by Chad Kirkpatrick

Created on: November 11, 2009   Last Updated: November 13, 2009

It's that time of the year again when baseball players spend many hours of their days training hard in the gym over the off season to prepare for the upcoming year. Many athletes don't know that with the right conditioning skills and training program, you can increase your productivity right away. Eating right and staying away from the junk food will also contribute to your performance. It's up to you to decide whether you take the next big step in your career by how hard you focus and listen.

Every day players learn something new just by paying attention to those around them and those who teach them. I can guarantee that even the professional baseball players teach each other on a daily basis and focus on the most basic skills to get the best results. I can't tell you how many times I have gone over the basic drills over and over. You get tired of it yes, but you have no idea how well it really works. It's not all about the flashy plays and the home runs. It's about mastering the most basic skills and executing them when it matters most. I have spent hours upon hours fielding ground balls. In fact, before every game I would show up an hour or so early just to take infield. I also would take a bucket of baseballs and take batting practice by myself just to stay ahead of everyone else.


You really have to be willing to learn and grow as a player to succeed. You can't expect yourself to be born to be the best in the world. The only thing that really slows down the ability to grow is due to the fact that some kids aren't able to play all year round because of the change in seasons. I mean you can spend hours in the gym fielding and hitting, but it just isn't the same speed as a regular game and you don't have any challenges as you would during a game.


The best advice that I have for baseball players of all ages is to just keep yourself ahead of the game. Be proactive because the more effort you put into becoming a professional or just a great player, the more likely it is going to happen. Push yourself to your limits and you will be happy with the results. It is the key to becoming a better baseball player.

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