Play Every Day Like It’s Opening Day
Steve Springer of Quality At Bats is one of the best known Mental Skills coaches in the country. We talked with him at this year's ABCA Coach's Conference in Nashville. Coach Springer spent 8 years as the performance coach and major league scout for the Toronto...
Dodgers Second Basemen Shares Secret to Playing Multiple Positions Well
In this week’s blog, recently traded infielder Logan Forsythe talks about the mental preparation for a guy that may not necessarily be playing every day. Forsythe says go to the yard every single day with the expectation that you are going to play every day. ...
Big Ten Coach Shares the Difference Between Good & Great Ballplayers
In this week’s blog, Illinois Coach Dan Hartleb describes the difference between good and great ballplayers: their mentality. Coach Hartleb thinks that when they have the mental capacity and the mental toughness along with their work ethic, they become truly...
Northwestern University Says You Must Have One of These to Have Success at the Plate
In this week’s blog, we are joined by Northwestern University Head Coach Spencer Allen. Coach Allen shares with us an essential part of hitting at the next level: having a routine. Whether you are playing in front of 500 or 5,000 people, always have a routine you...
The One Thing All Players Who Make It to the Next Level Have in Common
In this week’s blog, we are joined by former Commodore, professional ballplayer, Cubs coach, Seattle Mariners’ Operations Coordinator, Mariners Minor League Manager and, currently, back with the Commodores as Assistant Coach at college powerhouse, Vanderbilt, David...
Blue Jays Coach Shares the Difference Between Good & Great Players… And the Key to an MVP’s Success
In this week’s Coaching Blog, Toronto Blue Jays Coach Tim Leiper tells us the difference maker between guys that have long careers in the big leagues and guys that don’t. To him the best players can slow the game down and have short memories. If you can...
Steve Springer Shares Why You Should Start Treating Every Game Like Opening Day
Steve Springer is one of the best hitting coaches on the planet, especially when it comes to the mental side! Today he tells us why every day should be opening day. If you have a 50 game schedule, every single game is opening day. You have the utmost confidence...
Rangers’ Pitcher Shares Mentality & Mindset on the Mound
Repetition can be used as a tool to regain focus in many different sports. In basketball, players will dribble the ball and spin it in their hands a unique way before a free-throw attempt to clear their head and focus on the shot. In tennis, before a serve, the player...
Todd Cunningham & The Quiet Mind Approach
Todd Cunningham, a young outfielder in the Atlanta Braves organization took some time today to chat with Next Level Ballplayer. In this interview, we cover what Todd does to make sure that he has a quiet mind when stepping into the batter’s box. You’ll learn all about...
How R.A Dickey Stays Focused On The Mound
Today Next Level Ballplayer got together with R.A Dickey, one of the best knuckleball throwers in the MLB. He was kind enough to take some time to share his wisdom. In this interview, you’ll hear all about how R.A is able to focus when he is on the mound...
The Key to True Success as a Hitter with Blue Jays Mental Coach Steve Springer
Some of you guys might know that Franco and his good buddy, Steve Springer, share a hotel room every year for the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) annual convention. It's a exhausting and awesome four days of non stop baseball talking and catching up with...
Keys to Mental Toughness in Baseball with Ken Ravizza
We have great respect for the iconic sports psychologist, Dr. Ken Ravizza. Sadly, he passed in July of 2018. However, we were fortunate enough to interview Dr. Ravizza in 2014 and would like to share that with you today. Today we have a treat as I sit down with one of...
Why Your Mindset Inside The Batter’s Box Is More Important Than How You Feel
Attention Hitters! The next five minutes will change your baseball career for the better if you let it. We are joined by University of Washington Hitting Coach and friend, Donagal Fergus. Coach Fergus is one of my favorite guys in the baseball world because of...
The Two Keys To Becoming a Great Hitter!
I get emails from hitters all the time asking for help with a common problem. It usually sounds something like this: “I feel great hitting in practice, but once I’m in the game I continue to struggle. It’s so frustrating. Any advice?” Today we are joined by former...
How Pitching In The Moment Took Jake Johansen From a 45th Rounder to a 2nd Round MLB Draft Pick
Today we dive into the importance of pitchers being able to stay in the moment while on the mound. Our minds seem to always be tempted to dwell on the past or the future. The best ballplayers learn to train their minds to consistently stay in the moment. Today we hear...
The Secret To Standing Out On The Ball-field w/ Sal Fasano
Every player wants to stand out on the field but so few really know what it takes to not just stand out, but be great. It's an art that very few high-school and college players have mastered. Lucky for you we have a former big league baseball player ready to...
Inside the Mind of Brandon Phillips in the Batter’s Box
Today we're going back to a previous interview we did with the Braves' Brandon Phillips to get inside his mind while in the batter's box. While it seems that Brandon can come off as crazy (and hilarious), there is a very important lesson in today's post... Each player...
Big League Pitching Advice w Giants’ Santiago Casilla (Refocusing After Giving Up a Big Hit, and More)
I had the privilege to hang out with Santiago Casilla in Hato Mayor, Dominican Republic a few weeks ago. We were speaking at the same baseball conference put on for about 150 Dominican baseball coaches. Santiago has an amazing story that includes going from Low A, to...
What Barry Bonds Was Like As a Hitter in High School
I often wonder what MLB All-Stars were like when they played HS baseball. Did they always have the "it" factor? Did they just dominate? Today we get to hear about the "it" factor of Barry Bonds when he was in HS. In this situation the definition of "it" is extreme...
The Power of Discipline With Brayan Pena
What do you do when you don't feel like taking extra hacks in the cage or run those few extra sprints after a six hour practice? How are you able to dig deep to find that extra bit of fortitude that will allow you to compete at a higher level when the confidence isn't...
How To Know What To Do Before It Happens w/ Zack Cozart
As you know, a lot goes into being a top defender at the higher levels of baseball. What it really boils down to is consistency. Not just being able to make the play, but being able to do it on a daily basis. More importantly, not just being able to make the tough...
What Makes Clayton Kershaw a Great Pitcher and What You Can Learn From Him (with Dodgers’ Pitching Coach Rick Honeycutt)
It’s not hard to argue that Clayton Kershaw is one of the top pitchers in the game, if not the very best. Through his first 5+ big league seasons, Clayton has an ERA of 2.70, two All-Star appearances, and a CY Young award... … Oh, and he’s only 25 years old. It’s easy...
Bad Base Running and How A Quick Head Turn Got a Pitcher an Extra Out (The Smarter Ballplayer 2nd Edition)
Game: Padres vs Dodgers 4/15 Situation: Padres are winning 5-3 in the bottom of the 8th inning. The Dodgers have runners on second and third with 1 out. Skip Schumaker is at the plate (What a great baseball name by the way) and AJ Ellis is the Dodger on third base....
“Throw the Ball Right” With Dodgers’ Pitching Prospect Chris Withrow
This article is brought to you by Jaeger Sports, creator of Jaeger Sports J-Bands. If you’re a pitcher, guess what? You are going to give up hits and runs. What happens from there is one of the greatest separators of good and great pitchers. The sooner you...
Padres’ Yonder Alonso Reveals His Best Hitting Advice, Challenges of Adjusting to the Next Level and More (video)
Next Level Ballplayer is pumped to share this week’s exclusive interview with San Diego Padres’ first basemen Yonder Alonso. Yonder has established himself as one of the top young players in the game today and continues to prove that he’s in the big leagues to stay....
Reds’ Brandon Phillips Talks ‘Golden Soldiers’, Finding ‘The Crunk Zone’, Personal Baseball Goals and More…
Today we get to spend some time with one of the best second basemen in the game who happens to have one of the best personalities in all of sports. Of course, we're talking about the Reds' Brandon Phillips. Brandon is in his 11th MLB season after being...
Mets’ Scott Hairston Reveals His Positive Self-Talk, Other Hitting Tips, and More
Special thanks to the Mets’ Scott Hairston for hanging out with us today. Scott has enjoyed a nine-year MLB career after being drafted by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 3rd round of the 2001 MLB draft and then making his big league debut in 2003. He is now in his...
Why "Batting Gloves are Overrated” and More from Red Sox Prospect Blake Swihart
After interviewing one of the Yankees’ top prospects Mason Williams a few weeks ago, some Next Level Ballplayer followers (from Red Sox Nation) sent me a few “comments”. They “politely” asked me to stop wasting my time with Yankee interviews, and instead, to do...
What You Should Be Doing in the On-Deck Circle Before EVERY At-Bat
Every batter spends some time in the on-deck circle before his at-bat. Well, maybe not directly inside the circle (weirdly enough, rarely do players actually stand on the circle), but somewhere in the vicinity. Too often ballplayers go through the motions in the...
“Don’t Think. Just Do.” & More with Mets’ David Wright (video)
Mets’ third baseman David Wright is one of the premier players in the game today. Despite a down year in 2011, he has burst back into superstardom in 2012. Wright was drafted by the 1st round of the 2001 draft, and since his MLB debut in 2004, he has been a...
Top Yankees’ Prospect Mason Williams Talks High Expectations, Hard Work, and Approach
This week we are joined by one of the Yankees’ top prospects, Mason Williams. Mason is a speedy center fielder that was a fourth round draft pick by the Yankees in 2010. He’s been a standout prospect ever since. In his first full professional season, Mason hit .349...
"Overcoming the Odds" with 155-Pound Dodgers’ Infielder Justin Sellers
This week we are joined by one of the scrappiest players in the Big Leagues today, the LA Dodgers’ Justin Sellers. Sellers made his Major League debut in 2011, and has already played 2B, SS and 3B in the Big Leagues this season. At first glance, it doesn’t make sense...
Overcoming ‘The Most Evil Thing in Baseball’ & Owning The Mental Side of Hitting with Steve Springer (video)
As you probably know, Next Level Ballplayer loves the mental side of baseball and interviews like this one. Not one interview with a big league ballplayer goes by without me asking about his mental approach and for any tips or routines that he can pass onto our NLB...
Learning How to Hit Like a Big Leaguer & Defensive Tips with Reds’ Zack Cozart (Video)
This week we are joined by Reds' shortstop Zack Cozart. Zack was a second round draft pick by the Reds in 2007 and has worked his way through the organization to become their shortstop of the future. Early on in his professional career, he was best known for his...
Need to Take Your Pitching to the Next Level? Here’s What John Smoltz Did (Hint: Mental Toughness)
At the All-Star break of the 1991 season, John Smoltz was 2-11 with a 5.16 ERA. It was the middle of his second full season in the Big Leagues and even though he had had some success in his rookie year, there were many people that doubted whether he would ever develop...
The Mental Side of Baseball: Playing at Your Ideal Emotional Level… Even When Stuff Hits the Fan
Not too long ago Vin Scully recommended Dr. Jack Llewellyn as one of the top baseball psychologists in the world and an incredible man. Since then I’ve gotten to know “Dr. Jack” personally and confirmed both. Besides working with the Atlanta Braves for many years, he...
What are Big Leaguers Thinking About in the Batter’s Box?
As a batter, should you be guessing pitches? What should you look for? What should be your mindset in the box when facing a tough pitcher with nasty off-speed stuff? A good rule of thumb that you hear around the baseball world is, “If the pitcher has a good fastball,...
