By Josh:
For five days this week I got the chance to cover a regional tournament that was being hosted in my hometown of Kelso, WA. I’ve had the chance to cover Babe Ruth World Series events but this was the first regional event that I have covered, and after spending most of the summer covering travel ball and showcase events I saw some things that stuck out to me.
One of the first things I noticed was that even though some teams were deeper in talent, most games were won or lost because of the mental side of things. I saw players giving up on their teams even though they had the lead or were behind by a run or two early in the game.
The teams that found success were able to brush off an error, use the info gathered from a strikeout to help their team, or find the positives throughout the game. The teams that struggled often cared more about individual moments rather than the bigger game and doing what was needed to get a win.
I know a part of this is because of their age, but it is more than that. Recently I’ve seen players that are the same age understanding the importance of putting the team first. Instead of throwing equipment after a strikeout, they would return to the dugout telling their teammates what pitches they saw, and what movement the pitcher was getting on his pitches. The mental side of the game is really important and I’m realizing coaches need to focus on that more.
The second thing that stood out to me was the speed of the game. You could see glimpses of players beginning to play faster but knowing just how fast the game gets for 18U and then college baseball, there was a lot of room for growth with the players. For many of them they will make the adjustments and improvements as they continue to face tougher competition.
The last thing that I was reminded of at the tournament was that baseball is fun. You can do fun, goofy, and superstitious things while still competing as hard as you can to win. Being focused on the field is important but I would say that being loose is just as important.
I’m glad I was able to get down to Rister Stadium for 5 days this week and I want to congratulate the host team, Kelso, on winning the Regional and good luck as they prepare to go to the Babe Ruth World Series.