Baseball has certain sounds, smells and senses associated with it.
The crack of the bat, the roar of the crowd, the smell of fresh cut grass, and the feel of that new uniform hanging over your shoulders as you start to brim a new cap.
The Bullets are about to feel those new uniforms.
Saturday should just be marked on my calendar as a holliday. After all of the hard work of the past few months, it will start to feel VERY real on Saturday when I pick up our uniforms from Stan's Sports Center in Hoboken.
I can also officially announce that opening day for our inaugural season will occur on May 23 in North Haledon against the Twin Boro Bruins.
The North Jersey Majors Met League has a league meeting on Sunday to finalize the schedule, so I hope to have the Bullets complete 2010 schedule online at some point on Sunday or Monday.
The roster is really shaping up. I am excited by the number of quality college baseball players on the squad.
More soon. See you at the field!
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Thursday, April 22, 2010
My Coaching Philosophy
Somebody asked me once what were the core edicts of my coaching philosophy.
(Okay, honestly, no one has ever asked me that, but for the sake of this post, lets pretend I have disciples that are all looking to drink the kool-aid.)
I believe in pitching and defense.
I believe in long at-bats and on-base percentage over slugging percentage.
I believe in fundamentals and small ball. I think the squeeze bunt is every bit as powerful as the three-run home run.
I believe in team speed.
I believe heart and commitment will win more games than cockiness and bravado.
I hate nepotism, politics and favortism. As a coach, its my job to put the best players on the field for every situation. Period.
I believe smart people surround themselves with smarter people.
I believe chatter can be a powerful weapon, but in the wrong hands it can just be irritating.
I believe dedication is underrated. So is a good bullpen.
I believe the worst thing anyone can do is overcoach. I learned a long time ago, sometimes the best coaching I will ever do is sit on my hands and let the game happen. Sometimes, the best thing I can do is trust the players on the field.
I believe in the double-play, the crooked innings, battling back from an 0-2 count. I believe in doubles to the gap and double plays. I believe two-strike hits can destroy a pitcher and two-out errors can destroy a team.
I believe a great left-handed pitcher can carry you to a title. And one cancer on the roster can destroy you.
Above all else I believe that baseball is a great game. A game that I have been lucky enough to be a part of my entire life. Its a game that can teach us about life and can make life more bearable. It served as a distraction in my toughest hours, bound my family tightly together, and helped lead me to my wife.
Some days it motivates me and others it distracts me from the aggravations of the daily grind.
I always just hope I leave it stronger than it has made me, but I doubt that that is possible.
More soon. Hopefully, I'll have enough player fees in this weekend that I can begin disclosing our roster.
Have a great evening!
(Okay, honestly, no one has ever asked me that, but for the sake of this post, lets pretend I have disciples that are all looking to drink the kool-aid.)
I believe in pitching and defense.
I believe in long at-bats and on-base percentage over slugging percentage.
I believe in fundamentals and small ball. I think the squeeze bunt is every bit as powerful as the three-run home run.
I believe in team speed.
I believe heart and commitment will win more games than cockiness and bravado.
I hate nepotism, politics and favortism. As a coach, its my job to put the best players on the field for every situation. Period.
I believe smart people surround themselves with smarter people.
I believe chatter can be a powerful weapon, but in the wrong hands it can just be irritating.
I believe dedication is underrated. So is a good bullpen.
I believe the worst thing anyone can do is overcoach. I learned a long time ago, sometimes the best coaching I will ever do is sit on my hands and let the game happen. Sometimes, the best thing I can do is trust the players on the field.
I believe in the double-play, the crooked innings, battling back from an 0-2 count. I believe in doubles to the gap and double plays. I believe two-strike hits can destroy a pitcher and two-out errors can destroy a team.
I believe a great left-handed pitcher can carry you to a title. And one cancer on the roster can destroy you.
Above all else I believe that baseball is a great game. A game that I have been lucky enough to be a part of my entire life. Its a game that can teach us about life and can make life more bearable. It served as a distraction in my toughest hours, bound my family tightly together, and helped lead me to my wife.
Some days it motivates me and others it distracts me from the aggravations of the daily grind.
I always just hope I leave it stronger than it has made me, but I doubt that that is possible.
More soon. Hopefully, I'll have enough player fees in this weekend that I can begin disclosing our roster.
Have a great evening!
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Bullets Secure Westvale Field for 2010 Home Games
After spending months hunting for a home field, the South Bergen Bullets will spend 2010 at Westvale Field in Westwood.
The facility is located in Westvale Park on Harrington Avenue and Sand Road in Westwood.
Honestly, after talking to every recreation director in Bergen and Hudson counties over the past three months, I am ecstatic about this facility.
To take you inside the process for a moment, we had set up to play at Breslin Stadium in Lyndhurst this summer, but that field is being turfed this summer and we were left to find a new home.
I assumed after volunteering in Rutherford for 15 years that a few well-placed phone calls would be enough to secure a facility.
I was very wrong.
I also assumed that I would have my pick of facilities, complete with lights and a fence.
I was very wrong.
With more teams popping up annually, fields are at a premium and towns are interested in profiting from their facilities. I was amazed at some of the prices that I was quoted.
I was even more surprised at the hoops that we were asked to jump through. Tom Byrne, who has tirelessly worked on this initiative for months, spent many hours going from rec department to rec department trying to negotiate.
Most directors didn't care or (worse) tried to profit from our conundrum.
Westwood's director worked with us and never tried to profit from our unfortunate circumstances. (Though, I probably would've offered my first born to get this field if necessary.)
Now, I am beginning the process of scheduling our home games.
Wish me luck!
The facility is located in Westvale Park on Harrington Avenue and Sand Road in Westwood.
Honestly, after talking to every recreation director in Bergen and Hudson counties over the past three months, I am ecstatic about this facility.
To take you inside the process for a moment, we had set up to play at Breslin Stadium in Lyndhurst this summer, but that field is being turfed this summer and we were left to find a new home.
I assumed after volunteering in Rutherford for 15 years that a few well-placed phone calls would be enough to secure a facility.
I was very wrong.
I also assumed that I would have my pick of facilities, complete with lights and a fence.
I was very wrong.
With more teams popping up annually, fields are at a premium and towns are interested in profiting from their facilities. I was amazed at some of the prices that I was quoted.
I was even more surprised at the hoops that we were asked to jump through. Tom Byrne, who has tirelessly worked on this initiative for months, spent many hours going from rec department to rec department trying to negotiate.
Most directors didn't care or (worse) tried to profit from our conundrum.
Westwood's director worked with us and never tried to profit from our unfortunate circumstances. (Though, I probably would've offered my first born to get this field if necessary.)
Now, I am beginning the process of scheduling our home games.
Wish me luck!
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
T-Minus 34 Days
The South Bergen Bullets inaugural season in the North Jersey Majors Met League will begin on May 23.
Its exciting just to type that sentence.
I've been hard at work with Ryan Kiczek, Nick Ackermann, Tom Byrne and Tony Frisina (along with a significant assist from my wife) since the beginning of the year to assemble this year's team.
While working as an assistant coach for the past four year for the Lyndhurst Legion, I had taken for granted all of the work that goes on behind the scenes.
Desinging uniforms, securing insurance, creating a schedule, and finding a home field were never a concern for me over the past four years. Jerry Sparta magically took care of everything and left me and the other coaches to worry about the pressing matter of assembling a roster.
I live for scouting and recruiting and we are steadily developing a roster that we can all really be proud of.
Over the next few weeks, players will be sending in their fee and (as they do) I will proudly begin to announce our roster, which will consist of some great college players from across the area. Over that time, I will also release our schedule and give you a peek at the Bullets new uniforms and our home field.
Yes, we are the South Bergen Bullets - but we will be playing our home games in NORTHERN Bergen County.
This season promises to be exciting. I can't promise wins and losses, but I can promise any team that I coach will work hard. I've been coaching baseball since 1994 and I've never had a team not work hard.
Stay tuned. I promise nothing but my best.
Its exciting just to type that sentence.
I've been hard at work with Ryan Kiczek, Nick Ackermann, Tom Byrne and Tony Frisina (along with a significant assist from my wife) since the beginning of the year to assemble this year's team.
While working as an assistant coach for the past four year for the Lyndhurst Legion, I had taken for granted all of the work that goes on behind the scenes.
Desinging uniforms, securing insurance, creating a schedule, and finding a home field were never a concern for me over the past four years. Jerry Sparta magically took care of everything and left me and the other coaches to worry about the pressing matter of assembling a roster.
I live for scouting and recruiting and we are steadily developing a roster that we can all really be proud of.
Over the next few weeks, players will be sending in their fee and (as they do) I will proudly begin to announce our roster, which will consist of some great college players from across the area. Over that time, I will also release our schedule and give you a peek at the Bullets new uniforms and our home field.
Yes, we are the South Bergen Bullets - but we will be playing our home games in NORTHERN Bergen County.
This season promises to be exciting. I can't promise wins and losses, but I can promise any team that I coach will work hard. I've been coaching baseball since 1994 and I've never had a team not work hard.
Stay tuned. I promise nothing but my best.
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