills, Rodeo Drive, the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and the Chinese Theatre.

Coach & Jill taking in some sites while beached in LA

Our four days in LA turned into an

absolutely terrific cap to our vacation, and it

was so wonderful to spend an extended time with our incredible friends, the Savants. This wasn’t so much of turning lemons into lemonade as it was simply blossoming where you are planted.

Harvey’s initial predicted path

We returned home to a damp but intact Ranch, and three days later, we actually pulled off an incredible Labor Day camp.

Thanks to all of you who checked on us, sending your notes, calls, thoughts, and prayers. It was a blessing to have such good friends, incredible staff, and such great fortune to have missed most of the carnage of Harvey. We realize so many

Our Labor Day camp was a big success.

Houston after Harvey’s visit

Our nonstop flight from Honolulu to Houston was delayed six hours. We finally departed and got as far as LAX when the pilot came on and told us that IAH was closed until further notice and that we were being redirected to Los Angeles. For four days, Jill and I were beached in LA. First of all, Los Angeles is not a bad place to be stranded, considering our staff and their families were dealing with the torrential rains back home.

people lost homes and businesses. Harvey was a horrific event, but we are so proud of our Texas neighbors. Stories of neighbors helping neighbors will be retold for years.

– Ron Wolforth

Where You Can DREAM as BIG as Your Work Ethic Will Allow! PHONE (936) 588-6762

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ULTIMATE PITCHING COACHES BOOT CAMP 2017 The Brain Rules

At the Texas Baseball Ranch ® , we’re not just devoted to helping pitchers get the most out of their talent. We know that if we want to improve the status of baseball training as a whole, we need to educate coaches too. That’s why we’ve hosted the Ultimate Pitching Coaches Boot Camp (UPCBC) for 18 consecutive years. This year’s version will be held from December 7-10 in Montgomery, Texas, and it’s shaping up to be our best Boot Camp yet.

Service Highlight

The topic of this year’s Boot Camp is “The Brain Rules: Strategies to Engage and Change the Brain in Your Baseball Throwing Athlete and Create ‘Adaptable’ Athletes Instead of ‘Adapted’ Ones.” Baseball coaching techniques have been stuck in the Stone Age for far too long. While other sports have adopted progressive, science-based training, we’ve been using choreographed, cookie-cutter exercises. This method restricts athletes’ abilities to acclimatize, adjust, and reorganize.

• How to immediately and easily implement many purposeful practice protocols with very little extra cost, equipment, planning, or effort.

• Why and how to limit verbal instruction, replacing it with visual and kinesthetic demonstration.

•

And much, much more.

In addition to the expert staff here at the Ranch, you’ll be hearing from a stacked roster of industry experts. The UPCBC will be held at our brand-new 4,700-square-foot theater and assessment center, known here as the Big Red Barn. There will also be hands-on and breakout sessions held in our state-of-the-art training facilities. Early Bird registration ends October 16. Can’t attend? DVDs of the event are available. Go to pitchingcoachesbootcamp. com. Group rates are available for two or more coaches from the same organization. Call (936) 588-6762 or email info@ texasbaseballranch.com for details.

Coaches attending will learn:

•

Why chaos training, differential learning, and

guided discovery are more than just neat ideas.

DEALING WITH STRESS

Learn Healthy Coping Mechanisms That Put You in Control

You havemore control over stress than you think. Stress management is about taking charge of your lifestyle, thoughts, emotions, and the way you deal with problems. Nomatter how stressful your life seems, there are steps you can take to regain control. IDENTIFY SOURCES Chronic stress is hard to recognize. Look closely at your habits and excuses. Do you explain away stress as temporary? Do you define stress as an integral part of your life? Do you blame your stress on others? If you don’t recognize your role in creating or maintaining stress, you will never be able to control it. FIND HEALTHY STRATEGIES Withdrawing from loved ones, bingeing on food or alcohol, procrastinating, and sleeping too much are all unhealthy ways to deal with stress. Instead, find unique, healthy coping strategies. Focus on what makes you feel calm and in control. AVOID, ALTER, ADAPT, AND ACCEPT Some stressors are predictable. Learn how to predetermine your reactions by choosing to avoid, alter, adapt, or accept. Avoid people

or situations that stress you out. Talk about your feelings instead of bottling them up, create a balanced schedule, reframe your problems, look at the big picture, and practice gratitude. It’s critical to look at the glass as half-full and learn to forgive. MAKE TIME FOR RELAXATION Nurturing yourself is a necessity, not a luxury. If you make ample time for self-care, you will be in a better place to handle life’s stressors. Give yourself options like going for a walk, calling a good friend, journaling, or reading a book. LIVE A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE In addition to regular exercise, there are other healthy lifestyle choices that can increase your resistance to stress. Eat a healthy diet; reduce caffeine and sugar; avoid alcohol, cigarettes, and drugs; and get enough sleep. Stress is unavoidable, but it doesn’t have to dictate your life. With stress management techniques, you can avoid chronic stress, reduce your stress levels, and live your life to the fullest.

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TO TOSS OR NOT TO TOSS? Two Truths About Long Toss

The internet is replete with thousands of ideas and opinions on the efficacy of long toss for pitchers. Some coaches and gurus contend long toss is one of the most dangerous activities a pitcher could possibly engage in from a health and injury perspective. Others claim it’s simply a waste of valuable training time because it doesn’t reflect in-game mound mechanics. Still others praise it as a godsend, the answer to almost any pitching ailment with which your athlete could possibly be confronted.

shortcuts the long toss route. To me personally, most of these recipes are simply attempts at marketing their product, and they usually amount to a flat-out red herring.

So where does The Ranch fall on the long-toss continuum?

The answer is way , way toward the “long toss is a godsend and the answer” end of the spectrum. While we don’t quite view long toss as the ultimate answer for every ailment, we see it as a valuable instrument in our toolbox for developing electric arm strength. When people knock the value of long toss, it’s because they fail to grasp two primary truths. Truth 1: One can throw without pitching, but one can never pitch without throwing. To become a prolific pitcher, one must first become a prolific thrower. This truth is simply not debatable. Truth 2: There are two primary elements involved in being a world-class pitcher. One is skill. The other is ability. You will need both. Long toss creates, augments, enhances, and develops ability. Long toss stimulates muscle groups in original ways by focusing on the goal of maximum distance. This assists us in creating the training effect we often seek.

The result of these myriad opinions is that many parents and coaches get frozen. They don’t want to hurt their young man or place him in a high-risk situation. On the other hand, they know how important development of a power arm is to advancement. Confronted with so much conflicting information, they choose a middle course that all but guarantees mediocrity.

A few internet gurus even claim they have a specific recipe which overrides or

UPCOMING RANCH EVENTS ALUMNI CAMP October 7-9, 2017 (Saturday-Monday)

1-2-3 LEADS TO 602 Mariano Rivera Breaks the All-Time Saves Record Closers are an integral part of the modern game, but that wasn’t always the case. In fact, saves weren’t even an official MLB statistic until 1969. Most baseball historians point to Dennis Eckersley as the model for the one-inning shutdown closer, and after his Cy Young win in 1992, that model quickly became standard. Despite the tangled history of closers and saves, there’s no doubt as to who the best to ever do it is: the inimitable Mariano Rivera. On September 19, 2011, Rivera cemented his already-sterling legacy when he passed Trevor Hoffman for the all-time saves lead. Rivera’s cutter is one of the most storied pitches in all of baseball history, so it’s fitting that he set the record with that pitch. Chris Parmelee was Rivera’s victim for save number 602, striking out as the ball clipped the bottom corner. Mo would go on to record 50 more saves before retiring in 2013. There are very few surefire first-ballot Hall of Famers in baseball. When Rivera’s name hits the ballot in 2019, you can be sure he’ll be counted among them.

YOUTH CAMP (8-12 YR. OLDS) October 21 & 22 (Saturday-Sunday) ELITE PITCHERS BOOT CAMPS

November 18-20, 2017 (Saturday-Monday) December 16-18, 2017 (Saturday-Monday) December 27-29, 2017 (Wednesday-Friday) January, 13-15, 2018 (Saturday-Monday) COACHES BOOT CAMP December 7-10 (Thursday-Sunday)

More information can be found at www.TexasBaseballRanch.com/events.

A SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR OATES SPECIALTIES! STRATEGIC PARTNER,

www.OatesSpecialties. com/Durathro

3 Where You Can DREAM as BIG as Your Work Ethic Will Allow! PHONE (936) 588-6762

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www.texasbaseballranch.com 5451 Honea-Egypt Road Montgomery, TX 77316

(936) 588-6762 INSIDE THIS ISSUE

Harvey, Harvey, Go Away… PAGE 1 Ultimate Pitching Coaches Boot Camp 2017 PAGE 2 Dealing With Stress PAGE 2 To Toss or Not to Toss? PAGE 3 This Month in Baseball History PAGE 3 4 TV Shows That Returned to TV After Years Off the Air PAGE 4

THE WAIT IS OVER 4 TV Shows That Returned to TV After Years Off the Air

How long would you expect to wait for the next season of your favorite TV show? Six months? Nine months? How about 21 years ? You may have noticed a recent phenomenon on television: the revival of long-dead shows. This trend kicked off with “Arrested Development” in 2013. Off the air since 2006, the show was picked up by Netflix for a fourth season. With a fifth season set for 2018, let’s take a look at a few other shows back on the air after years in obscurity. THE X-FILES This science fiction classic originally aired between 1993 and 2002 on Fox. After nine seasons (and a couple of movies), the show still hadn’t wrapped up its storyline. The show was brought back to TV in January 2016 for limited six-episode run. This was 14 years

after the initial series finale. Though the revival wasn’t well-received by fans, an 11th season is in production. ROSEANNE A staple on American airwaves between 1988 and 1997, “Roseanne” was considered one of the best portrayals of the American working family on television. In May, Roseanne Barr and ABC announced a 10th season for 2018. This season comes

21 years after the last episode of the series, and most of the original cast is set to return, including John Goodman and both Beckys, Lecy Goranson and Sarah Chalke.

TWIN PEAKS After an astonishing 26 years off the air, “Twin Peaks” made its return to television earlier this year. The cult show originally ran for two seasons on ABC in 1990 and 1991. Since then, it has been called one of the best TV dramas of all time. In 2014, original series creators David Lynch and Mark Frost revealed they were resurrecting the series for Showtime. Finally, in May 2017, they lived up to that promise.