Sports Then and Now

Albert Pujols became the 9th player in MLB history to reach 600 career home runs with a blast against the Twins on June 3rd.

While reaching a milestone home run number is not as earthshaking news in the world of Major League Baseball as it once was, that does little to negate the impressive achievement of longtime slugger Albert Pujols. With a grand slam home run Saturday night, he became just the ninth player in major league history to reach 600 career home runs.

When Pujols first joined the St. Louis Cardinals in 2001, Major League Baseball’s 600 home run club consisted of three members in Hank Aaron (755), Babe Ruth (714) and Willie Mays (660) and had not added a new member in 30 years.

For multiple reasons that have been well chronicled, home run production has escalated in the last two decades and thus the number of players accumulating large career totals has also risen.

Beginning with Barry Bonds in 2002 and now including Pujols, six players have reached 600 home runs in the last 15 years. Bonds, who hit 509 home runs after turning 30 years old and 340 after turning 35, finished with a modern era record of 762. Alex Rodriguez completed his career with 696, Ken Griffey with 630, Jim Thome with 612 and Sammy Sosa with 609.

What is somewhat different for Pujols than the other five recent players is that he has reached the total through a long period of consistent numbers, without having one or two huge (50+) home run seasons.

During his 11 seasons with the St. Louis Cardinals, which included two World Series titles, Pujols finished in the top five in the MVP voting 10 times (three MVP Awards and ninth the other year) and hit at least 32 home runs every year with six seasons above 40 and a high of 49. He also had a .328 batting average for the Cardinals and drove home more than 100 runs 10 times. Read the rest of this entry →

The basic little league practice drills are taught with a great focus on fundamental aspects of baseball training. The most encouraging thing about baseball is that by implementing these basic practice drills into your training regime at any age will assist in creating exceptional baseball players. Practicing these basic practice drills on a regular basis will result in great learning and performance of the game of baseball.

It is greatly important to use baseball drills as fun games and competitions, especially with younger players, to make it highly enjoyable. Children love some good competition and will enjoy drills thoroughly if they have a fun and competitive element. Competition will also encourage players to learn the skills needed for the game to improve and ultimately win these ‘mini’ competitions.

Additionally, it is vital that you know all of the little league rules, regulations and policies, in order to be an effective little league coach. In order to be a little league coach for children, it is essential to know all of the current rules and policies. Being up to date on the latest rule will aid your coaching abilities and ensure your players become world-class little league players.

Children are unique to train, so here are some general thoughts that can help your training sessions:

• Use training stations. For effective training with children, implement stations and group the children into groups of 4 or 5 children each. This is great to reduce idle time when one child is on the pitch. Engaging the children and letting them move around from one stations to the next will ensure they have fun while training to be a great baseball player.
• Get an assistant coach. Assistant coaches play an important role in training children. It may be difficult for a coach to conduct all training drills on their own and require the help of an assistant. It is highly recommended that you appoint an assistant coach to help you train a world-class team.

Five basic tips for little league practice drills

Drill Tip 1: Fielding on the Knees

Learning to field a ground ball can be done quite automatically at a point player bends to kneel on the ground. Firstly, the kneeling position allows the player to keep their hands out in front. A common problem for children learning to play baseball, is missing the ball when trying to field it deep inside with their open feet. A player should field a ground ball using their hands and keeping them out in a front direction. This allows the player to easily keep an eye on the ball that reaches their glove.

Additionally, this drill teaches players how to read hops better, as well as when to change from the forehand and backhand positions. It is important to teach young players that a fundamental practice in baseball is to have their glove out in front. Read the rest of this entry →

Being a sports fan comes with passion, dedication, heartbreak, and ecstasy. It is a lifestyle littered with the unpredictable. But no matter who you support or what sport you play, there is one thing all sports fans can agree on; live events always offer up the best experiences you’ll ever be apart of. That’s why we have compiled a list of some absolutely must-have experiences every sports nut should soak up in person, with your own eyes; your heart beating so hard you can see it through your shirt.

The Kentucky Derby

Being in the infield at the Kentucky Derby is one of those rare experiences that you are likely to never forget, and yet may not remember either. The atmosphere, the booze, the suave suits and crazy hats and the big bucks get thrown down. It is electric. Yes, there is something nice and fancy about being in a suite, but nothing beats being in the middle of drunken horse-racing fans, cheering and jeering their horse with the dreams of leaving a little richer. Read the rest of this entry →