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Send us a text Ready for an honest look at the smartest path from high school baseball to D1 and beyond? We sit down with Coach Austin Nelson of Cochise College to unpack why junior college baseball often beats jumping straight into a crowded Division I roster. With the transfer portal stacking lineups with 22 to 24-year-olds, an 18-year-old freshman can get buried. JUCO flips that script: you face peers your age, see the field early, and stack real-game reps that drive development and recrui...
Ready for an honest look at the smartest path from high school baseball to D1 and beyond? We sit down with Coach Austin Nelson of Cochise College to unpack why junior college baseball often beats jumping straight into a crowded Division I roster. With the transfer portal stacking lineups with 22 to 24-year-olds, an 18-year-old freshman can get buried. JUCO flips that script: you face peers your age, see the field early, and stack real-game reps that drive development and recruiting momentum.
We dive into the biggest myths about JUCO and break down why Arizona’s conference is among the most competitive in the country. Coach Nelson shares concrete success stories, from players moving to Kansas, Mizzou, New Mexico State, Dallas Baptist, and Arizona to arms getting drafted or signing pro deals. The conversation drills into what actually moves a player up: mental makeup, short memory after failure, and a structured environment that rewards consistent work.
You’ll also get a clear look at costs, housing, meal plans, and why JUCO can deliver a full year for a fraction of many four-year programs. For pitchers, the details matter: daily throwing, targeted arm care, prehab and rehab, and conditioning that builds durable velocity gains without overuse. Parents will appreciate the practical guidance on what to ask before committing—playing time reality, communication with coaches, development plans, and financial fit. We even get into hot-seat takes on the transfer portal, a candid play-bench-trade segment, postseason picks, and a memorable story from the JUCO World Series.
If you want playing time now, measurable development, and a proven route to the next level, this conversation shows how JUCO can be the most direct path forward. Enjoy the insights, share it with a teammate or parent who needs it, and follow the show—then leave a quick review to help more baseball families find us.
- Follow: Twitter | Instagram @Athlete1Podcast
- Website - https://www.athlete1.net
- Sponsor: The Netting Professionals
- https://www.nettingpros.com
Chapters
00:00 - Welcome And Episode Setup
01:13 - Sponsor: Netting Professionals
02:30 - Why Choose The JUCO Route
03:14 - Misconceptions And Conference Quality
04:16 - Selling JUCO To D1 Dreamers
06:39 - Transfer Portal And Playing Time Reality
08:56 - Success Stories And Player Placements
11:30 - Cost, Housing, And Daily Structure
13:28 - Player To Coach: Biggest Adjustments
15:31 - What Parents Should Ask
18:10 - Game Day And Travel Routine
20:17 - The Trait That Separates: Mental Makeup
22:10 - Arm Care, Throwing, And Injury Prevention
25:03 - Views On The Transfer Portal
26:37 - Competitor’s Mindset: Hate Losing Or Love Winning
27:53 - Play, Bench, Trade: Hot Takes
29:00 - Postseason Picks And MVP Debate
31:05 - Best Memories And A Funny Suspension
Transcript
WEBVTT
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In this episode of Baseball Coaches Unplugged, you'll discover why junior college baseball should be given stronger consideration by high school players dreaming of playing Division I baseball.
00:00:12.880 --> 00:00:28.879
We'll discuss the biggest misconceptions about Juco Ball, the benefits of developing skills against players that are your age, and why your mental makeup will determine your success or failure in college baseball.
00:00:32.560 --> 00:00:43.119
This is the Ultimate High School Baseball Coaching Podcast, Baseball Coaches Unplugged, your go-to podcast for baseball coaching tips, drills, and player development strategies.
00:00:43.280 --> 00:00:45.439
From travel to high school in college.
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Unlock expert coaching advice grounded in real success stories, data-backed training methods, and mental performance tools to elevate your team.
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Tune in for bite-sized coaching wisdom, situational drills, team culture building, great stories and proven strategies that turn good players into great athletes.
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The only podcast that showcases the best coaches from across the country.
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With your host, Coach Ken Carpenter.
00:01:13.840 --> 00:01:21.200
Today's episode of Baseball Coaches Unplugged is powered by the Netting Professionals, improving programs one facility at a time.
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Coaches, are you hoping to get one more season out of your batting cages or all screens?
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This includes backstops, batting cages, BP turtles, BP screens, ball carts, and more.
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They also design and install digital graphic wall padding, windscreen turf, turf protectors, dugout benches, and cubbies.
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They also work with football, soccer, lacrosse, golf courses, and now pickleball.
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The Netting Pros continue to provide quality products and services to recreational, high school, college, and professional fields and facilities throughout the country.
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Contact them today at 844-620-2707.
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Check out Netting Pros on X, Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn for all their latest products and projects.
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Hello and welcome to BCU.
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I'm your host, Coach Ken Carpenter.
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Today we go to Southern Arizona to discuss why more players benefit from choosing going the JUCO route.
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Coaches and parents, do you really want your son to compete with seasons 22, 23, or even 24-year-olds?
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And does the mental makeup really determine your outcome as a college baseball player?
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Austin Nelson, assistant coach at Coach He's College in Arizona, next on baseball coaches unplugged.
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Well, let's let's just get it out there.
00:03:07.280 --> 00:03:13.199
Let's start with the biggest misconception about Jukeo baseball and why does it drive you crazy?
00:03:14.479 --> 00:03:15.599
Biggest misconception.
00:03:15.680 --> 00:03:24.639
That's it's it's leaning the other way nowadays, I would say, just with uh how crazy things are getting uh in the portal and and at the D1 level.
00:03:24.960 --> 00:03:29.439
But misconception would be that it's not as good as baseball.
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Uh I mean it's I think Arizona, the league that we're in, the Arizona Community College Athletic Conference, um, I think it's top three in the country.
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Uh you can argue, you know, Texas, Florida, and stuff like that, and all that, but uh top to bottom here, man, just from a competitive uh scale.
00:03:47.520 --> 00:03:48.719
I've seen it as a player.
00:03:48.800 --> 00:03:55.520
I did two years as a player down here at Coach Ease, and I've done it eight years as a coach the last uh the last eight going into my ninth year.
00:03:55.680 --> 00:03:57.199
So I've seen it a lot.
00:03:57.360 --> 00:04:07.360
Um, seen other other conferences, other schools, and from a top-to-bottom competitiveness, I think this this conference uh is one of the best ones.
00:04:07.759 --> 00:04:15.759
Well, like you said, it it's starting to change now because the transfer is playing a huge role in everything.
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But let me ask you this how do you sell jupe baseball to a kid who he has that that dream of, you know, I gotta be playing for a power five school.
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Well, I think for us, it's I think it's easy to kind of look at the the history or kind of where we've sent guys and and what we've had guys do lately, but but also over our our head coach's 28-year tenure.
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Um, you know, he's sent guys to some pretty awesome places, and you know, we've done that the last couple of years as well.
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So I think just having that history and having the ability to to have that fallback of where guys have moved on in our conference, but you know, our school itself, um, I think that's made it easy to easier to get guys down here.
00:05:00.399 --> 00:05:09.519
I think other other than that, the rules of eligibility and guys having more than, you know, they're they're four years that they're usually allotted.
00:05:09.680 --> 00:05:15.120
Uh, you know, sometimes, you know, I've I've got kids that I've coached that have played six and seven years now.
00:05:15.360 --> 00:05:23.439
So um it's changed a lot on that scale, but I think it's easier to push JUCO when you're gonna go and you're gonna play right away.
00:05:23.519 --> 00:05:31.439
You're only, you know, you're competing against freshmen and and sophomores, you're not competing against 24-year-olds and 25-year-olds, which is a real thing.
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I mean, that's a that's a legitimate thing at at the next level right now, and and you could run into that.
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So if you're a you know, 18-year-old high school kid who maybe hasn't, you know, physically grown into what they could be, and you know, you're still projected to go and do something at a division one, but you walk in there and you've got a 23-year-old, 24-year-old grad transfer who's got 700 at bats at the NCAA level, it's gonna be hard for you to get on the field over that guy.
00:05:58.560 --> 00:06:16.720
And so I think this level has uh you know has definitely become a better option for for guys like that, um, where maybe they have the ability to walk into a place and and start younger and and stuff, even though it's it's hard to do that before the transfer portal and before there were older guys.
00:06:16.800 --> 00:06:25.920
It's it's hard to go into a university like that as a freshman and right away, man, you're 18 years old, um, sometimes 17 years old when you graduate high school, step foot on campus.
00:06:26.079 --> 00:06:39.199
So I think all of that uh and the development side of of junior college is where it's definitely more highlighted now, and and I think it's become more of an option for for some guys who might not have, you know, thought it was going to be one for them.
00:06:39.519 --> 00:06:49.279
Well, give me an example of some of the places that since you start coaching there, that players have left Coaches and they went on to play our five years.
00:06:49.759 --> 00:06:55.279
So uh last year we sent uh two of our guys are at Kansas right now.
00:06:55.360 --> 00:06:58.959
Um, one right-handed pitcher, one left-handed hitter.
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Um that was actually a freshman for us, left after his freshman year.
00:07:03.199 --> 00:07:04.800
The other one was a sophomore.
00:07:05.040 --> 00:07:13.519
Um we had two other pitchers go down to a Division I school down in uh in San Antonio, Texas at Incarnate Word.
00:07:13.920 --> 00:07:16.319
And then New Mexico State's been a big school.
00:07:16.399 --> 00:07:18.319
We've sent we've sent a lot of guys in New Mexico State.
00:07:18.399 --> 00:07:21.040
We've sent a lot of guys since I've been here.
00:07:21.120 --> 00:07:23.759
Um Purdue is another place we sent a guy.
00:07:23.920 --> 00:07:29.439
We've had another guy at Mizzou, um Kansas, another left-handed pitcher.
00:07:29.600 --> 00:07:32.160
Those three guys all actually ended up getting drafted.
00:07:32.319 --> 00:07:38.160
Um, one catcher from Purdue, a left-handed pitcher from Mizzou, and then a left-handed pitcher from Kansas.
00:07:38.319 --> 00:07:44.959
And that year we had a right-handed pitcher who came uh actually out of our college, straight out of Coachese, uh, signed with the White Sox.
00:07:45.199 --> 00:07:54.879
And he's been up to single A this year, uh, went went through some some small like injury stuff, I think like some lat stuff and just minor things that kind of kept him off the field.
00:07:54.959 --> 00:08:00.480
But last year was his first full year, he kind of crushed it in Arizona in the in the uh the league down here.
00:08:00.639 --> 00:08:01.920
So he's doing really well.
00:08:02.000 --> 00:08:07.680
And then we've got a couple other guys that are kind of just floating out there um for uh Pro Ball stuff.
00:08:07.920 --> 00:08:18.560
But in terms of schools that we've sent guys, I mean Dallas Baptist, uh Arizona, our shortstops at Arizona right now uh from about a couple years ago.
00:08:18.879 --> 00:08:24.879
And one of the guys that we have right now, Colin Smith, a right-handed pitcher for us, he's been you know crazy recruited.
00:08:24.959 --> 00:08:27.199
He's at Oregon State right now on a visit.
00:08:27.439 --> 00:08:31.279
Uh he's been with, you know, he went and visited Oregon, went and visited Arizona.
00:08:31.519 --> 00:08:34.960
Uh LSU called our head coach about him last week.
00:08:35.120 --> 00:08:42.080
So I mean he's talked his recruiting has been you know crazy and stuff like that, which is awesome for our um all of our guys.
00:08:42.159 --> 00:08:44.399
There's all of our sophomores are uncommitted right now.
00:08:44.559 --> 00:08:50.480
Um Mo's just kind of walking through it and a lot of position players, which happen a little bit later.
00:08:50.559 --> 00:08:53.840
Uh pitchers are, you know, as you know, the first ones to kind of go.
00:08:53.919 --> 00:08:57.759
They're the they're the hot commodity and and the thing that guys want right away.
00:08:57.919 --> 00:08:59.600
So that's kind of where we're at.
00:08:59.679 --> 00:09:12.960
But it's it's been great for our uncommitted guys and our other guys who, hey man, just because they're coming to watch our right-handed pitcher doesn't mean they don't get to see, you know, all the other guys we have because we have a really talented um upper class right now.
00:09:13.759 --> 00:09:24.159
For someone who's comparing a four-year school versus Hugo, what what are you looking to pay to go to a Juco school?
00:09:24.559 --> 00:09:29.519
Well, I mean, for us down here, we've got a really good uh we've got a really good housing combo down here.
00:09:29.679 --> 00:09:45.919
So guys get in, you know, a certain amount of credits, um, they get in their dorm room, you know, for it's it's covered once they pay the you know a certain amount of tuition credits and and then our meal plan is something that guys have to get, which is it's usually about you know$3200,$3,300 a semester.
00:09:46.080 --> 00:09:49.679
Um obviously we have athletic scholarships and stuff like that.
00:09:49.840 --> 00:10:02.320
Uh but I think if you're coming down here like no aid for an entire year, um, you know, not a not like internationally, I mean, which that's that's part of our housing combo too, and that's why we do so well internationally.
00:10:02.480 --> 00:10:09.279
You'll pay uh I think no more than I write around 12 for an entire year.
00:10:09.519 --> 00:10:15.120
So um our in-state guys, you'd be looking at, you know, under eight.
00:10:15.440 --> 00:10:24.080
So uh it's it's a really good, really good deal down here internationally, um, locally, and just in country.
00:10:24.240 --> 00:10:27.519
Uh we've got a really good situation, dorm rooms on campus.
00:10:27.679 --> 00:10:30.960
Everybody lives, all of our guys live here on campus as well.
00:10:31.120 --> 00:10:41.039
So I think from the four-year side of things, I mean, obviously the cost is a lot different, but our guys, uh it's it's really simple down here.
00:10:41.120 --> 00:10:46.720
You know, I mean, there's there's not a lot that they're getting mixed up into, and um, it's really easy.
00:10:46.799 --> 00:10:50.480
It's a it's a really easy place down here for guys to develop.
00:10:50.639 --> 00:10:51.840
Not a lot of distractions.
00:10:52.080 --> 00:10:57.200
You go to class, you go to the baseball field, you go to study hall, you go to work out, and then next day you do it again.
00:10:57.279 --> 00:11:02.960
So, I mean, it's it's a really easy thing to to just get better and and develop, man.
00:11:03.039 --> 00:11:10.240
You're not uh you're not limited at junior college like you might be at NCAA's in terms of how much you can work, how much you can practice, and how much you can do.
00:11:10.480 --> 00:11:18.240
All of our guys, like I said, live on campus, our our fields on campus, our weight rooms are on campus, training room, locker room, and I live on campus too.
00:11:18.320 --> 00:11:22.639
So I mean these I'm I'm around these guys all the time, and and whatever they need, they they get done.
00:11:22.799 --> 00:11:28.159
So well, you've played at coaches, and of course now you're a coach.
00:11:28.960 --> 00:11:33.840
What was the biggest adjustment going from a player to a coach?
00:11:34.639 --> 00:11:40.720
Probably as a coach, expecting I would say almost sometimes expecting your players to want it as much as you do.
00:11:40.879 --> 00:11:50.240
Um, and that might sound weird or different, but um, I'm a high energy dude and and I don't, you know, I there's it's foot on the gas for me.
00:11:50.399 --> 00:11:57.919
So sometimes I gotta pull the reins back and um you know, and and get into coach mode and and and stuff like that.
00:11:58.080 --> 00:12:06.559
But uh I would say the the biggest maybe a change for for us, I don't know about adjustment.
00:12:06.720 --> 00:12:12.480
Um it was a pretty easy process getting into this place down here because I had such an awesome two years.
00:12:12.639 --> 00:12:23.840
So I wasn't exactly sure when I was gonna do this, but once I the idea of wanting to get into coaching, um I never really had any other thoughts about that, especially at this place.
00:12:23.919 --> 00:12:28.320
Uh, but the biggest thing that's changed is just this place itself, our facilities.
00:12:28.559 --> 00:12:31.039
Um, that's been the craziest thing for me to see.
00:12:31.120 --> 00:12:41.759
It's how much this place has transformed really over the last 10, 15 years, but just in the last four or five with the turf infield, you know, redoing all of athletics and stuff like that.
00:12:41.840 --> 00:12:44.000
And it's it's been it's been awesome.
00:12:44.879 --> 00:12:55.519
If a parent were to be listening right now, what would you tell that parent that they should be asking before going off to play JUCO baseball?
00:12:56.720 --> 00:13:07.840
Well, the most important thing, I mean, not even just like you know, JUCO, before you set out to go play anywhere, I think the most important thing should be, you know, am I going to a place where I can where I can play?
00:13:08.000 --> 00:13:12.559
You know, am I going to a place where I'm I'm going there for a purpose?
00:13:12.720 --> 00:13:13.759
I'm going there for a reason.
00:13:13.919 --> 00:13:18.559
These these guys have showed me that they wanted me and um and stuff like that.
00:13:18.639 --> 00:13:28.639
I I think some people get a little mixed up in wanting to go to a certain school because they wear certain gear and they got all this nice stuff, and and then that's cool.
00:13:28.799 --> 00:13:29.840
That stuff's really cool.
00:13:30.000 --> 00:13:33.200
But if you're not playing, what's the you know, what's the point?
00:13:33.360 --> 00:13:37.200
You know, and obviously financials should be a huge concern as well.
00:13:37.360 --> 00:13:48.240
You know, some some younger, I know guys that are going to, you know, on some decent scholarships, you know, 50%, 60% scholarships, and they're still gonna pay$40,000 for an entire year at a school like that.
00:13:48.480 --> 00:13:55.600
So um I I would highlight JUCO as an option because you're gonna be cost effective.
00:13:55.759 --> 00:14:07.200
You're gonna have uh, like I already said earlier in the, you know, in this in this podcast, you're not competing with juniors, seniors, 24-year-old grad transfers.
00:14:07.519 --> 00:14:11.039
You're dealing with 18, 19-year-olds, 18, 19, 20-year-olds.
00:14:11.279 --> 00:14:23.840
And um one thing that our head coach kind of always talks about is the relationships that you have with your coaches here at junior college are kind of entirely different than you might have maybe at some other schools or some Division I schools.
00:14:23.919 --> 00:14:30.240
You might not talk to your head coach in a one-on-one setting uh hardly ever, you know.
00:14:30.320 --> 00:14:33.440
And here it's it's uh it's kind of like our door is right now, man.
00:14:33.519 --> 00:14:43.440
It's an open door policy in here, and uh our guys can come in here whenever if they want to know where they stand, what's you know, what where we feel about them, what they can work on, what they can improve.
00:14:43.600 --> 00:14:45.919
Uh guys can get in here whenever they want, man.
00:14:46.000 --> 00:14:51.039
So I mean you I think the relationships with your coaches, with your teammates.
00:14:51.279 --> 00:14:57.200
I've got more, you know, best friends from the two years I've played at Coach E's than anywhere else I've ever been.
00:14:57.440 --> 00:15:06.559
So um the relationships, the culture, you know, just the ability to always work and not, like I said, not be limited.
00:15:06.639 --> 00:15:10.799
Um I think all of those are you know huge highlights for the junior college route.
00:15:10.879 --> 00:15:15.200
And places like ours, man, it's like I said, there's not a ton of you know distractions.
00:15:15.279 --> 00:15:17.759
Everybody down here is kind of moving in the same direction.
00:15:17.919 --> 00:15:28.159
We've got you know, 60 to 70 percent of our people who live on this campus are athletes, and um, everyone's pretty good down here, and and like I said, everyone's got some expectations.
00:15:28.240 --> 00:15:35.600
So I think it's for us, uh, it's a really good place for people to get moved on uh because we've had a you know history and record of that.
00:15:35.679 --> 00:15:39.600
But like I said, everybody's kind of moving in the same direction down here, which I think helps.
00:15:40.320 --> 00:15:50.240
What's a typical day like for a player that you know he wakes up in the morning and there's a game later in the evening or whatever it may be?
00:15:50.480 --> 00:15:52.480
Tell me how that works for that player.
00:15:52.720 --> 00:15:57.039
If we have a home game, um, you know, they'll they'll still go to class.
00:15:57.200 --> 00:16:06.399
Uh, you know, they'll if they have an early an early class, if if not, um if we're playing on a mid midweek, you know, they'll still have classes and stuff like that.
00:16:06.480 --> 00:16:11.039
But our schedule has changed to, you know, Fridays, Saturdays in terms of conference.
00:16:11.200 --> 00:16:13.360
Um, so it's become really nice down here.
00:16:13.440 --> 00:16:17.360
Uh on a typical day, on a Friday, we'd probably play at about 2 p.m.
00:16:17.519 --> 00:16:18.000
at our place.
00:16:18.159 --> 00:16:31.679
Guys would show up at the field probably about 11.15, um, get it set up for BP, go stretch, throw, take BP, get uh get our stuff off, have the other team take BP.
00:16:31.759 --> 00:16:36.639
We'll do pregame for you know, probably 10, 15 minutes.
00:16:36.960 --> 00:16:39.759
Other team will get on there, take it, and then we'll go.
00:16:40.080 --> 00:16:44.799
But uh a really easy day on home games for sure.
00:16:44.879 --> 00:16:54.159
But even our travel schedule, you know, now that we've converted to this three-game series stuff, and we're not getting up early in the morning and traveling up to Phoenix and then traveling back.
00:16:54.320 --> 00:16:55.440
We go the day before.
00:16:55.519 --> 00:16:57.759
It's a lot nicer travel for our guys.
00:16:57.919 --> 00:17:00.639
Um, we take really nice charter buses as well.
00:17:00.720 --> 00:17:03.519
So we don't we travel nice, we stay in nice hotels.
00:17:03.600 --> 00:17:07.119
That's one thing that our head coach has always, you know, he's been big on.
00:17:07.279 --> 00:17:13.680
Uh, you know, but the more comfortable our guys are in that, uh, and they they get uncomfortable during the fall.
00:17:13.759 --> 00:17:17.359
That's when we kind of test their mental toughness and and everything like that.
00:17:17.440 --> 00:17:18.960
But the spring is a reward.
00:17:19.119 --> 00:17:21.039
Um, that's one thing I would definitely say.
00:17:21.200 --> 00:17:23.119
We we push our guys in the fall.
00:17:23.279 --> 00:17:26.000
Um, we get after it five, six days a week.
00:17:26.240 --> 00:17:31.599
And once the spring rolls around, these guys are usually, you know, comfortable being uncomfortable.
00:17:31.680 --> 00:17:41.759
They've they've dealt with some crisis, some adversity, and um, I think that's why we've been a top team and a competitive team the entire time I've been around the program.
00:17:41.839 --> 00:17:44.079
And and I think that's huge credit to our head coach.
00:17:44.160 --> 00:17:46.880
Like I said, who's been down here for 28 years.
00:17:47.200 --> 00:17:51.359
So well, this is a heart question.
00:17:52.000 --> 00:18:01.680
What's the one thing the one trait that accelerates the development in a player that gives him that opportunity to go on and play D1 baseball?
00:18:02.240 --> 00:18:06.799
And what type of player typically struggles at JUCO baseball?
00:18:07.200 --> 00:18:08.160
Mental makeup.
00:18:09.519 --> 00:18:11.759
The mental side, like right between the ears.
00:18:12.000 --> 00:18:25.440
I mean, that's uh that is the all the difference between a guy who comes down here and takes full advantage of uh being at the JUCO level where, like I said, he can work as much as he wants.
00:18:25.680 --> 00:18:29.200
Um and then the two-part question is the same answer.
00:18:29.359 --> 00:18:41.680
I mean, it's the guy that the guy that moves on is uh you know, can deal with adversity, can probably has a shorter memory than than some guys, and doesn't hang on to things as long.
00:18:41.839 --> 00:18:47.759
And um, those dudes with mental makeup kind of just push through and and always see the other side.
00:18:47.920 --> 00:18:58.480
And the guys who struggle at the junior college level and don't get better, the only guys that I've ever seen at our school that didn't get better is purely off of mental makeup.
00:18:58.640 --> 00:18:59.599
Not not talent.
00:18:59.759 --> 00:19:00.160
Talent.
00:19:00.400 --> 00:19:09.039
I mean, you're if you're coming down here and you're going to junior college or you're going and you're getting recruited, especially down to our place, we bring in 32 to 34 guys a fall.
00:19:09.200 --> 00:19:12.319
And we have 24 to 25 on our spring roster.
00:19:12.480 --> 00:19:14.319
We don't bring bodies in.
00:19:14.480 --> 00:19:20.480
Every single guy that we bring down here is is thought to compete in the spring for us and be a guy for us.
00:19:20.720 --> 00:19:31.119
So um that's definitely something, you know, down here at our place, I think the development is is huge because our guys don't there's not a lot of guys.
00:19:31.279 --> 00:19:33.920
Reps are reps are high and and stuff like that.
00:19:34.079 --> 00:19:39.440
So the mental side, though, is both both answers to your two-part question.
00:19:39.519 --> 00:19:43.519
Uh the guys that move on and the guys that persevere have that mental makeup.
00:19:43.680 --> 00:19:59.279
The guys that don't get better, and like I said, the only ones that I've ever seen not get better at this level, strictly off mental makeup and not being able to push through um whatever it is, whether it's just grinding through something or dealing with failure, uh, whatever it is.
00:19:59.680 --> 00:20:08.960
The mental side is the only thing that will push a guy or keep a guy from excelling at this level and purely developing um at a high rate.
00:20:09.119 --> 00:20:22.400
Uh, I mean, the development side is probably the easiest to scale from pitchers just because you know, offensive numbers are fleeting at times, but a velocity standpoint, our guys gain two to four every year.
00:20:22.640 --> 00:20:24.960
I mean, I think that's because of how much we throw.
00:20:25.119 --> 00:20:27.839
Uh, our guys are extremely prepared on the mound.
00:20:28.000 --> 00:20:34.960
Uh, I don't think our head coach has had an arm injury in 28 years, and that's probably credit to how much arm care and and stuff we do down here.
00:20:35.119 --> 00:20:44.640
So um, yeah, that's the biggest side development side you could see from our our side is pitcher's V lobs going up and and stuff like that.
00:20:45.599 --> 00:20:53.920
Well, give me an example of some things you do with uh because you talked about how much you guys throw and wear.
00:20:54.160 --> 00:20:59.920
Give me an example then why that you're so successful with not having a whole lot of arm injuries.
00:21:00.160 --> 00:21:00.960
Well, we do arm care.
00:21:01.200 --> 00:21:05.359
I mean, I'm I'm in charge of our strength and conditioning, which I'm not a strength and conditioning coach.
00:21:05.440 --> 00:21:07.599
I'm not gonna say, I'm not gonna put that title on myself.
00:21:07.680 --> 00:21:08.400
I'm not gonna say that.
00:21:08.480 --> 00:21:12.480
I'm not by any means, but I've been in charge of it for the last seven years.
00:21:12.799 --> 00:21:19.839
Had a really good program handed over to me by two really awesome coaches that we had down here before I got down here.
00:21:20.000 --> 00:21:27.200
When I first got here, I I volunteered for about two years and just tried to learn as much as I could from those guys and and from Coach Inglehart.
00:21:27.599 --> 00:21:30.720
But I think it's just the amount that we throw.
00:21:30.880 --> 00:21:33.599
Um, I mean, our guys they throw every day.
00:21:33.759 --> 00:21:51.519
I mean, whether you threw the day before or what, I mean, and I'm not saying you're going out and throwing long toss and we're asking these guys to, you know, max stress their arm, but these guys are so conditioned to throw that I don't think it their their body becomes just used to it and it's not demanding.
00:21:51.599 --> 00:21:58.799
And I think that's why a lot of two-way players that convert to being a pitcher don't get hurt because those guys are constantly throwing.
00:21:58.960 --> 00:22:02.000
Um, but with that, we just do a lot of arm care.
00:22:02.240 --> 00:22:14.480
Uh whether it's you know, prehab or rehab in the training room or just bands or ISTs-wise shoulder complex, whatever we're doing in the weight room, um, every day we're in there, we do an arm care.
00:22:14.640 --> 00:22:17.200
And that's not even just our pitchers, that's our position players, too.
00:22:17.279 --> 00:22:22.480
They're all asked to do the same, the same stuff from an arm care standpoint.
00:22:22.720 --> 00:22:31.680
But I would say those those two reasons, um, I mean, we run a lot too, and I think that also is a huge reason of why we don't have some injuries.
00:22:31.839 --> 00:22:34.799
Our our guys are in shape, their bodies are in shape.
00:22:35.039 --> 00:22:40.160
Um they're on a really structured throwing program throughout our fall.
00:22:40.319 --> 00:22:48.640
Uh, you know, they get down here and they're they're asked, you know, and and we demand a lot out of them, but it's everything's set up for them.
00:22:48.720 --> 00:23:01.839
When they commit, they they're on a their a program is given to them for when they step foot first day and when they leave in the at the end of the fall of what we're doing as a as a as a pitching staff and you know also as hitters as well.
00:23:02.000 --> 00:23:06.640
But pitchers are easier to kind of see that uh that development.
00:23:06.720 --> 00:23:14.880
I mean, you can see like from year to year, position players have you know more offensive numbers or uh a better average, more home runs, more RBIs, all that kind of stuff.
00:23:15.039 --> 00:23:20.000
But you can watch and then you know, and their weight and how much better their body looks and how fast they get.
00:23:20.160 --> 00:23:25.039
But pitchers you can just see from you know velocity from year to year, and it jumps and jumps and jumps.
00:23:25.119 --> 00:23:26.799
And uh, we've had some pretty good ones.
00:23:26.880 --> 00:23:32.400
I mean, we had a kid last year who's 81, 83, and he's he's 86, 87 this fall.
00:23:32.559 --> 00:23:35.039
So, I mean, that's just that's a typical jump.
00:23:35.119 --> 00:23:38.400
That's not something that we've you know been unfamiliar to see.
00:23:38.559 --> 00:23:47.680
And um, yeah, if you're a pitcher, it's a really good place to be because our head guy he completely mans that, and it's something he's been in charge of for a long time.
00:23:47.839 --> 00:23:57.920
And it's the position I would say that we've moved on more so to the you know to high levels, but that's not you know saying position players haven't moved on to some good places, too.
00:23:58.880 --> 00:24:01.839
What is your take on the transfer portal?
00:24:01.920 --> 00:24:05.200
Is it a blessing curse or both?
00:24:05.920 --> 00:24:06.880
I don't know, man.
00:24:06.960 --> 00:24:09.039
It could probably, I guess it could be both.
00:24:09.279 --> 00:24:21.599
Uh for a junior college coach like myself, uh, I don't have access to it, but I can, you know, I can call people and ask people who's in it or and stuff like that.
00:24:22.079 --> 00:24:26.960
I wouldn't say it's necessarily helped us um a ton.
00:24:27.279 --> 00:24:31.680
You know, I mean I think it's more of a curse than a blessing.
00:24:31.839 --> 00:24:41.200
Uh it's I don't think it was regulated properly before it went into existence, so I think that had a big a big reason of it's a free-for-all, man.
00:24:41.279 --> 00:24:42.799
It's like wild, wild west in there.
00:24:43.039 --> 00:24:44.880
So um I don't know.
00:24:44.960 --> 00:24:52.240
I think it I think it can teach young athletes some negative things by just jumping ship.
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