What you need to know before getting started:

1. This is the first of many short #Palooza18 posts I’ll be writing.
2. You can search Twitter for the hash-tag #Palooza18 which was attended by over 400, to see the Behind The Scenes.
3. Follow me on Instagram for all the behind the scenes stuff I’ll be putting out.

 
Disclaimer: The Backwoods Pitching Lesson I Learned did not involve any of the following.

1. Electrical tape..
2. A banjo or…
3. A white paneled van

 
Before I get to the story and explain how one of the hitting presenters at #Palooza18 dialed me in like a Native American Indian sun-dialing his watch…

I’ve got a few guidelines I adhere to when selecting my presenters for Pitch-a-Palooza.

1. Be Real. If you act one way on social media and then another in person, no thanks.
2. Be Cool.  If you’re not the kinda guy willing to hang out in a room and talk shop with everyone, no thanks. But, don’t try to be Real Cool.

 
And finally…

Don’t introduce yourself to me in 3rd person, by introducing yourself as “Coach” unless it’s clearly legible on your birth certificate.

Simple.

Right?
 

Now, let’s start with the Backwoods Pitching Lesson here…

I can honestly say the lesson I’m about to share with you forever change the way I will communicate with my players. 

And it just goes to show how important it is for you to step outside your comfort zone and reach out to those you follow and impact your thinking.

That’s what I did.

• I found this guy on Instagram and right away, recognized his genius in getting his players to buy-in, believe and trust his teachings.
• This guy is a master communicator and that’s why he was speaking at Pitch-a-Palooza.

 
But here’s what you need to know. (And it’s kinda crazy when you think about it.)

1. The pitching lesson didn’t  come from a pitching guru.  Nope.   I heard this from a fast talking, Puerto-Rican/Jewish hitting coach straight off the block of the NYC in the middle of the woods that kinda looked like a mix between Vin Diesel and Derek Jeter, but not really.
2. And I didn’t learn this pitching lesson at the actual Palooza Event.  Instead, this is what you call a backwoods pitching lesson in the kind of hollers where teeth are scarce and internet connection is scarcer.

 
Instead of hotels, I thought to myself…

“What If…I rented a log cabin and invited other speakers to stay with my family and right-hand men in  Todd Alford and Jon Watson? 

(No way in hell I could pull it off without these guys! )

And that’s what we did.

We Air BnB’d a log cabin to fit 16 guys, so you can imagine we didn’t get much sleep.

So, the guy on my left is Jason Ferber. (If you don’t follow @CoachFerber on Instagram, you’re missing out… While you’re there follow me

And Jason says to me…

“Ever noticed how the BEST drills always begin with by you asking “What-If?”

What if… we tried this?

What if…. we tried that?

Genius!

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—The Backwoods Pitching Lesson I Learned From A NYC Hitting Coach —-⁣ ⁣ I can honestly say the lesson I’m about to share with you forever change the way I will communicate with my players. ⁣ ⁣ · I found this guy on Instagram and right away, recognized his genius in getting his players to buy-in, believe and trust his teachings.⁣ ⁣ · This guy is a master communicator and that’s why he was speaking at #Palooza18⁣ ⁣ (See the guy in the pics that kinda looked like a mix between Vin Diesel and Derek Jeter, but not really, that’s @CoachFerber)⁣ ⁣ ⁣ Anyways, we are sitting in this log cabin way out in the woods where teeth are scarce and a solid internet connection is scarcer.⁣ ⁣ As we’re talking shop, Jason Ferber says to me⁣ ⁣ “Ever noticed how the BEST drills always begin with by you asking “What-If?”⁣ ⁣ What if… we tried this?⁣ What if…. we tried that?⁣ ⁣ Think about it.⁣ ⁣ Instead of the coach telling him what to do, he simply asks “What if…⁣ ⁣ · You held the ball this way?⁣ · We tried to do this?⁣ · Your feet started here?⁣ ⁣ ⁣ What if….. (Insert what you want them to try and do)?⁣ ⁣ See where I’m going with this?⁣ ⁣ THE POWER OF WHAT IF….⁣ ⁣ 1. Teaches pitchers to teach themselves.⁣ 2. Helps Guide Exploration⁣ 3. Gives the player PERMISSION TO FAIL!⁣ 4. Encourages creativity⁣ 5. Builds Trust and gives player a role in his own development.⁣ 6. Gives the player ownership in his own development.⁣ 7. Ensures “BUY IN” because you’re showing the BELIEF in them to ask them questions.⁣ 8. Promotes self-discovery, trial and error, Mistake based learning⁣ 9. Helps players step out of their comfort zone without fear of embarrassment or failing.⁣ 10. Builds culture and life-long relationships.⁣ ⁣ — ⁣ Trust what you FEEL! ⁣ Lantz⁣ ⁣ ⁣

A post shared by Lantz Wheeler (@lantzwheeler25) on Dec 17, 2018 at 9:12am PST

WHAT IF….?

Take a second to think about how Powerful the concept of  “WHAT IF…?” is to the development process!

Too often, we find ourselves believing as coaches that our job is to teach “How to”.

But that’s not it.

In fact, it’s the “How to” mentality that’s produced an entire generation of “Pitching Mech-addicts”.  

It’s How to mentality that’s played a vital role with today’s players never trusting what they do and how they do it….instead they waste their time focusing on “How others” do it.

Let me put it this way…

• I’ve said time and time again, the most common mechanical flaws we see are Man-Made. 
• The body would never naturally organize itself had it not been confused.
• You know the old saying…“It’s know what you know, but what the players’ understand, that matters.”
• Inefficient communication will always appear as inefficient movement.

 
So, instead of teaching How to….

“What If you started every sentence with What If…?

I’m betting you’re going to find more answers by asking.

Think about it.

Instead of the coach telling him what to do, he simply asks “What if…

• You held the ball this way?
• We tried to do this?
• Your feet started here?

 

What if….. (Insert what you want them to try and do)?

See where I’m going with this?

The Power of What If….

1. Teaches pitchers to teach themselves.
2. Helps Guide Exploration
3. Gives the player PERMISSION TO FAIL!
4. Encourages creativity
5. Builds Trust and gives player a role in his own development.
6. Gives the player ownership in his own development.
7. Ensures “BUY IN” because you’re showing the BELIEF in them to ask them questions.
8. Promotes self-discovery, trial and error, Mistake based learning
9. Helps players step out of their comfort zone without fear of embarrassment or failing.
10. Builds culture and life-long relationships.

 
And to all the parents out there, this gets you off the hook.

Why?

Because if he doesn’t get it right, it’s on him cause all you did was ask a simple question.

Plus…. It will drastically reduce the risk of your son becoming a Basement Boomer.

You know what I’m talking about….

The son that’s old enough to make anyone walking through the door uncomfortable.

All jokes aside…

What if teaches you to trust your instincts and promotes players learning to Trust what you FEEL!

Special thanks to @CoachFerber for impacting my thinking and honing better communication skills with my players!

Alright, we’re nearing the end of this post…

3 takeaways on player development I’ll leave you with:

Today’s game is driven by data, and that’s a good thing.

1. But – if you can’t deliver the data, it’s useless . The key is delivering the data in a way the player understands and the more ownership, belief, love and power you can hand over to him, the more useful you just became as a coach and mentor.
2. Finally, the fastest way to succeed is by learning how to fail. 
3. Create a culture mistake based learning and planned failures.

 
At the end of the day,

The Godfather of Pitching Mechanics, Paul Nyman summed up the player development process best…

Trust what you FEEL!

 
 
P.S: I’d love to hear what you think about this post… Do this:

1. Leave a comment below and I’ll be sure to reply… Or –
2. Follow me on Instagram and tell me what you think!